I have moved on, and for now, don’t plan to blog here any more. Please visit my photography project at yosefsilver.com and visit often for my latest photography.
Many of the topics I blogged here since I started writing in 2004 are of interest to many of you so I’m keeping the archives online for now, but please note, not all the views I have expressed over the last four years are the same as the opinions I hold now.
Don’t judge me for my writing. Judge me for my photography.
Sure, time flies, it’s a fact of life. One day we’re taking our first steps, then before you know it, you’ve moved to another country and been there long enough see many newer olim arrive and look to you for tips.
Ok, I’m certainly nowhere near vatik over here, but back in 2005, Israel still included Aza and the Second Lebanon War hadn’t been thought of… and Gilad Shalit was still home.
Two years have passed since we were attacked and more of our soldiers were taken into captivity. The oft drawn comparison between Gilad and Ron Arad sends a shiver down my spine. Why, when we went to to bring home Gilad, Ehud and Eladad, did we come home empty handed?
It’s easy to point the finger of blame at the government, especially when Olmert is in the driving seat. I get the feeling that calls for his resignation kicked off the day he was elected, but am I guilty of not doing remembering? Why haven’t I written to the goverment or been to more rallys?
When I heard of the Facebook campaign to have 30,000 plus users change their profile image to a picture of Gilad, and change their status to raise awareness, that scary shiver returned to me. Two years later and Gilad isn’t home. Has the political apathy in the country caused the public to give up hope? Perhaps we don’t trust Olmert to push this to the top of his priority list. While there was talk of a deal at the start of the week, that’s all died down and our boys are still lost in the unknown.
On Tuesday Night, there was a familiar site outside the president’s house. People waving flags and holding banners and making noise – but I’ll be honest, I was disappointed that the turn out wasn’t larger. I found myself looking through facebook and felt disappointed when people hadn’t joined this campaign.
I don’t have an answer, and I don’t know what more I can do… perhaps blogging from the waiting room of MacabiDent is my way of saying “Gilad, I haven’t forgotten that you’re out there. I haven’t forgetten you or any of our other captured soldiers, and I hope, pray and look forward to the day that the entire country can celebrate that you’re home, safe and well”.
Every summer since I arrived in Israel, I have been pleasantly surprised by the number of summer festivals and events that take place throughout Jerusalem from the moment we reach for the AC remote…
Last weeks, while heading out to a free Jazz Performance at the Yellow Submarine, as part of Jerusalem’s Jazz Festival, we got a phone call telling us to head to the Jerusalem Theater instead and check out a free gig by Funk’n’stein The Band. Other than the scary afro and creepy 70’s outfits, we knew pretty fast that we’d made the right choice by ditching the jazz!
Over the coming weeks, summer is coming into play. I will be able to make peace with myself for missing last years wine festival when it returns to the Israel museum early next month, and I am sure the food festival and beer festival will be right around the corner too.
In short, Jerusalem cares about it’s residents, and wants to encourage the tourism. Rent might be rising, and the cost of living means many people are choosing to leave the capital for smaller communities, but if there’s one thing that I am being reminded of this summer, it’s the fact that Jerusalem has a lot to offer!
I don’t particularly like our Prime Minister. I didn’t vote for him, I don’t like his policies, and I don’t agree with his vision for the future. Like many, I would happily see another leader elected, and the fall of the Kadima party wouldn’t leave me crying myself to sleep either. Then again, I am a big fan of giving credit when credit is due, and Olmert seems to have learned one thing from Sharon.
Olmert has something many people lack. His sticks to his guns, believes in what he is doing, and like Shraron, will do everything he can to see that his truth becomes a reality. He is a fighter. Voters have lost passion. 2005 changed Israel, and as far as I can see, voter apathy is up, and we’re on track to becoming a nation of olim wondering why all the sabra’s would choose the ‘easy life’
I carry my Tehudat Zehut with pride. I memorized my ID number before I fell asleep my first night in Israel. I can relate to the desire for recognition and legitimacy in a foreign country, but for me, my Green Card was always blue.
This week our beloved land turned 60. I have be dreaming of Israel 60 since Israel 50, and yet on the eve of the most important day of our calendar, the Prime Minister is under investigation once again. I respect a man for courage, for not giving in, but there is a point when it’s time to say enough is enough.
We’ve been here before with Olmert, on the brink of elections. Perhaps we won’t know hit E-day till after the summer, but I hope and pray our next Prime Minister is an example to the nation, and seen in good light around the world. Ok, Olmert fights and get what he wants, but it seems that he is looking after his own interests and not those of the country. This isn’t a good trait for the guy in the driving seat.
The again, perhaps Olmert isn’t a fighter. The people with the power to topple him are too scared to make the move. They don’t want to risk their seats, or their salary. It wouldn’t surprise me if elections would mean Kadima members starting to crawl back to where they came from, and no one wants that sort of uncertainty for their career.
The US is pressing for a peace deal before the end of the year (although we’ve heard that every summer), and I hope we have the right leader, with the correct fighting spirit and understanding of when to keep carrying that pioneering spirit, and when to say enough is enough.
Two “Israeli Politic” posts is as many days is a lot coming from me these days, but I see this as an essential way to spend my day. Today, I am spending as much energy as I can raising awareness of Thursday’s Online Rally in support of the people of Sderot.
Many of you reading will know what Sderot goes through. You’ll have heard of the 8,000 kassamim shot from Gaza in the past year. You’re probably aware of the short warning residents of the South have between hearing the wails of the siren and the hit on their city. Perhaps you already buy your Challot from Sderot every week, but please take one effortless more step to show your support.
On Thursday, One Million People, around the world, are going to tune into Together4Israel and take part, in person, and online, in a rally to show solidarity with the people under attack. One Million People. One Voice. One Message.
The event will have life footage from Israel, South Africa, the UK, the US and Australia. Communities are coming together, and you can too.
Yes, I know what you’re thinking, Thursday night is party night… it’s Purim, and you want to make sure can’t tell the difference between Haman and Moderchai – but this is the reason Thursday was chosen. Cast your mind back 2,200 years to the fast Moderchai and Esther took to unite the Jewish nation at a time of need and threat.
Even if you’re not going to be home on Thursday night, you can take part in this event. Before you head out of the house, log on to http://www.together4israel.org and leave the computer on. You will still be part of this event, and you will still be counted. It really takes little effort, and doesn’t cost you a penny!
Please help spread the word, and please support the people of Sderot. There are many ways you can help us.
Check out the site, all the information you need is there! www.Together4Israel.org is home to the event. You can view the Press Release, sign up, and be in touch to help out. Be counted, commit to watch, or load the live footage on Thursday night.
Watch and Share the video. Leave a comment to show your support! I am not usually one to advocate forwarding a video or funny email, but pretend you are “that guy” and send this to everyone you know!
Join the event. Show your commitment to your friends and family by “Attending” via the Facebook group.
Am Achad B’lev Achad [one people with one heart], right? Let’s do this and let the people of Sderot know that they are NOT alone. May all our prayers be answered, all our people be safe, and we all be able to protect the ones we love.
… yes, Daniella and I are engaged. I got back to Israel yesterday morning, and sometime in the coming week, I will build our site at DaniellaYosef.com, but until then, it re-directs to my flickr album.
Check out some pics here, and I will keep you all posted!
Starts-ups are fueled by a specific kind of person. For some, the field is full of risk, very demanding, and lacking a certain sense of security. For others, like myself, it’s an opportunity to excel. The exciting pursuit… the desire to see the product be a success means that you don’t care if you have to work from home here and there, or if annual vacation includes the occasional phone call or email from the office.
There are perks in a start up, put the financial benefits aside, they are usually fun, in fact, I am of the opinion that a start up needs to be filled with postive energy and an element of fun to succeed. My co-workers are some of my closest friends, and it’s a good thing too, we spend 8 to 12 hours a day together, if not more.
Could this desire to succeed and focus on a dream be the reason there are so many start ups in Israel?
My life takes place in a bubble, a small micro system where speaking Hebrew is rarely a result of it being a first language, and in many cases, is a long term goal. We are Anglo’s living the good life in the land. Just last week I left RankAbove at the end of my day and met a friend from Answers.com, and her husband, for dinner. As I walked home, a buddy from my days at another startup called me. The night carried on and I went to a concert with a friend who recently joined myHeritage.com, and a friend from aniBoom.
Aliya gives so many people a chance to start afresh. Some people are looking for that chance, others don’t realize that they might end up doing just that, but moving to a new country is trying something new. It’s about setting our mind to a goal, possibly an unrealistic goal, and along that road, the vast majority of us find success and happiness.
Bank in the 1920’s, 30’s or 40’s, olim gave up on everything they knew from before. They arrived in an unknown, volatile land, and worked the swamps of Palestine. With their bear hands they turned desert and wasteland into cities. There were no Blackberry’s or Skype phones back then. Even the beloved fax machine was yet to be invented. Aliya meant saying goodbye. There was no more connection with the diaspora land you were leaving behind.
Modern aliya is not like that, and thank G-d too, not even someone with as extreme views on aliya could advocate disconnecting with life-before-teudat-zehut, but there does reach a point when your day to day life means your life is in Israel and not in your previous country.
As an estimate, I’d say 70% of my friends work in Hi-Tech. Sure, I am going to have friends with similar skill sets or interests as myself, but perhaps the swamps of the first aliya are being replaced by the MacBook.
The pioneering spirit has changed, but the desire to make a success out of nothing lives strong, and just perhaps, this could be the reason for such a high level of successful development and innovation from our tiny little country.
Shabbat Shalom.
Overall, we can safely say SphinnCon was a great success, I want to share my views and summary, but it’s going to have to wait. For now, check out the pics at Flickr.
