The Last Waltz

So I turn on the picture box to watch while I eat dinner on my last night of studying before my board exams, and what do I find coming on? The Last Waltz. Arguably the greatest concert film ever. (I'm not gonna argue though.) No more studying for me.

Being the sentimental dope that I am, I start to think that watching The Last Waltz is a great and appropriate way to essentially finish my first two years of medical school studying. And The Weight?(see below) The weight is this gawldern exam thats been on my shoulders for the past 3 months. Done Sunday. NYC, America, and the beginning of the rest of my summer on Tuesday.

If Pops Staples don't getcha going in this video, then there might be something wrong with you.

Happy Birthday, Americuh!

Today is the 4th of July. Independence Day. And while many of my friends will be grilling out, wake boarding, watching baseball, listening to country music, watching fireworks, drinking watered down beer, or a host of other activities that make America so dang awesome, I will be in Ramat Aviv, studying for my upcoming exam.

I ain't complaining though. Heck, times like these, I like to think that maybe I'm even working toward making the ol' U S of A even awesomer.

This video also helps to make me feel better. Special shout-out to the Kay's Ice Cream freezer that WJ's leaning on.

I Haredi Told Ya So...

As an addendum to yesterday's post, it seems that I'm not the only one who has noticed a recent increase in Haredi discontent. Check out this article in today's Haaretz newspaper, The Great Haredi Rebellion is Raging on Several Fronts.

In news not related to Ultra-Orthodox Jews, I just finished my last exam of my second year of medical school today. Now I have a little over three weeks until I take step 1 of the USMLE board exams. Then on to Americuh for a much needed break. Woo Hoo!

Jew D'oh Kick

There were more riots in the streets today. But this time the clash was between Israeli police and the Haredim, Israel's Ultra-Orthodox population. They are apparently upset about an archeological dig that may be disturbing Jewish grave sites. (article here)

This is one of many disputes between the authorities and the Haredim that have come to my attention over the past few weeks.

Just last week, and not far from my apartment, there was a demonstration by secular Jews against the Haredim and their increasing presence in my neighborhood. (article here)

There is currently an ongoing legal drama where Haredim are facing jail time by refusing to obey an Israeli Supreme Court ruling to desegregate their school. (article here)

Also, over the past few months there have been demonstrations in Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Ashkelon. All protesting archeological excavations and grave disturbances, and some resulting in property damage and even...bags of shit? (article here)

I'm not passing judgement here. I just find it interesting that the Israeli government must deal with sometimes violent confrontations from those who consider themselves "guardians of Judaism," while simultaneously protecting itself from those who want to annihilate the Jewish state. Especially in the wake of this flotilla shit storm.

If You'll Allow Me To Demonstrate...

There was a demonstration at school yesterday in support of the Israeli Defense Force and their response to the "Freedom Flotilla." If you don't know what I'm talking about, then you probably have no business being on the internet. Here are some pictures of what I saw.

A few Israelis were kind enough to print some signs in English for me to photograph.

Across the street were some pro-Palestinian supporters

A couple of them also made a sign that I could read.

This dude wasn't too happy with what the Palestinian supporters had to say, so Mr. Policeman helped him back across the street.

Finally. A man with a cape.

PHRee Medicine

I went to a small village in the West Bank the other day with a mobile clinic that the group Physicians for Human Rights-Israel operates. The mobile clinic is basically a small busload of physicians, nurses, and students that provide very basic medical care to Palestinians who do not have access to routine health care.

A few other students and I met the rest of the group at a gas station near the border. We then boarded a bus and rode for about an hour to the village where the clinic would be.

The "clinic" was actually a school house and patients were seen in classrooms that were about the size of a bedroom. There were a few internal medicine rooms, a couple pediatrician rooms, one orthopedics room, and a room where the medicine was distributed. I was in one of the internal medicine rooms.

Besides being very crude medicine, the whole dynamic of the patient visits was really interesting. In my room there was the physician who spoke Hebrew and English. There were the patients who only spoke Arabic. There was me who struggles with English. And there was another very impressive student who was fluent in Hebrew, Arabic, and English. When he wasn't translating for the doctor and patient, he was helping me understand a little better what was going on.

It seemed like we saw around four thousand patients in about 5 hours. I think the number was closer to 25 though.

Afterwards, we were bussed over to a local restaurant where we were fed a colorful and much-needed meal.

There are some mixed feelings among my classmates about the PHR organization. Many disagree with its political agenda and believe that it inappropriately mixes politics and medicine. I prefer to keep my distance from political debates. Particularly in this country. But I know I saw some talented and caring people doing good things for good people, many of them children, and I don't see how one can argue with that.

O Little Town of Bethlehem

On Christmas Eve two friends and I decided to take a last minute trip to Bethlehem to check out the festivities. Pictured here is a card that was given to each of us, along with a package of candy, as we crossed the military checkpoint going into the West Bank. Among other things, the trip was a reminder of how close I live to so many historic and religiously significant places; total drive time was less than an hour and a half and could have been less without traffic.

Though definitely a learning experience, the trip proved to be a little bit underwhelming. Apparently one must have an admission ticket to see the Christmas services inside the Church of the Nativity. And these tickets, although free, must be procured in advance from one of various Christian tourist agencies.

Getting close to the Church of the Nativity was also difficult because of tight security. I was told that in addition to the large crowds, security was heightened because there were usually several Palestinian dignitaries who attended the church's services.

Outside of the church there is a small square called Manger Square. The square is lined with souvenir shops for tourists, and opposite from the Church of the Nativity sits the town's only mosque. For Christmas there was a stage set up in the square where various musical and dance acts from Europe and Africa performed for an audience made up mostly of roaming gaggles of Arab men smoking cigarettes and gawking at the scattered groups of tourists who were not attending the closed services in the Church.

(That's the Church of the Nativity on the other side of the firetruck.)

(Mosque of Omar)

The most interesting part of the trip was actually crossing into the West Bank and seeing the Israeli Palestinian Barrier Wall which lies just north of Bethlehem. Driving along the wall at night was a little spooky and sobering. My friend Tania took some really good pictures. I posted a few below. For some general information on the barrier click here for the Wikipedia page, or click here for an interesting BBC guide.

Even though I wasn't able to focus much on little tiny Baby Jesus this trip, I know better how to plan my trip and what to expect next year. Keep the date open if you'd like to travel along.