Sorry folks... the election of Obama was an unmitigated disaster as far as Israel is concerned. In his naiveté and hubris, he has significantly degraded any hope for peace in the M.E. and is likely the cause of the next war.  He had promised that he would work toward peace but that he was 100% in support of the historic, strong friendship between the two countries. 

He has simply not lived up to his word.

In an interview broadcast Sunday evening PA head Abbas said, "When Obama became president he was the one who declared that the 'settlement construction must be stopped.' The United States says it, Europe is says it, the whole world is saying it – why should I not say it?"

Now.. you may support the concept of "settlement freeze", but in the world of diplomacy and negotiation, what Obama did, was to remove "chits" from the Israeli hand and replaced them with nothing... As a result, Israel has no room to maneuver and must stand firm. Abbas, using the perceived support of the world is now backing Israel into a no win situation...

Sorry... Obama has been a fool...

Has the Next War Begun?

Many Israeli and western intelligence sources are reporting that this summer may see a renewal of conflict between Israel and the puppets of Iran; Hizbollah, Hamas, Syria, possibly with Iran jumping in if it has the opportunity.

Hizbollah and Hamas have rearmed, contravening all treaties and UN resolutions forbidding it.  Reports are that chemical warheads have been brought into Lebanon and Syria.  In response to this intelligence, Israel is continuing to prepare for war, (which some say may be up to seven times worse than the previous Lebanon war, in terms of its effect on Israel,) while at the same time, working for peace. 

But Iran wants a proxy war with Israel... It will deflect attention from its own ambitions:  A nuclear-tipped hegemony in the region.  Iran also wants Israel to be vilified by the world so that if (and when) Israel determines that the nuclear threat is too imminent and takes military action to preempt this, Israel will be "blocked" by threats from other world powers...  This scenario is unfolding as you read this.

So Iran is looking for a "trigger event" to start this war.  Perhaps it has found it in last night's foiled attempt to breach the military blockade of Gaza.

Last night, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) intercepted a "peace" flotilla heading for Gaza.  The naval interceptor asked the captains of the flotilla boats their destination.  They answered "Gaza Port".  The interceptor told then that this was not permitted and they could dock in Ashdod (Israel's southernmost Mediterranean port, where they could unload their supplies and, after inspection, accompany the supplies to the land crossing, to ensure that the supplies arrived safely.  Alternatively, they could turn around. 

Both options were refused and the flotilla continued to press on toward Gaza.  As a result, Israeli "Seals" were lowered to the boats from helicopters.  As they boarded the boats, some were met with fighters wielding batons, metal pipes and knives.  At one point shots were fired at the commandos and they returned fire.  People were killed and injured.  The most recent counts are 2 dead and 4 injured.

So.. These are the facts as I know them at this moment.  Certainly more information will follow.

But far more important than these facts, is the firestorm of publicity and international attention that has been generated by this incident.  This begs the question...  What did Israel have to gain?  What did Hamas have to gain? 

Israel gains nothing by engaging in a firefight with "civilian activists".  Even if no one was injured this would have made Israel look bad.  Another instance of "Bad Israel" against "Poor Defenseless Palestinians".  The commentary is already raging...  Read the "reader comments" on the articles describing the events.  This is "proof" that Israel cares nothing for the rights and humanitarian interests of Palestinians and their supporters.

However, Israel had to act...  It had no choice.  Not to act, conceded the right of Gaza to free access to import offensive weapons to be used against Israeli civilians.  According to the internationally condoned and recognized Oslo Accords, Israel has full right to control Gaza's coastal waters.  When Israel voluntarily withdrew its citizens and army from this disputed territory, it did not give up its authority over these waters.  The primary role of the Israeli Navy in these waters is to prevent the smuggling of weapons, including offensive missiles into Gaza. 

It is very important to understand that hundreds of tons of food and other necessities are imported daily into Gaza through normal land checkpoints.  There is not nor has there been a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Which leads us to the second question... What did Hamas have to gain from this incident?

One first has to understand the primary goal of Hamas, which is to spread its own version of Islam and to end the Jewish "occupation" of Palestine. 

Before you start nodding your head in agreement with this goal, be sure you know what it means.  Hamas considers every square meter of Israel, whether "pre-1967", "post-1967" or whatever... to be occupied by Jewish infidels.  This includes not only Jerusalem, but Haifa, Tel Aviv, Netanya, Hertzaliyah...   that's right... EVERY square meter is occupied.  (by the way:  The "moderate" Palestinian Authority" headed by the Fatah party, has in its charter the very same concept.  They may publicly say that they want only the lands taken in the 1967 war, but in private pronouncements in Arabic, they acknowledge that this is just the first step..)

Understanding their overarching mission, one can understand most of Hamas' actions.  They are not waging a tactical war... They are waging a strategic war aimed at ultimately destroying Israel.  The de-legitimization of Israel and its right to exist is their major strategy at the moment.  Hamas cannot win a head-to-head military confrontation with Israel.  However they can and do win tactical PR and diplomatic battles with Israel, every time they engage Israel by putting their own civilians (and happy, willing European "activists") in the line of fire and firing over their heads, resulting in the injury and death of these unhappy victims. 

This is the tactic that worked beautifully for them in the recent Gaza war. 

The end result is that Israel, caught in a "No-Win" situation, must ultimately use force to stop Hamas.  Whether this is incessant rocket fire into Israeli civilian towns, kidnapping Israeli soldiers, terrorist attacks, or bringing a flotilla of "peace activists" to Gaza, Israel is brought to a position that it must act.  Not to do so is ultimately suicide. 

However, when Israel does act, it is condemned...  as brutal... as unconcerned for the human rights of the victims of the conflict...  Hamas plays the world, its press and the Western governments masterfully..  Read the London press... read the Goldstone report....  listen to the debate in the UN.

What is sad, is that while the world is busy condemning Israel for defending itself against an existential threat, it ignores the horrible plight that Hamas and the corrupt Palestinian leadership of the PA are inflicting on the Palestinians, let alone the horror inflicted on Israeli civilians as a result of these wars. 

In every respect, the leadership of the Palestinian people has used them as pawns in their military and psychological war against Israel.   Children are taught that Jews are "pigs and dogs".  "Martyrs" are glorified:  sports teams are named after suicide bombers;  Children are taught songs of praise of these "heroes" who blow up civilians on buses and shopping malls.  Millions of dollars of international "humanitarian" aid have been siphoned off by corrupt "leaders" into private accounts.  Meanwhile, the people suffer...  Rather than fix the infrastructure problems that make life miserable, the Israeli scapegoat is nurtured as the cause of all problems.... 

Israel is in a lose-lose scenario...  So are the Palestinian people....  But the world.... especially the West... is only making it worse... 

World... you claim to care about the Palestinians?  Deal with those who are truly oppressing them!!!

We had a special event here in Ramat Beit Shemesh (affectionately known as "The Ramah" - a word which I might understand better if I was paying attention in my ulpan - but it apparently means "the Heights", mainly cuz we're on a hill...)


Anyway... The special event was the "Welcoming of a new Torah", Hachnasas Torah, to the local, very bouncy Carlebach shul...

Nothing is done in a low key way when it comes to welcoming the Torah.... but this was pretty wild!

I'll bet they didn't have this when the new Eruv was inaugurated in Portland last week!!! (Mazal tov!!! Mazal tov!!!)

I hope I am at the tail end of this feeling sick thingie.. I feel so useless when I am sick... no energy to do the things I should do or even the things I love to do. (walking in the hills, for example...)

But Chava and I did go for a beautiful walk in the hills on Friday.... We went off of the main trail and climbed the hill we see from the mirpeset (balcony) - climbing over walls like mountain goats, (OK.. OLD mountain goats... but still!!!), and through the thistle (actually, I don't know that it is really "thistle", as I'm not quite sure what thistle is...  but it is this scrub brush that is everywhere and is filled with little needles that poke at you when you walk...) 

Our town has a clearly defined border, and beyond that border is the "hills" or the "brush" or the "fields"... actually, I don't have a name for it...  In Spanish, it would be chaparral...

One of the ancient winepresses we came upon, Chava identified as Byzantine... She knows this because the Christian wine presses had moziac inlays whereas the earlier (2nd Temple period) presses had no mosaics... And this did have a number of mosaic pieces left in it, in the corners where it would be less likely to erode away.

On our first walk, Chava took me to one of her favorite spots...  She calls it the "factory".  It is an area comprised of exposed limestone slabs which in ancient times were worked into wine presses, cisterns, and channels...  The place has natural caves which, I imagine were used to store the wine..  Of course water was necessary for this production, and this was drawn from some of the many wells dug in the area... 

We walk on ancient paths that were used even in the time of the 2nd Temple...  Pottery shards are everywhere...  The archeologists have left their "marks" but haven't really done any major digs here...

I won't say it is "untouched" though.  Man has left his garbage not only in ancient times, but in recent times as well...  We are not the only ones who go out on these trails.

Locals go camping in these hills and are likely to leave the area relatively clean.  Unfortunately, this cannot be said for the construction crews who see this as an easy and nearby dump site for their garbage, or for the local arab workers, who walk from their villages to various jobs, leaving their water bottles stewn along the way.  Certainly, there is not as clear an ethic regarding preserving our natuaral settings here as I have grown used to in the States.  On the other hand, I can remember it being so much worse in the past....  So time will tell...

I wish we had a few friends, with botanical, and archeological knowledge, who would walk with us! There is so much to learn up there...  I can recognize the carob, the almond and the fig trees easily enough (yum) but I don't know all of the names of the trees.  The land is filled with herbs and probably with an equal number of harmful plants...

My friend Eliezar tells me that the second row of hills has some large caves that you can actually get inside... Most of the nearby caves are pretty limited...  But I want to climb into some anyway...  If the jackals will let me!
 

Adjusting to Life in Ramat Beit Shemesh - Written 27 October, 2009

My dear friends and family…


Life here is good, although the assimilation is slower than I prefer. I finally started my ulpan this last week. I was originally placed in kita gimmel (3rd level) because I can speak Hebrew to some degree. However, understanding Hebrew is much harder for me, so I requested to be “demoted” to kita bet (2nd level) It is very hard to practice Hebrew here in Ramat Beit Shemesh, being that well over half the population of this area are native English speakers! But it is GREAT to get out of the house for a half-day every day for the class. I was spending my days on the computer listening to Shlomo Carlebach and fighting with the various government agencies…  So now I only do that for one half of the time!

We joined a shul last week. Small and English speaking. With an outlook not that different from Kesser’s. Perhaps more male involvement and less women involved, but that is very typical in Israel… (Probably east coast US as well.) Although not stated in so many words, their hashgafah (philosophy) could be summarized as “The Orthodox shul for ALL Jews….” Hey, haven’t I heard that somewhere before? And yes, I’m still the slowest davener in the shul!

On Friday night, about 40 minutes before sunset, we hear two sounds. The first is somebody driving around with a loudspeaker on their roof playing some kind of “Welcome Shabbos” music. I think it is Sepharadic, but it could be anything! About 40 minutes prior to sunset, a siren goes off. The first time I heard this, I thought we were under attack! But no, this was simply an artificial shofar telling us to turn off the music, the computers, etc. and get with it… Shabbos is coming!! Actually, the siren goes off, announcing that it is candle-lighting time in Yerushalayim. Some hold that since we are a suburb of Yerushalayim, we should keep time as if we are there. But very quickly, silence descends on the city.

Last week, I had an amazing experience, convincing me that I am in a very special place. (like I needed convincing?)

Chava and I were coming back in the evening from the train station after spending Shabbos in the north. We didn’t have a car, so we were taking the bus home. A few stops after we left the train station, the bus stopped and a couple got on. Actually, it appeared that a man was getting on and “helping” a woman get on with him. It wasn’t clear if the woman was ill or had one-too-many, but he got her on, got her into a seat, paid the driver and stood by her. Whatever her situation, I was impressed that he seemed to be taking care of her. A couple of stops later however, the man jumped off the bus leaving the woman! As we pulled away from the stop, we started to hear her sob…

Suddenly, three young girls, maybe 15-16 years old jumped up and ran to the woman, a perfect stranger. One put her arm around the woman and the others offered words of comfort. The woman continued to sob, but allowed the girls to console her. A few stops later, the woman got off of the bus accompanied by two of the girls.

I’m not saying that Good Samaritans don’t exist outside of Israel, but somehow here, this seems totally in character.

My friends, you should definitely come for an extended visit to this country. Get a feel for it… This is an amazing place to be!

With brochos from Yisroel!

Not all is as we would hope here in Eretz Yisroel - Originally written 19 October, 2009
Two weeks ago, Chava and I went on a tiyul (tour) of the Shomron (Samaria) region. This is the northern part of the territories formerly known as the “West Bank”, but known for thousands of years previously as Shomron. This was my first excursion in years into the “territories”, although I have a number of friends who have lived in some of the larger neighborhoods of Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) that were built after 1967, and some friends who live in some of the “yishuvim” (settlements). I really did not know what to expect, as we were told that we were traveling in an armored bus.


Did this mean we were likely to be shot at? Hmmm… The truth is we had an incredibly peaceful, interesting and educational experience.

We headed north out of Jerusalem toward our northernmost destination: Sh’chem (renamed by the Romans as “Nablus”.) Biblically, Sh’chem is the first place that we find Avraham Avinu (our forefather, Abraham) after he enters the land to which H”S (HASHEM = G-d) sent him. B’reishit (Genesis) tells us that the land had been conquered from the Shemites (ancestors of Avraham) by the Canaanites. It is here that H”S makes the promise to Avraham that the land will belong to him and his descendents in perpetuity. This covenant by H”S to Avraham was sealed by an altar of sacrifice that Abraham built there.

When the Israelites came back to Eretz Yisroel after their Egyptian captivity, they gathered on two mountains near Sh’chem, Har Gerizim (Mount of Blessing) and Har Eival (Mount of Cursing.) Here the entire nation of Israel renewed their covenant with H”S. - “Now Joshua built an altar to the HASHEM, G-d of Israel in Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of HASHEM had commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses: ‘an altar of whole stones over which no man has wielded an iron tool.’ And they offered on it burnt offerings to HASHEM, and sacrificed peace offerings” (Joshua 8:30-31). While we did not have the opportunity to see it, archeologists have uncovered what is now believed to be the site of this ancient altar!

The bones of Joseph are buried in Sh’chem. As a part of the Oslo agreement, control of Sh’chem and certain other parts of the Shomron, were ceded to the Palestinian Authority. The building over Kever Yosef (Joseph’s tomb), without Jewish protection, has been frequently vandalized by locals. Jews are no longer permitted to pray at this holy site, despite the promises made in Oslo that all holy sites would be respected and that visitation would be permitted. We did have the opportunity to look down on Kever Yosef from the top of Har Gerizim, from a distance of ~1.5 kilometers.

On the way to Sh’chem, we passed Beit-El, the site where Ya’akov (Jacob) built an altar to H”S and where both Avraham and Ya’akov resided. In addition, we passed Shilo, where the Aron haKodesh (Ark of the Covenant) resided for 400 years and from where Dovid haMelech (King David) removed it to Yerushalayim.

As we traveled down the road, what we mostly saw were vast expanses of unpopulated land, with scattered villages, Jewish and Arab, dotting the landscape. The main differences between the Jewish villages and the Arab villages, is that the Jewish villages were fenced in, and surrounded by fenced fields, whereas the Arab villages had no fences and whose olive trees were planted without surrounding fences. In addition, we were surprised that of all the homes we saw in the Shomron, hands-down, the largest plots of land and the largest houses were in the Arab villages. These were not ancient family estates… most of these enormous homes were less than 10 years old, some still under construction. Clearly, these were not owned by poor people and definitely not by Jews.

We asked our guide about this and he informed us that while the Israeli government is very strict with Jewish residents of the Shomron about expanding onto non-private lands, the Arab villages have been systematically creating “facts on the ground” by building illegal homes and expanding their olive orchards onto publicly owned land.

After we visited the overlook of Sh’chem, our bus climbed up to one of the surrounding mountains, past a number of what were described as unfriendly Arab villages, to a lone, legal settlement called Yitzhar. Yitzhar is not large, and it has suffered a number of attacks over the past years. However, its residents are proud of their land and their community. They are making it clear that Jews have every right to this land, every bit as much, if not more, than the Arabs.

They do so legally and without violence.

Many of these residents are refugees from the eviction of the Jews from Sh’chem in 2000, including students from the Yeshiva (Jewish learning academy) that was formerly housed at Kever Yosef. For now, a stunning Yeshiva building has been built overlooking the grapevines planted by the Yitzhar winery. (VERY good wine, by the way! In fact, award winning!)

Hodesh tov! (Have a good month!)

Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel – Originally written - 27 Sept, 2009

Shana tova and g’mar hatima tova for you and your family!


We are settling in to our life together here in Ramat Beit Shemesh (or “RBS” as they say here.. ) This is, in fact, quite a beautiful community. My only real complaint is that it is very hard to practice and learn Hebrew when English is the common language here. It is said that Eretz Yisroel (Land of Israel) is acquired through yisurim (challenges), and while we are working through some issues, overall I (Steve) love it here, and am acclimating to my new home, and Chava is learning to put up with me…

Israel is an amazing place, especially during the hagim (holidays)… But the amazing thing is Shabbos. Like other frum communities in Israel, such as Har Nof, and Bayet v’Gan, Shabbos in Ramat Beit Shemesh is truly Shabbosdik… No cars, no buses, no radios, no horns… Just the sounds of children playing and people walking down the middle of the streets, wishing each other “Good Shabbos” or “Shabbat Shalom” (depending on whether they are American/South African or Israeli.)

Ramat Beit Shemesh is about a 40 minute drive from Jerusalem, it’s out in the country surrounded by gentle hills dotted with olive, almond, and carob trees, flocks of sheep and ancient wine presses and mikvas from the times of the second temple. We can also see all the way to the coast from our mirpeset (balcony), and can watch the sunset flame the sky almost every night.

Yontiv was a little difficult. We arrived into town just before Rosh Hashanah and I really didn’t have a chance to check out different shuls, to determine where to daven. There are a half-dozen English oriented shuls within a short walk from our apartment. In the end, we settled on the Carlebach Shul for these holidays where my step-son-in-law led mussaf on the second day. We are thinking seriously about a small, relatively new shul, led by Rabbi Haber, who was an early proponent of outreach (Kiruv) and continues to be actively involved in working with youth and ba’al tshuvahs. He is active in trying to foment unity in the Jewish world.

The Beis Tefilla shul is another possible option for us. Their beis midrash (learning center) is wonderful, with a number of shiurim (classes) happening all at once all day long, in addition to learning in hevrusah… Rav Malinovitz is no small potatoes. He is the chief editor of the Artscroll English-translated Talmud series.

My best teacher in the process so far, is my kallah… Chava is wonderful at reminding me and teaching me what is important as we step through each of these processes. She acts sometimes as a gentle “noodge”, but most often as an amazing role model, as she sits in the days before RH and Yom Kippur, reading books to help her (and me) prepare… Next year, I will be better. This year I was just plain confused!

I miss our community in Portland very much… Due to Portland’s unique circumstances, our community is both mixed and unified. I feel very privileged to continue to consider myself a part of this community, even though I have made Aliyah.

We pray that yours and your family’s coming year be filled with nachas, simcha, parnasah, health, and Torah. May H”S bless you with wisdom and compassion and love.

Be’er Sheva, Israel – Originally written - March 9, 2008

I’ve heard it said that when one is on a mission of tzeddakah*, the malachim* guard you on your path. This must be the reason that when I went to Sderot* on Monday, to carry out my mission to purchase and distribute food to this beleaguered city*, no rockets were fired by the terrorists on the other side of the fence…
What I did find however, included things both expected and unexpected.

As I approached Sderot from Be’er Sheva*, I found myself in absolutely beautiful farmland. Although I had been in the Negev before, I only remembered the dry dusty town that was Be’er Sheva thirty-six years ago! For the first time, after many trips to Israel, I finally understood the reality behind what we’ve all been taught: That early Jewish pioneers in pre-Israel Palestine drained the swamps in the north and made the desert bloom…

Sderot itself, which has been battered by nearly constant rocket attacks for the last eight years, was the next surprise. I expected a broken, de-populated town with a few souls left who cannot leave because of economic reasons. I found instead, a bustling small city, with a nearby university and far more truck and car traffic than I expected.

However, although people move through the city as you might find them moving through most cities, doing the things that must be done on a day to day basis, if you scratch beneath the surface you will see the difference. Whether they are remaining for economic or for patriotic reasons, the people show the emotional scars. The smiles I received were stoic. I saw little glee in the residents. The only happy smiles I saw were on the faces of some of the many “solidarity” people: People who come for a few hours, days or weeks, to give aid and solace to these residents.

I had the good fortune to be connected to Shaul Biton, a private businessman who has lived in Sderot for the last forty years and who spends a great deal of his time helping the people in his town. I met him through the help of a relief organization called Table to Table which along with many other organizations serves the neediest in Israel. I arranged to meet Shaul in Sderot on Monday morning, and called to let him know as I was approaching the city. A man in his sixties, I would assume, with a neatly trimmed beard and a warm smile greeted me from his car, telling me to follow him. We drove to what appeared to be a series of small warehouses in the business district and parked.

After introductions and a discussion of how to proceed, Shaul took me into a small open fronted shop. Inside was an immaculately clean space filled with open bins and bowls of a huge variety of grains, beans, spices and fruit. Shaul explained our plan to the shop owner. We would take the money that I had brought with me and create sacks of food for as many households as possible. He explained that we were trying to support the local businesses that have been devastated financially by the constant attacks, rather than bringing in food from outside of the city… With the money I brought, we could create twenty sacks of food: a kilo each of rice and beans, some rice noodles, some spread for bread, a chicken, a bottle of oil, and a few other items. This would create some business for this and two other shops and the food would be distributed through two organizations: the Sderot branch of ENOSH, the Israel Mental Health Association and the local senior center. Depending on the number of people in the household the food might last from one to two weeks.

We placed our order for the food in the various shops and then Shaul took me around the city to show me both the town as well as the organizations we were supporting. ENOSH supports the residents of Sderot who are mentally ill but are still living in society, rather than in hospitals. As one can imagine, the stress caused by the constant attacks and fear of attacks, while difficult enough for emotionally secure and stable people is particularly devastating for those whose emotional health is already impaired. ENOSH does not provide direct money aid to its clients. Rather, it provides programming including art therapy, counseling services and other social services.

We did not go to visit the Senior Recreation Center ourselves, as it was closed during my visit. Shaul informed me that while our twenty packages of food would be a huge boon to the recipients, in fact there are over a thousand families who are in poverty and for whom a chicken is a luxury, not a staple.

I expected that people might feel frustrated and perhaps even annoyed at the paucity of this small relief effort, but I was surprised by the genuine gratitude that I saw and heard. Over the last eight years and until only very recently, the people of this “border” town have felt that they have carried a huge burden with very little support from the government and little attention from the rest of the world. Until recently the rocket attacks have produced “relatively few” direct physical, human casualties. As a result, the attention of the media has been drawn elsewhere. But tragically, the rockets are getting bigger and more accurate. Recent direct hits have killed and maimed in higher numbers and frequency. Within Israel, attention has been drawn to Sderot. Convoys of cars come to Sderot from Tel Aviv and elsewhere to shop in Sderot, supporting local businesses and jobs and in general, supporting the people.

It helps… a lot… People talk about how much they appreciate that they are at last seen and heard…. That the world is watching…

Wherever I went, people expressed their thanks… for both the money and for the knowledge that the Jewish people and the world at large is watching. But I told them how much we appreciate them.. They are on the front line in a seemingly endless war. They are soldiers without uniforms, fighting for their people and their country; not with weapons and bullets, but with their very lives…. Their presence there in Sderot IS the fight… We, the Jewish people will not allow others to force us from our homes ever again….

Please support the people of Sderot….

Glossary:
• tzeddakah -- loosely: charity
• malachim -- angels
• Negev – Arid region comprising most of southern Israel.
• City of ~20,000 in the western part of the Negev bordering the Gaza strip. Has been under missile attack for at least eight years
• Be’er Sheva – Fifth largest city in Israel – aka “Capital of the Negev”

The people of Sderot are living in an unimaginably precarious situation with perpetual fear of terror and constant disruption of their daily routine. Many children in Sderot suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; many adults have lost all sense of economic security. (In fact, 7,000 of the town’s 24,000 residents have fled permanently). The people of Sderot have felt completely abandoned by the government and by the “outside world.” It’s important that world hears what is going on there and figure out ways we can help.

Many thanks to the many members of Congregation Kesser Israel and other friends who, when they heard of my plans, practically threw money at me for the people of Sderot! Yashar koach to all of them and to all that can help in the future.

Federation Israel Fundraiser Speech

Good evening. I’d like to thank Charlie Schiffman and Bob Horenstein of the Federation for their invitation to have me speak this evening. They believe that as a result of my recent trip to Israel, I might be in a position to shed some light on the effect of this recent war on the Israeli people. I hope that I can meet their expectations.

I had scheduled my recent trip a number of months ago. I visit my two daughters and my older daughter’s family once or twice each year in Israel, spending a good deal of my time with them at their beautiful little home in Karmiel. Karmiel is a large town in the center of northern Israel… very much a family oriented community.

This year, I had the extra bonus of overlapping my trip with that of my youngest daughter Shana’s USY youth group “Pilgrimage” trip. She would arrive a couple of weeks before I came and she would spend an additional week with all of us at Lisa’s Karmiel home.

When the war broke out on July 13th, two days prior to my departure for Israel, it never occurred to me to cancel my trip.

I wrote the following to my friends:

Karmiel was shaken in the last few days by Katyushas. Unlike its neighbors
to the east and west, Tsfat, Haifa, and Naharia, Karmiel suffered little if any
physical damage, thank G-d. But the emotional damage is evident in the
phone calls this last week with my daughter, Lisa. Although seemingly
calm, I can sense her distraction and fragility as she breaks suddenly from the
phone to watch a breaking news report, and when she forgets to say good-bye when she hangs up. The children feel the tension… They have heard the
explosions and know their mother is frightened.

On the flight over, my recurring thought was “I must find a way to help…” This wasn’t a wish… it was an imperative… I could not stand aside as a tourist and watch as Israel suffered. I knew I must help. Upon arrival, I joked with my daughters that they needed to find me an extra large IDF uniform and an M-16. I was angry as well.

My son-in-law, Udi is a member of a special unit of the Israel Police. His main mission these last five weeks has been that of first responder when rockets have fallen. His territory is the north and he and his crew have been very busy these last few weeks. As a result of the critical nature of his job, he, like ambulance drivers, hospital workers, fire fighters and so on, have not had the opportunity to seek refuge in central Israel. When he sent Lisa and the children south to safety, he stayed.

At first I made myself useful by driving up to Karmiel on those infrequent times that Udi was able to get more than a few hours off of work to sleep. I would bring him down to my younger daughter Netali’s small two-bedroom apartment in Tel Aviv, where Lisa brought her three little ones and her mother to escape Hezbollah’s rocket attacks. After a few hours with his family, we would drive back up to Karmiel. Often on these trips, I would stay with him for a day to keep him company and provide moral support.

As a result, I had the opportunity to experience what life was like in the northern towns. The city was a ghost-town. Usually busy streets were empty. One coffee shop remained open… and was empty. Sirens would announce the incoming rockets… sometimes after they started falling. The sound was unlike anything that I’ve ever heard before… a deep rumbling boom. The anxiety grows on you… It is cumulative… I was there only a couple of days. I cannot imagine what it must be like for those who are forced to endure the constant anxiety for weeks on end, such as those who could not or would not leave their homes in the north.

After a week of calling, I finally found an organization that accepted my offer to help. Latet is a relief organization that provides all sorts of social services in Israel, but has especially taken on the job of bringing food and necessities to families who have been forced into shelters in the north. In these hard-hit towns, banks, gas stations and grocery stores are shut down. There is nowhere to buy food locally and no way to get to the stores in cities that are still open. These folks rely on the delivery of these food packages for their survival.

On the designated day, I joined a convoy of private cars following a truck to Kiryat Shemoneh.

I wrote the following:

We arrived in the nearly deserted town of Kiryat Shemoneh. We saw a few
military trucks, a taxi and maybe one private car in this normally bustling,
working class town as we drove to our designated distribution center in a
parking lot.

As soon as I opened the door to my car, I heard
the not-too-distant explosions from falling Katyushas. We quickly unloaded
the truck which was filled with pre-packaged boxes of donated foods... peanut
butter, pasta, rice, canned foods, baby food, and hundreds of packs of pampers
for the babies. How babies could sleep with this racket was beyond
me...

I was surprised at the number of families with babies and
small children. These families simply do not have the resources to
leave. People were not walking around in shock, but more, had an attitude
of fatalism... "We are here... we can't get out... let's get this over
with soon so we can resume our lives..."

Mostly people were very grateful that they were not forgotten... Even if they had unsuccessfully argued for more food or presents for the kids, in the end almost all said, "Todah Rabah... La briut"... "Thank you very much... be well..."

Another day we distributed food in an Arab village only a couple of miles from the border. Katyusha rockets don’t care if they hit Arab or Jew… And the terrorist Nasralla didn’t particularly care either. A few days earlier, two little Arab children were killed by a Katyusha in Nazereth… This town, Horfesh was a Druze village. While waiting for the truck with supplies to arrive, we met a man who owned a restaurant which, of course was closed. He invited us back to his own home and proceeded to prepare a meal for the dozen volunteer relief workers. As we ate, he told us… “We Druze are more Israeli than the Israelis! We want the Hezbollah destroyed…” Later at the distribution center, the mayor of the town regaled our team with “Thanks”.

How have the Israeli northerners handled this situation? I would say that what I observed was a sense of helplessness and fatalism. Isolated, hiding in shelters, they felt alone, forgotten and frightened. There was a pervasive sentiment that Israel must succeed in disabling Hezbollah, or this would simply happen again six months or a year from now.

In closing, I want to relate a conversation that I had with a very close friend… a Jewish leader in the Bay Area. When I called after my return from Israel, he told me that he was very upset with what I had written in my letters. “You have children at home and you put yourself at risk without a good reason… There is something abnormal about that!” The response in Israel to me and others like me was remarkably different. They were incredibly moved that I had chosen to come to Israel, even after the war broke out. They were amazed that I, a foreigner, would put myself at risk by going into the war zone on relief missions.

I explained to them… I am not a hero… I am not a foreigner… Although I was born in the Diaspora and have not yet made Aliyah, Israel is my country too… The Israelis are my people and Israel must survive… It was my duty to help in whatever way I could.

I wish I could have done more… I wish I were still there.

Thank you.