LATMA's tribal update featuring the Ballad of Oslo's children and Obama's adviser celebrates the Arab spring
What a way to start the day! Here's LATMA's weekly tribal update featuring the Ballad of Oslo's Children (which ought to go viral) and Obama's adviser celebrating the Arab spring.
Let's go to the videotape.
By the way, the kids who were born when Oslo was signed are now being inducted to the army (in case any of you missed the significance of the date).
Would you believe that the European Union called on the United States to release Jonathan Pollard... in 1993? Here's the highlight of the statement:
D. whereas Pollard, who was not accused of treason, or of intending to harm the US, pleaded guilty under a plea bargain, and was thus convicted and sentenced, without a full trial, to life imprisonment, despite the Government's promise not to seek such a penalty,
E. noting that the sentence imposed on Pollard was grossly disproportionate to those imposed on others by US courts for supplying information to a friendly power (normally from two to four years),
F. shocked that most of Pollard's eight years in prison should have been spent in solitary confinement and underground,
G. astonished that Defence Secretary Caspar Weinberger, described by one of his Under¬Secretaries for Defence as having had 'an almost visceral dislike of Israel', should have sent a message to the trial judge, one hour before the sentencing hearing, asking for the stiffest possible sentence commensurate with Pollard's 'treasonous' (sic) behaviour,
H. noting however that Mr Weinberger stated recently that he thought it was time that Mr Pollard should be released; aware that Christian and Jewish organizations throughout the world have pleaded for the harsh sentence of life imprisonment to be commuted and that Judge Steve Williams wrote, in a dissenting opinion to an appellate court finding, that 'the government's conduct in this case resulted in a complete miscarriage of justice',
My how times have changed....
And for those who are wondering, this plea is dated 16 September 1993. The Oslo Declaration of Principles was signed on the White House lawn on September 13, 1993.
Could it be... Pollard is being held hostage to the 'peace process'?
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