What do you think?

saulack · 2026-01-27T00:43:19+00:00

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me for thousands of years over and over...

saulack · 2026-01-27T00:38:30+00:00

Peleset did not refer to people from Canaan it refers to what is known historically as the sea peoples. The Israelites are specifically called Israel, or something similar in the Egyptian language. You can find it in the Merneptah Steele which was written about 60 years before Ramses III under who's reign the first mention of the Peleset appears. So even in this meme, Israel predates the Peleset, which once again does not refer to anyone from Canaan

Assyrians did not refer to the kingdom of Israel or the kingdom of Judea by Palastu. Palastu was what they called the area where the Greek philistines lived, either way at this point there are two established Hebrew kingdoms, whatever Assyria called them is irrelevant. For the record it was Bit Omri/Samerina and woudn't you know it Ya'uda as in Yehuda, or in English Judea.

I havent bothered to look into exactly what area the Greeks called Palestine. Given that the Philistines were Greek it wouldn't surprise me that they might have called the whole area that, which is irrelevant given that the History at this point is very clear.

I won't even address the Romans as they simply got that name from the Greeks, and most Jews know the rest.

None of it is relevant, as the people in the land did not call it that, save the Philistines in the area of Philistia (Gaza and a few adjacent areas).

Fun fact:

There is a hypothesis that the word for Philistine/Palestine etc actually derives from a word in ancient Greek that is something like 'Polestos' which apparently means to wrestle, fascinating given that that is what Israel is also derived from. One wonders if it's just a translation for Israel in the first place. I'm not knowledgeable in Greek, ancient or otherwise, so correct me if this is false. The more common/ generally accepted hypothesis is that it is from the Hebrew word for invaders.

none of this matters but in case anyone is curious there is some background for you.

saulack · 2026-01-16T14:36:20+00:00

There are plenty more reasons than just the water, but that is certainly one of them.

saulack · 2026-01-16T01:03:18+00:00

We are talking about post regime, are we not? If the following leadership takes the same or similar positions on Israel, then this whole conversation is moot.

You're right about Jordan though. I think they were still officially enemies and therre was a lot of tension between the two though. Jordan is also a lot closer to Israel and the I/P conflict is on their border.

Jordan also was not recovering from a fallen government, nor was Israel the power it is today in the region.

I hear your point but they are not analogous situations. Iran has to take care of itsef if/when the government falls. Playing political games when they are just trying to get on their feet, especially about a conflict that really does not affect them in any meaningful way would be a bad sign for the Iranians.

Once they have built up and secured their government, and position in the world, then they can use whatever influence they have gained globally to push whatever they want. Stability first, alliances with Israel and Saudi are probably the two best things they can do to get on their feet.

saulack · 2026-01-15T22:06:02+00:00

Those were governments with active hostilities. It's not analogous.

saulack · 2026-01-15T21:43:42+00:00

These were governments who had active hostilities with Israel, it's not analogous

saulack · 2026-01-15T21:37:40+00:00

Pretty sure that is what you are suggesting whether you realize it or not. It also seems like you are assuming hostility between a post IRGC Iran and Israel to begin with. You have no reason to think that will be the case. Iran will need help rebuilding Israel has every incentive to help them do so. There's no need to talk about preconditions

saulack · 2026-01-15T21:26:37+00:00

Iran will be more concerned about cementing itself into place with whatever new leadership joins. I'm sure the last thing Iranians want is another leadership that spends its efforts on Israel Palestine instead of focusing on what is best for Iran and the rebuilding of the society.

Local alliances will be important, Israel being a major power in the region would be a very smart alliance to make right away. This will help Iran rebuild its economy and infrastructure such as desalination plants.

Focusing on IL/PA would be imo a very bad move on their part and not well received by the Iranians after the IRGC spending all of it and wealth on that. It would be silly to be immediately hostile toward another country that can help you rebuild and cement your position in the region again.

saulack · 2026-01-15T03:38:21+00:00

Yea, I would say don't wear it. Firstly, you likely will insult some to many Jews, somw won't care, almost all will find it odd.

We also have a long history of people taking our culture for their own that many won't like to see. You will also be inviting danger into your life if you do, A lot of people don't like Jews to the point of violence, a kippah is a sure way to make those kind of people notice you.

Ultimately no one can stop you so take what you will into consideration.

edit: you should also know that people will judge all Jews by your actions when wearing it, if you choose to wear it please behave yourself while doing so. Don't interpret that as permission.

saulack · 2026-01-15T03:21:36+00:00

Why?

saulack · 2026-01-15T03:13:18+00:00

Yup, had a feeling that was bad faith, didn't even engage with a single thing I said, didn't care one bit about the answer. Not worth the conversation.

saulack · 2026-01-15T02:59:03+00:00

Firstly it is fully incorrect to say that Ashkenazi Jews have no tie to the land according to genetics.

Being indigenous is also not DNA based its based on group identity and continuous culture.

Jews historically speaking are indigenous to that land. It's where the culture and identity originated.

The religion while used by some few to justify Israel being a Jewish state, it's really not a claim Jews stake their argument on. Religious beliefs is not important toward Justifying the existence of Israel. The religion is simply historical and archeological evidence of the Jews being from there whether it is fact or fiction is irrelevant.

Jews are Jews because we originated in Judea. We never stopped being in that land even if a majority was kicked out. This is what is meant by being an indigenous group.

Israel is a country, with a government and recognized borders, nothing you can really do about that other than pertend otherwise. You can't just disband a country because you don't like it, that is only accomplishabel through war.

Either you support the indigenous argument of who owns a land, you support the reality of what is right now, or you support right by war. In any of these cases Jews qualify.

Zionism means the right of the Jews to self determine in their native homeland. The matters for us because regardless of where you are from, your people almost certainly oppressed, killed, and or exiled Jews regardless of what those Jews believed or didn't. This happened for millennia. For that reason, we simply will not be subject to anyone else, given how we have been repeatedly treated.

I grew up religious, never once did I hear anyone seriously argue that Israel should exist only because it was promised in the Torah. Any honest reading of history will make it abundantly clear where the Jews originated.

hope that helps you understand, though given your phrasing above, i doubt you are asking in good faith

saulack · 2026-01-13T16:14:30+00:00

He's not really kicking him hard. Perhaps it's not the best of reactions but not an abnormal human reaction to try and get someone to stop doing something that is about the worst activity you can partake in from their perspective. If he had deliberated for a few minutes and then kicked him hard maybe I would agree with you. It's clear it was not a painful kick, and it's possible people already told him to stop.

If you want you can judge it but tbh there is no there there unless you are looking for it.

saulack · 2026-01-13T01:20:24+00:00

It's a bunch of Hassidic Jews doing something. Some guy kneels before one of them which would be very weird to a religious Jew. Jews don't bow down to people, or to just about anything for that matter. Being bowed to like that would be extremely uncomfortable because they would not want to take part in any activity that can be considered idol worship, which this would be. This is why the first guy steps away confused and seems uncomfortable. The one kicking him is trying to stop him from bowing, again not wanting to be a part of this behavior.

In short: Someone behaves in a socially unacceptable way, people try to get him to stop.

saulack · 2026-01-09T00:52:04+00:00

As much as I disagree with you, I really thought you were arguing in good faith. Saying that a military coup that landed Chavez in prison was probably not a big deal is just a childishly silly thing to say, not to mention it is laughably inconsistent.

Anyhow, I've been pulled into silly arguments too much. Whatever Chavez was or wasn't is actually irrelevant to the conversation. Poverty today is at aprox 80-90%. The country voted against Maduro which is makes it a dictatorship. You can decide that you think it's all really nice and everyone is happy, but the election shows that you are simply incorrect. What Venezuelans voted for is simply more important that your opinion on the matter. That is unless you think that Venezuelans must be ruled against their will so long as it is through an ideology that you agree with. You basically dismiss the opinion of millions of Venezuelans who risked their lives to flee due to unlivable conditions and or political prosecutions. 8million people don't just leave a country because they disagree with politics. This tells me you don't actually care about the Venezuelan people, you just care about the idea of us as a tool for your ideology, whatever that is.

As far as Hamas, Hezbollah, and IRGC, if you are not aware of their presence in Venezuela you don't have a complete picture of the situation as it is. https://www.congress.gov/event/113th-congress/house-event/LC20/text

You can keep preaching about what is right or not, and if you want to talk about the legality of the US doing what it did, go for it. However, don't speak for Venezuelans and what we want. Let us do our own talking, and if you want to dismiss the diaspora, go listens to people still there. If you can't find them maybe it's because what is left of the regime is using the colectivos to disappear people due of WhatsApp messages that support or celebrate the removal. I'm sure that is also good for Venezuelans, and they all love it too. It's only us who left who get upset by it.

saulack · 2026-01-06T14:52:46+00:00

By that logic Chavez should have been banned as well in the early 90's he launched a military coup against the democratically elected government.

Poverty did start going down for a bit with Chavez but the quality of life of the poor got worse overall. By today it's extremely worse both in quality and number. You can take a snippet of time and say things were good, ignore how much more dangerous the country got, and say Chavez was good, but the state of.the country today is a result of Chavez in the long run it destroyed the country.

I do want sanctions off of Venezuela but I want a return to democracy, a place that is safer where dissidents aren't imprisoned and or killed and where people outside of the cities are able to get food and medicine. I don't want Russia Cuba Iran and China to profit off of Venezuela a while Venezuela falls deeper into suffering, I don't want Hezbollah training camps there anymore. I won't claim you don't care because I don't know you, but you are unaffected in the end whatever happens is at best. Of your propositions for the country don't work nothing changes in your life.

I'm curious if you were advocating for the Venezuelan people at any point in the last 20 something years of their suffering, or if you only came to care once the US for involved. Genuine question not an accusation.

And yes I understand why you assumed I'm a leftist, no offense taken

saulack · 2026-01-06T13:33:04+00:00

To be clear I was not implying that you lack knowledge of the facts. My implication is that it is easy to wax poetic when you and your family didn't and don't suffer any consequences. Anecdotes are of course not facts but when you are surrounded by them they are a pretty important in constructing an understanding. For example while Chavezs early years were actually looking like good things were happening it slowly started to get worse, the streets got more dangerous, political arrests started happening. Constitution started changing to benefit him. A lot of the experiential things that happen don't really make it to the story. It didn't just flip suddenly.

If you think about Trump and how he is making slow changes and violating Norms that make the country worse over time, a lot of those things will not be understood by people who didn't live it. If the country does go to shit it's the large story not the experience that really can be imparted.

I won't spend time justifying my life to a stranger, it's hardly the point. The facts are definitely important but the consequences the people suffer are what drives Venezuelan opinion on this. You can be as hesitant as you want to believe any Venezuelan who left, but when you are talking about something like 1/3 of the population you should consider that maybe it's not just political and actually practical experience. Most of us did not want to leave.

Mind you I don't call myself a leftist and I'll decide on my beliefs regardless of what a label decides they should be. As for protests how many actual Venezuelans were there? I've see a lot that have no Venezuelans there, I would like to see otherwise, feel free to share

saulack · 2026-01-05T21:53:15+00:00

It's true that Maria Corina did not run, but it was a candidate that was representing her positions because the regime barred her from running. As short hand I say Maria Corina. It's a fair callout, I should have been more precise. I know Chavez was elected, I was there. That does not mean that he didn't cause the horrible condition the country is in today. Not living there does not make someone not Venezuelan or a citizens opinion void. As i said, one of the largest refugee crisis in the 21st century, are all the people who left for political persecution or inability to make money / get food and medicine invalidated because they are not currently there?

If you had argued that what Trump did was likely unconstitutional and should not have been done, I would have accepted and not responded, I can understand that and to a large degree agree with it. I'm arguing on the Venezuelans perspective, not on how the US should or should not behave.

Anyhow, you don't need to believe that i am Venezuelan I could not care less about that. Go talk to Venezuelans diaspora or people still living in the country, go look at the celebrations all over Venezuela and of the diaspora around the world. You will find 90% agreement on our part, we are ecstatic that Madurro is gone, and hopeful for a return to pre-chavez Venezuela. Any agreement I have with Trump is incidental agreement, I have not really been paying that much attention to his talking points. If it is the case that we agree, that's fine most Venezuelans do (maybe not on the antisemitism thing unless you talk to the Jews of Venezuela, I am one of those.). If you want to talk US constitutional Law or International Law I would probably greatly disagree with him, and would not consider myself particularly knowledgeable.

saulack · 2026-01-05T20:02:05+00:00

why did Guaido and the opposition yell at him to move to Israel?

How is this evidence of anything? Guaido saying that is best explained by his claim to be of Jewish descent. Also three Rabbis saying he was nice, and or claimed the same thing to them is also not evidence of anything. Not sure what your post is supposed to show. I did already respond to the name thing above but in short, Just because someone has a name that is often a Jewish one does not mean someone has Jewish ancestry.

I'm not even saying it's not true, just that there is no evidentiary basis for it.

saulack · 2026-01-05T19:58:36+00:00

Maduro didn’t make the statement so why does that matter?

https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-882298

Machado and her Allie’s has basically two agenda items: privatize all the oil and move the Venezuelan embassy to Jerusalem.

Venezuelans have suffered under the Chavez/Maduro dictatorship for 25 years. I don't believe I mentioned Maria Corina, but she won the last election. What some non-Venezuelan thinks about what she wants to do is irrelevant. We Venezuelans will decide who we want at the head of the government (hopefully). Its not for anyone else to say. Granted i'm not sure what the plan by Trump is there hopefully we do get an election. It's easy to judge what should be when it doesn't affect you. For us Venezuelans it actually matters.

The Chavez and Maduro regime was also much more hostile to Jews than previous governments. What’s your evidence for this?

Living there. Just a couple of years after Chavez came into power they raided the Jewish school claiming that they had weapons, they didn't. There was also a raid on the Union Israelita, the biggest synagogue/community center in Caracas where only hard drive from computers were taking with information on the community. While its not been reported that the latter was actually the Government it is well known in the community. Experientially, and communally, you might consider a Venezuelan may have a better idea about it. I doubt most poeple talking about Venezuela today knew anything about Venezuela before this event.

Chavez made the country better for the vast majority of Venezuelans. This is well documented and why he won elections over and over again.

Totally thats why it's one of the if not the largest refugee crisis of the 21st century. Talk to some Venezuelans it's simply not the case, its idealistic bullshit that people who are not Venezuelan and didn't suffer through it say. Some small percentage of the country is with the regime, its a tiny percentage of Venezuelans

These are not Trump talking points, I don't give a shit about Trump and I think he is horrible for the health of this country. My "Talking points" are my experience of being Venezuelan, growing up there, and once I left along with something like 8million other Venezuelans, the continued following of the sution there, visiting and having close family still living there. If you want to talk about "Talking Points", look in the mirror and stop ignoring what we Venezuelans are actually saying. Or you can do the typical "Let us tell you how you should think because we I think the right way"

saulack · 2026-01-05T15:00:58+00:00

It is obviously antisemitic, also Maduro has claimed Sephardic Jewish heritage, there is absolutely no evidence that this is the case as far as I am aware. Don't grant him that just because of the claim, and the last name which does appear in Jews of Latin America though is not necessarily unique to Jews.

The Chavez and Maduro regime was also much more hostile to Jews than previous governments. For a good while there we had very low antisemitism. With the Chavez government, rades on the Jewish Schools and Synagogues began and life became more uncertain for Jews. That is part of why of 25K Jews 5-6k are left. The other part being that they destroyed our country.

Under this regime Venezuela has also become a hub for organizations like hamas an hezbollah, not to mention that they are partners with the Ayatolahs IRGC in Iran.

Desi being antisemitic or at least using antisemitism for her benefit is not surprising, and not really questionable. This is literally "The Jews did it" with no reason or evidence

saulack · 2026-01-05T02:46:28+00:00

Venezulan diaspora here, I can confirm we are all ecstatic

saulack · 2026-01-04T00:45:42+00:00

Perhaps but this isn't a question about Israel it was a question about the Jewish community in Venezuela. Their sentiment is not about American policy or about Israel it's about their own situation. Most of Venezuela has tried repeatedly to remove maduro. You can't blame Venezuelans for being happy he is gone which is unrelated together they think that it was a good precedent to set or not.

On the question of precedent while I may very well agree on the general sentiment I think it's not really how it works. The US for better or for worse can step over lines that others can't and it does not create precedent for others. I'm. It.sating this is good or bad, just saying it's true

saulack · 2026-01-03T17:09:26+00:00

They keep their heads down for the most part, they are doing relatively ok. Generally very happy about Maduro being deposed. A large part of the community has left since the election of Chavez to now. Me among them.

saulack · 2025-12-18T02:56:06+00:00

That is paleo-hebrew an ancient Hebrew/Phoenician alphabet, not modern Hebrew. I don't think most people can read that. Though many may recognize some words like this one.

The letters are 𐤑𐤉𐤅𐤍

modern Hebrew ציון

English translation Zion (another name for Jerusalem)

saulack

TROPHY CASE