(a) It looks like Israel is winding down operations in Gaza, under pressure from “Abu Hunter” Biden who has clearly gotten his marching orders from Beijing (which has no love lost for Islamism, but has a vested interest in the USA and its ally Israe remaining tied up in a perpetual proxy war — so Israel cannot be allowed to win outright). Yesterday, as Mrs. Arbel was watching the new version of “Shogun” (that she’s fluent in Japanese helps) while I was turning around backlogged peer review, she had a good laugh when some character was being referred to as “a back-passage wh**e of the 15th rank”. (The juxtaposition of these sentences is purely concidental, I pinky-swear ;))
(b) Relatedly, a report jointly prepared by US and Israeli intelligence specialists details the pernicious role of Qatar and its duplicity vs. its supposed ally the USA, Times of Israel editor David Horowitz reports.
A confidential report by a team of veteran US and Israeli intelligence professionals working on behalf of lawyers for the families of October 7 victims contends that Qatar should not be allowed to continue to serve as a key mediator in the Gaza conflict, notably in negotiations for the release of hostages.
Compiled on the basis of research in English, Arabic, and French in the Middle East, Europe and the US, as well as public sourcing, the report concludes that Qatar is a fundamentally disingenuous actor, falsely presenting itself as an honest broker, moderating influence in the region, and “friend of the West.”
In fact, the report states, “Qatar operates not as an independent mediator as it claims, but benefits directly from the bloodshed and geopolitical fallout and unrest that result from its policies.”
As regards Hamas’s invasion of southern Israel, in which some 1,200 people were massacred and 253 abducted, the report specifies that “Qatari funding and policies led directly to October 7.”
The “Doha-Gaza Alliance at all levels — financial, political, and military — has resulted in the current regional upheaval, the impact of which is being felt worldwide,” it further states.
[..] Its findings include material known for years to US intelligence about Qatar’s malign activities but not strategically acted upon — a failure, the authors argue, that allowed Qatar to advance policies harmful to the interests of the US and its allies in the Middle East and beyond, including the souring of the Arab Spring, the return to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan, and the rise to power and arming of Hamas, culminating in October 7 and its ongoing regional and global consequences.
[…]
While Qatar “utilizes the cover” of claiming that its funding for the Muslim Brotherhood and affiliates like Hamas is for “welfare” projects, it is “completely cognizant of the fact that the money is instead going to support terror and political ends,” the authors say.
More broadly still, the report concludes that Qatar’s “symbiosis” with Iran, support for the Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliates such as Hamas, and backing for other militant and terror groups deeply harm the interests of US allies such as Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates, and negatively impact America’s own critical interests. Among such groups cited in the report are the Taliban, Hezbollah, Al-Nusra (Al-Qaeda) in Syria, the Houthis in Yemen, Al-Shabab in Somalia, Shiite militant groups in Iraq, and terror groups in Libya.
“The negative impact of the Qatari-Muslim Brotherhood nexus to US policy interests includes bloodshed, unrest, and instability in a wide range of locations, most immediately in the Middle East and Africa,” the report elaborates. “These ‘local’ conflicts have far-reaching implications for US policy going beyond the region — with Russia and China oftentimes appearing to be the main beneficiaries of the instability these conflicts have created.”
Go read the whole thing. I’m old enough to remember when, now almost 30 years ago, the then-Syrian minister of defense referred to Yasser Arafat [y”sh] by the colorful Arabic epithet bin sittim alaf sharmuteh [literally: son of sixty thousand wh*res]. It fits the Emir of Qatar to a tee as well.
(c) The latest claim is that “cancel culture doesn’t exist” because J. K. Rowling or Elon Musk haven’t been canceled — conveniently ignoring that she is an outlier because they have what in crude American slang is called “F*** you money”. But for the rest of us? Andrew Doyle — the creator of the satirical “Titania McGrath” — goes dead serious on the subject on the Triggernometry channel.
Closely related: Rita Panahi refers to the insane new “hate speech” laws in Scotland of Humza “Ghoffaq” Yousef’s misadministration, and J. K. Rowling effectively offering herself up as a human shield against them, by retweeting every “offensive” gender-critical comment and inviting the police to prosecute her
Opponents of the asinine and Orwellian law have apparently latched upon another tactic: massively filing hate speech complaints against… First Minister Humza Yousef himself. https://youtu.be/wEIdqqrGZ24
Spin, strangeness, and charm 
The mitzva of removing Av tumah avoda zarah from within our hearts. Avoda zarah defined through the Book of Esther as assimilation and intermarriage with Goyim. Prior to Pesach the Torah commands the removal of all חמץ. The משל of חמץ teaches the נמשל of אב טומא עבודה זרה. Hence post Pesach the mitzva of counting the Omer likewise pronounces the שם מ”ב, Forty-two letter Divine Name with the k’vanna to remove avoda zarah from bnei brit hearts prior to accepting the revelation of the Torah on Sinai which the Chag of Shevuoth sanctifies as an eternal mitzva dedicated through the Divine Name of the bnai brit soul of האל.
According to the Yerushalmi Talmud over 247 prophets occupied in writing the Shemone Esrei tefillah. Herein serves as the basis of all Jewish kabbalah.
A huge black hole: all discussion on the Siddur which fails to address the simple fact that the Siddur together with the Book of בראשית addresses the Av/toldot relationship between time-oriented commandments to their toldot positive and negative commandments in the other four Books of the Written Torah.
Removal of the sciatic nerve, one of the few Commandments together with fruitful and multiply and circumcision in the Book of בראשית the Av Book to the toldot other 4 Books of the Torah! The tefillah on the Yom Tov and Shabbat “remembers”.
Remembers what? The oaths sworn by the Avot, the k’vanna of kre’a shma which links the 3 Divine Names in the opening p’suk of this tefillah דאורייתא to אלהי אברהם וכו in the adjacent Shemone Esrei דרבנן.
What oaths did the Avot swear when they cut a oath brit with HaShem? HaShem swore oaths to the Avot (future born seed plus the inheritance of the land to this future born [עולם הבא] chosen Cohen nation seed). What sworn oaths did the Avot swear in their brit alliance with HaShem? The Baali Tosafot teach אלהי אברהם as a reference to מלכות. This משל term מלכות interpreted to mean the dedication of tohor middot. Hence 13 middle blessing affixed to the revelation of the 13 tohor middot ‘ה’ ה’ אל רחום וחנון וכו.
Tefillah stands in the stead of korbanot. Korbanot NOT a barbeque unto Heaven. But an action of swearing a Torah oath (which requires שם ומלכות) “dedicated” as Holy to HaShem. As the 13 Middle Blessings stand distinct from one another a person should possess the wisdom which discerns the distinctions which separate the definition of one tohor midda from the other tohor middot the one from the others.
This ability/wisdom to discern like from like defines the concept of k’vanna — which all time oriented commandments require. This basis of Torah faith qualifies as the meaning to the term “Fear of Heaven”. All time oriented commandments stand upon this יסוד kabbalah of faith.
Removal of the sciatic nerve remembers the crisis, comparable to the Akadah of Yitzak, of Yaacov’s encounter with his brother Esau. Targum Uziel says that Esau approach Yaacov with an Army led by 400 Officers! In short Yaacov toast, just like the life of Yitzak at the Akedah!
Removal of the sciatic nerve: a tohor time-oriented commandment. The Book of בראשית opens with בראשית followed by נח. Tohor time-oriented commandments express Moshe Rabbeinu’s life & death, therefore choose life commandment. בראשית, contained in the first תמיד מעשה בראשית of the opening ברכה של קריא שמע. And נח, the death of all living, contained in the second תמיד מעשה בראשית at the closing of this opening blessing of kre’a shma.
Tohor time-oriented commandments emanate the power to Create the world or destroy the world יש מאין. Torah oaths created from nothing זה וזה. The B’hag ruled that rabbinic commandments 100 blessings, nir shabbat, nir hannukah, reading m’gilah esther, etc. as mitzvot from the Torah. All these rabbinic commandments, according to Rambam in his introduction to Sefer Ha’Mitzvot, tohor time-oriented commandments. The B’had in essence held that just as the תרי”ג commandments existed as toldot of tohor time-oriented Avot commandments as located in the Av Book of בראשית, all rabbinic halachot within the Talmud, if sanctified as time-oriented commandments qualify as commandments from the Torah itself!
Time-oriented commandments require כוונה. Understood as the dedication of tohor middot reveal to Moshe at Horev and explained by the kabbalah of rabbi Akiva’s פרדס understanding of the כוונה of the Oral Torah revelation at Horev — 40 days after the Sin of the Golden Calf avoda zarah which violates the 2nd Sinai commandments throughout the generations till today. How many times does the bible or koran bring the revelation of the שם השם? Doing mitzvot לשמה separates Jews in Israel from Jews in g’lut. The RambaN teaches in his Chumash commentary that doing mitzvot in g’lut only a “remembrance” to doing mitzvot לשמה in ארץ ישראל – the oath sworn lands for the chosen Cohen nation.