This update/Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) Online Newsletter has the following items:
1. JVNA Press Release Urges Shift to Vegetarianism to Help Save Humanity
2. Deadline for Voting in the World Zionist Congress Election Is February 15
3. My Article in a New Vegetarian Book
4. Award-Winning Vegetarian Video to be Shown on National TV
5. Los Angeles Jewish Vegetarian Group Celebrates Sixth Anniversary
6. Israeli College Student Group Working to Improve Israel’s Environment
7. Are There Connections Between Vegetarianism and Feminism?
8. Vegetarian Dating Service
9. Tree of Life Institute Producing Video on Curing Type 2 Diabetes Through Live Foods and Other Lifestyle Changes/Support Sought
10. Are We Approaching a Global Warming “Tipping Point?”
11. Israeli Vegetarian Company Expanding to Europe
12. Nutrition Director Job Open
13. Los Angeles Jewish Vegetarian Group Schedules Event
14. Judean Date Seed Sprouts After 2,000 Years
15. Action Alert: stopping the Slaughter of Buffalos
16. Evangelicals Do Not Reach Consensus on Global Warming
Some material has been deferred to a later update/newsletter to keep this one from being even longer.
[Materials in brackets like this [] within an article or forwarded message are my editorial notes/comments.]
Opinions expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the JVNA, unless otherwise indicated, but may be presented to increase awareness and/or to encourage respectful dialogue. Also, material re conferences, retreats, forums, trips, and other events does not necessarily imply endorsement by JVNA or endorsement of kashrut, Shabbat observances, or any other Jewish observance, but may be presented for informational purposes. Please use e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, and web sites to get further information about any event that you are interested in.
As always, your comments and suggestions are very welcome.
Thanks,
Richard
==========================
1. JVNA Press Release Urges Shift to Vegetarianism to Help Save Humanity
Please follow up on the press release below by writing letters to editors, calling talk shows, and spreading our message in other ways.
PRESS RELEASE
January 29. 2006
For Immediate Release
Contact person: Richard H. Schwartz, President of the Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) (rschw12345@aol.com; Phone (718) 761-5876; Fax: (718) 982-3631; web site: jewishveg.com).
JEWISH GROUP URGES SHIFT TO VEGETARIANISM TO SAVE HUMANITY
Responding to "The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment," released on January 21, 2006, which projected severe threats to humanity in the next 50 years unless major changes occur, the Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) urged Jewish leaders to apply Jewish values in leading a movement toward plant-based diets in order to help shift our imperiled planet to a sustainable path.
The report, the result of a four-year effort by 1,300 scientists from 95 countries. indicates that, unless there are major changes in the way we consume resources, when the world population reaches about 9 billion people in 2050, there will be "widespread famine, severe shortages of clean water and huge effects from natural disasters such as hurricanes … Sea levels will rise, fisheries will collapse, emerging disease epidemics will sweep across the globe, and coral reefs will die off.” We are already seeing indications of these problems in recent news reports, including one that reported that 2005 was the warmest year in recorded history, the continuation of a trend that has resulted in 19 of the 20 warmest years occurring since 1980.
JVNA president Richard Schwartz stated,” It is essential that, at a time when there are so many threats to humanity, we move away from animal-based diets and agriculture that involve the annual raising of 50 billion farmed animals worldwide (10 billion in the U.S. alone); that require the feeding of 70 percent of the grain produced in the U.S. to animals destined for slaughter; that involve the consumption of 14 times more water per person than plant-based diets; and that contribute substantially to global warming, soil erosion and depletion, rapid species extinction, destruction of tropical rain forests and other valuable habitats; and many more environmental threats. A switch toward vegetarian diets is a societal imperative, needed for environmental sustainability. It is also a Jewish imperative because the production and consumption of animal products violate basic Jewish teachings about preserving human health, treating animals with compassion, protecting the environment, conserving natural resources, and helping hungry people. The Jewish community should fulfill our mandated role to be a “light unto the nations” by leading efforts to make people aware of the importance of responding to environmental threats by shifting toward plant-centered diets and making other positive lifestyle changes.”
JVNA will send a complimentary copy of Richard Schwartz’s book, “Judaism and Vegetarianism,” and a related CD and other material t any rabbi or other Jewish leader who will contact the JVNA and indicate how they would use the book to increase awareness of vegetarianism in their community or the broader Jewish community.
Additional information about Jewish teachings on vegetarianism and related issues can be found at the JVNA web site: JewishVeg.com.
=========================
2. Deadline for Voting in the World Zionist Congress Election Is February 15
As indicated, I am on the slate for the Green Zionist Alliance for the election for this summer’s World Zionist Congress in Israel. The deadline for registration is February 15. Please go to www.greenzionism.org/campaign for easy access to registration and voting information.
As previously indicated, a very small percent of American Jews register and vote, so your vote can have a major impact in helping elect people who will work for a greatly improved environment in Israel, and, indirectly, increase consideration of vegetarianism in Israel.
Many thanks.
=========================
3. My Article in a New Vegetarian Book
Forwarded message from the European Vegetarian Union:
It's a veggie world
'UTOPIA TODAY - REALITY TOMORROW - A vegetarian world'
The European Vegetarian Union is happy to announce that the book is now available!
Thirty five authors - nutritionists, medical doctors, authors of bestsellers, founders of important organizations, researchers, IT-specialists, philosophers, sci-fi fans, musicians and talented individuals - generously contributed to this EVU fundraiser project. The authors come from a variety of countries, cultural backgrounds and religions but they all have one thing in common: the conviction that a more compassionate world is not only possible but inevitable if humanity is to prosper.
The authors share their individual ideas of how tomorrow's vegetarian world will be, whilst looking at a more compassionate future from many different angles. The result is a cocktail of good vibes, light and hopes. Yes, it is true. Vegetarians are still a minority today. But WHAT a minority!
We have become a social group to be reckoned with, also at an international level. What better proof is there than the increasing effort by the food industry to accommodate our preferences? The veggie-market is not booming without good reason!
If you are interested in seeing what people expect from a future vegetarian world, you can order the book from the EVU, Bahnhofstr. 52, CH-9315 Neukirch-Egnach, via Amazon or through a book shop.
Sincerely,
Renato Pichler
President of the EVU
136 pages, 35 authors from 11 countries, ISBN 3-909067-05-0, this book is available in English only (translations are planned).
---------------------------------------------
List of the authors:
Arnal, Muriel - ONE VOICE (France): It is what being vegetarian is all about: caring for others.
Barnard, Neal D. M.D., President Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (USA): A vegetarian diet has the potential to revolutionize the health of humanity.
Bekoff, Marc, Professor of Biology (USA) Shame on those who bring so much pain and suffering to countless animals, too many to count. Shame on you.
Buist, Agnes, EVU member (UK): A vegetarian world ... this will be a real step forward for humanity.
De Leo, Sigrid, teacher and former Hon. Secretary General of EVU (Switzerland): Vegetarian nutrition is the diet of the 21st century.
Eck, Stefan Bernhard/Director of ArbeitsKreis Tierrechte & Ethik A.K.T.E.
and Hohensee, Barbara Assistant Director of A.K.T.E. (Germany): Necessary thought patterns: transcendent, international, universal.
Fox, Tina, Chief Executive of the Vegetarian Society UK: & In the future I expect to see meat eaters having to justify their aberrant and anti social behaviour on late night talk shows.
Ganjavi, Reza, musician and philosopher (Switzerland): minimize killing and suffering.
Hebbelinck, Marcel, Prof.em., PhD, Dr.h.c., FACSM, former President EVU (Belgium): Vegetarians: People of the future.
Hershaft, Alex has launched the Great American Meatout and World Farm Animals Day (USA): The most striking aspect of vegetarian utopia is that it will not be very striking at all.
Hertel, Frauke, freelance copywriter and translator (Belgium), quotes a voice from the future: The veg*n argument was won several decades ago, by default rather than by choice.
Jain, Permit Chand , EVU member and correspondent for India: &lsquoThe importance of AHIMSA&rsquo
Kaufman, Stephen M.D., Co-chair, Christian Vegetarian Association (USA): I think that a largely vegetarian world is almost inevitable.
Koerner, Heinz, bestseller author, and Boehm, Alexandra (Germany) quote a teacher from the future: be happy that we are no longer barbarians and that we finally see animals as our friends. Let us be glad that animals also greet us as friends again.
Leitzmann, Claus, Professor (Germany): Wholesome vegetarian diets offer distinct advantages regarding physical and mental health and well-being.
Méry, André, President of Alliance Végétarienne France: The vegetarian utopia is about individuals, their sensitivity, their desire to avoid suffering, and the satisfaction of their needs so as to lead a decent life.
Murthy, Vasudev, author, musician and scientist (India) writes about the Universal Declaration of Equality of Species.
Newkirk, Ingrid, founder and President of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (USA) tells about the Abattoir Remembrance Museum opening its doors.
Ovetz, Robert, PhD is Save the Leatherback Campaign Coordinator with the US based Sea Turtle Restoration Project: History of the future: The talking ocean.
Pedersen, Helena, Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Education, and Dian, Natalie organization consultant (Sweden) speak about the final end to unethical factory farming and animal transport.
Pichler, Renato (Switzerland) leads the Swiss Union for Vegetarianism (SVV) and is the President of the EVU: Flashback from the future - Today we have almost forgotten the era when, day after day, millions of animals were killed.
Reilly, Ciaran works in information technology and is a member of the EVU webcrew (Ireland). He talks about the end to the consumption of meat and freeing billions of animals from the prospect of a short, brutal life.
Rinaldi, Massimo, computer programmer (Italy): What would the world be like without meat.
Risi, Armin, philosopher, esoteric theologian, author (Switzerland): The spiritual origin of mankind - Human beings did not always eat meat!.
Ruetting, Barbara, EVU honorary board member, actress, author, health consultant and member of the Bavarian State Parliament (Germany): Go veg to heal the Earth.
Thomas Schoenberger is the President of the Vegetarier Bund Deutschlands e.V. (Germany) : A journey to 2040.
Schwartz, Richard H., Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, author, President of the Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) (USA): Imagining a vegan world.
Spencer, Elsa, Ph.D. (USA): 'A minority in a McWorld: What can vegetarians do?'
Tanabe, Lydia, working at the German cultural institute in Tokyo and freelance translator, talks about &lsquoJapan back to the roots.
Vandenbosch, Michel, President and co-founder of GAIA (Belgium): Why I don’t eat meat - The importance of empathic sensitivity and ethical kinship beyond the human species.
Wardle, Tony, journalist and associate director of animal campaign group Viva! (UK): Future vegetarians will need to be brave, knowledgeable and committed.
Witten, Ilona, writer and translator (Italy/Germany): Time to change from animal awareness to animal friendly behaviour.
=========================
4. Award-Winning Vegetarian Video to be Shown on National TV
Forwarded message from the Tribe of Heart, producers of “the Witness”:
Don't Miss THE WITNESS on LINK TV!
DIRECTV Channel 375 / DISH Network Channel 9410
Saturday, Feb. 25th at 7 PM PST / 10 PM EST
Please help us spread the word!
"The Witness is one man's truth that cries out for mass exposure... may be the most important and persuasive film about animals ever made."
—Howard Rosenberg, Los Angeles Times
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About the Film Online Preview Tribe of Heart Link TV
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How does a construction contractor from a tough Brooklyn neighborhood become an impassioned animal advocate?
In Tribe of Heart's award-winning documentary THE WITNESS, Eddie Lama explains how he feared and avoided animals for most of his life, until the love of a kitten opened his heart, inspiring him to rescue abandoned animals and bring his message of compassion to the streets of New York. With humor and sincerity, Eddie tells the story of his remarkable change in consciousness.
A favorite on the film festival circuit, The Witness has won six Best Documentary awards, a Best Short Film award, and a Best of Festival award.
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Eddie's story is about changing your life, taking a stand for those who can't and being true to what is right -- whether it's on behalf of animals or any other cause. It's a call to all of us to do something, to make a difference. In a cynical world, that is something we can't be reminded of enough.
--Alicia Silverstone
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Help us Publicize this Broadcast!
Please send this e-vite to your friends and colleagues! It only takes a couple seconds, and you can personalize your message. Just click on the "Send to a Friend" button at the top of this page. Thank you for your help!
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Eddie Lama is living proof of something that we all hope and pray is true, that one person&rsquos change of heart can change the world.
--James LaVeck, Producer of The Witness
We bring documentary films to the American viewer that extend far beyond the narrow scope of the popular media. The Witness is one of those films, made with the courage and commitment to speak on behalf of those who have no voice. The strength of the force to banish this provocative film is the very reason we chose to broadcast it.
--Toni Whiteman
Producer, Link TV
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What TV viewers are saying about The Witness:
I cannot remember being so moved by television for years.
Unbelievably powerful -- it changed my life.
I happened to catch it while flipping through channels. It was incredible and it should be on again and again until everyone sees it.
I cannot express how moved I was by The Witness... Bravo! for offering constructive, positive alternatives and actions that people can take out into the world.
Everyone needs to see this film!!!!
Tribe of Heart is a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization offering a unique fusion of artistic filmmaking, public education and programs for citizen engagement.
=========================
5. Los Angeles Jewish Vegetarian Group Celebrates Sixth Anniversary
Forwarded message from the L.A, group:
The Jewish Vegetarian Society in Los Angeles is celebrating our 6th year.
We meet once a month, on the first Sunday of each month, at Valley Beth Sholem Congregation in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles. We get together from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm.
Contact: 818-342-5555.
Thank you.
Mae
=========================
6. Israeli College Student Group Working to Improve Israel’s Environment
Forwarded message from the group:
WELCOME TO THE GREEN COURSE SITE
http://www.green.org.il/cgi-bin/v.cgi?id=green
This website is designed to give You an opportunity to get to know our organization and what we are all about.
Green Course is the only nation-wide student environmental organization in Israel and the primary “activist arm” of the environmental movement. It was founded in 1997 under the auspices of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel. Its growth and development as an independent organization now encompasses 20 chapters and over 4,000 volunteers in campuses throughout the country. University and college campuses spawn the future leadership and decision-makers of Israel, for today’s students will be at the forefront of shaping Israel's cultural, social, and scientific images for both itself and the world community...
CURRENT ISSUES BRIEFLY
Disengagement to the environmentally fragile Nitzanim area
In order to ensure a calm disengagement from the Gaza Strip this summer, the government has promised the Jewish settlers currently living there to move them as a bloc to the area of the Nitzanim sand dunes. The dunes are the last of...Nitzanim
Sustainable Transportation
The transportation campaign has once again been a major focus of Green Course this past year and will continue to be so in the years to come. Green Course organizes a national transportation day on a yearly basis throughout...
Sustainable Transportation
Fish Farming in the Gulf of Eilat
The Coral reef in the Gulf of Eilat is under increasing threat of irreversible damage. The coral reef is a fragile ecosystem and is greatly affected...
Fish Farming in Eilat
Coal Power Plant in Ashkelon
The Israel Electric Company has plans to expand the coal power plant in ashkelon despite the fact that its environmental ramifications far exceed that of any alternative. The city of Ashkelon is located ...
Coal Power Plant
The Campaign for Clean Air in Haifa
In the heart of the Haifa Bay sits an industrial center of the oil refineries and petrochemical plants. These factories are causing major air pollution that effects...
Clean Air in Haifa
We are grateful for the support to the internet web site from The Beracha Foundation
!Welcome
Enjoy our new site. We are still working on the English section, but we hope to keep it updated. Check the Hebrew part for more details
Save the Nitzanim Dunes!
Please sign our petition (in Hebrew) to stop building plans in the Nitzanim areaThe Petition
Sustainable Transport
Green Course organizes a national transportation day on a yearly basis throughout the country and strives to improve the service itself. The event is held in ...Transport
Fish Farming in the Gulf of Eilat
The Coral reef in the Gulf of Eilat is under increasing threat of irreversible damage. The coral reef is a fragile ecosystem and is greatly affected...Fish Farming
Megama Yeruka - 3 Hashfela st. Tel-Aviv 66183
Phone: 036388671 ; Fax: 035374302
megama@green.org.il
=========================
7. Are There Connections Between Vegetarianism and Feminism?
Thanks to JVNA advisor Dan Brook for forwarding the following:
Vegetarianism as Feminism
Meat as a symbol of male domination
Naama Harel
This interesting article is at the web site of Anonymous for Animal Rights, Israel’s largest animal rights group.
http://www.anonymous.org.il/e-feminism.htm
=========================
8. Vegetarian Dating Service
Forwarded message:
You might want to mention in your newsletter the new vegetarian dating site VeggieLove.com. Like the one we already mentioned, VeggieDate.com, you can search by religion. This new site is a pay site.
=========================
9. Tree of Life Institute Producing Video on Curing Type 2 Diabetes Through Live Foods and Other Lifestyle Changes/Support Sought
Forwarded message from the Tree of Life Institute:
In-Progress Film
Raw for 30-Days (working title)
People on the Journey to Heal Diabetes Naturally with Live Food and Lifestyle Awakening
A wonderful team of professionals plus volunteers are lucky enough to be
making a documentary film that really matters.I'm sure Dennis Kucinich
would approve! The film subjects are already 80% off insulin. They will be incredible testimonials backed up by medical proof of healing powers of eating vegan living foods.
We have to show the world what raw living foods can do. Please give me a call to see how you might get involved such as contacts to Drew Barrymore and other people with celebrity clout or investment financial wherewithal to give us the best production quality and recognition. You'll be giving back in a way that will make a huge difference to many, many diabetics and their loved ones. Thanks for making the world a better place with us.
Raw for 30-Days is currently, led by a Sundance Film Festival award-winning film director, documenting the journey of six Americans suffering from Adult Onset Type II Diabetes, who are undergoing a 30-day diet and lifestyle change to organic vegan live-food. First, the film documented the eating habits that led to the development of this disease. The film is documenting the subjects' transition to live food, and the speed of their reversal or reduction of their insulin dependence is impressing even Dr. Cousens. The subjects, who had been subsisting on a standard American junk food diet, are a diverse group, representative of the different segments of the population most affected by this epidemic.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Financial Opportunity To Make Loan
For further information, please contact:
Green Living Company
PO Box 621
Patagonia, AZ 85624
520-394-2600
Mark@MicroAngels.org
RE: "RAW FOR 30 DAYS" Film - Loan Investment
Dear Investor,
It was a pleasure sharing the film's vision and purpose with you. Our goal
is to entertain viewers while showing them proof that raw foods heal,
specifically diabetes type II. Our audience includes people just getting
healthy as well as long time health advocates. However, our secondary market is huge: it's the 15% of our nation that are diabetic. That's 21 million people who will have many friends saying to them "Hey have you seen this movie yet?" The return on investment is about making a difference and healing the world. But the 21 million diabetics in America could provide the film with significant revenues.
Your loan is important. Invest the amount that your heart says to, be
grateful for your good fortune and pay it forward. The time is right for the public to receive this information. And after the huge success of "Super Size Me", we are convinced a movie is the right format to reach many, many people. Diabetes is an epidemic making headlines and a solution must be found.
After completion we'll offer our film for sale to distributors to use
proceeds for expenses and to repay your investment with interest. If this
film has revenues like "Super Size Me", we would also set up a fund to teach this diet to the masses. As profits are received they will be used as
follows:
1 - First, repay all investors 100% of their loan investment.
2 - Next, pay crew members their subordinated deferred fees.
3 - Next, reimburse in-kind contributors such as the Tree Of Life, hourly
workers, etc.
4 - Next, pay investors interest with a target of 12% per year.
5 - Next, use remaining profits for scholarships for needy diabetics to
attend the Tree Of Life, also for teaching raw food preparation classes at
diabetic centers around the country.
We've invited raw and diabetic experts and celebrities to be interviewed.
Dr. Fred Bisci, Igal Madar (Johns Hopkins scientist), Woody Harrelson and
David Wolfe have accepted. We are still approaching Demi Moore, Alicia
Silverstone, Tony Robbins, Sting, Fran Drescher, Steve Jobs and Ms. America to share their experiences in the movie. So our film will be very powerful and convincing. If you have connections please make introductions for us. We welcome your participation in this community effort.
SNIP
Upon receipt of your loan investment you will receive a confirmation and
loan certificate. We'll send updates about the progress of the film and when it's completed we'll invite you, as our honored guest, to join our other investors at a grand opening showing.
With sincere thanks for being part of something bigger and making a
difference with your resources,
Mark Perlmutter
Film Originator
Michael Bedar
Promotions and Outreach Specialist
Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center
Patagonia, Arizona, U.S.A.
tel: 866-394-2520, x.209
fax: 415-598-2409
michael@treeoflife.nu
http://www.treeoflife.nu
=========================
10. Are We Approaching a Global Warming “Tipping Point?”
Forwarded message:
NY Times
There are three specific events that these scientists describe as especially worrisome and potentially imminent, although the time frames are a matter of dispute: widespread coral bleaching that could damage the world's fisheries within three decades; dramatic sea level rise by the end of the century that would take tens of thousands of years to reverse; and, within 200 years, a shutdown of the ocean current that moderates temperatures in northern Europe.
The debate has been intensifying because Earth is warming much faster than some researchers had predicted. James E. Hansen, who directs NASA's Goddard Institute of Space Studies, last week confirmed that 2005 was the warmest year on record, surpassing 1998. Earth's average temperature has risen nearly 1 degree Fahrenheit over the past 30 years, he noted, and another increase of about 4 degrees over the next century would "imply changes that constitute practically a different planet."
"It's not something you can adapt to," Hansen said in an interview. "We can't let it go on another 10 years like this. We've got to do something."
Princeton University geo-sciences and international affairs professor Michael Oppenheimer, who also advises the advocacy group Environmental Defense, said one of the greatest dangers lies in the disintegration of the Greenland or West Antarctic ice sheets, which together hold about 20 percent of the fresh water on the planet.
If either of the two sheets disintegrates, sea level could rise nearly 20 feet in the course of a couple of centuries, swamping the southern third of Florida and Manhattan up to the middle of Greenwich Village.
SNIP
=========================
11. Israeli Vegetarian Company Expanding to Europe
Local Jews, Israeli company seal joint venture with Czechs
By Dinah Spritzer
January 29, 2006
PRAGUE, Jan. 29 (JTA) — The ambitious leaders of the tiny Jewish community in the Czech town of Teplice sat around the table with government officials earlier this month, toasting the country’s first government-assisted investment deal with Israel.
Tivall, a member of Israel’s Osem Group, has agreed to set up a $30 million factory in the Teplice area, its only production plant in Europe, which will make its trademark vegetarian products such as pasta and soya.
Czech community celebrates rebirth
Young Jews rebuild in E. EuropeThe factory, the first such Israeli venture attracted by the Czech government’s investment incentive program, will create 550 jobs over several years.
The commercial success was celebrated in a lush and leafy suburb lined with luxurious villas at the Jewish community headquarters — the only Jewish building in Teplice not destroyed by the Nazis — which reopened in 2004 following a major restoration.
But some wondered if the Jewish community should play host to an investment deal. After all, what will the neighbors say?
“In the region of Usti where we are right now, unemployment is the worst in the country, more than 20 percent. Anyone having even a remote connection with decreasing that number will only be viewed in a positive light,” Michael Lichtenstein, vice president of the Teplice Jewish Community, said during a break from schmoozing with regional authorities. “Worries about Jewish stereotypes and business? Wrong country.”
The Jewish community headquarters is a thriving enterprise, housing the only café in a residential district as well as a shop selling souvenirs and kosher goodies.
In 1937, Teplice had 6,500 Jews — making it the second-largest Jewish community in what was then Czechoslovakia — and one of the largest synagogues in Europe. Now there are only 124 Jews in the town, three-quarters of them age 65 and older.
Local Jewish leaders hope Israeli business will foster Jewish growth in Teplice.
“Can you imagine how great it would be with these Israelis coming here for business and, suddenly, there will be more Jews here?” community president Oldrich Latal asked. “They can serve as such an encouragement for our members, and for those who have Jewish heritage but have not yet decided to participate in Jewish life.”
As elsewhere in the former Eastern Bloc, where those who survived the Holocaust then had to contend with anti-religious regimes, many Czechs with Jewish ancestry have not reconnected with their faith.
But Latal’s high-octane approach, including school seminars on Teplice’s Jewish history, the reconstruction of a Jewish community center in the nearby city of Most and the establishment of a community subsidiary to attract investment to the region, has raised the profile of the Teplice community.
“Before our last Chanukah celebration, we put the word out that people should come who were simply interested in the subject, and we ended up getting six people there with real Jewish roots who we had never seen before,” he said.
Latal also seeks to get people outside the Czech Republic, but who have links to Teplice, more involved with the community.
“Many people wish to be buried here. It would be nice if they came to the Jewish center in Teplice before they died,” he said, half joking.
Latal’s newest scheme is to attract Israelis to Teplice’s Baroque-style spa facilities, which once hosted luminaries such as Mozart and Goethe.
Meanwhile, for Arie Arazi, who became Israel’s ambassador to the Czech Republic three months ago, the food factory is the beginning of an economic partnership that he believes has a chance for exponential growth.
Czech Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek was due to sign a joint research and development agreement with Israel last month, but it was put on hold after Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Jan. 4 stroke.
Arazi said a similar treaty he pioneered while serving as Israeli ambassador to Korea in the late 1990s — under which Korea and Israel loaned entrepreneurs start-up costs, to be paid back with their revenues — resulted in 30 new joint ventures.
Arazi points out the special appeal of the Czechs’ relatively low-cost, high-skilled labor pool, and its strategic location for those who want to keep down production costs while having good access to Western Europe.
Just as the Israelis are the high-tech mavericks of the Middle East, the Czechs are the leading software developers in their region, with more graduates from technical universities per capita than any other country in Europe.
Then there is the Czech government’s attitude toward Israel, which Arazi assessed as “better than anywhere else in Europe.”
He added that he was impressed by the pride the Czech Republic takes in its Jewish history. Citing the Jewish Museum of Prague’s centenary celebration this year, which will result in cultural events across the country, he said, “this is a government-supported event on every level. That’s quite unusual.”
It’s also a nice change for Arazi, who recalls that when he worked at the Israeli Embassy in Japan in the mid-1990s, a survey revealed that 98 percent of the Japanese had never heard of Jerusalem.
© JTA. Reproduction of material without written permission is strictly prohibited.
=========================
12. Nutrition Director Job Open
The Nutrition Director oversees the activities of the Nutrition Department and focuses in particular on research and writing, overseeing campaigns, and effecting change in nutrition or health policy.
Required skills, attributes, and accomplishments:
o Graduate degree in Human Nutrition, Nutritional Epidemiology, Public Health Nutrition or closely related field; Ph.D. or M.D. preferred.
o Advanced knowledge of general and vegan nutrition issues.
o Excellent proven research and writing skills (nutrition-related writing sample will be required as part of application process).
o Well-developed management, planning, supervisory skills; tactical and strategic management experience managing teams involved in multiple activities.
o Knowledge of decision-making and problem-solving techniques to facilitate effective project and organizational leadership.
o Self-motivated and able to work with limited supervision.
o Ability to set deadlines and deliver work product in a very fast-paced environment.
o Good understanding of business and financial principles, demonstrated by experience managing budgets, schedules and resources.
o Developed computer skills including internet research, data management, and word processing.
o Ability to inspire confidence in staff and health care professionals.
o Self-directed worker and an effective team player.
o Commitment t the objective of the Agency
Primary duties and responsibilities:
Management and Supervision
o Support and motivate nutrition department staff to accomplish their projects in an effective and timely manner.
o Provide leadership to and serve as a role model for department staff.
o Facilitate departmental long-term planning and prioritize campaigns and projects to meet departmental and organizational goals.
o Work with other senior staff to coordinate activities.
Nutrition Education, Policy, and Outreach Activities
o Conduct literature reviews and oversee writing assignments of other employees and consultants.
o Write and edit scientific manuscripts and present findings at scientific conferences.
o Advocate vegetarian diets to the federal government, non-profit health organizations, schools, and the general public through writing, speaking, advertising campaigns, media, and other means.
o Staff Agency’s exhibits and give presentations at dietetic, medical, and health conferences.
o Provide nutrition lectures on an as needed basis.
o Promote Agency and its mission in professional settings.
Clinical Research Activities
o Support the Clinical Research Department in all aspects of Agency’s clinical trials
o Oversee data collection and management for nutrition studies, including interaction with study participants, nutrient analysis, and data coding and checking
Media Activities
o Act as a nutrition spokesperson for Agency
o Review and edit letters to the editor, press releases, and other media communications
Terms of employment: Full-time in Washington, D.C., office.
Compensation: Competitive nonprofit salary commensurate with experience, plus a comprehensive benefits package. The agency supports continuing education in related topics and membership in professional societies.
For more information please contact Hadassah Wachstock at 212-564-6500,
Email address: hadassah_joelpaul@yahoo.com
=========================
13. Los Angeles Jewish Vegetarian Group Schedules Event
Forwarded message from Janine Bronson:
Dear Richard,
Rabbi Aaron Benson is scheduled to speak at the VBS (Valley Beth Shalom) Synagogue in Encino, California on Ventura Blvd. from 2:00 PM to 3:30 on the topic of:
"The Importance of Animal Life in Judaism"
this Rabbi comes from Beth Meyers Synagogue which is on Morepark Avenue, in Studio City, California (not far from VBS) at our monthly Jewish Vegetarian meeting.
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14. Judean Date Seed Sprouts After 2,000 Years
Forwarded message from both Rabbi Dovid Sears and Yosef Hakohen:
Israel National News:
2,000-Year-Old Judean Date Seed Growing Successfully - Jan 31, '06 / 2 Shevat 5766
By Ezra HaLevi
A 2,000-year-old date seed planted last Tu B’Shvat has sprouted and is over a foot tall. Being grown at Kibbutz Ketura in the Arava, it is the oldest seed to ever produce a viable young sapling.
The Judean date seed was found, together with a large number of other seeds, during archaeological excavations carried out close to Massada near the southern end of the Dead Sea. Massada was the last Jewish stronghold following the Roman destruction of the Holy Temple over 1,930 years ago. The age of the seeds was determined using carbon dating, but has a margin of error of 50 years – placing them either right before or right after the Massada revolt.
The seeds sat in storage for thirty years until Elain Solowey of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies was asked to attempt to cultivate three of them. Solowey spoke with Israel National Radio's Yishai Fleisher and Alex Traiman about reviving the ancient date palm.
Solowey, who raised the plant, has grown over 100 rare and almost extinct species of plants. Together with Hadassah Hospital’s Natural Medicine Center, she seeks to use the plants listed in ancient remedies to seek effective uses for modern medical conditions. The Judean date has been credited with helping fight cancer, malaria and toothaches. Solowey was skeptical about the chances of success at first, but gave it a try. “I treated it in warm water and used growth hormones and an enzymatic fertilizer extracted from seaweed in order to supplement the food normally present in a seed,” she said.
As this year’s Tu B’Shvat (the Jewish new year for trees, the 15th of the Jewish month of Shvat) approaches, the young tree that sprouted from one of the three seeds now has five leaves (one was removed for scientific testing) and is 14 inches tall. Solowey has named it Metushelah (Methuselah), after the 969-year-old grandfather of Noah, the oldest human being ever.
Solowey said that although the plant’s leaves were pale at first, the young tree now looks “perfectly normal.”
The Judean palms once grew throughout the Jordan Valley, from Lake Kinneret (the Sea of Galilee) to the Dead Sea. Those from Jericho, at the northern end of the Dead Sea, were of particularly notable quality. Though dates are still grown widely in the Jordan Valley, the trees come mostly from California.
The Judean date palm trees are referred to in Psalm 92 (“The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree…”). The tree was also depicted on the ancient Jewish shekel and now appears on the modern Israeli 10-shekel coin.
It is too early to tell, but if the tree is female, it is supposed to bear fruit by 2010, after which it can be propagated to revive the Judean date palm species altogether. “It is a long road to our being able to eat the Judean date once again,” Solowey said, “but there is the possibility of restoring the date to the modern world.”
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15. Action Alert: stopping the Slaughter of Buffalos
Forwarded message from JVNA newsletter readers Sandy Snyder and Michael Hudek:
PICK UP THE PHONE AND TAKE ACTION FOR THE LAST WILD BUFFALO!
* National Call-In Day!
Thursday February 2, 2006 (8:30-5:00 MST)
America's first national park, Yellowstone, is a world heritage site, biosphere reserve and home to the country's last wild and migrating herd of buffalo. It is also the site of the worst buffalo slaughter since the winter of 1996-1997. Yellowstone has taken these recent actions to "protect" one landowner's livestock interests.With this year's wild buffalo migration just beginning; more wild buffalo slaughter is very likely to happen again soon. This behavior by the National Park Service is outrageously unacceptable and everyone who cares about wild buffalo must make their voices heard for the last wild herd!
Review video of what Yellowstone has been doing our last wild buffalo.
JOIN US FOR A NATIONAL CALL-IN DAY, THURSDAY, February 2!
Citizens across the country are urged to join friends at BFC, the Animal Welfare Institute, the Humane Society of the United States and other wild bison advocates to rattle the cages of two responsible parties: Yellowstone National Park and the Church Universal & Triumphant. Make their phones ring off the hook in the name of the last wild buffalo!
WHO TO CALL:
1. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK SUPERINTENDENT SUZANNE LEWIS (307-344-2002)
Tell her that the National Park Service is mandated to protect bison, not slaughter them for the sake of livestock interests. Tell her that Yellowstone's participation in the slaughter of the last wild buffalo is shameful and unacceptable. Tell her that the Park should work to secure critical habitat for wild buffalo outside of Park boundaries. Just speak from your heart for the buffalo and tell her how you feel.
2. CHURCH UNIVERSAL & TRIUMPHANT (CUT), KATE GORDON, PRESIDENT
(800-245-5445)
Tell CUT to finalize the agreement that was started in 1999 and to coexist with wild buffalo. Remind CUT that they took millions from the American people and that money was exchanged for land to be used by wildlife, including wild buffalo.
WHY THESE CALLS FOR THE WILD BUFFALO ARE SO CRITICAL:
Since mid-January, Yellowstone National Park has captured and killed more than one-tenth of the existing herd of the country's last wild buffalo. Yellowstone National Park captured 672 wild buffalo in the Stephens Creek Capture Facility, located inside the boundaries of the world's first national park, sending 583 to slaughter and 87 wild bison calves to a quarantine facility, 50 percent of which will be slaughtered.
Brucellosis is the supposed reason for the aggressive management scheme. There has never been a case of any wild buffalo transmitting the European livestock disease, brucellosis, back to the cattle they got it from. The burden should not be the wild buffalo's! The livestock industry should take responsibility and practice cattle-based risk management. More info is at http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK SUPERINTENDENT SUZANNE LEWIS
(307-344-2002)
CHURCH UNIVERSAL & TRIUMPHANT (CUT), KATE GORDON, PRESIDENT
(800-245-5445)
The National Park Service touts the Interagency Bison Management Plan as justification for their actions, yet the plan is, in part, set up to protect a wild, free-roaming herd of buffalo. "Free-roaming" and "wild" mean migration for buffalo, but the Park Service blocks this natural motion, like damming a great river. So they do not protect. They harm. They impair. The buffalo shouldn't find a foe in the National Park Service, yet there is no friendship. Instead of being a voice for the last wild buffalo, the Park Service has become a puppet for cattle business. The Plan states that the Park Service "may" kill, it doesn't state that they MUST. They have a choice. They have wrongly chosen slaughter. The people must act.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK SUPERINTENDENT SUZANNE LEWIS
(307-344-2002)
CHURCH UNIVERSAL & TRIUMPHANT (CUT), KATE GORDON, PRESIDENT
(800-245-5445)
Our last wild buffalo are being denied habitat and dying because of less than 200 cattle that graze along the Park's northern boundary near Gardiner, Montana - land that was supposed to benefit wild buffalo. The Royal Teton Ranch, owned by the Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT), lies in the middle of North America's largest migration corridor, just across the northern boundary of Yellowstone National Park. In 1999, U.S. taxpayers spent $13 million for conservation easements that would allow wild buffalo and other wildlife to access this migration corridor along portions of CUT's property. Yet, the buffalo continue to die. The American people were lead to believe that the money spent would benefit buffalo, but nothing has changed. CUT got the $13 million and the buffalo got killing fields. CUT is beginning to feel some pressure about their involvement in wild buffalo slaughter, and we must keep it on.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK SUPERINTENDENT SUZANNE LEWIS
(307-344-2002)
CHURCH UNIVERSAL & TRIUMPHANT (CUT), KATE GORDON, PRESIDENT
(800-245-5445)
How many more buffalo must die before the injustice to their species ends? How long will the people stand for the livestock industry controlling our wildlife and wild lands? How much longer will the American people and the wild buffalo have to take the insults from our National Park Service?
We must all raise our voices together in defense of the last wild buffalo!
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK SUPERINTENDENT SUZANNE LEWIS
(307-344-2002)
CHURCH UNIVERSAL & TRIUMPHANT (CUT), KATE GORDON, PRESIDENT
(800-245-5445)
Thank you for making these important phone calls and for your support of our efforts to protect the last wild buffalo left in America. Please spread the word to save the herd!
With the Buffalo,
Buffalo Field Campaign
Media & Outreach
Buffalo Field Campaign
P.O. Box 957
West Yellowstone, MT 59758
406-646-0070
bfc-media@wildrockies.org
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org
BFC is the only group working in the field every day to defend the last wild herd of buffalo in America.
STOP THE HUNT! Call Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer:
Phone #: 406-444-3111
Stay informed! Get our weekly email Updates from the Field:
Send your email address to Stop-the-Slaughter-on@vortex.wildrockies.org
BOYCOTT BEEF! It's what's killing wild buffalo.
Speak Out! Contact politicians and involved agencies today!
Write a Letter to the Editor of key newspapers!
Help the buffalo by recycling your used cell phones & printer cartridges!
It's free and easy.
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16. Evangelicals Do Not Reach Consensus on Global Warming
Thanks to author Yosef Hakohen for forwarding the following article:
[Another reason for Jews to provide leadership on this issue.]
Evangelicals Will Not Take Stand on Global Warming
By Alan Cooperman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, February 2, 2006; A08
The National Association of Evangelicals said yesterday that it has been unable to reach a consensus on global climate change and will not take a stand on the issue, disappointing environmentalists who had hoped that evangelical Christians would prod the Bush administration to soften its position on global warming.
Over the past four years a growing number of evangelical groups have embraced environmental causes, urging Christians to engage in "Creation care" and campaigning against gas-guzzling SUVs with advertisements asking, "What would Jesus drive?"
In October 2004 the leadership of the NAE, which says it has 30 million members and is the nation's largest evangelical organization, declared that mankind has "a sacred responsibility to steward the Earth and not a license to abuse the creation of which we are a part." At about the same time, the umbrella group's president, the Rev. Ted Haggard of Colorado Springs, called the environment "a values issue."
But this fledgling movement -- dubbed the "greening of evangelicals" in a front-page Washington Post article a year ago -- has also met internal resistance. In a letter to Haggard last month, more than 20 evangelical leaders urged the NAE not to adopt "any official position" on global climate change because "Bible-believing evangelicals . . . disagree about the cause, severity and solutions to the global warming issue."
The letter's signers amounted to a Who's Who of politically powerful evangelicals, including Charles W. Colson, founder of Prison Fellowship Ministries; James C. Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family; the Rev. D. James Kennedy of Coral Ridge Ministries; the Rev. Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention; Richard Roberts, president of Oral Roberts University; Donald E. Wildmon, chairman of the American Family Association; and the Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition.
In a written statement yesterday, Haggard denied reports that the NAE had circulated a draft paper calling for the Bush administration to support mandatory limits on carbon dioxide emissions.
"Allow me to confirm at the outset that the NAE is not circulating any official document on the environment. We are not considering a position on global warming. We are not advocating for specific legislation or government mandates," Haggard said. His statement added that the NAE's executive committee recently passed a motion "recognizing the ongoing debate" on global warming and "the lack of consensus among the evangelical community on this issue."
Calvin DeWitt, a professor of environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin who is a leading evangelical supporter of environmental causes, called the statement "a retreat and a defeat."
"A year ago, it looked as though evangelicals would become a strong, collective voice for what we call 'Creation care' and others may call environmentalism," he said. "This will have negative consequences for the ability of evangelicals to influence the White House, unfortunately and sadly."
But E. Calvin Beisner, professor of social ethics at Knox Theological Seminary, a conservative Presbyterian school in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., applauded the NAE's non-position.
Beisner, who helped draft the letter to Haggard from evangelical leaders, said they had feared that the NAE was going "to assume as true certain things that we think are still debatable, such as that global warming is not only real but also almost certainly going to be catastrophically harmful; second, that it is being driven to a significant extent by human activity; and third, that some regime, some international treaty for mandatory reductions in CO2 emissions, could make a significant enough drop in global emissions to justify the costs to the human economy."
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