Retired US Congressman Barney Frank, long time liberal Democrat and strong Obama supporter, repeated two interesting questions last week in Sydney that continually baffle observers of the Middle East. How is it that Israel, the only liberal democracy in the region, surrounded by bad guys and badder guys has such …
Read More »Dr. Ron Weiser. AM.
From the Desk of Dr. Ron Weiser. AM.
It was the 16th of September when Mahmoud Abbas set off the recent troubles in Israel by escalating a national dispute into a religious one with his call to protect the Temple Mount from the Jews who he claimed were “desecrating Al Aqsa with their dirty feet”. On the national/territorial …
Read More »From the Desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM.
It’s a little surreal sitting here in a coffee shop in the centre of Jerusalem witnessing the ever changing political landscape and evolving events. The streets are definitely fuller than they were a week ago and Israelis are getting out to restaurants again, taking advantage of the beautiful weather. Not …
Read More »From the desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM,
The chagim of 5776 have ushered in a new year that has so far been quite a shocking one for the citizens of Israel. The so called “moderate”, President Mahmoud Abbas, now in the 10th year of his 4 year term, has been inflaming the situation and inciting the wave …
Read More »From the desk of Ron Weiser AM-Opinion piece Aug. 2015
The Mishnah says that there are four New Years in our calendar but that only on Rosh Hashanah are we universally judged and on Yom Kippur, our fate sealed. One of the keynote themes reflected in our liturgy is to “avert the evil decree”. These ten days are a period …
Read More »From the Desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM.
Summer in Israel. Hard to beat. The sun was shining, the weather was hot and the hotels and restaurants were full again. What a contrast from just a year ago and Operation Protective Edge. A personal highlight for myself was the visit to the museum on Moshav Avichail and to …
Read More »From The Desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM.
Well, we are off to Israel next week for the meetings of the Jewish Agency and it will be great to be back there. When discussing matters pertaining to Israel one of the challenges is how to differentiate between rhetoric and reality. In a nutshell, broad based opinion in Israel, …
Read More »From the desk of Ron Weiser – So Israel has a new government.
So Israel has a new government. Just. Prime Minister Netanyahu must be wondering why he decided to go to early elections after all: – his government currently has a slim majority indeed, just 61 out of 120 seats in the Knesset, – he has been forced to pay a very …
Read More »From the Desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM – Israeli Election
The most amazing thing about the coming Israeli election is that with so much going on in the region and with so many internal issues needing attention, when it comes to policy issues this is a Seinfeld election – an election about nothing – a policy free zone. This leads …
Read More »From the desk of Ron Weiser.Je suis Charlie,je suis Ahmed,je suis ?
Je Suis Charlie, Je Suis Ahmed, Je Suis ????? I was waiting for another Je Suis to spontaneously erupt from the good people of France. But it did not come, maybe tomorrow, maybe not………..not the French word for Jewish or the names of even one of the innocent people going …
Read More »From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM.
From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM. Many commentators have placed the blame for the seeming leadership paralysis in Israel on “the system”. As we all know, there is no such thing as a democratic system that always operates smoothly and easily. Israel is not alone in this, indeed …
Read More »From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM.
On the personal level there is something quite surreal about this year. When I am in Israel, the situation is quiet, when I leave, it’s like another world…………….. Visiting Israel in June immediately after the 3 boys were kidnapped in Gush Etzion, whilst there was a mood of shock and …
Read More »From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM.
Well, we are 3 weeks or so into this truce and the answer to the first of our questions from August is self evident. Hamas appears to be committed to keeping the 1 month truce. I say appears, because once again Israel has been manoeuvred into a difficult decision. Having …
Read More »From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM.
In the latter part of June I was sitting in a quirkily themed restaurant just off Agrippas near Machane Yehuda in Jerusalem, enjoying a gourmet hamburger and the summer atmosphere. Apparently what qualified the hamburger to be gourmet was the very nice plate it was served on and the additional …
Read More »From the desk of Dr Ron Weiser .
Even at this point it is possible to assess that this time a number of things have been different to what some people expected and to what happened in the past. Of course some things have not changed at all, such as Hamas’ determination to attempt to terrorise and destroy …
Read More »From the Desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM.
My long held view is that the danger to our community’s interests comes much less from those who hate us, than from those who claim to love us, but who want to save us from ourselves. At least we know where we stand with those who openly state their hatred …
Read More »From the desk of Dr. Ron Weiser AM.
Each and every person has their own ideas about how to resolve matters in the Middle East. Each person I meet tells me with confidence that what needs to be done, or not done, is clear and obvious. And almost every day you can read some of the comments written …
Read More »Ariel Sharon – 1928 – 2014
Hon. Life President Zionist Council of NSW. There will be a lot written about Ariel Sharon z”l and I would be a little sceptical of those critics who describe his life in terms of sudden changes or ideological summersaults, which in my view says more about those authors than …
Read More »From the Desk of Dr Ron Weiser AM – Dec 2013
The end of the year approaches and many issues will of course continue into 2014 and beyond but here are two areas to watch and then a personal reflection on Nelson Mandela. Iran – it is too late to now bemoan the deal that world leaders have made with Iran. What …
Read More »The Gatekeepers was always going to present a challenge for those watching it outside of Israel.
Latest Opinion piece by Dr. Ron Weiser AM. Immediate Past President of the Zionist Federation of Australia, Honorary Life President of the Zionist Council of New South Wales and Committee Member of the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency (The Sochnut) In an unprecedented move, all of the living …
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