THE ELECTION
Election fever. Once again the People of Israel are being asked to go to the polls to choose a new savior. Who will emerge to lead the Jewish People to peace and prosperity? Which one of the 2 great warriors will make the tough decision on what to surrender? Which one of the 2 statesmen will sign yet another Chamberlain type agreement with an insatiable bloodthirsty murderer of Jews? I can’t help but shed a tear when I see what this non–contest boils down to.
The incumbent whether you like him or not, would be impeached and thrown out of office in the United States. Here is a man who lies unashamedly to the public on an almost daily basis. He has proven to be totally ineffective in all spheres of governing the country including protecting her security interests. He consults with no one and answers to no one. He has no legitimate mandate to continue his reign. In order for him to win this farce of an election, Mr. Barak must do 2 things: Instill the fear of war in a sizable minority of Jews who have little or no conviction for our right to a homeland in the Land of Israel and, convince the Arab citizens of Israel to continue the trend of voting in a huge bloc for his party’s now open policy of dismantling the essence of a Jewish state. It makes one wonder what he was thinking when he was our most decorated Jewish soldier protecting the vitals of the very same State he is now ready to dismantle.
The challenger, is probably the greatest field general in modern warfare. His strategy in the Yom Kippur war at a time when he went against his superiors and probably saved the country in the process will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest individual military achievements in modern history. Unfortunately he is a man of many contradictions. The same Ariel Sharon who destroyed terrorist cells in the 50s and 60s is now sending holiday greeting cards to Yasser Arafat in the middle of his henchmen’s non–stop attacks against our people. It is Ariel Sharon who presided over the expulsion of Jews from their homes in Yamit and who is so easily quieted by the leftists who tell him not to be a hypocrite when they propose to expel Jews out of their homes in Judea, Samaria, Gaza, and the Golan. It is Ariel Sharon who told Bibi Netanyahu that Israel must not withdraw from more than another 9% of Judea and Samaria or we would risk the entire security for the rest of the country. He then went to Washington and subsequently signed on to the Wye accords, thereby giving up another 13% of the liberated territories in what was termed to be just an interim agreement, opening the way to even more concessions. Now he’s saying that he will include Barak in his next government. If what Barak is doing is anathema to what Sharon believes in, then how can he promise to put Barak in his government? If Sharon is being truthful about his intentions concerning Barak, then their differences can’t be too far apart.
THE OUTCOME
Whoever wins, it is obvious that it will unfortunately be another huge waste of taxpayer money. Neither man can govern with a fragmented and hostile parliament. Sharon, the projected victor will have to convince the Knesset to dissolve itself and have another election for parties. While all of these political shenanigans go on, it is a pretty safe bet that Arafat’s Peace Corps will continue to attack Jews all over the region with relative impunity. To add insult to injury, the average Israeli will have the great privilege of watching on television such great Jew lovers such as Ahmed Tibi and his associates berating Jews and the Jewish state which pays their salaries, all in the name of democracy. Of course, any self–respecting Jew who dares to call for the outlawing of these very same hostile Arabs from serving in the Knesset will be labeled a racist or a fascist from the self–hating media. From this one can draw some conclusions.
If you are looking for our hope and aspirations to come from the Knesset and our current roster of politicians, it may be time to be ‘realistic’ and give up on our homeland. All the time we keep hearing that Israel can’t be too tough. Israel will be chastised, abandoned, isolated, etc. Interesting. In other words, successive governments in Israel must keep making policies based on what the world will say or do. Clinton says jump, Israel’s leadership jumps. Next it will be Bush. Maybe we don’t need Prime Ministers if the President of the United States is going to dictate what goes on here anyway.
If one were to really research the history of the State of Israel, one would learn that it was the few who got together against all odds and took on the British Imperialists and Arab Jew haters. With the help of G–d, they laid the necessary groundwork for the foundation of a Jewish State. Then it was a mix of early settlers and sickly looking holocaust survivors who beat all odds and warded off 7 Arab armies in 1948. It was regular people who did the impossible. Regular people, G–d, and the ‘Jew lover’ Stalin who wanted a socialist country to control in the Middle East. Later it was England and France who supplied Israel with the many arms necessary to defeat Arab armies. Later it became the Americans.
THE TIMES THEY ARE A CHANGIN’
Countries do what is in their self–interest. The United States needed a trusted Ally in the region to offset unstable dictatorial Arab regimes in the region. After all, if the Arabs could be tamed the Soviet Union wouldn’t be able to completely dominate the region and its huge oil supplies. Well, there isn’t a Soviet Union anymore. True, there are plenty of other potential Nuclear hoodlums out there including the new ‘democratic Russia’, but in the meantime, the United States is the sole dominate force on this planet. It is with this in mind that we have watched Israel’s only real ally become ‘even handed’ in dealing with despot Arab murderers. Once a United States veto within a hostile U.N. was taken for granted. That is no longer true. Perceptively the United States doesn’t need Israel like she once did. The Jewish lobby in the United States is not what it once was and if you are paying attention to the growth of the Arab population in America, you can envision the growth of the Arab lobby. The repercussions are being seen and heard worldwide.
All the post Holocaust taboos against attacking Jews and their places of gathering and worship in the Diaspora are breaking down. Murders, beatings, synagogue arsons and bombings are becoming a too common occurrence in the news these days. Speaking of news, it is incredible to watch the formerly biased anti–Israel mainstream news become so one sided that we are witnessing Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state come into question from such notables as England’s BBC and American controlled CNN. Incredible interviews such as the one I witnessed recently on BBC between the regular correspondent and a journalist from the Jerusalem Post come to mind. The BBC correspondent berated and belittled the Post journalist for any of his efforts to explain the justification of the Israeli army to quell ‘Palestinian’ violence. Of course the onslaught continued with the BBC correspondent denying Israel’s claim to Jerusalem. However, the highlight of this butchering of truth and justice came in a heated exchange between the 2 of them concerning Israel’s intransigence to allowing ‘Palestinian’ refugees to come back to pre–’67 Israel. The BBC correspondent couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about. The Post writer explained to her that anybody who believes that the State of Israel should be a Jewish State would reject the refugee issue. She asked why? He told her that if Israel accepted Arab refugees within her borders it would cause a demographic nightmare and Israel would simply cease to be a Jewish State. She then responded: “Well, many different peoples have lived as minorities in peace in the region”. I thank her so much for making my point.
THE ANSWER: BE A JEWISH LEADER
It is clear. The more we try to please the world, the more the same world will expect us to keep bowing to them. ‘A nation that shall dwell alone’. This means that the Jewish People are supposed to be an example for the rest of the world. Not to be a timid, scattered minority each one looking to assimilate with the hope of being accepted by the Gentiles. The Germans destroyed the lie of the ‘German’ Jew just as easily as the Americans can destroy the lie of the American Jew. No matter where we have lived. No matter where we may travel. No matter how loyal we may be or have been to those countries, in the end to them we are ‘Jews’. Enough of the past inquisitions, pogroms, and holocausts. Let’s put an end to today’s humiliation.
We have been granted a great inheritance. For the 1st time in nearly 2,000 years every Jew in the world can come home. As bad as it is here in Israel, it is up to each and every one of us to contribute to making our homeland the home for all of our people. Take the lead. Don’t worry about politics and politicians. They come and go. But the promise of being a free nation in our land is for eternity. If you live in the Diaspora, come home. We need you and you need us. Buy a home, an apartment, or settle an undeveloped field. But come home and stake your claim, our claim to our homeland. For all of us, lend a hand. Don’t wait for leaders to emerge. Set an example. Every one of us is important. Find the time a couple of hours each week to volunteer to help your fellow Jews. Build up the camaraderie between us by doing positive actions. Give tzedaka (charity) to those who are doing the positive things for the country and the Nation that you don’t have the time to do. Every morning say to yourself, “I am my brother’s and sister’s keeper”. An injured soldier is not a statistic. He’s a Jew. Your brother. Come with us to visit him in the hospital. Thank him for taking one for all of us. Spend an hour with his family and give them strength. Go to the poorest of poor in this country and help them with food and clothing. Help supply shelter to the estranged Jewish wives of abusive Arab men. There is more. Much more that people can do and must do. If we can bridge the gaps that divide us by emphasizing what we have in common, we will emerge from this malaise victorious. Let the myopic excuses for leaders know that if they won’t do the job, good people are willing and able to. You be the leader. I’ll be the leader. Together, united, tomorrow we will be the Jewish leaders.