For weeks now in Israel our civilians are under vicious attack. The last 24 hours have been difficult as we see rockets falling in Arad and Dimona with many injured. Today we hear reports of cars being hit in Tel Aviv and the North is under bombardment. We face a brutal enemy devoted to our destruction.
And since PM Netanyahu and many in this government look to Zionist icon Zeev Jabotinsky as our role model and ideologue, it is incumbent upon them to realize that were he here, Jabotinsky would remind them that during two thousand years of exile, the Jewish nation lost the habit of concentrating its willpower on an all important task, lost the habit of acting in unison as a people, and often became accustomed to weakness. He would encourage them to fight until victory.
Jabotinsky’s words of many years ago are still relevant today:
“We were not created in order to teach morals and manners to our enemies. Let them learn these things for themselves. We want to hit back at anybody who harms us. Whoever does not repay a blow by a blow is also incapable of repaying a good deed in kind."
“'The Latin proverb says “of two evils choose the lesser.' When we are in a position where - through no fault of our own - physical force dominates, only one question can be asked: what is worse? To continue watching Jews being killed while the conviction grows that our lives our cheap, and among the whole world that we are spineless?…the blackest of all characteristics is the tradition of the cheapness of Jewish blood, on the shedding of which there is no prohibition and for which you do not pay."
The Jew “is everywhere in reach; he can be pointed out at any street corner; and he can be insulted or assaulted with only the minimum of risk, or with none at all. ..one permanent assignment that is entrusted to each of us, old and young, men and women, educated and ignorant, as a group and as individuals; this assignment is the defense of our people’s honor. …"
“It is always aimed at us, and we must respond. We must end this abuse of ourselves, at all costs. And it is very easy. They spit in our faces without fear, ‘in passing’, for no reason - not because our insulters are blessed with courage and want to pick a fight with us, but because this pleasure is so cheap for them: they will spit at us and go on their way, and nothing will happen. We must accustom them to the thought that from now on this pleasure will come at a hefty cost. A new commandment must enter our hearts: that even where there is only one Jew, the word ‘Zhid’ must not be heard without response.
"Wise people will come and try to dissuade us - but it is not our purpose to win in every single incident. Our objective - to create about us the belief that a slur on our national feelings is no longer what it once was, a small diversion free of cost - but will rather, with an absolute certainty and a mathematical precision, result in a sharp and unpleasant confrontation."
Jabotinsky would have reminded us not to fall for what he termed "racial weakness" regarding what he saw as a psychological byproduct of the Diaspora: the tendency of Jewish people to harbor internal bitterness (resentment) without the external action (revenge) necessary to restore national honor.
To Jabotinsky, this was not a biological trait but a "galut" (exile) mentality-a spiritual and psychological deformation caused by centuries of being a defenseless minority. He argued that this state of mind was easily exploited by enemies who did not fear Jewish retaliation. Jabotinsky believed that feeling wronged without acting to right that wrong was corrosive to the national soul. He viewed pure resentment as a "slave's emotion"-impotent and hidden.
Jabotinsky’s adoption of the name Ze’ev ("Wolf") symbolized a rejection of this perceived weakness. He wanted to replace the "submissive" Jewish image with one of ferocity and proactive defense. Jabotinsky reminded us that if a nation is insulted or attacked, it must respond with strength. To "resent" in silence was a violation of Hadar and invited further exploitation because it signaled that Jewish blood and honor were "cheap." And let them all condemn us - as Jabotinsky taught us the world will ignore us as long as the Jewish response is limited to "protests and tears" rather than military or physical resistance.
And so we thank and admire PM Netanyahu and this government and as we approach nightfall in the Middle East urge our nation’s leaders to continue on this path.
Ze’ev Jabotinsky would say “Silence is despicable!" - let the world know Israel will not compromise on the right to live!
Ronn Torossian is an Israeli-American communal leader who serves as Chairman of Betar Worldwide, and a board member of the Jabotinsky Center. He maintains headquarters in Metzudat Zeev, the longtime headquarters of the Jabotinsky movement.