1 All for a presidential palace complex, huh? Sounds like the ultimate in eminent domain abuse. Were they late on their dhimmi-dues or something?

2 Oh nice. I just looked up how much land they're offering to the Jews outside of town. 0.15 hectares. Which is equal to about one third acre. Plus! They want to rent them a building to use with the money they don't have while they build a new synagogue on the 1/3 acre with the other money they don't have. Nice people.

3 When I first heard about this a few years ago, the Tajik government made clear that they were tearing down a mosque too. What wasn't clear was whether or not they were going to give them money to build a new one. The author who sent me the short report I published said that he's shopping around a longer version that will hopefully appear in the next few days. Sadly, it looks like Uzbekistan's Jewish community, and the US and Israeli embassies will not be able to save Dushanbe's synagogue this time around.

4 Nathan, let us know what you find.

5 I have to play Devil's Advocate here for a second; if Jews can establish an ethnic homeland, then they can't really claim absolute right to reside anywhere else. I believe in one set of rules for everyone, not one set for Jews, and another for everyone else.

6 Very funny, IM.

7 IM, what? Jews have lived all over the world for ever. Because they have a homeland now they all have to go there and leave the homes they've likely been in for their whole lives? Homes that may have been in their families for centuries? Not to mention that in their "ethnic homeland" other ethnic people of other religions live peacefully. Or are you just pullin' my leg?

8 So, the fact that Israel is a Jewish nation doesn't mean anything? What if every other nation followed their policies? They'd be called racist, that's what. They don't even allow non-Jews to join their military, with the exception of those with Israeli citizenship, which is damned difficult for non-Jews to get. Cut the BS people, just because they're Jews doesn't mean they deserve to be treated any differently than anyone else.

9 IM, few people had any problem with Islamic nations until information got out to all us peons in the world that harsh punsihments are regularly meted out to all who openly practice any religion but Islam, to women who are unfortunate enough to be raped, to anyone who expresses even slight displeasure with the Islamic rulers, Imams and Mullahs. Nobody minded and STILL wouldn't mind if only basic human rights were recognized. Israel isn't perfect, no, but they are leaps and bounds beyond the barbaric practices of Islamic nations. It should be hard to get Israeli citizenship. Look at their location. Try getting Iranian citizenship without professing to be Muslim. Ain't gonna happen. You simply can't compare the two.

10 You miss the point that the main reason the jews arent in Muslim lands is they emigrate to israel - to steal land from Muslim (and Christian )Palestinians

11 excuse me folks. as far as know it was israeli goevrnments eager to increase jewishness of israel that has transported most of the jews out of their bloved "motherlands"... do you remember the operation in ethopia... do you know about the covert operations in iraq to force the jews to migrate to safety of israel... P.S. Go IM go...

12 Don't think for one second that I'm siding with muslims, I did say modern countries after all, not recidivistic, primitive states. I'm just making the point that any group which wants to have an ethnically pure state shouldn't bitch when they get kicked out of someplace else. And on that note, we should kick all muslims out of the civilized countries.

13 IM: Anglicans have a homeland in the UK. Muslims have Saudi Arabia. Germans have Germany. Chinese have China. Have they no rights elsewhere? OF COURSE THEY DO. Jews have a homeland in Israel. But we have rights elsewhere. You are NOT asking that we be treated equally; you are singling us out for expulsion or abuse. Re your assertions about Israel & non-Jews. Israel's population is 20% non-Jewish. Israel is not perfect, but it does a MUCH better job than many countries. Out of 120 members of parliament, 11 are Arabs (Muslim, Druze, Christian). Some have served as deputy cabinet ministers. There is currently a Christian Arab on the Israeli supreme court. Israeli Druze soldiers have risen to high rank (colonel and above) in the IDF, serving with distinction and commanding Jews and non-Jews alike. Israeli Arabs play on the national soccer team, have become Miss Israel and hold professorships at Israeli universities. Israel's non-Jewish citizens have full voting rights. Israeli Muslim women go to school, drive and open businesses, become lawyers, doctors -- and imams. I have enjoyed my visits to Germany, but how many Turks are in the Reichstag? In the cabinet? How many Turks are citizens? What does it take for a Turk to become a German citizen? He can't do it, can he? And yet Germany is a progressive, modern country. I love Turkey, but is the parliament even 10% Kurdish? Turkey, too, is a modern nation-state. It has a 20% Kurdish population. How "well" does Turkey do? I won't even consider Saudi, where not a single church or synagogue is allowed, and every other religion but Islam has been forcibly stamped out. Why is Israel so "bad"? It's doing better by its minorities than a vast array of other countries that are only too glad to point accusing fingers at Israel. bloody_turk Imagine that Turks are being victimized in countries surrounding Turkey, and the rest of the world does nothing. Do you just sit by and watch this happen, or do you try to at least bring your fellow Turks to safety? Israel has also given shelter to tens of thousands of Baha'i refugees from Iran. Baha'is are definitely NOT Jews; they are a offshoot of Islam (many Muslims call them heretics). Israel took them in. IM again: Let's also not slam all Muslim states or all Muslims. Be specific. Saudi Arabia and Iran have become really nasty, backward places in many regards. But not only are there more prosperous & modern examples to draw from, but there are many Muslims who are more forward thinking and "western" in their outlook. Even in Saudi and Iran, there are dissidents and others who are trying to reform their societies for the better. I hope this post (though long) made for interesting reading. Thanks for listening.