So, maybe size really does matter after all...

Size Of Israel.Com

Jerusalem neighbor, media colleague, professional videographer and tour guide Ross Culiner has a beautiful take of a chopper's-eye view of Israel at the Canadian Jewish News:

I’ve had several opportunities in recent months to journey the length and breadth of Israel by helicopter. Helicopter flights are becoming an increasingly popular component of the tourist experience for those who can afford them. Not only is it possible, by economizing on travel time, to squeeze more into a single day, but there’s simply no better way of getting a real feel for the lay of the land.

The big vistas from overhead give a very different picture from the one gained through incremental, sideways-looking eyefuls of Israel at ground level. And speaking for myself, I was astonished, despite my close familiarity with this country, at the incredibly rich and compressed diversity of landforms, land uses, climatic zones, and historical treasures that unfolds before your gaze.

Here, for example, is a photo I took from a helicopter flight over Jerusalem this season last year:

The Malha mall is at the bottom right, along with Teddy Stadium; the capital's southernmost neighborhood of Gilo is the ridge immediately above it, and Bethlehem and neighboring Beit Jala - both in Palestinian Authority areas, are right behind.

And finally, for those who like to compare sizes, here a brand spankin' new website that shows Israel's size - West Bank included - in comparison to major cities abroad.

Pretty revealing, after all.

(HT: Backspin)

Israel & Iran: Reaching For The 'Big Button'

Click here or on the image for the illustrator's site

From Haaretz:

Iran filed a complaint Saturday to the UN Security Council over remarks by Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh that Israel must be ready to prevent Iran's nuclear program "at all costs."

(...) Sneh suggested in comments published Friday that Israel might be forced to launch a military strike against Iran's nuclear program - the clearest statement yet of this possibility from a high-ranking Israeli official.

Which then prompted this ripost from Teheran:

"If Israel takes such a stupid step and attacks, the answer of Iran and its Revolutionary Guard will be rapid, firm and destructive and it will be given in a few seconds," he said.

And finally (umm - so to speak), from The Jerusalem Post:

Israel has to prepare for a full-scale war, in which Syria will be an important player, an Israeli military official told the British Sunday Times. "The challenge from Iran and Syria is now top of the Israeli defense agenda, higher than the Palestinian one," another official said.

For perspective, here are a few recent Iranian comments about Israel:

• "Israel must be wiped off the map of the world…and God willing, with the force of God behind it, we shall soon experience a world without the United States and Zionism."
  
  
• "the establishment of the Zionist regime was a move by the world oppressor against the Islamic world"
  
  
• "the Islamic Umma (Nation) will not allow its historic enemy to live in its heartland"

and more recently:

• "All the conditions for the removal of the Zionist regime are at hand."
  
  
• "Nations in the region will be more furious every day. It won’t take long before the wrath of the people turns into a terrible explosion that will wipe the Zionist entity off the map."
  
  
• "The basic problem in the Islamic world is the existence of the Zionist regime, and the Islamic world and the region must mobilize to remove this problem."

(HT: Daled Amos)

More on this further down.

Kinda' makes you wonder if the preceding, bucolic "Field of Dreams" post, is fast morphing into a field of fused glass.

Ahh, and I wouldn't hold my breath on this
one, especially after the US midterms...

Click here or on the image
for the illustrator's site

Baseball in Israel: 'If You Build It,' 'Ein Zo Aggadah'

From Bangitout (gotta' love that name...), something I wrote about back in September:

If your reason for not making aliyah was not having your kids be raised on baseball, you had better pack your mitt on your next trip as may have found it's new favorite pastime (assuming they have the patience for nine innings). Sure, Israelis think baseball is a Hollywood sport and ranks on the popularity charts next to sunflower-seed-spitting, but Israel's first baseball league held tryouts this week, and apparently, they didn't suck as badly as they thought they would. Their goal: to teach Israelis that headbutting a 95-mile-per-hour baseball hurts, and to be invited to the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

SPECIAL! JerusalemOnline news update/slideshow: Nov. 9th (Video - Channel 2 TV)

Today's Headlines:

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• Palestinians rage over awry artillery deaths
• Kassam barrage wounds three Israelis
• Ground-level radar promises safer driving
• Share your thoughts - click here to Talk Back!
  
  
  
  Click here or on image for latest Israel
  Channnel 2 TV news update
  

As you may have noticed, I often post these video news reports. Why? Because I do them weekly, along with a great editorial, technical and administrative team.

The whole JerusalemOnline crew got together a few Fridays ago at the "Lilit" restaurant in Tel Aviv to celebrate our one-year anniversary of providing the international viewer with a clear, concise, translated summary of Israel's Channel 2 main evening news report.

So come join us for the festive breakfast (and try to match the newsreader's voice with the photo)!

Raising a toast for the first year of JerusalemOnline.com!

Late For the Sky - Tel Aviv (Photo)

Late For The Sky. Click on image for larger version.
(Photo: Dave Bender)

The Tel Aviv skyline at night, with utterly brilliant clouds overhead. I shot this from a ninth-floor hotel balcony along the sea, looking eastward with a four-second shutter, and used Photoshop "Curves," and sharpening to push the brightness and contrast envelope.

As I tweaked the shot, it reminded me greatly of a classic Jackson Browne LP cover (records? prehistoric, dude...) "Late For The Sky," which itself was a take on Belgian artist Magritte's famous "Empire of Light" series.

(Cross-posted at Israelity)

JerusalemOnline news update: Nov. 9th (Video - Channel 2 TV)

Today's Headlines:

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• Israel expresses regret for Gaza deaths
• IDF: Malfunction possible cause
  
• Fatah, Hamas: Avenge Palestinian 'martyrs'
• Terror alert may delay J'lem Gay pride march
• Special: Israelis for children in Ethiopia - click to watch
  
  
  
  Click here or on image for latest Israel
  Channnel 2 TV news update

Meet 2007's Israeli high-tech mavens - today (Exclusive Video)

Sorry, I've been away - been working/reporting nearly nonstop from the Telecom 2006 conference in Tel Aviv for Israel21c.org, and Israelhightech.tv.

We're getting edited video interviews with the "next big high-tech thing coming out of Israel" up on site as fast as possible.


I spoke with the heads of "TV 'n' Go," and "Concealogram." Scroll down the images on the right-hand side of this page, near the bottom to view the Flash interviews.

And here's a special, behind-the-scenes slide show I prepared about the talented and professional crew:

Blue & White cooldom at 'Level Ground'

Blogging and random rants will be light in coming days, with scattered showers expected for the Tel Aviv area, which is where I'll be covering Telecom 2006 for both Israel21c, and Israelhightech.tv - and here, 'natch. Excerpts from the article:

(...) "We have a lot of innovation," says organizer Yair Ofek, deputy director-general of the Israel Export Institute.

"We have a lot of solutions, we have a lot of technologies that can help big, as well as medium-sized companies to be better, to give more services to their customers, and to be more efficient," Ofek told ISRAEL21C.

(...) MusicGenome say they want to revolutionize the paradigm of how listeners are exposed to, listen and purchase music online. After you've chosen the songs, and pulled out your credit card for the payment transaction, CallingID, promises "improved e-commerce and online banking protection." Then, so you'll be able to tell your friends all about it face-to-face, as ipoint-media, plans to add "interactive video telephony (video calling) services to mobile 3G subscribers or IP broadband users."

The guys liked your taste in music? Spread the groove with Nareos, who say says their mobile file-sharing technology will provide a "complete solution for distribution of digital content through mobile networks." After that, you can all share the joy with a SendM email sent seamlessly via an SMS mobile text message.

Read the rest here.

I'll be posting an audio podcast in the Odeo player near the upper, left-side of this page soon, with coverage, exclusive interviews with vendors, VIP's and lots of insider first-looks at Blue & White hi-tech cooldom - so check back here throughout the week for the latest updates.

'Multiculti' BBC hires Jews for Israel office, adopts Sharia Law

Go figure, huh?

From (or, perhaps in this case, "frum") Totally Jewish:

As the debate rages on over BBC bias in its Israel coverage, two Jewish journalists were this week appointed to join the corporation’s reporting team in Jerusalem.

Tim Franks will take up the role of a Middle East correspondent while Katya Adler will leave her current posting in Madrid to become a Middle East reporter.

Meanwhile, in the other corner of the round room:

The BBC's 'diversity tsar' Mary Fitzpatrick proposes to atone for these sins of the British Broadcasting Corporation's staff by implementing a new Sharia policy, based on suggestions from the greater Islamic community. "Effective immediately, the Sharia policy will become mandatory for all of our gay and liberal employees, including our gay and liberal elites," Ms. Fitzpatrick announced at the summit.

JerusalemOnline news update: Nov. 4th (Video - Channel 2 TV)

Today's Headlines:

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• Palestinian militants give Israel 48-hour ultimatum
• IDF soldier wounded in Gaza operations
• Thousands gather to commemorate Yitzhak Rabin
• Check out this week's poll results - click here
  
  
  
  Click here or on image for latest Israel
  Channnel 2 TV news update