Jonathan Tobin, Chefredakteur des Philadelphia Jewish Exponent, plädiert wegen Chinas Tibetpolitik für einen Boykott der Olympischen Spiele. Denn die Tibeter verdienten die Solidarität des Westens:

As for Tibet, it may be difficult, if not impossible right now, to imagine that county ever regaining its freedom, but the same could have been said of the Soviet's hold on the enslaved nations of the Baltic 25 years ago. The Tibetans and the Dalai Llama have a right to expect free people to hold faith with them the same as we once did with those in Eastern Europe a generation ago.

The fact that China is actively engaged in religious persecution in Tibet, as well as within its own borders (of nonstate authorized churches and mosques) also makes this an issue that Jews cannot ignore. Though the odds of success here seem long, a Jewish community that claims to care about human rights in other situations cannot remain silent about China.

Some fear that protests over Tibet will legitimize the effort to delegitimize Israel because of its conflict with the Palestinians. Still, there is no comparison between a tiny country defending its borders against a portion of the vastly more numerous Arab people that wishes to destroy the Jewish state and the spectacle of a vast power eradicating the ancient nation of Tibet. Nor is there any comparison between this and America's overthrow of the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq.

Myths about 1936 aside, the Berlin Olympics was a major victory for Hitler, not his opponents. The Chinese are hoping to match that success. This year, as in Munich in 1972, when the games were considered more important than the slaughter of Israelis, the athletes will still be the pawns of tyrants more than anything else.

No, no, you don't understand. Hurling is a sport. I play hurling for the Indianapolis Irish Hurling Club. I'm number 28.

It's not just a bodily function anymore. At least, not here in the Midwest, where the sport is steadily gaining popularity. The New York Times published an article a few months back claiming that hurling was, in fact, dying here in America. Unfortunately, the author of the article limited his research to well established clubs on the East coast (New York, Boston, Atlanta, etc.) which have always relied on the influx of Irish immigrants to keep their operations alive and well. Here in the Midwest, however, we don't get alot of Irish immigrants, at least not in comparison with the coastal regions of the United States. Despite the demographics, hurling is flourishing in the Midwest. The Milwaukee Hurling Club boasts several teams, men's and women's, just in southeastern Wisconsin. The city of Chicago has a similar organization, focusing primarily on the Southside, which also is the home of Chicago Gaelic Park, a Gaelic sports facility and social hall. St. Louis has only had a hurling team since 2000, and somehow managed to win the national championship in their very first year. Likewise, Indianapolis is the home of one of the premiere up-and-coming Midwestern teams, with a roster of nearly all native born American players that, until a few years ago, had never seen a hurling match let alone played the game.

And now, here in Irvington, the Eastside of Indianapolis has its own team. The Eastside Hurling Club is a team that was established by three members of the Indianapolis Irish Hurling Club (Indy Hurling) as a way of spreading the game throughout different areas of the city, making the ancient sport of hurling available to the good people of the Eastside of Indianapolis.

Matt Davis, Jonathan Tobin, and Kyle LaPrees were the three Indy Hurling members that established the Eastside team. They had each been playing hurling for about 2 years and, after the 2007 national championships in Chicago, finally felt that the time was right to extend the reach of Indy Hurling to their native Eastside. They called a few friends, sent out invitations via Facebook and MySpace, and printed some fliers. In a matter of a few days they scheduled a practice at Ellenberger Park and recruited nearly 20 people to come out and give it a try. The team has only been practicing for 3 weeks now but the new recruits are looking very promising as they gear up for their first match, scheduled for the end of October.

"We've got a lot of new people coming out and I think we're making a lot of progress," said team co-founder, Kyle LaPrees, "I wouldn't be surprised if we gave the other Indianapolis teams [Connor's Pub and Pat Flynn's Pub] a run for their money by next Spring."

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The team practices Sunday evenings (6PM) at Ellenberger Park. New recruits are always welcome. Equipment is provided at practice until you wish to purchase your own gear. Bring your own water.

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Be on the lookout for the Indy Hurling booth at the Irvington Halloween Festival this year!