BruceVC

I didnt realize you grew in East Germany. Where did you live and how old were you when the Berlin Wall came down. What was life like, do you remember anything significant or worth sharing? Sorry for all the questions but I am always interested in lived experiences around things like the Cold War

Thats interesting, I thought most people knew that European anti-semitism goes back hundreds of years. The NAZI were just one example of it and they successfully implemented a program of genocide around it with the Final Solution Thats why most Jews are so sensitive to anti-semitism, its historic and generational and the response to the Hamas attack lets bigots rage about it again and of course the Israeli strategy doesn't help either And I posted this link earlier but you should read about the historical pogroms in Russia where Russian Jews get blamed for events and then killed and attacked , even if they weren't responsible https://www.britannica.com/topic/pogrom This is why Israel and its belief in the significance of a single Israeli Jewish life matters, thats why I will never believe they knew the Hamas attack was really going to happen. It would be the ultimate betrayal of what Israel stands for

SA won last night against England, 16-15 But we played really badly and we were very lucky to win. The English technical advisors clearly did there homework on us and they effectively prevented us from playing our normal game but we lacked inspiration and energy and made many mistakes SA was 6-15 until the last 15 minutes and I had accepted we were going to lose but then we scored the only try of the game and then within the last 3 minutes we scored a penalty We always take the win but we need to seriously reflect on our performance because NZ is looking very formidable. Also I didnt want SA to play NZ in the final, I would have preferred an Irish encounter because I do think Ireland is overall an easier team to beat than NZ

https://hotair.com/john-s-2/2023/10/19/kill-the-difficult-ones-hamas-had-a-hostage-taking-manual-n586192?utm_source=ground.news&utm_medium=referral This article is mostly from Graeme Wood a journalist from The Atlantic, its behind a paywall so this is for easy access In summary its about how Hamas didnt expect to have the initial success from the attack and they werent intending to take hostages back to Gaza but rather use them as human shields as part of the immediate expected Israeli military response which didnt happen. Hamas even had a manual on how to torture and kill Israeli hostages within Israel

I dont understand your point? How would Russia ever look good because of the Israel vs Palestinian conflict Russia has committed dozens of war crimes in Ukraine and fights a war of brutality in Ukraine. Israel has done the same like Hamas But how does this make Russia look good for what they are doing in Ukraine, its 2 separate conflicts? Im clearly misunderstanding what point you trying to make so some clarification would be appreciated

I agree, the utter and consistent hypocrisy of Russia pretending to care about "civilians " goes to new levels of cringe

Under no ones authority, most the world wants a stable and prosperous ME. It doesn't really benefit anyone in the long-term the suggestion of any "endless war" in the ME Because if the entire ME erupts into civil war it will have a direct impact on the oil price which will negatively impact every single country in the world . You remember how the oil price got to $120 after Covid ended and how that impacted our economies So even if someone doesn't care about the humanitarian reasons of wars in the ME you should care about the stability of the ME because it directly can influence the global economy So to repeat my point, no it doesn't make sense that the US would want endless wars in the ME because at the very least its not in its own economic interests

Its exaggerated, misplaced and doesn't accurately represent the US interests in the ME or the reasons for its military interventions. If anything its to ensure stability for economic interests but no-one wants eternal war in the ME because how does it benefit anyone ? And the US has always supported Israel since its creation and I would argue the US has put more effort into trying to find a peaceful solution to the conflict than anyone else. But end of the day it cant force Israel or the Palestinians to agree to a 2 state solution. Only leadership from both sides can do that It reminds me of some of these Islamic extremists who in their manifesto claim the US are crusaders who want to destroy the Islamic world, why would the US want to destroy the Islamic world?

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/17/greta-thunberg-arrested-at-london-oil-summit-protest Greta Thunberg has been arrested in London, I have been warning everyone about her years. Eco-terrorism is very serious and we should all be outraged by this @xzar_monty I wonder if she played a part in the attack on the Finnish pipe?

Its good Israel is getting openly behind Ukraine, Im not sure what difference it will really make considering the countries that currently support Ukraine?

Nothing unusual for Jews in Russia then, the Russian pogroms were the worst in the world https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/pogroms

0kay, you talking about the funding at the university. Now I understand, I thought you were talking about the ongoing violence in Gaza

Interesting, can you give me an example of what you mean? And go into details if you dont mind as far as its similar the Israeli vs Palestinian conflict, I just need to understand context?

But the much of the anti-US rhetoric is around things like " the US wants eternal war in the ME " and there is a constant expectation that the US needs to help find peace in the conflict But if countries wont meet with the US there is no chance of it playing any role and particularly this latest violence, the US is the only country that Israel will respond to. And Biden went to the ME now to meet with various parties and help find an immediate solution like getting aid through and opening of the Egypt border So I dont see how it helps by refusing to meet Biden ?

Have you evee been burthurt because of freedom of speech, I dont think I have but I have been wrong because of freedom of speech based on what I thought was true

Thats true, you just say someone else said it and I repeated it. You cant argue with that logic But then can we ever say " this is what I think about current geopolitical situation x or y " because isn't it always going to be someone else's view ? This doesnt apply to things like historical outcomes and events but it would apply to views for ongoing events like the hospital tragedy

Malc, what !!!!! Please tell me you joking, you cannot allow your mom to watch MSNBC, its a radical left and socialist propaganda station. Dont let her become manipulated Im just joking, all media houses have there good sides and its counterproductive and pointless to tell anyone what they can or cant watch Its interesting with the Biden visit and all the media attention but its also understandable considering only the US can influence Israel and the US still carries massive influence in the ME Ironic how people say the US is biased towards Israel but it was Arab countries and groups who cancelled meeting Biden when he was trying to mediate after the allegations of the hospital attack The US definitely cant play a constructive role in finding a peaceful solution to this latest violence if people cancel meetings

The only group missing from the list of the 33 University protests is CRT for Palestinian Arab Students I agree with some of what you saying but the issue is the University should have unequivocally condemned the students groups support for the attack by Hamas, its not the same as stopping the various groups from saying what they said because that's part of freedom of speech And failing to do that like they did I can completely understand American Jews from pulling their funding. These same American Jews have never had an issue with these groups and what they said until now and they always funded the universities. But this goes to far and the universities have a responsible to publicly say they don't support what these groups are saying I would have done the same thing if I was a funder considering the reality and brutality of the attack Students are entitled to say what they want but the university also needs to consider its funders and how they feel about the perception these statements and protests create. Its not ike any other attack on Israel outside of the 4-5 Arab vs Israeli wars

No, I worded it wrong. Literally Hamas said 5 minutes after the missile "Israel did it " without doing a proper investigation and people took that as the facts

Lots of evidence now that is was Islamic Jihad responsible for the hospital tragedy with a misfired missile. What I did find difficult to believe was how quickly Hamas was saying " Israel did it " and also how quickly so many people and the general media believed it was Israel And yet this allegation was coming from a terrorist group that has a history of being cavalier with the truth

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-67135163 More information about this successful attack

https://www.samharris.org/blog/the-sin-of-moral-equivalence?utm_source=braze&utm_campaign=2023_w42_newContent_338 Here is a good read about the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians and how we reflect on it from both sides . Its got things that are controversial but it also has some truths I think @Zoraptor @xzar_monty @Gorth @Malcadorwill appreciate it

Mauritius is an amazing country and definitely worth retiring to if you can It has friendly people,beautiful beaches and its very well managed and governed . Its got lots of outdoor activities but its a small island. It doesnt have the busyness of a large city but I dont think that will concern you. It does have all the shops and restaurants you will need Its also a nice cultural mix of French, Chinese, Indian and the local peoples culture But very nice place to live

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/us-says-israel-has-restored-water-supply-to-gaza/#:~:text=A senior Israeli official confirms,Hamas terror onslaught last Saturday. Israel has restored water to Gaza and I would imagine this is from US pressure. Its definitely the right move, you cant use this brutal strategy of collective punishment on the whole of Gaza. The perception of what Israel does matters if it wants continued international and regional support at the same level

What a game between NZ and Ireland with NZ winning, 24-28. I was supporting Ireland and both teams played exceptionally well @Zoraptor You can never write-off NZ Fans must be happy Now tomorrow is SA vs France