A Jew Defends Palin

Sarah Palin used the term Blood Libel, in defending herself against accusations that she is responsible for the actions of the obviously mentally disturbed shooter in Tucson. Her frenzied distractors have seized upon the opportunity to now pronounce that she has offended Jews, by using a term long associated with anti-semitism. The Huffington Post quotes Jewish groups and rabbis so offended. They omit the fact that these groups and rabbis are so leftist, that they are also critical of Israel. Sarah Palin certainly was libeled by accusations that actions on her part, resulted in the recent horror. Reasonable Jews are not offended by her use of the term. Holocaust is now a widely used term in regard to mass violence. Reasonable people reject the concept of scapegoats, whether it's Jews or Sarah Palin.
UPDATE

The term “blood libel” has taken on a broad metaphorical meaning in public discourse. Although its historical origins were in theologically based false accusations against the Jews and the Jewish People,its current usage is far broader. I myself have used it to describe false accusations against the State of Israel by the Goldstone Report. There is nothing improper and certainly nothing anti-Semitic in Sarah Palin using the term to characterize what she reasonably believes are false accusations that her words or images may have caused a mentally disturbed individual to kill and maim. The fact that two of the victims are Jewish is utterly irrelevant to the propriety of using this widely used term.                 
Alan Dershowitz, famed attorney and Harvard Law Professor

A Family Conversation

My aunt and I were talking the other day, and she doesn't understand what happened to Allentown.




I sat there patiently and tried to explain some of it to her.





She's from a time when school safety issues had to do with children and cars, not gangs.
dismissal time, Muhlenberg Elementary






She insists that there must have been Martians on that space ship Max Hess brought to town, or something.
click on space ship for ride

format rented from Allentown Is Nice

The Passion of Israel

If there is a passion in Israel, it may well be archeology. As a young man in 1968, I had the pleasure of taking an archeology course in Jerusalem. It has remained a lifelong interest. Al Jazeera has produced a documentary called Looting the Holy Land. It is very well done, but untrue. More galling, it accuses Israel of using archeology for political purpose, which is exactly what the Palestinian Authority does itself.

Israel Finkelstein (Tel Aviv University) '"Looting the Holy Land" or Pillaging the Truth?')and labels the film "a piece of political propaganda, aimed – as the bon ton goes today (sic) – at de-legitimizing Israel" and therefore sets out to demonstrate point by point "why this is a worthless film, ridden with manipulations, political propaganda, incorrect facts and even lies". Finkelstein points out that "most of the looting in the West Bank (as well as in Israel!) has been carried out by Palestinians" and not Israelis. He corrects statements made in the film about Hisham's palace near Jericho, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Moshe Dayan and disputed sites in Jerusalem, and claims that the film contains several false allegations.

Their recent proclamation that the Western Wall, built by Herod, is not a Jewish site is a glaring example. The documentary contains quotes out of context and half truths. The Jews and Israel have never needed archeology to justify their historical presence, the Old Testament suffices.

Ted Williams' Truman Show

I'm glad Mr. Williams is no longer homeless. I'm glad he found employment, but the do-gooders tripping over each other is an affront to the system. But for his voice, but more so, the unlikely juxtaposition of his voice and vagabond appearance, he would still be homeless. The broadcasting schools have produced more announcers than there are jobs. There are other golden voices flipping hamburgers and selling cars. The job with MSNBC is par for the course, as is the taped reunion with his mother. Suddenly, Kraft Macaroni gets cheesier.

The Last Trolley

The last trolley, shown above, ran in Allentown on June 8, 1953. We see the trolley passing a new Transit Authority bus at 8th and Hamilton Streets. In the early 1950's, General Motors wined and dined transit authorities all across the nation, promoting their buses as the modern mass transit. Today, buses are becoming electric, just like efficient trolleys of yesteryear. We even dress up a small bus to look like a trolley. Gotta love the vision of bureaucrats.

Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria

The Church and Theology School in Alexandria was established by the Apostle Mark in 60AD. Most of the early converts were common Egyptians who spoke Coptic. Although Christians became the majority before the Arab invasion in 636, by the 12th century they were the minority. The concept of monasteries in Christianity was started by the Coptics in the deserts of Egypt. Currently, the Coptics are victims of terror, let us pray for their safety.

photograph of St. Marks Coptic Church in Alexandria, Egypt.