As we sit in comfort, surrounded by loved ones and friends, feasting on bountiful meals of turkey, cranberry sauce and stuffing, let us be reminded that there are those in this country and around the world for whom a day without hunger would be one to be thankful for. In this time of great joy and abundance, let us not forget those whom would give most thanks for our giving.

In the spirit of the holiday, we would like to present two short updates on food insecurity in the United States.

Please also consider making a donation to MAZON and support their continued work in feeding the hungry through soup kitchens, food pantries, and other agencies.

G-d bless and travel safely.

In fact, 35 million Americans last year suffered from “low food security,” meaning that they chronically lacked the resources to be able to eat enough food. Thus, hungry households exist at about 12 % of the population, despite a slight drop last year. The hungriest are 10.8 million Americans who lived with “very low food security.”

Until a better word comes along, it does seem that “hunger” is the best way to describe the feeling experienced by our fellow-Americans and the best way to generate some empathy for their plight.

Washington , D.C. – The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) announced that the food insecurity rates in the United States dropped somewhat in 2005, but more than 35 million people were still living in households considered food insecure. Moreover, the food insecurity rate still remains higher than in 1999-2001.

Today’s release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual analysis of Census Bureau survey results follows five years of straight increases in the number of Americans living in households that were not able to afford the food they need. In 2004, 38 million people were in households considered to be food insecure.

The number of people in the worst-off households (previously called “food insecure with hunger” and now called “very low food security” households) actually rose in 2005, from 10.7 to 10.8 million. The percentage of households in this category stayed flat at 3.7 percent. This lack of improvement in the worst-off households is consistent with other studies and the Census Bureau poverty data, which show worsening conditions for the poorest Americans.

Interminable waiting is a way of life in Israel. Waiting for security, a sense of normalcy. Waiting for peace, or just a little peace of mind. With nothing but more Qassams from Hamas and retaliation by the IDF on the visible horizon, many of us are now simply waiting for Baker.

No matter how chummy George Bush and Ehud Olmert appeared at their meeting last Monday, or how warm the star-studded Hollywood embrace of nearly half the Israeli cabinet at last week's GA, the reality is quite different. Olmert’s public approval rating dropped precipitously, with a pathetic 18% favoring him as prime minister, according to an October poll.

The presumed shakeup in the IDF -- Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, it is widely assumed, will be stepping down soon -- is small comfort to frustrated and anxious Israelis. People want real progress and they want it quickly. The current leaders have not demonstrated leadership. They are flailing and people are dying. It is no longer acceptable.

Something went very wrong with the big picture. After the American struggles in Iraq and the dismal Israeli showing in Lebanon, and as the Iranian President rants and flaunts his nuclear advancement with apparent impunity, the status of the US and the IDF is in question. It is almost as if the new century has finally caught up with us, the enlightened western democracies; and only now do we begin to understand that the rules of the game have truly changed.