- And talking about memory [see quote above], archaeology provides the proof that memory is serving us correctly. We at GN don’t believe that the word ‘marvelous’ would overstate the importance of the discovery of a wall, pottery and seals dating from the time of the prophet Nehemiah (that’s nearly 2,700 years ago). Apart from everything else the unearthing of this treasure strengthens the claims that this is the site of King David’s palace, substantiates the biblical account of the events and of course, provides yet another strand in the glorious tapestry of our historical attachment to the Land of Israel, ancient and modern.
- The international Terravino 2007 wine contest can hardly be described as an earth shattering event but it is important to wine lovers and an Israeli wine won a gold medal there, competing with the best. But that’s not all; local wine exports are estimated to grow by 50% in 2007. Included are all the well known types of whites and reds and as the figures indicate, international demand for them is growing from year to year. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again. Manischewitz, eat your heart out.
- As we write, representatives from the Israeli Government and Mercosur, a four-nation group, consisting of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, are signing an historic agreement which will give Israel free trade entry to a combined market of nearly 250 million people covering most of South America. The commercial potential is considerable.
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 Israeli films have enjoyed unprecedented success this year, taking major awards at all the prestigious movie festivals. Last month saw the now famous Israeli film “The Band’s Visit” taking top honors in Tokyo and it has just been announced that director Raphael Madjari’s “Tehillim” has won the grand prize at Japan’s Filmex Festival. The story line concerns a religious family thrown into turmoil when the father suddenly disappears. The GN is that local cinematographers are producing the goods without having to rely on the ‘conflict’ in order to do it. - Jerusalem’s hi-tech business is blossoming and that means more jobs, a thousand more in fact, in all branches of the industry. But that’s not all. Really GN is that unemployment generally continues to fall and has now hit its lowest level in eleven years, yes that’s right eleven years. It presently stands at 7.3%, with the number of employed people reaching an all time high of 2.8million.
- It’s long overdue but it’s happened at last. Standard & Poor’s rating services has raised Israel’s credit worthiness on the basis of the “improved resilience of Israel’s economy and its robust growth”. We won’t even attempt to give you the exact grades which include abstruse things like AAB, A-1 and A-1+, suffice it to say that the upgrading has very positive implications for the country and is an expression of international confidence in its economic standing.
- We have avoided reporting on the goings on at Annapolis for one reason only; depending on whom you speak to, the news is either very good or very bad, and they’re talking about the same news! This brings us to the Golan Heights, where the GN is that it’s business as usual-and a little more so. So let’s list what is going on; they are completing a large bridge and a trunk road, 150 new housing units are being built in one community alone, people are building beautiful homes on ¼ of an acre, 400 new families settle there every year, and last but by no means least, more and more Israelis are finding it the perfect temporary retreat from the pressures of urban living.
- If our National Infrastructure Minister has anything to say about it, and we’re sure that he has, carbon based fuels will have disappeared from the Israeli scene by the year 2020. And not only that, proposed legislation is before the Knesset right now obligating all new public buildings to be ‘green buildings’, and by 2010 all architecture will be green. Now if the words are turned into action that will be really GN.
- A related item:
- A team of four MBA students from Ben Gurion University has just won a $10,000 prize for its business plan for Negev Renewable Green Fuels, a company that produces bio-diesel from micro-algae growth. The contest that they won was international. With intellectual input like that, how can we go wrong!?
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 Our two male tennis stars Dudi Sela and Harel Levy finished their season on a high note. Sela won the Yokohama Challenger by beating Japanese player, Suzuki in the finals. Besides the cash prize Dudi has moved up to number 64 in the world. This was the cherry on the top of a successful season for Israel’s #1 racquet, that included winning three tournaments as well as his absolutely stunning display for Israel against Chile in the Davis Cup. Not to be outdone Harel Levy and his partner Sam Warburg, won the doubles finals in the tournament at Knoxville. - Israel is a small country, to state the obvious. In fact one might say that it is one of the smallest countries in the world, but right now it has the world’s largest flag. The blue and white measures 660meters (2,165 feet) long and a 100meters (330feet) wide, and weighs over 5 metric tons. Spread out in the desert it covered the size of 2 football fields, and right next to it was a Philippines flag, big but not quite as big. The flags were a gift from Grace Galindez–Gupana, a devout Christian and lover of Israel, who said simply. “The Lord said, ‘Make the flag of Israel, the standard of my people.’ So I did.” Stunning. Are these people special or what? And it’s all in the Guinness Book of Records.
- Intel Israel has done it again. They have designed and developed the smallest and fastest processing chipset ever. We at GN don’t come close to understanding the electronic intricacies involved, so we’ll satisfy ourselves by quoting Mr Paul Otellini, president and CEO of the Company, when he said. “The intellects, physics and designs that went into solving one of the industry’s most daunting challenges are awe inspiring” And this from a man who is probably needs a lot to inspire his awe.
- The best year since 2000, the best October since 1999, the third quarter of this year has been superb. What are all these superlatives about? The Israeli tourist industry that’s what. And it’s going to be better in 2008. What more GN can you ask for!?
- Here’s a heart warmer to end with. He was rushed into the ER of Kaplan Hospital with a broken right knee cap. He managed to tell the doctors that he was due to get married the next day. The medical team moved into top gear, and what usually takes three days was completed in a day. Ilan Kropotkin walked down the aisle, albeit on crutches, on schedule. There was one more hurdle to overcome, the traditional breaking of the glass, and with his injured right foot and four hundred wedding guests holding their breath, Ilan did what was called for, and the glass shattered in fine style. Mission successfully accomplished thanks to Kaplan’s devoted orthopedics team.
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“I marvel at the resilience of the Jewish people. Their best characteristic is their desire to remember. No other people has such an obsession with memory.”