When I’m 64
Filed under: A New Reality, education, Entertainment, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Israeliness, Life, Technology
As the transition from the somber mood of Remembrance Day makes way for the celebration of Independence Day, there’s a plethora of inspiring video clips to help us mark Israel’s 64th birthday.
We’ve already focused on ISRAEL21c’s great ‘What does Israel mean to you’ clip, (now augmented by the top 64 innvoations from Israel) and here’s a few others.
Here’s a photographic appreciation of the natural beauty of the country by Efrat-based photographer Yehoshua Halevi, featuring the song “Desert Call” by Eden Mi Qedem.
No Independence Day would be complete without a tribute to our fighting forces that protect us day in and out. Here’s a well-done one created and filmed by Aviv Vana Post Production in collaboration with shooteast.com
Here’s a unique take on the country’s birthday – done in animation. According to the creators, it attempts to portray the complex reality that Israelis live in on a daily basis.
And how could we not include a message from Mr. Israel, our venerable president Shimon Peres, who gives his independence greeting in his inimitable English.
Go enjoy the next 24 hours, with the ubiquitous barbecue, outdoor singing and dancing, and fireworks. Happy birthday, Israel.
Celebrating independence with a Seder
Filed under: A New Reality, education, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Israeliness, Life
I just returned home from my first Yom Ha’atzmaut (Independence Day) Seder. And it was pretty cool. The trend toward having seders besides the Passover one for other holidays like Tu Bishvat has been on the rise in recent years – a nonsectarian but traditional seder with four cups and readings but without religious content.
The Yom Ha’atzmaut Seder that we attended for our son’s fifth grade classes was devised by the Tali Foundation, the organization that brings traditional themes into largely secular schools.
The Seder table was lined with bottles of juices and water for the four cups, bowls of humus, olives and dates and plates of pita. Led by a trained professional, the Seder included blessings over the food, readings from such Zionist stalwarts as Natan Alterman and Haim Goury, quotes from David Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Rabin, and songs by Naomi Shemer and Uzi Hitman.
Less than an hour in length, it kept the 11-year-olds’ scattered minds at attention and engaged them in telling the story of their country and why Yom Ha’atzmaut is more than breaking out the new barbecue and spraying that disgusting foam on each other.
Maybe next year, every school will incorporate a Yom Ha’atzmaut Seder in their curriculum – it’s good for the students and it’s good for the parents.
Nostalgia Sunday – Canaan canines
Filed under: Environment, General, History and Culture, Holidays, Life, News, Nostalgia Sunday, Picture of the Week, Politics, Pop Culture, Profiles, Social Justice, Travel
Right off the winding road leading up to Jerusalem are the Shaar Hagai Kennels, home to the Canaan dog, a semi-feral dog that is Israel’s national breed. The history of these dogs and the modern State of Israel are intertwined as today’s Canaan was bred by request of the Haganah, the forerunner of today’s Israel Defense Forces.
According to an essay on the Shaar Hagai website, having decided to set up a canine unit, Haganah commanders turned to Dr. Professor Rudolphina Menzel, “a noted cynologist with a considerable reputation in her native Austria in the field of animal behavior… She quickly discovered that the European breeds with which she was accustomed to working, German Shepherds, Boxers, Dobermans, suffered greatly from the severe climate and difficult terrain and had a hard time functioning effectively.
“She began to observe the local pariah dogs living on the outskirts of settlements and with the Bedouin in desert and wilderness areas, and decided that this was a true breed of dog that had adapted to the conditions. She began a program of re-domestication, collecting puppies and adults from the pariah groups.”
“The Canaan Dog has survived for thousands of years on its own, living by its wits, and surviving in the wild and on the fringes of civilization by hunting and scavenging. Often puppies were captured, raised and used, especially by the Bedouin tribesmen, as guardians of the flocks and the tents. Like other wild or feral residents of the area, only the strongest, healthiest, cleverest, and most fit survived to breed and pass on their characteristics.”
Prof. Menzel called the breed the Canaan Dog after the Biblical Land of Canaan. Canaans have been part of the local landscape since time immemorial. The American Kennel Club history of the breed cites “Drawings found on the tombs at Beni-Hassan, dating from 2200 to 2000 B.C., depict[ing] dogs that show an unmistakable resemblance to the Canaan Dog of today.”
An essay posted by the Canaan Dog Club of America states, “As a breed the Canaan Dog proved highly intelligent and easily trainable, serving as sentry dogs, messengers, Red Cross helpers and land mine locators. During World War II, Dr. Menzel recruited and trained over 400 of the best dogs for the Middle East Forces as land mine detectors, and they proved superior to the mechanical detectors.”
“The Canaan is also one of the very few breeds known that has successfully adapted to a desert environment,” the Shaar Hagai essay notes. “Studies done at Tel Aviv University and Ben Gurion University of the Negev have shown an astonishing ability in this breed to adapt to extremes of temperature and lack of water. The breed has developed physiological adaptations to prevent waste of fluids and overheating.”
Prof. Menzel was responsible for gaining recognition for the breed; her breed standard was accepted by the La Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) in 1966, where it is classified in FCI Group 5, a subgroup of primitive dogs. She exported the first Canaans to the US in 1965 and to Germany shortly after. (An interview with Prof. Menzel about her work by noted naturalist Dvora Ben Shaul makes for fascinating reading). In 1970, Shaar Hagai Kennels joined in the development and breeding of the dogs, carrying on Prof. Menzel’s work after her death in 1973.
Over the years, urbanization and cultivation have led to the gradual disappearance of the Canaan’s natural habitat and there is a danger that the wild dog, which is the original breeding stock, could disappear. Added to that is a new threat: after 42 years, the Shaar Hagai Kennels have received a notice of eviction by the Israel Lands Administration (ILA), which holds title to the property. Such a move could mean the end of their breeding program and consequently endanger the breed overall.
Myrna Shiboleth, who has run the Kennels for 42 years, now finds herself in an unusual plight and has been actively lobbying for public support. She has successfully recruited 38,505 signatures (so far) on an online petition that will be submitted to the ILA. 50,000 signatures are needed, so sign the petition, join the Facebook page, and pass the word on.
I should mention my personal interest in this story; when we adopted her two years ago, we couldn’t figure out our dog Nili until we learned about Canaan dogs. Then it all made sense: she may be part Canaan in breed (check out those giant ears) but she’s all Canaan in ‘tude: highly intelligent, very loyal but never blindly obedient. All in all, a true Israeli sabra.
Made in Israel
Filed under: A New Reality, Business, design, education, Entertainment, Environment, General, health, Holidays, Israeliness, Life, Medical Breakthroughs, Music, Science, Social Justice, Technology
It’s getting to be that time of year again – where the national holidays come fast and furious. Holocaust Remembrance Day just passed and this week we have Memorial Day and Independence Day right on top of each other as Israel prepares to celebrate its 64th birthday.
While there’s no shortage of subjects to be worried, fearful, skeptical or angry about, I would say that overall, the country’s in pretty good shape. But if the Iranian threat, the political situation, the social welfare crisis and the glut of TV reality shows are getting you down, take a couple minutes and check out this clip that ISRAEL21c’s Nicky Blackburn and Viva Sara Press have put together.
In addition to providing some surprising information about just what Israel has achieved in the past 63 years, it will undoubtedly raise your morale and have you whistling a happy tune going into the coming eventful week. Happy Independence Day Israel! We’re proud of you.
Foto Friday – A street view of Israel with Google StreetView
Filed under: A New Reality, education, Entertainment, Foto Friday, General, Israeliness, Life, Movies, Picture of the Week, Pop Culture, Sports, Technology, Travel, tv
Earlier this week, Google let it be known that it would be launching the long-awaited StreetView application for Israel. The official launch date is this Sunday, April 22, but the soft launch apparently happened yesterday and seems to be working on Google Maps Netherlands at this point.
StreetView, which is part of Google Maps, lets users explore places around the world through 360-degree panoramic 3D imagery of city streets, public spaces, museums, national parks and more. (Here’s a quick video on how to use it).
Google accomplishes this by deploying a fleet of cars topped by a 15 lens camera taking 360 degrees of photos as it drives along. The car also also has motion sensors to track its position, a hard drive to store data, a small computer running the system, and lasers to capture 3D data to determine distances within the Street View imagery.
Google provides a nice explanation of how its done. And last year, this fellow posted a video of himself following the Google car down Tel Aviv’s Ben Yehuda street, writing “Look how lucky I am to capture the car that is capturing me.”
Given that Israel is a major R&D center for Google, the launch took longer than expected. This was due to concerns over security — not unjustified as Palestinian militants have stated that Google Earth satellite images have been used to identify targets in rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip on Israel. Similarly, there were concerns about Google StreetView possibly being used by terrorists to attack critical locations and/or important personages. Privacy concerns were less of an issue — in Israel, security trumps privacy every time. Plus, we are the kind of people who feel “lucky” if we’re captured by a Google cam!
The Google Map of Israel…
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So far, StreetView has covered neighborhoods, universities and museums in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Be’er Sheva, plus a few smaller towns and tourist sites around the country.
The Jerusalem Theater…
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The Harp Bridge at the entrance to Jerusalem…
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The Knesset…
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Western Wall…
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And here’s where my running group, the Holyland Hash House Harriers, will be meeting tomorrow afternoon at 4:00 PM, right in the Valley of the Cross. All are invited and beer will be served.
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