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From the Israeli scientist that brought you crossword puzzles for the blind…bigger and better things for the visually challenged…

Israeli scientists develop ‘virtual cane’

Hebrew University unveils innovation which could significantly improve orientation, mobility of sight-impaired people

Reprinted from ynetnews.com

Yissum Research Development Company Ltd, the technology transfer company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem presented a major new innovation – a virtual cane that will significantly improve the orientation and mobility of sight-impaired people.

The new device can assist blind people in estimating the distance and height of various obstacles. The invention was patented by Yissum, which is now seeking strategic partners for further development.

Dr. Amir Amedi from the Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC) and at Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC) at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and his team recently developed the device to help in spatial navigation for the blind.

Unlike a white stick that can give the blind input from only a meter away, the device can function at a much shorter distance and up to some 10 meters in all directions. Dr. Amedi said the device can also distinguish between smiling and sad faces and can be used for research on how the brain flexibly changes upon receiving input and on brain reorganization in the blind.

Amedi added that the blind user functions like a dolphin or bat, with sonar-type signals reacting to surroundings.

The invention, which was unveiled at the Presidential Conference last week, functions as a virtual flashlight and can replace or augment the classic white cane. The virtual cane emits a focused beam towards surrounding objects, and transmits the information to the user via a gentle vibration, similar to a cell phone vibration.

A Yissum press release noted that the cane incorporates several sensors that estimate the distance between the user and the object it is pointed at. This allows the blind person to assess the height and distance of various objects, reconstruct an accurate image of the surroundings and navigate safely.

The virtual cane is extremely small, easy to carry, accurate, can function for up to 12 hours and is easy to charge. Using the device is highly intuitive and can be learnt within a few minutes.

Yaacov Michlin, CEO of Yissum said, “Dr. Amedi’s promising invention can endow visually impaired people with the freedom to freely navigate in their surroundings without unintentionally bumping into or touching other people and thus has the potential to significantly enhance their quality of life.”

Yissum is a Research Development Company of the Hebrew University and was founded in 1964 to protect and commercialize the Hebrew University’s intellectual property.

Their product is windows that protect a building’s occupants from radiation, while generating power at the same time…
Brilliant!…Israeli ingenuity…

Pythagoras Solar Window

GE awards Israeli startup $100,000 ‘Ecomagination’ grant

Pythagoras Solar creates windows that protect against solar radiation and produce useable energy, CEO says.

Reprinted from jpost.com

GE awards Israeli startup $100,000 ‘Ecomagination’ grant
By SHARON UDASIN
06/27/2011 04:33

Pythagoras Solar creates windows that protect against solar radiation and produce useable energy, CEO says.
Talkbacks (1)

An Israeli solar company that employs windows to both block solar radiation and harness energy from the sun has received a $100,000 grant from General Electric and partners’ “Ecomagination” program, the corporation announced this weekend.

The company, called Pythagoras Solar, is one of five firms to win an Innovation Award from the program’s “Powering Your Home” challenge, in which GE invested $63 million this round and also provided sizeable awards to 10 commercial partners in addition to the smaller firms. Currently in its second year, the challenge has now provided a total of $200 million worth of funds to 22 commercial corporations and 10 startups in total, with an aim of “accelerating the global development of clean energy technologies,” the corporation said. A panel of independent judges selected the winners and included Wired Magazine editor Chris Anderson, executives from GE and academics leaders from the field, according to a statement from the company.

“We knew that GE recognized that this technology could have a huge impact on the way buildings are being built,” co-founder and CEO of Pythagoras Solar, Golan Fink, told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.

“This is the part of the award that we are most happy about and feel good about the validation and feedback we have.” Pythagoras, established by Golan Fink and partner Dr.

Itay Baruchi in 2007, employs a technology called “Building Integrated Photovoltaics,” which aims to achieve “netzero buildings” in terms of energy consumption.

“The windows themselves include a combination of optical devices and solar cells,” Fink explained. “The unique thing about this combination is that the optical device manipulates sunlight so that instead of getting into the room, the direct radiation is used for generating clean solar energy. It produces energy and also shades the room.” While the company currently has five pilots running – three in the United States and two in Israel – the most longrunning trial has been going on now for six months at the Sears Tower in Chicago, Illinois, according to Fink.

“The Sears Tower itself is looking at the project as part of retrofitting the building,” he said. “Even though Chicago is not the best place for concentrated solar energy, it still suffers from getting too much heat.

“We are looking for this to be the greenest building in the US,” he continued.

They wanted to evaluate this technology because of its unique combination of solar power generation and energy efficiency.” Pythagoras is also in the process of evaluating several potential projects in China, Fink added.

“There is a lot of construction happening in China, and they are not on the forefront of energy efficiency,” he said.

“There are some projects there that are moving more and more toward the green construction industry.” While the company is currently in the process of developing a type of window that would be more appropriate for residential locations, Fink said that the current models – which will hit commercial markets in the US by the end of this year – are better suited for larger buildings at the moment.

“It’s more relevant for buildings with significant amount of glass,” he said, noting, however, that the building need not be as tall as the Sears Tower.

“The current product is less applicable for residential windows because you need a large surface of glass to make this economical.” Fink added that the company hopes to move to marketing larger volumes of installations by next year.

In addition to Pythagoras Solar, the other four startup winners this year were British firm E.quinox for its renewable energy in developing countries, as well as American companies PlotWatt for its smart meter analysis, Suntulit for its climate control systems and Xergy for its green refrigeration systems, according to GE.

GE’s decision to include the Israeli firm among its winners comes just shortly after the corporation opened a multidisciplinary research and development center in Israel, where it will host local projects in medical technologies, clean energy and water – with the hopes of advancing technology by partnering with Israeli companies and academics, the corporation said.

Presumably, this Israeli-made and designed unmanned drone will help Chile become a more civilized, law-abiding country, with safer, more secure borders…

It should also keep illegal drugs from flowing into or out of Chile and other neighboring countries…

Israeli Elbit Hermes 900 UAV

I can only hope that Chile will not be one of a rapidly growing group of South American countries planning to support the unilateral declaration of an illegal palestinian state by Fatah on Israel’s land come September…
What ever happened to old-fashioned gratitude, even if your moral compass happens to be askew????

Chile Becomes First Foreign Country to Buy Elbit’s New UAV

Reprinted from israelidiamond.co.il

Chile has become the first foreign country to buy the new Hermes 900 UAV from Elbit Systems. The amount of the deal has not been published, but is estimated to be worth tens of millions of dollars. In addition, Elbit will supply ground control stations and payload systems. According to sources in the industry, Chile will deploy the Hermes 900 UAV for reconnaissance missions along its coast, which will save money. The IAF is testing the Hermes 900, and the model is expected to be cleared as operational within a few months.

The depth and breadth of thinking brought out by this incredible land that we live in can be truly astonishing…

And…Yeshiva high school life in Israel…
All this and MORE…

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Need I say more?

Somethings are eternal…

When compulsory military service is added to the mix, things become a bit more complex…

Duty calls, and it becomes a critical part of the “growing up” experience for a teenager in Israel…

A teenager studying in a zionistic yeshiva high school probes even deeper, to the depths of the religious and spiritual dimensions of the daily news headlines…

Their love for the Land of Israel can be unequaled, as can their pain at the thought of a Jewish government willingly abandoning part of our Divine Heritage…

Yeshiva Tichonit Kiryat Arba AKA “YATKA”, Kiryat Arba Yeshiva High School…

I cannot think of a better environment for a Jewish teenager to spend his high school years…

Israeli Policemen Shot in Cold Blood

These Israeli cops were merely doing their job…on their way to their assigned posts in Hebron on route 60. They were ambushed and shot…Cold-blooded murder…

Israel has no peace partners…We are at war…We MUST win the war…Don’t even start with “Two state solutions”…

Police officer killed and two wounded in West Bank shooting

Gunmen ambush police vehicle on road 60 carrying officers to duty stations in Hebron.

Reprinted from Haaretz.com

A police officer was killed and two others wounded in a shooting attack on their vehicle outside the West Bank city of Hebron on Monday morning, police said.
An wounded police officer arrives at a Jerusalem hospital after a West Bank shooting, June 14, 2010

An wounded police officer arrives at a Jerusalem hospital after a West Bank shooting, June 14, 2010
Photo by: Olivier Fitussi

All three were evacuated by helicopter to Hadassa hospital in Jerusalem, emergency services said, as the army began scouring the area for the attackers.

A doctor at Hadassa said the most severely wounded officer was in critical condition when he arrived at the hospital after being shot in the stomach. He later died of his wounds.

Army Radio reported that a fourth officer received treatment – possibly for shock.

Gunmen opened fire on the police vehicle as it traveled on road 60, north of Hebron, carrying officers to duty stations in the city.

Initial investigations suggest the shooting was a planned ambush.

“This was definitely a terrorist attack. It was carried out on an ordinary police vehicle and forces are now combing the scene,” said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.

Settler anger

Following the shooting, the head of the Civil Administration, the Israeli military authority that governs the West Bank, accused Palestinian Authority leaders of not enough to prevent violence. Brig-Gen. Yoav Mordechai said the attack was a “serious incident” that could not be overlooked.

Settler leaders turned on the government, saying the attack was a result of government moves to lift restrictions on Palestinians in the West Bank.

Michael Ben-Ari, a Knesset member for the right-wing National Union party, said: “The writing was on the wall. Opening roadblocks encourages terror and gives a free hand to terrorists.”

A spokesman for the Yesha Council, which represents the settler movement, said: “Sharing security responsibilities with the Palestinians, as the IDF has done across Judea and Samaria [the West Bank] and in Hebron in particular, cannot bring security and Israel’s soldiers and citizens are paying the price in blood.”

According to B’Tselem, a human rights group, the number of manned checkpoints inside the West Bank, went down from 63 to 44 in the past year. Eighteen of the checkpoints are in Hebron.

Second shooting in weeks

Last month two Israelis were hurt by broken glass when bullets hit their car on a different stretch of the same road.

The Imad Mughniyeh Group of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for that attack.

In March 2009, two policemen were killed when gunmen opened fire on their car on road 90, also in the West Bank.

If you are an Israeli ex-patriot and have been living abroad for six years or more, here’s some GREAT news for you…

Jews Coming Home

You can come home MUCH more easily, now that the government is going to grant you “new immigrant” status…which means $$$’s for you!

We’re talking serious tax breaks and discounts, as well as awesome health benefits…Time to come home, brothers and sisters…

Returning expats to get immigrant status

Israeli citizens living abroad for over six years will receive tax, health benefits upon return

Reprinted from Ynetnews.com Itamar Eichner

The state is offering all expatriates a “new immigrant” status if they return to Israel, the Immigrant Absorption Ministry announced Wednesday. The status carries government benefits and large tax exemptions.

The number of returning expatriates dropped significantly in 2010 and the plan, devised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in cooperation with the ministry, aims to bring back at least 75,000 of them from their various locales around the world.

On Sunday the government is set to approve the plan, which states that anyone who has lived abroad for six years or more will be handed the same benefits as a newly arrived immigrant. It has been said to cost over $25 million.

Immigrants arriving in Israel receive three income tax allowance points for the first year and a half of their stay. They are also exempt from sales tax, VAT, and customs on goods for the home. In addition, they receive a significant discount on new vehicles.

The plan also requires a change in the state’s national health insurance law. Currently, returning expatriates are not eligible for health insurance for the first year and a half of their stay and until after they have paid a sum of $2,400. According to the new plan, the waiting period and charge will be waived.

“State support for absorption of returning residents will contribute to the strengthening of its economy,” Netanyahu said Wednesday.

Avi Feldman, who lives in Los Angeles, said the plan was “certainly something that can make me think twice”.

Mahmoud Abbas..Not Really Negotiating

Everyone is all excited that the Israelis and palestinians are returning to the negotiating table, albeit, for “indirect” peace talks…

But as I listen to all the reports today, I see that the palestinians are not really returning to talks at all, nor are they planning on negotiating anything.

It turns out that the palestinians have agree to return to indirect talks to decide whether or not they will return to indirect talks!…They have not yet officially agreed even to this…And THAT is only on the condition that the Americans give them guarantees in advance that the rigid, unrealistic position of the Arab League vs. Israel will be adopted before any talking even starts…And that is only if the Israels agree in advance to stop building homes for their citizens anywhere that the palestinians decide that they should not build, including all of Jerusalem, the Capital City of Israel…

And it seems that, indeed, the Americans ARE giving those guarantees in advance! Apparently, this is what serves US President Obama’s agenda, and the heck with Israel…

How stupid…how dangerous…what a waste of Israel’s time and energy…

Abbas Calls Israel ‘Extremist;’ Netanyahu to Meet Mitchell

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said Wednesday that the Israeli government is “extremist” and must halt all building for Jews on land claimed by the PA before it agrees to American-mediated talks. Asked if he would sit down to talk if Israel continues to build Jewish homes on land claimed by the PA, Abbas said, “Certainly not. This is our land.”

Reprinted from Israelnationalnews.com Tzvi Ben Gedlyahu

The harsh words, stated in an interview with CNN a day after consultations with Saudi Arabia, came hours before Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is to meet with U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell in what so far are one-sided talks.

If the PA officially agrees to turn the discussions into a two-sided affair, the okay will not come before Saturday, when senior PA officials meet. Nevertheless, Mitchell is scheduled to meet with Abbas on Friday, after sitting down with Netanyahu Wednesday afternoon. At the same time, Abbas is in Egypt for consultations following a conference with Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah in preparation for presenting to Mitchell conditions for a PA state.

The “negotiations” that the Obama administration propose are theoretical because the PA has said the only subject on the table is for Israel to accept the Arab world’s position. The PA probably will not refuse to approve the talks unless it is sure it can place a diplomatic failure on Israel’s shoulders for its refusal to accept its conditions.

Neither Israel nor the PA has wanted to take the blame for failure of the Obama administration’s latest Middle East diplomatic move, but each side has tried to paint the other as being guilty for not agreeing to meet in good faith.

IDF Intelligence officer Brig. Gen. Yosef Baidatz told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Tuesday, “Abbas is preparing the ground for the talks to fail. He believes the failure will expose Israel’s true face. He is pessimistic about the outcome and believes the ball is in Israel’s court.”

The mediated talks, if they take place in effect are between Israel and the Arab world, represented by the PA. The issue of a new PA country, including Jerusalem’s holiest sites, is at the center of an Arab strategy to force Israel to surrender all of the land that was occupied by Jordan and Egypt before the Six-Day War in 1967.

Since taking over the PA after the death of Yasser Arafat five years ago, Abbas has leaned heavily on the Arab world and its allies for advice and support. He told the Saudi Arabian newspaper Okaz on Tuesday, “The support of the kingdom to our cause springs from its strong belief that what it is doing for the Palestinian cause is a duty dictated on it by its conscience and its faith.”

On Wednesday night, the Israeli Deputy Consul to England (who also happens to be female) delivered a lecture to a political science club at the University of Manchester. She was viciously attacked by pro-palestinian protestors as she went to her car after the lecture and forced to flee back inside the lecture hall. Police were summoned, who were subsequently also attacked by the rioters.

I heard the report of the attack on Israel Radio minutes after it happened. The next day, I searched all the news outlets for a report on, what I considered to be a very severe and extremely upsetting incident…Nothing…nada…gurnisht…Not a word in the press from anywhere around the world. Only today,4 days later did I find this short report of the attack on the Israeli Consul in England…but only in a rabidly pro-palestinian, anti-Israel arabic website!!

A physical, violent attack on an Israeli government official in England…on a university campus…followed by a violent attack on London policemen…

Wouldn’t you think that this was a rather upsetting event?

But no press coverage…no outrage…Are the British really so afraid of their new third column…the arabs???

If I were a Jew living in England, I just might be packing my bags about now…

Palestinians Attack the Israeli Deputy Consul to Britain

British protesters attack Israel’s deputy envoy

Pro-Palestinian protesters stormed at Zionist regime’s deputy ambassador to Britain Talya Lador-Fresher after her lecture at the University of Manchester on Wednesday

Reprinted from AhluBayt News Agency

The protesters were waiting for Lador-Fresher outside the lecture hall and immediately upon her exit, the protesters lunged at the diplomat, prompting security guards to whisk her back into the hall.

Following a consultation on the site, it was decided to escort her out of the premises in a police car.

The deputy ambassador was removed from the hall and into the police vehicle. However, this did not block the protesters, who surrounded the car and climbed on the hood, trying to break the windshield.

Lador-Fresher ultimately was taken away from the scene safe and sound.

Lador-Fresher’s lecture at the university was delayed by a few weeks out of concerns for her safety after information was received that violent protests were being organized.

The First Israeli in Space: Ilan Ramon

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Ilan Ramon was Israel’s first astronaut. He was mission specialist on the crew of the Space Shuttle, Columbia, launched into space on the 16th of January, 2003. The Columbia and all of her crew were lost in a fiery explosion while re-entering the earth’s atmosphere two weeks later, on February first, after 15 days, 22 hours and 20 minutes in space.

Ilan Ramon

Ilan Ramon, z”l perished on February 1, 2003 with his crew friends during reentry of the Columbia shuttle, 16 minutes before scheduled landing. He was buried in Nahalal Cemetery in his homeland, Israel on February 11, 2003.

In 1981, IAF Col. Ilan Ramon flew one of the F-16 jets that blew up the Iraqi nuclear reactor in Osirak. In so doing he saved the country and perhaps the entire world from the specter of a nuclear holocaust.

Ilan Ramon Space Shuttle Crew

Ilan Ramon was not simply a Jew. He was an Israeli Jew. And, as a scientist and fighter pilot his was the face of Israeli exceptionalism. Ramon excelled in all he did. He was first in his class in high school. He was first in his class in flight school. He was first in his class in astronaut training. In a break from the Air Force in the 1980s, after completing his studies in electrical engineering and computer science at Tel-Aviv University, Ramon joined the team at Israel Aircraft Industries that developed the Lavi fighter jet. On the Columbia, Ramon conducted environmental research on desertification.

Petr Ginz

“Being the first Israeli astronaut — I feel I am representing all Jews and all Israelis”

Ramon made clear at every opportunity that he went to outer space, not simply as a citizen of the State of Israel, but as a Jew.

He took with him into Outer space several symbols of his Jewish identity:a picture of the Earth as seen from the moon drawn by a Jewish boy in Theresienstadt concentration camp, a torah scroll from Bergen Belsen, a microfiche copy of the bible, the national flag and a prayer book.

As the representative of the Jewish people he recited kiddush over wine on Friday night. As a Jew he said Shema Yisrael as the space shuttle orbited over Jerusalem. As a Jew he insisted on eating only kosher food in outer space.

And as a Jew he told the Prime Minister from his celestial perch,

Space Shuttle Columbia Launch

“I think it is very, very important to preserve our historical tradition, and I mean historical and religious traditions.”

Ilan Ramon

Ilan Ramon (1954-2003), the first Israeli astronaut

Born on June 20, 1954, Ramat-Gan, Israel (Parents, Eliezer and Tova Wolferman reside in Beer-Sheva).

Died on February 1, 2003 during reentry of the Columbia Shuttle into the atmosphere.

Survived by wife Rona, and four children, Assaf, Tal, Yiftah and Noa.

Israel will be displaying her ground-breaking contributions to the fields of clean energy, medicine and technology in Boston next month.

Check it out if you are in the Boston area this May, 2010.

On the other hand, you COULD see it all, up close and personal in Israel…just takes an airline ticket…

Boston Museum of Science

Boston to host Israeli innovation exhibit

Museum of Science fair in May to highlight groundbreaking developments being made by Israelis, Israeli institutions in clean energy, medicine, and technology

Reprinted from Ynetnews.com

A weekend of programming showcasing Israeli innovation will culminate at 9 am on Sunday, May 2, during a technology fair at the Museum of Science in Boston.

The fair – co-sponsored by the Consulate General of Israel to New England – will include addresses by Prof. Peretz Lavie, president of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology; Dr. Rafael Beyar, CEO and Director General of Rambam Health Care Campus; Michael Granoff – Better Place; and many others.

The event will highlight the groundbreaking developments being made by Israelis and Israeli institutions in clean energy, medicine, and technology.

Visitors will be able to see Israel’s progress on its plan to be the first country to have a majority of electric cars on its roads; efforts to be a pioneer in solar and wind energy; and thriving innovative economy.

Educational exhibits will be sponsored by the following Israeli universities and institutions: The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology; Rambam Medical Center; Hadassah Medical Center; New England-Israel Business Council; Jewish Heart for Africa; Bloomfield Science Museum; and South Area Solomon Schecter Day School.

The Alan J. Tichnor Memorial Event will conclude on Sunday evening at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation Mishkan Tefila with a keynote panel discussion on the future of Israeli innovation and technology, featuring senior leadership from Israeli universities and moderated by Dan Senor, Author of Start-up Nation; The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle. The discussion will include greetings from the academic community delivered by Dr. Jehuda Reinharz, President of Brandeis University.

Sunday’s event at the Museum of Science requires Exhibit Hall Ticket, and is free to Museum of Science members. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit http://www.iiweekend.com .

Alzheimers is such a cruel disease, stealing our loved ones away from us right before our eyes…only they still are there…they just are not who they used to be any more…

But not for long, if Israeli researchers have anything to say about it…which they will…

A new Israeli drug…high hopes and great promise…

Alzheimers Brain

New Israeli Drug for Alzheimer’s Disease in Advanced Trials

A novel medication designed to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and improve its psychological symptoms is entering advanced clinical trials

Reprinted from Israelnationalnews.com Hana Levi Julian

The drug, Ladostigil, has proven in Phase I and II-A trials to be safe and well-tolerated, enabling the company to proceed with an additional 52-week proof-of-efficacy trial in patients with Alzheimer’s disease.

Israeli-based Avraham Pharmaceuticals received an infusion of $9 million that allowed the project to go forward. Investors include the Yissum Research Development Company — the technology transfer arm of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem — Clal Biotechnology Industries (CBI), Pontifax and Professor Marta Weinstock-Rosin.

If all goes well and the medication goes to market, Yissum and the Technion Research and Development Foundation (TRDF) – the technology transfer arm of the Technion Israel Institute of Technology – will exclusively license to Avraham the commercial licensing rights to the drug.

Ladostigil is a novel cholinesterase inhibitor, brain-selective monoamine oxidase inhibitor and neuroprotective agent designed to slow the progression of the clinical symptoms of the disease for a sustained period. It may also possibly modify its pathology, as well as that of other neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s.

It is a multi-functional medication that may also improve the behavioral and psychological symptoms, such as anxiety and depression, that are associated with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.

Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, affecting one in every 20 individuals worldwide age 65 and older, and nearly half of those over age 85. In 2009, 5.3 million people were affected by Alzheimer’s disease in the United States, where some 360,000 people are diagnosed with it each year.

Professor Weinstock-Rosin, connected with Hebrew University’s School of Pharmacy, has been involved in Alzheimer’s research for years. She and Professor Moussa B.H. Youdim of the Eve Top and National Parkinson Foundation Centers of Excellence Rappaport School of Medicine at the Technion in Haifa collaborated on developing the concept for Ladostigil.

It was Weinstock-Rosin’s research that led to the discovery and development of Exelon, a medication used to treat Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, licensed to Novartis Pharma AG. Youdim was responsible for the discovery and development of Azilect, a new treatment for Parkinson’s, licensed to Israel-based Teva Pharmaceuticals.

Once again, the Jewish People are fulfilling our mandate, given by the Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai, to be a “Light unto the nations”. The Israeli parliament (knesset) will be leading the rally around the world to bring the price of popcorn in movie theaters to realistic levels. As a kid, I never COULD buy popcorn when I went to the movies…just too expensive. Now, maybe impoverished youth worldwide will be able to enjoy their favorite flic while happily crunching on exploded corn kernels. We can only hope and pray that the dire prophecies of doom being chanted by the movie theater companies. THEY claim that their entire business is supported by sales of the white manna at puffed-up prices.
Lead on, Israeli lawmakers…

Popcorn

Israeli politician moves to limit the soaring price of popcorn


Israel may curb the high price of popcorn and soft drinks – which global cinema chains claim keeps them in business

Reprinted from The Guardian Ben Childs

It is the source of angst for cinemagoers worldwide – why is the price of popcorn so high? Now an Israeli politician is threatening to introduce legislation that would ban cinemas in the country from overcharging for snacks and soft drinks.

Carmel Shama of the governing Likud party will attempt to introduce the measure when Israeli MPs return from their Passover break next week. He claims to have cross-party support for the move, which is fiercely opposed by cinema chains and other public entertainment venues where it would apply, such as sports stadiums and concert venues.

“We have to put an end to this. The public should not have to mortgage their houses for a soft drink and a snack,” Shama tells today’s Yediot Aharonot newspaper.

A large box of popcorn costs about $5 in Israeli cinemas, more than double what it would be in a supermarket and 10 times what it would cost to make at home. Yet Yaacov Cohen, owner of one of Israel’s largest chains, said cinema owners made virtually no profit from ticket sales and would struggle to survive if food sales were limited. “It would destroy the entire industry,” he told Yediot.

Two years ago, researchers from Stanford and the University of California in Santa Cruz found that members of the public were not being ripped off over the cost of popcorn and other confectionery – because profits were used to subsidise cinema tickets. While they accounted for only about 20% of gross revenues, food and drink sales represented some 40% of cinema profits, the researchers found. This was because 100% of proceeds went straight into an exhibitor’s coffers, while ticket revenues were shared with movie distributors.

…and Egypt is a country that is at PEACE with Israel!!! They won’t even let a film made by an Israeli director be shown at a festival in Cairo. The film has nothing to do, whatsoever, with Israel, Jews or Judaism, but the fact that an Israeli was involved in making it is enough to ban it from Egypt. It’s about a 12-year-old boy searching for his birthday, for crying out loud!
Intellectual freedom at its best…
A true international exchange of culture…
If there is such hatred present in countries with whom Israel is at peace…can you imagine the depth of this evil in Israel’s enemies?

Cairo

Israeli film removed from Egypt festival

‘Almost Normal’ deprogrammed from film festival organized by French Cultural Center in Cairo, after Egyptian jury member protests against fact that director is Israeli

Reprinted from Ynetnews.com /

According to Ennahar Online, a short film has been deprogrammed from a film festival in Cairo after an Egyptian jury member protested against the fact that the director is Israeli.

The short film, directed by Keren Ben Rafael, is titled “Almost Normal” and tells the story of a 12-year-old boy searching for his birthday.

It was to be shown in a film festival organized by the French Cultural Center in Cairo and the National Center for Egyptian Cinema, but withdrawn after Egyptian director Atef Ahmed protested its inclusion.

Though he resigned his post as a board member of the festival “Rencontres de l’Image”, scheduled for April, the CFCC and services of the Embassy of France also decided not to reinstate him in the jury.

Israeli NBA star Omri Casspi is proud to be an Israeli…and Israel is proud of Omri Casspi…

Israeli NBA Star Omri Casspi

Omri Casspi ‘proud to be Israeli’

Israeli Consulate in Boston holds special reception for Sacramento Kings forward. ‘His success in basketball is an example of the State of Israel’s success,’ says Consul General Nadav Tamir

Reprinted from Ynetnews.com

The Israeli Consulate in Boston on Thursday night held a special festive reception for Sacramento Kings forward Omri Casspi, a day before his team faced the Boston Celtics at TD Garden.

American Jews who attended the event received flags and shirts of Israel. Casspi handed out signatures to children and other fans and gave an interview to a local television station.

“We are glad to host Omri in Boston,” said Israeli Consul General Nadav Tamir. “He is proud to be Israeli and we Israelis are proud of him. His big success in the field of basketball is an example of the State of Israel’s success in many fields, against all odds, thanks to a lot of creativity and courage.”

The Sacramento Kings were beaten 93-79 on Wednesday night by the New Jersey Nets. Sacramento played its third straight game without guard Tyreke Evans, who leads all rookies with 20.3 points per game.

“Jewish” wine, that is, wines from Israel, have become far more than the syrupy sweet Manischewitz cough syrup that my generation grew up with at home and at synagogue.
Israel grows and processes a wide variety of very fine wines of all types, available at all prices.
We will be enjoying them at our Passover seder…no reason for my Christian friends not to enjoy a nip or two to celebrate the Easter holiday…

Wines From Israel

Wines of Israel for Easter


Easter is almost upon us and with such, my wine thoughts often turn to wines from Israel.

Reprinted from wine.about.com Stacy’s Wine Blog

At ProWein this week I had the opportunity to taste through a series of wines from Israel with my favorites being Tishbi from the Negev region, Golan Heights and Galil Mountain from the upper Galilee region. Many of the wines from these specific wineries would make an authentic and delicious addition to your Easter dinner.

The wines of Israel are no longer being reserved only for traditional Jewish culture, but are being readily imported to both New World and European markets alike. And for good reason – they are not the sugary, sweet grape juices of old. Many of Israel’s wines boast numerous awards and accolades and are being well represented in international wine competitions on an annual basis.