1961-65 Jaguar E-Type -- British cars we wished they still made...

Back when Jaguar patron Ford Motor (nyse: F - news - people ) was more flush (a full year ago), Jaguar made it clear they intended to build an F-Type replacement for the 1960s E-Type icon. Too bad it apparently has been stopped by boss Bill Ford--or so strong rumor has it.

It's especially too bad because Jaguar could really use a halo car, and the marque has never had a bigger halo than the E-Type, a 150-mph rocket from more than 40 years ago, and one of the sexiest cars ever put on earth. It was the car to own if you were royalty, a movie star, or just wanted something slick (E-Types were far less expensive than Aston Martin DB5s by the way).

In fact, on the very short list of British cars that almost certainly will be revived, this has to be number one. Just don't expect them to bring back wire wheels, too.

Arab-Israeli group: National service offshoot of occupation army

Baladna launches campaign calling on Arab-Israeli youngsters to boycott national service program. 'A state that doesn't recognize the national and collective existence of the Arab public cannot claim that it knows what this public's true needs are,' group says

this is worth hearing... not your normal Jewish radio because it is the arab voice... We should listen and hear it. they have a dream and want a place to call home.

An Israeli-Jewish and Arab/Palestinian Dialogue on Shared History

Educating for Human Rights, Non-Violence and Acceptance of the Other

The Arab Economy in Israel

Checkpoint Issues

New Textbooks Models and Lesson Plans

Teaching about the Religion of the Other

Relations between Jews and Arabs in Israel

Social and Economic Distress among Palestinian Citizens of Israel

questions--

Galilee Orchestra joint project of Israeli Arabs, Jews

"It was a beautiful relationship," said Azzam. "If you closed your eyes, you didn't know who were the Jewish instrumentalists and who were the Arabs."

Richard Serra-- where are the paintings?

Actually, when I was at Yale, Albers was no longer teaching. During the summer of 1963 he was in the process of putting together his book The Interaction of Color, and because I had taught the color course, he asked me and a few other students to proof the book with him at Yale University Press. You would think that the regimentation coming out of the Bauhaus was very rigorous, but Albers’ design course was very experimental. You were asked to work out a specific problem, for instance figure-ground relationships: how to place lines or dots on paper or other various surfaces; to consider shape, movement, size, scale, color. You were asked to use materials as light as leaves and as heavy as concrete in relation to specific procedures. The problems posed were interesting, because you had to deal with a given material in relation to a singular procedure to produce a maximum yield of solutions. We had to find ways to enable form to distinguish itself from matter. Basically, it was an open-ended experiment. What I came to realize is that matter imposes its own form on form. Working your way through a problem with a specific material is not theoretical. For me the choice of material is subjective and accounts for one’s sensibility and intuition. Albers’ approach to color was not mechanistic but very playful. Amongst many other things you learned that the same colors appear different on different grounds or the reverse. Albers would even go so far as to assert that colors appeared to be either wet or dry. Keep in mind, during this period, Albers was experimenting by painting on two sides of a glass pane. He was constantly investigating the characteristics of different materials, and part of his teaching was to encourage just that. As far as my student paintings are concerned, well, let’s just say they reiterated the decade that came before, namely Abstract Expressionism. My education at Yale was a totally new experience for me. I had been an English Literature major as an undergraduate at the University of California in Santa Barbara. I sent drawings to Yale as my graduate application, and on the basis of twelve drawings, I received a scholarship. It was after I arrived at Yale that I had to learn what it meant to be a painter. It was a humbling experience. While trying to get an education as a painter I continued to draw—drawing has always been the key to understanding hand-eye coordination for me, and it always was and is a catalyst for all kinds of referencing.

A Successful Blend of Four Identities

Who is he? An Arab, a Bedouin, an Israeli, or a Palestinian? Jamal Alkirnawi, 28, identifies with and sees himself as all four - a bit of a head-scratcher. The education activist, working for social change in the Israeli Bedouin community, has been chosen to participate in a McGill University peace forum this fall. It is not the first time Alkirnawi has been to Canada and he is excited about the upcoming trip. He is hoping the experience will add to his mission as a "social changer" for people in the Middle East.

Yes, the article doesn’t provide much depth about reconciling conflicting identities in a society where Jewish citizens count more than everyone else. Jamal is one of many who grapple with confusing priorities and allegiances.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The devil is in the details-- but all minorities everywhere have there rights as people... even if they are not the major race of the country...

My dealer, saint and sinner

The story of the Wildenstein's who knows for sure? they aren't talking so-- we don't know. I saw the Monet show this summer and ol-la-la... The building was also dreamy

Daughters of Abraham Ground Rules

Daughters of Abraham Book Group

Books We Have Read

Jewish:

• Number Our Days, by Barbara Myerhoff. A study of aging through a portrait of elderly Jews in Venice California. Describes ethical Jewish culture through the lives of this mostly immigrant community.
• The Ritual Bath, by Faye Kellerman. Detective fiction with an orthodox Jewish woman and her policeman/love interest. Start with this book, then read the "Rina Lazarus" novels in order, so that you understand the development of the interfaith relationship between orthodox woman and the Baptist policeman.
• As a Driven Leaf, by Milton Steinberg. Historical fiction based on Judea in the time of the Roman occupation. Examines the tension between religious life and secular high culture.
• The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant. A retelling of the life of the Biblical character Dinah through her childhood, short marriage, and adulthood.
• At The Entrance To The Garden Of Eden, by Yossi Klein Halevi. Jewish Israeli journalist spends time getting to know and worshipping with Muslims and Christians.
• Tales of the Hasidim, by Martin Buber. Martin Buber has assembled and translated a comprehensive 2-vloume set of stories from the early and late Hasidic masters. Organized by master, with historic introduction and reference material.
• Joy Comes in the Morning, by Jonathan Rosen Contemporary American tale of a woman who is a rabbi who falls in love with a secular Jewish man. Issues of faith, ethics, creating a Jewish home, observance of rituals, the balance of public, rabbinic life and family life.
• Rambam's Ladder by Julie Solomon. A study of the teachings of Mamonides about giving and how these principles can be practiced today.
• The Far Euphrates by Aryeh Lev Stollman. Post World War II/Holocaust childhood of a Jewish boy in Canada, told with Biblical and Kabalistic language and imagery. Its about understanding life and death, intellect and finally faith.
• A Tale of Love and Darkness by Amos Oz. It covers the history of modern Israel from the vantage point of a participant.
• Holy Days, by Lis Harris. A secular Jewish writer spends a year with a Brooklyn Hasidic family.
• The Chosen by Chaim Potok. Fiction about a relationship between a secular and Orthodox Jewish young man set in New York in the 40s and 50s.
• Rachel Calof’s Story by Rachel Calof and J. Sanford Rikoon, ed. This is a short account by Rachel Bella Calof of her childhood in Russia, her emigration to America for an arranged marriage, and much of her adult life homesteading in North Dakota. Woven into the tale of endurance is the additional interest of how the Calof clan maintained their Jewish culture and heritage in the face of the early years of starvation and illness.
  
• The Last of the Just by Andre Schwarz-Bart. Schwarz-Bart's 1959 novel is a chronicle of Jewish persecution beginning in England in 1105 and ending with the Holocaust.
  
• The Chosen by Chaim Potok. The story of two Orthodox Jewish boys - one Hasidic, one Modern Orthodox. These boys develop a close friendship despite the differences in their approaches to Judaism.
• Around Sarah's Table by Rifka Zatutinsky and Yaffa Leba Gottlieb. This is non-fiction about the lives of Hasidic women who meet weekly to study Torah. It examines the daily struggles of these women, who are in all phases of their lives. Good window into the lives of contemporary Orthodox women, showing how their lives are shaped by their faith and community. Note: this Hasidic Jewish community believes that the Messiah is coming very soon. This is not a mainstream Jewish belief (although, it is always a hope.)
  

Christian:

• Cloister Walk, by Kathleen Norris A married Protestant Christian woman spends two 9-month periods living with a celibate society of Benedictine monks. She discusses the life of having one's days lived in an environment of frequent, scheduled prayer and one's year marked by the saint days as well as other festivals. She also discusses celibacy and women's history through the stories of the saints and the life stories of the nuns and monks she gets to know.
• Travelling Mercies, by Anne Lamott Memoir of finding faith and trying to live it.
• Lying Awake by Mark Salzman: Fiction about a nun/mystic who faces serious illness and difficult decisions.
• Evensong by Gail Godwin: The heroine of Father Melancholy's Daughter, now a minister herself, must deal with a series of challenges to her marriage and her ministry.
• The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. Senior devil advises his apprentice on how to corrupt the soul of a hapless young man. A good view of Christian ideas of evil and temptation.
• Things Seen and Unseen by Nora Gallagher. Liturgical year as seen by a woman who returned to faith as an adult Christian in the Episcopal tradition.
• The Seville Communion by Perez Reverte Arturo Rome-based priest learns about the importance of the local parish in a murder mystery set in contemporary Spain. The city of Seville is a staring character in the story.
• Open Secrets by Richard Lischer Lutheran minister describes his first parish in his first year of ministry.
• Gilead: A Novel, by Marilynne Robinson. Letter to a son from a father covering the time of the American Civil War and the generations beyond.
• The Heart of Christianity by Marcus Borg. Liberal Christian discussion about the key values of Christianity and why it can easily be embraced in contemporary society.
• Friends for the Journey by Luci Shaw and Madeleine L'Engle. Through the story of their lives, lived as faithful Christians, they show the intersection of faith, family, and lliterary activity which inform the close friendship which they share.

Muslim:

• Border Passage, by Leila Ahmed Egyptian woman's memoir of growing up in an Egyptian/Turkish family in the 50s, going to college in England, and understanding the complex identity of Egyptian women in her time.
• Believing Women in Islam, by Asma Barlas. A feminist study of Islamic texts that uses the Qur'an as a primary source.
• The Rock , by Kanan Makiya. Historical fiction based on the viewpoint of a Yemenite Jewish man who converts to Islam during the Prophet's lifetime. He witnesses the Islamic takeover of Jerusalem and the building of the Dome of the Rock.
• Even Angels Ask by Jeffery Lang. Memoir of finding faith and trying to live it.
• The Crusades Through Arab Eyes by Amin Maalouf. History of invasion by European infidels in the middle ages, know to Westerners as “the crusades.” This book describes the politics and culture present at the time of the Christian invasion and occupation.
• The Hadj by Michael Wolfe. American convert to Islam visits Morocco and goes on the Hadj.

• Video: Islam In America, Christian Science Monitor, produced by Lindsay Miller. Demonstrates the Five Pillars of Faith through interviews with American Muslims. At the same time, the history of Muslim communities in American is shown.
• Storyteller’s Daughter by Saira Shah. European-raised Muslim journalist has the opportunity to visit her Afghani homeland while covering the beginning of war years there.
• Islam: The Straight Path by John Esposito. Thorough review of Islam. More historical, philosophical than it is social or practical.

• Shadows of the Pomegranate Tree by Tariq Ali. Fictional account of a Muslim family living outside Granada, Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish Catholic reconquest.

• The Adventures of Ibn Battuta by Ross E. Dunn. Epic of the life of a traveling scholar, who begins in Tangiers and travels as far as China in the 14^th century.

• The Book of Saladin by Tariq Ali. Second historical fiction by Ali. This one covers the Crusades through the eyes of Saladin and his court. Good historical view of the Crusades, however the side story has a “soap opera” quality with sexual content that was not to everyone’s taste.

Read more than one for a discussion:

• Poems of Arab Andalusia. Amazing 13th century poetry.
• An Audience of One, Majid Mohiuddin. Contemporary Muslim Poetry.
• Varieties of Gazelle, Naomi Shihab Nye. Contemporary poems about the Middle East.

Involving more than one faith:

• The World's Religions, by Huston Smith. We read the chapters on the three Abrahamic faiths to establish a common background from which to begin our dialogue.
• Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain. by Maria Rosa Menocal. Tells of a time and place – from 786-1492, in Andalusia, Spain -- that is largely and unjustly overshadowed in most historical chronicles. It was a time when the three cultures – Judaic, Islamic and Christian – forged a relatively stable, though occasionally contentious coexistence.
• Daughters of Abraham: Feminist Thought in Judaism, Christianity and Islam edited by Yvonne Yazback Haddad and John Esposito
• Abraham: A Journey to the Heart of Three Faiths by Bruce Feiler A review of the Biblical and historical Abraham.
• Healing Israel/Palestine by Michael Lerner. Rabbi Lerner reviews the history of the area, the development of Zionism and then outlines his plan for peace in the area.

• A History of G-d by Karen Armstrong. A comprehensive history of religious thought from Abraham to present.

• Common Prayers by Harvey Cox. About an interfaith, Jewish/Christian marriage. Written through the eyes of a well-informed Christian husband who celebrates the Jewish liturgical year with his Jewish wife and child.
  

Study: Arabs may be poorer, but Jews get more welfare funds

Poll: 68% of Jews would refuse to live in same building as an Arab

The inclination toward segregation rises as the income level of the poll respondent drops and also as the level of religious observance rises. Support for segregation between Jews and Arabs is also higher among Jews of Middle Eastern origin as opposed to those of European origin.

"Racism is becoming mainstream. When people talk about transfer or about Arabs as a demographic time-bomb, no one raises their voice against such statements. This is a worrisome phenomenon," and I can't agree more.

This is just the reason why we must change the situation on the ground-- sooner rather than later.

Antisemitic jokes are cool at the Edinburgh Festival. Here This is not so funny....

This is funny... Is Mel watching the ballgame while he's in re-hab?

a picture for you -- the devil dogs..

a picture for you -- the greenies are good.. I like sittiing in Dining Room

a picture for you

Greenies are so good, but I like anything that tastes nice! I prefer to have
mine -- in the foyer because my sister dog is in the dining room.

Israel is caught between a rock and a hard place. Demographically speaking, it's on the losing end of the scale with the rate of growth of its Jewish majority population being considerably less that the Arab minority. So that is an inexorable train wreck just waiting to happen. A geographically bound democratic country cannot simply be ruled by a minority for too long, the internal tensions tend to put in massive stresses in the country (like in Iraq, Bangladesh, Kosovo, Bosnia, Rwanda, etc.). One could survive for a long time with the minority carrying out repression, such as Iraq and Syria, but not for long, those stresses and strains will come out somehow and somewhere. But despite all its faults, Israel is a functioning democracy, and a functioning democracy cannot execute that kind of overt and relentless repression against its own citizens no matter who they are. But there is still sufficient documented and well publicised discrimination against its own Israeli Arab citizens which causes all kinds of problems. Since Israel is a liberal democracy, one cannot have an institutionalized discrimination towards its minorities. So Israel has to live with its growing Arab minority.

To further compound the matter, there is the situation of the West Bank and Gaza. I know it has left Gaza and Palestinian authorities control some towns in West Bank, but come on, you know as well as I do that it is Israel which still calls the shots. To me, the current Israeli strategy seems to be a strategy of diminishing return. What it wants to do is to string Fatah and Mamoud Abbas along, throw him some tax revenues, but do nothing at all to provide the basics, like independence. In return Israel wants Fatah to provide security, which it does by clamping down on Hamas and Islamic Jihad (plus some of the other assorted gangs and goons). Fatah is full of corruption and pus. So what happens? Hamas wins. Now why is Hamas unwilling to negotiate with Israel? Why does Hamas still have the eradication of Jews and Israel in its guiding covenants? Because Israel’s negotiations with Fatah have shown that there is no point in any negotiations. So what’s the result? The Palestinians are now pushed into a tiny thorny corner. A classic situation which violates the fundamental dictum of warfare, never back your enemy into a corner with no hope of escape.

How does one get out of this mess? You trat your citizens fairly. That's one way.

Israel is now very quickly becoming a pariah state in the eyes of the people. And no amount of military hardware or Western (read US) support can change it, this is a battle of ideas, not a battle of equipment (mind you, even though they lost to Hezbollah in 2006 but that is another argument, Thomas Friedman’s arguments notwithstanding). There are four main reasons for them losing support. (1) The presence of Israeli settlements (2) The treatment of Palestinians in the occupied territories; (3) The discriminatory treatment of the Israeli Arab minority and (4) the American factor.

Even the Shin Bet is against discrimination

Israeli-Arabs Demand National Recognition

If we give ink to Jew Hating, are we Jew Hating?

Hatred of Jews has existed since the earliest Jewish communities. Hatred of Jews did not end with the Holocaust. The truth is Hatred of Jews is no longer a taboo subject in Europe... Arab media is linking USA, Israel and the Jews in ugly cartoons and the rest is history... Holocaust denial--

The real question for me: where does this consuming hatred originate? Today's Washington Post's article continues the discussion in America. If we talk about the Jew-Hate talk, are we talking hate? I hope not.

U.S. Jews launch task force to aid Israeli Arabs

Finally the story is being told, but will action be taken-- I will try to take action in NJ my community-- but it is hard... Nobody listens.

"Israel prides itself, appropriately, on being a democracy," Larry Garber, executive director of the New Israel Fund said. "One of the areas appropriate to show how strong the Israeli government is is in this area of minority rights."

Others said the climate in Israel, with Ehud Olmert as prime minister, is ripe for such an initiative.

"Ehud Olmert, because he was minister of Israeli Arab Affairs, has really got to know the situation we're talking about," Lurie said.

"If you care about Israel, you need to care about the totality of Israel," Foxman said.

Harry Olson talks about acquiring the power of next.

Ever try hard to accomplish something only to fall short of your desired objective? If you don't accomplish your goals-- just move on to the next thing, and that is the power of next!

How simple...

palestine relations

This is an article worth reading. The final conclusion is "if the Israelis do not resolve their understanding of the legitimacy of the Palestinian cause in its struggle for historical Palestinian rights, they undermine their own legitimacy." I agree that we must do something and fast, because this is a

Draft agenda other Israeli Film Festival Nov 8-15, 2007

 

 

 

OTHER ISRAEL FILM FESTIVAL  
November 8-15, 2007

JCC in Manhattan, Symphony Space, and Cinema Village

 

Program in Formation:

 

Films

We are currently finalizing our selection process and will preview films until the end of July. We will be presenting 18-20 narrative features, documentaries, and short films. The following films are currently on the short list:

• Trumpet in the Wadi - Based on the novel by Sami Michael, A TRUMPET IN THE WADI is a sensitive love story between two outsiders in Israeli society. Huda, a Christian Arab woman from Haifa, is drawn to her upstairs neighbor Alex, a new Jewish immigrant from Russia. The story is told from the point of view of Huda's family.
  
  
• Since You Left - In his autobiographical essay, Arab-Israeli actor Bakri returns to the grave of his former mentor, the writer and communist Emile Habibi, and attempts – using archive footage, personal films, and documentary materials – to account for the personal and political transformations that have occurred in Israel as well as within his own thinking since the author’s death.
  
  
• Oriental - In the aftermath of the collapse of the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations at Camp David in 2000, Avi Nesher filmed a series of conversations with Israeli and Palestinian politicians concerning the conflict. Simultaneously Nesher documented the Russian-Israeli belly dancer Elina Pechersky during her preparations for an ambitious performance together with five Arab-Israeli musicians. Nesher weaves the two strands into one cinematic narrative, juxtaposing history and mythology, reality and imagination. 
  
  
• Maktub - Ataf, a Druze Israeli police officer is assigned to investigate a murder case. During the investigation he experiences strange flashes, which danger his life and his relationship with his Jewish Israeli girl friend Michal; the police officer in charge of youth cases in his unit. These flashes lead him to meaningful understandings concerning one of the fundamental beliefs of the Druze society – reincarnation, drawing him closer to his people, who will not tolerate the idea of him marrying anyone but a Druze, but also reinforcing his great love to Michal.  
  
  
• Empathy – The film composed of multiple stories composed together and arranged in reverse chronological order to enable the viewer to consider events that took place previously with a fresh perspective.
  
  
• Ringo & Taher - Taher, a little boy from Jaffa has a small dream, which is to own a dog. One day, that dream comes true in the form of a little puppy he finds in the street and names Ringo. But in Taher’s world, raising a dog is unacceptable, and so he decides to raise the puppy on his own, out of his strict father's reach...
• Syrian Bride - A Druze woman from Golan Heights, Israel is engaged to marry a Syrian television star whom she has never met. If she moves to Syria, however, she will never be able to return to her home.
  
  
• The Film Class - Rahat is by no means an ordinary place. It is afflicted with pessimism, unemployment, poverty and violence. It is partially populated by the Black Bedouins who were brought to the Negev, and the Middle East at large, as slaves. Kidnapped in Africa by Arab slave traders, they were auctioned-off in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Zanzibar. Until 50 years ago, the Black Bedouins were enslaved by the White ones. When the Director first started working with the group, he had no knowledge of it. The women never mentioned the issue he found increasingly intriguing. Only after about 18 months of working and making short films together, did he work up the nerve to suggest that they will make a film telling the history of the Black Bedouins. Suddenly, a small and modest course in filmmaking became a place in which a great taboo comes into the open. The women still suffering discrimination to this day unveil a story which few have spoken of.
   
• Badal - Director Ibstisam Mara'ana was predestined, like most of her relatives, to be married off through the badal, a kind of package deal in which a brother and sister from one family marry a sister and brother from another. This marriage exchange is mainly aimed at providing less marriageable daughters with a husband. Mara'ana was told that she was too old and dark, and too ugly due to a scar on her hand, and that without the godsend of the badal, she would fall by the wayside. She refused to cooperate. Instead, she made this documentary to show how women oppress women.
   
• Atash (Thirst) - A family of five, their two goats and donkey live in the middle of nowhere far from their village home. They earn meager living by producing & selling charcoal, made from the surrounding trees. The father and son are the only ones who ever return to their native village. The Mother & two daughters have not left this place since the day they abandoned home, 10 years ago. One day the father decides to provide running water for the family by illegally diverting water onto their land. The three women recoil from the idea but the teenage son obeys submissively anything to be allowed to continue attending school. The water surging through the pipe parallels the surging resentment the family feels towards the father. He brought them to this place against their will and they know the reason they left their home is also the reason they can never return, but the newly free-flowing water on their land re-awakens the instinctive desire for freedom they have been repressing all these years.
   
• Sons of Sakhnin United - Jews and Arabs striving for a common goal can seem unlikely in today's world, and yet-as depicted in this insightful documentary-the small Arab town of Sakhnin has been united by sport. Beating the odds in a quixotic quest for Israel's State Cup, the multi-ethnic soccer team B'nei Sakhnin battles to maintain their "premiere" league status.
   
• Shadia - A spirited Israeli-Arab girl challenges the traditional Muslim lifestyle planned for her by fighting to become a World Karate Champion.  Shadya’s conflict as an “Israeli-Arab” and as an “Arab-Woman” emerges when she meets the Palestinian karate team and when she marries at the peak of her career.

 

 

• Crossing Boundries - The film follows Aisha Sidawee and Umima Abu Ras, two Arab women in Israel joining “Ta’ayush”, a feminist movement, and documents them through a period filled with tension and conflicts, both personal and social ones.
  
  
• On Hold - On hold deals with the decision of me and my husband, an Arab Israeli couple, to leave Israel and move to Spain . The film focuses on the preparations for the move, as well as on all the related mental and moral questions - Should we stay in a country that even though was the home of our ancestors is defined as the home of the Jewish people? Should we stay and fight for our rights or should we follow our dreams and go on a journey looking for another “promised land”? This journey leads us to look into our surroundings: my Muslim family, my husband’s Christian family, and our friends, Jews and Arabs. Just to realize we are not alone in this dilemma. 
   
• Roads -  13 year old Ismail who lives in a drug infested neighborhood in Lud looks for a way out of there for him and his younger brother. Daniel, an ex-soldier with post traumatic stress disorder, buys drugs from Ismail for his own personal escape attempt.  There, in the lowest place in Israeli society, they might find their way out in each other.
  
  
• First Lesson in Peace - explores the Jewish –Arab relations through the eyes of a six year old girl, the director's daughter when she starts school at the mixed Arab- Jewish primary school - Neveh Shalom-The Oasis of Peace. The film, in the form of a letter from father Yoram to his six year old daughter, follows the clashes and encounters that the child goes through during her first year in school and her first year in the reality of the Middle East.
  
  
• SAZ - The film depicts a dramatic year in the life of 20-year-old Arab rapper Samech Zakhut, who lives in Ramlleh, born third generation to a communist family. Samekh abounds with questions about his identity and nationality, his past and the fate of his people. He decides to rise up and act. He records Rap and Hip-Hop songs, by way of which he transfers his messages.
  
  
• No Longer Achmed - Achmed Hamdoon, a young Arab Bedouin of the Hamdoon tribe, was raised in the family tin hut, a few meters away from the locked gate of Kibbutz "Lotem" in West Galilee, Northern Israel. Having longed for the kibbutz life most of his youth, he finally pulls out and moves to "Lotem", changing his name to the typically Israeli name Meidan Sade. The clan is outraged and sees him as a "traitor". But Meidan, no longer Achmed, feels he cannot access better opportunities in the Israeli society as a Bedouin. Indeed, he becomes "the first Hamdoon" to carry ammunition while guarding the Kibbutz, completes his high school degree, and finds a new Jewish "cultural" mother. The price, however, is high. Meidan is lonely, unable to find a Jewish girl who will accept him as he is, nor a Bedouin girl who will not frown on his extreme crossing of ways.
  
  
• Nazek - Feminism in Arab society.
  
  
  

 

 

• Three Times Divorced - Khitam, a Gaza-born Palestinian woman, was married off in an arranged match to an Israeli Arab, followed him to Israel and bore him six children. When her husband divorced her - in absentia - in the Sharia Muslim court and gained custody of the children, Khitam was left with nothing. She cannot contact her children, has no property and no citizenship. Now she is out on a dual battle, the most crucial of her life: against the court - which always rules in favor of the husband _ and against the state, in a last-ditch effort to gain citizenship and reunite with her children.
  
  
• Pickles, Inc. - In the Arab Israeli village of Tamra, eight widows decide to challenge convention by starting up a business venture -- the Azka Pickle Cooperative -- seeking financial independence for themselves and their children. The film follows these women as they establish a tiny factory for pickling vegetables and develop a market for their product in local stores. With little formal education or work experience outside the home, the women face numerous hurdles as the business struggles to expand to stores throughout Israel -- while their personal lives reflect the joys and sadness of family weddings, bereavement, and loneliness. "Pickles, Inc." portrays this unconventional business start-up and offers rare insight into the lives of courageous women striving to overcome extraordinary obstacles to achieve a better life.
  
  
• Shorts - I am you are, 2 eyes and a mouth, where to, six southern minutes, The Red Toy.

 

 

Guest Filmmakers

We are considering some of the most renowned Jewish and Arab filmmakers and scholars, among them:

• Mohammad Bakri (actor, director)
• Joe Sweid (actor)
• Tawfik Abu Wael (director)
• Judd Neeman (director)
• Uri Rosenswax (director)
• Eran Riklis (director)
• Prof. Hamid Dabashi (cultural critic, author)
• Ibtisam Maraana (director)
• Yussef Bilal
• Jackie Salloum

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Music

• DAM (Da Arabian MC) – A group of Arab rappers from Lud will perform and speak about their work, as well as a presentation of screen excerpts from a new documentary by director Jackie Salloum, Sling Shot Hip Hop, that focuses on the Arab hip-hop scene, following Arab rappers living in Gaza, the West Bank and inside Israel. It aims to spotlight alternative voices of resistance within the Palestinian struggle and explore the role their music plays within their social, political and personal lives.
• In addition, we will be hosting a short musical performance at the opening night gala, possibly by the Jewish-Arab Israeli ensemble “Yuval Ron Music Ensemble”.

 

Literary

We are in discussions with Sayed Kashua, an acclaimed Arab Israeli writer and novelist, whose books were published throughout the world, and Adam Lebor, a british writer whose recent book “City of Oranges”  tells the stories of Arabs and Jews since the British mandated Palestine through nowadays. Both will have readings of excerpts from their books (possibly staged reading) and discussion.

 

 

Visual Art

 

• Tal Adler Photographic Exhibit, UNRECOGNIZED – A slides presentation from leading Israeli artist Tal Adler who decided to start this project to trigger a social change. Through a clever use of artistic media, educational and social tools, Unrecognized brings the story of the unrecognized Bedouin settlements of the Negev to the attention of wider audiences.

 

• Kids With Cameras – A photographic exhibit of the works of 12 children, Jewish and Arab leaving in Jerusalem. Presented during the festival at the JCC of Manhattan.

Other Israel Film Festival

November 8-15, 2007

Draft Schedule

Times and places dependent on final film choices and running times

 

 

Thursday, November 8         7:30pm           Opening Night Gala              JCC in Manhattan

                                                                       

 

Friday, November 9              3:00pm           Film                                         JCC in Manhattan?

                                                7:00pm           Film                                         Cinema

 

Saturday, November 10       3:00pm           Film                                         Symphony Space

                                                5:00pm           Film                                         Symphony Space

                                                7:00pm           Film                                         Symphony Space

                                                9:00pm           DAM Performance                JCC in Manhattan

                                                11:00pm         Film                                         Cinema

 

Sunday, November 11          1:00pm           Film                                         JCC in Manhattan

                                                3:00pm           Film                                         Symphony Space

                                                5:00pm           Film                                         Symphony Space

                                                7:00pm           Film                                         Symphony Space

                                               

Monday, November 12         7:00pm           Film

                                                9:00pm           Film                                         JCC in Manhattan

 

Tuesday, November 13        7:00pm           Film & Panel                          Symphony Space

                                                9:00pm           Film                                         Cinema

 

Wednesday, November 14  7:00pm           Film                                         JCC in Manhattan

                                                9:00pm           Film                                         Cinema

 

Thursday, November 15       7:00pm           Film                                         JCC in Manhattan

                                                8:00pm           Reception                              JCC in Manhattan

                                                9:00pm           Film                                         JCC in Manhattan

Paris 2006

Leona Helmsley's Will

Leona Helmsley, the so-called Queen of Mean who died recently, left most of her money to... her dog. The Washington Post has the story here. Some of the other provisions:

She left money to two of her four grandchildren (the children of her deceased son, Jay Panzirer) "so long as they visit their father's grave site once each calendar year. Otherwise, she wrote, neither will get a penny of the $5 million she left for each."

According to the article, "Helmsley left nothing to two of Jay Panzirer's other children - Craig and Meegan Panzirer - for 'reasons that are known to them,' she wrote." Not good-- the queen should have talked about why! It has been alleged that these "reasons" were a failure to name any of their children after her late husband. Can that be True? You betcha…

The "grave visiting" requirement attempts to control people from beyond the grave. When grandchildren love their father and view visitation of his grave as an important way to show this, then they'll visit regardless of any incentive to do so. When grandchildren didn't love their father, or think there are better ways to show love than visiting a grave, they're likely to resent the requirement.

Georgia O'Keeffe

The painter Georgia O'Keeffe is famous in estate planning/probate/estate tax circles for the "blockage" discount taken by her estate after her death. (You can read more about this issue here.)

There's now a new controversy surrounding a gift of artwork made by Ms. O'Keeffe during her life to Fisk University, which is discussed in this article. Actually, Ms. O'Keefe made two gifts to the University:

Gift #1: "97 works of art owned by O’Keeffe’s husband, Alfred Stieglitz, and donated by his widow to Fisk University in 1949 at the suggestion of a friend." As the article states: When the gift was delivered to Fisk in June 1949, O’Keeffe included a letter of transfer confirming the university would not sell the artworks. Charles S. Johnson, who was then the president of Fisk, replied saying Fisk “will not at any time sell or exchange any objects in the Stieglitz Collection.”

Gift #2: "[F]our paintings from O’Keeffe’s personal collection that she initially loaned to Fisk and later donated to the university in the 1950s." This includes a painting entitled Radiator Building - Night, New York, which Fisk University would like to sell (possibly for $10 million).

Is the Radiator Building painting subject to the same conditions as the paintings comprising Gift #1? Does it matter that the then-President of Fisk may have agreed never to sell the painting? If Fisk is acting inappropriately, is there anyone with standing to stop them?

These are all interesting questions. My own take on this situation is that donors should build a little flexibility into their gifts. Telling a charity that they may never sell a donated item can place a tremendous burden on the charity.

Mick Jagger's Dad Left Estate to Mick's Brother..

Mick Jagger's dad, Joe Jagger, died in November 2006. Mr. Jagger left all of his assets not to Mick but to his other son Chris -- here's a short article.

I wish more people with wealthy relatives would take this approach. There's little reason to leave a bunch of your money to a wealthy child, parent, or sibling -- in some cases, it just causes headaches. I assume Mick Jagger understood this, as he's named as his father's executor.

If a client feels funny about disinheriting a family member because of lack of need, financial planner suggest putting their rationale for doing so in their documents. Of course, the better approach is for clients to talk to family members and explain why they want to leave the money elsewhere.

Just in case you think that rock musicians are simply wastrels, who add nothing (of substance) to society it's good to know that there are some who have expanded their horizons beyond music and showmanship.

For example, Queen's Brian May, who handed in and received his PhD thesis in astronomy. May made his first astronomical observations for his thesis at the Observatorio del Teide in Tenerife in 1971, before his rock career took off… He is now officially Dr. May as he blogged. He defended his thesis for nearly 3 hours and got a "category 2" grade, which is not quite the top category.

And there's Jeff "Skunk" Baxter of Steely Dan and the Doobie Brothers, who is now an Anti-terror adviser to the government. the original article …says: His defense work began in the 1980s, when it occurred to him that much of the hardware and software being developed for military use, like data-compression algorithms and large-capacity storage devices, could also be used for recording music. Mr. Baxter's next-door neighbor, a retired engineer who worked on the Pentagon's Sidewinder missile program, bought him a subscription to an aviation magazine, and he was soon reading a range of military-related publications.

One more: horror of horrors John Hall of Orleans is now serving time - in Congress. I guess that not all musicians become productive citizens in the end.