A Tale of Two Cities
Once upon a time there were two editors — one edited Time Out Tel Aviv and the other edited Time Out Beirut.
This is the story of two men, one from Beirut and one from Tel Aviv, who met less than four months ago and formed an instant friendship. They believed that the things they had in common were far more significant than politics – until the twisted reality of the Middle East interfered with that conviction.
Not Just Rescuing Cats From Trees
EB from OneJerusalem.com pays tribute to some of the unsung heroes of the war — the firemen.
Battles are not always fought with bombs and guns. They may also be fought with water, and a variety of chemicals, often dumped or sprayed from small aircraft. If you’re wondering who these ‘unsung heroes’ are, they’re Israel’s fire fighters. Though fires to buildings are not as common in Israel as they are in most Western countries, Israel’s fire brigades are still kept quite active, fighting fires in residential and commercial properties, occasional industrial accidents, multitudes of traffic accidents; and of course, fires breaking out or being set in Israel’s grasslands and woodlands.
The attacks on Israel’s heartland by Hezbollah launched missiles, have resulted in so many alarms being received by fire brigade stations that volunteers have had to assist from stations all over Israel to cope with the abnormally heavy incidences of resulting fires to personal and commercial property as well as to forests and other open spaces….Fire brigades have always been one of the first emergency units to arrive at the scene of a serious terror attack, and their duties have often been to help assist wounded victims as well as fight resulting fires. Using a variety of equipment, they often have to face very dangerous challenges like going into burning buildings to rescue trapped people inside. They often work long shifts with little time to rest before the next alarm goes off. One firefighter commander, Moshe Moscow, was recently quoted that “every ketusha attack results in fire at more than 90 % of the time. And what is going on in the north has created hundreds of fires.”….“Many new recruits have no idea what to expect when joining our units,” said Yossi, who had just gotten off a 20 hour shift. “I just wish more people would begin to appreciate the job we are doing. And it’s not just rescuing cats from tall trees!”
Business Isn’t Just As Usual, Sometimes It’s Good…
Ouriel takes note of the recent wave of mega-acquisitions of Israeli companies, despite the dicey security situation. The latest news is the purchase of M-Systems, the company that invented the Disk on Key. Despite, the war, he notes that:
Israel high tech is really rocking lately.
Do I Get Two Days Off, Too?
A bustling and busy house full of family and guests, or sitting in a medical clinic, listening to explosions in the distance? Which is more peaceful? For Doc’s Wife at the Rock of Galilee blog – apparently the latter.
Shabbat was very noisy, so yesterday I took the day off and went with the doc to work and sat in an airconditioned office and heard muffled booms, after that I really did feel more relaxed.
To-day there is an eerie silence, most of the people here have left so there is not the usual traffic and people noises, it is weird. 48 house off. Do I get 48 hours off too? Or are they importing more weapons and re-grouping at my expense? Am I a sitting duck??
Sad But Not Surprised
Israelis who were sad and horrified — but not surprised — by the pictures of the children who died in Kfar Kana yesterday. Among them was Civax.
Before anything else, I must state this clearly: I was very sad myself for the lost of lives in Kfar Kanaa yesterday. In fact, I’m sad for all the innocent lives lost in Lebanon. Our fight is not with all the people in Lebanon, but only with Hizbollah and their supporters. There is no “but” or “whatever” or anything. The lost of lives on both sides is not right and should be avoided.
I’ve seen myself the pictures of the kids taken out of the building yesterday and as a medic myself I can tell you I was very sad and very touched.But such an incident was unavoidable. Be it Kanaa or any other place. When civilians are caught in a battle zone, they get hurt. Innocent or not. The hizbolla is using civilians as human shields through out this war everywhere and this thing was expected to happen. They WANTED it to happen. Hey, don’t take it from me, I’m an Israeli after all, right? Take it from the UN – Jan Egeland, UN under secretary general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, has clearly blamed Hizbollah for blending with the civilians on purpose
Melly wrote from northern Israel:
No matter how you look at it, it’s horrendous. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about – the terrible tragedy in Lebanon.
Whether I accept the IDF’s position of the 6 hour discrepancy between the air force bombing of the building and its final explosion and collapse, or whether I accept the quick world judgment and condemnation of Israel, it matters not. It doesn’t matter to those who died, I’m sure.
It’s a war and people die in wars and that’s exactly what is so dreadful in a war. And yet, there still seem to be people who can’t, won’t, understand that.
Finally, anyone who hasn’t yet seen novelist Naomi Ragen’s impassioned piece in Ha’aretz should go check it out.
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