I have been working crazy hours as I have a March 30th deadline and I cannot work properly unless I am left entirely alone and undisturbed. Call me crazy and anal but being interrupted in a non-stop stream of innocuous questions like – ‘where is the milk?’ and ‘did you wash my gym clothes or black shirt’ or ‘what can I eat?’ (boy code for will you make me a snack) or ‘where are my boots’ just ruins my concentration which negatively impacts my ability to work. All of which goes a long way in explaining why my grammar is often wanting and suspect in blog posts that are, more often than not, written between constant questions and non-stop interruptions.

I go to bed around 7pm and get up at 1am and work on the project till around 6am. Then I get dressed and go to my ‘day’ job until 4pm. I go home and cook for the boys and literally fall into my bed. Most days I do not even see the hands of the clock move to strike 7pm. I tell myself, and the men in my life, it will all come to an end – one day.

All of which is the ‘now’ reason blogging has been nearly non-existent. For some one like me, who often considers geopolitics and war as a kind of foreplay; reading the memories of the man who planned the battle of Haifa, fought with the Soviet Red Army and was part of the Anders Aliyah is far more compelling than anything going on currently in the blogsphere.

I have documents written by Polish government officials that need to be translated into English since my Polish is beyond wanting. The letters are the ‘official’ response to a number of questions regarding antisemitism in the Anders Army. No biggie or so I thought. I work with a number of Polish Canadians who I am quite friendly with, and who I thought, I could call upon to ask for assistance.
All of the Poles I approached are my age and born approximately 20 years after WWII ended and were initially happy to be of assistance – until they read through the documents. To say, I was more than a little taken back by their collective and often downright venomous response to the idea that any Pole could commit an act of ‘anti-semitism’ – at any time in history – is the understatement of the new year.
Consequently, I have been ‘exposed’ and stand accused of being an integral part of an international conspiracy designed to smear and besmirched the Polish people and their history with the most vile and baseless of lies. I have never heard so many ‘you people’ or been the subject of such venom in 48 years of living. Not one of the Poles I approached and had cordial relations with for the last ten years are now speaking to me. Not because of what I said per say but because of what I represent to them. There is an irony here which is not lost upon me, which is simply this; most of my life I have not been Jew enough for some, and now in middle age, I find I am far too Jew for others.

And who knew in 2011; Jews are still not to be trusted and are innately disloyal and can always be counted on to shit in the hand which feeds or shelters them. Or that Jews are cowardly by nature and cannot fight their way out of paper box and who would sell their mothers or first born for a dollar?

The reason my hero didn’t publish his memoirs before he died was that he felt once his memoirs were published; his existence in Canada could be threatened by some crazy Pole with an axe to grind and he wouldn’t even see the loon coming. I thought he was exaggerating – now I am not so sure he didn’t have a perfectly valid point. Old Sins really do cast long shadows…

The biggest event of the past two weeks is the fires raging across large swaths of Russia. In Moscow, toxic smog from peat bog fires seeped through shut windows in apartments and offices — regardless of how powerfully your air conditioner was working. The smog made the Moscow that I have known so well since my childhood unrecognizable. Where were the chirps of birds and shouts of children? It seemed that both had evacuated the city, or perhaps their sounds were simply muffled by the thick pall of smoke.

And about those fires – where would Russia be without the volunteers?

Konstantin together with eight other professional firefighters arrived from the Tula region to Yuvino, a village of 80 houses surrounded by the pine forests of the Meshchersky National Park. The firefighters, who have experience extinguishing flaming buildings, do not normally work in forests. The night before, a 40-meter-high wall of fire nearly engulfed Yuvino, together with the firefighters and several residents who chose not to evacuate, they recalled. They were saved by a fortunate change in wind direction.

Many weeks with no rain have left the naturally moist forest bone-dry. Stepping on what was once moss turns it into dust. A mere spark ignites the biomass like gunpowder. “It’s not a forest; it’s a disaster!” said Sergei, a lieutenant colonel in charge of the firefighters in Yuvino. Sergei and other professional firefighters interviewed for this story spoke on condition that their last names be withheld, citing fears of a conflict with their superiors. While some did not want to be seen criticizing the authorities, one firefighter, bare-chested and wearing charcoal-stained pants, said he just did not want to get into trouble for not donning his firefighting uniform. “It’s too hot,” he said.

With two firetrucks at Sergei’s disposal, he has no pump to fill them up. He also lacks tents, so the firefighters have to sleep on the ground or on top of the trucks, covering up with their jackets. The bulky trucks cannot drive close to the forest fire, and the two fire hoses do not reach far enough into the forest from the road. With power lines to Yuvino toppled by falling trees, the firefighters were cut off from the outside world for some time after their cell phone batteries died. Volunteers later provided a generator.

Volunteers, widely snubbed by professional firefighters because of their lack of experience, have saved several villages by using basic shovels and buckets of water and sand. Even after a larger fire is suppressed with a fire hose, the underbrush often continues to burn, and a gust of wind can ignite it into a blaze once again. Using shovels and water backpacks, volunteers in Yuvino isolated burning groundcover, cleared a fire line around the village, and loaned firefighters a pump to fill their trucks.

“When the fires just started, everybody thought of helping the victims. Nobody thought that the firefighters needed help because it is common knowledge that a firefighter arrives at the scene on a firetruck with a fire pump and fully equipped,” said Igor Chersky, a radio host and LiveJournal blogger whose blog has become a coordination center of sorts for volunteers.
“But after a few trips were made to deliver donations, it became clear that the firefighters had nothing but a few rusty trucks, not even food,” he said. “That changed our whole approach. Now the Internet is full of requests for fire hoses and other equipment.”

Supply and demand is coordinated through a few charity organizations and a LiveJournal community called pozar_ru, which is filled with urgent calls for help and drivers offering to deliver supplies as far from Moscow as the Voronezh region.

By Monday, almost 18 million rubles ($590,000), along with about 200 tons of goods, had been donated to the Synodal department of the Russian Orthodox Church, which oversees charity collection and whose church on Nikoloyamskaya Ulitsa in Moscow has become the city’s largest coordination center for donations and volunteers. Some of the money has already been used to buy fire hoses, face masks, pumps and fire extinguishers, it said on its web site, Miloserdie.ru.

Apparently, the Russian climate isn’t the only thing feeling the heat according to this Singapore Strait Times report:

MOSCOW – RUSSIA’S record temperatures and wildfires have shown the authorities retain a Soviet-style reluctance to admit bad news, be it over a potential radiation risk in forests or the death toll from the heatwave.

It was after the USSR’s worst environmental disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear plant that the Soviet Union imposed its most notorious information blackout, only admitting the calamity had taken place after over two days.The 2010 wildfires have seen the authorities only acknowledge that military logistics facilities burned down or that nuclear sites were close to the wildfires sometimes days after the event. The latest controversy surrounds the website of a forest protection agency linked to the ministry of agriculture which has been blocked since Friday after it revealed fires had burned in areas contaminated by Chernobyl.

The statement by Roslesozashchita sparked worries that radioactive particles from the 1986 Chernobyl accident in the soil of the Bryansk region of western Russia could be released into the air by the fires and pose a health risk. The emergencies ministry had denied that there were any fires in the area.

The Kommersant newspaper reported on Monday Emergencies Minister Sergei Shoigu had said the site should be ’sorted out’ for publishing ‘false information’. ‘It is censorship. The authorities must inform the population, the fire brigade and volunteers on eventual radioactive danger and take measures for protection,’ Vladimir Slivyak, head of the Eco-Defence group, told AFP. ‘The whole world could see from satellite photos that there were fires in the Bryansk region.’

Now, if I could just get my head around the idea that it is more desirable to be citizen of Somalia rather than a Libya. It just doesn’t quite pass my inner sniff test. Zimbabwe did not even make the list or rate a dishonorable mention. What’s up with that? In fact, it looks like the entirety of Central and South American is no longer deserving of a mention among the worst of the worse…which is either a cause for celebration or someone(s) possesses really poor world geography skills.

Depending on your geopolitics – China holds either one or two spots on the list. Once as Tibet (China 9), and then again, as China (12). I don’t mean to give the impression I am suddenly going soft on commies but I have real doubts China 2010 rates a place in the top 20.

While the dictators/despots of Africa earn 5 dishonorable mentions 4 FSU satellites are given rather prominent positions on the list. Is this an appropriate time to interject and just say a small prayer of thanksgiving for the fact some of my ancestors all got the hell of out Belarus (10) – alive and in one piece. Egad, would it ever suck to be me in Belarus now.

Guess who didn’t make the list or a mention? Israel, which doesn’t surprise me in the least but Israel’s omission has probably made the world’s collective mouth gasp in horror for such a glaring and obvious omission. The Saudis and the Syrians make the list, and the Saudis’ 16th spot beats the Syrian’s 17th which is probably the only time in the last 100 years that a Saudis have beaten anyone other than a slave or a woman. Again from this region, I am rather surprised to see not the slightest nod Yemen’s way. Speaking of misses, Iran does not clock in anywhere. No doubt Neda and thousands of other Iranians would probably be rather startled by that fact as well – well they would; if they weren’t already dead.

In the course of his speech in her honour, the father of the bride then informed the audience that the European Union has passed a Gender Equality Bill. One provision of this preposterous and impudent measure is that fathers are no longer allowed to give away their daughters in the traditional church ceremony. Apparently that is to treat daughters as chattels. The whole European Union is on the point of breaking up, Greece is in flames and the Germans about to rebel, several countries in the eurozone are bankrupt beyond redemption, the euro itself has failed and soon there may be no currency for Europeans to trade in — and the giant statesmen of Brussels come up with a prohibition on fathers giving away their daughters in marriage as fathers have done in country after country, century after century.

I’m just grateful my tax dollars don’t (yet) support the Euro-bureaucrats and their big brains.

It is not often we – the North American descendents of Eastern Europeans – get to see first hand the classic and apparently enduring face of Christian ‘Old European’ styled anti-Semitism in action. The Moldovan Orthodox Church has come in for some heavy criticism internationally and the Moldovan government has been embarrassed publicly among the community of nations for this form of Christian fascism and has promised a clampdown of sorts. Although, I suspect the government won’t easily be re-making the Moldovian Church hierarchy into a silk purse any time soon.

Ynet News:

The Moldovan Orthodox Church on Wednesday blamed the local Jewish community for the recent rally in which a public menorah was torn down and a cross was put in its place. During the December 13th incident, dozens of people led by an Orthodox priest smashed a menorah in Moldova’s capital Chisinau, using hammers and iron bars to remove the candelabra during Hanukkah.

The 1.5 meter (5-foot)-tall ceremonial candelabrum was retrieved and reinstalled. The national government said in a statement that “hatred, intolerance and xenophobia” are unacceptable. According to a report, published Monday by the Russian Interfax news agency, the church said in a statement, “We believe that this unpleasant incident in the center of the capital could have been avoided if the menorah had been placed near a memorial for victims of the Holocaust.”

The church said it opposed the form of the protest, and that it respects “the feelings and belief of other cults that are legally registered on the territory of the Republic of Moldova, and expects a similar attitude from their side,” according to the report.

“At the same time,” the statement continued, “we think it inappropriate to put a symbol of the Jewish cult in a public place connected to the history and faith of our people, especially because Chanukah is classified by the cult books of Judaism as a ‘holiday of blessing’ that symbolizes the victory of Jews over non-Jews.”

‘Jewish cult, ‘cult books of Judaism’. Oy vey.

Dozens of people led by an Orthodox priest smashed a menorah in Moldova’s capital, using hammers and iron bars to remove the candelabra during Hanukkah, officials said. The 1.5 meter(5-foot)-tall ceremonial candelabrum was retrieved, reinstalled and is now under police guard.

Police said they were investigating but there was no official reaction from Moldova’s Orthodox Church, which is part of the Russian Orthodox Church and counts 70 percent of Moldovans as members.

Let’s roll to the video before You Tube takes it down.

Have I mentioned lately how eternally grateful that I am for my ancestors leaving Eastern Europe decades ago?

On 1st December 2009, there was a pro-Israel rally outside the Palestine Solidarity Campaign ‘Christmas concert’ at Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church on Tuesday December 1st, starting at 6pm.

British Anti-Semitism

And a Merry Christmas to you John Sullivan.

The second comes from the Ukraine courtesy of Ha’aretz:

Stories appearing on several Ukrainian Web sites claim Israel has brought around some 25,000 Ukrainian children into the country over the past two years in order to harvest their organs.

The claim, which was made by a Ukrainian philosophy professor and author at a pseudo-academic conference in Kiev five days ago, is the latest expression of a wave of anti-Semitism in the country. It comes a few months after a Swedish tabloid ran an article alleging that Israel Defense Forces soldiers have killed Palestinian civilians for their organs.

Jews, Israel and anti-Semitism have become a major motif of the presidential election campaign in Ukraine, with some figures making anti-Semitic statements and others condemning them. Some candidates, including a Jew and someone whose rivals claim is Jewish, blame a third rival – Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko – for bringing anti-Semitism into the race.

“Ukraine’s political system is a parody of democracy,” Russia’s Chief Rabbi, Berel Lazar, said.

Vyacheslav Gudin told the estimated 300 attendees of the Kiev conference a detailed story about a Ukrainian man’s fruitless search for 15 children who had been adopted in Israel. The children, Gudin said, had clearly been taken by Israeli medical centers, where they were used for “spare parts.” Gudin said it was essential that all Ukrainians be made aware of the genocide Israel was perpetrating.

The conference, some of whose participants belong to a Slavic-rights movement, also featured two professors who presented a book blaming “the Zionists” for the Ukrainian famine of the 1930s as well as the country’s current condition.

Ah, yes, the old blood libel dressed up courtesy of Ukrainian academics. What in the world would we do without Ukrainian academics? And then, finally Jewish Israel points me to the more modern version of anti-Semitism which plays on the theme – we love you even as we hate you and pervert your symbols. For those not in the know – this tune uses the Israeli national anthem – the Hatikvah or The Hope to rewrite and deliver its toxic message. Here is a short English translation of the Hatikvah.

As long as in the heart, within,
A Jewish soul still yearns,
And onward, towards the ends of the east,
An eye still gazes toward Zion;

Our hope is not yet lost,
The hope of two thousand years,
To be a free people in our land,
The land of Zion and Jerusalem.

Keep those words in mind as we roll to the video produced by the Westboro Baptist Church.

I think my hate is done for the morning.

Young female athletes from Israel’s fencing team swept top medals at a 28-nation European tournament held in Mödling, Austria last week – but faced an additional challenge when they stood on the winners’ podium to receive their medals: the organizers did not play the recording of the Israeli national anthem, and the Israeli winners had to sing the anthem on their own, a capella style. The Israeli team’s staff has no doubt that the incident was intentional.

Israel’s Dana Strelnikov, 14, won the gold medal and Alona Kamarov won the bronze at the tournament, which hosted 120 fencers aged up to 17. Both Israeli medalists hail from the northern Israeli town of Ma’alot, whose fencing club has produced many of Israel’s best young fencers. But as they stood on the podium and awaited the opening sounds of national anthem HaTikvah – they heard only silence. The girls and their trainers quickly understood what was happening and proceeded to sing the entire anthem on their own, with some scattered support from voices in the spectators’ bleachers.

The Israeli national team’s coach, Yaakov Friedman, told Arutz Sheva that the Israeli team faces constant political challenges on the international circuit. At a tournament in Göteborg, Sweden, in January this year, Israel won the silver medal and when the medalists were already on the podium the organizers informed Friedman that they do not have a recording of the Israeli anthem. The team sang the anthem without the help of the recording. It was understood by everyone, Friedman said, that the reason was Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, which had just ended.

In the Mödling incident, Friedman said, the organizers approached him when the winners were on the podium and told him that “we do not have a recording of the new Israeli anthem, just the old one.” Friedman informed them that to the best of his knowledge, Israel has only had one anthem – HaTikvah – since it was founded, but this did not change anything, and the team had to sing a capella again.

The concept of Jewish self-defense is obviously a completely foreign and alien concept to the Austrians.

For some time now, spokespeople for Hungary’s extreme right have been arguing that Israel aims to “colonize” Hungary. As proof of this claim, the right often misinterprets an (unfortunate) quote by President Shimon Peres, who spoke about Israel’s investments abroad, and said that Israel was “buying out Manhattan, Poland, Hungary…”

Now these claims have escalated to the next level: A well known extreme rightist Web site, www.hunhir.hu, is now saying that Israel and American Jews are planning to transport three million Jews with dual Israeli-U.S. citizenship into Hungary over the next two years

According to the Website, the quarters designed to house the new immigrants are already being built. Every one of them will sign an agreement to stay in the country for at least ten years, after which they will automatically become the owner of an apartment in the designated quarters, the Website says.

This operation, including a guaranteed job for degree holders, is being organized by Judit Polgar, the famous Jewish Hungarian chess player who currently resides in the U.S., the Website argues. The first 1,800 immigrants, the Website goes on to say, have already arrived in Hungary, but their whereabouts have not been found, despite efforts to locate them.

Hunhir.hu can also explain their argument, saying that Hungary was chosen for this “colonization” by American Jews because it has “the best natural attributes in the world.”

I really don’t understand where these people get these ideas, and even if there was an alleged ’surplus’ of Jews; I still think Hungary is a hard sell from the Elder’s perspective…considering how it worked out the last time. Did I mention recently how eternally grateful I am that my ancestors left Europe?

This time it is an outraged Tatar blogger who objected to the forced baptism of Tatar infants by Russian Orthodox priests and expressively against the wishes of the children’s parents. If that wasn’t outrageousness enough, Rafiz Kashapov, a blogger who posted “No to Christianity” has been found guilty of ‘provoking interethnic and inter-religious hostility (contrary to Section 1, Article 282, of the Russian Criminal Code. The Moscow Times:

Last Friday’s conviction in a Naberezhny Chelny court of a Tatar activist who had spoken out against the baptism of Tatar infants by a Russian Orthodox priest without the permission of their parents or guardians has sparked protests from the Tatar Social Center (TOTs) as well as from human and religious rights groups elsewhere.

On Friday, the court found TOTs leader Rafiz Kashapov guilty of provoking interethnic and inter-religious hostility (under Section 1 of Article 282 of the Russian Criminal Code) for his article “No to Christianization!” in which he protested the baptism of infants of Tatar nationality, a traditionally Muslim people, and gave him a suspended sentence of 18 months.

The article appeared on Kashapov’s blog shortly after a Russian Orthodox priest baptized the children on January 16th of this year without the knowledge or agreement of their parents. His article led to protests in several cities of Tatarstan, and his blog was subsequently suppressed by the authorities.

Now, following Kashapov’s conviction and protests by several rights groups, his own Tatar Social Center has issued an appeal to human rights groups, social and political organizations, and the media of Tatarstan and Russia, denouncing this action and demanding that the authorities reverse course.

Shameful, absolutely shameful.