Time to learn Arabic?

I don't understand why is it your business what we do here in Israel.

Did you ever hear an Israeli discussing the teaching of Scots or Welsh in British schools?

Where's all that meretz "humanism" regarding Britain's Jewish community. What community service(s) have you performed?

Why is "isolation of Arab Israelis" a concern of yours, while you sit abroad? You do NOT have a say in our lives.

A very good point, Yehuda. What the anti-Jewish potz-Zionists don't realise is that learning in and of itself is beneficiary. They also don't like to remember that at least 20 per cent of their population is Arabic-speaking and the whole of the surrounding countries. So if Israel wants to be aprt of the Middle East, and not some 21st-century equivalent of the Crusader Kingdom, its children need to learn the language of the neighbourhood.
And disapora Jews have every right to tell Israel what they think: especially if Israel's claims to be the state of the Jewish people is to have any meaning other than one of Bibi's attempts to prevent a peace deal.

You know a bit of Arabic, don't you, t'sam?

"And disapora Jews have every right to tell Israel what they think: especially if Israel's claims to be the state of the Jewish people is to have any meaning other than one of Bibi's attempts to prevent a peace deal."

It is NOT the state of people who wish to harm it.

And the so-called "peace deal" with terrorists who want a judenrhein state is just another of your propaganda tactics. Anyone who agrees with you - speak up now.

It's Avraham in the playground time. If Avraham gets his way, the first law of Zionism, the Law of Reuturn, goes out the window. He's not so much a potz-Zionist, but an anti-Zionist.

Yehuda, I agree with you 100%

Arabic is a beautiful language which has many similar roots to Hebrew. I can speak a little myself ;)

There is progress on this in Israel, but the boycotts don't help, read this link:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/news.aspx/138172

telegramsam - I live in Israel, so its natural that I'd write about it. But you are an obsessive galut-type anti-Semite. Your obsession with Israel would provide 3 shrinks with a long-term project.

On the contrary, Arabic should be removed from the curriculum and gradually phased out from the official languages. In twenty years, Hebrew would be the common mother tongue of all the people in Israel, leading to better integration and better understanding.
The error of multiculturalism leads only to separatism and discrimination.
This error is the same for Belgium: Flemish-speaking and French-speaking are separated and segregated. Most refuse to speak the others' language and vote differently in the Parliament.

In other words, you have it all reversed. Elimination of Arabic will make Israeli Arabs more Israelis and less likely to be seen as Palestinians' "5th column".

If Avraham gets his way, the first law of Zionism, the Law of Reuturn, goes out the window.

By the way tsam, when did you last read the text of the Law of Return?
The Law of Return has provisions by which, a Jew can be barred from Israel. Think of an antisemite like Richard Falk or those you like so much. I'm not sure Goldstone could be accepted either. Enemies of the State of Israel are definitely out, Jews or non-Jews.

You should begin to understand that the Law of Return is a secular law. Most of the religious nuts are in fact opposed to it. Some of them are, like you, anti-'Zionists' (in fact even antisemites that love only their own nutty style of Judaism).

Language is power. The more languages you know and understand the better.

The Israel Police have had to release terror suspects for lack of interpreters to sit in on interrogations.

In the early days of Eretz Yisroel the Mizrachi/Sephardi communities could all speak Arabic and there were better relationships with their neighbours. This has been lost with the new generations and teaching Jewish children Arabic can only be a plus for everyone.

In the early days of Eretz Yisroel the Mizrachi/Sephardi communities could all speak Arabic and there were better relationships with their neighbours

Well, today's sephardim are the worse anti-Arab crowd.

But this statement proves that Israeli Arabs should speak Hebrew. Thanks for supporting my statement, although you thought it supports the reverse.

There are also very simple economical reasons why people should speak only one national languages. Presently, every official document must be translated also into Arabic. But of course, some teachings are only in Hebrew just because the professor doesn't speak Arabic and anyway no one wants the courses to last twice as long just because it has to be translated in Arabic as well.
All Arabic-speaking people are disadvantaged, either because they don't speak any Hebrew, or because their understanding of it is slower and poorer. Thus they poorer record (globally) in University.

The funny thing is that it is the rabid left-wingers who want to keep the Israeli Arabs in their Arabic-speaking ghettos, by depriving them of their best chance to go out of it.

"Well, today's sephardim are the worse anti-Arab crowd."

This is because they have in living memory what dhimmitude is. They KNOW who their Arab neighbours are and what happens when you appear weak to them.

Sorry Jose, I did misread your post above. Of course all Israel citizens, whether Jew, Christian, Arab or Druze should have Hebrew as their 1st language.

Thanks, Kahina. We do agree. By the way, I speak three languages and a fourth is in the way.

hal tatakallam al-lughah al'arabīyah?

Arabic is not one of them. Nor do I want to learn it anyway. The three languages I speak are French, Spanish and English. It allowed me to go easily in nearly the whole world. Hebrew is next.

"the anti-Jewish potz-Zionists"

Well, that's Spammo to a t. Claiming that Bibi is 'preventing a peace deal' is just one of your antisemitic lies.

And no, non-Israelis have no business telling Israelis how to run their lives.

The Israeli kids can all become as fluent in Arabic as Professor Kedar - and go on Al Jazeera TV just like he did, to kick ass!

You may be interested in Prof. Kedar's organization, Israeli Academia monitor (probably another antisemite group!):
http://www.israel-academia-monitor.com/index.php

His organization shows that Israel pays the salaries some anti-Israel nuts calling for the academic boycott of their own university.
The Im Tirtzu student group exposed some of them and attracted the attention of the sponsors of these universities on the use of their money for anti-Israel activities.

OK here are some responses
Reiss
If I don't have the right to Blog about Israel, you stop blogging right now in the UK
Kahina
Thank you for your helpful input. It is important sometimes to remember that children need to be taught without prejudice. Although I don't speak Arabic I would like to learn.
For general information my languages in order of competence are:-
1. English
2. Hebrew
3. French
4. German
Jose
For someone with such strong opinions I had to laugh when I read that you have not yet learnt Hebrew.

Why should Arabs living in Israel give up Arabic or anything else to satisfy your prejudices?
I say that the first language in Israel is Hebrew. Many Israeli Jews speak many other languages as well, including Arabic. Neither you, Reiss or anyone else is going to stop them (I hope). By the way many Israeli Arabs, Palestinians and other ethnic groups living in the area also speak Hebrew. Jordanians regularly tune in to Israeli TV and why shouldn't they?
Join the real world.
Yoni1
I don't take advice from someone like yourself who feels the need to make snide remarks without any provocation.

Trust the usual haters to reject this great idea. Anything that brings the next generation closer is a good thing. Yehuda, you are a welcome voice in a blog which is increasing driven by rejectionists and extremists, don't let them put you off.

Let us not forget our greatest Mossad agent - Eli Cohen (our man in Damascus) - could never have have been so successful without his fluency in Arabic.

http://www.elicohen.org/

And as we're all sharing languages, I speak English, French and a little Italian and Arabic. Sadly I can only read Hebrew without speaking it. But when I study the Hebrew and the Arabic texts, one can comprehend the similarity.

These days it's my French that gets me by in Israel rather than my English.

Zair and Kahina
Thank you both