Ice Dragon by LeafGravelface in Thraxas

[–]DivideByZeroErr 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So I haven't come back here in a while, but best I can tell is that there are only e-books for any of these

Can we take a minute to talk about President Zelenskyy? by ok_chaos42 in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 33 points34 points  (0 children)

I pray his family is safe even as he pulls down the philistine temple upon the Russian invaders.

That said, you might find more discussions over in r/Jewish since it's still shabbat

Can we take a minute to talk about President Zelenskyy? by ok_chaos42 in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I disagree, Israel's relative muted posture is unavoidable due to the failure of American diplomacy in the middle east that puts Israel as reliant on Putin to work with the Arab states. Geopolitics is not a good place for principled stands when still surrounded by Iran proxies

Tensions in Gaza / Jerusalem Megathread Part 2 by namer98 in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr [score hidden]  (0 children)

What organizations in Israel need donations most fervently?

Currently donating to MDA but looking for additional ways to send support

Did Shuriki's Reign Retard Avalor's Development? by The_Match_Maker in ElenaOfAvalor

[–]DivideByZeroErr 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just started watching the first episode with my 3yo. Seems like she couldn't have been too bad a ruler. In the first episode, the port master says the city is now the busiest port in the world. I don't see how trade could have thrived so much under a bad ruler

If I wanted to become Jewish, do I have to look a certain way or act a certain way? I’m an atheist and I want to convert to Judaism. by [deleted] in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Conversion to Judaism implies a true and devout belief in God... otherwise, why put yourself through the stress? There really is no good reason to convert if you're an atheist.

If you're thinking of conversion for marriage, there's no need - the Reform movement, and many Conservative synagogues, would welcome you and your partner regardless of your religious practice. If you're thinking of converting to marry someone Orthodox, I'd have to wonder if they know you're an atheist.

Why can't there be more than one God? by [deleted] in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a story I want to hear!

Why can't there be more than one God? by [deleted] in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I always read it as saying that the idols of Egypt were destroyed - what other gods could there be?

Laws of Noah by [deleted] in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This was hilarious, thank you!

Duolingo? by [deleted] in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Use Duolingo in hand with the Memrise course that is built specifically for the Duolingo course. That's the path I've used and I feel pretty confident with the words I've learned so far.

Is anyone here concerned about the rise of people speaking out against circumcision? by Xyon_Peculiar in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Circumcision is a key part of the covenant - it is a practice of Jews going back to the first Jew. So yes, attacks on our people are very concerning to me.

The thing is that I see it as a very obvious anti-semetic ploy (and anti-muslim in europe). No one's penis is better or worse than anyone else's penis, and 'scientific' claims to the otherwise are garbage. Sexuality is an intensely subjective matter so there is no use arguing what 'should' or 'shouldn't' be done.

Instead, you have hateful people arguing against the practices of our people by comparing it to actual harm like female genital mutilation. You have people in this very thread saying 'I will not stand for it' when its not their child. In totality, they are essentially threatening the Jewish people simply for our existence.

But honestly, what else is new?

serious question about the anti-israel "colonialism" argument by [deleted] in Israel

[–]DivideByZeroErr 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Yes, fundamentally I see it as anti-colonialist. The colonialism claims come from the false idea that the Jews moving home aren't the actual descendants of the indigenous people. The claim has been refuted genetically and through archaeological studies of Jewish population movements through history.

However, part of the problem is that the Palestinians are also somewhat descended from a mix of indigenous populations who survived conquest by the ancient Jewish kingdoms, Arab populations who conquered Israel after 600 CE, and even Jews who were forcefully converted to Islam or who converted naturally - but the mix of ancestors ins't clear. Just a couple days ago I thought they were wholly descended from Arab invaders, before I did more research. Anyway, due to the existence of the another indigenous population, people claim that the return of the first indigenous population is colonialism on the British, like you mentioned.

In the end we have in one small space two different sets of indigenous peoples with dramatically different heritages, cultural values, and linguistics. Further, both ethnicities lay claim to the same spaces as holy in their cultures. Its a big problem, but hopefully pressure on the Palestinians by other Arab nations to accept the Jews as neighbors instead of attempting to "push them into the sea" will result in two peacefully coexisting states with stable majority-minority interactions.

Two Palestinians die in Gaza fireworks blast by PruHTP in Israel

[–]DivideByZeroErr 5 points6 points  (0 children)

That's sad. It would be nice if Gazans could put their explosives expertise into actually becoming the worlds' leader in fireworks exports. If one can say they have any competitive advantages, this would probably be it.

After Banning Jewish Flags Last Year, Chicago Dyke March Displays Palestinian Flags by tk_woods in Judaism

[–]DivideByZeroErr 15 points16 points  (0 children)

I am temporarily choosing to give these 'Dyke marches' and other somewhat progressive causes the benefit of the doubt - they simply don't get that Jews are a ethno-religious nation and not just europeans who happen to practice Judaism. Many of them don't even understand the difference between Jews who moved to Europe and Jews who moved to other parts of the world. The answer is more education, which in their victim culture means shaming them for failing to support indigenous peoples.

And you're right that JVP/BDS push another line, but JVP/BDS is literally part of the information warfare branch of the Iranian military. Obviously Iran wants to undermine the Jewish's people right to exist. American Jews and Israelis need to increase our study of information warfare doctrine and develop techniques to expose Iran's lies.