Rabbi Asher Brander
I am sure psychologists call is some fancy term, but permit me my own: Delayed Cry Reaction (DCR)
Moshe'le (age 4) and Rochel (age 3) are playing in the park. Moshe falls off the slide and scrapes himself. It hurts – really. Mommy couldn't see the fall; she is schmoozing by the benches at the far end of the park. Moshe wants to cry, but his youthful machismo tells him it just isn't pas (appropriate) to cry in front of girls (and kal v'chomer boys). So he sucks it in and maintains a stiff upper lip. Two minutes later, Mommy comes back. Moshe melts; the torrential tears flow.
Why does Moshe'le wait? I sense that quills have been broken to understand this most basic human reaction. Yet, we all know why. Everyone needs a place to be real. A mother requires no artifice – it is (and will always be) safe to cry to Mommy.
Everyone needs a place where it is alright; no matter what it is... where it is alright to cry, laugh, hug and be hugged. Without an address for our tears, God forbid we may just stop crying. (It has been well documented ...   more »

(IsraelNN.com) The Washington Post reported Thursday that the Bush administration wants the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to expand the scope of a future planned inspection of Syria. The United States reportedly suspects Syria of hiding at least three nuclear sites, aside from the one Israel destroyed in September.
The IAEA has requested that Syria allow it to inspect the site which Israel bombed last September, and which the CIA says was a secret North Korean-built plutonium reactor. According to the Post, the United States is asking the IAEA to investigate three additional sites.  The latest reports suggest that Syria has not yet acquiesced to IAEA requests.
Original Source
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JERUSALEM (Reuters) - It may not be kosher, but the Hoopoe was chosen Thursday as Israel's national bird.
The Hoopoe, or "Duchifat" in Hebrew, is listed in the Old Testament as unclean and forbidden food for Jews.
President Shimon Peres declared the pink, black and white-crested bird the winner of a competition timed to coincide with Israel's 60th anniversary. It beat out rivals such as the Yellow-vented Bulbul and the Palestine Sunbird.
The Book of Leviticus groups the Hoopoe with birds such as the eagle, vulture and pelican that are "abhorrent, not to be eaten."
Israel is a main crossroads for birds migrating between Europe and Africa. Some 155,000 Israelis cast ballots in the national bird vote.
Original Source
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By Ofri Ilani 
A student from Germany is set to be deported Friday, after the Interior Ministry determined that she was doing missionary work.
Barbara Ludwig, 32, who has been living mainly in Israel for the past decade, completed her undergraduate degree in philosophy here, and is now working on her master's degree in religious studies at the Hebrew University.
"I was born in Germany, but I found my identity in Israel," Ludwig said.  
However, at 6:30 A.M. on April 28, the Immigration Police knocked on her door and took her to Ma'asiyahu Prison in Ramle.
Despite attempts by the Hebrew University's legal department to demand her release so she could finish her studies, the Custody Tribunal at Ma'asiyahu ordered her to leave the country within 30 days.
Interior Ministry spokeswoman Sabine Haddad said Ludwig was being deported because she had not arranged her residency status. However, the head of the Population Administration's central region, Elinor Golan, sent two letters to Ludwig's lawyer stating that Ludwig's repeated requests for residency status had been denied because she was "doing missionary work."
Michael Decker, Ludwig's lawyer, said a hearing held on her case in 2004 in the Interior Ministry was a ...   more »

YAAKOV LAPPIN
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni ratcheted up the pressure on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to leave office on Thursday, calling for a "swift clean process" within Kadima, and saying that the party "had to prepare for all scenarios, including elections."
"As of yesterday, there is a new reality," Livni said, speaking at a homeland security conference in Jerusalem. "I can't ignore the events of the past two days. This is no longer just a criminal or judicial issue. This is about values and norms that impact the State of Israel," she said.
"The most infuriating thing is the suggestion that [Olmert's] norms have to be adopted as part of the political system," Livni said.
"Kadima needs to take a decision on what it wants. It needs to prepare now for all possible scenarios, including elections. These are the things I've been telling party and faction members. I'm working towards a clean, fast process," she added, alluding to primaries to replace Olmert as party leader.
"I'm a big believer in Kadima's contribution, not just to political life in Israel, but to what is happening in the State," she added.
Earlier, Public Security Minister Avi Dichter was grilled by journalists who ...   more »

'God willing, in the upcoming elections we will ensure (Israel's) sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Golan,' opposition leader says
Ynet
"I believe that the way to protect the Golan Heights and the Jordan Valley is to go to early elections," Opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday.  
Speaking at a Likud party event held in the Golan, Netanyahu said that "God willing, in the upcoming elections we will ensure (Israel's) sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Golan.  
Integrity  
Olmert: Only delusional fantasists believe in 'Greater Israel' / Amnon Meranda  
Fear of possible military conflict with Syria prompted renewal of negotiations, prime minister reveals at Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee session. 'We must choose between Greater Israel or a Jewish state,' he says. MK Livnat: Olmert's words 'delusional for someone at the end of his political rope'    
"What do you find when you dig (into the soil) in the Golan? Syrian ruins? No. You'll find dozens of magnificent synagogues and remnants of (Jewish) communities," he said. "The Israeli nation has been connected to the Golan for thousands of years. The Golan always was and always will remain Israeli."  
The Likud chairman continued to say that "before ...   more »