openDemocracy: Catalonia vs Spain, a clash of two nationalisms

And, on November 9, the autonomous government has vowed to organise a referendum on Catalan residents' “Right to decide” whether they want to become a State and, if they do, whether they would choose independence or remain in the fold of the Spanish monarchy. A vote which is bitterly opposed – as unconstitutional – by the right wing PP's (Popular Party) government in Madrid as much as by PSOE (Socialist) opposition in the name of Spanish unity. For the moment, according to recent opinion polls, over two thirds of voters would vote “yes” at the first question and a small majority would opt for independence. [...]

In a democratic country there is nothing which could not be solved through negotiations. Provided there is a common will to negotiate, i.e., to give and take. The Catalan government, led by Artur Mas, head of Convergencia I Unio (CiU), the moderate nationalist party which spearheaded the fight for autonomy after Franco's death and who has long kept alive the hope of negotiating a better status with Madrid, is now advocating the “Right to decide”. He has announced for November 9 a referendum considered as illegal by the PP and PSOE, both of whom have vowed to oppose it by all legal means. Mas is also keeping up his sleeve the option of holding “plebiscitary” elections to the Barcelona Parliament, which would bring in a wider nationalist majority.

While Madrid politicians, and media are staunchly opposed to a referendum which, for them, would mean secession – some having gone so far as to compare Catalan nationalists to Nazi national-socialists, portraying Mas with a Hitler-like moustache and advocating sending the army in to restore rule of law in Barcelona – the two main Spanish parties, PP and PSOE, have all but vanished from the Catalan political scene. At the same time, moderate nationalists, who have failed to bring negotiations forward, are now threatened by the rise of the old radical anti-monarchy nationalists of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC), which has overtaken CiU in latest polls. [...]

By targeting the Mas government, widely portrayed as extremist and irresponsible, and by refusing to negotiate on key constitutional, economic, social, cultural issues, Mr. Rajoy has – willingly or not – been playing into the hands of radicals like the ERC or social organisations like Omnium Català and ANC (Catalan National Assembly), who are behind the latest massive demonstrations. New local elections would probably bring to power a coalition led by ERC. Specially as a significant number of neo-Catalans – immigrants from the rest of Spain and abroad – have recently joined the traditional independence camp. While, at the same time, neither the PP nor the PSOE want to be seen by their traditional Spanish voters as giving away to “separatists”. Rajoy knows that his party's radical wing, influenced by his predecessor Jose Maria Aznar, could threaten his leadership. While PSOE leaders are well aware that no Socialist government could be returned to the Cortes without the Catalan votes.

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Haaretz: Whisper It, but Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Community Is Starting to Talk About Homosexuality

When a religious Knesset member was pressured by his party into resigning last week after attending the wedding of a gay nephew, many Israelis saw it as further proof of the intolerance and rigidity in the ultra-Orthodox world. But others saw just the opposite.

The real news, they insisted, was not that Yigal Guetta had been given the boot from the Shas party, but rather that an ultra-Orthodox politician in Israel had attended a gay wedding, had urged other members of his family to join him and was not afraid to speak about it publicly. [...]

Guetta had publicized the fact that he attended the wedding in an Army Radio interview early last week. Although he insisted he was opposed to gay marriage, Guetta explained that for him, family ties took precedence and he believed it was his duty to honor his sister by attending her son’s wedding. [...]

“Not only homosexuality, but also other phenomena once considered to be stains on the family or the community – mental illness, for example, or children who left the Orthodox way of life,” he says. “These are phenomena the Haredi community has been starting to come to terms with. There is a growing understanding that they exist, that they can’t be hidden or denied, and that they have to be dealt with.” [...]

As El Or notes: “Ultra-Orthodox Sephardi Jews tend to be much more tolerant and accepting of those who are different than their Ashkenazi counterparts. In the Sephardi community, it is much less common for families to cut ties with children who come out as gay – so in a way I’m not surprised it was someone from Shas involved in this incident.” Within the party itself, Guetta belonged to the more moderate wing.

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Haaretz: The Father, the Son and the Jewish Spirit: Saving Synagogues Where There Are No More Jews

“Today there isn’t a single Jew here,” says Pavol Hudak, 59, an engineer and resident of the picturesque medieval town. He and his son Peter, 31, a historian who wrote his doctoral thesis on the Jewish community of Bardejov, have led a project to preserve and restore the synagogue over the past few years. The work, which began in 2015, was completed a few months ago.

“We succeeded in preserving the stones, the bricks and the wood,” Hudak says proudly. “We’ve also preserved the story of the place.” He then points to the old sundial that was discovered on the façade of the building during the restoration work and is no longer used. “There isn’t anyone left to hold prayers at their proper time,” he adds. [...]

The synagogue restoration was completed in April; it cost 765,000 euros ($917,500) and was funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Slovakia. The question that remains is what will become of the building in the absence of a local Jewish community.

For now, the synagogue serves as a museum and memorial to the Jewish life that was eradicated in Bardejov. Groups from all over the world, including from Israel, visit the site and get a guided tour from one of the Hudaks, who give them on a fully voluntary basis. The two hope to eventually establish an education center and enliven the place by holding cultural activities there.

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Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell: Is Reality Real? The Simulation Argument

Haaretz: Palestinian President Abbas Puts One-state Solution on the Table

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday was punctuated with anger and frustration. Abbas is aware that his ability to inspire hope in his people – the hope of an independent Palestinian state – is diminishing before his own eyes. This very forum, which applauded Abbas six years ago when he submitted an application for the recognition of Palestine, has since failed to turn its support into facts on the ground. [...]

Speaking at the highest international forum, Abbas declared that the one-state solution is an option for the Palestinian leadership. “Neither you, nor we, will have any other choice but to continue the struggle and demand full, equal rights for all inhabitants of historic Palestine,” he said. “This is not a threat, but a warning of the realities before us as a result of ongoing Israeli policies that are gravely undermining the two-state solution.” [...]

Abbas and his political circle know very well that a quarter of a century after the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian public has lost hope. Survey results released before Abbas’ visit to New York found that two-thirds of the Palestinian public demands that he resigns. The poll, conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, headed by Khalil Shikaki, also found that 57 percent of Palestinians no longer believe in a two-state solution, while 74 percent think the Trump administration is not serious in its intentions to reach a peace agreement.

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