Israeli newspapers: Obama approved Western Wall note for publication

Clay actually had a signature issue that he was passionate about. Obama, not so much.

Carry on.

"why shouldn’t there be some conservative voices around this blog and news paper?"

Well, gosh, there's no problem with having a conservative voice or viewpoint -- my problem is with your continued and ongoing misrepresentations of reality. I question whether the Star should grant you the authority to use this soapbox to spread lies, factual misrepresentations, and innuendoes. Even though you're (clearly) not a professional journalist, it seems to me that there should be some basic standards of factual accuracy and competence to which you should be held.

Labeling oneself a conservative shouldn't exempt you from basic fact-checking.

I have no idea what or who dolla is quoting trying to debunk me but I believe my links are legit, one being a news magazine from Israel. You also completely discount the other newspaper that also claims to have had a copy. If you need a bit more how about the Jerusalem Post, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1215331112489&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull.

I do find it really amusing, Interface, that you regularly find it necessary to, “question what his (my) qualifications are for contributing on this page, other than he holds himself out as a so-called ‘conservative’." Qualifications? To express my opinion in the local paper and blog? Really?

Yet you spend so little time questioning the qualifications of Obama for being POTUS. This guy whose resume included 143 days in the Senate and years as a “community organizer” where he associated with the likes of bomber Bill Ayers and hateful Jeremiah Wright. What the heck IS a community organizer anyway? Folks, think Clay Chastain!

By the way, why shouldn’t there be some conservative voices around this blog and news paper? Especially since the editorial board does lean to the left with the occasional exception of E. Thomas McClanahan who we haven’t heard from since late June when he wrote a few posts in favor of more drilling. I think those columns got him a new corner office……somewhere in the sub basement. I’m hoping they get wires run for his phone and computer soon so he’ll write some more. I should say that all of the editorial writers and board that I have either met or communicated with have been really nice people. I have been treated very well by all concerned. So don’t read any unintended slam into this. But there’s no doubt that the editorial room leans left. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with presenting both sides of an issue.

Ross Balano Midwest Voices 2008

that it lets folks like Balano publish dreck like this under its banner?

Of course, Balano would rather believe that the entire international media got the green light to publish this, yet only Ma’ariv thought it was newsworthy enough to do so. If they knew what was in the note, why’d they need some dopey kid — who’s now begging forgiveness — to dig it out of the wall for them?

Looks like this bogus story was spread in part by a blog on The New Republic and was regurgitated by Balano:

http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/07/28/is-anything-sacred.aspx

and, as dollakimbo just noted, looks like that very same TNR blogger has finally followed up with Ma'arev and the story proved to be so much hot air -- but hot air and misinformation spread by Balano and his ilk:

http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/07/29/obama-vindicated.aspx

Again, why does the Star allow this guy to post lies and innuendo under its banner? It's embarassing and insulting.

Obama Vindicated?

Yesterday, I posted an item about an accusation from Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv that the Obama campaign had leaked a copy of his Western Wall note to the foreign press (rather than Ma'ariv having bought it from some yeshiva kid who stole it out of the wall). After some additional reporting last night, I noted that the story sounded a bit fishy--not only has Ma'ariv not offered any tangible evidence to support this claim, but they also have only made the claim via a spokesman to various Israeli papers rather than printing the accusation in their own paper.

I just got off the phone with a Ma'ariv spokesman who says that the accusation is "completely false," and that he has no idea who these papers were quoting from Ma'ariv. "No official spokesman for Ma'ariv told this to any of the papers." I've got some calls in to these papers to find out where they got the quote. (I'll update here when I hear back.) He told me definitively that "the Obama campaign did not give us a copy of the letter or approve it for printing."

Now what does it say about you that you're so eager to embrace this smear?

http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/07/27/student-apologizes-for-stealing-obama-prayer-from-western-wall/

The very link you posted undercuts your own thesis.

"The U.S. presidential candidate visited the site early Thursday and placed a note in the cracks of the wall, as is customary. The note was subsequently removed from the wall, according to the daily Maariv, which printed what it said were the contents of the prayer. Maariv said a religious student gave the note to the newspaper."

and

"Jerusalem lawyer Shahar Alon asked Attorney General Menachem Mazuz yesterday to order a police investigation into the removal and publication of Obama's note.

"By making the note public," Alon wrote to Mazuz, "Maariv violated the law protecting holy sites, several clauses in the penal code and also infringed upon the basic rights of a person's honor and freedom."

all from your second link:
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1006139.html

of coure, the newspaper that published the note is arguing that the law doesn't apply to notes written by non-Jews. I'm going with the lawyer's take on it until we hear more.

As for your second link, I call your attention to the picture of the actual note that was stolen from the Wall and printed in the paper. That's not a release from the Obama campaign -- that's the actual prayer he placed in the wall.

http://web.israelinsider.com/Articles/Politics/13021.htm

I don't think you're illiterate -- just blinded by your right-wing biases.

You probably also think that 200,000 people turned out in Berlin to hear an obscure reggae band that Obama just happened to speak after. [chuckle] Right.

The paper wasn’t in any danger of prosecution even though there is a law in Israel against such things because the law doesn’t apply to prayers submitted by people who are not Jewish. Please feel free to check for yourself.

Obama’s people planned this out from the beginning. Otherwise, why would they provide the newspapers the text and approval to print it before they actually even make the trip to the wall? It’s obvious they wanted it printed.

They guy is a phony and a joke. So much for “hope” and “change.” All he can do now is “hope” he keeps enough people fooled until November so they don’t “change” their minds and vote for McCain.

Here’s a couple of links for you:

http://web.israelinsider.com/Articles/Politics/13021.htm

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1006139.html

Ross Balano Midwest Voices 2008

.

to the press release you quote.

It is worth noting that the Israeli daily didn't just publish the content of the prayer attributed to Obama, but in fact published a photograph of the actual note, stolen by a seminary student.

Here's the story on the seminary student:

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1215331119403&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

And you'll see that the paper that printed the note was itself under threat of criminal prosecution for doing so:

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1215331112489&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Only thing that seems fishy to me is Balano jumping up to attack before we know whether there's any substance -- but this is hardly the first time I'm led to question what his qualifications are for contributing on this page, other than he holds himself out as a so-called "conservative."