House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Lost, Bad For Jews

 Nadene Goldfoot                                        

California State Senator Scott Wiener, right, smiles before taking photos with supporters at the 2026 California Democratic Party State Convention in San Francisco, February 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Scott Wiener (born May 11, 1970) age 56, is an American politician who has served as a member of the California State Senate from the 11th district since 2016. A member of the Democratic Party, his district encompasses San Francisco and parts of San Mateo County.

California State Sen. Scott Wiener advanced Tuesday as the frontrunner to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in Congress, in a contest closely watched in Jewish politics after Wiener called Israel’s actions in the Gaza War a genocide and called for a halt to arms sales to Israel. Our senior political reporter, Jacob Kohnbluh, who tells us he  tracked the debate over Zionism and the war in Gaza, detailing how prominent Jewish candidates (such as California State Sen. Scott Wiener) have faced intense primary pressure for their evolving views. For instance, Kornbluh reported that after Senator Wiener made statements calling Israel’s actions in Gaza a "genocide" and urged a halt to arms sales, he ultimately stepped down as co-chair of the California Jewish Caucus following backlash.  The Jewish progressive, who won the Democratic primary to replace retiring former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in Congress, navigated a highly tested relationship with his local Jewish community.

• The "Genocide" Remark: Following a refusal to take a definitive "yes" or "no" position on whether Israel's actions constituted genocide during an early January 2026 debate, Wiener released a video clarifying that he believed the Israeli government's attempts to destroy Gaza and displace Palestinians amounted to genocide. Destroy Gaza, an area that Israel had given freely to the Palestinians in the name of Peace?  No way!  
• Timeline: The evacuation began in August 2005 and the last Israeli military forces left the territory on September 12, 2005.  Scope of the Withdrawal: Israel dismantled all 21 Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and four additional settlements in the northern West Bank.  While Israel handed over internal control of the land and evacuated its civilian population, it maintained (and continues to maintain) strict control over Gaza's borders, coastline, and airspace.  Good thing, too, since 5 minutes later it became a base for Hamas terrorists to attack Israel.  It was a slap in the face for Israel.  
• There have been other peoples moved from one area to another like the Muslim people of India who were moved to Pakistan.  (Muslim people migrated from India to Pakistan in one of the largest mass migrations in human history. The primary exodus took place during and immediately after the Partition of India in 1947, when the British Indian Empire was divided into independent India and Pakistan (which included what is now Bangladesh).  
• Resignation from Jewish Caucus Leadership: Because of the controversy and petitions from local constituents, Wiener stepped down from his co-chair role in the California Legislative Jewish Caucus in February 2026, though he remains an active member.
• Policy and Re-election: Despite alienating segments of the local Jewish establishment with his "genocide" remarks, Wiener—who supports a two-state solution (today rather passe thinking after October 7th)  and generally views the U.S.-Israel alliance favorably—handily advanced out of his congressional primary. Past Antisemitic Targeting: Earlier in his legislative career, JTA reported on instances where Wiener was targeted with antisemitic tropes, including a 2020 Facebook ad by a construction trade union that depicted him clutching a handful of Monopoly money, which was condemned by Jewish advocates. 
• You know what this Portland, Oregon writer thinks about that?  It's the anti-semitism that is driving this Senator into fearing the reaction of Israel's creation among the world of anti-Semites, and he doesn't have the strong spine of most of us who is fighting it.  He's caved in.  How disappointing he is to me.  Disappointing and makes me angry that he has botched up our history so badly.  There's no excuse for that with me! 
• This Left sided Democratic  Senator Wiener who even happens to be Jewish, advanced in the Congressional Primary in San Francisco.  He is to face off against Connie Chan, who was endorsed by current seat holder Nancy Pelosi, after a former AOC aide backed by anti-Israel streamer Hasan Piker falls short.  
  
  Connie Chan (born Chan Sze-man, October 8, 1978; 48 years old;  Chinese: 陳詩敏) is an American politician serving as a member of the 
  San Francisco Board of Supervisors
   for District 1 since January 8, 2021, after defeating Marjan Philhour in 2020, and again in 2024. Chan is a progressive Democrat.
• I'm looking at Connie Chan. She's also another Democratic anti-Semite about Israel.  Need I remind readers that Israel is a Jewish state?    Connie Chan, a San Francisco Supervisor and Democratic candidate for California's 11th Congressional District, has made her staunch criticism of Israel's military actions a central pillar of her foreign policy platform. Her stance on Israel has become one of the defining and most controversial issues in the election. 
  Her Stance and Record:
  • Gaza and Military Aid: Chan has consistently condemned Israel's war in Gaza, frequently characterizing the crisis as a genocide against Palestinians. She supports imposing an arms embargo on Israel and previously backed the Block the Bombs Act, a congressional bill designed to restrict specific U.S. weapons transfers to Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had already explicitly backed a legislative push to phase out direct U.S. military aid to Israel, stating his goal to draw American financial support down to zero over the next decade. This strategy transitions the long-standing dynamic from an "aid recipient" to an equal "defense trade partnership".  Rather than waiting for the expiration of the current U.S.-Israel security agreement in 2028, Netanyahu expressed plans to start the transition immediately.Under this proposal, Israel will fully finance its own weapon acquisitions from American defense manufacturers rather than relying on subsidized grants.
  • Lebanon: In April 2026, she issued a joint statement with Lebanese-American activists demanding an end to U.S. taxpayer money and military aid to Israel, citing devastating harm to innocent families in Lebanon and Gaza. {Does she not realize that Lebanon is attacking Israel first or why they are fighting in the first place; and that it's about Hezbollah terrorists fed by Iran?}
  • Local Resolutions: During her time on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, she voted to pass the city's ceasefire resolution in early 2024. [Nope, she's not keeping up with facts other than California news, evidentely]
  The Campaign and PAC Controversy:
  Chan's foreign policy views generated significant late-breaking controversy just ahead of the June 2026 primary election. Although she pledged not to accept direct donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), journalists uncovered a super PAC network (Pro-Choice Majority Action) backing her campaign. This PAC spent nearly half a million dollars supporting her candidacy and received hundreds of thousands of dollars from AIPAC-aligned super PACs.  AIPAC stands for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which is the largest and one of the most influential pro-Israel lobbying groups in the United States. It is a bipartisan, grassroots organization that advocates for strong U.S.-Israel relations
  The Response:
  Chan's campaign pushed back heavily against this revelation, stating in a release reported by J. Weekly that the funds were given to independent entities, not her campaign, and urged any group supporting her to respect her values and reject pro-Israel PAC money. Nevertheless, the situation was weaponized by progressive opponents like Saikat Chakrabarti. 
  
  Connie Chan is all smiles as the ballots come in on June 2, 2026. Photo by Abigail Vân Neely.Connie Chan has beat her opponent, Saikat Chakrabarti, for the No. 2 spot in San Francisco’s congressional contest — she and Sen. Scott Wiener will face off in the November general election to succeed Rep. Nancy Pelosi.

Resource:

https://www.timesofisrael.com/lefty-jew-who-accused-israel-of-genocide-advances-in-san-francisco-congressional-primary/

Is Buddaism related at all to Judaism?

 Nadene Goldfoot                                             

Are Buddhism and Judaism related? 

 Theologically, Judaism and Buddhism are fundamentally different—Judaism is a monotheistic religion centered on a Creator God, while Buddhism is non-theistic and focuses on achieving enlightenment and escaping the cycle of rebirth, or reincarnation. 

However, the two traditions share surprisingly strong modern and cultural connections:

• The "JewBu" Phenomenon: There is a significant overlap between the two communities. A large number of disaffected or secularized Jews have gravitated toward Buddhism, leading to the creation of the term "JewBu" (or "JuBu"). It's estimated that a large percentage of Western Buddhist leaders have Jewish roots. But it wasn’t until the 1950s that the Jewish Buddhist movement really took off. With the hippy ‘peace and love’ mentality on the rise, and many modern Jews seeking a more spiritual path, lots of young American Jews turned to Buddhism. Jewish friends Michael Fagan and Sam Bercholz established the Shambhala Buddhist festival; Joseph Goldstein, Jack Kornfield, Sharon Salzberg and Jacqueline Mandell-Schwartz founded the famous Insight Meditation center and movement; and even David Ben-Gurion espoused Buddhist meditation!
• Shared Ethical Values: Both traditions strongly emphasize the interconnectedness of humanity, ethical living, and the ethics of reciprocity (e.g., the concept of "Love thy neighbor" in Judaism and compassion for all sentient beings in Buddhism). 
•  Contrasting Worldviews: Judaism teaches active engagement with and perfecting the physical world. Buddhism, on the other hand, emphasizes detachment from worldly desires to end suffering. 
• Which religion is the oldest?  Judaism or Buddhism...
• Judaism is significantly older than Buddhism. Judaism emerged in the Middle East around 2000 BCE to 1500 BCE. In contrast, Buddhism originated in ancient India much later, around the 6th century BCE.  
  
                       Moses and the 10 Commandments
• Moses was the leader of Judaism.  We Jews follow the Mosaic Law in different degrees.  There are the Orthodox who are most stringent of followers, the Conservative and the Reform who have attempted to bring the laws more up to date by following some of them.
  
                                David Yosef, (Sephardi)
  
                       Kalmen Bur, (Ashkenazi)
• In each community, large or small, there has been someone officiating the Jewish laws:  for instance-the state of Israel:  Israel's two chief rabbis are Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Kalman Ber and Sephardi Chief Rabbi David Yosef (also known as the Rishon leZion). Both rabbis were elected in late 2024 to serve 10-year terms overseeing the Chief Rabbinate of Israel. Yes, we also have a division of Ashkenazi (more German/Hebrew-western) and Sephardi (more Spain, Latin American,) and even Mizrahi (Egypt, Middle Eastern).  Mizrahi Jews have no chief rabbi. Mizrahi Jews (Jews from the Middle East and North Africa) fall under the jurisdiction of the Sephardic Chief Rabbi, a position officially known as the Rishon LeZion. 
  
             Israel's population: Israel's total population is approximately 10,178,000 to 10,224,200. Demographic breakdown:
  • Jewish and others: 76.3% (about 7.7 million) In Israel, about 50% of the Jewish population identifies with Orthodox Judaism, while only about 2% to 3% identify as Conservative and Reform combined. The remaining 45% either identify as traditional, strictly secular (Hiloni), or claim no specific denominational affiliation
  • Arab citizens: 21.1% (about 2.1 million)
  • Foreign citizens: 2.6% (about 260,000) 
• In Israel, the Jewish population is nearly evenly split between the two main ethnic branches. Approximately 45% are Ashkenazi (European descent), while 48% to 50% are Sephardic or Mizrahi (Middle Eastern, North African, and Central Asian descent). The remainder belong to smaller, diverse communities like Ethiopian Jews. 
  
  
  
• Buddhism does not have a single, universal leader. Instead, the religion is structured around regional schools, lineages, and monastic orders rather than a centralized governing authority.                                
  
  
  
• Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha): The historical founder of Buddhism who lived in ancient India. While he is not a "leader" in the modern sense, his teachings (Dharma) form the foundational basis for all Buddhist traditions. 
  
  
  
• The Dalai Lama: The spiritual leader of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. The incumbent, Tenzin Gyatso, is widely recognized globally as the preeminent figure and voice of Tibetan Buddhism. 
• Other Lineage Leaders: Different Buddhist schools are led by their own respected patriarchs, abbots, or monastic councils. For example, Theravada Buddhism (practiced heavily in Southeast Asia) is guided by councils of senior monks, while Zen Buddhism relies on an unbroken chain of recognized teachers (Roshi or Sensei).
•  
• 
  
• 
  
• Resource:
• https://blog.nli.org.il/en/judaism-and-buddhism/
• https://www.embodiedphilosophy.com/reflections-of-a-jewish-buddhist-2/

The Destruction That Comes With War-time

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                                       

                                                                           

  Heavy destruction in Beirut's  Dahiyeh neighborhood following Israeli bombing, May 6, 2026

Trump was concerned by the fact that Israel had killed so many civilians in Lebanon, and objected to the Israelis knocking down buildings to take out a single Hezbollah commander.  Israel has conducted several targeted airstrikes that knocked down buildings to eliminate senior Hezbollah commanders in Lebanon, most notably targeting underground bunkers beneath civilian apartment blocks in the southern suburbs of Beirut (Dahiyeh). 

Before they do, they, as in the past,  would let the people in the building know that Israeli IDF were there and what they had to do.  They would tell the people to get out, where to go for safety, and give advice as to where they could settle.  To do that they would use every means possible from bull horns to email to dropping leaflets, telephone calls.  They were not there to take lives.  However, it would be impossible to tell Hezbollah terrorists and civilians apart.  

        Beirut, Lebanon from a drone

Traditional & Low-Rise Materials: In historic or semi-urban areas of countries like Israel and Palestine, three-to-five-story walk-up apartments are common. These are often built with standard concrete frames, but feature exteriors clad in local stone (such as Jerusalem stone). In highly historic or rural environments, materials can even include mud-brick or slate. 

Who can rebuild the buildings in Lebanon after war destroys them?

 United Nations Agencies: The UN Debris Taskforce (DTF)—comprising UN-Habitat, UNDP, and others—leads safe debris removal, environmental cleanup, and urban recovery planning.

Hezbollah: In areas where they hold political dominance, such as Beirut's southern suburbs and parts of South Lebanon, Hezbollah has historically created specialized engineering and reconstruction units to rebuild damaged or destroyed housing for residents.  They are the cause of the destruction and then they will profit somehow in the re-construction of the building from the many groups that will step in.

Private Contractors & Engineering Firms: Private Lebanese construction firms and architecture agencies are hired by the government, NGOs, or private homeowners to execute the physical reconstruction.

The Diaspora: The Lebanese expatriate community frequently provides financial backing, direct investments, and remittances to help individual families rebuild their homes and restart local businesses. 

I have my young Syrian engineer friend who had his own building business, but seemed to run into difficulties with the president,  Bashar al-Assad, who served from July 17, 2000, until his regime was overthrown and he fled the country on December 8, 2024l.  My friend has since left Syria, too, after being picked up and put in their prison and beaten;  a political reason.  These countries are different from the West.  I don't think Hezbollah was in Syria but Assad was bad enough.  

How many Lebanese have died during Israel's bombing?  It depends on who you ask. Lebanon's population is approximately 5.8 to 5.9 million people. This figure places Lebanon 116th in global population rankings.

The current population of Lebanon is 5,889,236 as of Wednesday, June 3, 2026, based on Worldometer's elaboration of the latest United Nations data1.

Lebanon 2026 population is estimated at 5,897,467 people at mid-year.

Lebanon population is equivalent to 0.071% of the total world population.

Lebanon ranks number 116 in the list of countries (and dependencies) by population.

The population density in Lebanon is 576 per Km² (1,493 people per mi²).

The total land area is 10,230 Km² (3,950 sq. miles).

84.41% of the population is urban (4,978,043 people in 2026)

The median age in Lebanon is 29 years.

1. U.N. Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs - Population Division. World Population Prospects: The 2024 Revision. (Medium-fertility.

Israel responded with an air campaign across Lebanon and a ground invasion in the south, which has been escalating in recent weeks. At least 3,468 people have been killed in Lebanon since the start of the war, according to the country's health ministry.

The Gaza war sparked a renewed Israel–Hezbollah conflict, beginning one day after the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel. The conflict initially consisted of tit-for-tat airstrikes and shelling. The conflict escalated in September 2024, beginning with the Israeli explosion of Lebanese pagers and walkie talkies. Israel then began an aerial bombing campaign throughout Lebanon, killing at least 569 people on 23 September; the largest conflict-related loss of life in a single day in Lebanon since the Civil War. 

 Hezbollah terrorists are in these buildings.  That's why Israel is bombing them, though today they usually can pinpoint a target, but these that they are after are in the bottom area of a building.  They most likely live in the upper chambers, so could be anyplace.  

Resource:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli%E2%80%93Lebanese_conflict