What Israelis need is an infusion of their past values; those of their grandparents who built the country.
Israel has experienced changes over the years. Against all odds, Israel came into being and it managed to survive, while displaying its determination to stand up for itself. However, that determination has waned somewhat in the face of hopes for true peace by territorial concessions, as elusive as that may be. With peace, Israelis could lead the worry-free lives for which they so longed. Many Israelis have also experienced increased prosperity, which has increased cravings for the material trappings of the Western world. Israel has also experienced further Westernization, which represents the desire to be more of a secular nation than a Jewish State. As a result, many Israelis have come to adopt lifestyles that increasingly mirror those of the Western world.
That kind of existence comes with a cost. It lets down one's guard, which presents many dangers. After decades of war, the quest for a temporary respite from the harsh realities of conflict in the Middle East would suffice for many, despite the consequences. After fifty-eight years of existence, and thirteen years after the "bliss" of the Oslo Accords, Israel's standing in the region has not changed. Terrorism rules the Palestinian Authority; Syria and Iran arm Hizbullah; Iran finances Hamas; as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad moves closer to attaining a nuclear bomb. Other Arab nations still boycott Israel and finance terror, while Egypt, with its anti-Israel stances, is not really a "peace partner."
Many people take comfort in hope, as they search for a cause, a reason for the conflict. With a reason, there is a solution and therefore, no real conflict, no quagmire. With that notion, they can go on with their lives and not exist with perpetual worry. Then they can partake of the care-free, tranquil lives they so much desire.
Almost seventy years ago, Adolf Hitler met with British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Prime Minister Edouard Daladier, who forced Czechoslovakia to accept their terms for peace by surrendering the Sudetenland. The late, famed journalist William Shirer, who penned a "Berlin Diary" marking his days as a reporter in pre- and early World War II Europe, stated that the French would commonly say, "To Hell with it." In their own desire to enjoy the moment, and postpone the inevitable, they gave into defeatism.
Israel is not France. Hopefully, Israel is also not like so many nations and empires in the world, who fell in history; devoured in their own decadence and weakness at the hands of others who were hungry for what they had built. The hope is that the Jews of Israel will live up to the Biblical description of being a "stiff-necked people," and won?t crumple that easily.
When Israel faced possible destruction in 1948 and Jerusalem was under siege, the people persevered. In 1967, as Egyptian leader Gamal Abdul Nasser was calling for war, and Jews around the world were bidding their Israeli relatives to at least send their children to them, they refused. When Scuds were reigning down on Israeli cities, the people collectively and with stoicism sealed their rooms and wore their masks. At those times, Israelis rose to the occasion.
I think back to the old days of tough, determined Israelis. While growing up in America, I watched them from afar and admired their chutzpah. Their way of saying "No" to a world that would have been content in bestowing eulogies for Israel, uttering odes to their defeats and in placing wreaths at memorials for their victims. Israel's amazing victories were a manifestation of faith and toughness. They struck at threats with lightening speed and amazed the world. How would any of Israel's leaders of old respond if they faced the current threats posed by Hizbullah, Hamas and Iran?
The people of Israel defied history and shocked the world with their resolve. With their chutzpah there was a sense of purpose and determination. The late Defense Minister Moshe Dayan's eye patch was a symbol of that determination - he was wounded in battle, but unwilling to accept defeat. The popular theme songs of the day symbolized the spirit of the nation - David Melech Yisrael ("David, the King of Israel Lives") and Shlomo Carelbach's tune to Am Yisrael Chai ("The Nation Israel Lives").
Euphoria and determination has a way of waning. Years of relative prosperity, foreign outside influences and a new materialism took hold. Then there eventually emerged an era declared to be one of post-Zionism, in which many Israelis sought to abandon the very tenants of Zionism, preferring to become another Westernized nation replete with its materialism and pop culture.
Now, there is a prime minister who acts without purpose or agenda. What does he stand for? What is his mission? He certainly is not interested in breathing strength and determination into the people wearied by the persistent challenges of their enemies.
The old legendary Israeli chutzpah was a statement: 'We are here and we are not going to disappear.' Today, it often has become more of a means to an end, about getting ahead on Israel's ladder of success. No one wants to be a friyer, to be left behind in the fray while others gain their piece of the pie. Chutzpah has thus become, more and more, mere chutzpah.
As new threats emerge, how will the people of Israel respond? As the world demands further Israeli concessions to the forces of terror, and the president of Iran calls for Israel?s destruction as he gets closer to possessing a nuclear weapon, will they simply wish away the threats? Will they buckle under the pressure? Or will Israel rise to the occasion, becoming a beacon of true freedom to the world, and take a stand as it would have done in its past?
The first fifty years of Israel's existence were the years of Zionism. Then came the years of post-Zionism. The next era will hopefully be the era of "post-post-Zionism" or of "The Renewed Israel," when Israel will regain a sense of purpose and determination.
Israel has experienced changes over the years. Against all odds, Israel came into being and it managed to survive, while displaying its determination to stand up for itself. However, that determination has waned somewhat in the face of hopes for true peace by territorial concessions, as elusive as that may be. With peace, Israelis could lead the worry-free lives for which they so longed. Many Israelis have also experienced increased prosperity, which has increased cravings for the material trappings of the Western world. Israel has also experienced further Westernization, which represents the desire to be more of a secular nation than a Jewish State. As a result, many Israelis have come to adopt lifestyles that increasingly mirror those of the Western world.
That kind of existence comes with a cost. It lets down one's guard, which presents many dangers. After decades of war, the quest for a temporary respite from the harsh realities of conflict in the Middle East would suffice for many, despite the consequences. After fifty-eight years of existence, and thirteen years after the "bliss" of the Oslo Accords, Israel's standing in the region has not changed. Terrorism rules the Palestinian Authority; Syria and Iran arm Hizbullah; Iran finances Hamas; as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad moves closer to attaining a nuclear bomb. Other Arab nations still boycott Israel and finance terror, while Egypt, with its anti-Israel stances, is not really a "peace partner."
Many people take comfort in hope, as they search for a cause, a reason for the conflict. With a reason, there is a solution and therefore, no real conflict, no quagmire. With that notion, they can go on with their lives and not exist with perpetual worry. Then they can partake of the care-free, tranquil lives they so much desire.
Almost seventy years ago, Adolf Hitler met with British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Prime Minister Edouard Daladier, who forced Czechoslovakia to accept their terms for peace by surrendering the Sudetenland. The late, famed journalist William Shirer, who penned a "Berlin Diary" marking his days as a reporter in pre- and early World War II Europe, stated that the French would commonly say, "To Hell with it." In their own desire to enjoy the moment, and postpone the inevitable, they gave into defeatism.
Israel is not France. Hopefully, Israel is also not like so many nations and empires in the world, who fell in history; devoured in their own decadence and weakness at the hands of others who were hungry for what they had built. The hope is that the Jews of Israel will live up to the Biblical description of being a "stiff-necked people," and won?t crumple that easily.
When Israel faced possible destruction in 1948 and Jerusalem was under siege, the people persevered. In 1967, as Egyptian leader Gamal Abdul Nasser was calling for war, and Jews around the world were bidding their Israeli relatives to at least send their children to them, they refused. When Scuds were reigning down on Israeli cities, the people collectively and with stoicism sealed their rooms and wore their masks. At those times, Israelis rose to the occasion.
I think back to the old days of tough, determined Israelis. While growing up in America, I watched them from afar and admired their chutzpah. Their way of saying "No" to a world that would have been content in bestowing eulogies for Israel, uttering odes to their defeats and in placing wreaths at memorials for their victims. Israel's amazing victories were a manifestation of faith and toughness. They struck at threats with lightening speed and amazed the world. How would any of Israel's leaders of old respond if they faced the current threats posed by Hizbullah, Hamas and Iran?
The people of Israel defied history and shocked the world with their resolve. With their chutzpah there was a sense of purpose and determination. The late Defense Minister Moshe Dayan's eye patch was a symbol of that determination - he was wounded in battle, but unwilling to accept defeat. The popular theme songs of the day symbolized the spirit of the nation - David Melech Yisrael ("David, the King of Israel Lives") and Shlomo Carelbach's tune to Am Yisrael Chai ("The Nation Israel Lives").
Euphoria and determination has a way of waning. Years of relative prosperity, foreign outside influences and a new materialism took hold. Then there eventually emerged an era declared to be one of post-Zionism, in which many Israelis sought to abandon the very tenants of Zionism, preferring to become another Westernized nation replete with its materialism and pop culture.
Now, there is a prime minister who acts without purpose or agenda. What does he stand for? What is his mission? He certainly is not interested in breathing strength and determination into the people wearied by the persistent challenges of their enemies.
The old legendary Israeli chutzpah was a statement: 'We are here and we are not going to disappear.' Today, it often has become more of a means to an end, about getting ahead on Israel's ladder of success. No one wants to be a friyer, to be left behind in the fray while others gain their piece of the pie. Chutzpah has thus become, more and more, mere chutzpah.
As new threats emerge, how will the people of Israel respond? As the world demands further Israeli concessions to the forces of terror, and the president of Iran calls for Israel?s destruction as he gets closer to possessing a nuclear weapon, will they simply wish away the threats? Will they buckle under the pressure? Or will Israel rise to the occasion, becoming a beacon of true freedom to the world, and take a stand as it would have done in its past?
The first fifty years of Israel's existence were the years of Zionism. Then came the years of post-Zionism. The next era will hopefully be the era of "post-post-Zionism" or of "The Renewed Israel," when Israel will regain a sense of purpose and determination.