Amid Khashoggi Affair, Fred Fleitz Leaves White House
October 17, 2018 Topic: Security Region: Americas
Some administration allies worry, after Jamal Khashoggi, about a White House poised to take its eye off the ball on Iran and political Islam.
by Curt Mills Follow CurtMills on Twitter L
Fred Fleitz is on his way out the White House. Fleitz, the short-lived National Security Council chief of staff, has a fiery and hardline reputation (full disclosure: we've tangled), befitting the national security advisor he serves. He'll return to Frank Gaffney's Center for Security Policy; Fleitz has alternated as chief of staff to National Security Advisor John Bolton or Gaffney in various capacities, dating back to Bolton's days of haunting the UN. He will now take over for Gaffney.
"Throughout his career, Fred Fleitz has been one of the center's most admired allies and, in recent years, one of its most accomplished staff members. I'm thrilled that he agreed to my request to wrap up as swiftly as possible his latest stint of public service in the Trump White House, and succeed me as president of the Center for Security Policy," Gaffney said, announcing the move.
The Center for Security Policy announced that Gaffney will take over the role of executive chairman, and that Fleitz will helm "the Center's Second Thirty Years."
Still, some worry in the wake of the probable murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, that the White House is poised to taper back from its bellicose commitments against political Islam and the regime in Iran. Much has been made of how integral the Saudis are to the counter-Iran strategy, but less attention has been given to the fact the Trump administration, until now, viewed Riyadh as the leading light against barbarism and Islamic extremism.
"We will make history again with the opening of a new Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology - located right here, in this central part of the Islamic World," President Trump said in Saudi Arabia in 2017. "This groundbreaking new center represents a clear declaration that Muslim-majority countries must take the lead in combating radicalization, and I want to express our gratitude to King Salman for this strong demonstration of leadership."
That anti-Islamic extremism tact was a broad stance, encompassing an opposition not only to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State, the Sunni extremists responsible for most of the radical Islamic terrorist attacks against the United States, but also political Islamist groups with a broader base of support in the region, namely: Hamas, Lebanese Hezbollah and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Some restrainers have long attacked such a strategy as foolhardy, arguing that it isolates the United States in the Middle East. "I'm not talking about talking to Al Qaeda. I'm not talking about talking to dead-enders, Jacobites, revolutionaries, people who want to burn it down" says Mark Perry, the author of Talking to Terrorists. Perry said: "Al Qaeda doesn't have a constituency. They're just a revolutionary network. The people I'm talking about talking to are Hamas, Hezbollah and the Muslim Brotherhood, the three most powerful and influential organizations in the Middle East: the great, middle ground of Islam." And Scott McConnell, founding editor of The American Conservative, has argued to me: "I think there's substantial consensus that Hezbollah is a sort of state within a state of Lebanon, confessionally divided with weak central government. . . . What we typically call Shi'ite terrorism more resembles what the IRA did, well organized strikes against political or military targets, than more random suicide strikes at civilians on the Al Qaeda or ISIS model."
But this administration, and many of its allies, have disagreed.
Trump's political rise owed itself, in part, to two large, often-competing political impulses. Candidate Trump and now-President Trump combined non-interventionist sentiments with a deep and abiding suspicion of Islam.
Trump's "American First" and "bring the troops home" sentiment has been swiftly countered, even contradicted, with remarks such as "I think Islam hates us." Administration fans counter that Trump has always been an offensive realist, not a noninterventionist, and in that respect, Bolton is the perfect national security advisor for him.
Perceptions to this effect created ample space for Saudi Arabia and the Gulf monarchies to swoop in during the early days after Trump's 2016 victory. On a press call in 2017, a senior administration official explained to reporters that the president was travelling to Saudi Arabia on his first international trip and making it the anchor of his Middle East strategy because "they approached us" first during the transition.
But all that threatens to fray now amid the grisly Khashoggi affair. Sens. Marco Rubio and Lindsey Graham, two of the upper chamber's most hawkish, traditionally pro-Saudi voices, have each said in recent days that the Saudis must pay a price for the Washington Post columnist's likely assassination. Some supporters of the administration's strategy in the Middle East appear worried that Trump could take his eye off Iran and political Islam, in a potential pull-back from the relationship with Riyadh.
"US and Saudi interests are aligned," Walter Russell Mead writes in the Wall Street Journal. "Even as he responds with appropriate gravity to a serious provocation, [Secretary of State] Pompeo must give Saudi authorities the confidence that sober and sensible policies will bring continuing American support for the kingdom's independence and reform. . . . The Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the ayatollahs of Iran are huddled over the corpse, hoping to turn a political profit from the death of an innocent man."
But some fans of the status quo aren't too worried. They remain confident that Trump will keep hold of the flame. The president's recent statements pointing to possible rogue agents and emphasizing the importance of arms sales to the Kingdom lend credence to such confidence.
"I don't expect the White House to cave to this newest moral panic," David Reaboi of the Security Studies Group texted me Wednesday morning. He implicitly compares the Khashoggi affair to the Kavanaugh affair, as Trump reportedly done, as well: "You know you're in the midst of a moral panic when even asking for evidence or a legitimate investigation gets you shouted at. Open advocacy and bullying is now the default setting of the American media, and the president has shown that he's impervious to what is obviously a pressure campaign."
Says Reaboi: "If the administration is pressured into some kind of retaliation against the Kingdom, it's really America's interests that will suffer. Is there a more robustly pro-American leader waiting in the wings if the pressure on KSA leads to the fall of MBS?"
Still, some in this contingent are uneasy. It's not likely his departure was directly related, but Fleitz was perhaps the leading agitator in the administration against the Muslim Brotherhood, a hobby horse of the Center for Security Policy. As I reported in September, the NSC, under Fleitz's administration, was weighing labeling the Brotherhood a terrorist organization.
After Khashoggi, are some in the the administration preparing to pivot away from the hardliners?
"Why would Fleitz leave Bolton?" a source close to Gaffney texted me Wednesday. So far, however, Trump has not altered his approach.
Curt Mills is a foreign-affairs reporter at the National Interest. Follow him on Twitter: @CurtMills.
Image: Reuters


Published on The National Interest ()
Home > War in the South China Sea: Not Worth It
War in the South China Sea: Not Worth It
April 21, 2016 Topic: Security Region: ChinaSouth China SeaVietnamMalaysiaJapanSouth Korea Blog Brand: The Buzz Tags: AlliancesSouth China SeaDefenseSecurityWarMilitaryChina Military
China's man-made islands do not imperil U.S. national security. So why are we the first line of defense?
by Charles V. Peña
The latest in tensions between the United States and China is the landing of a Chinese military aircraft on Fiery Cross Reef, one of several man-made islands built by China in the Spratly Island chain in the South China Sea. The Chinese claim the landing was for a humanitarian operation to evacuate three ill workers, but the Pentagon is troubled that China used a military plane instead of a civilian one and wants assurances from China that it has no plans to deploy or rotate military aircraft in the Spratlys, as previously promised.
The U.S. concern over Chinese actions revolve around the some $5 trillion in oceanic commerce that passes through the South China Sea and the need for unimpeded navigation that is crucial to the economies of Japan, South Korea, Australia and other countries in the region. If China does pose a threat to trade routes (itself a questionable proposition given China's position as both a supplier and consumer in international trade), why should the United States - whose homeland is thousands of miles away - take the lead and risk military confrontation with China? As an option of last resort, the America can play a supporting role, but the primary responsibility should rest with those nations in East Asia who are more directly threatened and stand to lose the most.
Unfortunately, those countries have no incentive to shoulder that burden as long as the United States is willing to bear the expense and incur the risk via forward deployed forces. Just as is the case in Europe, U.S. allies in East Asia have minimal incentive to pay the costs for their own security and will free ride as long as Uncle Sam foots the bill. With over $19 trillion in national debt - China being largest foreign debt holder, owning about $1.2 trillion of U.S. debt according to the Department of Treasury - the United States cannot afford to protect and police the entire world, particularly when American interests are not directly at stake.
Still, Washington sent the USS John C. Stennis carrier strike group (CSG) to the South China Sea as a show of force. The acquisition cost of a CSG is on the order of $13 billion, and it costs $6.5 million a day to simply operate a CSG. These are not costs the United States should bear.
Indeed, U.S. allies in the region are more than capable of underwriting military expenditures for their own collective security needs. The combined economy of Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia - all of whom have a stake in what happens in the South China Sea - is on the order of $9 trillion, which compares favorably to China's $14 trillion economy. Arguably, Thailand (GDP $1 trillion) and India (GDP $2.4 trillion) also have an interest.
There is also this to consider: China is America's second-largest trading partner, and the United States is China's largest trading partner. In other words, both countries have every reason to avoid needless confrontation.
Ultimately, China's man-made islands in the South China Sea do not imperil U.S. national security. Certainly, they are not worth the possibility of U.S.-Chinese military confrontation. Instead of being the first line of defense and directly involved in a regional dispute, the United States would be better off untangling itself from a needless entanglement.
Charles V. Peña is a senior fellow at the American Security Initiative Foundation. He has more than twenty-five years of experience as a senior analyst and program manager, supporting both the Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security. Peña is the former Director of Defense Policy Studies at the Cato Institute and author of Winning the Un-War: A New Strategy for the War on Terrorism (Potomac Books).
Image: Boats in the South China Sea off Vietnam. Wikimedia Commons/MikeRussia. CC BY-SA 3.0.
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Home/Celebrity Net Worth/Business/Al Reynolds Net Worth
Al Reynolds Net Worth
Al Reynolds Net Worth 2019: Wiki Biography, Married, Family, Measurements, Height, Salary, Relationships
111 1 minute read
Micheal Reynolds net worth is
Micheal Reynolds Wiki Biography
Al Scales Reynolds was born in June 1968 in Horsepasture, Virginia, USA; the specific date of his birth is unknown in the media. He is a businessman and investment banker, but who is probably best recognized for being the ex-wife of television personality Star Jones. He is also a professor at Florida Memorial University.
So, have you ever wondered how rich Al Reynolds is, as of mid-2017? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that the total size of Al's net worth is over $5 million,which he has accumulated not only through his involvement in the business industry as an investment banker, but also through his career as a teaching professor. Another source is coming from his appearances in several television shows.
Al Reynolds Net Worth $5 Million
Al Reynolds spent his childhood in his hometown, and upon matriculation he enrolled at the University of Virginia. He later transferred to become a student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Speaking about his career, Al is known as a businessman and investment banker, who worked more than ten years on Wall Street, which added a considerable amount to his net worth. In 2005, he became the President of Champion Advisors LLC, and he has been active at Sirius XM Radio Inc. as its Executive Vice President since 2015. According to sources, he currently works as a professor at Florida Memorial University.
Al gained huge popularity when he began dating Star Jones, a television personality who is also the co-host of the show "The View". In 2004, he proposed to her during the NBA All-Star Game, and they married in November of the same year. They subsequently appeared together in several TV series, including "E! True Hollywood Story" (2007-2008) and "Entertainment Tonight" (2008). Unfortunately, the couple divorced in September of 2008, and he appeared in the TV show "Life After" in the following year, which as the title suggests, follows the lives of celebrities who have broken-up with their partners. All of these appearances also increased his wealth.
Regarding his personal life at the moment, Al Reynolds is now single following his rather public divorce from Star Jones; he is believed to be dating Nicole Hutchison, but meantime divides his time between his residences in Miami and New York City. In his spare time, he is active on his official Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Date Of Birth June 1968
Place Of Birth Horsepasture, Virginia, USA
Profession Businessman
Education University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Virginia
Nationality American
Spouse Ex Spouse: Star Jones
Partner Nicole Hutchison
Twitter
Instagram
LinkedIn
1 Graduate of the University of Virginia and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
2 Former investment banker at Merrill Lynch.
Life After 2009 TV Series Himself
Entertainment Tonight 2008 TV Series Himself
E! True Hollywood Story 2007-2008 TV Series documentary Himself
Life After 2009
as Himself
$5 million 1938-02-151 1968 1968-06 Al Reynolds Net Worth American Editorial Department Ex Spouse: Star Jones Horsepasture June 1968 Micheal Reynolds Nicole Hutchison producer Star Jones University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University of Virginia USA Virginia Visual effects
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Sabre Appoints Abdul-Razzaq Iyer As Vice President, STNME
New regional leader will help drive business growth for agency customers in the Middle East
Sabre Corporation (NASDAQ: SABR), the leading technology provider to the global travel industry, has appointed Abdul-Razzaq Iyer to lead its Sabre Travel Network Middle East business. The new appointment will help drive business growth for both Sabre and its customers in the regions.
Since joining Sabre in 2008, Iyer has held various positions in business consulting and sales. Most recently, he has worked as a senior director in the Strategic Business Development team in Sabre's Singapore office. Leading a substantial sales organisation, he helped achieve significant growth for Sabre in APAC, working across many diverse markets.
In his new role, Iyer will be responsible for increasing Sabre's footprint in the Middle East, including high-growth markets such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. He will help drive growth for Sabre and its customers in the Middle East's dynamic and diverse regions and provide unrivaled expertise to Sabre's travel agency customers.
"Abdul-Razzaq has unique experience and success working in our APAC region, which draws many parallels to the Middle East," said Roshan Mendis, chief commercial officer, Sabre Travel Network. "He has achieved sustainable growth within a complex region that is made up of many very diverse markets. His global expertise and intricate understanding of the agency community will be an asset to Sabre's customers in the Middle East, and will open doors for travel companies in the region."
Prior to Sabre, Iyer held positions at BNP and Ernst & Young. His experience spans various regions, having previously worked in the Middle East, Far East and Europe, as well as leading several large-scale global projects.
Iyer has a Bachelor of Arts in business education from Trinity University in Texas, and also studied at Beijing University in China.
About Sabre Corporation
Sabre Corporation (NASDAQ: SABR) is the leading technology provider to the global travel industry. Sabre's software, data, mobile and distribution solutions are used by hundreds of airlines and thousands of hotel properties to manage critical operations, including passenger and guest reservations, revenue management, flight, network and crew management. Sabre also operates a leading global travel marketplace, which processes more than US$120 billion of global travel spend annually by connecting travel buyers and suppliers. Headquartered in Southlake, Texas, USA, Sabre serves customers in more than 160 countries around the world.
The Oaklander Hotel Opens in Pittsburgh
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WishesWish Stories
Sam patiently waited for puppy love
" The most rewarding part is seeing the joy Sam has, not only when he received Kai, but every day. "
- Sam's mom Darien
Sam , 7
I wish to have a Labradoodle
puppy , I wish to have a puppy , dog , pet
Anticipation is a familiar concept. It takes place in small forms, like hoping the red light turns green soon, waiting for a small injury to bruise over, or counting down the minutes until you're off the clock for the weekend. There are also big, demanding moments of anticipation, like getting engagement photos for your wedding day, picking out clothes for your unborn baby, or waiting to receive your college diploma in the mail.
Sam would live a life of anticipation, except there weren't any small doses of it. All by the age of 6, Sam would await a liver transplant, the birth of his baby sister and the granting of his one-true wish: a puppy.
The moment Sam was born on August 13, 2010, he appeared to be a happy and healthy baby boy. It wasn't until a few months later at a routine wellness visit that Sam's parents, Josiah and Darien, would receive the unexpected news that in order for their son to survive, he would need a liver transplant. Through their anxious anticipation of finding the perfect match, to their relief, Josiah, was the perfect match. Sam received a liver transplant from his father at just 13-months-old.
By the age of 6, most kids are familiar with knee scrapes or other pain in the form of an occasional boo-boo. But as Sam endured all that he did at such a young age, there was also another thing that set Sam apart. Sam would receive his life-transforming wish to have a puppy to call his own.
Sam's wish for a puppy originally began in New York, when he and his family were living there a few years ago. Sam stated that his one-true wish was for a puppy, but he would settle for a trip to Walt Disney World if he had to. Due to his father receiving deployment orders to Afghanistan, and the birth of his baby sister, Sam's wish to have a puppy was forced to be put on hold.
Though moving is a forceful push towards change, one thing remained the same: Sam's wish. "He was very patient and he never changed his mind," said Josiah, Sam's dad. Shortly after his father received transfer orders, which brought him back to the states, Sam's wish appeared to be within reach.
On October 28, 2016, after much anticipation, Sam's wish finally came true. Josiah drove to pick up the dark brown labradoodle, weighing only 6 lbs. Sam would name his very own puppy "Kai" after a character from Lego Ninjago.
Sam's mother, Darien, said that Sam's love for dogs began when he was very young during Josiah's first deployment. Sam would attend a program called "Paws for Kids" which was a program designed for families that had a mom or dad deployed overseas. Darien said they would go there once a week to visit the therapy dogs and Sam would take them on walks or give them treats. "That's what sparked his wish for a puppy," said Darien.
Though Sam still undergoes blood draws every 3-4 months, clinic visits every 6 months with his liver team, yearly biopsies, and ultrasounds, something significant has changed in his life. Well, a few things. One is that Sam is getting older. Along with growing up comes an increasing awareness of what is happening to you and around you.
When explaining her son's medical journey and where he is today, Sam's mother stated, "Sam is getting to the age now where he understands what's happening. In some ways it makes it a little bit easier because we're able to explain to him what he has to get done and what he has to go through and why. But at the same time, it makes it a little more difficult because now he knows what's coming and he does get upset. It's not just, 'I'm nervous or scared because I'm going to get a blood draw or poke,' but, 'I'm nervous about the whole process and what's going to happen to me.'"
But along with this awareness and newfound fear is simultaneously the relief and joy his wish continuously brings him. Josiah and Darien shared a recent moment of this impact: "The night before Sam had to go in for a biopsy, a moment when fear and sadness are fresh, he lost it. He was scared and nervous for the whole process of it all. He was sobbing." Sam's parents determined Kai's sleeping arrangements from the beginning, but on this night, they decided to break their own rules. Usually Kai goes into a crate at bedtime upstairs, but other than that, Kai isn't allowed upstairs. On this night, they let Kai go upstairs into Sam's room and immediately Sam changed. "He got happy and was laughing and it was exciting because Kai was in his room and he's never in his room." From stealing Sam's socks to letting Sam enjoy his fluffiness, Kai provided comfort, giggles and a distracting relief. "It completely brought him out of his worries and his fears and he was laughing and went to bed happy."
Darien compared taking care of a puppy to having a newborn. And aside from the family sharing the responsibility that comes along with Kai, like Sam's siblings helping throw the ball for Kai, Sam's wish tremendously impacted everyone in the family in more ways than one. "He wasn't just thinking of himself (when he wished for a puppy) but thinking of the whole family and something that everybody could enjoy," said Darien.
These days, aside from Tae Kwon Do, gymnastics and playing soccer, Sam loves to draw and paint. At a birthday party, when prompted to do a canvas painting, the result was strikingly familiar.
Josiah and Darien are hoping to get Kai trained as a therapy dog and Sam has already started going to training classes with Kai to learn how to best interact and train him. Josiah and Darien talked about the continuous joy this has brought, through this journey of raising Kai. "It's not a trip that we took and now it's over, but he sees Kai every day. The most rewarding part is seeing the joy Sam has, not only when he received Kai, but every day. It's a continuous joy."
Of all the things Sam has had to wait to receive, they all have one thing in common. They were all worth the wait.
This story makes me feel
Christina Fishburne
We love you so much, Sam!
Sarah Castro
Beautiful story of a beautiful family.
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I was born ideologically, politically, and spiritually in June 1967  -  settler/ambassador Dani Dayan
Philip Weiss on June 19, 2017 24 Comments
Israeli consul general to NY, Dani Dayan, at Israel at a Crossroads conference, June 11, 2017, NY.
On June 11, I heard a forceful speech: Israeli consul general Dani Dayan's reflections on his spiritual rebirth in 1967. Speaking to Zionist groups in New York at a conference on "Israel at a crossroads on the anniversary of the 1967 War," Dayan said that the most important weeks of his life were when he was 11 and experienced the deaths of his grandparents and the 1967 war and committed himself to a nationalist political vision that would take him from Argentina to Tel Aviv and on to be a colonist in the West Bank.
"The winner takes all, by force. And we won. Thank god," he said, summarizing the war.
I pass Dayan's speech along (absent the afterthought, which I already quoted), because it shows how deeply-ingrained the rightwing settler way of thinking is in Israeli politics and U.S. Jewish life. You would think Dayan is an outlier. In March 2016, Brazil rejected Dayan as an ambassador because of his settler ideology. Just a year ago Dayan savaged liberal Zionists as "un-Jewish." Five years ago he wrote on the op-ed page of the New York Times that a two-state solution was "unattainable" and represented a "disaster."
Yet liberal Zionists have now embraced the famously-charming ambassador. The Forward editor did last year. The June 11 conference that I attended of mostly liberal Zionist groups welcomed him. Rick Jacobs, the president of the Reform Jews, the "most powerful force" in US Jewish life, praised Dayan to the skies (below) and was twice mentioned in the speech.
Let us hear Dayan:
I'm very glad to be here. You know what I'm going to say now is true. It's not fake news. I don't know if you heard but this morning in the Kotel [western wall plaza in Jerusalem], a naked woman strolled around the Kotel till she was taken into custody. It seems to be a woman with mental problems- But I wonder whose purpose in the Kotel was fulfilled. [Laughter] And I have some ideas about it...
We are celebrating now the 50th anniversary [of Jerusalem unification]. The 25th anniversary was celebrated in the White House, when President Bush 41 received Mayor Teddy Kollek, the great builder of Jerusalem, of Ramot and all those neighborhoods, and celebrated.... That shows that in politics the variable is larger than the constant, or surely larger than we tend to believe.
Now luckily for me, since I was asked to speak personally, luckily for me the personal and the national and the political and the philosophical are so intertwined that I can under the pretext of speaking personal also speak politics.
Actually I'm now celebrating a kind of birthday these days. I think that I am celebrating my ideological birthday. I was born biologically in November 1955, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. But I think that politically, ideologically and in some sense spiritually, I was born in June 1967 after a long three weeks of labor, from May, late May to early June.
Because for me as an 11-year-old child in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in a very Jewish, although nonobservant, but staunchly Zionist family- the product of the amazing Hebrew education system also that the Jewish congregation of Argentina built that was second to none- speaking Hebrew- those were my formative ideological days. Also it was intertwined as I said with a very, very personal happening. My grandparents whom I lived in the same house with, my mother's parents, decided to go to visit Israel for Yom Ha'atzmaut 1967 [Israel independence day] and they had a terrible road accident, a few days after Yom Hatzmaaut [May 15]. My grandfather passed away immediately. My grandmother struggled in the hospital for a few days more. My mother immediately flew to Israel. When she came, she came for the funeral of my grandmother.
What was happening in Israel in those days was also political, Jewish and completely personal.
And I remember - you know, today you can rewrite history. But I always say that the only advantage I can find of not being young is that I remember. I assume that at a certain stage I will start to forget, but that's another issue.
I remember the exasperation, I remember the agony, I remember the feeling- you could touch the feeling of anguish, of exasperation, that barely 20 something years after the Shoah it might happen again.
And today when I read these accounts about Israel, the expansionist grand design of the Zionists in 1967, I really don't know if to laugh or to cry. Because we remember; we remember the explicit chilling statements by all Arab leaders, Nasser in Egypt, Shukeiri of the PLO, and Attasi in Damascus and others, about what the fate of our brethren in Israel will be. And then of course the spiritual innovation  -  when we returned to the places that I read and learned so much in Hebrew school. Not only Jerusalem, by the way, also Hebron and Shiloh and Beit El, and other places that are the cradle of Jewish civilization, the cradle of Jewish history.
I think if at a certain point- I am a non-observant Jew, I'm a 100 percent Jew but quite nonobservant. I always say that my relationship with God is... one of the things I live to examine after I retire. Maybe I will ask Rabbi Jacobs to be my counselor on that after I retire. But if I was at a certain point close to become an observant Jew in the orthodox sense of the word, those were those days.
And add to that, the amazing spiritual uplifting of coming to live in Israel three and a half years later, and to see the places and to fulfill it personally. And those are for me no doubt the most significant days of my life. And I made a decision, no doubt I made a decision those days that I am still loyal to, that as far as I was concerned, Israel will never return to that vulnerable situation it was in 1967.
That as far as I am concerned I will do whatever I can to prevent Israel's enemies to have such a wonderful chance to fulfill their dream of destroying Israel. And that decision that I made as an 11 year boy in Buenos Aires, a year and a half before my bar mitzvah- is still my ideological guidance.
It's very important for me to tackle two points. Again, they are the personal and ideological intertwined.
The first one... In 1988, I, a very urban guy, a guy that loved city life, that was born in a very big city, Buenos Aires, and grew up in Tel Aviv, decided to move to a small community in the hills of Samaria - Ma'ale Shomron- for purely ideological reasons. We had both of us, my wife and I, very good positions. I was chairman and CEO of a large information technology company. My wife was a senior executive in an advertising agency, one of the most trendy agencies in Tel Aviv of those days. Since then they went bankrupt- but nothing to do with the fact that my wife left them.
We enjoyed the cultural scene of Tel Aviv, the shopping of Tel Aviv. And as you can see, we enjoyed too much the gastronomic scene of Tel Aviv.
Nevertheless we decided to leave and live in Samaria. And the question I want to tackle is, Did we do as is often portrayed, an immoral act by doing that, or not?
And for me that's the most crucial question. It's much more important than the question if we did a politically wise move. Because for in order for a political move to be wise, it has to be first and foremost moral. I'm a person that tries to live his life by high moral standards, strict moral standards. I never visited South Africa before 1994, I always preferred to spend my shekels in another place, not in a racially segregated regime.
So is it immoral, like persons claim- what I am doing? No! It is not. And I want to devote a few minutes to explain this.
Look, there are two national movements, legitimate national movements, in the patch of land that we Jews call Eretz Israel and the Palestinians call Falastin. The Jewish national movement, the Zionist movement is legitimate, the return to our homeland after 2000 years of dispersion, forced dispersion, in which every single day we yearned to do that. And then a gigantic statesman... Theodor Herzl converted that yearning into a political movement, into a national liberation movement-
And there are the Palestinians who were there when we arrived. Yes, they were there when we arrived, and their claim is also legitimate and makes sense. For sure it is genuine, it's sincere.
So how do you resolve a conflict like this, morally, ethically?
I must admit even if it's painful for me to say that the only way that makes sense may be partition. But what happens when partition is proposed time and again, time and again, and the only constant pattern in the political aspect of the Jewish Palestinian conflict, the Zionist Palestinian conflict, the Israeli Palestinian conflict- call it what you whatever name you want- is this: the Zionist movement, Israel, the Israeli government accepts partition, in some cases proposes partition, the Palestinian national movement rejects it.
That is the only constant pattern since 1936 to 2017.
Actually to be on the safe side I used to say that the last time it happened was in 2008, during Ehud Olmert's administration, but yesterday, Haaretz published the details of the Kerry proposal. John Kerry, 2014. And we learn from there, that Netanyahu accepted Kerry's proposal of partition and Abbas rejected it...
It happened in '36, in the Peel Commission, and in 47. Whatever happened on November 29 of 47? By the way, November 29 is my biological birthday, in '55. What happened? The Jews of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Netanyah, New York, Buenos Aires, they went into the squares to dance the Horah and they attacked us. That's the only reason the state of Palestine doesn't celebrate its 69th anniversary in May 2017. The only one.
What happened from 1948 to 1967. My academic education is not in politics, political science or international relations. My master's degree is in finance. In finance, you say that if you own a stock or a share, every day you do not sell it actually you made a rational decision to buy it. Because you can sell it in the market. If you keep it, it's equivalent to making the decision to buy it. The parallel is that every single day in those 19 years in which the Palestinian national movement decided not made a make peace with Israel in the pre-1967 borders they made the rational decision that they prefer the annihilation of Israel to a two state solution.
And then came '67. In 1967 there was the blatant attempt to destroy Israel. The Palestinians, the Arabs set the rules of the game: The winner takes all, by force. And we won. Thank god. That Rabbi Jacobs will tell me how to - never mind. I am being recorded, and they love me- the haredi in Israel- as you know.
And yes we have a right to live there. We have a right to live in those disputed territories that we were ready to relinquish but we were attacked.
Yes, I will say more than that. Yes: Israel did, does, and most probably will continue to do its share of injustices. Yes, of course! I don't know if any other nation that in such an entrenched conflict, did not, including this country.
Yes, Israel did, does, and most probably will do its share of stupidities. Yes! I don't know if any other nation in such an entrenched conflict did not.
But when I take a look at the big picture, my conscience is clear. We have by far the moral upper hand, including in residing in Judea and Samaria. No settlement was established over the ruins an Arab village, in Judea and Samaria. Yes there are some local disputes about ownership, this place that place, but never a settlement was established on the ruins of an Arab village.
Dayan and Rabbi Rick Jacobs seem to have a real friendship. The Reform movement president says he told Benjamin Netanyahu that Dayan was a "flamethrower" when he was appointed, but Jacobs now praises Dayan for being a very responsive consul general, and for presenting the other side at this liberal conference.
The other side? That conference featured no anti-Zionists. And just one Palestinian, a conservative.
As for revising history: for the facts on the '67 war, both the alarm beforehand and the ease of the victory, read Norman Finkelstein here, as well as the reflections of I.F. Stone, Avigail Abarbanel, Vivienne Porzsolt, and Joel Kovel here.
Lastly, Dayan insists he is not religious. My definition of religion includes deeply held communal beliefs. Like Dayan's "spiritual" belief in a Jewish civilization that was "cradled" in the West Bank, then scattered.
Ossinev on June 19, 2017, 2:17 pm
"The Jewish national movement, the Zionist movement is legitimate, the return to our homeland after 2000 years of dispersion, forced dispersion, in which every single day we yearned to do that. And then a gigantic statesman... Theodor Herzl converted that yearning into a political movement, into a national liberation movement"
It`s always a difficult call with these cuddlier Zionist freaks - whether to puke or laugh. On balance I would say that Dayan definitely creases me up ( not with vomit but with laughter)
eljay on June 19, 2017, 2:34 pm
Zionism is a powerful supremacist ideology: It can make the natives of Argentina who choose to hold the religion-based identity of Jewish believe that they are actually ancient Israelites who are entitled:
- to establish a religion-supremacist "Jewish State" in as much as possible of Palestine; and
- to do unto others acts of injustice and immorality they would not have others do unto them.
US Citizen on June 19, 2017, 3:37 pm
This man lives in denial and truly thinks Israels failed apartheid policies will prevail. A good debate in London. The Palestinian woman who speaks clearly makes him uncomfortable.
No wonder Venezuela rejected him and shame on those who made him Consul General in New York.
Head to Head - Israeli settlers: Patriots or invaders?
wondering jew on June 19, 2017, 5:19 pm
There is an interesting interplay of politics and morality involved in the settling of the west bank. If Israel had annexed the west bank and given the residents citizenship and the right to vote, then the moral right of the jews to settle the west bank would not go against the morality of disenfranchising a population. but israel did not annex and did not offer the vote to the residents and thus the act of settling amounted to an antidemocratic act.
(a side note: democracy is on the decline with trump as us president. his minority of the popular vote contributes to the decline of democracy in the world. is democracy a moral value. i believe it is.)
Talkback on June 19, 2017, 6:44 pm
Yes Yonah, Jews have the moral right to disenfranchise a Nonjewish population and violate their right to self determination by illegaly annexing and illegaly settling their territory. And that's not an antidemocratic act, because Jews are asked what they want. Like in 1948. Who cares what Nonjews want. Anything else you have learned from the Herrenrasse, Yonah?
|| yonah fredman: ... If Israel had annexed the west bank and given the residents citizenship and the right to vote, then the moral right of the jews to settle the west bank ... ||
Had Israel annexed the West Bank, Israelis - not "the Jews" - would then have been entitled to settle in the West Bank.
|| ... is democracy a moral value. i believe it is.) ||
I agree that democracy is a moral value.
However, supremacism - including religion-based "Jewish State" supremacism - is not a moral value. But you believe it is.
RoHa on June 19, 2017, 10:35 pm
"democracy is on the decline with trump as us president. his minority of the popular vote contributes to the decline of democracy in the world."
Because never before has a president or prime minister gained office on a minority vote.
Trygve on June 20, 2017, 11:47 am
In the United States, Donald Trump is the fifth President elected to that office despite losing the popular vote.
The United States was not a real democracy before the 1960's when blacks gained the right to vote in the Southern States. The fact that the Trump victory was the second time in 5 elections that the minority of voters elected the president is significant in regards to the feelings of Democratic voters in large states that their votes don't count as much as Republican voters in sparsely populated states. The electoral college undercuts America's claim to democracy.
But indeed there are many particulars about Trump that make his presidency a particularly vulgar assault on democracy. Democracy is a fragile system and Trump with his attempts to disqualify a Mexican judge, his midnight tweets and his attempt to get the head of the FBI to declare loyalty, is a particular specific threat to democracy. The electoral college victory (despite the popular vote loss) is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of the threats that Trump poses to the ideas of democracy.
(How can I tell Israelis that they should be ashamed of the Netanyahu premiership, when the US is led by Donald Trump, whose demagogic impulses far outweigh his democratic impulses?)
annie on June 20, 2017, 2:32 pm
minority of voters elected the president is significant in regards to the feelings of Democratic voters in large states that their votes don't count as much as Republican voters in sparsely populated states. The electoral college undercuts America's claim to democracy.
important point yonah. here's another; not sure if you've been following the news about recent state's dem conventions (calif, florida and mass come to mind), but there's a deep crevasse in the dem party right now. lots of democrats are blaming the dem party, they don't think their votes count unless they are supporting the establishment candidate. in fact, there is a class action lawsuit against the dem party going on right now in florida and last i checked the news the defendants' attorney just told the court the dem party had the right to choose their candidates behind closed doors if they wanted to. just thought i'd mention.
Mooser on June 20, 2017, 3:25 pm
"(How can I tell Israelis that they should be ashamed of the Netanyahu premiership,when the US is led by Donald Trump?"
"yonah" even if our standing as Americans is tarnished, we still have moral and ethical obligations as Jews.
RoHa on June 20, 2017, 7:21 pm
And the "first past the post" system undercuts the British claim to be a democracy.
You should all adopt the Very Wonderful Australian Preferential Vote system that has led to Australia being run by sagacious, honest, far-sighted statesmen whose only concern is the well-being of the people of Australia.

Real democracy requires sausages.
gamal on June 20, 2017, 10:15 pm
"Real democracy requires sausages"
its the Wurst, but extrawurst is the rod polse as Churchill says.
Keith on June 21, 2017, 10:33 am
ROHA- "Real democracy requires sausages."
Vegetarian sausages? Seriously though, I have come to doubt that real democracy is even possible inasmuch as it goes against the hierarchical nature of tribal life which seems to have a genetic component. People tend to identify themselves as leaders (a few) struggling for power or followers (most) seeking reward as loyal group members. The notion of everyone exercising leadership prerogatives as citizens is not in evidence anywhere. So what you have in the US is capitalist democracy where the elites choose representative candidates who represent their interests and the citizens get to vote for their favorite in an electoral marketing extravaganza. In any event, real power lies with the financial institutions and other corporations who effectively run the political economy. One cannot even conceive of anything approaching democracy in any meaningful sense as long as wealth and power are concentrated in the hands of the elite. All talk of electoral reforms are a joke without a MASSIVE redistribution of wealth downward. And I can't see that happening.
Bont Eastlake on June 21, 2017, 11:28 am
Your spot on with regards to the dynamics of eager leaders and loyal followers in any functioning society. Both elements will always be separate but need each other in order to survive. The most important aspect of this relationship is the delicate balance between the needs of both sides. You cant have a population with hetegenous followers and homogenous leaders, or vice versa like we have in most Western societies.
Bont Eastlake on June 21, 2017, 12:00 pm
Also in an ideal society, we will have a constant competition within the two classes for meeting their respective needs. The followers will try to best each other in being the most loyal, most supportive and most rewarded by their leaders through novel metrics. Likewise the leaders will also be in constant competition with each other for being the most loved, most helpful, most bountiful etc.
This constant state of warfare of sorts fulfill the highest needs of every member of society, their self actualisation as human beings. The two classes will never compete with each other, just among themselves. But when relatively distinct members are introduced into society, the dynamics shifts to either assimilate the newcomers or to exterminate them, inviting a new set of dynamics into the system. Thus any form of resistance toward assimilation or extermination by the newcomers will lead to departure from ideal state of society, introducing inequality and dysfunction within its members.
"This constant state of warfare of sorts fulfill the highest needs of every member of society, their self actualisation as human beings."
Well, I know you are all ready for that "constant state of warfare", but do yourself a favor, don't enter any spelling bee's.
Say, can you spell "glibertarian"?
Keith on June 21, 2017, 2:56 pm
BONT EASTLAKE- "This constant state of warfare of sorts fulfill the highest needs of every member of society, their self actualisation as human beings."
Surely you jest.
gamal on June 21, 2017, 3:37 pm
"Also....dysfunction within its members."
the merest prod and you are off into word salad, you were doing so well for a while no one noticed that you are a total nutter, it reads like bf skinner channeling ayn rand, you blew it again, time to regenerate. Long Live the Revolution you mug.
lonely rico on June 19, 2017, 8:08 pm
Thanks US Citizen for the link to Head to Head video.
The wonderful Dr. Ghada Karmi on Palestinian national aspirations -
"Just get out of my land ... Dani Dayan, you represent common thieves, live on stolen land, you drink stolen water, you eat stolen fruit, you farm stolen farms"
And you murder, torture, and destroy Palestinian men women and children.
US Citizen on June 20, 2017, 11:53 am
I loved it when she pointed out that he was born in Argentina, was from the Ukraine but felt he had more of a right to be in her country. Very good insight into the mind of these messianic, racist settlers.
JLewisDickerson on June 19, 2017, 10:23 pm
I'm not certain in exactly what ways, but I am convinced Dayan is in some ways very much like "Ken Doll"(who is originally from Brazil).
■ Rodrigo Alves: The Human Ken Doll | This Morning
Broadcast on 16/05/2016
Rodrigo Alves has spent over £300K on plastic surgery in order to attain his perfect look. He tells Holly and Ben why, even after his nose collapsed, he's still not stopping.
■ Head to Head - Israeli settlers: Patriots or invaders?
A UN report says Israeli settlements violate human rights and could be prosecuted as war crimes, but many Israeli settlers consider themselves patriots. So what hope is there for peace in the Middle East?In a country where settlers are now one of the biggest and strongest political movements, Dani Dayan, a Netanyahu advisor and the outgoing chairman of the Yesha (Settlers) Council, says there is no two-state solution to the conflict and that he is happy with the status quo.Dayan has been a major in the Israeli army, a successful IT entrepreneur, and a University lecturer. In 1999 he became an executive committee member of the Yesha Council, which represents the settler movement, and in 2007, its chairman until February 2013. He completely revitalised the movement until his resignation to campaign openly for Binyamin Netanyahu.Mehdi Hasan goes head to head with Dayan at the Oxford Union, discussing whether Zionism is a colonialist project, whether the so-called apartheid roads are just an urban legend - and more importantly, what is the solution to this protracted conflict?Dayan claims settlements are irreversible but preaches in favour of dismantling the wall. With a lively audience and robust debate from the expert panel, Head to Head is tackling the hard issues surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Are the settlements a natural extension of the Israeli state or the single biggest obstacle to peace in the Middle East? Will the Palestinians ever be able to build an independent and viable state?Joining our discussion are: Dr Ghada Karmi, an academic and the author of The Palestinian Exodus (1999), In Search for Fatima (2002), and Israel's Dilemma in Palestine (2007); Sam Westrop, a former director of the British Israel Coalition, and a fellow of the New York-based Gatestone Institute; and Hannah Weisfeld, the director of Yachad, a pro-peace, pro-Israel NGO based in London.
■ Israel is destroying itself with its settlement policy

MOTION: "Israel is Destroying Itself With its Settlement Policy: If Settlement Expansion Continues Israel Will Have No Future"
Filmed at the Royal Geographical Society on 15th January 2013.
Patriacide. Nationcide. Whatever you want to call it, that is what Israel is doing with its settlement policy: it is killing itself. If ever greater numbers of Jewish settlers are installed on land regarded by Palestinians as the basis for a state of their own, the possibility of a two-state solution grows ever more remote. Yet the single state alternative, involving annexation of the West Bank, would result in a country where Arabs vastly outnumber Jews and then you won't have a one-state or a two-state solution: you'll have a no-state solution. For those who love Israel and wish to preserve a democratic Jewish homeland, as much as for those who hate it, the settlements must stop. That's what many left-wing Israelis and their friends say. But defenders of the settlements see things very differently. The two-state solution has long been a dead letter in their view: why stop building settlements in the name of a peace plan that is frankly unattainable? Whatever the eventual solution  -  it could even be a West Bank jointly governed by Jordan and Israel  -  there is no good reason why both Israelis and Palestinians shouldn't both expand their settlements in the interim before an eventual peace deal.
"Yet liberal Zionists have now embraced the famously-charming ambassador"
I generally think of Dayan as a wannabe Zionist comedian who sees his role as one of soft selling Israeli racist and Apartheid policies. Having watched and compared the two videos above I am not so sure anymore. In the IQ2 address he verges on the apoplectic at times. Could however simply be a build up of Ziohasbara constipation.
Having said that however he still comes across as a lot less unhinged than the seriously spooky and deranged Glick who long ago burst her Ziohasbara constipation dam.
Just imagine being marooned on a desert island with these two weirdos.


The Prayer of Cornelius
At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, "Cornelius." -Acts 10:1-3
The shortest prayer service of the day takes place in the afternoon, or at least just before sunset, and is called Mincha.
-Rabbi Berel Wein
"Mincha: the afternoon prayer"
moshe.gorin: The KSA says the ikar time for mincha is mincha ketana (9 1/2) hours after sunrise but the Rebbe davened before then. If you're davening alone, when is best?
Torah613: The Rebbe davvened earlier (probably) because he davvened with the Yeshiva's minyan, which was daily at 3:15.
Straight halacha would imply that Mincha Ketanah is better, so if it isn't a question of davvening betzibur, MK is better.
Disaclaimer: As in all halachik questions, a competent Rov should be consulted.
mosheh5769: Whether we pray alone (bediavad) or with a Minyan (betzibbur), the prefered time for Mincha is Mincha K'tanah. Some say that if you pray in Mincha Gedola, you are still Yatza, but Lechatkhila, it is proper to pray at the time of Mincha K'tanah.
I don't know where and who, but I have no doubt Taryag will help, there is a Posek who ruled that it is better to pray Mincha K'tanah alone than to pray Mincha Gedola with a Minyan. Why, I don't remember, and I don't know if other Poskim poskened in the same way.
Anyway, the best time to pray is at the time of Mincha K'tanah and not earlier. But of course, if a Shul has the custom to pray earlier (like the Yeshiva's Minyan as it has been explained by Taryag) and if there need you to complete the Minyan, even if it is not your custom, you should complete the Minyan and daven earlier.
-from the discussion thread "Best time for Mincha"
Archived thread at Chabadtalk.com
We don't know much more about the late Second Temple figure Cornelius than what we read in the verses I quoted above. He was what we call a "God-fearer;" a Gentile, a Roman centurion who, by definition, would have been a pagan polytheist, and who, during his assignment in the land of the Hebrews, came to realize that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, was and is the God; the One and Unique Creator of the universe.
Coming to that realization alone must have taken great courage and conviction. His actual response to his realization was certainly astounding, given who he must have been and where he had come from. We know he "gave alms generously to the people", who we assume to be the Jews among whom he lived. The messengers sent to bring Peter to Cornelius after the Centurion's vision referred to him as "an upright and God-fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation" (Acts 10:22). And oh wow! Cornelius was so favored by God that this happened.
And Cornelius said, "Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying in my house at the ninth hour, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing and said, 'Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.' So I sent for you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Now therefore we are all here in the presence of God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord." -Acts 10:30-33
Incidentally, the ninth hour is at about 3 p.m. in the way we tell time today, about the time of the Mincha prayers. But why is that important? So who taught Cornelius to pray the Mincha prayers. Ok, there's nothing to say that he was truly praying Mincha, but here's why I think he was. Consider this.
The Roman Centurion Cornelius comes to faith in the One true God of the universe. Now what does he do? We know that he gives alms, probably to the poor among the Jews. Whatever else he did resulted in Cornelius being "well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation", which is no small thing since he was also part of the Roman occupying army. As far as we are able to understand, that group of non-Jews who were called "God-fearers" worshiped on Shabbat among Jews in the synagogue. Where would he have learned the prayers and how to worship? What was the only available model Cornelius could have used to worship a God who was virtually unknown in the Greek and Roman world?
I'm not suggesting that Cornelius "lived as a Jew" in the sense of fully taking on Jewish customs including the various religious and identity markers. It is doubtful (but what do I know) that he would have shown up in the Court of the Gentiles at the Jerusalem Temple. After all, he had to consider appearances and what would the troops in the Italian Cohort have said if one of their Centurions was seen in such a public place among the Jews. On the other hand, his reputation preceded him among the Jewish people based on his being a devout and charitable man. Desiring to worship God above all other considerations, what would he have done? He would have consulted his Jewish mentors as to how to approach God. Prayer offered to the God of Israel is available to everyone, Jew and Gentile alike.
"Likewise, when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a far country for the sake of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm, when he comes and prays toward this house, hear from heaven your dwelling place and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to you, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may know that this house that I have built is called by your name. -2 Chronicles 6:32-33
Even in the days of King Solomon, a non-Jew could come to Jerusalem, pray facing the Temple, and expect to be heard by God. Why couldn't the Jews among whom Cornelius lived and worshiped have taught him the same thing?
How did Jews pray during the Second Temple period? I'm no expert, but assuming the Jews in the time of Cornelius and Peter had similar traditions about prayer to those of Jewish people today, they would have prayed as Jews pray now. They would have prayed the Shacharit (morning), Mincha (afternoon), and Maariv (evening) prayers. If Cornelius wanted to learn how to pray from the Jews, they would have taught him how to pray the way that they prayed, with perhaps only a few variations, because Cornelius was not Jewish. In those days, siddurim (prayer books) were not used and the prayers were generally memorized. That means, Cornelius would have had to say the prayers by memory, probably in Hebrew or Aramaic (given that the Centurion was posted to a foreign land, it's not inconceivable that he was bi-lingual or multi-lingual). He also would have prayed at the times set by halacha for prayer which, in the afternoon, meant around 3 p.m. or the ninth hour.
Why am I writing this and why should you care? What does it matter to a Christian in the 21st century if a Roman centurion, who came to faith in Jesus almost 2,000 years ago, happened to worship and pray in a manner similar to the Jews? Have you ever wondered why Christians don't pray in the same manner as the Jews today?
I'm not saying that we must pray morning, afternoon, and night (though it wouldn't be a bad idea). I'm saying that there's nothing stopping us from considering where we come from as a faith. However you pray and however you worship in your church, your way isn't the only way. In fact, if you go back more than a few decades or a few centuries, the way you may consider "Christian" and "holy" probably wasn't practiced, as least in a manner you'd recognize. Go back far enough, like 2,000 years, and the way a God-fearer and a Christian prayed and worshiped wouldn't be much different than the way a Jew prayed and worshiped.
We tend to take prayer and worship for granted because we can always pray and worship anytime we want. But in many ways, the church considers prayer and worship as optional or at least voluntary. We get to choose our own way and manner of doing things. However, for believers and God-fearers like Cornelius, that privlege and honor to worship the King may have come with a commandment attached, maybe at the level of rudimentary "halacha" for non-Jews who had faith.
Today's amud discusses the halachah regarding hearing the Torah reading when one is in prison. Although today in many places things may be different, it used to be that most prisons would not allow a sefer Torah inside - even for an important person or a minyan of prisoners. When the Vilna Gaon spent about four weeks imprisoned it was impossible for him to fulfill the mitzvah of hearing the Torah reading. After he left prison he called a baal koreh to read for him all four parshios he had missed while in prison.
Although missing so many weeks is very unusual, many greats were meticulous to make up the reading that they had missed that day.
Mishna Berura Yomi Digest
"The Prisoner's Duty"
Siman 135, Seif 11-14
Our Gemara reviews a series of Mishnayos where the obligation to fulfill mitzvos is taught to be more inclusive than plainly stated. Regarding the mitzvah to read the Megillah on Purim, R' Yehoshua b. Levi teaches that the expanded inference is meant to include women. Although this rabbinic mitzvah is one that is restricted to time, and women are generally exempt, here woman are obligated because "they were also included in the miracle."
Rashi explains that women are obligated in the mitzvah to read the Megillah to the extent that a woman may read the Megillah for her husband or other men.
"Women's obligation in reading and hearing the Megillah"
Arachin 3
The level of "commandedness" which defines Jewish tradition, worship, and prayer seems very "heavy-handed" to most Christians and the spectre of "man-made rulings" is generally disdained in the church (and among many Gentile believers to call themselves "Messianics"). And yet, how would an "upright and God-fearing man" like Cornelius have seen his responsibilities to God as taught to him by his Jewish mentors? Would the Jewish sense of halacha have meant to him what it meant to the Jews? We don't know. But imagine if we, as Christians, could experience some of the sense of duty and obligation to God, to the prayers, to our way of worship, as Cornelius may have? How much more would God be a part of our lives today? How much more would God be our lives today?
One of the functions of tradition and halacha in the life of a Jew is to make every act holy. You cannot eat without blessing God and considering the food on the plate sitting in front of you (or even without considering the plate). You cannot wake up in the morning without gratefully thanking God for returning your life to you. You cannot go to bed at night without asking God to send his angels to guard your soul as you sleep. You cannot progress through your day without ceasing your labors at specific hours in order to devote yourself to God in prayer. And for one day a week, you cannot do many things as you do them on the other days of the week, but instead, you cease labor entirely and dedicate the day to family, prayer, worship, and God.
I'm still not saying that as Christians we should live like Jews, but consider what we're missing by not taking tradition more seriously. Tradition can be like a straight-jacket or a pair of wings. It can bind us inescapably to a collection of actions and rules that threaten to smother us, or it can send us free into flight away from a mundane world and into the presence of God with practically every move we make.
Maybe this is why the Jews considered the foreigner Cornelius an "upright and God-fearing man". Maybe this is why God found that Cornelius merited a vision of an angel, and made him and his household a bridge between God-fearers and disciples of Christ.
While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, "Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. -Acts 10:44-48
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13 thoughts on "The Prayer of Cornelius"
Great post, James. I have some questions for you:
In Acts 10 it says "...Then Peter said, [47] "Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have." My question: Why would Second Temple Era Jews have prevented uncircumcised men from being immersed with water in the first place? What about their laws would've suggested to them that it was wrong to "baptize" the uncircumcised? What did Second Temple Era Jews believe a "baptism" signified? And what was it about the manifestation of the Holy Spirit that would then require the Jews to "baptize" the uncircumcised men?
I've generally understood the practice of John the Baptist and Peter performing baptisms as being related to the mikvah. We've seen a number of commandments in the Torah where the Children of Israel were required to be immersed under certain circumstances, usually to become clean after some event, such as touching a corpse, a man having a seminal emission, or a woman after her monthly period (see Leviticus 14 and 15 for some examples). Modern Orthodox Judaism maintains the mikvah traditions with many synagogues having a mikvah "in-house", so to speak, or having access to a facility that can act as a mikvah. The modern mikvah is used to purify an individual after they have entered a state of uncleanness and is part of the process of teshuvah or repentance from acts of sin. When a Gentile undergoes conversion to Judaism, the final act of the conversion process is to be immersed in the mikvah. The person goes down into the mikvah as a Gentile and rises up as a Jew.
My understanding is that Jews would not have immersed Gentiles prior to Matthew 28:19-20 because they were not part of the covenants of God, particularly the Sinai covenant. Since immersion was specifically tied to various Torah commandments, it wouldn't have occurred to any Jew to immerse a pagan Gentile or even a non-Jewish "God-fearer". There was no precedent to do so. There was also no precedent for a Gentile to receive the Holy Spirit, which is why Peter and his Jewish companions were absolutely astounded when they witnessed Gentiles receiving the Spirit of God, just as the Jewish Apostles did in Acts 2. The events at the end of Acts 10 were absolutely pivotal in the lives of all Gentiles because they signified that all the peoples of the world could also have access to the God of Israel through the Jewish Messiah. It had never, ever happened before, but God in His infinite wisdom and compassion, allowed His grace to be poured out on the rest of us.
Oh, the term "uncircumcised men" just meant "Gentiles".
"My understanding is that Jews would not have immersed Gentiles prior to Matthew 28:19-20 because they were not part of the covenants of God, particularly the Sinai covenant."
Are you saying that, post-resurrection, the uncircumcised Believers are part of the Sinai covenant?
No. Not even close.
I'm saying that before Jesus gave the "Great Commission" to his Jewish disciples to make disciples of *all the nations*, the idea that Gentiles could be baptized into the name of the God of Israel, the Spirit, and the Moshiach wasn't even "on the table". Jesus opened the door for Gentile access to God through the Messianic covenant. It doesn't link us back into Sinai. I only mentioned the Mosaic covenant because the Torah obligates *Jews* to undergo the mikvah under certain circumstances. Because those commandments don't apply to Gentiles, no one would have thought in their wildest dreams that a Gentile should undergo the mikvah.
Not sure where you got the idea I was talking about the resurrection.
I guess I was just puzzled why you referenced the resurrection chapter given the syntax of your sentence.
I'm confused. The "resurrection chapter?" I tend to think of Matthew 28:19-20 as Jesus giving a directive to "evangelize" to the people of the world. We must look at this command in two very different lights.
The root of the miscommunication (on my part) was that multiple things happen in Matthew 28. I didn't realize you were referring to the Great Commission which happens towards the end of the chapter.
I'm curious: why do you think we interpret the Great Commission "in two very different lights"?
I guess because you referred to Matthew 28:19-20 in terms of resurrection. I couldn't figure out where you were getting that from these verses. Oh, I checked and I did specifically address verses 19 and 20 in my original comment. Not trying to be mean, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't misleading in my previous statements.
As they say, "all's well that ends well in the inkwell" (from Max Fleischer's Koko the Clown cartoon).
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Polar Law Textbook II
Natalia Loukacheva
Developments in the Arctic and Antarctica continue to be the subject of growing public interest and academic, political, scientific, and media discourse. The global magnitude of the changes that are currently taking place in the Polar Regions, also influence legal developments. Furthermore, the growing importance of both the Arctic and the Antarctica in various areas of global, regional, national and sub-national development requires further inquiry into the role of law in dealing with many of the current and emerging issues relevant to both Poles. Although law is not a panacea for all issues, it has its own role to play in dealing with many of them. A broad overview of Polar law issues was presented in the pioneering Polar Law Textbook, N. Loukacheva ed. Copenhagen: Nordic Council of Ministers, Tema Nord 538: 2010 ().This textbook represents the outcome of a cooperative process between an international group of well-known experts in the area of Polar law and related studies. Polar Law Textbook II further draws upon Polar law as an evolving and developing field of studies which is gaining increasing recognition and intersects with many other areas in the social sciences and humanities. It explores a variety of legal issues in the Arctic and Antarctica (i.e., questions of human rights law, environmental law, law of the sea, continental shelf, climate change, energy law, resources, indigenous peoples rights, etc.,) but also covers the relevant aspects of geopolitics, security, governance, search and rescue, biodiversity, devolution, institutions (e.g., the Arctic Council) and political developments.


Review - Ferdinand
December 14, 2017 FILM REVIEWDaniel M. Kimmel
FILM REVIEW - FERDINAND. With the voices of John Cena, Kate McKinnon, Bobby Cannavale, Anthony Anderson, Peyton Manning. Written by Robert L. Baird and Tim Federle and Brad Copeland. Directed by Carlos Saldana. Rated PG for rude humor, action and some thematic elements. 106 minutes.
Whether by coincidence or design, both the major studio animated offerings this season feature Hispanic characters. "Coco," the box office hit from Pixar/Disney, is set in Mexico and has been justifiably praised as one of the best films of the year. However, with school vacation coming up, it's helpful to have some other family-friendly movies, and this year FERDINAND fills the bill.
Based on the classic children's book by Munro Leaf and Robert Lawson, it tells the tale of a bull who is raised to battle matadors to-the-death but has no interest in that. Rather than fighting, he prefers to smell the flowers. Needless to say, this does not earn him the respect of the other bulls.
In this rendition (the story was previously animated as a Disney short) Ferdinand (voiced by John Cena) escapes and is adopted by a little girl. However, after an incident in the proverbial china shop, he is mistakenly deemed a wild animal and returned to the very place he escaped, where bulls are prepared to fight.
Given that the film is from Blue Sky, whose greatest success are the unending series of "Ice Age" movies, one doesn't have high expectations here. Yet as the film proceeds, it shows both a surprising depth and some inventive zaniness, which proves to be an entertaining combination. The depth comes from the competition among the other bulls to be selected for the ring, not realizing that it's not a fair fight and that it inevitably ends in the death of the bull. (While older bulls we meet in the prologue are doomed, parents should know that the characters who are fully developed may be in danger, but all make it to the happy ending.)
The zaniness really takes off with Ferdinand's return, when a hyperactive goat (voiced by Kate McKinnon) tries to put Ferdinand in training. Even nuttier are the snobbish horses with German accents in the next enclosure, who look down on the plebian bulls. This leads to a competitive dance contest that is the highlight of the movie.
In the end "Ferdinand" is about being true to one's self, instead of conforming to someone else's idea of what you "ought" to be, and if that means being a bull who likes to sniff flowers, so be it. The message may resonate even more today than it did at the time the book was published. It's solid fun for the kids and entertaining for the adults who have to accompany them.•••
Daniel M. Kimmel is a veteran movie critic and author of a host of film-related books. His latest novel is Time on My Hands: My Misadventures in Time Travel. He lives in Somerville, Massachusetts.
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Home Europe Austria 100 Schilling 1949
100 Schilling 1949, Austria
Signatures: Generalrat: Herr Fritz Miller, Präsident: Dr. Hans Rizzi, Generaldirektor: Dr. Franz Bartsch
Serie: 1949 - 1954 Issues
Printer: Oesterreichische Banknoten und Sicherheitsdruck, Wien
Unknown woman - Idealportrait.
In the description of this note there are many mysteries.
I wrote to the Austrian Museum of Money, which is open at the Bank of Austria, in Vienna. There works Herr Michael Grundner, who always helps me with descriptions of Austrian banknotes.
Here's what he said to me:
"Sg. Herr....,
1)Die kindliche Figur ist ein Putto - in Wien und Österreich gibt es gefühlt Tausende davon. Es ist nahezu unmöglich herauszufinden von Welchem Schloss, Kloster, Kirche, Gemälde oder Brunnen die Vorlage stammt (wenn überhaupt). Der Entwerfer hat dazu nichts hinterlassen.
2)Der Frauenkopf ist noch ein Idealportrait, wer dafür Modell gestanden hat oder auf welcher Vorlage es basiert ist ebenfalls nicht überliefert.
3)Die Meerjungfrau wird normalerweise als Donauweibchen aus österreichischen Sagen interpretiert. Der Gestalter Erhard Amadeus-Dier hat sich sicher von den vielen in Wien vorhandenen Barockfiguren inspirieren lassen. Von den vorkommenden Figuren her käme ein Brunnen im Park von Schloss Schönbrunn als mögliche Vorlage in Frage, allerdings für die Banknote stark adaptiert. Die Nixe ist jedenfalls die einzige (halb)nackte Frau auf einer österreichischen Banknote. Im Hintergrund ist der berühmte Blick auf Wien von Schloss Belvedere aus zu erkennen und rechts die Donau.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen.."
"Dear Mr. ....,
1) The childlike figure is a putto - in Vienna and Austria there are felt thousands of them. It is almost impossible to find out which castle, monastery, church, painting or well the original is (if any). The designer has left nothing behind.
2) The woman's head is still an ideal portrait, who has stood for model or on which template it is likewise not handed over.
3) The mermaid is usually interpreted as Danube woman from Austrian legends. The designer Erhard Amadeus-Dier has certainly been inspired by the many baroque figures in Vienna. A fountain in the park of Schönbrunn Palace might be considered as a possible model, but it was strongly adapted for banknotes. The mermaid is at any rate the only (half) naked woman on an Austrian banknote. In the background you can see the famous view of Vienna from Belvedere Palace and to the right is the Danube river.
Best regards.."
Here's what I managed to find, in addition:
Across the field an ornament of stylized flowers and acanthus leaves.
Below, just to the left of the center, is Putto with a double oboe. Most likely, the designer saw a similar Putto in the Upper Belvedere Castle, but I have not yet been able to find there even a bit similar Putto (pictured). Why from Upper Belvedere Castle - please read about next object on banknote!!!
A putto is a figure in a work of art depicted as a chubby male child, usually naked and sometimes winged. A putto is often called a cherub (plural cherubs) although unlike the Biblical cherub (plural cherubim) in form and symbolism: cherubim have four faces of different species and several pairs of wings, and are sacred, whereas putti are secular and represent a non-religious passion. However, in the Baroque period of art, the putto came to represent the omnipresence of God. A putto representing a cupid is also called an amorino (plural amorini).
In the center, behind the face value in words, is a pattern, the prototype of which was, presumably, the pattern on the wall of the Upper Belvedere castle, near the steps, made from the Kaiser stone (particularly strong limestone from a quarry in Eastern Austria, near the Hungarian border).
In top left corner is the coat of arms of Austria.
The current coat of arms of Austria, albeit without the broken chains, has been in use by the Republic of Austria since 1919. Between 1934 and the German annexation in 1938 Austria used a different coat of arms, which consisted of a double-headed eagle. The establishment of the Second Republic in 1945 saw the return of the original (First Republic) arms, with broken chains added to symbolise Austria's liberation.
The blazon of the Federal Arms of the Republic of Austria reads:
Gules a fess Argent, escutcheon on the breast of an eagle displayed Sable, langued Gules, beaked Or, crowned with a mural crown of three visible merlons Or, armed Or, dexter talon holding sickle, sinister talon holding hammer, both talons shackled with chain broken Argent.
The symbols and emblems used in the Austrian arms are as follows:
The Eagle: Austria's sovereignty (introduced 1919)
The escutcheon Emblem of Austria (late Middle Ages, reintroduced 1915)
The mural crown: The middle class (introduced 1919)
The sickle: Agriculture (introduced 1919)
The Hammer: Industry (introduced 1919)
The broken chains: Liberation from National Socialist dictatorship (added 1945).
Denominations in numerals are in lower right corner, on background by small numbers numerously and centered, in words centered.
The banknote shows the Danube mermaid (Donauweibchen or Donaunixe) together with Putto, which are sure to accompany all fountains in the Baroque style. To the right of the mermaid is the bank of the Danube river.
On the photo is the fountain, in the park of Belvedere Palace, which, theoretically (as I already wrote above) could serve as a prototype for the image on the banknote. However, the image was heavily modified.
Differences are many - the main thing - the mermaid in the fountain has two legs, each of which ends with a fin (on the third photo), on the banknote is a real mermaid, with one tail.
In Austria there are several legends about the Danube mermaid, here is one of them:
"The Danube Mermaid.
At the hour when the evening ended calmly, when the moon shines in the sky and pours its silver light on the earth, is a lovely creature in the midst of the Danube waves. Light curls framing a beautiful face adorn a wreath of flowers; Flowers are also snow-white. The young enchantress then sways on the shimmering waves, then disappears in the river depth to soon again appear on the surface.
At times the mermaid leaves cool waters and wanders in the moonlight over the dewy coastal meadows, not even daring to appear to people, peers into lonely fishing huts and rejoices at the peaceful life of their poor inhabitants. Often, she warns fishermen, telling them about the imminent danger: ice jams, high water, or severe storms.
She helps one, the other doesomed to die, enticing her with seductive singing into the river. Surrounded by a sudden yearning, he follows her and finds a grave on the river bottom.
Many centuries ago, when Vienna was still a small town and where the tall houses are now adorned, low fishing lodges were littered to each other, an old fisherman and his son sat in a poor winter home on a frosty winter night, at a burning hearth. They repaired the networks and talked about the dangers of their craft. The old man, of course, knew a lot of stories about water and mermaids.
"At the bottom of the Danube," he said, "there is a huge crystal palace, and the river king lives there with his wife and children. On large tables are his glass vessels, in which he holds the souls of drowned people. The king often goes out for a walk along the shore, and woe to him who dares to call him: he will at the same moment drag him to the bottom. His daughters, mermaids, all as for the selection of a beauty and very much eager for the young handsome guys. Those who manage to charm them, in speed, must certainly drown. So beware of the mermaids, my son! They are all pretty, sometimes they even come to dance with people and dance all night, to the first cocks, and then hurry back to their water kingdom.
The old man knew many stories and stories; The son listened to his father's words with disbelief, for he had never before seen a mermaid. Before the old fisherman could finish his story, the door of the hut suddenly opened. The interior of the poor dwelling was lit up by a magical light, and on the threshold a beautiful girl appeared in a white flickering garment. In her braids, shining like gold, were interwoven white water lilies.
- Do not be scared! Said the beautiful guest, fixing her damp blue gaze on the young fisherman. "I'm just a mermaid and will not hurt you." I came to warn you about the danger. A thaw is approaching; The ice on the Danube will crack and melt, the river will come out of the shores and flood the coastal meadows and your dwellings. Do not lose time, run, otherwise you will perish.
The father and son were exactly petrified with astonishment, and when the strange vision disappeared and the door quietly shut again, they could not say a word for a long time. They did not know if this happened to them in a dream or in reality. Finally the old man took a breath, looked at his son and asked:
"Did you see it, too?"
The young man shook off his torpor and silently nodded. No, it was not an obsession! In their hut was a mermaid, they both saw her, they both heard her words!
Father and son jumped to their feet and rushed out of the hut, on a frosty night, hurried to their neighbors, other fishermen, and told them about a miraculous incident. And there was not a single person in the village who would not believe in the prophecy of a good mermaid; All tied their belongings to knots and left the dwellings that same night, carrying with them whatever they could carry, and rushed to the surrounding hills. They knew perfectly well what a sudden thaw would threaten them if a frozen stream suddenly broke their fetters.
When the morning dawned, they heard a dull crackle and a thunder from the river; The bluish transparent blocks of ice piled on top of each other. The next day coastal meadows and fields covered a bubbling and frothy lake. Only the steep roofs of the fishermen's huts were lonely rising above the still-flowing water. But no man and no beast drowned, all had time to retire to a safe distance.
The water soon subsided, the stream returned to its course, and everything became as before. But is it all? No, one person has lost his peace forever! It was a young fisherman who could not forget the beautiful mermaid and the gentle gaze of her blue eyes. He always saw her before him; Her image persecuted the young man persistently, whether he was fishing or sitting in front of the fire. She appeared to him even at night in a dream, and in the morning, waking up, he could not believe that it was just a dream.
More and more often he went to the bank of the Danube, for a long time sat alone under the willow willows and gazed into the water. In the noise of the stream, his beckoning voice seemed to him. The most adventurous thing he did was go out in his boat to the middle of the river and thoughtfully admired the wave game, and every silvery fish that passed by seemed to purposely tease him. He leaned over the edge of the boat, extended his arms to her, as if wanting to grab her, grab and hold her for ever. However, his dream was not destined to come true. Day by day, his eyes grew sadder, and all was bitter in his heart when he returned to his dwelling in the evening.
One night his longing became so unbearable that he secretly left the hut, went ashore and untied his boat. He did not return back. In the morning, his boat, alone, without a swimmer, swayed on the waves in the middle of the river.
No one has ever seen a young fisherman again. For many years since that time the old father was sitting alone in front of his hut, looking at the river and crying about the fate of the son, whom the mermaid carried with him to the bottom of the Danube, into the crystal palace of the water king."
In lower right corner is the music lyre, as symbol of poets.
Right behind the lyre is Rusty cliff fern (Woodsia ilvensis).
It, commonly known as oblong woodsia, is a fern found in North America and northern Eurasia. Also known as rusty woodsia or rusty cliff fern, it is typically found on sunny, exposed cliffs and rocky slopes and on thin, dry, acidic soils.
Its distribution is circumpolar and is most abundant in Scandinavia, the Ural and Altai mountains and the eastern United States. It is also found in Japan, Alaska, Canada, coastal Greenland and various European locations including the Alps.
The plant was first identified as a separate species from specimens collected in Scotland in Bolton's 1785 publication Filices Britannica. Bolton distinguished between Acrostichum ilvense and Acrostichum alpina, now Woodsia ilvensis and Woodsia alpina respectively, which had previously been conflated. The genus Woodsia was established in 1810 by Robert Brown, who named it named after the English botanist Joseph Woods. "Ilvensis" is the genitive form of the Latin name for the island of Elba.
The leaves are typically 6 inches long and 1 inch wide, with stiff, erected pointed tips and cut into 12 nearly opposite stemless leaflets. The underside of the leaves are covered in white woolly fibres, which later turn rusty brown.
In lower left corner is the famous view of Vienna from the Upper Belvedere (through its park).
The Belvedere is a historic building complex in Vienna, Austria, consisting of two Baroque palaces (the Upper and Lower Belvedere), the Orangery, and the Palace Stables. The buildings are set in a Baroque park landscape in the third district of the city, on the south-eastern edge of its centre. It houses the Belvedere museum. The grounds are set on a gentle gradient and include decorative tiered fountains and cascades, Baroque sculptures, and majestic wrought iron gates. The Baroque palace complex was built as a summer residence for Prince Eugene of Savoy.
The Belvedere was built during a period of extensive construction in Vienna, which at the time was both the imperial capital and home to the ruling Habsburg dynasty. This period of prosperity followed on from the commander-in-chief Prince Eugene of Savoy's successful conclusion of a series of wars against the Ottoman Empire.
The construction of the Upper Belvedere began as early as 1717, as testified by two letters that Prince Eugene sent from Belgrade to his servant Benedetti in summer 1718, describing the progress of work on the palace. Construction was so far advanced by 2 October 1719 that the prince was able to receive the Turkish ambassador Ibrahim Pasha there. The decoration of the interior started as early as 1718. In 1719 he commissioned the Italian painter Francesco Solimena to execute both the altarpiece for the Palace Chapel and the ceiling fresco in the Golden Room. In the same year Gaetano Fanti was commissioned to execute the illusionistic quadratura painting in the Marble Hall. In 1720 Carlo Carlone was entrusted with the task of painting the ceiling fresco in the Marble Hall, which he executed from 1721-1723.
The building was completed in 1723. The Sala Terrena, however, was at risk of collapsing due to structural problems, and in the winter of 1732-1733 Hildebrandt was forced to install a vaulted ceiling supported by four Atlas pillars, giving the room its current appearance. Salomon Kleiner, an engineer from the Mainz elector's court, produced a ten-part publication between 1731 and 1740 containing a total of ninety plates, entitled Wunder würdiges Kriegs- und Siegs-Lager deß Unvergleichlichen Heldens Unserer Zeiten Eugenii Francisci Hertzogen zu Savoyen und Piemont ("Wondrous war and victory encampment of the supreme hero of our age Eugene Francis Duke of Savoy and Piedmont"), which documented in precise detail the state of the Belvedere complex.
The garden had a scenery enclosed by clipped hedging, even as the Belvedere was building, in the formal French manner with gravelled walks and jeux d'eau by Dominique Girard, who had trained in the gardens of Versailles as a pupil of André Le Nôtre. Its great water basin in the upper parterre and the stairs and cascades peopled by nymphs and goddesses that links upper and lower parterres survive, but the patterned bedding has long been grassed over; it is currently being restored.
On the background of Vienna, St. Stephen's Cathedral is clearly visible.
St. Stephen's Cathedral (more commonly known by its German title: Stephansdom) is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna and the seat of the Archbishop of Vienna, Christoph Cardinal Schönborn, OP. The current Romanesque and Gothic form of the cathedral, seen today in the Stephansplatz, was largely initiated by Duke Rudolf IV (1339-1365) and stands on the ruins of two earlier churches, the first a parish church consecrated in 1147. The most important religious building in Vienna, St. Stephen's Cathedral has borne witness to many important events in Habsburg and Austrian history and has, with its multi-coloured tile roof, become one of the city's most recognizable symbols.
Denominations in numerals and in words are on top, on background, numerously, in small numbers.
Designer: Erhard Amadeus-Dier.
Erhard Amadeus Dier, named Amadeus-Dier (born February 8, 1893 in Vienna, Austria, died September 25, 1969 in Klosterneuburg, Lower Austria) was an Austrian painter and graphic artist.
Dier studied from Camillo Sitte and Josef Jungwirth at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and traveled to Switzerland, Italy and Spain. He began his artistic career as an illustrator. He created designs for Austrian banknotes, tapestries, wallpapers and church windows. He also painted portraits and animal paintings and worked as a graphic artist and porcelain painter.
During the period of national socialism, he was active in the Austrian resistance movement.
Obverse and reverse engraver: Rupert (Ruppert) Franke.
Born 1888 in Vienna, died 1971 in Vienna.
Graphic artist and copper engraver. Pupil of Alfred Cossmann. He was not only active in the banknotes design for the Austrian-Hungarian Bank and the Austrian National Bank but also designed numerous Pengo notes for the Hungarian banknote printing company.


CB 11 narrows candidate list for new district manager
By Max Mitchell
It may be a while before there's a new district manager at Community Board 11, but the process is steadily moving along.
The selection committee received 31 applications to replace John Fratta, who has been leading the district for 15 years. Recently the committee narrowed the field to 12.
"We have some very qualified people applying," said selection committee member Joe Thompson. "We're fortunate to have the quality of applicants we have. It's going to be a very difficult choice."
District officials declined to name any of the candidates, but state that professionals from various fields, like attorneys, psychologists and educators, have all applied for the position.
Current board members and representatives of local elected officials are vying for the position as well. These candidates were automatically asked to interview before the selection committee because of their experience, Thompson said.
The board was expecting anywhere from 20 to 40 applications for the position, and competition remains fierce.
"It's a coveted position," Thompson said. "Especially with the job market the way it is, and managers being one of the professions that have taken a big hit."
The board will select either one or two candidates from the 12 who will go before the entire board. Each of the roughly 50 members will give an up or down vote on the candidate.
Thompson said the board is choosing the final applicants based on their past experience and knowledge of community boards.
"We're trying to find a balance of the most qualified, with a person that can work within this type of system. And someone who knows what a community board is and how it works," Thompson said. "We got some highly-educated people, but their background didn't fit. We're going for the whole package. They didn't have the qualities or background that we needed."
The selection committee plans to begin the interviews by early December, and to have a candidate before the board at the next general meeting on December 16.
The new district manager will replace Fratta, who has worked in city government for 35 years, and gained a reputation as a strong fighter and fair repersentative of the district. Before joining the board Fratta was a youth coordinator for CB 7, and a clerk at the Comptroller's office before that. He also served on the Campaign Finance Board.
"The process is going smoothly," Fratta said, who will not be able to cast a vote for his replacement. "There are some really good candidates that applied, and I think they're going to get a good district manager."

Football boosts 161st Street businesses