That Israeli Moment

That Israeli Moment

By: Forest Rain – Dec. 2016 I just experienced one of the most Israeli moments you can possibly have. That Israeli moment when your man helps his son decide which IDF unit to request. Enlistment is mandatory but the IDF gives pre-inductees the opportunity to rank their preferences. Final decisions are made according to need and, […]

No One Is Too Big To Jail ~ FROM ISRAEL TO THE VALLEY PATRIOT, with Forest Rain

No One Is Too Big To Jail ~ FROM ISRAEL TO THE VALLEY PATRIOT, with Forest Rain

By: Forest Rain – Oct. 2016 In February of this year Israel’s former Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, began his prison sentence. It is deeply embarrassing to discover that someone who held the most important position in the land, who has been privy to State secrets and has made life and death decisions, is a corrupt […]

What aren’t they showing you? ~ FROM ISRAEL TO THE VALLEY PATRIOT

What aren’t they showing you? ~ FROM ISRAEL TO THE VALLEY PATRIOT

By: Forest Rain – Sept. 2016 “Aren’t you afraid of the soldiers?” the reporter asked the old Arab man. A resident of Jenin, approximately 60 or 70 years old, was sitting on a pile of rubble. He was calmly sitting there, not doing much of anything. He was surprised by the reporter’s question. I watched […]

The Arab World Has an Empathy Problem ~ FROM ISRAEL TO THE VALLEY PATRIOT

The Arab World Has  an Empathy Problem ~ FROM ISRAEL TO THE VALLEY PATRIOT

By: Forest Rain – August, 2016 Yes. I said it. Don’t jump on me, hear me out. This is not about being derogatory to an entire culture, this is about a little discussed but very dangerous trend that is effecting the entire world. Yes. This is a generalization. Again – this is NOT about individuals, […]

Freedom Fighters ~ by Forest Rain, Israeli Columnist

Freedom Fighters ~ by Forest Rain,  Israeli Columnist

By: Forest Rain – January, 2014 When words are twisted meaning becomes warped. The straightforward and obvious suddenly takes on a new meaning, transforming in to something far from the original intent. Changing words and definitions changes reality. Once the term “freedom fighters” meant people who fight for freedom. Now, somehow this term has become […]

Feeding the Crocodile by Forest Rain, Valley Patriot Israeli Columnist

Feeding the Crocodile by Forest Rain, Valley Patriot Israeli Columnist

  By, Forest Rain – December, 2104 There is a new trend in Europe. Parliaments in various European countries are holding “symbolic votes” to “recognize the State of Palestine.” These votes are symbolic in that they don’t have the power to create a Palestinian State. There is no state called “Palestine”, and historically there is […]

I Don’t Want a Ceasefire In Gaza

I Don’t Want a Ceasefire In Gaza

By: Forest Rain in Tel Aviv August, 2014 Again we are hearing news of negotiations for a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. The world media seems jubilant. I am not. I don’t want a ceasefire. I want peace. Real peace. A ceasefire means ceasing to fire. It makes no mention of putting down weapons, or […]