Elad’s blog

Last weekend I promised Yodfat but went instead to Beit-Govrin national park, rather spontanously. To allow everybody to join, I decided to publish here my plans for the coming few weekends. Everybody is welcomed to join - contact me if you want.

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Do you know why there are so many sardins in a can?
The reason they are so densely packed is simple: sardins are cheaper then oil.
I think it is a really nice instantiation of a simple principle of economy, not to mention the value of fish’ life.

I am sick of telling it to people. Once and for all: there are no easy drugs.
To all those that argue about tobacco and alcohol. No, they are not drugs. They are addictive substances, maybe even highly addictive (at least tobacco). The very bold line is that they do not cause hallucinations, contrary to all drugs (yes, marijuana included). So in addition to the political power of tobacco companies, traditions (speaking of which, you probably know that Opium was widely smoked in medieval Europe and the Turkish empire centuries before Tobacco first arrived at Europe, so tradition is not an argument) and all the other motives - there is a very strong case for NOT putting drugs, alcohol and tobacco in the same basket.

Not to mention, that the fact that alcohol is legal is probably the most stupid argument ever raised when used to favour drug usage.

Drugs are Evil. Avoid them. It is that simple.

Here is a small riddle that every kid can answer. What comes after war? No. Not a cease-fire. The correct answer is peace.

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The ancients of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee thy calkers: all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee to occupy thy merchandise.

Ezekiel 27:9

A small trivia question in yesterday’s newspaper (one of the things I like most in my newspaper is that every day it presents two trivia questions) sent me into a linguistic search for the origin of the word ‘bible’ and to its surprising connection with Lebanon.

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Some of my friends from the world sent me emails in these last few weeks. I really really appreciate the support and concern you all expressed - thank you all!
A few mails asked me to clarify a bit the situation. Why are Israel and Lebanon fighting again? Is it just because of the two soldiers kidnapped by Hezbollah? Is it worth the price? How did we get here?
Indeed, serious questions. I answered them all privately, and then I realized that maybe other people can find interest in the reasons for this war and for the general situation between Israel and Lebanon. So I prepared a short history of modern Lebanon, and I am glad to present this summary to all of my readers. I hope you find interest in it and that it clarifies things a bit, and more important - put them into the right context. I will gladly answer any other questions regarding the middle east conflicts - meanwhile, here are my views on modern Lebanon.

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I found today’s top story hiding in a small frame at the sixst page of the newspaper. It tells about a group of reservist army soldiers in Lebanon.

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I went to see the new Israeli movie “Someone To Run With”, and I have some critics about it.

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