Three days in Israel

I’m delighted to be a part of the Rebel Media blogging team and writing up this inaugural post from my perch in Toronto. I’m focusing this post on Israel, because Israel (and particularly the Iranian threat) has been in the news a lot lately, and also because Israel and the Jewish people have just marked three very important but non-religious holidays.

The first was Holocaust memorial day, which, like all Jewish holidays is observed from sundown to sundown. Both Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Rivlin discussed the legacy of the Holocaust, remembrance, the importance of having a Jewish state and linked to existential threat to Israel posed by the genocidal Iranian regime.

Last week, Israeli Memorial Day and Independence Day were respectively observed and celebrated. National mourning begins one evening, envelopes the country and then seamlessly blends into the sundown marking the festivities surrounding Independence Day. All television and radio broadcasts on all three days reflect the theme of the day. These days are observed tastefully, and are always poignant, gripping, exhausting and exhilarating as the transition to Independence Day begins. It’s all very wise, very respectful and frankly, very Jewish.

I read some interesting comments made on the eve of Israeli Independence Day made by Prime Minister Netanyahu, a man I respect and admire very much. He called for the Palestinians to stop glorifying terror, because that won’t bring peace.

I have to wonder if this is a lip service declaration for “the world”, or G-d forbid, an astonishingly naive proposition. Why? Because the goal simply is not peace. It never has been, and as an official Middle East Pessimist, I don’t believe it ever will be.

The conflict is religious in nature, and thus has no civil or diplomatically negotiable solution. The very existence of Israel is a thorn in the side of the Islamic world from a theological perspective and that is why such vast efforts at annihilation continue to be made on both a macro (Iran) and micro (“lone wolf”) levels of terrorism against Jews worldwide within and outside of Israel.

Despite what I believe will be ever-existing efforts to continue to create bereaved Jewish families until time immemorial with great glee and enthusiasm, there is still reason to remain optimistic. Israel and the Jewish people are thriving. Jerusalem is a vast, incredible metropolis with extensive infrastructure improvements being made all the time. On a day to day basis, a majority of Israelis live regular lives and go about their day to day business for the most part uninvolved with national, existential military issues-as it should be. Israelis live, go out, celebrate life, have lots of babies and enjoy life. The Jews have a unique reverence for life, and for children that is unsurpassed by any other culture.

Israel and the Jews aren’t going anywhere and we certainly don’t need anyone’s permission or approval for that, despite President Obama’s persistent, Jew-hating wet dream to the contrary.

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