Sunday, March 7, 2021

Compromise With Democrats And Say Goodbye To The Whole Loaf? Harvard - Bastion of Wimps While Tuft Students Get Tough.





 







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All it takes is guts and commitment:

How a young Black Republican became the Mayor of a Liberal, white city. 

By Salena Zito

The son of a single mother with three siblings made history in January 2020 when Chris Frye was sworn in as New Castle's first black mayor. He is also the rare Republican elected to the city's top job and the youngest person ever to hold it. He did this with only $250 in his campaign coffer in a predominantly white city where the registration is overwhelmingly Democratic.

Click here for the full story.

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Compromise is rational but there is a downside when done with Democrats.

When you compromise with Democrat they come back time and again and want to compromise from the position of the last compromise. In  time you have lost what you were unwilling to compromise away. Liberals are never sated until they have it all and this should make one wary of compromising.

Liberals love bread and their goal is the entire "loaf." Perhaps that is why they also have no problem with welfare?

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Harvard - that bastion of liberalism:

And:
Tuft students get tough:

Courage was the reason campus anti-Semites were beaten

A Tufts University student stood up to the mob of Israel-haters. His victory won’t necessarily prevent others from being targeted, but it showed how they, too, can prevail.

It was a familiar story but with an unfamiliar conclusion. A Jewish student objected to the anti-Semitic slanders promoted by a student organization dedicated to Israel’s destruction. For his pains, he was targeted for harassment and then scheduled to be hauled before a disciplinary meeting at which he was likely to be impeached from his post in student government for his pro-Israel views.

The outcome—in which, for a change, the Israel-haters backed down—is not only a victory for the student. It also provides a template for others in similar situations to follow. That’s why, though dismissed by some as a tempest in an academic teacup, the drama that recently unfolded at Tufts University outside Boston is deserving of attention on the part of all those who worry about the future of American Jewry.

For those who follow the battles being fought on North American college campuses in recent years as pro-BDS groups have worked to delegitimize the State of Israel and its supporters, what happened to Tufts student Max Price was nothing new, even if the abuse hurled at him was pretty severe.

The Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter at Tufts promoted a student referendum aimed at rebuking the university’s former police chief for participating in a 2017 exchange program in which American law enforcement and first responders receive training in Israel. The exchange programs involve information-sharing and are useful because the Americans learn from the Israelis’ time-tested experience in dealing with emergencies.

These programs are, however, the centerpiece of a propaganda campaign called “Deadly Exchange” launched by the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace. According to them, they are a diabolical plot in which Americans are taught how to abuse and kill minorities by Israelis. In this way, groups like JVP and SJP not only attack Israel, but also delegitimize the American Jews who sponsor the trips as somehow responsible for American police shootings of African-Americans. As such, it is not merely a false and defamatory argument, but a 21st-century blood libel in which Jews are blamed for crimes committed by others.

At Tufts, that took the form of a referendum promoted by SJP in which a resolution filled with misleading and false information about the exchanges was voted on by the students.

That’s where Price, a member of the Tufts Community Union Judiciary, stepped in. His post is tasked with the job of fact-checking and removing false information from student government legislation. Price denounced the falsehoods in the referendum text. That led SJP and its supporters to single him out for a campaign of harassment, culminating in an effort to get him thrown out of his position by a disciplinary committee because of his “pro-Israel bias.”

Price’s treatment—not just by SJP but also others in student government—was outrageous. Not only was he subjected to profane insults but also forced to sit through student government meetings in which he was questioned about his Jewish background and beliefs. At a Zoom meeting during which the referendum was discussed, he was muted and literally prevented from speaking. The message from the student government and from a university administration which stood by silently as Price suffered these insults was clear: If you are a pro-Israel Jew, you are going to be treated as a racist advocate of white supremacy who must be marginalized, rather than respected and heard.

It is fear of similar treatment that more often than not convinces Jewish students to keep their heads down and stay silent when Israel is being falsely besmirched as an “apartheid state.” Indeed, that’s the whole point of the BDS movement. While ostensibly a campaign of economic warfare against the Jewish state, it has done nothing to damage its vibrant economy through its pathetic drive to undermine, for example, sales of Sabra hummus. Instead, like other successful cancel culture efforts, it seeks to silence those who refute intersectional myths about the Palestinian war against Israel being linked to the struggle for civil rights in the United States and which brands Zionism as racism.

But Price wouldn’t be silent.

In similar situations, most college kids choose to avoid putting a bull’s eye on their backs by challenging fashionable leftist theories promoted by both professors and other students. Indeed, even many of those who do speak up respond to the personal attacks by quitting student government in disgust. The same thing happens in other venues, such as journalism, when those labeled as too interested in defending Jewish rights or Israel are singled out. Walking away from such fights as not worth the grief is understandable. When that happens, though, anti-Semites win. After all, their objective is to clear the public square of proud Jews and friends of Israel.

Rather than granting a hate group like SJP such an undeserved triumph, Price fought back. And he wasn’t alone. The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, which specializes in defending students in these situations, intervened to represent him. It rightly accused the university of failing to defend Price’s rights. Allowing him to suffer anti-Semitic harassment was in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1965 which forbids such discriminatory treatment at educational institutions which, like Tufts, receives federal aid.

What followed was what usually happens when bullies are challenged. Rather than face a lawsuit or the escalation of this fight into something much bigger than a simple case of successful intimidation, SJP gave up. It withdrew their effort to throw Price out of his student government post.

That’s good news for Max Price and more evidence of the necessity of the Brandeis Center’s efforts.

Price was right when he told JNS that SJP’s retreat didn’t absolve them of their responsibility for the anti-Semitic treatment he received. The university also deserves blame for the passive role it played. They wouldn’t step in to stop the harassment of a Jewish student because of his unwillingness to join with others in smearing Israel. Would they have been so slow to act had an African-American or other minority student been attacked for defending his community?

While Price won this fight, there’s little reason to believe that will stop SJP and cowardly university administrators, who fear being “canceled” more than they value the rights of Jewish students, from behaving in a similar fashion the next time a student calls out anti-Semitic groups for their conduct. After all, even a Jewish publication like The Forward covered this story as if it were a misunderstanding in which both sides had some right on their side rather than a straightforward example of anti-Semitic agitation.

But this also points the way to the answer as to how the BDS movement can be beaten.

Jewish students must be armed with the facts to enable them to respond to lies like those of the “Deadly Exchange” campaign with the truth. But they need more than just information. They need to have the courage that is necessary to swim against the intellectual tide on campuses in which BDS is considered enlightened thought and support for Israel is deemed reactionary.

That’s a difficult thing to ask of anyone, let alone a college student who at that age is more eager to fit in than to be a noisy dissenter against academic fashion. Yet as has always been the case throughout history, courage is what is needed if Jewish rights are to be successfully defended.

Not every student can be expected to be as tough or to suffer the kind of opprobrium to which Price was subjected by anti-Semitic BDS supporters. But if we are to end the idea that it’s always open season on Jews who care about Israel on college campuses, then we are going to need more young men and women who can learn from his example.

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I am not the only one:


What Drives the Global Elite on Their Maniacal Mission

By Jeff Davidson

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The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Townhall.com.

What Drives the Global Elite on Their Maniacal Mission

When you consider what has happened in the United States in the last nine months, incredibly, it doesn't even seem like our own nation anymore. People rioting in the streets during the summer are described by the lamestream media as "peaceful protesters." District Attorneys let hardened criminals out of jail. Grammar schools indoctrinate our children, teaching them to hate America. 

The Lunatics are Running the Asylum

Governors mandate lockdowns of their citizens while flagrantly breaking their own rules. A presidential administration, run by who knows who, is undermining the "1776 Project" -- which was designed to offer a balanced perspective on American history -- while supporting the misdirected "1619 Project," which was launched by The New York Times and claims that the real founding of the U.S. started when slaves were first shipped across the Atlantic.

On and on it goes: Thousands of strange assertions, end runs around the law, and media flights of complete fantasy. The creepy, illegal, unpatriotic, absurd positions of the Left are unfolding at an increasing pace. Whether it's defacing property, pulling down statues – even of Gandhi, Grant, and Lincoln – desecrating church symbols, renaming schools, defaming Dr. Seuss, or re-assigning the sex of a plastic toy potato, the Left knows no bounds. 

Those in a position to call them out, our elected representatives, as well as opinion makers, too often say little or nothing. 

The March to Madness

Exactly what sort of madness leading up to this March is occurring? Is there a common denominator to all of the heartless and heart-sickening behaviors that we've witnessed for months on end now, and realistically, on a lesser level, for years? Actually, the answer is yes.

Every activity of the Left, from tiny to gargantuan and in one form or another, is designed to diminish the strength, status, and sovereignty of the U.S. Whether it's seeking to overrun the country with illegal immigrants, pack the Supreme Court, smear Supreme Court nominees, besmirch local officials, cancel the careers of people who've made one errant statement, even if that statement was 30 years ago, all such activities have a common denominator. The common denominator is to vanquish the opposition thoroughly, vanquish the U.S. Constitution, ignore due process, overturn the right of habeas corpus, contort "one person one vote," and much, much more so that as a nation we are left in tatters. 

'We Know What is Best'

As the U.S. declines, the global elite believe that they move closer and closer to their goal of having a one-world government. Headed by global elites – Leftist multi-million dollar career politicians and Leftist billionaires, who pull the strings around the world – such a government supposedly will produce the utopian society the Left fervently desires. 

Utopias don't exist, however, could not work if they did, and would end up enslaving their citizens. Read Utopia by Sir Thomas More, Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes, The Republic by Plato, or any other treatise on supposedly ideal societies. You will quickly understand that the elite invariably will regard the citizenry with disdain, nothing more than serfs – worker drones – who are to act according to how they are manipulated and who will do exactly what they are told.

By any measure, the global elite's decades-long quest for a one-world government is exceedingly far from American ideals. Indeed, it so distant from what our Constitution guarantees and so far from the spirit of the Declaration of Independence that it is beyond chilling.

A Chilling Vision

If America falls, the whole world falls, except for the Chinese Communists. They will control at least half of the globe, and their form of government is going to be worse than what the global elites have in mind. The Chinese are already experimenting with creating biologically enhanced "super soldiers," more powerful than the average soldier. 

They already have imprisoned thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people in slave labor camps. They already have surveillance cameras in their larger cities to a degree that you cannot imagine. In time, it might be shown that they intentionally released the Wuhan virus on the world. Who can say right now?

The global elites and the Chinese Communists must be contained and stopped. It will be a monumental task, but we stopped Hitler and Mussolini, we overcame the monolithic Soviet Union, and we can prevail now as well. It will require Gen Xers and Millennials to break away from the Left's cultural stranglehold. And as they do, they will find that at least 75 million Trump voters will be on their side.

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Is Manchin the root of our saving? 

https://townhall.com/columnists/wayneallynroot/2021/03/07/an-open-letter-to-sen-joe-manchin-how-one-brave-man-can-save-america-and-change-the-course-of-history-n2585807
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Good News continues to befall Israel (edited.)
Well over half of Israeli citizens have now received at least one vaccination against Covid-19. This milestone coincided with Israelis celebrating International Women's Day and the Jewish Festival of Purim in which Queen Esther was a key individual involved in saving the Jewish people. Many articles in this week's newsletter feature Israeli women and Israeli innovations relating to women.

The photo (TY Sharon) is of one of the six new foreign Ambassadors to Israel arriving at President Rivlin's Jerusalem residence during the fun festival of Purim. What kind of reception do you think they half-expected?

Best regards
Michael

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In the 7th Mar 21 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:  
     
     
    ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
     
    90% of over-50s vaccinated or recovered. Israel’s Health Minister Yuli Edelstein has announced that 90% of Israelis over the age of 50 have been vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19. 75% of them are eligible for a “Green Pass,” as they had their second vaccine over a week ago or have antibodies after virus recovery.
    https://www.jns.org/israels-health-minister-says-90-percent-of-those-over-50-vaccinated-or-recovered/
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/88-of-israelis-aged-50-have-been-vaccinated-or-recovered-from-covid-19/
     
    Israeli vaccine study answers global question. Researchers at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center have published the results of their study on medical staff, showing the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine to be 75% effective two to four weeks after a single shot. Many countries were pleased to know that they were right to prioritize the first shot.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/75-protection-from-1st-covid-shot-alone-so-okay-to-delay-2nd-israeli-study/
    https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)00448-7/fulltext
     
    Racing to a Covid-19 cure. Excellent summary of Israel’s involvement in five highly promising treatments for coronavirus. Also, separate news of Phase 2 trials of the two Covid-19 treatments from Israel’s Redhill.
    https://unitedwithisrael.org/corona-cure-five-israeli-teams-racing-toward-prize/
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3895977,00.html
     
    Vaccines for animals from microalgae. Israel’s TransAlgae has developed microalgae to deliver oral vaccine powder for animals. Current tests include against diseases affecting fish. Eventually the technology could produce oral vaccines for humans. TransAlgae has signed an agreement with giant French-based Virbac.
    https://www.israel21c.org/microalgae-deliver-animal-vaccines-orally-covid-next/
     
    Using the microbiome to fight infections. Israel’s MyBiotics has partnered Swiss multinational Ferring to use MyBiotics’ microbiome-based treatments for women’s health. The aim of the alliance is to reduce the need for antibiotic use and provide a long-term treatment solution. https://mybiotics-pharma.com/
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/ferring-israels-mybiotics-look-to-microbiome-to-treat-vaginal-infection/
     
    Pandemic research center opens. (TY UWI) Tel Aviv University has now launched its new Center for Combating Pandemics (plans reported here previously). Thought to be the first of its kind, the center connects hospitals, government and academic institutions in Israel and around the world to prepare for future epidemics.
    https://www.israel21c.org/tel-aviv-u-opens-unique-center-for-combating-pandemics/
     
    Femtech monitoring in hospital. Israel’s Sheba Medical Center says it is the first hospital in the world to introduce patient-operated devices for hospitalized Covid-infected pregnant mothers to self-monitor their unborn babies. Israel’s HeraBEAT and PulseNmore devices are supported remotely by hospital medics.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/hospital-launches-system-to-remotely-monitor-fetal-health-in-covid-ward/
    https://israelactive.com/?s=femtech+sheba
     
    Heart attack patient saved with minimal invasive surgery. Doctors at Beilinson Medical Center performed the first cardiac accessory implant surgery in Israel. A patient had suffered heart failure during heart valve replacement. Doctors avoided open heart surgery by using a subcutaneous (beneath the skin) procedure.
    https://www.jpost.com/health-science/first-ever-heart-accessory-implant-surgery-performed-at-beilinson-hospital-660580
     
    Millions can benefit from synthetic cornea. (TY David F) Israel’s CorNeat KPro synthetic cornea, which was successfully implanted into Jamal Furani in February (see here), is now to be trialed in Israel, Canada, France, the US and the Netherlands. 30 million people are blind in at least one eye, due to corneal injury or disease.
    https://nocamels.com/2021/02/israeli-startup-corneat-vision-corneal-blindness/
     
    Training nurses and pharmacists. Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT) has launched an MA course to train nurses in internal medicine to assess and care for those with complicated illnesses. JCT has also launched 4-year Pharmacy degree in association with the Hebrew University to resolve an acute shortage of pharmacists.
    https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/297272
     
     
    ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
     
    Israeli exit benefits charities. The recent exit of Israel’s MyHeritage for $600 million, benefited Israeli youth charities. MyHeritage donated share options in 2013 to the nonprofit Tmura (reported here previously) which distributes the proceeds. 718 Israel startups have donated options to Tmura since 2002 – 62 new ones in 2020.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/how-israeli-tech-shares-some-of-its-wealth-by-donating-options/
     
    Massive economic support program. Israel has approved a NIS 700 million project to help 200,000 families most in need due to the coronavirus crisis. Colel Chabad and Pitchon Lev will manage the program which involves distribution of debit cards for purchasing critical food supplies in a way that protects family dignity.
    https://www.jns.org/interior-ministry-taps-colel-chabad-for-massive-food-distribution-project-in-israel/
     
    Israel’s first woman-led Unicorn. Israel’s Papaya Global (reported here previously) whose CEO is Eynat Guez, has just raised $100 million of funds at a market valuation of $1 billion. It makes Papaya the first female-led company with the financial status of a “Unicorn”. Eynat concluded the finance deal late in her pregnancy.
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3896671,00.html
     
    Life-saving married couples. Beautiful video of four married couples where both partners are United Hatzalah paramedics. They manage to achieve a work-life balance, despite being called on at any moment to save lives.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GehsyxAAV60
     
    Zaka founder wins Israel Prize. Yehuda Meshi-Zahav, co-founder and chairman of the Zaka volunteer emergency response group (see here), was declared a winner of the Israel Prize. He won the life achievement award for his contributions to Israeli society and for being a role model for the spirit of volunteering.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/zaka-emergency-group-co-founder-awarded-israel-prize-for-contribution-to-society/
     
    App to keep women safe. (TY WIN+I24) Israel’s SafeUP app has been downloaded by approximately 12,000 Israeli women. Any woman at risk of attack can initiate a video call to summon help from women nearby. Eight Israeli municipalities have partnered with SafeUP and a community has even been launched in Boston USA.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvvnoA_kepY   https://www.safeup.co/
     
    The first UAE Ambassador to Israel. (TY WIN) In mid-Feb, Mohammed Mahmoud Al-Khaja was sworn in as the first Ambassador to Israel from the United Arab Emirates. He had to wait two weeks before he could arrive in Israel, due to Covid-19 restrictions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d1k5Ewvs4Q
    https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/uaes-first-ambassador-to-israel-sworn-in-658958
    https://www.jns.org/first-uae-ambassador-to-israel-presents-credentials-to-rivlin-in-jerusalem-ceremony/
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/a-shared-mission-israel-officially-receives-first-ever-uae-ambassador/
     
    Israel Summit. (TY UWI) 5,000 students from 100 global universities attended the on-line Israel Summit. Tal Zaks, the Israeli Chief Medical Officer at Moderna said, “The productive exchange of ideas in medicine and technology between the US and Israel is based on “alignment of fundamental values about the sanctity of life,”.
    https://www.jns.org/modernas-tal-zaks-us-israel-exchange-of-ideas-based-on-sanctity-of-life-belief-in-science/
     
    The 10th best hospital in the world (again). For the third year in a row, Newsweek magazine ranked Israel’s Sheba Medical Center in its “Top 10 Best Hospitals in the World” Its 10th place was due to superior care, innovation and pioneering research. Newsweek surveyed 2,000 hospitals globally in 2021 – twice that in 2019.
    https://www.jns.org/for-third-year-in-row-sheba-medical-center-ranks-as-one-of-worlds-top-10-hospitals/
     
     
    SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
     
    Joint AI program with UAE. Following September’s agreement (see here), Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) and the UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), the two institutions have now established the WIS-MBZUAI Joint Program for Artificial Intelligence Research.
    https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/-/weizmann-institute-science-and-mbzuai-establish-joint-ai
     
    New BGU Chemistry building dedicated. Ben Gurion University has held a dedication ceremony for its new five-story 6,300 square meter Lorry I. Lokey Chemistry Building. Its modular, state-of-the-art laboratories and workspaces allow all BGU research groups to be located close together for the first time in 40 years.
    https://in.bgu.ac.il/en/Pages/news/lokeybuilding_dedication.aspx
     
    Reducing paper waste.  Israel’s ePaper has developed technology to reduce the environmental footprint of office work. It uses tighter security and control printing systems to reduce paper usage by up to 35% and over 40% of office power consumption. Other impacts include far less pollution, CO2 and deforestation.
    https://www.israel21c.org/the-print-technology-that-tackles-wasteful-printing-habits/
     
    Zapping malaria-spreading mosquitos. Israel’s zzappmalaria uses topographical analysis to determine the formation of bodies of water. It helps professionals scan the fields, find these bodies of water where mosquitos may breed, and upload them to the system so that the spraying team can go in and apply treatment.
    https://nocamels.com/2021/02/israeli-zzappmalaria-startup-ibm-watson-ai-xprize/
    https://www.zzappmalaria.com/   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xr1g2IdSD-k
     
    Green ammonia. Israel’s GenCell (reported here previously) has partnered Japan’s TDK to manufacture environmentally friendly ammonia at low cost. The patented electrochemical process uses solar energy to make ammonia without emitting CO2. The next stage is to develop a proof of concept.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-gencell-joins-forces-with-japans-tdk-to-create-green-ammonia/
     
    Signaling the end to empty buses. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Opertti is developing a smart public transportation app that will send vehicles of just the right size to pick up travelers on set routes, on demand. It saves fuel, reduces pollution and ensures the most efficient use of drivers.  Pilots are planned in Israel and in the Czech Republic.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-startup-wants-to-bid-farewell-to-late-empty-buses/
     
    New UK center for Israeli wheels. Israel’s integrated wheel system developer REE Automotive (reported here previously) has opened a new Center of Excellence at the UK’s MIRA Technology Park - Europe’s mobility R&D center. It will help REE’s plans to bring its REEcorner technology to production by 2022.
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3894298,00.html
     
    Put your tractors into automatic. Israel’s Blue White Robotics (reported here previously) has launched a kit that can convert any tractor into a fully autonomous unit or fleet with the flick of a switch. Its sensors, obstacle detection and AI allow multiple tractors to work 24 x 7, whilst monitored by a single human operator.
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3894475,00.html
    https://bluewhiterobotics.com/agriculture/   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpFxTCr7uhk
     
    Smart farming in the Caribbean. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Volcani International Partnerships and the Caribbean Israel Leadership Coalition have launched a series of free webinars. In them, Israeli experts explain smart farming to government officials, farmers and entrepreneurs in the Bahamas, Anguilla, Aruba and Barbados.
    https://www.jpost.com/jpost-tech/israeli-ngo-to-teach-israeli-smart-farming-to-the-caribbean-660022
     
    Converting animal waste into odorless fertilizer. Intensive livestock farming has led to immense problems disposing of dung. Israel’s Paulee CleanTec (reported here previously) has developed the BioLizer to convert animal waste into odorless organic fertilizer. A demonstration system is on display at a kibbutz dairy farm.
    https://www.israel21c.org/a-no-bs-answer-to-the-worlds-massive-manure-problem/
     
    Israeli software for top UK bus company. Stagecoach, UK’s largest bus operator, is partnering Israel’s Optibus to help plan the bus networks of the future as people emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. Optibus' AI-based software platform is already used in over 450 cities to deliver smarter timetables and networks.
    https://www.israelhayom.com/2021/03/02/uks-largest-bus-operator-partners-with-israeli-ai-firm-optibus/
    https://vimeo.com/390685425
     
     
    ECONOMY & BUSINESS
     
    More UAE alliances. The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) has established ties with Invest in Israel and the Israel Innovation Authority - government entities that help accelerate investment and innovation. Also, Gulf-Israel Green Ventures and the UAE’s United Stars Group are partnering for sustainable development.
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3895345,00.html
    https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/297620
     
    World number 2 for home working. Israel’s Labor and Welfare Ministry reports that due to the high number of workers in education and technology, 47% of Israel’s employees can perform their jobs from home. Israel is second only to Luxembourg for telecommuting and far ahead of the OECD average of 38%.
    https://www.israelhayom.com/2021/02/21/israel-ranked-2nd-in-the-world-for-work-from-home-opportunities/
     
    Israeli-based vaccine factories. Israel is in talks with Covid-19 vaccine developers Pfizer and Moderna regarding setting up vaccine production in Israel. Austria and Denmark have expressed interest in Israel’s plan to enhance Pfizer vaccines to handle virus mutations, as they do not want to rely on the EU’s vaccine strategy.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/austria-denmark-turn-to-israel-to-make-future-vaccines-wont-rely-on-eu/
    https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/1613424578-netanyahu-in-talks-with-pfizer-moderna-on-setting-up-vaccine-production-in-israel  
     
    Takeover expands testing. Israel’s Qualitest (reported here previously) has just acquired India’s QA InfoTech India. InfoTech’s 1,000 employees will triple Qualitest’s existing offshore automation testing capacity.
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3894492,00.html
     
    Fresh packaging reaches San Diego. Divine Flavor, a San Diego-based grower-owned distributor of fruits and vegetables and part of Grupo Alta, have adopted the new Xgo standing pouches from Israel’s StePac (reported here previously). Customers were really happy with the extended freshness and sustainability of the packaging.
    https://www.israel21c.org/cute-standing-pouches-cut-fresh-food-waste/
     
    Wix is worth $20 billion. Website construction tools company Wix.com has become Israel’s most valuable company. Its market value of nearly $20 billion tops that of Check Point, Solar Edge, Novocure, Nice Systems and Teva. Wix earned almost $1 billion in revenue in 2020 and, due to expansion, it is still not making a profit!
    https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-wix-becomes-israels-most-valuable-company-1001361448
     
    Another Unicorn. Fintech startup Earnix develops artificial intelligence software that allows banks and insurers to personalize offerings to customers. It has just raised $75 million at a company valuation of $1 billion giving it the financial status of a “Unicorn”. Earnix has won recognition from both CB Insights and P&C 360.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/fintech-startup-earnix-raises-75m-attains-unicorn-status-at-valuation-of-1b/
    https://earnix.com/   https://earnix.com/press/earnix-announces-75m-growth-funding/
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P31MiZzmo0A  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DltmoZGxA4
     
    Yet another Unicorn. Israel’s Axonius (reported here previously) gives organizations a comprehensive cybersecurity asset inventory, uncovers security solution coverage gaps, and automatically validates and enforces security policies. Axonius has just raised $100 million for a $1 billion valuation and “Unicorn” status.
    https://jewishbusinessnews.com/2021/03/01/israels-axonius-is-now-a-unicorn-with-1-billion-plus-valuation/
     
    Lumenis’ surgical business sold for $1 billion. US medical devices maker Boston Scientific has bought the surgical business of Israel-based Lumenis (reported here previously) from Barings PE Asia for $1.07 billion. The unit will remain in Israel and become Boston Scientific’s global center of excellence in laser technologies.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/lumenis-sells-surgical-business-to-us-firm-boston-scientific-for-1-1-billion/
     
    Medi-Tate exits for $300 million. Israel’s Medi-Tate (reported here previously) has been acquired by Japanese medical corporation Olympus for $300 million. Olympus invested in Medi-Tate in 2018 and has been distributing Medi-Tate’s solutions for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH).
    https://jewishbusinessnews.com/2021/02/28/israels-medi-tate-bought-by-olympus-for-300-million/
    https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3895672,00.html
     
    Investment in Israeli startups: Yotpo raised $200 millionAxonius raised $100 millionPapaya Global raised $100 millionEarnix raised $75 millionTytoCare raised $50 millionPomvom raised $40 millionMedisafe raised $30 millionRewire raised $20 millionSeebo raised $15 millionBlend raised $10 millionTorii raised $10 millionX-trodes raised $1 million;
     
     
    CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT`
     
    Covid-friendly cultural events. Thanks to the new Green Pass issued to fully vaccinated citizens, Israel has launched several cultural and entertainment activities. They included Jerusalem’s “Follow the Lights”, a Nurit Galron concert in Tel Aviv, the Tower of David’s Banai exhibit and a show at the Khan Theater in Jerusalem.
    https://nocamels.com/2021/02/covid-friendly-cultural-events-israel/
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/jerusalems-iconic-locations-light-up-for-driving-tour/
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUYtDnkUt_Y (TY WIN & ILTV)
     
    Environmental protection! (TY Hazel) Israel’s Magen David Adom took a mobile vaccination unit to a forest in the south of Israel, where thousands were visiting to see the spring flowers. The emergency service said that dozens of visitors to the Shokeda Forest were vaccinated in the operation in the national park.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/vaccination-unit-set-up-to-inoculate-israelis-on-forest-stroll/
     
    We are sailing. Royal Caribbean is re-starting cruises from Israel. Its newest ship, Odyssey of the Seas, will make its sailing debut from Haifa in June with vaccinated Israeli passengers. Royal Caribbean said it will be the first cruise line operator to offer “fully vaccinated sailings”. The cruise will visit Greece and Cyprus.
    https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2021/03/01/cruise-vaccine-royal-caribbean-israel/
    https://worldisraelnews.com/royal-caribbean-chooses-israel-to-launch-new-flagship/
    https://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-ships/odyssey-of-the-seas?country=ISR
     
    Iranian and Israeli chess players compete together. (TY UWI) For the first time, Iranian chess players took part in the Chess4Solidarity competition – an Israeli initiative. They joined chess players from over 40 countries, including Indonesia, Iraq, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Sudan and Yemen. Prizes totaled 1000 Euros.
    https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/iranian-israeli-chess-players-compete-in-international-event-660137
    https://www.jns.org/iranian-chess-players-join-global-competitors-in-israeli-led-virtual-tournament/
     
     
    THE JEWISH STATE
     
    Hear O Israel. Yehoshua Soudakoff, Israel’s only deaf rabbi, is bringing the entire Torah to life for Israel’s 15,000 hearing impaired. He and his team are translating the Tanach (Five Books of Moses, the Prophets, and the Writings) into visual format using Israeli sign language.
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/deaf-rabbi-translates-torah-into-sign-language/
     
    Herzl 125. The American Zionist Movement (AZM) has launched a Herzl 125 initiative to highlight important Zionist anniversaries in 2021-22. The 14th of February was the 125th anniversary of Herzl’s 1896 publication of Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State) - the Zionist leader’s vision for a modern Jewish state in the land of Israel.
    https://www.jns.org/azm-launches-herzl-125-to-mark-zionist-anniversaries/
     
    Rolling stones. (TY WIN) The Israel Antiquities Authority discovered under the Western Wall plaza the single largest collection of ancient dice in Israel, and they’re identical to modern dice. It seems the Romans also cheated - one die contained two four-spot sides but no side with three spots.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TXFrU1hcGo
     
    Cancer survivor now defends his country. Nathan always dreamed of joining the IDF, but at age 6, he was diagnosed with cancer. Years later, after recovering, he was barred from the IDF due to his medical history. But he persevered and Sgt. Nathan has just completed his training in the IDF Nahal Brigade's elite battalion.
    https://www.newsrael.com/post/-MSynVNaWzNl7_Z9OzWJ
     
    Superheroes return. Coronavirus was not going to prevent Israeli superheroes from bringing Purim cheer to hospitalized Israeli children. Real life superheroes from elite units of the Border Police and Firefighters abseiled from the roof of Haifa’s Ruth Rappaport Children’s Hospital to deliver sweets to the delighted young patients.
    https://www.newsrael.com/post/-MUJyu8iEZoEEkDfs19x  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diki4LVjaVE
    https://www.rambam.org.il/en/rambam_news/Purim_at_Rambam_2021.aspx
     
    Purim in Jerusalem. (TY Sharon) Because of Shabbat, Purim this year in Jerusalem was spread over 3 days and residents celebrated for a whole week. The pandemic meant multiple, socially distanced readings of the Megillah of Esther, listening on cell phones with outdoor meals & music, while wearing spectacular costumes.
    http://rjstreets.com/2021/03/01/jerusalem-purim-highlights/
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