• Yoni Goldstein: Good riddance to Ehud Olmert
  Ehud Olmert, the current Israeli Prime Minister who announced on Wednesday his intentions to step down as leader of the ruling Kadima party in September, will leave no legacy at all.

• Olmert Did Not Yet Resign: He Holds On to the Reigns of Power

• McCain Gains Better Control of Message
  Sen. John McCain, known for his lengthy exchanges with reporters, has cut back on the time he spends with the national press, as his campaign tries to better control its daily message.

• Jonah Goldberg: The Spoiled Children of Capitalism
  It’s an old story. Loving parents provide a generous environment for their offspring.

• Obama’s GOP Support Groups
  I suppose I have to accept the insanity that some glassy-eyed Republicans are considering voting for Barack Obama, but I don’t have to like it.

• Barack Obama and Defining Anti-Americanism Downwards

Hate-Crime Investigation After Cops Say Church Shooting Suspect ‘Hated’ Gays, Liberals
By FoxNews.com Staff Writer

Authorities on Monday said the man charged with murder in a Tennessee church shooting left a four-page letter that detailed his frustration at being unemployed, his hatred of gays and liberals, and his expectation that he would be killed by responding police.

Article Continues… (FoxNews.com)

As a conservative, how should I respond to this? I guess I should point out that someone who’s obviously mentally unstable doesn’t represent us all, and opening fire at any public venue won’t fix anything.

Mostly, I hope the insanity of the shooter doesn’t overshadow the fact that 2 people are dead simply because they chose to go to church on a Sunday morning. These families need far more support than the shooter needs media coverage.

Porn film made at First World War memorial
By Peter Allen

Pornography has become the latest threat to graves and memorials on the First World War battlefields of northern France.

Article Continues… (Telegraph.co.uk)

I just don’t know what to say here. Have we really reached this point as a society? Is it now okay to desecrate war memorials in order to make a few bucks off of internet porn?

Palestinian President Abbas Undergoes Unannounced Heart Procedure
By AP Staff Writer

JERUSALEM — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas underwent an unannounced heart test at a Jordanian hospital on Thursday, adding new uncertainty to already troubled peace talks.

Article Continues… (FoxNews.com)

Abbas is not the “peace partner” Israel and the U.S. want him to be. However, as the old saying goes, it’s better to deal with the enemy you know than the enemy you don’t. Abbas time on the World stage is coming to a close, and the prospects for a replacement are downright scary.

‘Israel ethnically cleansing e. J’lem’
By Jpost.com Staff and AP

Israel is attempting to ethnically cleanse east Jerusalem of its Arab residents by preventing them from constructing houses and separating them from the West Bank, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas claimed Thursday in a speech at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit in Senegal.

“Our people in east Jerusalem face a plan for ethnic cleansing [as a result of] a series of Israeli decisions such as heavier taxes, building restrictions and the closing of Palestinian institutions, in addition to the city’s separation from the West Bank with the racist separation fence,” he stated.

Article Continues… (Jerusalem Post)

First of all, Israel is cleansing East Jerusalem of terrorists, they have never had a problem with Arabs living in Israel.

Second, would Abu Mazen approve if Israel used the Palestinian version of ethnic cleansing: missiles, suicide bombers, etc.?

By HonestReporting Staff

A look at the context behind Israel’s military ops in Gaza.

Loss of human life in a conflict is invariably an ugly situation and one that creates intense media interest. Such is the case of Israel’s military operations in Gaza that are currently making international headline news. However, the focus on Palestinian casualties ignores the context behind Israel’s actions and only tells a part of the real story.

Article Continues… (HonestReporting)

By Leah Morse

(IsraelNN.com) “Mahmoud Abbas is a fraud and not interested in peace,” said Morton Klein, President of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA), in an interview with Arutz Sheva at the fifth annual Jerusalem Conference. “He is just trying to get as much as he can through negotiations that he could not get through any sort of war.”

Article Continues (with an audio clip)… (Arutz Sheva)

It’s about time someone said it!

In nations that fiercely protect freedom of speech, is there an obligation to pay to protect those who brazenly criticize Islam? As outspoken Islam critic Ayaan Hirsi Ali visits France, this is the question citizens are asking.

Click here for video (France 24)

This is a debate that includes Robert Spencer.

By Leah Stern

Israel 21c

By JPOST.COM STAFF AND JUDY SEIGEL

A heavy snowfall blanketed Jerusalem and the surrounding areas Tuesday night and was continuing to fall Wednesday. As expected, the Jerusalem Municipality decided to cancel school in the capital for the day due to the slippery streets. University classes were also canceled, as well as kindergartens and preschools. There were also no classes in Gush Etzion, Ofra, Kochav Ya’acov, Tel Zion, Ma’ale Levona, Eli, Shilo and Beit El.

Article Continues… (Jerusalem Post)

Make sure to check out the video clip included with the story.

Maybe living in Colorado for close to a decade has made me a little jaded in this area, but I really get a kick out of watching people who aren’t use to snow try to cope with it. However, on a practical level, I think I read somewhere that Israel may be facing a drought due to a lack of precipitation, so this is a definite blessing.

UPDATE: Chris Mitchell at CBN has posted some snow video.

UPDATE II: Yahoo has a slide show (including pics of Jordan & Israel).

HT: Israpundit

Israelis marked 60 years since the United Nations approved the creation of a Jewish state.

Israeli newspapers and broadcasters carried extensive commentary Thursday marking the 60th anniversary of the passing of U.N. General Assembly Resolution 181, which called for the partition of British Mandate Palestine into a Jewish state and an Arab state.

Full Article (JTA)

In the midst of a lot of bad, there’s still a reason to celebrate!

A minor earthquake was felt throughout Israel early Saturday.

The quake, which occurred at approximately 12:15 a.m., lasted several seconds and was felt across various cities in central Israel as well as in some of its more northerly towns. The quake measured at 4.2 on the Richter scale, and its epicenter was located in central Israel, Army Radio reported.

Full Article (Jerusalem Post)

Let’s see…

During the 2005 disengagement Hurricane Katrina hit the U.S., and during this peace conference Israel looks to be on the verge of a big earthquake. Why, oh why, do natural disasters and Israel giving away land seen to go hand in hand?

A recently exposed joint document by the General Security Service (Shin Bet), the Mossad and military intelligence states that “even if understandings are reached in Annapolis, the chances of implementing them in the field are almost zero.”

Army Radio reported Thursday morning that Israel’s intelligence community considers Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas a powerless leader, who even has difficulty controlling car thieves and drug dealers in his own territory.

Full Article (Jerusalem Post)

You know, I really think this article is stating what anyone not named Olmert, Rice, or Bush already knows.

(IsraelNN.com) Addressing a seminar at the Sderot Conference on Social and Economic Policy on Tuesday, Lieutenant-Colonel Shlomi Avraham discussed some of the latest IDF conscription statistics. According to Lieut.-Col. Avraham, head of the IDF’s Technology

Manpower and Research Directorate, 28 percent of Israeli youth eligible for the draft are not being recruited into the ranks of the armed forces. Among them, 5 percent are draft-dodgers and the rest are exempt as a matter of policy.

Full Article (Arutz Sheva)

I saw a figure in some anti-Israel video the other day claiming that Israel has the largest number of draft dodgers in the world. However, while 28% would be high, 5% isn’t. Not serving and draft-dodging are two different things.

Isn’t it amazing what one can accomplish with a little skewed interpretation?

HT: LGF

Another clip from MEMRI, which can be found here.

This is one of those things where a kernel of truth has been stretched into a humongous lie.

Jimmy Carter won in 2002, Yasser Arafat won it in 1994, in 1939 this guy was nominated, and in 1945 this guy was nominated.

So, no, the Nobel Peace Prize has no credibility.

I found the last two links over at Little Green Footballs.