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July 3, 2008

Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski: A spiritual budget (TOUCHING!)

Jeff Jacoby: Israel still paying for its defeat

JWisdom:: Re-Jew-venating prayer, Part IV by Rabbi David Aaron

July 2, 2008

Jonathan Tobin: Appeasers Make Poor Patriots

The Kosher Gourmet By Kathleen Purvis: Slaw, y'all: For BBQs or Sabbath dinner, these southern recipes are something else!

JWisdom:: Rabbi Mordechai Becher: Jewish Rx for A Simpler Life

July 1, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q. I think it's important to leave a legacy to my children. How much should I save towards this end?

Paul Greenberg:A President who is history deficient?

JWisdom:: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Poland's Unique Antisemitism

June 30, 2008

Jonathan Rosenblum: Remembering the architect of Torah Judaism for the modern world

Abe Novick: Hulk: Still a Jew?

JWisdom: : Putting the Spirit Back into Spirituality, Part 2: The Abandoned Child

June 26, 2008

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: Quantum leap to evil

Caroline B. Glick: Victimized families must not be allowed to dictate policy

June 25, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Today in Biblical History: King Jeroboam of Israel prevents pilgrimage to Jerusalem

Jonathan Tobin: Real Friends and Real Enemies

JWisdom: Raping of reason By Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

June 25, 2008

Steven Emerson: Kristof: Never Mind the Terrorists

Stratfor Intelligence Briefing: Mediterranean Flyover: Telegraphing an Israeli Punch?

JWisdom: Rabbi David Aaron: Re-Jew-venating prayer, Part III

June 24, 2008

Caroline B. Glick: What were they thinking!?

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Guilty knowledge

JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Warping Innocence

June 23, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Diploma dilemma

Jeff Jacoby: A world without children

JWisdom: Rabbi Dovid Gross: Putting the Spirit Back into Spirituality --- Introduction

June 20, 2008

Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: Man: The Crowning Glory of Creation

Caroline B. Glick: Israel's darkest week

JWisdom: We aren't worthy? by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

June 19, 2008

Rabbi Elazar Meisels: The saints who don't come marchin' in

Chris Christoff: Muslim woman demands an apology from Obama after camera snub

June 18, 2008

Jonathan Tobin: Still Dancing Around Jerusalem

The Kosher Gourmet by Steve Petusevsky: Chilled fruit and vegetable soups

JWisdom: Souls Need A Check Up? by Rabbi Mordechai Becher

June 17, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: Baby Einstein

Caroline B. Glick: Bush's rhetoric, Bush's policies

JWisdom: Re-Jew-venating prayer, Part II by Rabbi David Aaron

June 16, 2008

Varda Branfman: Bob Dylan, won't you please come home?

Diana West: Academic dares to question the 'religion of peace'

JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Positive Backfire

June 13, 2008

Rabbi Berel Wein: Trading manna for whine

Caroline B. Glick: Peace with friends

JWisdom: From the mouths of … by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

June 12, 2008

Michael Feldberg: Meet Paul Revere's pal, the Orthodox Jew who played a key role in laying Boston's cultural and business infrastructure

The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Manweiler: No need to be tempted by Wendy's mandarin chicken salad

JWisdom: Re-Jew-venating prayer, Part I by Rabbi David Aaron

June 11, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: What would Hillel say?

Jonathan Tobin: UNRWA and NGOs: The Real U.N. 'Insult'

JWisdom: Sara Yoheved Rigler: Greatness Made Simple: How a momentary decision shifted life's course and destination

June 6, 2008

Rabbi Pinchas Stolper: Revelation: The basis of faith

Binyamin L. Jolkovsky: Mere hours after becoming Israel's new 'best friend' Obama backtracks on status of Jerusalem

Caroline B. Glick: UN choosing to protect rogue nuclear programs

JWisdom: Sameness in difference by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

June 5, 2008

David Lightman: Now Obama wants to be Israel's newest 'best friend'

Obama's remarks to AIPAC policy conference

The Kosher Gourmet By Ethel G. Hofman: Shavous cuisine: Ruby Fruit Soup, Lokshen Kugel with Cheese, Key Lime Curd, Calsone Casserole Frittata with Wild Mushrooms, Sun-dried tomatoes and Olives, Baked Tilapia with Pepper Cheese Cream and Brown Sugar Shortbread

JWisdom: Why a Jewish Jerusalem makes so many nervous by Rabbi Mordechai Becher

June 4, 2008

Jonathan Rosenblum: A different sort of 'religious broadcaster'

Jonathan Tobin: Misgivings on the Road to Damascus

JWisdom: 44 Years Without An Argument? by Sara Yoheved Rigler

June 3, 2008

Daniel Pipes: Obama vs. McCain on the Middle East

Everything's Relative: There is a crisis growing in Orthodox synagogues worldwide, reveals Jordan "Gorf" Gorfinkel

JWisdom: White Facades; Black Secrets by Rabbi Mordechai Becher

June 2, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q: Lie to outsmart discriminator?

He writes the songs that make our souls sing:Gavriel Aryeh Sanders interviews Jewish music legend Ben Zion Shenker; includes stirring, uplifting song

JWisdom: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Of laws and lives

March 22, 2007

J-Rhythms with Avraham Rosenblum: JWR's cutting-edge music program showcasing performers -- singers, song writers, musicians, and bands -- who learn and live the Torah lifestyle (OUR NEWEST IGODCAST !)

Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review August 14, 2007 / 30 Menachem-Av, 5767

Diplomatic incompatibility

By Jonathan Gurwitz


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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Too bad there's no such thing as eHarmony for diplomacy. Imagine if presidents and foreign ministers could fill out a national profile and be matched with allies by a computer algorithm that prescreens across 29 dimensions of compatibility. That might prevent world leaders from entering into — or sticking with — some obviously troubled relationships.


Take the liaison between the United States and Saudi Arabia. Some of the traits and attributes eHarmony scientifically analyzes for long-term compatibility are spiritual beliefs, passion, sense of humor and traditionalism. Were two nations any less suited for one another?


Of course, nations aren't normally looking for life partners. Most observe British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli's dictum: no permanent enemies, no permanent allies — only permanent interests.


That's certainly what President Bush is trying to promote with a $20 billion arms deal for the desert kingdom — permanent interests, such as the free flow of oil. That doesn't mean he couldn't benefit from a little eHarmony analysis of our strategic bond. The United States may not be seeking a soul mate in Saudi Arabia, but it also shouldn't fall deeper into what is, in some respects, a homicidal relationship.


So many factors mitigate against U.S.-Saudi bliss. Fifteen of the 19 terrorists who carried out the 9-11 attack came from Saudi Arabia. Osama bin Laden is the scion of one of the kingdom's most notable families.


According to figures made available to the Los Angeles Times by the U.S. military, 45 percent of all foreign militants targeting U.S. troops and civilians in Iraq are from Saudi Arabia. The next most prolific purveyors of jihadists, at only 15 percent, are Syria and Lebanon combined.


A recent report in the Wall Street Journal detailed the continuing role of the Al Rajhi Bank, Saudi Arabia's largest Islamic bank, in serving as a financial conduit for extremist groups, including al-Qaida. According to CIA reports and federal court filings by the Justice Department, the Al Rajhi family has been a major donor to Islamic "charities" suspected of being fronts for terrorism.


American JDAMs — Joint Direct Attack Munitions — are supposed to win over the reluctant Saudis? Don't count on it.


Here's the profile: Repressive society guided by an extremist religious ideology, key members of which are closely associated with terrorist groups inimical to U.S. interests, seeks like-minded partners for war against infidels.


American presidents and diplomats shouldn't need scientific research to know that for the United States, this is not a match made in heaven. And when it comes to Iran, which fits this profile as perfectly as Saudi Arabia, American leaders grasp the contradictions. So why does Saudi Arabia get showered with $20 billion in sophisticated weapons while Iran gets warnings and economic sanctions?


One reason is that in Iran, the clerical regime is inimical to U.S. interests, while the Iranian people, by and large, hold friendly perceptions of the United States. In Saudi Arabia, it is the regime that is, by and large, friendly to U.S. interests, while Saudi citizens have an unfortunate penchant for plotting terrorist attacks against American civilians and military personnel.


Another reason is the serious threat posed to the Gulf states by a huge Russian arms deal with Iran for 250 advanced Su-30 fighter aircraft. Vladimir Putin and the mullahs — there's another terrible relationship begging for intervention. If it's bad for the United States, it's good for Russia under Putin — an eventuality Bush missed when he looked into Putin's eyes back in 2001.


American-supplied Saudi smart bombs, however, aren't likely to keep Iranian fighters out of Saudi Arabia. More important, they're useless against the threat emanating from within Saudi Arabia.


The United States needs its Saudi allies to cut off ideological and financial support for jihadists and close its borders to suicide bombers. That's in our national interest. And, as the eHarmony folks might say, it's the foundation of compatibility necessary for a lifetime of joy.

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

Comment by clicking here.

JWR contributor Jonathan Gurwitz, a columnist for the San Antonio Express-News, is a co-founder and twice served as Director General of the Future Leaders of the Alliance program at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. In 1986 he was placed on the Foreign Service Register of the U.S. State Department.

Jonathan Gurwitz Archives


© 2007, Jonathan Gurwitz

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