Geert Wilders on Europe: Israel is the litmus proof
Dutch politician Geert Wilders spoke in Los Angeles on Sunday and gave a brilliant speech about the future of Europe. You can find the full speech here. I'd like to share one part of it with you (Hat Tip: Herb G).
In the coming weeks and months, I will try to see as many patriot
leaders in Europe as possible. And I always ask them for their views on
Israel. Because Israel is the litmus proof.
The Jewish people did exactly the opposite of what the Europeans did
after the Second World War. They drew the right conclusion. They
realized that without a nation-state of their own there could be no
safety for their people.
Without a nation-state, without self-governance, without
self-determination there can be no security for a people nor
preservation of its identity. This was the insight that led the Zionists
to strive for the re-establishment of the state of Israel. Theodore
Herzl said that there had to be a Jewish state in order to ensure – I
quote – "a new blossoming of the Jewish spirit." – end of quote.
Indeed, a soul needs a body. The spirit of a people cannot flourish
outside the body of the nation-state. The nation-state is the political
body in which we live. We must preserve and cherish it. So that we can
pass on to our children our national identity, our democracy, our
liberty.
My friends, what we need today is Zionism for the nations of Europe.
The Europeans need to follow the example of the Jewish people and
re-establish their nation-state.
And that, my dear friends, is why every patriot, apart from being a
democrat, by definition also has to be a true friend of Israel. A
patriot cannot be anti-Semitic.
My friends, the great Zionist leader Ze'ev Jabotinsky said about the
Jewish people: "We do not have to apologize for anything. We are a
people as all other peoples; we do not have any intentions to be better
than the rest. We do not have to account to anybody. We are what we are,
we are good for ourselves, we will not change, nor do we want to." –
end of quote.
...
Let us emphasize this commitment to the resurgence of our national
pride with a symbolic gesture. Let us do so by endorsing the Jewish
nation-state and move the embassies of our countries from Tel Aviv to
Jerusalem. Let us fly the flags of all the free and proud nations of the
world over embassies in Jerusalem, the only true capital of Israel and
the cradle of our Judeo-Christian civilization.
Israel deserves our support. Not only because it is the frontline
against the totalitarian threat of Islam, but also because it shows how
important it is for a people to have its own homeland.
The Dutch government’s attitude toward Israel may change radically after the upcoming elections. Polls indicate that the two largest parties will be the Liberals of Prime Minister Mark Rutte and the rapidly increasing extreme left Socialist Party (SP.) Each of them is likely to win about 30 seats. The largest parties of the past decades, Labor and the Christian Democrats, will decline further and are expected to lose respectively about 10 and five seats from their present 30 and 21.
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The possibility of a new government led by SP leader Emile Roemer including Labor, the small Green Party and the left-wing liberals of D66 cannot be excluded. It is likely to be strongly anti-Israel. SP says in its election program that The Netherlands will support a two-state solution. This is eyewash to look halfway respectable. SP also states that it will recognize an independent Palestinian state and make efforts for it to become a member of the United Nations.
If SP succeeds, The Netherlands will support an international dialogue with all representatives of the Palestinians. This means that for SP, Hamas, with its platform promoting genocide of Jews, is an acceptable discussion partner. There is no word of rebuke in the SP platform for these potential mass murderers.
Furthermore, SP says that “As long as Israel continues to build illegally houses in occupied territory The Netherlands will condemn this and pressure the EU to suspend the association agreement with Israel which gives it fiscal advantages in exports to the countries of the EU.”
The party-program of the Green Party goes in the same direction of anti-Israel bias. It falsely claims to base itself on international law. If that were so it should have tried to bring Iran’s leaders before an international court because of their transgression of the UN genocide convention. The same steps should be promoted with respect to the Hamas leaders, advocating mass murder.
Yet the Greens have no intention of doing so. They, however, want to “search for support to suspend the association agreement with the EU if Israel continues to break international law and human rights.”
In case you're wondering, Geert Wilders' party is predicted to come in third and to be in opposition. They still oppose shchita, and advocate for an even more radical law than the one that narrowly failed last year.
Geert Wilders, head of the party, and its Mideast expert, deputy Wim Kortenoeven, accused Turkey of abandoning its allies – Israel earlier this year, and now France.
Turkey severed diplomatic and military ties with France last week, over the French parliamentary resolution on the current Turkish government’s reaction to the Ottoman Empire’s massacre of Christian Armenians in 1915. The empire preceded the modern secular Turkish state founded in 1923, and the French deemed the state’s denial that these events represented genocide to be punishable by a monetary fine.
France is a leading member of the NATO military alliance, as is Holland.
Kortenoeven, a leading European specialist on the Mideast and author of several books on the region, told The Jerusalem Post that since Turkey has a short but disturbing history of abandoning allies, it could be a lethal mistake to entrust them with the custody of a crucial element of the new Western/European defense system against nuclear rogue states such as Iran and Pakistan. The Dutch lawmakers asked that the slated missile shield to be installed in Turkey be reconsidered.
The party’s military spokesman, Marcial Hernandez, also posed questions to the ministries regarding Turkey’s reliability as a NATO partner.
Wilders' party stands up to the Islamist governments
Geert Wilders' Freedom party, part of the Dutch governing coalition, stood up to both Iran and Turkey over the weekend. This is from the first link (Benny Weinthal in the JPost).
Wim Kortenoeven, a deputy from the Party for Freedom, told The Jerusalem Post in a telephone interview from The Hague on Friday that his party had worked to pass a potent measure.
“Now for the practical execution of our resolution, which was unanimously supported in parliament. The foreign minister should be in the forefront of demanding the most forceful sanctions. And he is doing that. There is still a window of opportunity. There seems to be a willingness in Europe to go far in the sanctions and even to follow the initiatives of the US Congress.
But at the same time there seems to be a reluctance on the part of the US government where it concerns targeting the Iranian Central Bank. And boycotting that entity is probably the key for our success,” Kortenoeven said.
Kortenoeven, 56, one of Europe’s most prominent advocates for Israel’s security, spearheaded the passage of the parliamentary resolution.
According to the text, “the Islamic Republic of Iran violates the NPT and the IAEA suspects Iran of illegally developing nuclear weapons and illegal ballistic delivery systems.”
The resolution urges that “fast-working and effective sanctions must be imposed in order to force Iran to abandon the illegal nuclear program and open up completely to the IAEA,” and, “ultimate means should be used, if necessary, so as to prevent the need for military intervention.”
The resolution states that “measures should hurt the Iranian regime in its heart in order to compel them to compliance,” and, “calls on the [Dutch] government to take the lead with European and American allies in order to impose swift and effective sanctions.”
The Dutch resolution appears to be the only European legislative motion to slam Iran after the International Atomic Energy Agency report confirmed that Tehran is developing nuclear weapons designs.
Holland actually proposed that the EU cut off relations with Iran altogether, but that resolution did not pass. Read the whole thing.
Also over the weekend, Wilders himself announced his opposition to a planned visit by Turkish President Abdullah Gul because Turkey is an Islamist regime.
Gul has been invited to visit the Netherlands next year, when the two countries will celebrate 400 years of relations.
Wilders said in a commentary in the Dutch daily De Volkskrant that Gul should stay in Ankara.
“There is nothing to celebrate. The Islamist regime of Gul and his party member and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan is not a true friend of the West and therefore neither of the Netherlands,” Wilders said.
“Everywhere Erdogan comes, he calls on Turkish immigrants to not adapt. Turkey does not want to become European but wants to islamise Europe,” Wilders said.
A breath of fresh air. Does anyone really doubt that's the AKP's goal? Then why are so many other people and politicians afraid to say it?
It's not easy to be a critic of Islam living in Europe these days. You have to move around more than Ismail Haniyeh to make sure that the Islamists don't get you. Giulio Meotti talks to some of the prominent Europeans who are on the run for criticizing Islam.
Charlie Hebdo is the latest in a series of "blasphemous pencils" – European cartoonists, writers and journalists threatened with death for their criticism about Islam. They are people who need a level of personal protection unconceivable even in Israel, a country well-known for its attention to security. And it happens all over Europe.
Kurt Westergaard is the most famous of them. I spoke with him immediately after the attack in Paris. Westergaard is the Danish artist who created the controversial cartoon of the Prophet wearing a bomb in his turban: "Few days ago the police discovered another terrorist plan to attack my newspaper, the Jyllands Posten," Westergaard said. "My house is protected as a bunker with cameras. I am always guarded by the policemen. Few months ago I had to attend a book presentation in Oslo. But the day before the Norwegian police asked me to cancel the event due to the terrorist threats."
Five years after the publication of the cartoons, Westergaard still needs the same level of security of a Danish prime minister. "I am not a brave man, but I am 76-years-old and have less fear of dying", the cartoonist said. "The terrorists won’t silence me in the battle for the freedom of expression."
Visiting the Jyllands Posten’s office is like entering a US embassy in an Arab country. The newspaper had erected a 2.5-metre high, one-kilometer long barbed-wire fence, complete with electronic surveillance, around its headquarters in Visby. Mail is scanned and newspaper staff members need ID cards to enter the buildings and the various floors.
...
The office of Geert Wilders, the Dutch MP famous for his critics of Islam, lies in the most isolated corner of Parliament. It was chosen because potential terrorists can get through only one corridor, making it easier to protect him. Even the pencils of visitors are searched by the police. Wilders’ entourage is anonymous. He even slept for a while in a military barrack for security reasons. When the alert level is high, Wilders doesn’t know where he will spend the night.
"I could go to a restaurant, but the police should empty it before my arrival," Wilders once told me.
At the University of Leiden, Rembrandt’s famous city, the office of Professor Afshin Ellian is protected by bulletproof walls and policemen. "In Holland Rousseau, Locke, Sade and Spinoza were able to publish their books," Ellian said during our meeting in Leiden. "Holland was the hope of Europe. But it’s no more. Now there is an atmosphere of fear if you criticize Islam."
Dutch Freedom party MP blasts Turkey at international conference
At the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Dubrovnik on Sunday, Dutch Freedom party representative Wim Kortenoeven blasted Turkish imperialism. Here's the part of his speech that relates to Israel:
Mister chairman,
Turkey, a member state of NATO, is also increasingly belligerent towards the Jewish State of Israel. Threats and baseless accusations are issued against Israel – ever more frequently. And provocations are rampant. Israeli freighters are harressed by Turkish warships.
Turkey also objects to Israel’s legitimate desire to drill for natural gas in its own exclusive economic zone. Turkish warships are backing up threats against Israel’s sovereignty.
A simple mistake in this combustible situation might spark a military confrontation.
Also troubling and dangerous are Turkey’s sympathy for the Hamas terror organization and Turkey’s attempts to undermine Israel’s legitimate right to supervise the maritime routes to Gaza.
The Freedom party is Geert Wilders' party so these sentiments are not quite so surprising. The real question is how many other Europeans agree with them and whether they will act on those beliefs.
When I want to post things, I post them to LiveLeak. LiveLeak posted Geert Wilders' FITNA, and kept it up long enough to let it be mirrored all over the world (until the lives of LiveLeak's proprietors in England were threatened). Then when things calmed down, it was uploaded again. Yes, it's still there. LiveLeak doesn't take anything down as a rule.
By the way, this morning on Twitter, someone accused me of defending Islam. I knew you'd all get a kick out of that. I figured this was an appropriate post in which to mention it.
Since Anders Behring Breivik murdered 76 Norwegians two weeks ago, there have been numerous accusations made of ties between Israel (as in the Israeli government) and various organizations of the European Right. Some of the ties are real, others involve individual MK's and not the government. Some of the European counterparts are legitimate conservative parties while others might better be considered part of the 'radical right.' Benny Weinthal tries to sort things out.
Prof. Barry Rubin, an Israeli Middle East expert and director of the Global Research in International Affairs Center at the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, said the depiction of connections between the Netanyahu government and the FPÖ is “very misleading.”
“The only real link that can be shown is one or two members of parliament [the Knesset] acting alone. Israel has boycotted the Austrian FPÖ – a point the article deliberately ignored – and there are no Israeli officials who have met with these parties in any direct way. The real story, then, is the exact opposite: how limited Israel’s contacts are with parties that proclaim they are pro-Israel,” Rubin said.
He continued that “a few months ago the Israeli Embassy in London took the unprecedented step of condemning the English Defense League. I’m not passing judgment on these different parties, but clearly there are hardly any ties between Israel and any of them, and that means both Israel’s government and major political forces in Israel.”
Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld, an Israeli who has written several books on Norwegian- Israeli relations, said Europe is “in a totally confused situation.”
In contrast to the Spiegel report, Gerstenfeld does not see a unified politically right-wing movement in Europe. Besides the liberal and conservative Right, there are three types of right-of-center political organizations, he said. The Progress Party in Norway and Geert Wilders Party for Freedom are pro-Israel and stay away from anything that “smells of Nazism.”
Italy’s Northern League falls into a second category on the European Right. It is primarily a separatist movement.
The third component includes Belgium’s Vlaams Blok party, the neo-fascist Italian Social Movement, the British National Party, France’s National Front, and Austria’s FPÖ, which, according to Gerstenfeld, meet the standard of radical right-wing groups.
Gerstenfeld said the FPÖ, for example, along with other radical-rightist parties “are people on the European Right who think they can whitewash themselves with ties to Israel.
“Israel is in the forefront of the enormous totalitarian threat to all humanity coming to out of the world of Islam, which also threatens Muslim moderates, Europe and anything Western. Former prime minister of Spain Jose Maria Aznar also sees it this way and wrote an article saying that if Israel goes down, the entire West goes down,” said Gerstenfeld.
Read the whole thing. For those who have forgotten or who lump all of the European Right into one big group, you may want to watch this speech by former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, which I was privileged to attend last year.
Islamophobic parties in Europe have established a tight network, stretching from Italy to Finland. But recently, they have extended their feelers to Israeli conservatives, enjoying a warm reception from members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition. Some in Israel believe that the populists are Europe's future.
...
The reason for the growing focus on Israel is not difficult to divine. "On the one hand," Strache told SPIEGEL ONLINE in a recent interview, "we are seeing great revolutions taking place in the Middle East. But one can't be totally sure that other interests aren't behind them and that, in the end, we might see Islamist theocracies surrounding Israel and in Europe's backyard."
In other words, in the battle against what right-wing populists see as the creeping Islamization of Europe, Israel is on the front line.
...
Many in Israel see it the same way. Eliezer Cohen, known in Israel by his nickname "Cheetah," says that leftist parties in both Europe and Israel have lost their way. Cohen, a decorated Israeli air force colonel now in retirement, is a former member of the Knesset with Yisrael Beiteinu, the hardline nationalist party led by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman that currently governs together in a coalition with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party.
"Right-wing politicians in Europe are more sensitive to the dangers facing Israel," Cohen, who gave a keynote address during Dutch right-wing leader Geert Wilders' visit to Berlin last October, told SPIEGEL ONLINE. "They are talking the exact same language as Likud and others on the Israeli right. I'm too old for bullshitting -- we hope the right wing wins out in Europe."
Kara sounds no different. "I am looking for ways to lessen the Islamic influence in the world," Kara told the Israeli daily Maariv in June. "I believe that is the true Nazism in this world. I am the partner of everyone who believes in the existence of this war."
I have no problem with figures on Israel's Right having connections with Right wing parties in Europe so long as those Right wing parties are not anti-Semitic when they are not dealing with Israel. Some people would call that realpolitik. And as I have noted on numerous occasions, one of the rules in the very tough Middle East is that my enemy's enemy is my fried. I know that sounds like a cliche, and so does, "nations don't have friends, they have interests." But there's a lot of truth in those sayings.
In fact, most of the Right wing parties in Europe are not, as I understand it, anti-Semitic, although some of them have anti-Semitic pasts. Every time I hear someone accuse Geert Wilders of anti-Semitism, I dismiss them as having an agenda.
To use a broad brush to tar all of the European Right with blame for Breivik's actions is outrageous. The Likud and the parties on the Right in Europe are no more to blame for Breivik's actions than Noam Chomsky is for Osama Bin Laden's actions.
Dutch politician Geert Wilders has been found not guilty on all counts in a series of charges related to defaming Islam. Details here (I am live blogging Shimon Peres in a few minutes).
The delegation of senior European parliamentarians toured Samaria's Jewish communities Monday as guests of the Samaria Liaison Office, which said the group was “unprecedented” in its political importance. The parliamentarians learned from up close about the strategic value of the region and visited sites of historic and biblical significance.
The delegation included 35 senior European parliamentarians from Austria, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Britain and Sweden, including some who are believed likely to one day head their countries. Germany, Austria and Italy, under extreme right-wing parties, were at the heart of the Axis that fought a genocidal war against the Jewish nation and a war of conquest against the Allied Powers in the 1930's and 40's.
A spokesman for the Shomron (Samaria) local authority explained that most of the visitors were from what is known as the “New Right” in Europe. These are parties that support Israel, renounce anti-Semitism and see the Islamic takeover of Europe as a clear danger, the Samaria spokesman said. Most of the touring parliamentarians were Christians, while some were Jews. The visitors agreed that Judea and Samaria constitute Jewish land.
The group included Heinz-Christian Strache, head of the German Freedom Party, who is seen as a likely candidate to become the next chancellor of Austria; Filip Dewinter of Belgium's Vlaams Belang party; MP Frank Creyelman, who heads the Belgian Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee; René Stadtkewitz, Chairman of Germany's Freedom Party; and Claus Pandi, editor-in-chief of Krone Zeitung, the biggest newspaper in Austria. The visit coincides with that of Dutch Freedom Party leader Geert Wilders in Israel.
The parliamentarians visited secular and religious communities including Barkan, Elon Moreh and Har Bracha, in order to get a better understanding of Jewish residents' motivation for living in the contested biblical land.
If the European Right starts siding with us, that would be wonderful. By the way, that's David H talking at the end of the video.
Video: Geert Wilders' speech at the 'Jordan is Palestine' conference
In an earlier post, I pointed to the text of Geert Wilders' address on Sunday to the 'Jordan is Palestine' conference. I am sure that many of you did not get through reading the entire speech. To be honest with you, I posted it in the middle of the night Sunday night, and had not read it myself before I posted it.
But Wilders' speech is too important to miss, because the man speaks the truth, unlike most of the World, and unfortunately unlike most of its Jews. So I have found the video of Wilders' speech and I am going to post it below. PLEASE WATCH THESE VIDEOS! The speech has three parts and after the third part, I will have some additional material for you. And with that, here's Part 1.
Let's go to the videotape.
Here's Part 2. Let's go to the videotape.
Here's Part 3. Let's go to the videotape.
In his introduction to Wilders' speech Andrew Bostom adds:
It is now painfully apparent that Barack Hussein Obama's dull-witted adherence to Franz Fanon, "Wretched of the Earth"-inspired Third Worldism could be described as,
For Obama, Islam IS Third Worldism
Perhaps that is why our Manchild President cares so little for Israel -- certainly its Jewish inhabitants, and their government -- Israel being the only modern, fully functioning pluralistic democracy amidst a barren landscape of Arab Muslim nations and their fanatical theocratic, thugocratic, kleptocratic, and just plain lunocratic "governments." But it is to these irredentist Islamic societies that the Manchild pays homage.
In stark contrast to our President, Netherlands PPV Leader Geert Wilders offered the following uncompromised, historically accurate support of the State of Israel, today (December 5, 2010):
The contrast between the Jew-hating Muslim lover in the White House and the much-maligned Geert Wilders could not be greater. Wilders enjoys clarity of thought and historical accuracy. Obama, by contrast, is living a lie.
Yedioth's weekend Hebrew edition interviewed Dutch politician Geert Wilders over the weekend. The translated interview appears at Gates of Vienna (Hat Tip: Tundra Tabloids). Here are some excerpts.
In two weeks Wilders is coming for a visit to Israel as a guest of a parliament member Ariel Eldad. He is invited to participate in a conference against the two-state solution.
“Israel is the lighthouse and the only democracy in this backward and dictatorial part of the world,” he proclaims. “Israel is very close to us, to our European identity. Israel fights our war.”
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Wilders (47) is one of the most ardent and loud of Israel’s supporters in Europe, and contrary to many others he does not bother to hide this. He had even insisted on including in the platform of the new Dutch government the intention to improve relations with Israel.
“I am very glad that Israel is the only country mentioned by name in the platform; this will get it the needed attention,” he said “We are Israel’s best friends and we will support it in any way possible.” He bursts out laughing when asked about allegations of his being an “Israeli agent”.
“Common!” he says “It is obvious that I am not an Israel’s spy. It is insane. I am a Dutch politician and I work for Holland and what is best for its citizens. But I am a friend of Israel, and I am not afraid to say so. Because of my open support of Israel, people who do not like me invent these stories. The Iranian press states that I am a Mossad agent. Jordanians call me Shabak’s man. It’s nonsense.”
His romance with Israel started when he was 17 years old and came here to work as a volunteer for a year. “I enjoyed it very much, and not only because of the beautiful Israeli girls,” he recalls. “I was not involved in politics back then at all. I worked in the tourist industry in Eilat, a bakery plant in Jerusalem, and the cooperative settlement Tomar in the Jordan Valley. I went through some tense times in Tomar because the border with Jordan was not very secure. We had to take shelter from time to time when terrorists managed to cross over. We saw the arrival of IDF helicopters — for someone from the south of Holland who went to Amsterdam just a few times, those were very impressive experiences.”
Over the years Wilders visited many Muslim countries, including Iran, Iraq, Syria, Tunisia and Afghanistan. “I’ve met with some very friendly people over there, too,” he clarifies, “but the power in those countries is in the hands of the dictators. These people deserve better living conditions.”
He has many friends in Israel, and some of them are politicians. He had a very warm relationship with Ariel Sharon for example, whom he still admires. “Sharon was demonized in the West, too, but he was a great politician, and I take an example from him,” Wilders emphasizes.
“I believe that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians is not territorial. Anyone who claims otherwise has no idea what he is talking about. If you gave up Western Bank and East Jerusalem and let the Palestinians have it, that would not end the conflict. It will take some time — a month, a year, ten years — but they will demand the rest of your country, because it is an ideological conflict. The solution therefore could not be territorial; it has to be ideological.
“Palestinians believe — and this is the nature of Islam — that Israel is theirs, and through the struggle with Israel they fight the non-Muslim West. The fight against Israel is the fight against us. We are Israel. The reason for Dutch parents’ good night sleep with no worries for their children is that parents in Israel go through sleepless nights because their children are in the Army. It does not mean that Israel cannot be criticized, but I am not ashamed to fight for Israel.”
At the conference Wilders will try to convince the public that Palestinians already have a country of their own. “Jordan is Palestine,” he states. “This was true in the past after Sykes-Picot agreement, and thus it is a solution to the conflict. Even the Jordan kings, Abdulla and Hussein, said so in the past. Only after they realized that these statements could endanger their reign, because Palestinians are a majority in Jordan, did they change their minds. I am against the idea of transfer or ethnic cleansing, but if Jordan became Palestine, it would be possible to encourage Palestinians to move there. Of course I will not be the one who decides how to end this conflict. Israel is a democracy and will decide for itself which solution is best for it. It is your decision.”
Geert Wilders to speak at 'Jordan is Palestine' conference
Dutch politician Geert Wilders will speak at a conference in Tel Aviv in early December, which will be dedicated to promoting the idea that Jordan is 'Palestine' (original link in Hebrew, translation here) (Hat Tip: Didi Remez via Twitter).
Dutch anti-Muslim nationalist Geert Wilders will come to Israel in order to support the idea that “Jordan is the Palestinian nation state,” which is being promoted by MK Arieh Eldad (National Union).
Eldad, chairman of the Hatikva party, one of the constituent parties of the National Union, is convening a special conference of his party in order to discuss an “alternative foreign policy plan,” which mainly consists of recognition of the fact that Jordan is the Palestinian state, while only one state will exist between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea—the State of Israel.
MK Eldad will present the main points of his idea at the conference, which will be held in Tel Aviv at the beginning of next month. Eldad will be followed by a guest speech by the Dutch nationalist Wilders, in which he will voice support for the idea of establishing a Palestinian state in Jordan. Former defense minister Moshe Arens and former GSS director Ami Ayalon were invited to the conference in order to respond to the speeches.
So how 'mainstream' is the third largest party in the Dutch parliament with approximately one sixth of the seats (24 out of 150)? To put it in perspective, the only two Israeli parties with more than 20 (out of 120) seats in our Knesset are Likud and Kadima. Are all the other parties not mainstream? Or is 'Jordan is Palestine' gaining mainstream acceptance, at least in Holland?
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
