Daniel Lubetzky

by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

This article explains the many values of sardines.  Sardines are a plentiful and sustainable fish, but aside from being healthy for our environment, they are good for our bodies as well.  Unfortunately, except for some brands like BELA (a high quality Portuguese brand of Sardines built by my friend Joshua Scherz), most sardine brands are floundering due to their fishiness.  This is why the Sardinistas are trying to “reinvent the sardine” and earn it a spot on the American mainstream palate.  Hopefully their saintly marketing effort will be successful because it is too bad that they are unpopular today.

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by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

Security sources report that Syria has been delivering arms from clandestine depots in Syria to bases in Lebanon. This accusation heightens fears that Syria’s President Bashar Assad is becoming close with Hizbollah, and by extension, its friend, Iran. As part of this concern, some worry that should a clash erupt between Lebanon and Israel, Syria would be entered into the fighting. The UN Security Council Resolution 1701 bans providing arms to Hizbollah and many Western leaders are pressing President Assad to stop undermining this provision.

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In a prior blog entry here, I shared an insight from Linda Gallanter, that your goal when raising children should be to give them purpose, rather than for them to be "happy." If they find purpose, they will find happiness.  If you obsess with their immediate happiness as a goal, they may just end up spoiled or feeling self-entitled.

But in reading an excellent article from Andrea Elliot, The Jihadist Next Door, and in remembering some concepts from a novel (OD&H) I started trying to write a decade ago but never finished, one should remember that "purpose" is a double-edged sword.  A lot of the most dangerous people find purpose alright – to destroy or vanquish or eliminate. 

So the caveat should be that Purpose needs to be Positive.  And since Positive is a normative word whose definition may be in the eye of the beholder (ie, for Omar Hammami, killing infidels in Somalia is a Positive act), I would define Positive as rooted in TOLERANCE AND RESPECT TOWARDS OTHER HUMAN BEINGS – or the golden rule of doing onto others as you would want to be done on to you.

Elliot’s article also highlights that the same attributes of leaders in society – being smart, curious, introspective, analytical, charismatic, determined – can be dangerous if not rooted in tolerance.

Ironically, Omar Hammami was brought up by a Muslim Dad and Christian Mom.  So you would think that environment can foster diversity and respect (as it has in countless of PeaceWorks and OneVoice team members I have met over the years whose parents come from different backgrounds.  Alas, in this case, the teachings that Hammami got from Islam and from Christianity were exclusionary and rooted in intolerance.  He would be warned by his Mom’s family and church in Alabama that he would go to hell unless he accepted Christianity.  And he would be warned by his Father’s family in Syria that he would be cursed if he didn’t accept Islam.  Repressive religious upbringings can boomerang and catch up with your offspring.

Elliot’s article also points how "a constant in Hammami’s life [is] his striving for another place and purpose."

The zeal to transcend one’s life in this world – the search for purpose and posterity – can be the greatest inspiration for good or evil.

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by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

In 1947, Fred Monosson and his color video camera captured some of the earliest color images of Israel.  His son almost threw the reel of film away, after recently finding it in the attic, but the treasure was saved after he mentioned it to an Israeli film director.  This is the only color film from this era that we are aware of.

Anyone who has been following the news today about the Gaza flotilla debacle and the tragic course of events, including the loss of lives, of hopes, and of peaceful respectful relations would not be faulted for being gloomy and depressed and for throwing in the towel, thinking that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is just not going to be resolved and war is going to doom that region for eternity.

Perhaps it’s the contrarian in me, but I’ve heard this tune and just when things start getting as ugly as they seem to be getting now in the Middle East, an opportunity starts arising to awaken people into their power for positive change – in this case based on a two state solution that recognizes the rights of both peoples.

Behind the scenes, OneVoice has been preparing a campaign to inspire Palestinians and Israelis to visualize a two state solution: Imagine 2018.  I shared this campaign with Sir Paul McCartney earlier today and he recognized its potential to shake people out of their complacency or fatalism and into action.

You could argue this is not the time to launch such a campaign – that it is the time to solemnly mourn.  And to recognize that there are major impediments, not the least of which is Hamas control of Gaza (a proxy of Iran) and ideological settlers taking Israel and its government hostage.

But maybe this IS the time to take action.  For otherwise we will be victims to follies and extremism and partisanship forever. 

Maybe the time has come to break those shackles of absolutism and rancor, and to start saying, let’s stop making excuses about why peace is never going to come about, and let’s start building the foundations – in our visions, in our minds, and on the ground – to just make it happen.  Two states for two proud peoples.  It may not happen overnight. And it may not happen across the entire land at the same time.  But you have to start somewhere.

Am on my way back from DC to NYC after a briefing with Paul McCartney on behalf of OneVoice (on whose Honorary Board he sits).  Earlier during rehearsals, I was struck at the beautiful simplicity and deep truth of the lyrics of Ebony and Ivory:

EBONY AND IVORY,
LIVE TOGETHER IN PERFECT HARMONY,
SIDE BY SIDE ON MY PIANO KEYBOARD,
OH, LORD, WHY DON’T WE?

WE ALL KNOW THAT PEOPLE ARE THE SAME WHEREVER YOU GO,
THERE IS GOOD AND BAD IN EV’RYONE.
AND WE LEARN TO LIVE, WE LEARN TO GIVE EACH OTHER
WHAT WE NEED TO SURVIVE, TOGETHER ALIVE.

….

- Sir Paul McCartney (c)

Later this week, Sir Paul is receiving the Gershwin Prize from President Obama.

by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

Watch this short clip in which Today Show’s Sarah Haines mentions KIND as her ‘favorite thing.’  She praises KIND for being one of the ‘few bars that don’t taste like health bars’ and concludes by saying ‘I love these KIND bars.’ It sounds like Sarah is a KINDAHOLIC!

by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

In her opening speech of Parliament, the Queen of England articulated that her “government will continue working towards a two-state solution that sees a viable Palestinian state existing in peace and security alongside Israel.”  This is an important because her words are intended to set the government’s priorities for the next year and a half.

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by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

Try to guess the answers to this brief quiz that was brought to our attention by Dr. Katz:

1. Which has the most sodium?

a. Quaker instant oatmeal

b. Fritos

c. Cape Cod kettle cooked potato chips

d. Yoohoo chocolate milk

2. Which has the most sugar?

a. Chunky Ragu spaghetti sauce super chunky mushroom

b. Smuckers Dove dark chocolate ice cream topping

3. Which of these is the more nutritious choice?

a. Regular, creamy peanut butter

b. Reduced fat peanut butter

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by Adeena Schlussel on behalf of Daniel Lubetzky

Nick Kristof writes about Psychologist Jonathan Haidt of University of Virginia illustrates in his book, “The Happiness Hypothesis” that happiness is correlated with acts of kindness and that “altruism carries its own rewards”.  One study showed that when researched encouraged their subjects to imagine giving charity, the part of the brain associated with eating or sexual pleasure lit up.

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