Posted on 11/30/2005 7:24:03 AM PST by Alouette
'I am revolted by the anti-Semitic discourse promoted by seculars against ultra-Orthodox,' Shelly Yechimovitz says, one day after she joins Labor party
The latest celebrity recruit to the Labor Party, television news anchor Shelly Yechimovitz, expressed her fondness of the ultra-Orthodox community in Israel during a radio interview Wednesday morning.
“I am revolted by the anti-Semitic discourse promoted by seculars against the ultra-Orthodox. Their public is an as Shinui tries to portray,” Yechimovitz told the radio host.
Yechimovitz announced her decision to abandon her career in journalism and venture into the tides of politics, printing a smile on the newly elected leader of the Labor party Amir Peretz, who was ditched by senior Labor MK Dalia Itzik, who defected to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s Kadima party.
“I spoke to religious politicians and we talked about what we can do together in the Knesset. We have a lot of things in common - such as the war over preserving Shabbat,” Yechimovitz said.
The journalist-turned-politician was disappointed by the poor coverage in the ultra-Orthodox press of her decision to join Labor.
Shinui responds to Yechimovitz
The secular Shinui party, know for its anti-religious rhetoric, reacted to Yechimovitz’s sympathy to the religious public with dismay.
“Why madam Yechimovitz has chosen to protect the group that is less useful to Israeli society, a group that willingly chose not to take part in the military, economic or academic struggle? The only explanation is low political standards of ingratiation and flattery of inappropriate coalitions, and political squint,” Shinui MK Ronny Brison said.
“The Labor party betrayed the secular public and taxpayers a long time ago. In a country where Israelis can only get married through rabbis and tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox are evading military service, and there is no public transportation in Shabbat, the secular are targeted, " MK Avraham Poraz of Shinui said.
"Amir Peretz is the father of alliances with the ultra-Orthodox,” he added.
As far as I know, Amir Peretz has made exactly ZERO alliances with the "ultra-Orthodox" community. How this makes him the "father of all alliances" is a mystery.
Israeli politics has entered the Bizarro World. Shelly Yechimovitz is an Israeli talk-show hostess known for her extreme leftist (as in, Communist Party) views. She is also a Janeane Garofalo lookalike (I will spare FReepers the "separated at birth" pictures).
Warning! This is a high-volume ping list.
So, a Communist who is pro-"ultra"-Orthodox? Yep, that's bizarre all right.
She sounds sort of like an Israeli version of Natalie Portman, the "pro-Israel" leftie Bush-bashing Hollywood peacenik.
Perhaps the L-rd is putting flesh on
the collected "dry bones" in these end times.
b'shem Y'shua
My knowledge of Israeli politics is superficial, but I think it is a positive thing that the "Ultra Orthodox" are protected in their traditions. And in the long run, when the secularists with their small famililies have died out, the Orthodox with their very large families will still be around.
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