The Conference, a project of Arutz-7's B'Sheva newspaper designed to set Israel's national agenda, is being held in Jerusalem's Hyatt Regency Hotel. One of this morning's speakers was MK Uri Ariel of the National Union, whose political career is intricately bound up with the hotel; he became a Knesset Member in late 2001 as a replacement for Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi, who was murdered by Palestinian terrorists in the Hyatt.
MK Ariel said that in general, the graph of accomplishments of the Jewish People is always increasing, whether in Torah study, hi-tech, literature, building the Land, economics, etc. This is so even during the current war, even if slightly less so. Earlier, Dr. Reuven Gal, Deputy Chief of the National Security Council and responsible for Policy, Society, and Infrastructures, backed up this impression with facts and figures. Gal said that the national morale is constantly rising and dropping, in accordance with the level of terrorist attacks, but that the overall trend, which measures national strength, is constantly and gradually rising.
MK Ariel said that we must not look at the current conflict as a three-year old war, but rather as part of the 140-year struggle for Zionism, or even, if you will, as part of all of Jewish history& The question is, however, if the Jewish People are always advancing, why is it that the leadership always sees the graph as if it is always dropping? He explained that the population of Yesha (Judea, Samaria and Gaza) lives a life of meaning. There is a goal, a finish line, a will to accomplish and influence. I was in northern Shomron two days ago, in Kadim and Ganim [two communities often mentioned as prime candidates for demolition -ed. note] and the residents there told me, contrary to public perception - that no one is talking of leaving. Those who were weak, left a while ago, but now there are those who want to return. The process of unifying, of finding the inner strength, has begun. It's remarkable: What motivates a young unarmed mother to travel with her little children on these dangerous roads? The answer is that the Yesha communities have initiated a new form of community called a 'communal settlement', and it has proven itself. People can travel on these roads with the subconscious knowledge that if the worst happens, there is a caring and loving community that will be able to take over. It's a system, a community, that works.
Ariel continued to express his confidence in the situation, saying that he does not totally agree with the common perception that we have settled in the hilltops, but not in the hearts [of the nation]. In general, there is much admiration among Israelis for the Yesha population and the Yesha enterprise, but it's hard for this to manifest itself when the Prime Minister, whoever he is, takes a different approach. Our leadership is weak, it doesn't meet the goals it itself set, and then blames the public for its own weaknesses. It's partly true that the media are to blame for some of our problems, but we must first of all look inward to see what we ourselves can improve.
Transportation Minister Avigdor Lieberman decried the lack of an organized manner for making government decisions, and said that what most concerns him is the growing rift between those living in Tel Aviv and those in Yesha. I have a cousin in a thriving Israeli city who would not let his daughter visit me in Nokdim, in Gush Etzion, but allows her to go traipsing in Colombia and the rest of South America, which is not exactly the pinnacle of stability. We have to talk less about Yesha, and more about the growing threat to Tel Aviv. I agree with arch-terrorist Muhammed Def, who said that after Netzarim comes Tel Aviv. People don't realize that there will soon be Kassam rockets in Kalkilye, only 200 meters from Kfar Saba. It must be clear: There is no chance of reaching peace, and whoever says that he will provide us with peace and security is misleading you. The most we can attain is security.
Possibly the most interesting talk of all was delivered by journalist Caroline Glick, who served in the 1990's on the Israeli-PA negotiating team and later as a diplomatic advisor to then-Prime Minister Netanyahu. Now an editor at The Jerusalem Post, Glick said that Israelis are not being told the complete story about what goes on in the United States:
Israeli correspondents in the United States have no background in American society, politics, etc., but are merely chosen for the assignment based on whose turn it is or the like. How is someone like economic reporter Gil Tamari or political analyst Yaron Dekel supposed to turn into American experts overnight?
She noted, as well, that the political leanings of the reporters also affect their coverage. As an example of the mistaken impressions received by Israeli readers, Glick said that Binyamin Netanyahu managed to obtain a letter written by no fewer than 90 Senators warning then-President Clinton against forcing Israel to compromise its own ability to protect itself. This was an amazing accomplishment, which had great ramifications on an already-weak President, yet what did the Israeli readers read? That Clinton was angry at Netanyahu for using AIPAC to pressure the Senate against him. This is a pure distortion of what happened, and an example of how we sabotage our ability to affect public opinion abroad.
Glick also emphasized that when Israeli correspondents abroad report about State Department pressures on Israel, they mislead their readers by not explaining that the State Department is traditionally more pro-Arab than other branches of the government, and that these latter often offset its influence. Thomas Friedman and The New York Times are no more representative of the American public than is FoxNews& These errors cause us not to understand the full extent of our power to influence public opinion abroad. We do have the ability to do so, though Israeli press reports often give the opposite impression.
As a final example, Glick noted that the IDF press office made a very foolish mistake following Operation Defensive Shield: Papers were discovered proving Arafat's connections with the murderous terrorism, and the IDF Spokesperson gave this scoop to The New York Times, which promptly buried it in a small inside story. Instead, this story should have been given to all the media, and in bits and pieces, so that it would be constantly featured on the front pages.
MK Ariel said that in general, the graph of accomplishments of the Jewish People is always increasing, whether in Torah study, hi-tech, literature, building the Land, economics, etc. This is so even during the current war, even if slightly less so. Earlier, Dr. Reuven Gal, Deputy Chief of the National Security Council and responsible for Policy, Society, and Infrastructures, backed up this impression with facts and figures. Gal said that the national morale is constantly rising and dropping, in accordance with the level of terrorist attacks, but that the overall trend, which measures national strength, is constantly and gradually rising.
MK Ariel said that we must not look at the current conflict as a three-year old war, but rather as part of the 140-year struggle for Zionism, or even, if you will, as part of all of Jewish history& The question is, however, if the Jewish People are always advancing, why is it that the leadership always sees the graph as if it is always dropping? He explained that the population of Yesha (Judea, Samaria and Gaza) lives a life of meaning. There is a goal, a finish line, a will to accomplish and influence. I was in northern Shomron two days ago, in Kadim and Ganim [two communities often mentioned as prime candidates for demolition -ed. note] and the residents there told me, contrary to public perception - that no one is talking of leaving. Those who were weak, left a while ago, but now there are those who want to return. The process of unifying, of finding the inner strength, has begun. It's remarkable: What motivates a young unarmed mother to travel with her little children on these dangerous roads? The answer is that the Yesha communities have initiated a new form of community called a 'communal settlement', and it has proven itself. People can travel on these roads with the subconscious knowledge that if the worst happens, there is a caring and loving community that will be able to take over. It's a system, a community, that works.
Ariel continued to express his confidence in the situation, saying that he does not totally agree with the common perception that we have settled in the hilltops, but not in the hearts [of the nation]. In general, there is much admiration among Israelis for the Yesha population and the Yesha enterprise, but it's hard for this to manifest itself when the Prime Minister, whoever he is, takes a different approach. Our leadership is weak, it doesn't meet the goals it itself set, and then blames the public for its own weaknesses. It's partly true that the media are to blame for some of our problems, but we must first of all look inward to see what we ourselves can improve.
Transportation Minister Avigdor Lieberman decried the lack of an organized manner for making government decisions, and said that what most concerns him is the growing rift between those living in Tel Aviv and those in Yesha. I have a cousin in a thriving Israeli city who would not let his daughter visit me in Nokdim, in Gush Etzion, but allows her to go traipsing in Colombia and the rest of South America, which is not exactly the pinnacle of stability. We have to talk less about Yesha, and more about the growing threat to Tel Aviv. I agree with arch-terrorist Muhammed Def, who said that after Netzarim comes Tel Aviv. People don't realize that there will soon be Kassam rockets in Kalkilye, only 200 meters from Kfar Saba. It must be clear: There is no chance of reaching peace, and whoever says that he will provide us with peace and security is misleading you. The most we can attain is security.
Possibly the most interesting talk of all was delivered by journalist Caroline Glick, who served in the 1990's on the Israeli-PA negotiating team and later as a diplomatic advisor to then-Prime Minister Netanyahu. Now an editor at The Jerusalem Post, Glick said that Israelis are not being told the complete story about what goes on in the United States:
Israeli correspondents in the United States have no background in American society, politics, etc., but are merely chosen for the assignment based on whose turn it is or the like. How is someone like economic reporter Gil Tamari or political analyst Yaron Dekel supposed to turn into American experts overnight?
She noted, as well, that the political leanings of the reporters also affect their coverage. As an example of the mistaken impressions received by Israeli readers, Glick said that Binyamin Netanyahu managed to obtain a letter written by no fewer than 90 Senators warning then-President Clinton against forcing Israel to compromise its own ability to protect itself. This was an amazing accomplishment, which had great ramifications on an already-weak President, yet what did the Israeli readers read? That Clinton was angry at Netanyahu for using AIPAC to pressure the Senate against him. This is a pure distortion of what happened, and an example of how we sabotage our ability to affect public opinion abroad.
Glick also emphasized that when Israeli correspondents abroad report about State Department pressures on Israel, they mislead their readers by not explaining that the State Department is traditionally more pro-Arab than other branches of the government, and that these latter often offset its influence. Thomas Friedman and The New York Times are no more representative of the American public than is FoxNews& These errors cause us not to understand the full extent of our power to influence public opinion abroad. We do have the ability to do so, though Israeli press reports often give the opposite impression.
As a final example, Glick noted that the IDF press office made a very foolish mistake following Operation Defensive Shield: Papers were discovered proving Arafat's connections with the murderous terrorism, and the IDF Spokesperson gave this scoop to The New York Times, which promptly buried it in a small inside story. Instead, this story should have been given to all the media, and in bits and pieces, so that it would be constantly featured on the front pages.