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Thursday, January 08, 2009

Video: Israel Saves A Palestian Baby

Although the conflict in Gaza that has been raging for quite some time, Israel continues to demonstrate its generosity towards the Palestinian population despite the fact that the Gaza government continues to lobby rockets against Israeli citizens.

Even though Hamas has been less than affectionate when it comes to Palestinian children, the Israeli's are doing everything in their power to not only avoid civilian causalities, but provide medical attention to the children as well.




(Note: Video from Israel 21st Century)

This is just one of many examples of how Israel is willing to treat citizens from hostile nations, despite the fact that such actions will win them few political points with their enemies.

More Jews Make Aliyah (Images Now On Facebook)

It looks as if Jacob Richman (author of the My Hebrew Name on Facebook) has uploaded almost 150 images of Israel's latest immigrants to his Facebook album.



Facebook users can access the images by clicking here, although if you prefer to remain outside of "all things social," you can view the images upon Jacob's website.

Israel: Save A Tree By Burning Olive Rolls?

With the global recession upon us, many families are trying to find inexpensive ways to heat their home.

While many people choose wood stove furnaces (mainly because the expense is cheaper than oil and gas--especially if you get the wood for free), Israel may have a greener solution that does not require chopping down a tree.

(Israel 21st Century) In the shadow of Herodion, a group of youngsters -- many of whom were homeless until they were gathered together by a man named Yossi Sadeh, first in Beit Shemesh, then at the Sde Bar farm, a kibbutz-like framework that's turned their lives around -- are changing the face of energy production. Their work is to help create Olivebar's rolls to heat homes in wood-burning stoves which general manager Eli Karniel describes as "ecologically perfect."

The rolls are made from the waste produced after olives are pressed at Israeli olive presses, known in Hebrew as gefet. The material is rich in oil and superb for heating, but if left behind at the presses to seep into the soil, will destroy ground water and render the soil infertile. The simple act of collecting it is the product's first ecological benefit. [...]

Chief among them is the energy component, with a cube of the Olivebar rolls producing almost 2.5 times energy as a cube of wood. No mice or worms come with the rolls, which are aesthetically wrapped in paper that is recyclable and can be used to light the oven. The smoke released has no negative impact on neighbors or the environment, and the ash left in the stove can be used for fertilizing gardens and plants. Using the rolls will also fit into recent moves both here and abroad to avoid cutting down trees for energy use. "It's a totally green product, all natural, without any glues or chemicals," Karniel tells ISRAEL21c.
While this is not the first time Israel has used olives as an energy source, this may be one of the most innovative uses thus far.

Although Sde Bar Farm's green approach to heat may help out Israeli families, their olive rolls could impact the world to a much greater extent as it could help out rural areas where wood and electricity are scarce (especially in the colder climates).

(Image via Olives 101.com)

Israeli Doctors Assisting Chinese Residents

(Image: Dr. Alona Raucher-Sternfeld (a volunteer with SACH from Israel) helping out a Chinese baby. Credit: Jewish Exponent).

Israel's Save A Child's Heart (SACH), which has been very active in helping people from around the world has recently made another stop within the Asian giant to help out citizens in need of medical attention.

(Jewish Exponent) Where is Yang's heart?" Dr. Alona Raucher-Sternfeld cooed in Hebrew to 5-year-old Yang Bin as she prepared him for surgery aimed at repairing his tiny heart.

As she danced her fingers on his belly, the language barrier disappeared, and the boy's previously defiant exterior melted into giggles.

Yang Bin was one of about 80 children who traveled, some hundreds of miles, to see the visiting medical staff from Israel, all of whom are volunteers with Save a Child's Heart, a charity based at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon.

The team of 15 doctors, nurses and medical technicians set up shop at Hebei Children's Hospital in Shijiazhuang, some 170 miles southwest of Beijing, continuing a partnership that began 10 years ago.
This on-going partnership may be one of the reasons why the Chinese and Israeli's are close friends (instead of rivals--aka "frenemies"--like the US).

While Save A Child's Heart is probably one of the better known examples of Israel displaying hospitality outside of its borders, the Jewish state has been known to show charity towards many other nations--even ones that are hostile to its existence.

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

IsraGood Will Return (Plus: A Potential Cure For Diabetes?)

After taking a "short" break from blogging on IsraGood, I will be providing regular posts to this site starting this Thursday.

By now you probably have all heard about Israel incursion into Gaza in an attempt to stop terrorists from launching rockets against their cities.

For those seeking the latest updates, I would encourage you to subscribe (or visit) these resources below:

To end it all on a "kosher note," feel free to enjoy this video from Israel 21st Century about a potential cure for diabetes (that looks very promising).