Building blog

Many apologies for the long silence. First I was on a much-needed and very restorative vacation, and now I’m trying to construct this new blog – which is ridiculously time consuming and often frustrating, especially because I can’t seem to import the comments from the old blog.

Anyway, I won’t bore you with the details of my techie angst. Much posting coming up, including the tale of my unforgettable meeting (Hebrew link), in Toronto, with the Fabulous Nizo (it was love at first sight, mutually exclusive sexual orientations be damned).

Photos from my family visit are here. As you will see, my gorgeous new nephew Gabriel has become the apple of my eye.

Me and Gabriel

To all the people waiting for my email: I haven’t forgotten you! Responses coming soon.

Shana tova and ramadan kareem to all.

If you liked my post, feel free to subscribe to my rss feeds

Post meta

This entry was written by Lisa Goldman and posted on September 18, 2007 at 9:54 pm and filed under Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Post a comment(Latest is displayed first) or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

Share with others

23 Comments so far (Add 1 more)

The world will be grumpy that the first post went to Gumby! So much Hebrew! I can read his post about you. Ack Ack ack..

TTFN,

Bill

1. Semper gumby
on September 19th, 2007 at 3:34 am
Nice! Loads up much quicker. Clean template. Gorgeous baby.

2. lisoosh
on September 19th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
Congrats on the nice new place. Looks good.

3. Udge
on September 19th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
Welcome back, Lisa!

I like the new layout and stuff….for what it’s worth.

4. Bad Vilbel
on September 19th, 2007 at 8:15 pm
“Titchadshi!” The best of luck with your new website, and I look forward to catching up with you some day.
Shana Tova and G’mar Hatima Tova!

5. Sara
on September 19th, 2007 at 9:27 pm
Some day soon, I hope.

6. Sara
on September 19th, 2007 at 9:27 pm
Nice new Blog and nice template!

7. Chajm
on September 20th, 2007 at 11:25 am
Kol Hakavod on the new site – Look forward to reading you – G’mar Hatima Tova!

8. Battal Agha
on September 21st, 2007 at 12:58 am
Mabrook Lisa
Been a while … got the postcards or did they never make it?

9. AM
on September 22nd, 2007 at 12:03 am
New Hebrew year, new Lisa blog.

Not too shabby, b’sha’ah tovah.

10. Aviv
on September 25th, 2007 at 10:46 am
looks good!

& i especially like that it doesn’t have pop-up ads, like your old page.

11. miriam
on September 25th, 2007 at 7:27 pm
Great new format for the blog, Lisa!

BHG

12. Bald-Headed Geek
on September 26th, 2007 at 10:57 pm
Great to see you back online and writing, Lisa.

Hope to see and read more of you in the new year!

Shana Tova,
Ohad.

13. civax
on September 27th, 2007 at 4:05 pm
walla

14. lirun
on September 29th, 2007 at 2:39 am
Great to see you back!

and waiting for new stories…

15. Anna
on October 1st, 2007 at 4:18 pm
Welcome back Lisa.
Keep posting….

16. Bobby
on October 3rd, 2007 at 8:14 am
Oooof! Nu kvar!

17. Liza
on October 5th, 2007 at 11:21 am
Amen to Liza’s words.

18. Bert
on October 7th, 2007 at 10:38 am
Amen to Liza and Bert!

19. Fay
on October 11th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
Such a tease. Sets up a new blog and then abandons us.

What Liza said!

20. Jennifer
on October 15th, 2007 at 8:30 am
It’s about time for another “sorry for the long pause” post! I hope that everything is OK?

21. Udge
on October 20th, 2007 at 9:43 pm
Nu kvar !!!!!! Halass !

22. Alice
on October 24th, 2007 at 2:55 am
Will someone please explain to me why anyone is paying attention to this twit? Don’t get me wrong. I wish him no ill will, and I’m glad he’s safe now. But he is safe now, his sorry little episode is over, and so why should the media pay any further attention to him.

This guy has a right to his beliefs and his preferences, but it appears to me that we’re not exactly dealing with a rocket scientist here. He says “I believe in Lebanon and in its democracy.” He is surprised that they treat people roughly in police stations there. Uh huh. So, Syria-dominated Lebanon, with its Syrian-infiltrated army and police, where even Hezbollah was recently part of the government, would never engage in rough treatment. Duh.

I just found this article from a few days ago in the Miami Herald, which seems to sum things up. Here are a few snippets:

“The ‘March 14 movement’ won elections and set up a new government [in 2005], led by Prime Minister Fuad Saniora. Lebanon seemed on the verge of a new era. Flash forward to November 2007. The bulk of the once-hopeful parliamentarians who won in 2005 are hunkered down in the Phoenicia Hotel near the Beirut seaside, protected by Interior Ministry security guards. Blankets cover the windows to protect against snipers. Tanks guard nearby intersections.

“More than 40 legislators are holed up there because they want to stay alive long enough to vote for a new president on Nov. 21 to replace the current pro-Syrian president, Emile Lahoud. Six of them have been assassinated, with these murders also widely attributed to Syria. Their majority in parliament is now razor thin.

“’If they will kill four or five more of us, they will have a majority,’ I was told by phone by Mesbah Ahdab, a member of parliament from the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli who is heading back to the Phoenicia this week. By ‘they,’ he means pro-Syrian agents. ‘The deputies are living there because there are real threats of assassination.’”

“The more famous or wealthy deputies can hire their own security forces. But, Ahdab told me, ‘All the members who don’t have protection are in the Phoenicia. I don’t think (pro-Syrian forces) can blow the hotel up, but there is always the possibility.’

“Syria will not easily give up its control of Lebanon, and the Syrian regime is eager to block an international tribunal looking into the murder of Hariri. U.N. investigators have already pointed the finger at Damascus.

“Syria’s main Lebanese ally, the Shiite Hezbollah movement (which gets Iranian arms via Syria), has besieged Saniora’s office for months, paralyzing the government. Hezbollah is demanding a ”consensus” president. That’s code language for someone sympathetic to Syria’s bidding.”

I recall that Hezbollah had members in the Lebanese cabinet. They quit last year because the government wasn’t sufficiently pro-Syrian.

Yes, democratic institutions do have a foothold in Lebanon. Yes, the Cedar Revolution was impressive, although its gains are by no means secure. One can believe in the hope of an eventual secure democracy in Lebanon, one can admire the Lebanese who are fighting for it. But Daniel Sharon spoke as if that democracy were already secure and in full operation. He seems a bit naïve.

And what does Sharon mean when he says “I believe that our country should be a part of the Arab world”? Why can’t Israel be true to its own culture and language? Why can’t Israel (like Turkey or Iran) be part of the Middle Eastern world, in which one doesn’t have to be Arab to belong? What Israel owes its neighbors is a knowledge and appreciation of their cultures, and sensitivity to their needs and perspectives. Granted. No argument there. But no country owes anyone else the obligation to disembarrass itself of its own identity, its own language. Israel should not have to commit cultural suicide to get along with its neighbors. Nor should it have to Arabize itself in any way as a price of acceptance. No neighbor should ask that of Israel; that’s just plain intolerance.

And let’s face it, even a willingness to fit in on Israel’s part, to understand the nations around it, won’t accomplish very much. Not when the populations of those other nations, as well as some of their governments (plus the PA, Hezbollah and Hamas), still dream of destroying Israel.

Oops, I’m sorry, I’m getting away from the main point here. I hope that Daniel Sharon has a nice life, but I’m not going to waste time pondering over his views. I think he missed a lot during his 11 visits to Lebanon.

23. Joanne
on November 23rd, 2007 at 9:57 pm