Where intangible meets concrete: Peter Higgs and a tunnel from Gaza

First on intangibles: Does Nobel winner Higgs support an Israel boycott? The author, Lazar Berman of ToI, drills down to an excruciating level of details into the true or perceived anti-Zionism of Peter Higgs, arguably one of the foremost physicists of the XX century (well, and since he is alive, XXI too).

Peter Higgs, one of the two 2013 Nobel laureates in Physics, has been accused of actively supporting the movement to boycott Israel’s academic institutions, notwithstanding the deep connections of his co-winner, a Jewish Holocaust survivor, to Tel Aviv University. However, firm evidence to back up the allegation is hard to find.

Now, the thirst for firm evidence is a laudable trait for a man, even if he is not a physicist. However, devoting to this issue a longish article, ToI doesn't exactly do itself any good. David Horovitz, who founded this news and views site, should avoid the annoying trait of his previous place of employment, namely parochial provincialism. Peter Higgs is a scientist, for crying out loud, and why should we care what exactly are his political views? And what will come next: detail analysis of political views held by Sir Michael Cane (no disrespect to great actor intended)?

And now to something concrete (also from ToI): Defense minister halts transfer of construction supplies to the Strip after 500 tons of cement used to construct underground passage.

An extensive subterranean passageway leading from Gaza into Israeli territory was the work of Hamas, which used some 500 tons of cement earmarked for civilian building in the Strip in the tunnel’s construction, the IDF said Sunday.

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon responded immediately with a halt on the transfer of construction materials into the Strip.

Security forces last week discovered the terminus of the tunnel some 300 meters inside Israel proper, near Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha in the western Negev, and took several days to render the passage unusable.

Now this is what I call concrete. There is a good deal of justice - poetic and otherwise - in withholding (at least) these 500 tons of cement from the Gazan's building contractors. They will have to find a way to reuse the wasted material - even if they can't reuse the wasted time and effort that went into this massive undertaking.

On the other hand: let's try to find the bright side of this generally depressing story. That some Gazan busybodies are inventing more and more sophisticated ways to kill us is clear. However, a look at the possible future could discover a new and peaceful use for all these tunnels. Imagine that time when peace will reign supreme over our neck of the woods. Wouldn't that same tunnel become useful as an additional way for the multitudes of tourists to get in and out of Gaza and avoid the congested traffic? So there...