Amid the myriad of 'bad news' reports emanating from television and radio programs, newspapers, magazines and internet sites with which the Israeli public is constantly bombarded, one bit of 'good news' caught my eye.



Headline: "81% of Israelis Polled Say They Are Happy With Their Lives"



Incredulous, I continued reading the results of a recent poll conducted by the Central Bureau of Statistics among more than 7,000 Israelis, who expressed contentment with their daily existence in the Jewish State. Moreover, 52% of those interviewed believe the future looks even brighter.



Pinching myself to make certain I was not reading an article from Mad magazine, whose format lampoons reality with their own brand of fiction, I asked myself if the respondents to this poll and I are living in the same State of Israel.



Do these 'happy' Israelis daily ride buses as I do, where one never knows if an Arab terrorist has managed to elude detection and is prepared to send himself and all other passengers to their deaths?



Are these 'happy' Israelis aware that a majority of Arabs, including those who are Israeli citizens, openly continue to support suicide bombers as a "legitimate means" to obtain "Palestinian rights"?



In their euphoria, do these joyful respondents remember that more than l,500 victims have already been murdered and over 6,000 wounded in the continuous war of Arab terror being waged against Jews in Israel?



Momentarily sidestepping the crucial issue of terror and the fact that there is no peace and no security, how is it possible for any Jew to express "happiness" with his own life when thousands of his Jewish brothers and sisters are scheduled to be expelled from their homes in Gush Katif, Judea and Samaria, by a Jewish government?



How can any Jew remain jubilant , and indeed, optimistic about the future as the Prime Minister of the Jewish State, Ariel Sharon "assures" US President George Bush that he will provide aerial photos documenting the fact that Israel is not building new settlements and will not expand those already built?



Where were the expressions of outrage, rather than self-satisfaction and contentment, by these 'happy' Israelis living in a Jewish country that continues to reward chief PLO terrorist Yasser Arafat for his atrocities - giving him more of our sacred land, billions of shekels (while many of his victims and their bereaved families receive a pittance) and, incredibly, even weapons, with which they have murdered Jews?



Judaism teaches that "all Israel is responsible one for the other." As our Sages have so wisely illustrated in their sermons for generations, the Jewish people is one entity. Just as the entire body feels the pain if one of its components (i.e., a finger, hand or foot, etc.) is hurt, so all Jews must feel the pain of any of our brothers or sisters who are suffering.



It is high time for each and every Jew in Israel and abroad to realize that he must now involve himself in the struggle, together with those courageous, selfless Jews who are engaged in the battle, to prevent the "piece by peace" dismantling of Israel. Only then can the answer to the question, "Are you happy with your life?" have meaning when answered in the affirmative.