Chit Chat

By Ted Belman

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Comments that don’t relate to the post must go here.

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The reason for this demand is so that people who want to read comments which pertain to the post, don’t have to wade through the chatter.

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April 16, 2020 | 8,591 Comments »

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  3. I finally got to sample Israel’s Osem ketchup with my cottage cheese. Leaves Heinz in the dust. Here is a feeble rebuttal from self-hating Jews. I finally understand why Nixon, the antisemite, fell in love with Israel and over-rode Kissinger in’73. Very expensive here because of the tariffs. but, President Trump must rescue John Kerry’s wife’s family’s business, of course. What can you do? Sigh.

    https://www.koshernexus.org/2015/09/heinz-ketchup-today-tomorrow-and-into-the-future/

    I bet it’s great on omurice, too.

    https://cookingwithremi.com/recipes/suz-cruz-omurice

  7. @Sebastien Zorn

    Re: Avi Abelow’s post on FB

    This is exactly like during the Great Revolt (which ended in the destruction of The Second Temple) – the Judean elite was on the side of the Romans.

    One example – the traitor Josephus.

    And, as usual, there was a lot of infighting among the Jews, even (or especially) in the besieged Jerusalem.

  8. Sebastien, Peloni, Edgar, etc.

    Trump & Saudi Arabia contain enought fuel to start a firestone that can suck all the oxygen from important news. In my own mind, I see these things happening in the background, important things:

    1. Trump has the potential to considerably help Israel; but in order to do so, he must secure his own power base.

    2. His power base is the American people; and the big issues, to them, seem to be the economy and the border. There are many social issues as well; but the economy and the situation caused by lawlessness coming in from the border have to be secured before all others.

    3. Widespread corruption in America is thwarting the solution of these issues.

    I came across the following, about Texas Governor Abbott being in bed with the Deep State and cartels on the US southern border. This is big enough to undermine Trump,and all the benefit we could otherwise get through him:

    “Gov. Abbott Has Taken $1.4 Million From The Developer Of Colony Ridge”

    https://rumble.com/v6tdnrt-yon-5142025-battleground.html?e9s=src_v1_ucp

    It’s worth a look-see.

  9. Avi Abelow on FB: Houston, we still have a problem!!! The Deep State Is Still Running the IDF—and They’re Blocking Us from Following the Directives of the Government to Win the War
    While our holy and brave soldiers, including my own sons, are putting their lives on the line, the senior echelon of the IDF—infested with the same deep state mentality, led by the legal advisors, that failed us on October 7th—is still sabotaging our path to victory.
    While finally the talk is about winning, on the ground, the soldiers are experiencing something completely different.
    I can’t tell you how many times it has been reported that the government gives directives on how to win and the senior command says “we can’t do that. The legal advisors say it’s against international law”, when it is isn’t! These legal advisors are prioritizing the lives of an enemy population, endangering our own soldiers and the whole Israeli population by stopping us from doing what is necessary to win.
    I want to share with you a raw, honest message from an IDF reservist who just came out of Gaza. He exposes exactly how the senior command is recycling failed strategies, ignoring field reality, and dragging this war out indefinitely. Read his words. Share them. And open your eyes.
    ——-
    “Hey guys,
    I just got back from joining the commander’s jeep the brigade, and I have to share something. When I saw the new order, I had the craziest déjà vu. The order we received is exactly the same as the operation the IDF carried out in January 2024—same forces, same locations, same chaos. The commanders may be new, but they forgot that we reservists are still here, and we remember exactly what went down a year and a quarter ago.
    Guys, I know how tough it is dealing with a year and a half of reserve duty—I’m facing the same struggles at home. After hearing in the media about the cabinet’s approved plan to separate the population from Hamas, transfer them south of the Morag axis, and launch an offensive operation to end the war, I told my family—and told you: “We’re finally going to finish this story in Gaza and return to life. Let’s hang in there for one last act.” I felt like we were about to win.
    But after seeing the actual IDF plan, I’m telling you—none of what the media reported is true.
    The population isn’t being moved south, the aid to Gaza hasn’t stopped, and we’re going back to the exact same places and the same plan we already carried out a year ago.
    This plan looks like copy-paste—no accounting for how the terrain has changed, no acknowledgment of how much more professionally we now fight, no grasp of how Hamas has learned our vulnerabilities. Most of all, the plan screams lack of belief from its authors that we can actually defeat Hamas. The disconnect from the ground is insane. We already know we can move the population south easily. We know we can flatten large areas quickly. We know the people in Gaza are mentally broken.
    When I heard the army say in the media that it would take two years to “cleanse Gaza,” I couldn’t understand where they got that nonsense. Now that I’ve seen the plan—it makes sense. They designed it to drag out. But I’ll tell you this: we can subdue Gaza in three months. The only reason we’re not doing it is because someone doesn’t want to. If we separated the population and cut off water, electricity, and aid—we’d have Hamas begging us to take back the hostages and just let them leave.
    What this plan tells me is that we’re about to be stuck in reserves for another two years. Insanity.
    Guys, I’m not trying to demoralize anyone. We’re going to fight—no matter what! But we have to be realistic and understand: right now there is no IDF plan for victory! We have to hope that someone in the IDF command will finally reconnect to reality and go back to the original plan—separate the population, and define anyone outside the humanitarian zone as a terrorist. That’s how we can empty the strip and finish off Hamas!
    If there’s no movement inside Gaza, we’ll need far fewer soldiers, and we can bring all the hostages home—with minimum risk to our forces.
    Let me remind you: on October 7th, it was the soldiers and warriors on the ground who saved Israel—not the IDF senior command. Since then, the initiatives of us and many other soldiers and officers have reshaped this war and how the IDF fights. Even now, we have to change things from the bottom up, push forward, and fight under any conditions—until victory!”
    ———
    This is why I have been spending so much time exposing the deep state in Israel. They are literally stopping us from winning this war! That is why this war is taking so long. This is the horrendous situation that Netanyahu, and his governments, have had to deal with for decades. To lead a country when a group of unelected officials, behind the scene, always work to sabotage the plans, and the public has no clue about it so they blame Netanyahu and his “right-wing” government that can’t follow through on the policies they were elected to implement.
    With all that, we are experiencing a wake up process with more people understanding this absurd reality, and we will overcome it to win this war!
    At the end of the day, it is our holy, brave soldiers on the ground together with Hashem above, who will provide this victory, despite the sabotaging of the unelected defense and legal officials at the top.
    Strengthen your faith, because only in Hashem can we trust, that is our secret power.
    We are making it happen!!!
    (Image: the attack yesterday against the leader of Hamas in Gaza)
    Am Yisrael Chai!!!

  13. Avi Below FB post just received.

    You won’t believe what I’m about to tell you—but I confirmed it personally, because even I couldn’t believe it at first.

    In a recent meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu actually said that Israel is ‘considering stopping the reception of U.S. military aid.’

    Yes, you read that correctly. Not “demanding more,” not “thanking the U.S. for its support,” but actually re-evaluating whether Israel should continue receiving it at all.

    That might sound small—but it signals a seismic shift.

    This is huge!

    Now before you say, “Come on, Avi, that must be misreported,” let me be clear: I don’t take anything the media says at face value. So I checked it out myself. I personally verified it. This is not a rumor. It is true. Netanyahu actually said it.

    And that changes everything.

    Because it means something big is happening behind the scenes. It means we can not trust the headlines about Trump and U.S. policy decisions on Israel, not about so-called “aid” or its supposed conditions. There is a thick fog of smoke and mirrors being deployed right now by US and Israeli leaders, strategically, and the media is totally misreporting everything.

    And when Netanyahu of all people—arguably the most pro-American prime minister Israel has ever had—starts publicly stating an end to U.S. military aid, you know tectonic plates are shifting.

    Think about what that means. It means Israel finally wants to end strategic dependence on the U.S, which the US deep state has used, together with the Israeli deep state, to control Israeli policy. It means our leadership finally wants to act upon the understanding that the strings attached to that aid is a greater threat than the absence of the aid itself.

    And we’re running out of time.

    A U.S. Congressman told me this to my face, in his Capitol Hill office just a few months ago:

    “We only have a year and a half to make Israel as independent as possible, with its own production capability of all weapons and munitions. Because America needs a strong and secure Israel, and future administrations will be even worse than the Biden administration. And we might lose the House and Senate in the midterms.”

    This isn’t paranoia. It’s reality. He knows that for America to be safe, and protected from future damaging administrations, Israel must be independent!

    You can’t depend on a White House that hires Muslim Britherhood officials to senior government positions. You can’t trust a media that whitewashes Jew-haters while condemning Jews for defending themselves. And you certainly can’t stake your future on a system being swallowed by “progressive”, really regressive radicals who see Israel as the enemy.

    So when Netanyahu says Israel is “considering stopping U.S. military aid,” it’s not just a policy discussion—it’s a bombshell.

    Israel must prepare for full independence—militarily, economically, diplomatically. And every Jew and every Zionist around the world must step up and support Israel’s sovereignty, not in theory but in action.

    Because the era of dependence is ending.

    And the era of Jewish strength must begin—on our terms, with our values, and without permission from Washington.

    Trump’s recent decisions—and statements from close allies like Governor Mike Huckabee—make one thing increasingly clear: they are signaling, intentionally or not, that it’s time for Israel to stand on its own two feet.

    Am I still worried about Trump administration connections to Qatar, the evil master of the Muslim Britherhood and founder of the Oct. 7th? Yes, I am.

    But, while at first glance some of the Trump administration moves may appear disappointing or confusing, ie – the U.S. deal with the Houthis that does not include Israel – especially to those expecting unwavering alignment, the deeper message is strategic.

    They are pushing Israel to become more independent, more self-reliant, and less entangled in the dangerous dependency on American political tides.

    This is the lens through which I believe we must interpret the Trump team’s actions—not as abandonment, but as a challenge to rise. And it’s the greatest opportunity we’ve had in generations: to finally step fully into our God given role in the region as the strong, sovereign regional indigenous nation we were meant to be, free of any foreign master pulling our strings.

    To some this might be a very scary thought, but it is the right direction, pivoting from a dependent state into

    an equal ally.

    These are unbelievable, redemptive times, and only put your faith in Hashem above!

    Am Yisrael Chai!!!

  14. PELONI_

    Thanks for the link. I’ve just read through it. It is as I thought. The items discussed are 2-3 years old. They all predict “imminent” or specifically dated immediate events hardly one of which has occurred to this very day.

    I used to call him NostrJacob, and I think now it was too flattering. Shabtai Tzvi had more truth in him, which was almost none at all.

    Disappointing…and not worth of being kept except as a curiosity.

  16. @Edgar
    Here is the link:
    https://www.israpundit.org/the-voice-of-mbs/

    Ted has four lists of favorite articles by Ted which are rotated at the top of the main page. Today we have “Seminal Posts by Ted Belman” showing, but “The Voice of MBS” is listed on the “Jordan Option” page, which we had showing previously upto about a week or so ago.

  20. Warren G. Harding – a forgotten Zionist hero?
    One hundred years ago this week, a new US president came in who would change history By MICHAEL FREUND
    NOVEMBER 5, 2020 15:57

    [So the NY Slimes and the State Department opposed U.S. recognition of Israel even then and though Harding was a Democrat, The two Senators who introduced the bill were republicans.[ Ironic that so many Jews felt the Dems were their party when it was always Republicans who were mainly championed Zionism, for example every single candidate who would lose to FDR who was an antisemite. His uncle, Teddy, a Republican, was a philo-semite.
    https://www.jpost.com/opinion/warren-g-harding-a-forgotten-zionist-hero-648118

  21. @Mike I know, lets ask Witkoff what peace is.

    “…Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy to the whole entire world, has been leaking to media and then commenting on his own leaks to the media. It’s a monologue billed as a conversation. And it has some Israelis worried…

    ‘….According to Israel’s Channel 12, Witkoff is leveraging the hostage families as a political cudgel against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “If until now the hostages have paid the price for the war not ending, today the price will be much heavier for Israel, and not just for the hostages,” he reportedly told the families. “President Trump is determined to move forward toward a significant deal with Saudi Arabia, even without Israeli involvement.”

    Follow-up reporting from Haaretz found Witkoff debating with himself publicly: “The source told Haaretz that Witkoff’s criticism of the Israeli government was leaked at his request. Witkoff’s office denied that the administration is pressuring Israel to reach a deal.” So Witkoff is criticizing Israel, then making sure that criticism gets out to the press, then denying that he’s criticizing them at all. If Witkoff himself is also Haaretz’s source, he will have accomplished the rare feat of putting together a new Mideast Quartet consisting entirely of Steve Witkoff….”

    https://www.commentary.org/seth-mandel/trumps-mideast-shifts-leave-everyone-guessing/

  22. Hi, Mike Had to look up meaning of “peace. ”

    AI Overview

    Peace, in its simplest form, is a state of tranquility and harmony, often characterized by the absence of conflict or violence. It can refer to freedom from war and public disturbance, as well as a sense of calm and quiet in one’s mind. Peace is also a desirable condition for individuals, communities, and nations, fostering stability, security, and overall well-being.

    Then I looked up utopia:

    a place of ideal perfection
    often capitalized : a place of ideal perfection especially in laws, government, and social conditions. 2. : an impractical scheme for social improvement. 3. : an imaginary and indefinitely remote place.

  25. Avi Abelow on FB – What do you know about the E1 Ma’aleh Adumim building project???

    For decades, the E1 plan to connect Jerusalem to Ma’aleh Adumim sat frozen because of international pressure.

    But here’s what most don’t know: it was first proposed by the left-wing, Oslo “peace” process Rabin government!

    Why? Because it’s essential for Israel’s security, mobility, and demographic continuity, to ensure the connection between the Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea and Masada to the rest of Israel.

    Now, under Finance Minister Smotrich, and Monister in the Defense Ministey, Israel is finally moving ahead with the E1 building project that includes 3,500 new homes and a hotel zone.

    And that’s not all. The working plan is to more than double the Jewish population in our Biblical heartland to over one million Israelis in Judea and Samaria!!!

    This isn’t a fantasy—it’s happening.

    Smotrich right now is investing billions in roads, housing, and infrastructure, quietly building the backbone of a future where Judea and Samaria are thriving centers of Israeli life, and a key component in lowering housing prices!!

    This isn’t about “right” or “left.” It’s about ensuring Israeli sovereignty, stability, and security, not handing over land to an Islamonaz*I enemy that is clear in its intent to destroy us.

    Even center left politician Benny Gantz said this week that Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria are essential for Israel’s security, and President Herzog said the same message.

    This is the only way to prevent other October 7th invasions & massacres from Judea & Samaria and ensure that our enemies know we are never leaving our ancestral homeland.

    No to another Gaza terror base in Judea & Samaria. Yes to a strong, secure, and growing Israel.

    Am Yisrael Chai!!!

  26. @Peloni

    The Wise Men of Chelm, Fact and Fiction

    …In some versions of The Wise Men of Chelm, these beloved stories conclude with the destruction of the town by fire and its residents scattering across the face of the earth.

    “But surely it cannot be for nothing that not even a lonely feather is left in Helm,” the town rabbi proclaims after a fire destroyed the town. “My people, the Lord works in mysterious ways… This is a sign from on high. Like the destruction of Jerusalem in ancient times, the destruction of Helm is a sign that we must go out into the world and spread the wisdom that is our heritage and tradition. Like our forefathers of old, let us go forth with courage in our hearts to fulfill our destiny!”

    “And that is what the Chelmites did. Not with sorrow and not with tears, but proudly, they went forth from Helm and dispersed over the face of the earth. They mingled with all the peoples of the world and dutifully spread the wisdom that was once the pride of Chelm alone. And so, dear reader, if you discover a bit of the Chelmite in yourself, you’ll know the reason why.”

    https://aish.com/wise-men-of-chelm-fact-and-fiction/

  27. @Sebastien
    Ironic isn’t it. I believe they are building up to something on May 12, a week from now. It doesn’t make much sense to me, but I believe that is where things stand at the moment.

  30. HS Tablet magazine been hacked? When I click on the link, theres’s an eye on a black background and it says, Curious about the truth?” and below it is a box to click on that says, “I’m interested. And the numbers: 5:12:25.

  31. Peloni

    “They don’t want your love and physical help. They want their family members back, and that means accommodating Hamas, and this is what has come about thus far with the return of all but a couple dozen living hostages to go. ”

    You clearly misunderstood

    I was not referring to anything other than the wishes and love of all Jews and all humane people in this world

    If you are becoming so hateful to me when I offer the most human emotions towards these poor people I begin to wonder…

  32. @fquigley

    Rand was born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum on February 2, 1905, into a Jewish bourgeois family living in Saint Petersburg….She was the eldest of three daughters of Zinovy Zakharovich Rosenbaum, a pharmacist…After the Russian Revolution opened up Russian universities to women, Rand was among the first to enroll at Petrograd State University, now Saint Petersburg State University.[14] At 16, she began her studies in the department of social pedagogy, majoring in history.[15] She was one of many bourgeois students purged from the university shortly before graduating. After complaints from a group of visiting foreign scientists, many purged students, including Rand, were reinstated.[16][…

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayn_Rand

  34. @fquigley

    AI Overview

    +6
    Yes, the Bolsheviks persecuted rabbis and other religious leaders as part of their broader anti-religious campaign. This persecution was often violent, and many rabbis were forced to resign under threat. The Bolsheviks viewed religion as a hindrance to their communist ideology and saw it as a source of potential resistance.
    Here’s a more detailed breakdown:
    Anti-Religious Policies:
    The Bolsheviks implemented policies that restricted religious practices, confiscated church property, and outlawed religious instruction in schools.
    Targeting of Religious Leaders:
    Rabbis and other religious officials were specifically targeted, with many being arrested, imprisoned, or killed.
    Seizure of Property:
    The Bolsheviks seized Jewish properties, including synagogues, as part of their broader campaign to control religious institutions.
    Violence and Terror:
    The seizure of church property and the persecution of religious leaders were often carried out with violence and terror.
    Repression Continued:
    This persecution continued throughout the 1920s, with information campaigns against antisemitism being conducted in the Red Army and workplace

    1

  36. The only antisemitism Lenin and Trotsky and the Bolsheviks fought was the racial kind. They had no use for rabbis, Bundists, or Zionists and discriminated against Jews from a bourgeois family background like Ayn Rand, who they expelled from college until visiting foreign socialists asked them to allow her to graduate.

  37. Peloni

    Your bias leads you to take up positions so replete with historical errors it is hard to answer

    Perhaps my remarks to Edgar will help

  38. Edgar these two recent comments by you

    “I don’t see how Trotsky always but ALWAYS comes into the conversation even if not for any perceived purpose.
    He died in sordid circumstances with no followers, 85 years ago and he is not relevant today or even since. His influence died with him except for some misguided brainwashed people who still live in the past.

    EDGAR G.
    May 6, 2025 at 5:57 pm
    TROTSKY and LENIN didn’t smash the pogromists to help the Jews except incidentally .They smashed them to bring them under their control solely and avoid loose cannons.

    These two comments about Lenin and Trotsky are showing considerable bias and are not reflective of your humanitarian struggles

    Lenin: he was heavily influenced by the execution of his older brother by the Czarist regime. He viewed Antisemitism as a strategy by the ruling class, Czarism, to cause division in the proletariat

    Trotsky: From a semi assimilated family. There is also a strong personal issue in how he fought against Antisemitism

    I would add that that same zeal was also on view in the very sharp attacks on the British and how the British put down the 1916 Rebellion.

  39. Hi Mike S , my sister who was born in November 1952 was a guest on this show, “Birthday House” when she was a little girl. All the kids would chant ” Hi Mike” or “Hi, Mr. Mike” to the anthropomorphized microphone. I remember being told as a boy. I was 7 years younger. . 😀

    Found something:

    …Notice Tripp stays completely connected with the kids who eagerly recite the lyrics by heart, singing and dancing to songs like “Hi Mike” like it was the happiest time of their lives. The “Mike” they were singing to, by the way, was the microphone.

    ‘Paul Tripp’s Birthday House TV showViewer Lisa Winston tells us, “I got to celebrate my 5th birthday on Birthday House and remember singing ‘Hi Mike,’ which must have been the scourge of existence to any kid named Mike for the next 10 years. It went, ‘Hi Mike, Hi Mike, I like to say, Hi Mike, Hi Mike,..

    http://www.tvparty.com/lostbirthday.html#google_vignette

    This will forever be engraved in my mind as my association with those words. 😀

  41. People also ask
    Did Lenin play the Theremin?
    “He saw Lenin as a very intelligent person and Lenin fully understood the wild and new ideas of the young inventor, and also Lenin was very skilled in music and tried to play the Theremin himself and with quite a good success and that impressed Leon Theremin a lot.”Mar 13, 2012
    https://www.bbc.com
    Leon Theremin: The man and the music machine – BBC News

    Clare Rockmore (1911-1998, the first great theremin soloist. on Theremin,, the first electronic instrument, She was Litvak born in Vilna and studied violin with Jascha Heifetz who was also Litvak and born in Vilna in 1901. He left Russia together with his family to debut at Carnegie hall on Oct. 27, 1917 and he and they never went back. He was billed as a Russian musician. ) The Swan by Saint-Saens

    https://youtu.be/pSzTPGlNa5U?si=qGnY5a10hHHp4W_7

    “The instrument was invented in October 1920 by the Russian physicist Lev Sergeyevich Termen, known in the West as Leon Theremin.”

    Can be sweetly lyrical, like this, or weird. Used a lot in movie sound effects such as the theme of the original “The Day stood still.”

    Not to be confused withthe Ondes Martinot

    “The ondes Martenot (/?o?nd m??rt??no?/ OHND mar-t?-NOH; French: [??d ma?t?no], lit.?’Martenot waves’) or ondes musicales (lit.?’musical waves’) is an early electronic musical instrument. It is played with a lateral-vibrato keyboard or by moving a ring tied to a wire, creating “wavering” sounds similar to a theremin. Dynamics and timbre are adjusted using controls in a drawer on the instrument’s left side. A player of the ondes Martenot is called an ondist.
    Ondes Martenot

    An ondes Martenot (seventh generation model, 1975)
    Dates
    1928–present
    Technical specifications
    Polyphony
    none[1]
    Oscillator
    vacuum tube or transistor
    Synthesis type
    heterodyne
    Input/output
    Keyboard
    72-note rail-mounted keyboard capable of producing vibrato by lateral motion
    The ondes Martenot was invented in 1928 by the French inventor Maurice Martenot. Martenot was inspired by the accidental overlaps of tones between military radio oscillators, and wanted to create an instrument with the expressiveness of the cello.
    The ondes Martenot is used in more than 100 orchestral compositions. The French composer Olivier Messiaen used it in pieces such as his 1949 symphony Turangalîla-Symphonie, and his sister-in-law Jeanne Loriod was a celebrated player of the instrument. It appears in numerous film and television soundtracks, particularly science fiction and horror films. It has also been used by contemporary acts such as Daft Punk, Damon Albarn, and Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood.”

    Demonstration of Onde Martinot

    https://youtu.be/yidV0HeVyCg?si=_e7SgXvBwCM_K8qc

    Inspired by Theremin.

    https://120years.net/the-ondes-martenotmaurice-martenotfrance1928/