WIKILEAKS!

Iran has acquired missiles from North Korea that can hit W. Europe

Putin is an alpha-dog

Secret American air stikes in Yemen

These are some of the chatter-lines being exposed on the latest Wikileak outbreak. This pandemic that has no precedent and will have an enormous effect on information sharing. Some of it is comical and somewhat voyeur. Other information merely confirms what everyone knows already.

This leak and limewire styled sharing of information has kept news agencies bamboozled at keeping up with thousands of breaking news stories all at once and it will continue to do so in the next coming days.

What will happen from this? Will we see Yemeni citizens ambushing the US embassy in protest? Probably not. Will we see any official protest or government submissions to the UN? Also probably not, considering most countries are just as embarrassed as the US is.

But this exposure of what was confidential information is to the public what a "behind the scenes" documentary is to a movie. It gives insights into how the directors and actors think and their motives behind their actions. Except this time, we all are the movie and are watching how we are all being played. The world just got a copy of its first DVD collection.

Israel’s Social Contract Dilemma

Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has faced some debate internationally regarding its new loyalty oath. The proposed oath, in its original form, required immigrants to swear loyalty to the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. The proposed law, seemingly punted by Yisrael Beiteinu and in a compromise to keep the coalition ship steady, has caused a stir across borders but also within Israel from various groups, including (and unsurprisingly from) the Arab block. The logic behind this naturally is to welcome citizens who support Israel and to make it clear that dissidents, whether ideological, ethnic or merely self-interested, are hindered in enjoying the fruits of Israel without supporting it.

Over the past few days though, Netanyahu, has returned to the sketching board and has redrafted the wording of the loyalty oath to include all immigrants, whether Jewish or otherwise to take this oath.

Of course, this dilution to make the oath uniform addresses the discrimination and selectivity of targeting “unloyal subjects”, but in typical Israeli politics, by Bebe trying to calm left and Arab concerns, he upsets others. Recent reports say that the Hareidi block will not be impressed with swearing loyalty to a state of which it has an icy acceptance. In one roll of the dice to keep the Russians happy, Netanyahu has managed to upset both the left and the right of the Knesset.

Of course, the loyalty oath in itself is obligatory on immigrants, but one has to ask, if someone has issue with coming to a country like Israel, then why would they object so to support its existence in the first place?

Mind you, do we change the anthem of the United Kingdom because it offends atheists, or change its flag because not everyone believes in its cross? One can also turn to America, and say that “I pledge allegiance to the flag” is insensitive to those who hate what the flag stands for? Surely that is ludicrous?

But at the same time, selective discrimination forcing “others” to pledge allegiance to Israel is wrong. If this loyalty oath comes into play, then it has to be uniform to everyone, regardless of their Jewish background or lack thereof. Perhaps the compromise is that everyone is welcome to the land of milk and honey, but if you want to eat from its fruits of citizenship, then there is a social contract you have to sign.

Pizza at 3 in the Morning

It is 3 in the morning, and Jerry Maguire, after seeing his star hockey player injured for another time, decides grow a conscience over a half eaten and most probably off slice of pizza on a cold hotel floor and writes a memo to his company of how he thinks the world should be run....

When one gets carried away with work or selfishness or anything that is micro, one forgets about on the greater scheme of things.

And now, at 10:00pm on a cold winters night I, feel like Jerry Maguire trying to write an manifesto of influence, an article of thought-provocation, or at the very least, simple news reporting of what is going on in the world in the past year.

Yet, is there anything to report?