?Not another 48 hours!? I kvetched four days ago to my wife.
?Not another article,? she groaned.
?Yes, another article.?
President Bush gave Saddam Hussein another last chance to behave. Bush?s ?48 hours? brings flashbacks of the idiocy of Ehud Barak?s ?48 hours?, in which Palestinians were repeatedly warned that if they don?t stop misbehaving and killing at least two Jews a day, then? then? We?ll give them another 48 hours.
The Jews return to the Holy Land heralds the end of days, according to the Jewish, Christian, and Moslem religions. As such, there will be the settling of scores. Tormented souls that have to correct a long-past wrong have their last chance in this final incarnation. And countries that committed wrongs begin to feel payback.
While Jews were being killed during the intifada, the United States insisted upon restraint and proportionate reaction. We were lectured about our perpetuating a ?cycle of violence?, as we impotently demolished several illegal structures in retaliation of the Palestinians killing dozens of our civilians. Well, it looks like the shoe is on the other foot and we shall see if the United States meets the high standard of ethical behavior that it set for Israel.
Similarly, the Jewish nation will undergo its final tests. We are in the current exile because of sinat chinom, or irrational dissension and hatred. This exile will end only after we mature into a nation of loving, caring individuals, who fully take the responsibility of helping the less fortunate. This is a test I do not believe that we are passing, not because whole political parties are entirely based on a doctrine of hatred or dissension, but because of the petty differences between Jews from different parts of the world.
Let us be honest with each other. As Jews were being killed in the Shomron, American Jews were bothered, but it was something far removed from them. Although they decried the miserable ?situation? and said tehillim, they cancelled their summer camp programs, annual conventions, and avoided visiting Israel. Conversely, as the Twin Towers were collapsing, I was in a swimming pool in the Shomron listening in shock to the radio as events unfolded, but several Israelis in the pool discussed it with emotional detachment and stark indifference. When someone said tehillim right after it happened, some Israelis were asking why we were saying tehillim, and we had to remind them that there were Jews there as well. Ironically, American Jews, for the most part proponents of a Palestinian State, a poison pill to Israel, are now targeted to advance the Palestinian cause.
Empathy is not a fault. Yet Israelis pride themselves in not being friers. They do not see themselves as friers when Arafat initiates an attempted holocaust, and, when forced to stop, they applaud his Nobel Peace Prize.
Now that we are in the same boat, I hope we will not fail in our test. Israelis are in a position to advise Americans Jews how to survive their intifada. We should help them. They should help us to convince their president that we do not have to negotiate a peace, because that is our inalienable right.
There is another alternative to a negotiated peace. Rather than rushing to form a Palestinian State in violation not just of our religion, but also of common sense, consider other options. For example, instead of Israeli citizenship for Palestinians on both sides of the ?Green Line?, consider permanent-resident status. Jews in Europe elected to remain in countries for hundreds of years without seeking citizenship status. The Jews of Slovakia were there before the Slovaks. The Jewish communities were there for more than 500 years and Jews farmed the land and were not forced to migrate. In Russia, where citizens had their boys drafted in the Russian Army for 25 years, it was not wise to be a citizen. The Palestinians on both sides of the ?Green Line? do not want to serve in the Israeli army nor does the Israeli army want them. They can be permanent-residents without being citizens.
This will not adversely affect the demographics, as the situation for most Palestinians is that they would rather migrate, abandoning their properties - as did the Jews that left Europe after the war, as did the Sephardic Jews that left Middle Eastern countries, and as did Soviet Jews and Eastern European Jews that left Communist countries.
So why don?t they leave? We don?t let them.
They are unable to get an exit visa, a teudat maavar. As unbelievable as it sounds, Israel has become the viscous cold war Communists who keep whole peoples prisoners in their own ?occupied? territories. Israel routinely violates Palestinian rights, not by our military action, not by routine stop and search, and not by arresting terrorists in Area A, but by our violating the UN Charter in preventing them from exercising their inalienable rights to emigrate. Even those Arabs who helped Israel, Arabs against whom Yasser Arafat issued a death warrant and who suffered repeated attempts on their lives, are held in this virtual prison. When Israel entered Shechem, they released two hundred prisoners whose only crime was that they helped Israel. While these two hundred Palestinians were brought into Israel and given a permit to remain, they have no passport or teudat zehut (ID card). Yet, they roam freely in Ramla and Tel Aviv.
We don?t need another ridiculous Plan, Treaty, or Roadmap. The Knesset can simply draft a law that provides for a one-way teudat maavar to anyone who wants to emigrate. This is not transfer, but merely opening the door for malcontents that want to leave. Part of this law should provide a mechanism in which those that relinquish citizenship (including Palestinian and Jordanian) are barred from re-entry. As Arabs do not serve in the army, because they are deemed a priori security risks, the law should provide financial assistance for the emigration of all security risks.
As Achmed Tibi proudly proclaims that he is a loyal Palestinian and is the personal political advisor to Arafat, he is a security risk and is entitled to emigration benefits. It would not apply to all Arabs. Bedouins and Druse who serve in the army would not be entitled to government assistance, but would be helped by private organizations. Those Jews that are deemed security risks, such as Kahane followers and Neturei Karta, would also qualify for emigration benefits. The benefits should be a modest cash stipend, where we pay for their flight by paying the travel agent directly, where we help them get settled by directly paying employment agencies and real estate brokers.
This program is in everyone?s best interests. The Palestinians are granted their basic human right to emigrate, without becoming refugees in camps that cynical Arab host nations malevolently utilize. It is in Israel?s best interest to permit malcontents an alternative to violence. It is in everyone?s interest to eliminate this flashpoint that could trigger nuclear holocaust.
As Jews, we have to agree that against all odds, the ashes of a people have resurrected a prosperous country. Rather than claiming our inheritance, we have been acting like thieves caught in the night with stolen goods. It is ours and we don?t have to apologize. It is the end of days. We have come home and it is time for the interlopers to leave.
Permit them a graceful exit.
--------------------------------------------------------
Shmuel Neumann, Ph.D., is actively involved in creating communities for English-speaking olim, and in an emigration program for Palestinians. He currently resides in the Shomron.
?Not another article,? she groaned.
?Yes, another article.?
President Bush gave Saddam Hussein another last chance to behave. Bush?s ?48 hours? brings flashbacks of the idiocy of Ehud Barak?s ?48 hours?, in which Palestinians were repeatedly warned that if they don?t stop misbehaving and killing at least two Jews a day, then? then? We?ll give them another 48 hours.
The Jews return to the Holy Land heralds the end of days, according to the Jewish, Christian, and Moslem religions. As such, there will be the settling of scores. Tormented souls that have to correct a long-past wrong have their last chance in this final incarnation. And countries that committed wrongs begin to feel payback.
While Jews were being killed during the intifada, the United States insisted upon restraint and proportionate reaction. We were lectured about our perpetuating a ?cycle of violence?, as we impotently demolished several illegal structures in retaliation of the Palestinians killing dozens of our civilians. Well, it looks like the shoe is on the other foot and we shall see if the United States meets the high standard of ethical behavior that it set for Israel.
Similarly, the Jewish nation will undergo its final tests. We are in the current exile because of sinat chinom, or irrational dissension and hatred. This exile will end only after we mature into a nation of loving, caring individuals, who fully take the responsibility of helping the less fortunate. This is a test I do not believe that we are passing, not because whole political parties are entirely based on a doctrine of hatred or dissension, but because of the petty differences between Jews from different parts of the world.
Let us be honest with each other. As Jews were being killed in the Shomron, American Jews were bothered, but it was something far removed from them. Although they decried the miserable ?situation? and said tehillim, they cancelled their summer camp programs, annual conventions, and avoided visiting Israel. Conversely, as the Twin Towers were collapsing, I was in a swimming pool in the Shomron listening in shock to the radio as events unfolded, but several Israelis in the pool discussed it with emotional detachment and stark indifference. When someone said tehillim right after it happened, some Israelis were asking why we were saying tehillim, and we had to remind them that there were Jews there as well. Ironically, American Jews, for the most part proponents of a Palestinian State, a poison pill to Israel, are now targeted to advance the Palestinian cause.
Empathy is not a fault. Yet Israelis pride themselves in not being friers. They do not see themselves as friers when Arafat initiates an attempted holocaust, and, when forced to stop, they applaud his Nobel Peace Prize.
Now that we are in the same boat, I hope we will not fail in our test. Israelis are in a position to advise Americans Jews how to survive their intifada. We should help them. They should help us to convince their president that we do not have to negotiate a peace, because that is our inalienable right.
There is another alternative to a negotiated peace. Rather than rushing to form a Palestinian State in violation not just of our religion, but also of common sense, consider other options. For example, instead of Israeli citizenship for Palestinians on both sides of the ?Green Line?, consider permanent-resident status. Jews in Europe elected to remain in countries for hundreds of years without seeking citizenship status. The Jews of Slovakia were there before the Slovaks. The Jewish communities were there for more than 500 years and Jews farmed the land and were not forced to migrate. In Russia, where citizens had their boys drafted in the Russian Army for 25 years, it was not wise to be a citizen. The Palestinians on both sides of the ?Green Line? do not want to serve in the Israeli army nor does the Israeli army want them. They can be permanent-residents without being citizens.
This will not adversely affect the demographics, as the situation for most Palestinians is that they would rather migrate, abandoning their properties - as did the Jews that left Europe after the war, as did the Sephardic Jews that left Middle Eastern countries, and as did Soviet Jews and Eastern European Jews that left Communist countries.
So why don?t they leave? We don?t let them.
They are unable to get an exit visa, a teudat maavar. As unbelievable as it sounds, Israel has become the viscous cold war Communists who keep whole peoples prisoners in their own ?occupied? territories. Israel routinely violates Palestinian rights, not by our military action, not by routine stop and search, and not by arresting terrorists in Area A, but by our violating the UN Charter in preventing them from exercising their inalienable rights to emigrate. Even those Arabs who helped Israel, Arabs against whom Yasser Arafat issued a death warrant and who suffered repeated attempts on their lives, are held in this virtual prison. When Israel entered Shechem, they released two hundred prisoners whose only crime was that they helped Israel. While these two hundred Palestinians were brought into Israel and given a permit to remain, they have no passport or teudat zehut (ID card). Yet, they roam freely in Ramla and Tel Aviv.
We don?t need another ridiculous Plan, Treaty, or Roadmap. The Knesset can simply draft a law that provides for a one-way teudat maavar to anyone who wants to emigrate. This is not transfer, but merely opening the door for malcontents that want to leave. Part of this law should provide a mechanism in which those that relinquish citizenship (including Palestinian and Jordanian) are barred from re-entry. As Arabs do not serve in the army, because they are deemed a priori security risks, the law should provide financial assistance for the emigration of all security risks.
As Achmed Tibi proudly proclaims that he is a loyal Palestinian and is the personal political advisor to Arafat, he is a security risk and is entitled to emigration benefits. It would not apply to all Arabs. Bedouins and Druse who serve in the army would not be entitled to government assistance, but would be helped by private organizations. Those Jews that are deemed security risks, such as Kahane followers and Neturei Karta, would also qualify for emigration benefits. The benefits should be a modest cash stipend, where we pay for their flight by paying the travel agent directly, where we help them get settled by directly paying employment agencies and real estate brokers.
This program is in everyone?s best interests. The Palestinians are granted their basic human right to emigrate, without becoming refugees in camps that cynical Arab host nations malevolently utilize. It is in Israel?s best interest to permit malcontents an alternative to violence. It is in everyone?s interest to eliminate this flashpoint that could trigger nuclear holocaust.
As Jews, we have to agree that against all odds, the ashes of a people have resurrected a prosperous country. Rather than claiming our inheritance, we have been acting like thieves caught in the night with stolen goods. It is ours and we don?t have to apologize. It is the end of days. We have come home and it is time for the interlopers to leave.
Permit them a graceful exit.
--------------------------------------------------------
Shmuel Neumann, Ph.D., is actively involved in creating communities for English-speaking olim, and in an emigration program for Palestinians. He currently resides in the Shomron.