It's a strange time in Israel now - a time when the people believe one way, the government another. It's a time when people have little hope that peace will come any time soon and yet we are forced to watch our government, embroiled in its corruption and weak leadership, fight not for what is best for the nation, but what is most expedient for the Kadima and Labor parties.

We went to war almost two years ago - to bring our sons home. They remain captives. We abandoned and destroyed more than 20 communities - and the result is not international praise, but ongoing, daily rocket attacks. It's a strange time in Israel because, perhaps for the first time, left and right agree that the rocket attacks on Sderot and Ashkelon are a natural and obvious result.

Read about these and other issues:

• What did you do today, when Sderot was being hit?
  
• Read about a promise my neighbor made to his wife, but couldn't keep.
  
• There are still those who want to suggest that Nadia Abu El Haj deserved tenure at Barnard, but refuse to actually read the proof of why her dissertation was so flawed. Click here to read about the true facts behind Facts on the Ground and why Barnard and Columbia lost the battle for integrity.

An Israeli Soldier's Mother

From the time our children are born, we accept that our identity has changed. We were so many things, and continue to be. But in the moments after we give birth, and in the years that follow, we become something so much more. I have been a mother for more than 20 years, and now, as I see my oldest son enter the army of Israel, I become a soldier's mother. To read my ongoing blog: http://israelisoldiersmother.blogspot.com/.

Blogging not only opens new doors in terms of outreach, it is also quite addictive. Here's another blog I'm running: http://thisisisrael.blogspot.com/ - This is Israel.

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"We have discovered how to hit the Jews where they are the most vulnerable. The Jews love life, so that is what we shall take away from them. We are going to win, because they love life and we love death."

             -- Hizbullah General Secretary,  Hassan Nasrallah

Nasrallah is right - we Jews love life and they love death. But he is wrong - it is not what makes us vulnerable, it is what makes us invincible.

We have the choice to be strong...or to bow to our enemies. We must tell the world, we are going to win because we love life, because we love our land, and because we are destined to live in this country, this land, for eternity. The people and the nation of Israel lives!

Part of this living is remembering what was done in the past so as to prevent it from happening in the future. Three sections of this site are dedicated to this principle. These include:

• Partial Report of Anti-Semitic Attacks in 2007 (ongoing)
• Partial Report of Anti-Semitic Attacks in 2006 (including summaries)
• About the Holocaust

About Life in Israel

Today, as with most days - Palestinians fired rockets at our cities, probably attempted to infiltrate our cities or smuggle weapons in order to perpetrate attacks against us. Our response must be...even if you succeed today, and sometimes you will...you may hurt us, but you will never defeat us.

Ultimately, Israel is about spirit. Every day in Israel, we are reminded of the things that could only happen here. For a few examples, click here.

Remembering the Lebanon War II

Do you know what a Katyusha rocket sounds like? Click here to see and listen to a katyusha. Some sound bites from this war:

• Dan Gillerman, Israel's representative to the UN, recently said, "When you sleep with a missile, sometimes you don't wake up."
• Lebanese President Emil Lahoud, "I support the Hizbollah because they liberated our land"  and called Hizbollah "a symbol for steadfastness and dignity." See When You Sleep with a Missile.
• Click here for more on...War in the North including a blog from a resident of Karmiel who wrote from her work in a hospital in the north (Resident's Blog) and an article on what the war should be called War of the Captives. Len, a resident of Haifa took pictures of what happened in Haifa during the war. Click here to see a list of the Presentations and download them. (Please be patient, it may take a moment to load, but the images are important and the message one worth the delay).

Remembering Gush Katif and its brave people:

On the right is a picture of a Kassem Rocket fired at Moshe and Rachel Saperstein's home in Neve Dekalim. This was one of more than 6000 rockets and mortars fired by Palestinians hoping to drive the Jews from their homes. In the end, it was not the Palestinians...but Ariel Sharon that accomplished this - to his everlasting shame and guilt.

Click here for a brief tour of what was stolen from the people of Gush Katif, and the people of Israel.

Poland

After a trip to Poland, I began documenting what I'd seen, what I'd learned, and most importantly, what I felt. In the months and years since my trip, I find that once you have been to Poland, you can never quite see the world in the same way again. Here are a few of the articles related to that trip:

• Auschwitz
• Story of the Chelmno Baby
• Treblinka
• Jedwabna

I have begun a section to document my visit  Poland: from a Jewish perspective. I hope to add many more pictures in the coming weeks, and perhaps expand the pages to include other countries as well. Also, please see: www.polandjews.com for more information.

WritePoint

Writing articles soothes the soul, but probably not the checkbook. So, some 12+ years ago, I founded WritePoint Ltd. WritePoint is a leading technical writing company in Israel. It has grown steadily over the years and recently opened a Training Center in Jerusalem. WritePoint is based on a simple concept: offer your clients loyalty and quality that stands the test of time - and they will stay with you. Many of our clients have been with us for years and we are always interested in working with new companies. WritePoint's website can be viewed at www.writepoint.com.

Techshoret

Techshoret is a list of technical writers in Israel. But even more, it is a community of people who share the same professional interests, for the most part live in the same country, and are interested in learning and teaching each other. As list owner and one of the moderators of the list, I have the interesting job of helping list members, processing messages and handling problems and, most of all, seeing that the list runs smoothly and politely. The list also features a resume database for technical writers. The Techshoret website can be viewed at www.techshoret.com.

If you have comments about this site, please write to me at .

Western Wall, Jerusalem

Golan Heights, Israel

Judean Desert

Tanks in the Golan

Dead Sea

Masada

Rooftops over Jerusalem

Background of PaulaSays.com:

I'm hoping that something that seems inherently egotistical can be explained as something else. For quite a few years, friends and relatives have said they enjoy my articles and I should do something about saving them, publishing them to a wider audience, etc.

PaulaSays.com is a step in this direction. Although I hope the site will grow, at this point, it contains articles that I have written (most have been published either in Israeli or US newspapers, or are located in e-magazines and Internet News sites such as IsraelNationalNews.com and IsraelInsider.com.