The Jew News Review – June 29, 2024 – “Drumbeats from the north”

Shabbat shalom! 

I will refrain from piling on any further with any post-mortem analysis of the not so great debate. Over the next several days we should see a tremendous amount of pressure from Democratic operatives, columnists, media, influencers, etc to do what the New York Times already did: recommend that Biden withdraw from the campaign. But so far, it looks like he wants to come out swinging at the orange turd and demonstrate he has the ability to beat the lying narcissist and expose the bullshit he was slinging most of the night. Comedian Alex Edelman, summarized the debate thusly, “it’s crazy how the takeaway is going to be “Trump is lying every time he talks but he just sounds so VIGOROUS when he does it.” And, as I wrote previously, while I’m ready to change the channel, I will continue to support Biden if he chooses to stay in the race. As Bill Maher said, I would rather vote for President Joe Biden’s “head in a jar of blue liquid” over backing Donald Trump in November’s election.

This week, my biggest concern has shifted to the growing evidence that Israel is preparing for another war, this time against Hezbollah to the North. Somewhat lost in all the Gaza turmoil, Hezbollah has fired over 1,000 munitions, including rockets and artillery shells, at Israeli positions since October 7. This escalation has involved regular exchanges of fire across the Israel-Lebanon border, particularly targeting northern Israeli towns and military posts. The conflict has caused significant disruption and displacement in both Lebanon and Israel forcing many Israelis in the northern regions to evacuate their homes. Approximately 96,000 people have been displaced within Israel due to the threat of rocket attacks and the general instability in the border regions! The cost to the economy, to the psychology of the kids and families that have lost their homes and moved to hotels, and to Israeli infrastructure is immeasurable. 

All of this Hezbollah activity, based out of Lebanon, is in direct violation of several UN Security Council resolutions and the lame ass UN, with 15,000 troops in Lebanon sitting on their asses, just watch and do nothing! Even worse, Antonio Shithead Guterres, makes this lame ass comment on the growing hostilities in the region:

Which got this response from one of my favorite Israeli analysts from the Times of Israel, Haviv Rettig Gur:

Israelis may be tired of fighting one of the longest wars ever in Gaza, but they are also prepared and ready to take on Hezbollah, if they have to. The recent Supreme Court decision ending the exemption for Haredim from service in the IDF will help bolster the troops. But, if diplomacy fails, and war erupts, the death and destruction will be well beyond anything we have seen in Gaza. Here is what Malcom Nance, one of the foremost military experts in the region, had to say on this:

WAR WITH HEZBOLLAH? There is a lot of worry about when this will come. We are already in the soft war phase but many indicators will have to happen before it becomes a reality. This will not be a one front war, but a 4 front war. Israel will have to fight Iran, Iraqi militias, Syria, Yemen and Hezbollah SIMULTANEOUSLY.

Indicators that it will happen are:

• A minimum of 2 US Aircraft Carrier a battle Groups enter the Eastern Mediterranean. And station3-4 Arleigh Burke destroyers off Israel. That’s a month off at best.
• Israel snap mobilizes 250,000 reservists.
• The US releases and emergency transports all 5001b/2,0001b JADAMs it held up.
• Yahiyah Sinwar is dead.

This will be the biggest war since 1973 and casualty rates will be that big. This is not a joke.

It will change the face of the entire Near East.

Be warned.

Let’s hope that whoever is occupying the oval office will continue to support Israel, when and if the time comes. 

And on that positive note, let’s now get to the usual weekly summary of news for the Jews, courtesy of The Forward, Times of Israel, JTA, Substack, and several other Jewy journals.

1. Iran’s UN mission threatens ‘obliterating war’ if Israel launches Lebanon offensive – Iran’s mission to the United Nations said on Friday that if Israel embarks on a “full-scale military aggression” in Lebanon against Hezbollah, “an obliterating war will ensue.” The warning came after the Israel Defense Force attacked several Hezbollah positions, in response to the Iran-backed terror group’s latest barrage on northern Israel hours earlier, amid escalating tensions on the Lebanese border. Writing on X on Friday, the Iranian UN mission said that if Israel were to launch a war on Hezbollah, “all options, including the full involvement of all resistance fronts, are on the table.”
2. What Biden and Trump said about Israel — and Hitler — during the first presidential debate: The topic of widespread antisemitism in the USA did not come up, but in a series of clashes, Biden proudly touted the U.S.’s role in defending Israel against April airstrikes from Iran, while Trump accused him of being insufficiently supportive of the Jewish state, at one point describing him as having “become like a Palestinian.” Biden also struck at Trump over his record on the far-right, saying “This is a guy who says Hitler has done good things.” Here are the top takeaways from a night that saw issues dear to the Jewish community — although, crucially, not rising antisemitism — take center stage. Read the story ➤
3. Latest from the war…
   • Canada issued sanctions against seven Israeli settlers and five groups, including settler organizations, whom it says have engaged in violence in the West Bank.
   • More than a dozen critically ill children traveled out of Gaza for treatment on Thursday, in the first medical evacuation from the territory since early May.
   • Israel’s state comptroller told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the country is not prepared to evacuate citizens from the north in case of a full-scale war with Hezbollah.
4. Shiva call : Kinky Friedman, singer and novelist who fronted The Texas Jewboys, dies at 79 – (JTA) — Kinky Friedman, the cigar-chomping, mustachioed Texan country singer and mystery novelist whose body of work often seemed like the un-kosher marriage of the Borscht Belt and the Bible Belt, died June 27 from complications of Parkinson’s disease. As frontman for the flamboyant 1970s country group Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys, he was notorious for satirical songs such as “They Don’t Make Jews Like Jesus Anymore,” a raucous sendup of racism, and “Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in Bed,” which poked fun at feminism.
5. Opinion | Israel needs to follow through on drafting the Haredim — for the sake of its economy, not just its military: “An old joke says that Israel is a country where one-third of the population goes to the army, one-third works, and one-third pays taxes. The problem is, the joke goes, it’s the same third,” writes Forward columnist Dany Bahar. “Military service creates a significant opportunity for forging social cohesion between the Haredim and their non-Orthodox peers, and helps young people gain skills needed for the labor force.” Read his essay ➤
6. Jerry Seinfeld shut down another group of pro-Palestinian hecklers who had bought tickets to his concert on Saturday in Melbourne. A similar incident occurred last week at a performance in Sydney. Seinfeld told the protesters they “just gave more money to a Jew. That cannot be a good plan for you. You gotta come up with a better plan.”
7. Fallout continued in Los Angeles after a violent melee outside a synagogue Sunday between pro-Israel supporters and pro-Palestinian demonstrators. In a new opinion essay, Forward senior columnist, Rob Eshman, doesn’t chastise the protesters, but rather the cops and city officials who had advance warning that the entrance to a house of worship would be blocked.

That should do it for the week. Enjoy the weekend, but let’s be careful out there!

Brad out.