Behind the Wheel in Israel — Does it Take Bravery, Chutzpah, Patience or a Combination of These?
by Israel HighWay Staff

A common question for olim (new immigrants) in Israel is "So, how is it driving in Israel? Are the drivers as crazy as they say? Are you scared?" The fact that this is a common question clearly indicates that the Israeli driver does not enjoy a particularly positive reputation with the rest of the world. Is this an accurate perception or an overblown stereotype?

Statistically speaking, more Israelis are killed on the nation's roads than die at the hands of terrorists or in the wars with Israel's neighbors. Since the beginning of the second Intifada in September 2000, 1,126 people have been killed and approximately 7,000 wounded in terrorist attacks. In that same time period almost 500 Israelis PER YEAR were killed in traffic accidents! In recent years, there have been many grassroots efforts to improve traffic safety, road standards and better enforcement of current laws. Maybe the efforts are paying off. Traffic accident deaths dropped in 2006 from 482 in 2005 to 446 in 2006 - the lowest in 20 years. But the figures are still shocking.

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Athlete Stripped of Bahraini Citizenship for Competing in an Israeli Marathon by Reem Khalifa

Bahraini Authorities have revoked the citizenship of an athlete who ran in an Israeli marathon. Mushir Salem Jawher competed in and won the Tiberias Marathon in Israel last week, ending the race in just over two hours 13 minutes. Bahrain, like most Arab states, does not recognize Israel, and the Jerusalem Post newspaper said Jawher was the first athlete from an Arab country to compete in an Israeli marathon. The Jerusalem Post cited Jawher as saying he was "very proud" to have run in Israel. (Canada East Online)

Conflict Besets Andover High by Tracy Jan

The social studies teachers say they merely wanted to provide their students different perspectives about conflict in the Middle East when they invited a group with a history of condemning Israel's treatment of Palestinians to speak at Andover High School. The teachers never expected that their invitation to the group Wheels of Justice would set off the firestorm that has ensued.

The climate at the high school has grown hostile, students say, as friends argue over how to balance the right to hear all views with sensitivity to individual beliefs. More than 50 students who opposed the group's appearance formed a "Committee Against Hate Speech in School."

The debate highlights the struggle faced by school systems to teach students to think critically about explosive world events without alienating the communities they serve. This week, in an attempt to ease some of the tensions, Anderson plans to invite a second set of speakers with a different view of the strife between Palestinians and Israelis. (Pictured: Andover students prepare Israeli flag to post in classroom) (Boston Globe)

Winners Named in Essay Contest about Israel by Marc Freeman

Winners in three age categories were selected from more than 600 entries submitted in the fall by Jewish and non-Jewish students attending public schools, Jewish day and religious schools, and home schools, said Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County spokesman Bill Orlove. The assignment: "Explain what Israel means to you."

1st place: Claire Miller (Suncoast High School)
"It was the second or third week of the teen tour, Gesher Hai, and I already knew that I was a different person... I knew that Israel was more than just a place on the map. It was more than a concept or a promise. It was a sanctuary of faith that did not judge anyone on who they were or how religious they were. It was a place where people could come, and they were always welcome. It was home."

2nd place: Brittany Rattinger (Dreyfoos School of the Arts)
"Israel helps me understand what strength and commitment truly mean, and how important it is to have. I had so many family members suffer through the Holocaust, and Israel was created for them.....Israel is the heart and soul of the spirits released through war. It is also the soul of the survivors, and their future generations of Jewish culture and lore."

3rd place: Jake Boyd (John I. Leonard High School)
"Israel stands out as a nation rich in tourism, sports, technology and music. Being an athlete and musician these areas tug directly on my heartstrings. Israel is a diverse country that has something to share with visitors... And as a non-Jew I hope to one day visit Israel and experience everything it has to offer." (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

Young Adults Help War-Battered Northern Israelis by Dina Kraft

Hundreds of young adults from across the Jewish world rolled up their sleeves to give back to the residents of Israel's war-battered North. The group of 550 college students and young professionals from North America and Europe, from India and Australia, joined a mass community service project over the winter holidays called Leading Up North, funded by the Lynn and Charles Schusterman Family Foundation. The young people, drawn from organizations such as their university Hillels and leadership programs sponsored by the Schusterman foundation, spread out over 10 northern communities for 10 days of volunteering and service.

Lynn Schusterman (pictured), who remembers volunteering in the community as a young girl alongside her father, said public service is one of the best ways to forge connections and do good in the world. Wearing a gray "Leading Up North" hooded sweatshirt and a backpack, she quickly joined the circles of hora dancing in the Naftali Hills Forest, where the group had met to plant trees. The forest lost about two-thirds of its trees to fires spread by falling Hizbullah rockets. (JTA)

Take Action — Student Petition to Free Israeli Soldiers by Shayna Schor '10 and Adi Segal '07

As you know, three Israeli soldiers - Ehud Goldwasser, Eldad Regev and Gilad Shalit - were kidnapped during the difficult summer Israel faced in 2006. As students of the Solomon Schechter Day School of Essex and Union (in West Orange, NJ) and determined members of the High School Activists for Israel Club, we see it as our duty to raise awareness of current situations in Israel to all those we can reach.

We have successfully increased vigilance throughout our school and the surrounding communities. However, we know that in order for the soldiers to receive the undivided worldwide attention they deserve, we must expand our borders. Please take part in our primary advocacy project: a petition to release these soldiers.

The petition appeals to the president of the Lebanese Red Cross, and will be sent to President George W. Bush, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Jakob Kellenberger of the ICRC, and the Secretary General of the UN Ban Ki-moon. (As you know, UN Resolution 1701 emphasizes the unconditional release of the soldiers, but was not carried out. There is no reason for these inactions on behalf of the UN.) The petition includes verses stressing mercy and the maintaining of peace from the Qu'ran, New Testament, and Torah. The petition can be read and signed at the click of a button; the complete process takes less than a minute and is of the utmost need. We plan on closing the petition to new signatures on February 1, 2007. Therefore, your immediate action is appreciated.

With your help, we can capture the attention of the entire world and show its citizens that terrorist acts like these will not be tolerated. With your help, the soldiers can be freed.

The writers (pictured) are Project Coordinators for the SSDSEU Activists for Israel Club (Special to the Israel HighWay)

Got Goals? by Meredith Bilski

A lot of girls in Israel don't have the option to play soccer. I learned this in September 2004 when we were planning a UJA-Federation of New York Family Mission to Israel for that December. My friend, Danna Marcus, whose family was also on the trip, and I were confused about why there was not a girls' team for us to play. Where we live, girls' soccer teams are very common. We found out that a girls' team did not exist in Rehovot because there was no money to support it. This is how the idea of "Team Westchester" came about. We believed that there are other bar and bat mitzvah-aged kids who love soccer as much as we do and would be happy to participate in making a difference. As the project nears the end of its second year, I am so excited to see it really take off. I will never forget the opportunity I had to play soccer with the newly formed Oshiot girls' soccer team on their home field in Rehovot, Israel. Pictured: Meredith Bilski (right) and Danna Marcus. (JVibe.com)

British High-Schoolers Compete to Be Advocates for Israel
by Jonny Paul

After four months of competing, six high school students have won the UK Ambassador Program and will be rewarded with a six-day visit to Israel in February to meet heads of Israel advocacy organizations, politicians, government officials and religious leaders. The program, based on the original Israeli TV show Ha'shagrir (The Ambassador), was organized by Tribe, the youth wing of the United Synagogue in the UK which was launched in February 2003. Participating students competed in public speaking, politics, education and media and participated in a wide range of tasks. (Jerusalem Post)

Students' Model UN Summit in Qatar

Over 450 secondary school students from 18 nations including Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Nigeria, Palestine, Syria and Thailand will be meeting in Doha, Qatar between January 10 and January 13 at Intercontinental Hotel, Doha to participate in Georgetown University's 2nd Annual Model United Nations Summit.

Georgetown University, in association with Qatar Foundation, is bringing together students from around the world to discuss important global issues in a model United Nations simulation. (The Peninsula - Qatar)

U.S.-Polish-Israeli Exchange Program Offers Cultural Enrichment
by Kathryn McConnell

Students just returned to the United States from a unique, three-week cultural exchange group visit to Poland and Israel. 20 Baltimore students ages 15-17 went on the State Department-sponsored Dialogue in Understanding Through Youth (DUTY) program, developed for the Polish and Jewish communities of the Maryland city to enhance communication among young people with varied historical and cultural backgrounds.

The president of the Polish Heritage Association of Maryland, who accompanied the Baltimore students on the trip, in conjunction with the Baltimore Jewish Council and the Jewish Agency for Israel, organized the trip with staff from the State Department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Exchange (USINFO, US State Department).

View students' photo gallery on Yahoo Photos.

More Diaspora Jews Choose to Hold 'Destination Weddings' in Israel by Daphna Berman

Anecdotal evidence suggests that there is a growing trend among Jews from abroad who come to Israel specifically for their wedding. Conversations this week with a number of wedding planners, as well as others in the industry, point to several factors that have led to the rise: ideology, finances, and sometimes, simply wanting to be original.

As Tali Cohen said, "Our friends weren't surprised when we told them where the wedding would be," she added. "Our Judaism is centered around our Zionism. So it was only natural that we get married here." (Ha'aretz)

Former Badger Gets Taste of Israel by David Machlis

As a player on the University of Wisconsin football team, Matt Bernstein once fasted [on Yom Kippur] before a big game and is now visiting Israel for his first time on birthright/Taglit. "This country is both beautiful and meaningful," he said. "Those kids [soldiers] are 18 years old and walking around with M-16's. And they're always one step away from always being in a fight. "It makes football seem small." Bernstein started the 2006 preseason at the Detroit Lions' training camp after being signed as an undrafted free agent. At 24, In 2006, he was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. "Israel is almost like coming home. I definitely see myself coming back here," Bernstein said. (Jerusalem Post)

Israel Baseball League Locks in Three Ballfields for Six Teams
by Nathaniel Edelstein

As opening day of the inaugural Israel Baseball League season draws nearer, IBL officials are finalizing details. In the league's inaugural season, there will be only three locations at which games are played. Each location will serve as the home field for both its own team and one other club. Netanya will also host Nahariya, Tel Aviv will also be home to Petah Tikva, and Gezer will share its facilities with Beit Shemesh.

The teams will be the Petah Tikva Pioneers, Netanya Tigers, Beit Shemesh Blue Sox, Jerusalem/Gezer Lions, Haifa/Nahariya Stingrays, and the Tel Aviv Lighting. With cities and schedules finalized, the next big task is to complete the signing of 120 players to be divided among the teams in the spring draft. "I have 10 signed contracts in my hand right now and anticipate another 20 coming in the next two to three weeks," explained director of player personnel Martin Berger. "Then, I've got another 10 still up in the air." Opening Day: June 24, 2007. (Jerusalem Post)

Arab Nationalism's Last Gasp by Robert D. Kaplan

The demise of Saddam Hussein in Iraq appears to close the lid for secular Arab nationalism across the Middle East. Secular Arab nationalism will exit the stage revealed for what it always was: a despotic perversion of the western nation-state that lasted as long as it did mainly because of secret-police techniques imported from the former Soviet Union.

Because Israel served as a symbolic replacement for European colonialism, each new state tried to outdo the other to prove its anti-Zionist bona fides. The defining organizational attribute of secular Arab nationalism was the military emergency regime - witness Egypt, Syria and Iraq - that justified its existence by the continued state of war with Israel.

Those who proclaim today that the only real solution to the Arab dilemma is political freedom are correct. The problem is that they are describing a process that could encompass several bloody decades. (Los Angeles Times)

Good Riddance, 2006; Prospects for A Brighter Year
by Gary Rosenblatt

Farewell and good riddance to 2006, a year that was tragic and sobering for the State of Israel and those concerned about anti-Semitism. So much so that after reading the Anti-Defamation League's list of the Top Ten Issues Affecting Jews in 2006 - whose first three items are Israel Under Attack from the North and the South, Israeli Soldiers Remain in Captivity, and The Growing Threat of Islamic Extremism - I felt obliged to note several positive trends in Jewish life just to ease the sting a bit.

First, there is the resilience and vitality of the Israeli people managed to maintain a positive spirit, even during the month-long rocket attacks from the north. Here in America, a burst of philanthropic generosity for Jewish causes gave hope to those who have noted that in recent years only about six percent of charity from our wealthiest donors has gone toward Jewish communal institutions.

Time magazine named each of us "Person of the Year" in 2006, noting that we literally make, watch and care about our own news. But we cannot hide from reality or shirk our responsibility to the world around us, a world growing both smaller and more dangerous each day. Our Jewish tradition offers us the path to improving that world by behaving in the image of our Creator, with compassion and integrity. (New York Jewish Week)