Two Nice Jewish Boys

Settlers. They are mentioned endlessly in international media, often described as religious fanatics. They are also very present in the Israeli media, which tends to blame them for much of the political distress Israel faces. On the Israeli street, no one is indifferent to this issue. The settler is either notorious for their illegal theft of palestinian land or celebrated for being the frontline pioneers of the zionist endeavor. The left and advocates of the two state solution scorn them for basically looting the state coffers due to the disproportionate sums of money they receive from the government. While the right praises them for their vineyards, their factories and even their employment of palestinians. One camp shines the spotlight on the violent factions that throw molotov cocktails and break through checkpoints to reach Joseph’s burial site in Nablus, Shchem as the other camp cheers for their bravery. The settler is perhaps the most controversial figure on the face of the planet today. Yishai Fleisher is the spokesperson for the Jewish Community in Hebron, he’s a radio show host and a writer. Fleisher is also the founder and director of Kuma, an organization meant to help educate for the cause of Zionism. Yishai Fleisher has been living in the West Bank or as he would call it, Judea and Samaria for the last 15 years. We’re thrilled to be joined by Yishai Fleisher to talk about the settlements.

Nothing in Robi Damelin’s life could have prepared her for that day. Not growing up in South Africa under Apartheid. Not her immigration to Israel in 1967. Nor any other character forging event throughout her life. A mother is not meant to bear the death of her own child. But what is meant to be, is not always what ends up happening. Robi’s son David was shot by a Palestinian sniper in March of 2002. But from the endless grief and sorrow, Robi chose to re-emerge with a new purpose in life. Counting from 1860, 23,645 Israelis have lost their lives in wars or terror attacks. Every year, on the national memorial day, around 1.5 millions Israelis - almost 19% of Israel’s population - visit the cemeteries to remember their lost loved ones. But recently, on the national memorial day, there's another event that catches public attention - the alternative memorial ceremony, conducted by the Parents Circle Families Forum, in which both Israeli families who lost their loved ones to war or terror attacks, and Palestinian families who lost their loved ones in war - unite in their grief. The controversy in Israeli society around these ceremonies, and around the Forum’s agenda in general - is vigorous. Nevertheless, the organization, that has more than 600 families as members, both Israeli and Palestinian, continues its struggle to end the violence. Robi Damelin is the Forum’s spokesman, and she’s here today to talk about her personal story, about her son David, and about the Parents Circle Families Forum, which became her life’s purpose. (Photo by Dan Peretz)

Close to 60 years ago, in the early 1960s, Marijuana AKA Cannabis wasn’t exactly the friendly substance it is today. In pretty much every developed country, recreational use of the drug was totally illegal and medical research was limited. So as a junior faculty member of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam had to jump through a few loops to get his hands on a sample for his research. Luckily for Dr. Mechoulam, the director of the Weizmann institute had an old army buddy in an opportune place - the head of the investigative branch of the national police. Dr. Mechoula, reach out to him and was provided with 5 kilos of seized Lebanese Hasish. This sample allowed Dr. Mechoulam and his research partners to discover cannabidiol in 1963 and THC the following year. In 2001 Prof. Mechoulam was awarded the Israel Prize, the country’s most prestigious award for scientific achievement and today he continues his research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. We are super thrilled to be talking to Prof. Mechoulam today about cannabis, his life and his research.

Once upon a time there were cave walls. Our ancestors sketched hunting scenes and traced their hands on them. Thousands of years later, we humans, in our abundant ingenuity, invented papyrus, parchment, canvas and finally paper. Eventually, we began storing data digitally. Remember those 3.5 inch floppy disks with a few measly megabytes? But as men and women had more to say, more to paint, more to communicate, these methods were no longer enough. Enter Dov Moran. Dov Moran was fascinated by technology from a very early age. He would tinker with electronic gadgets he bought from MAD magazine, unfortunately, according to him, to not too much avail. But this passion eventually lead Moran to invent a gadget of his own that would, in many ways, change the world - the USB Flash Drive AKA the diskonkey. A small device, you can carry in your pocket, capable of storing large amounts of data. Dov Moran studied in the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology and went on to establish his own company, M-Systems. He continues with his entrepreneurship today with over 40 patents! We are extremely glad to be joined today by Dov Moran to talk about the story of the DiskonKey and his passion for technological entrepreneurship. (Photo by ComigoTV)

A little over a week ago, in the early morning of April 21st, Fadi Al-Batsh was walking down a road in Gombak, a suburb of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. He was on his way to the local mosque for dawn prayers. Suddenly, two men on a motorcycle drove up, drew their pistols and gunned down Al batsh with no less than 14 bullets before driving off. Seven years prior to his assassination, Fadi Al Batsh had moved to Malaysia from Gaza to research and acquire weapon systems and drones for Hamas, the ruling power in the strip. This, ostensibly, made him a target for Israel’s international spy agency, the Mossad. Of course, this is not the first such mission undertaken by the clandestine organization. The Mossad, along with the other branches of Israel’s intelligence apparatus, has a long, dark and often contentious history of targeted assassinations dating back to the very founding of the state. If we listed the qualifications and accomplishments of Dr. Ronen Bergman, we’d have no time left to talk about his incredible new book, Rise and Kill First: The Secret History of Israel’s Targeted Assassinations. Suffice it to say that Dr. Bergman is a senior political and military analyst for Yedioth Aharonot, Israel’s largest daily newspaper, he’s been a guest lecturer at countless universities including Princeton, Yale, Oxford and Cambridge (where he received his PhD in history), he’s written for numerous international newspapers including the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek and The Times and finally, he deserves a special congratulations for recently becoming a staff writer for the New York Times Magazine. We are thrilled to be joined today by Dr. Ronen Bergman to talk about his new book and Israel’s history of covert killings.

Jerusalem. A powerful city. So powerful that we recall it when we take the oath of matrimony, on every holiday and with it we seal our national anthem. But it also has the power to divide, to tear apart families, to bring nations to wage war against one another. Jerusalem isn't only a city. It's a stoney ocean of history, of reincarnations, of dreams and of destruction, layer upon layer. All of that, and more, is encapsulated in one new book, beautifully titled “Jerusalem: Drawn and Quartered”. This book was written by none other than Sarah Tuttle-Singer, and it depicts a year in her life, a year in which she dwelt between those ancient walls, met with the inhabitants of the old city, conversed with them, and immersed herself in Holy City. But the book also tells Sarah’s life story, a story of much love and passion, but also tragedy. Sarah Tuttle-Singer is probably one of the more influential Israeli Americans living here. She writes for the Times of Israel, she’s a social media sensation, and her name is extremely well known both in the local English speaking community, as well as in the international Jewish community. Sarah joins us today to talk about her life, and her exciting debut book.

What do you know about the world of ultra-orthodox Jews? Probably more or less as much as we, secular Israelis, know. Much of the ultra-orthodox community lives in self-confinement, enclosed in their almost “alternate universe”. Only seldomly do we catch a glimpse of the secrets of this fascinating and menacing world, and when we do, we’re left in awe. Meni Philip was born to a well-known ulta-orthodox family in Petach-Tikva. After studying in Yeshiva for a few years, Meni decided to pivot and embark on a new career as a Hasidic singer. His talent was embraced by the Israeli Orthodox community, and he quickly became the most successful Hasidic singer in Israel. But after two albums and a marriage, Meni began drifting away, towards a new life. He decided to “return to question”, as the Hebrew phrase describes the excruciating process of leaving the religion and becoming a secular Jew. Meni became an award winning documentary filmmaker, with a successful international career. He’s been living in Los Angeles for several years, but now he’s visiting Israel, shooting a new documentary about a new groundbreaking movement that he established. Meni Philip joins us today to share his amazing life story.

Immigrating to Israel is not easy. Alongside mastering Hebrew, finding a Job and making friends, one of the biggest challenges is simply to integrate, to find your place, to feel like a local. If you’re an artist immigrating here, it can be even more difficult. If language is not your medium, art is certainly always a cultural thing - and the divide can easily become a chasm. Nonetheless, Tel Aviv has become a vibrant multi-national city, and it seems that English speakers are thriving here. Even if you’re an Israeli English speaker, so long as you’re present on social media, you can’t escape the stream of immigrant produced content emanating from Israel. And at the top of that chart, sitting comfortably on her throne, is Renny Grinshpan - the benevolent queen. Renny Grinshpan is an actor, creator and a model who made aliyah 4 years ago. Since then she’s been scorching Israel’s facebook feed with hilarious viral videos, mainly as part of the Israeliot group, making her one of the most known and influential local internet stars. Renny graduated the Columbia School of Journalism. She’s created videos for the Jewish Daily Forward and the Tross Creative House. Renny Grinshpan is here with us today to answer the age old question: chocolate or vanilla? Also, will there be peace in the middle east.

It was a cold January afternoon in New York City when Adir Freilich boarded US Airways flight 1549 to Charlotte, North Carolina. He was on his way to Myrtle Beach to visit his grandparents. But Adir wasn't destined to end up in Myrtle Beach that day. No, Adir ended up in the Hudson River. The aircraft was in command of Captain Chesley (“Sully”) Sullenberg , a 57 year old former fighter pilot who had over 25 years of experience as an airline pilot. About 2 minutes after takeoff, flight 1549 struck a flock of Canada Geese. All engine power was lost. The events that followed are truly stranger than fiction. Adir Freilich joins us today to share with us his first hand account of the Miracle on the Hudson. Photo by: Greg L

It was a Saturday afternoon in mid December in 2010 when Kay Wilson and Kristine Luken decided to go for a hike in the Mata forest, near Beit Shemesh, west of Jerusalem. That decision proved fateful, and even fatal for one of them. Rewind 4 months. Kay, a British-born Israeli citizen, is guiding a Holocaust tour through Poland. She meets Kristine Luken, a Christian American enthralled by the Jewish people and their history. Kay is so moved by Luken’s passion that she invites her to her home country to experience the real Israel and Luken accepts. She flies to Israel and the two engage in their mutual love of hiking. What happened in the hills that day in December has been haunting Kay ever since. This very interview was postponed as Kay found herself suffering from a debilitating bout of PTSD. But still she finds the strength to tell her story, again and again. Why? We’re honored to have Kay Wilson join us today to tell her story and answer that question herself. [Photo: Voice of Israel / YouTube ]