Haveil Havalim #317 - The Lag ba'Omer edition

Welcome to Haveil Havalim #317, the Lag ba'Omer edition!

For those who saw the original title: I changed it because I don't want to let the CEO of Canada South hijack this week's Haveil Havalim. He'll get his due with an entire section in the posts below, but that's it.

And now for the boilerplate:
Founded by Soccer Dad, Haveil Havalim is a carnival of Jewish blogs -- a weekly collection of Jewish and Israeli blog highlights, tidbits and points of interest collected from blogs all around the world. It's hosted by different bloggers each week and coordinated by the formidable Jack And as usual, I include all posts submitted, regardless of my personal opinion on their contents, and I added some from my own browsing.

Post of the Week
Rabbi Daniel Rapp writes movingly about a mentor in Learning from Rabbi Dr. Aaron Levine at Hirhurim.


Lag ba’Omer!
Jacob Richman offers a guide to Educational websites about Lag Ba'Omer, and Rafi has a piece on Rav Shteinman's psak on Lag ba'Omer in Meron at Life in Israel.

Is Lag ba’Omer really Saturday night-Sunday? Check out Harry’s Lag b’Omer is Saturday night. Or maybe not.

And Our Shiputzim talks about the real Iyar Challenge“.

The Obama Speech
My favorite critique is here, at Andrew Breitbart’s Big Hollywood: Gene Simmons Slams President Obama’s Israel Policy.

And perhaps the Arab world didn’t like it either, says Elder of Ziyon.

Matityahu Ben-Yosef presents Stanley Goldfoot’s Zionist Response to Obama’s Middle East Speech, and Batya presents Obama Has Taken Off the Mask

Cosmic X goes point-by-point with The Obama Plan Not Grounded in Middle East Reality, and Yip Bop adds With Friends Like These, Who Needs Friends? - News Beyond News!.

Joe-Settler puts it simply: Netanyahu Bibi-Slaps Obama, at the Muqata, while Eric looks at recent history of US-Israel relations in The Democrats and Israel.

The Personal and the Off-Beat
ProfK offers Paraprosdokians to lighten the day at Conversations in Klal.

Jack needs 50 comments at, well, This post requires 50 comments...Ready...Go...

Kindred Spirit writes personally and powerfully in Leap of Faith, and Mystery Woman details an important parenting lesson in Letting Go.

Frume Sarah talks about her mother and smoking in Ongoing, while Rickismom talks pottery and relationships in In a Split Second, and Elle waxes poetic about her impending move in sentimental me.

Kosher Beers reviews Shiner Double Wheat 102. Yum. I think?

Schvach talks aging and Bob Dylan in AARP as History.

Harry talks about an odd baby-name chosen in Israel, in Do you like Like?


Israel
Harry has an interesting retrospective on Kupat Cholim in Nostalgia Sunday – 100 Years of Healthcare.

Nakba while still on the agenda, as Ben-Yehudah offered a Nakba النكبة Day Wrap-Up! and Batya presented The Most Dangerous Ramification of Yesterday's “Nakba” Riots and Invasion. This while Cosmic X compares Nakba Day and V-E Day in The Super Nakba is Coming.

Daniela reviews Osem's Pizza Ketchup and Milka's Milkinis Chocolate.

Batya presents A Georgraphical History of Israel, This Neck of the Middle East.

A Walker in Jerusalem presents Walls and values. Maybe she could go for a long walk with Batya. Or they could just take the train, since Batya’s Getting Impatient.

Joel Katz talks religion, politics and more in Religion and State in Israel - May 16, 2011 (Section 1) and Religion and State in Israel - May 16, 2011 (Section 2).

I learned quite a bit when I asked, Who owns the Holocaust – Israel or the Diaspora?

And you’re probably not thinking about Shemitah at the moment, but the wondrous Menachem Butler offers Shemitta; (How) to observe, or not at the Michtavim blog.


Judaism
R’ Gil Student discusses justifications for dishonesty in Abortion and Deception, at Hirhurim.

Josh Waxman describes a confluence of Evangelical and Kabbalistic predictons of the end of the world, in The world ends tomorrow, the day before Lag BaOmer.

Chaviva is running an interesting survey with The Tzniut Project, and Risa offers her response at Hair we go again!.

Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver presents Learning Torah with humility, and also talks Pesach Sheni and second chances at Pesach Sheni: A second chance. For more on Pesach Sheni and Second Chances, check out Once again, with feeling! at Ki Yachol Nuchal.

I offered a suggestion for shul’s looking for help collecting a minyan, in Come to minyan, get a free batting helmet.

Susan Barnes makes a few points about labels and self-labels in Why the Current Use of the Term “Torah Jew” is a Chilul Hashem.

Josh Waxman takes on Reader Response -- Is it good to debunk Torah Codes?.

Leah-Perl Shollar inveighs on the definition of “melachah” in Lawsuit Over Jews’ Shabbos House: Work and Rest.

Finally, Chaviva is raising funds, and along with it sharing an interesting story, at Saving a Sefer Torah.

And that’s it for this week; tune in next time at Frume Sarah for Haveil Havalim #305! And in case Blog Carnival is back up and running, submit your posts here.