Zodiac signs updated

Zodiac in a 6th-century synagogue in Beit Alpha, Israel

Accommodating millenia of subtle shifts in earths axis, astronomers are claiming to have restored the original zodiac, shifting the Gregorian dates corresponding the when the sun is in each 'house':

Capricorn: Jan. 20-Feb. 16.
Aquarius: Feb. 16-March 11.
Pisces: March 11-April 18.
Aries: April 18-May 13.
Taurus: May 13-June 21.
Gemini: June 21-July 20.
Cancer: July 20-Aug. 10.
Leo: Aug. 10-Sept. 16.
Virgo: Sept. 16-Oct. 30.
Libra: Oct. 30-Nov. 23.
Scorpio: Nov. 23-29.
Ophiuchus:* Nov. 29-Dec. 17.
Sagittarius: Dec. 17-Jan. 20.

* Discarded by the Babylonians because they wanted 12 signs per year.

The months of the Jewish calendar, which synchronizes the lunar and solar cycles, are named according to the month names of the Babylonian calendar, dating back to the Babylonian exile of the Jewish people which began in 586 BCE.

In Jewish sources, the zodiac is first mentioned in Sefer Yezirah, a mystical text traditionally attributed to Abraham, in which the names of the 12 signs are Hebrew translations of the Latin names. In the midrash anthology Yalkut Shimoni,  the 12 signs of the zodiac are associated with the 12 tribes of Israel. The zodiac also corresponds to the 12 months of the Jewish calendar, and the 12 attributes of the soul.

Calculate your Hebrew birthday here and the parallel zodiac month below (courtesy of Shirat Devorah):

Nissan = Aries

Iyar = Taurus

Sivan = Gemini

Tamuz = Cancer

Av = Leo

Elul = Virgo

Tishrei = Libra

Cheshvan = Scorpio

Kislev = Sagittarius

Teves = Capricorn

Shevat = Aquarius

Adar = Pisces

Brazil, Australia hit by deadly floods

Floods and mudslides in Brazil have killed nearly 500 people, WSJ reported Thursday.

Two weeks ago, Brazil became the first country in the Western hemisphere to host a Palestinian embassy. The same weekend, PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas attended the inauguration of Brazil's new President, Dilma Rousseff. At the inauguration, Abbas met with other South American leaders to discuss their support of a Palestinian state.

Abbas, Lula and Brazilian FM meeting in Brasilia on Friday

Meanwhile, across the globe, the city of Brisbane, Australia, has nearly gone underwater. The floods have killed 19, and 61 are missing. Large parts of the city have become muddy lakes, and torerents have flooded 12,000 homes in the city of 2 million. Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told reporters that the city "looks more like a war zone in some places." Aerial views of the city reveal a sea of brown water.

Israel's best friends in the world have arguably been the US, Canada and Australia. While the Obama administration is sliding from that historical commitment, current Australian PM, Julia Gillard, is known as "one of Israel's closest friends."

Yet former Australian PM and current Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd, who hails from the flooded state of Queensland, left behind a rocky relationship with Israel, and as foreign minister has shown no signs of reversing the damage he began. In February, Australia expelled the Mossad chief in Canberra, Australia's capital, reversing the last government's decision to station senior intelligence people in each others' countries, and pausing Canberra-Jerusalem intelligence cooperation. to station over the Dubai passports affair. In response to the Marmara aid ship debacle, Rudd criticized Israeli policy: "When it comes to a blockade against Gaza, preventing the supply of humanitarian aid, such a blockade should be removed."

In the current Gillard government, Rudd was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs, in what was criticized by many as a move to appease internal political divisions. A month ago, during a visit in Israel, Rudd called for Israel to allow international inspectors into its nuclear facility, and to halt construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

"...We do not support new settlement construction and the reason is that it undermines the prospects of the successful prosecution of peace negotiations."
..."There is a second reality also, which is what security challenges Israel would face if the peace process entirely collapses..."
"All of us, if we are any students of the history of the last decade or so, have a grasp of what can go wrong, and what can go wrong big time if the Palestinian people don't have a stake in a negotiated outcome..."

Australian Christian Pastor Danny Nalliah blogged last Friday night about the connection between the floods and Rudd's recent comments, citing journalist and Christian author Bill Koenig. Koenig, author of Eye to Eye: Facing the Consequences of Dividing Israel, has previously made connections between events such as Hurricane Rita and US pressure on Israel not to interfere with Hamas' election in Gaza, a position that brought about the current reality in Gaza, where rockets fall weekly if not daily on Jewish communities in the southern part of the country.

Keep watch of how countries align on the question of Jerusalem.

Palin claims 'blood libel'

Sarah Palin: "America's Enduring Strength" from Sarah Palin on Vimeo.

In a video posted on her facebook page, Palin claims: "Journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn.”

Noam Neusner, former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, writes: “The term ‘blood libel’ is so unique, and so tinged with the context of anti-Semitism, that its use in this case -- even when Ms. Palin has a legitimate gripe -- is either cynically calculated to stimulate media interest or historically illiterate. It is therefore distracting to Ms. Palin’s underlying message, which is one of sympathy for the victims and outrage that she and others are being accused of inspiring a mass murderer.”

See Shirat Devorah for one take on the Sarah Palin phenomenon.

The Dark Legacy of the Shephard Hotel

The Shepherd Hotel in Jerusalem, 2010

The world should be celebrating the transformation of a Nazi collaborator's home to a synagogue; instead, it is attempting to cast a legal sale of land as Israeli aggression. Pitiful.

The dilapidated hotel was once home to the Nazi collaborator and Muslim leader Mufti Haj Amin Al-Husseini (y"s). In 1985, the hotel and surrounding area was legally purchased for $1 million by US Jewish philanthropist Irving Moskowitz. In the building plans, the untried Nazi's collaborator's home will be renovated into a synagogue in memorial of Holocaust victims.

Yet rather than atone for its past in protecting Al-Husseini, the world is decrying the delapidated building's transformation into a place of Jewish worship.

During WWII, Al-Husseini broadcast propaganda for the Axis Powers with the aim of influencing Arab public opinion. In 1941, he participated in efforts to convince Bosnian Muslim leaders that a Muslim S.S. division would be in the interest of Islam, and helped recruit Bosnian Muslims into SS units, one of which committed atrocities against Christian Serbs during operations in the Balkans in 1944.

Al-Husseini on Radio Berlin, March 1, 1944: 'Arabs, rise as one man and fight for your sacred rights. Kill the Jews wherever you find them. This pleases God, history, and religion. This saves your honor. God is with you.'

So Al-Husseini was a nut, but Europe must have condemned him after the war, right? Wrong. Europe's condemnation of Israel's renovation of this testament to crimes of humanity is hardly new. After WWII Al-Husseini fled to Switzerland, but was detained and sent back to Germany, where he was arrested by French troops in May 1945. Ah, the French. They'll put him to justice, right?

Wrong. Discussions with Mufti post-arrest were put in the hands of Henri Ponsot, a former ambassador of France in Syria. France sought status in the Arab world through Al-Husseini's wide connections, and ended up handing him benefits, priveleges, special detention conditions, and constant concern for the well-being of him and his entourage. Despite British requests for his extradition, and his presence on the list of names of war criminals, France considered him a political prisoner and denied British requests.

In September 1945, realizing they were holding a hot potato, France organized the transfer of Al-Husseini to Egypt. On May 29th, al-Husayni left France on a TWA flight for Cairo using a fake Syrian passport. Once in Egypt, the British could no longer arrest him.

In August 1947, Al-Husseini thanked French Foreign Minister Georges Bidault in a letter and suggested France continue its policy to increase prestige in the Muslim world. One month later, an Arab Higher Committee delegation proposed to Paris an neutral Arab position on North Africa in exchange of France's support in the Palestinian question. 

Catherine Ashton, British Labor Politiciana and EU Foreign Policy Chief, 2011, in today's statement: "I strongly condemn this morning's demolition of the Shepherd Hotel and the planned construction of a new illegal settlement. I reiterate that settlements are illegal under international law, undermine trust between the parties and constitute an obstacle to peace. Furthermore, we recall that East Jerusalem is part of occupied Palestinian territory."

Sources:
Mohammad Amin al-Husayni 
Tsilla Hershco, Le grand mufti de Jérusalem en France : Histoire d'une évasion, Revue Controverses, n°1, mars 2006

Anti-Semitic graffiti in Arizona predates shooting

On Friday, a day prior to the shooting of an openly Jewish congresswoman, anti-Semitic graffiti was discovered in Tartesso, AZ, 40 miles west of Phoenix. The shooting took place in Tuscon, AZ, 150 miles Southeast.

So far, no press is covering this story from Friday's The West Valley View, which was posted by the Canary in the Cole Mine blog. From the View, it sounds like police treated the graffiti as 'another case of those darn bored kids', rather than as a dangerous and serious hate crime, which happened one day before a deadly shooting of a Jewish congresswoman.

Where is the press?

The View reports: 

The resident, who asked that her name not be published because she fears retaliation, said she called police after unknown vandals "hit my neighborhood really hard" in late December.

"They broke street lights and several bricks in the wall," she said, claiming that police, in her opinion, have failed to give serious attention to the matter...

No suspects have been identified and criminal investigators have been assigned to look into the matter, Griffith added...

"Graffiti is a problem throughout the Valley and one the Buckeye Police Department has worked hard to overcome," he said. "This type of hate-based graffiti is particularly troublesome and will not be tolerated."

Griffith also conjectured the damage may have been sparked by juveniles who had too much free time because of the break from school for the holidays.

"Increased vandalism and other issues generally occur during times school is out of session," Griffith said.

Meanwhile, on Google News

Giffords: Outed her Jewish identity after a 2001 trip to Israel

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords

According to JTA, Giffords, who grew up in a mixed religious environment, took interest in her Jewish roots and identity after a 2001 trip to Israel. During her campaign she openly recounted her Jewish upbringing and Jewish tradition among her strengths for the job:

“If you want something done, your best bet is to ask a Jewish woman to do it...Jewish women — by our tradition and by the way we were raised — have an ability to cut through all the reasons why something should, shouldn’t or can’t be done and pull people together to be successful.”

JTA also points out that in one of her last photos, Giffords posed with the new U.S. House of Representatives speaker, Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) at her swearing in, with her hand on the  Five Books of Moses.

In October 2006, Giffords published an op-ed in the Arizona Jewish Post which celebrated her Jewish upbringing and identity:

My grandfather, Akiba Hornstein, was the son of a Lithuanian rabbi. My grandfather changed his name to Giff Giffords for reasons of anti-Semitism and moved to Southern Arizona from New York more than a half century ago. In the 1940s, he founded my family’s tire and automotive business, El Campo Tire, which grew into a successful and thriving business for 50 years, which I ran for several years before serving in the Arizona Legislature.

Growing up, my family’s Jewish roots and tradition played an important role in shaping my values. The women in my family served as strong role models for me as a girl. In my family, if you want to get something done, you take it to the women relatives! Like my grandmother, I am a lifetime member of Hadassah and now a member of Congregation Chaverim.

When I served in the State Senate in Arizona, I had the opportunity to visit Jerusalem. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I had the opportunity to meet with the then-mayor of Jeru­salem, Ehud Olmert, and I got to see firsthand the sacrifices that Israelis make in the name of security because of the dangerous state of affairs there.

I will always be a strong supporter of Israel. As the only functioning democracy in the Middle East, Israel is a vital strategic ally of the United States. I believe the United States must do everything possible to secure Israel’s long-term security and achieve a lasting peace in the region. The failure of the current administration to continue the peace process has been a loss to America and Israel. That is why we need a new direction in Washington...

We cannot forget our past. I have worked to protect the rights of Holocaust survivors in our state. In 2002, I sponsored legislation that was signed into law by Governor Jane Hull, and unanimously approved by the Senate, to allow victims of the Holocaust, or their heirs, to collect insurance claims (HB 2541). It re-opened the statute of limitations for these claims. My opponent, Randy Graf, was one of only 13 legislators to oppose this bill.

As a woman and as a Jew, I will always work to insure that the United States stands with Israel to jointly ensure our mutual safety, security, and prosperity.

Combine Giffords' public expressions of her Jewish identity, with the shooter's suspected ties to anti-Semitic hate groups, and it's hard not to cry wolf.

The American Radical Right and Anti-Semitism: The truth comes out

Yikes! Anti-Semitism is alive and well in 22nd America, hiding in the American Radical Right. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' shooters' Youtube videos and Myspace page reference the white nationalist group "American Renaissance" (aka New Century Foundation). While the group's founder may have mixed feelings, American Renaissance is a breeding ground for anti-Semitic hatred and rhetoric. According to the Southern Law Center (via HuffPost):

Since 1994, the New Century Foundation has also played host to American Renaissance conferences, suit-and-tie affairs that attract a broad spectrum of participants from the racist right, including neo-Nazis, white supremacists, Ku Klux Klan members, Holocaust deniers and eugenicists. The conferences even have an international presence. In 2002, for instance, speakers included Nick Griffin, leader of the neofascist British National Party, and Bruno Gollnisch, who was then second in command of Jean Marie Le Pen's immigrant-bashing National Front in France.

One issue that has proven problematic for Taylor and his foundation has been anti-Semitism. Taylor, unlike many on the radical right, is known for his lack of anti-Semitism and for including racist Jews in his events. He told MSNBC-TV interviewer Phil Donahue in 2003 that Jews "are fine by me" and "look white to me." At one point, he even banned discussion of the so-called "Jewish question" from American Renaissance venues, and, by 1997, he had kicked Holocaust deniers and neo-Nazis off his E-mail list. Despite these efforts, Taylor also has continued to allow people like Don Black, the former Klan leader who runs the neo-Nazi Stormfront.org web forum, and Jamie Kelso, a Stormfront moderator, to attend his biannual American Renaissance Conferences. The problem for Taylor is that many of the most active participants at the American Renaissance Conferences and the most committed members of the American radical right are openly and passionately anti-Semitic. To ban them would devastate Taylor's efforts to make his journal and conferences flagship institutions of American radical right.

Despite Taylor's best efforts to keep the internal peace, this long-smoldering issue finally burst into the open when David Duke, the former Klan leader and author of Jewish Supremacism, grabbed the microphone at the 2006 American Renaissance Conference and went on a thinly veiled anti-Semitic rant about "a power in the world that dominates our media, influences our government and that has led to the internal destruction of our will and spirit." In response, Michael Hart, a Jewish astrophysicist and long-time conference attendee, leaped from his seat and declared, "You f*** Nazi, you've disgraced this meeting." What ensued was a testy back and forth in which Duke supporters, including Black and Kelso, jeered Hart's comments and others, who backed Hart, denounced Duke. This incident set off a months-long battle of words, with each side declaring that the other was undermining the broader efforts of the movement.

"These are the makings of a major schism," wrote Shawn Mercer, co-founder and moderator of American Renaissance's AR List, an E-mail group, just after the conference. "If American Renaissance ultimately fails as a result of this donnybrook at the convention, it will be a sad, possibly fatal turn of events for the future of whites." In 2006, Taylor issued what was seen as a weak-kneed statement by his Jewish supporters condemning anti-Semitism but stating clearly that all would be welcome at his conferences regardless of their views and so long as they maintained the proper decorum. That was not enough for many of Taylor's supporters and collaborators, one of whom, Ian Jobling, left to start his own group, Inverted World, which is racist but not anti-Semitic.

Regardless of the dispute, the 2008 American Renaissance conference was well attended, missing from its audience ranks only some former Jewish supporters such as Michael Hart.

Yidden, it's time to make aliyah!