Sunday Pillar Update

Happy Sunday my beautiful friend,

I apologize for not keeping you up to date for the past few days.  I have been down in the Arava with my classmates on a wonderful trip. There is nothing like the Arava.

 

About the Cease Fire.

Last night I was relieved to get a call from my best friend in the IDF (Paratroopers) who spent the weekend on the border of Gaza. He said the troops prepared to commence a ground operation three or four times but each preparation was postponed 24 hours - until the cease fire. Luckily, there was no ground invasion.  However he isn’t convinced the cease fire will last. I’m praying he’s wrong.

Here are some essential articles to catch you up, defend Israel’s actions & get you thinking. Best enjoyed with a large cup of coffee (or tea) on this Sunday morning. (If you’re in a rush, this, this & this are some lighter pieces to get you thinking. But if you have the time, PLEASE read/skim the articles below as well. Very important to be informed on matters like this.):

• Cease Fire agreement nearly identical to Cast Lead’s. [Haaretz]
• A concise summary from the IDF with lots of pretty numbers. They fail to mention Palestinian deaths & injuries: 160 dead & over 1000 injured. [IDF]
• Etgar Keret’s son didn’t know what to do when the siren went off. So they played a game of Pastrami Sandwich. [New Yorker]
• How Jewish teachings explain Israeli action, from one of my incredible professors at HUC. [Times of Israel]
• How to defend against the ‘the casualties are lopsided’ argument. [Tablet]
• “The beginning of the end of conflict is discovering the humanity that lies behind slogans and barriers.” Roger Cohen’s insight on moving forward. [NYT] 
• Son of Hamas founder supports Israel. Actually. [Times of Israel]
• Obama Immediately Passes Israel Test [Tablet]
• Five Things Former URJ President Eric Yoffie Doesn’t Want to Hear Again About the Gaza Conflict [EricYoffie.com]
• Iran is already sending more missiles and aid to Hamas. [Times of Israel - Aid] [Times of Israel - Missiles]
• Ambassador Michael Oren’s defense of the strike. (As referenced in Cohen) [NYT]
• Iron Dome’s Big Brother - David’s Sling, for medium range missiles. [JPost]
• Photos: Israel Under Attack [IDF]

So, for the time being, Israel is quiet & I look forward to updating you with news unrelated to Pillar of Defense. 

Like this: Building True Acceptance [Tablet]

Have a restful, peaceful Sunday!