AN EYE OPENER
As a person who occasionally suffers from insomnia I often go to my office and read myself to drowsiness in the middle of the night. Such was the case a few nights ago. After tossing and turning for a couple of hours, I turned on my personal computer to see what I could read on the Internet. As I skimmed through the latest President George Bush Jr. headlines, I realized that they were too repetitive to read one after another. I then tried the Israeli news and found nothing that I hadn’t already read. It was then that I decided to turn to my e–mails and see if any of my friends, associates, or enemies had sent me anything new. After I deleted the unwanted ads I was determined to find something interesting. Suddenly, I noticed a partial title, ‘Violence sparks desire among Amer’. I clicked on the letter and then the title was clear in full: ‘Violence sparks desire among American Jews to support Israel’s Arab minority’. Huh? I shook my head to make sure that I was reading right. Indeed I was. Well, it must be a typo. My interest was peaked. It was time to read on. And read on I did.
It would seem according to an article published by the English version of Ha’aretz that certain supposed mainstream apolitical Jewish organizations are now funding exclusively Arab Israeli projects. For many years it has been more than well known that certain left wing organizations such as the New Israel Fund have raised money exclusively for Arabs without any concern whatsoever of the consequences these actions would have on fellow Jews. There seems to be something new and different amidst Jewish fundraising circles these days. Now the UJA–Federation of New York wants to support projects to empower Israel’s Arabs. They are following the lead of the San Francisco Jewish Federation who have been helping Israel’s Arabs to attain ‘equality’ for quite a while now. According to Jesse Krasnow head of a new Federation task force to explore Jewish–Arab relations he and his colleagues concluded that, “Programs of people just talking to each other are insufficient.” He claims that the New York Federation is looking for ways to, “Expand its support for Israeli Arabs.” The article winds down with Stephen Solender the president and CEO of United Jewish Communities emphasizing this is not yet an organized initiative by his organization, but rather local initiatives by a few federations. It ends with Mr. Solender stating that, “The United Jewish Communities still believes an intensive public relations campaign must precede planning or implementation of any initiative in this area.” If I were Yasir Arafat I would be laughing with hysteria. The problem is I’m not.
I AM A JEW
I am a Jew living in Israel. I am a Jew living here amongst slightly under 5,000,000 fellow Jews. It is through living here that I have had the opportunity to enjoy some beautiful Jewish experiences. On the other hand, it is through living here and working with our organization that I have seen the fruits of ‘Peace Dividends’ between Jews and Arabs. I have seen one administration after another cave in to world and local Arab pressure. I have witnessed Israel’s highest court consistently rule against the rights of Jews in our homeland in favor of Arab aspirations. I have seen Arab murderers of Jews released from prison go on to become ‘police officers’ in Arafat’s army. I have eye witnessed soldiers being attacked by punks and due to orders of restraint, have seen them retreat in utter humiliation. I have seen state land illegally occupied by Arabs and then over time become de facto theirs. I have seen Arab lawmakers in Israel’s Knesset, many of them products of Israel’s education system, rise up time and time again in support of violence against my fellow Jews in Israel. I have seen courtrooms torn to shambles with judges escorted out of the room to protect them from violence from Arab citizens of Israel. I have gone to hospitals and have seen Jews hospitalized from gun shot wounds, stabbings, bombings, and beatings. I have gone to those very same hospitals and have seen Arab terrorists being treated for injuries acquired while attacking Jews. I am a Jew who is told by most hospital staff that if my organization won’t give gifts to Arab patients as well as to Jewish ones, we won’t be allowed to visit and spend time with the suffering Jewish families. I have seen more and heard more. However, I am still here and I’m not leaving.
I AM A ZIONIST
I am a Jew living in the land of Israel, as did my forefathers. I am a Jew who says “Next year in Jerusalem” during the reading of the Passover Haggadah and I mean it. Not Clinton, nor Bush, not Arafat, nor Tibi, will shake my resolve. I am proud to be here amongst my brothers and sisters. I feel no guilt about coming home to help reclaim “Our” Homeland. Every Jew in Israel is an obstacle to Arafat and Tibi’s version of peace. I believe that the land of Israel is an inheritance for the Jewish People for all time and I have no apologies to make to the rest of the world! When I’m asked by so many Israelis who wish to leave here why I came in the 1st place I tell them the following: “I heard there is a Jewish state so I looked in an atlas and it seems that it should be around here.” They say that they would get green cards and leave if they could. I tell them that Tibi and Arafat would only be too happy and I just hate to make them happy.
WE ARE OUR BROTHERS KEEPERS
I would like now to address our do–gooders sitting comfortably in their lush offices abroad. Your offices and your high paying jobs are supported financially by masses of Jews, many who blindly write you tax–deductible checks throughout the year. If the rush to help Israel’s enemies came from misdirected innocence I would try to be forgiving. However, we have seen this all too often. How much money and resources have been poured into the Arab communities both in the State and the territories by Jewish donations and Israeli taxpayers? Isn’t there enough proof that the whole process has failed miserably? The Arabs who have lived amongst the Jews have had huge increases in their standard of living. Yet, the overwhelming majority of them are froth with hatred towards Jews. The Arabs of inside the 67 border have aligned themselves with the Arabs of the territories as one ‘Palestinian People’. It is insulting to them to think that you can buy their nationalism with money, schools, and public utilities. Their culture across the Middle East has shown time and again that those who are weak lose. All the while there are so many poor and disadvantaged Jews in Israel who suffer miserably while huge sums of Jewish monies are poured into non–Jewish communities. If we don’t take care of our own who will? There are millions of wealthy Arabs worldwide. There are many wealthy Arabs in Israel. I have yet to see an Arab organization raise or give money on behalf of needy or disadvantaged Jews. They are normal. The people who are in charge of the majority of Jewish communal funds are not normal. We are commanded “Don’t stand idly by your brother’s blood”. This is part of Ahavat Yisrael, love of your fellow Jew. Jews are being attacked in Israel every day because they are Jews! How dare these hypocritical overpaid functionaries continue to misuse Jewish money that will undoubtedly hurt innocent Jews in the Land of Israel! This must change.
TIME FOR SOME FRESH AIR
My name isn’t Stephen Solender and I don’t control hundreds of millions dollars of Jewish charity money. Our organization, B’Ahavat Yisrael can’t afford an intensive public relations campaign to brainwash you into giving your money to causes that aren’t Jewish at best, and often anti Jewish. We can however, continue to go with gifts to visit with injured soldiers, injured terror victims and their families. With your help we will G–d willing give food and clothing to numerous families for Passover next week, many of them in the Shomron. With more help we will have more vehicles on the roads to give lifts to stranded hitchhiking soldiers and civilians. Soon we will begin ‘Operation Cleanup’ which entails taking kids off the streets in poor neighborhoods and getting them involved in volunteer manual labor cleaning up, painting, and gardening neglected areas in their respective communities. If that works we will be able to use this same program to get youths to pick fruit from the citrus groves next year, thereby solving the labor shortage which has ruined that industry because of its over dependence on Arab and foreign labor. It is time to refocus on us, the Jewish People. We are all one family. I truly hope that like me you are also tired of the same old lines. “We must educate and empower our enemies and they will love us”, is a proven fallacy which has gone stale. Indeed, it is time for some fresh air.
