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.
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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.
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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 »

'This is an encroachment on religious beliefs, free exercise of religion'
By Sterling Meyers
A new "transgender nondiscrimination" bill pending in Colorado, which would make it illegal to deny a person access to public accommodations including restrooms and locker rooms based on gender identity or the "perception" of gender identity, is one signature away from becoming law.
Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter, a Democrat, has one week to sign or veto Senate Bill 200, recently passed by both the House and the Senate. The bill, titled "Expanded Discrimination Prohibitions," holds this definition:
"'Sexual orientation' means a person's orientation toward heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, or transgender status or another person's perception thereof."
According to the bill, business owners and managers of restaurants, gyms, barber shops, massage parlors, etc., and managers of "public [facilities] of any kind whether indoor or outdoor" cannot deny a person employment or access to a facility based on gender identity or that "perception."
The bill also makes it illegal to discriminate based on "sexual orientation" when renting, selling or leasing housing or when selecting members for jury duty. Penalties for those who discriminate against others based on gender identity include fines and/or time in jail.
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The ...   more »

Board member blasts critics of state's 'gay' promotions
A school board member in California says those who oppose the state's SB777, a law approved by last year's legislature and signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that restricts public schools to teaching only positive perspectives of homosexuality, are "like Hitler."
The report comes from Karen England of Capitol Resource Family Impact, which is working on the Save Our Kids campaign to assemble enough petition signatures in the state to put SB777 on the 2008 election ballot.
"Last night the West Covina Unified School Board took a bold stand for families and our values by voting to pass a resolution supporting the Save Our Kids initiative," said England's report. "This is the first local school board to publicly protest SB777 and its harmful policies."
"Three brave members of the school board voted to support Save our Kids: Steve Cox, Mike Spence and Camie Poulos. However, two members refused to support the Save Our Kids resolution: George Fuller and Jessica Shewmaker," she said.
"Just before the vote on the resolution occurred, board member Fuller actually declared that anyone who opposes SB777 and its sexual indoctrination is like Adolf Hitler. He asserted that there once ...   more »

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Gay rights advocates had reason to celebrate on both coasts Thursday, with New York set to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere and California preparing to begin issuing marriage licenses to gay couples on June 17.
Hours after California issued a directive Wednesday authorizing that date, word came that New York Gov. David Paterson instructed state agencies _ including those governing insurance and health care _ to immediately change policies and regulations to recognize gay marriages.
For years, gay rights advocates have sought recognition for same-sex marriages so couples could share family health care plans, receive tax breaks by filing jointly, enjoy stronger adoption rights and inherit property.
Many or all of those rights would now appear to be available to New Yorkers who legally wed same-sex partners in other states and countries, according to the memo sent earlier this month from the governor's counsel. Agencies have until June 30 to report back to the counsel on how, specifically, the directive will change existing state benefits and services for gay couples.
"This is a milestone in the fight for fairness in New York," Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement. ...   more »

MIKE STOBBE,
ATLANTA - The number of people hospitalized with a dangerous intestinal
superbug has been growing by more than 10,000 cases a year, according to a
new study.
The germ, resistant to some antibiotics, has become a regular menace in
hospitals and nursing homes. The study found it played a role in nearly
300,000 hospitalizations in 2005, more than double the number in 2000.
The infection, Clostridium difficile, is found in the colon and can cause
diarrhea and a more serious intestinal condition known as colitis. It is
spread by spores in feces. But the spores are difficult to kill with most
conventional household cleaners or antibacterial soap.
C-diff, as it's known, has grown resistant to certain antibiotics that work
against other colon bacteria. The result: When patients take those
antibiotics, competing bacteria die off and C-diff explodes.
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