Some Truths About Palestinians’ Condition and Israel in General

 

Some days one just feels the need to use others to tell the story. Sometimes it is best to just find videos aids in relating what one wished to convey. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then what price can one assign to videos which have hundreds if not thousands or hundreds of thousands of frames, how many words would that equal? Well if we simply treat each video as five pictures, here are tens of thousands of words interspersed with actual words which number far less for expressing our thoughts as well.

 

Nobody who is being honest will claim that all is a bed of roses for the average Palestinian, especially in the refugee camps located in the Gaza Strip and the semi-autonomous zones in Judea and Samaria (West Bank). These camps are kept impoverished as a photo op primarily for Western media and the occasional Middle East reports. These camps are Palestinians who it is claimed all came from within Israel in 1948. With the average age of residents in these camps somewhere in the mid-twenties or lower, it is painfully obvious that a very small number of the ‘refugees from the Great Naqba’ were actually alive in 1948. These descendants, some third, fourth and even fifth generation refugees are kept in the camps solely to continue the myth of suffering, and their Arab keepers make sure they do indeed suffer as they are not permitted to work, own a home, or leave the camps and go live with relatives just as the camps in Lebanon and Jordan are also kept nationless and impoverished dependent on UNRWA aid and other charitable institutions many established for just that purpose. Another truth not often mentioned is that these camps receive the majority of their aid funding from the Western nations with the Arab world often making pledges which they rarely keep after an initial token payment. Perhaps a video from a Lebanese news report could shed some light that covers some of the opulence, the changing loyalties and where much of the aid originates, might shed some light.

 

 

 

 

 

The ironies in Gaza alone are enough to boggle the mind. Western and especially European news stories stick to the political line of the evil Israelis, read Jews, keep all the wealth for themselves and the Palestinians are left scrounging for food and clothing, that there is no electricity much of the time and the water supply is tainted. The Gazans are presumably largely living in the streets as Israel has destroyed their residences. There is a measure of truth to this as Hamas made sure that many apartment buildings were damaged, some severely, by using them as placements for their rockets. Meanwhile, almost all of the cement allowed into Gaza had been diverted to build tunnels which when completed will infiltrate into Israel allowing for terror attacks intent on abduction of Israeli civilians to be ransomed for terror prisoners from mostly Hamas and Islamic Jihad who rule Gaza jointly with Hamas having the majority position. Perhaps a revealing video on Gaza and the reality as there are very plush neighborhoods where Hamas is not permitted their use for attacks on Israel as these are the beautiful people of Gaza, some assuredly gaining their wealth as a result of their positions within the terror structure. The video ends with a broadcast recording of a youth repeating what he has been fed in his education as part of the political fight to assure that every child receiving their education from UNRWA or a Hamas or Islamic Jihad school will continue the war against the Jew. Note the youth does not mention Israel as Hamas has as its intent right within their charter the murder of every Jew and the conquest of the entire world. Nobody ever claimed they did not aim for lofty and high goals as for that they have it covered. After the youth’s tirade there is a nice ending shot of the other reality which comes from Gaza, see if you can catch it.

 

 

 

 

 

Agriculture is a staple industry for both Arabs and Jews. One difficulty is the division of lands claimed by both sides. The settlement often comes from the courts and is enforced by the IDF which always causes friction and claims of thievery and denials of any wrongdoing on all sides. These claims are most fierce in Areas where both Arabs and Jews have lands bordering or in close proximity to each other. In many instances the dividing lines are well known and there is even an amount of cooperation in getting both Arab and Jewish harvests picked in time and taken to markets. Often the problems are instigated by European ‘peace activists’ whose primary raison d’être is to instigate conflict. They have been known to arrive with counterfeit maps and deeds which they use to provide Arabs with ‘proof’ that the Jewish village has stolen their lands and their olive trees and that the trees raised by the Jews are actually their trees and this eventually with the assistance of Fatah and other terror influences leads to confrontations. Are there actual opposing claims which are valid? Of course there are as sometimes land is purchased from a charlatan whose deed may appear authentic but proves to be a forgery that does not hold up in court. Where a Jew or an Arab has preceding legal claim and no bill of sale can be produced proving change of ownership, the court rules justly in favor of the deed holder. But the court is more than fair with Arab claims as their claims are more often rewarded and recognized than that of Jews. Part of the problem for Jews is getting the lands transferred as for an Arab to sell land or property to a Jew and the Ramallah Palestinian Authority government finds out the person may or may not receive a trial before they are publically hung as an example of what happens if you are caught selling to a Jew. Thus for such transactions to be verified in Israeli courts, the authority for legal challenges, the Arab needs to appear before the land office and verify that in deed he has sold the land and only then is a new deed drawn up legally showing Jewish ownership of the land in question. There will not be any record as from whom the land was purchased so as to protect the Arab from being murdered for his horrific sin against the people. The media is always able to find witnesses from both sides of the argument on land and crop ownership and even a bad harvest is often blamed on the other side stealing water or whatever the complaint du jour might be. Again let’s see the video.

 

 

 

 

 

There is always the question of what to do when you are at a wedding and the bride and groom are inside about to come and greet their friends and nobody remembered to bring any rice to throw. But wait, we all have plenty of ammunition and what the, who will mind a little rifle salute. Of course little concern is expended in worrying where the bullets will fall back to the ground, well, not as long as everybody remembers not to shoot straight up in the air as that may end poorly and really kill the festive mood of the celebration. So, here’s to the bride and groom, fire away.

 

 

 

 

 

There are indeed hardships in Gaza including the destruction of a large investment and business designed to entertain and provide some relief from what is otherwise a hot, long and boring summer with nothing to do. One might reason that a water park might be just the ticket for the youth to enjoy some carefree time screaming and giggling as they use the slides and other attractions. Music might even brighten spirits and make the fun time even more memorable and enjoyed just that much more. Hold on to those memories the all too few who spent some time enjoying the water park and whatever you do, do not discuss or admit you ever frequented that evil, Zionist corruptive influence as the modesty police are apparently everywhere lying in wait for some unsuspecting youth to admit they had even a glimmer of fun in their life. The water park, what happened to the water park? Well, those destroyers of all that is fun and bright in Gaza destroyed the water park and the real source is quite revealing and potentially coming as a great surprise to many.

 

 

 

 

 

No coverage could be complete without the obligatory commentary done with a proper British accent which can be used by those wishing to claim this was simply a politically motivated, ‘hate’ piece of propaganda being sold as actual evidence that there does exist an other side, another opinion to the mainstream media Pablum fed endlessly to the mass media and used throughout Europe as the bludgeon to hammer Israel into submission. Never mind that it has been largely Arab controlled areas and nations which hold the refugee camps and refuse to allow the occupants, many of whom have close relatives living virtually within walking distance of the camp and they are refused permission to go live with or often even to visit with these relatives. These are largely not the original refugees from 1948 otherwise there would not be estimated upwards of over five-million refugees as the original numbers were under three-quarters of a million refugees who mostly answered the call of the Mufti of Jerusalem Amin al-Husseini’s call to leave their residences and take a safe position behind the glorious armies of the Arab world which were going to slaughter and erase every single Jew and any corroborative Arabs, defined as those Arabs not actively murdering Jews, and they would be permitted back to their homes and given a part of the spoils of the war, a war the Arab armies were assured of winning and doing so easily. The one promise the Arab leadership has kept is that they will be allowed out of their refugee status as soon as the Arab armies destroy Israel and kill every Israeli whatever their identity be they Jew, Arab, Druze, Bedouin, Kurds, or any other nationality present within Israel currently. The promise still stands that upon the defeat of the Jews and Israel the refugees will be permitted to leave the camps, the very camps which is all the majority have ever known having been born and raised and then having and raised their children where their children’s children were raised and then their children and then on and on henceforth and potentially forever. So, here is the promised authoritarian British accented commentary published on Aug 5, 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

To be fair, here is another British accent this time reporting on the high costs for automobiles in Gaza along with some comments on the hardships the Gazans suffer and actually has a moment of honest criticism on why the vehicles still are unable to be imported despite Israeli blessings for the Gazan to do so but that would require the unity government to actually agree on some arrangement so that those who get paid no matter what or who is buying and selling, these people in the hierarchy must get their pound of flesh no matter what.

 

 

 

 

 

Some reading with pictures, titles, subtitles, all mixed to compare and contrast what was the Apartheid in South Africa with the reality of Israeli politics including explaining why the ‘Palestinian’ people do not have equal rights as far as voting in Israeli elections and other discoveries such as those selfsame ‘Palestinian’ people do vote when, or should we say if, there ever are Palestinian Authority elections in Judea and Samaria or elections open and fair in Gaza either for the government of the Palestinian Authority, as they are now presumably citizens under a Hamas-Palestinian Authority governance, or a Gaza election which was held once with Hamas winning the majority of the vote, well, perhaps mere majority is misstating the reality of a landslide win for Hamas such that the government is often referred to as the Hamas government of Gaza. For all intents and purposes the ‘Palestinian’ people in both Judea and Samaria as well as Gaza have that very special kind of democratic systems where it is one person with one vote one time, or possibly twice if one should live that long.

 

 

 

 

 

And while we are speaking of Apartheid in Israel, the lie, here is another very impressive and wide span of coverage of Israeli inclusionary activities and the actions of openly assisting all in need from places of such a distance it seems improbable if not an impossibility, but Israel gave refuge to a boatload of Vietnamese refugees.

 

 

 

 

 

Let’s end this section with what could be termed a propaganda piece as the less seen side of Arab residences and neighborhoods in Israel, Judea and Samaria as well as Gaza are shown with musical background in a montage with some messages scrolled on the video. Sure this view omits the refugee camps which are cement construction apartment complexes which resemble many apartment buildings elsewhere but the camps have an added feature, they are gated communities which are fenced, guarded and have an official entrance which controls who enters and restricts seriously those wishing to depart. So enjoy a leisurely close, did we mention the nice background music?

 

 

 

 

The following is some select videos covering the Israeli reach out to the rest of the world in service to any and all they can reach with aid. These videos cover themselves so we will leave it to the videos that follow.

 

 

 

 

 

Save a Child Heart Services which brings children to Israel for heart surgery and also sets up and trains physicians in these nations and granting them an entire ward built with Israeli aid covering the entire program. Here are some videos on this remarkable program.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And in closing a video on the ideals of this remarkable program which runs on mostly donations to SACH. In a rare instance we will provide a way to donate to the SACH programs and their remarkable physicians, pediatric and child’s heart surgeons who specialize in heart surgery and related difficulties. Thank you for helping and know that a life of a child or of many children thank you with a smile and their newfound ability to dance their hearts out, actually their heart that you helped repair and save. Thank you.

 

 

 

And if you tell them where you got the idea, we would love the publicity as SACH knows nothing of this plea.

 

Thank You.

 

Beyond the Cusp

 

 

The Media and Anti-Israel Anti-Zionist Slanted Coverage

Read or listen to news reporting which emanates from the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), AFP (Agence France Presse), AP (Associated Press), CNN (Cable News Network), Reuters, Fox News, UPI (United Press International), Yahoo, Google, Al Jazeera, The New York Times, or even if your news comes with a laugh as you get your news from Comedy Central, or the myriad of smaller news agencies, television news, radio news, political talk shows, print media or even blogs including Beyond the Cusp, as all of these rely on the major news reports and other media to provide the meat and gristle on which we all prey upon to survive and provide the best commentary and even historical references and other interesting color as well as opinions and positions well backed up with facts. The problem comes when you are covering Israel and trying to report relatively fairly, though our Zionist roots tend to make our writings have a slant, often the opposite than many of the news reports, due to their omitting valuable and necessary information or taking the word of terrorist leaders without any filter or validations and pass these propaganda as raw unadulterated news, one needs to carefully provide balance and factual backup of your positions. Here at Beyond the Cusp we often refer to our views as being pro-Israel and pro-Zionist as we made Aliyah almost two years past and have enjoyed our new nation and have found the people to be very accommodating, friendly, helpful and finally finding other Jews who feel as we do about Israel and the problematic situation our dear nation has had foisted upon us. As we are all damaged when Israel is damaged and we feel that it is bad enough that so many news sources report about Israel always in a biased, strongly negative light and then we are told that all we need do is talk more forcefully and then our voices will be heard and Israel will have a positive side that might go a far way to negating the perceived negative slant. The difficulty with this suggestion is when Israelis speak more forcefully the reporters write the quote relegating them to have come from someone who appeared as a desperate Israeli, anxious Israeli, enraged Israeli, or simply called a crazed Israeli which negates everything related as the reporter introduction makes sure to discount any pro-Israel opinions by only using the most wide eyed and loud Israeli and pit their frenzied Israeli opposite a Hamas Fatah spokesperson who is telegenic and calm or they simply just have the Hamas or Fatah spokesperson alone with no intelligent counter either way. Last summer’s coverage of Operation Protective Edge and the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) review looking for violation of human rights both have glaring deficiencies which no factual based reasoning could do without, namely facts. Let’s just look at the simple and obvious slanted coverage and review.

The United Nations Human Rights Commission made the slanting of their report easiest to explain as their biasing of their review was by obvious omissions. Their review began on June 13, 2014 omitting the previous months’ provocation which included the kidnapping of three teens by Hamas operatives who then killed the youths burying them in a shallow grave near their Arab community. The review also omitted the ramping of rocket firing out of Gaza which had reached intolerable levels of several hundreds a day reaching Tel Aviv area which was another escalation. Had Israel not had Iron Dome systems ringing Tel Aviv and other areas of heavy population areas intercepting these rockets, including a number of newer rockets with obviously greater range and warheads than during previous confrontations, the Israeli casualties may easily have outnumbered those suffered by Gazans as a number of the largest missiles with as high as one thousand pound warheads would have struck central downtown Tel Aviv and taken down fifty plus story buildings. This too did not manage to be recorded in the ramping of the threats out of Gaza. By starting on June 13, 2014 and concentrating their review on the start of the Israeli response to the ramped up rocket fire into Israel and by their slanting through starting point they managed to make the Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Fatah and others rockets fired into Israel to be a response to Israeli unprovoked invasion and not Israeli actions being in response to the kidnapping followed by the increased rocket launches into Israel. Their study further counted the resulting casualties in a manner which portrayed the lack of Israeli casualties pitted against the numbers of Gazan casualties as another sign that Israel was using disproportional force. The reality was completely due to Israel using disproportional defense of their civilians with the Iron Dome missile interception system which intercepted Hamas and friends rockets with an unbelievable rate ranking its success at approaching perfection well over ninety percent with the few rockets which got through being unable to cause multiple deaths was due to the Israeli investment in rocket and bomb shelters and hardening schools and other places where children might otherwise have simply become victims. By concentrating on simply casualty figures the UNHRC was ignoring the fact that the Israelis had invested in defensive measures which kept their people safe while Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Fatah, Islamic State and others invested their money on rockets, weapons and tunnel construction which they intended to utilize in a night of mass terror in Israel. The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) found unbelievable and unestimated number and existence of tunnels both as an interconnected assault system under Gaza itself and infiltration into Israel with many of the tunnels having dug numerous branches such that it provided multiple exits and deploy points in Israel. They found IDF uniforms with proper unit markings, handcuffs and large plastic locking straps which can also be used as handcuffs along with syringed and sedative drugs which could be used to make anyone captured into a manageable subject barely conscious thus easier to take hostage, maps of the Israeli communities they were probably going to take hostages, these maps included identifying buildings where the most valuable hostages would be located such as schools, day care centers and other similar denotations, motorcycles which would permit the deployment of terrorists and maps of Tel Aviv and bordering areas. They found plans in the tunnels which described in detail a horrific and well thought out plan which would have added to the confusion after a massive rocket assault on Rosh Hashanah attacking the very synagogues in Tel Aviv where the largest were denoted on the maps, the Jewish New Year’s celebration. Israel dodged a bullet by locating and searching the tunnels thus averting a disaster if this plan had been launched during the High Holidays.

So, by omission of the attacks by making the study by the UNHRC begin with the first volleys of artillery and tank fire followed by IDF forces going into Gaza, the UNHRC turned a defensive effort into a calculated assault with an intent to destroy as much of Gaza as they could by the IDF, IAF (Israeli Air Force) and the Israeli Navy. The UNHRC also investigated on site and took every Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other Gazans who were chosen for the interviews by the Hamas governing body as unbiased sources while on the Israeli side the UNHRC had specific NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) from whom they asked for representatives for their witness accounts as their debriefing of official spokespersons. The problem comes from the NGOs they questioned all being under the funding umbrella of the New Israel Fund or directly funded by the European Union and individual governments. These are NGOs whose main raison d‘être is to denounce the IDF and any right leaning or actual nationalist or Zionist politician and have an especially deep hatred of Prime Minister Netanyahu and guilt by association any government coalition he heads. These NGOs are almost universally funded by outside entities including anti-Israeli NGOs most often from Europe or the United States, European governments and wealthy individuals and their organizations who particularly hate Israel or simply hate Jews such as George Soros. The UNHRC refuses to use random or official entities to procure information and seek out those who will further their intents to demonize Israel. Thus the UNHRC always will produce a severely biased and derogatory study of Israel, the only nation that the UNHRC bylaws demands that they pass a resolution denouncing Israel for the crime-de-jour before addressing anything else the UNHRC is investigating.

The European and world media entities listed at the top of the article did a similar attitude check during the coverage of Operation Protective Edge. Their reporting hardly ever mentioned the three teens kidnapped and murdered and only obliquely referenced the massive increased ramping of the rockets and mortars launched at Israeli population centers usually claiming that Israel responded to rocket launchings always intoned to imply that the rocket launchings were not a huge deal. One has to wonder how these same broadcasters would cover merely three rockets per day being fired into their home nation’s cities by terrorists who ruled a neighboring enclave as Gaza is to Israel. We all know they would be hailing their heroic forces which would have received orders to go into the neighboring enclave and raze it to the ground and those instructions and orders would have followed an intensive series of artillery and bombing runs designed to completely eradicate the entity and the world would have thought nothing of it. If you doubt that there would be an intense reaction to such just read about how the English reacted initially to the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in Belfast and around London and you will read about the British calling up reserve troops and placing them at almost every corner in Belfast and the use of heavy equipment in their fight against the IRA. Meanwhile the slant of the coverage was to incessantly keep a running total as provided by official spokespersons for Hamas, like they would never lie, and report on Gazan casualties while stressing that there have been almost no casualties in Israel implying disproportional force used by the Israelis. They never divulged the why almost no Israelis were being casualties. The reason actually was a form of disproportional planning and investment in civilian protections. Hamas and friends had a system of bunkers and tunnels that they could have given shelter comfortably to every living thing in Gaza and still managed to get their people through the tunnels to where they could best attack Israel always with the intent on striking civilian targets inside Israel. When the largest hospital in Gaza was struck the media was very quick to blame Israel sighting their own eyewitness accounts of a projectile striking the hospital and then implied directly that it had to be an Israel projectile. Within minutes the Hamas spokespeople were disseminating that the Israelis had struck a Hospital on purpose and for no reason as there was no military target there. They never requested the IDF look into how the hospital was struck and if they had they would have been shown the four rocket series launched from that location and that the four rockets diverted from their firing location and one struck somewhere in Ashkelon, one struck the Shati Refugee Camp, one went out over the Mediterranean Sea and one struck the al-Sifra Hospital. These trajectories were given in care of the Israeli projection systems mapping (see below map) used for immediate return fire on the location from where the rockets originate.

Radar Trajectory of barrage launched from within Gaza depicting strike points including the short round strike on the Shifa Hospital which Israel blamed by Hamas and Media accepted Hamas talking point unchecked

The biggest piece of omission was the real reason for the disparate numbers of casualties and damage to infrastructure. This was due to a form of disproportionate defense systems provided for the protection of their civilians. As denoted earlier, Israel has a series of shelters and all new residential structures are required to have one room in the units made as a rocket shelter which is fortified to provide what is deemed adequate protection and all large buildings have such rooms easily accessible to those working inside while schools and such are also fortified against rockets nearly universally in Israel. There is a similar system in Gaza which is better known as the terrorist bunker and tunnel systems but the Gazan civilians are not permitted to take shelter within. But such is not the main reason for the difference in these numbers as there was a force multiplier which rendered the vast number of rockets fired out of Gaza ineffective as they were intercepted by the Iron Dome System which track the rockets and determines if they are heading for an area where civilians are likely to be and those it intercepts with an accuracy and percentage beyond expectation. But there is also the attitude difference which was pointed out by the Israeli Prime Minister when he was asked well after the fighting had ended and in an interview by Israeli media which was made available for the asking, still waiting, still? Anyways, Prime Minister Netanyahu stated simply that, “We use our rockets to protect our civilians while Hamas uses their civilians to protect their rockets.” But there is more. While Israel placed the Iron Dome Batteries strategically just outside civilian areas such that they would have the most advantageous angle for intercepting Hamas and friends’ rockets. The Iron Dome systems were the only combat units stationed anywhere near civilian centers unless intelligence predicted a strike was imminent. This stationing IDF units and indirect fire stations such as mortars, rockets, missiles and artillery units outside of built up areas was intended to provide all military targets as far as possible from civilian centers such that any rockets fired at Israeli military would not pose any threat to the civilian population. Hamas, Islamic Jihad, ISIS, Fatah, al-Qaeda and the rest of the merry bands of terror entities operated exclusively from civilian areas as shown in this video below

There is one final item and for a change we will try to keep it short. It has to do with the lie that Gaza is the most heavily populated area on earth. How many times have you heard that reported or alluded to in conversations with asides like, Reporter Bob, isn’t it crowded with people all in a closed in area there is Gaza? –Reporter replies, Why, yes, attractive anchor person, you can hardly move in places it is so tight and people at every turn wherever you look (camera pans a large group of Gazans standing around looking innocently going about who knows what but it sure is crowded as camera return to reporter Bob, and that picture about says it all as this is the scene wherever you go. What you never quite figure out is how come whenever they go to reporter Bob he is not surrounded by Gazans getting in the way of the camera as they go about fighting their way through people packed like sardines in a can. Truthfully, if we were to compute density of people during the work week Tel Aviv with its skyscrapers has a higher density than does Gaza City. The reality is very different because as Israel places their military out in the open away from civilians, Hamas and friends lace their military units amidst civilians and often right next to schools, hospitals, hotels where the media stay (as in above video) and also try to gather as many kids near their rocket launches in an attempt to get as many civilians killed as possible. I can hear the propaganda question already of well isn’t Gaza so built up that there is nowhere for the Hamas soldiers to operate? Soldiers?!, we reply. Hamas and friends terrorist forces have places to operate outside of the two or three large metropolises but they choose their locations to endanger the maximum number of civilians as possible. Why would one of the complaints made about the blockade of Gaza in order to keep weapons out also prevents the farmers from getting their goods out to market easily. So, there are farms in Gaza which implies there are open spaces in Gaza. The argument that if they operated outside the cities in the farm areas, then the farmer’s crops might get damaged is a divergence committed to excuse their risking lives of people making the crops worth more than the lives of Gazans. So, crops are to be protected and civilians are worth less than crops, what an argument but the reporters just report that there is no place else for the rockets and command centers to be set up as Gaza is the most densely populated on the plant. Well, yes, if you do not consider Hong Kong, Singapore, Vatican City, The Maldives, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Nauru, Taiwan, Barbados, Malta, Monaco and finally Gaza, yep, the most densely populated place on the planet except for those top ten and that one in the pesky one holding down slot eleven pushing the most densely populated area on earth down to number twelve, oops. If they are instead talking about Gaza City by itself well then we need to compare cities, well it did not make the list of the top fifty cities for population density. Well, I looked hard to find a list which placed the Gaza Strip as the most densely populated nation and the best it came in at on one and only one list at third and otherwise always twelfth give or take a couple of slots and more leaning at even further down the list than twelfth. But what about open spaces you ask? How about my handy-dandy map of the Gaza Strip showing the built-up population-dense areas versus open lands as a picture is worth a thousand words and I promised to keep this short.

Display shows large open areas with little population where Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other combatants could operate without threat to the population.

All done. Hope I was brief enough and did not stray off too far from the point and thanks for visiting.

Beyond the Cusp

Remaining American Jews and Israel

 

There was a time when being an American Jew also meant being supportive of Israel. Now such feelings are almost exclusively held by Jews well above fifty. For the millennials and later the best Israel can hope for is neutrality based on complete apathy with their concerns being for relatives who they more often than not make offers to assist them moving to the United States even arranging for employment and housing and then being confused when their parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents and occasionally brothers and sisters refuse. Yes, there are still remnants of Zionists, mostly religious Zionists, who are making their plans currently to make Aliyah and others who are caring for elderly parents or grandparents and will make Aliyah when their care is no longer required. The vast majority of Synagogues have little if any pro-Israel programs and one is far more likely to find Evangelical Christians having events supportive of Israel than the average synagogue. In some Reform Synagogues and leftist liberal Jewish organizations one is far more likely to find programs petitioning against Israel, support for the BDS movement and actual Jewish organizations such as Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) that largely favor complete boycotts of everything Israeli and support the ‘Right of Return’ for five million Arabs who claim to be refugees from 1948 war of annihilation started by at least a half dozen Arab armies the morning that Israel became a nation. They see no need for Israel to remain Jewish and believe that Israel as a multicultural nation just like the United States would be preferable to the continuation of what they view as a fascist and oppressive Jewish supremacist state. There was an Israel Channel 2 News in-depth report this past weekend featuring anchorman and reporter Danny Kushmaro examining the Jews from JVP and their animosities and reasons for turning against Israel with such feelings vilifying the Jewish State and my summation was they see Israel as being too Jewish and not sufficiently politically correct and fully supportive of leftist causes. Embedded below is this report which lasts about fifteen minutes and is filled with interviews and information revealing their feelings and what they view as Israel’s shortcomings and failures.

 

http://www.mako.co.il/AjaxPage?jspName=embedHTML5video.jsp&galleryChannelId=990df63642d9e410VgnVCM100000290c10acRCRD&videoChannelId=e0c90203f684e410VgnVCM100000290c10acRCRD&vcmid=683af63642d9e410VgnVCM100000290c10acRCRD
if i-frames fails please use the link above or this link below:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/198333#.Va4Cc_n8PgZ

 

Having made my Aliyah after a long discussion with aged parents who assured me they preferred I make Aliyah while I was ‘still young enough’ to enjoy Israel and as such I may hold some insights which I can share from my life often spent in a transient nature constantly moving across the width and breadth of the United States and meeting Jews either in or from virtually every state at some point and having spent time with numerous and varied synagogues. The following are my experiences and should not be taken as typical without also asking other Olim from the United States as most of my life was spent in towns and small cities with limited Jewish population, some where I was the first Jew to reside in certain really small places. The odd thing is even in these places I found there were, what I like to refer to as, stealth Jews who approached me privately and pleaded I keep their confidence. In their assessments, which were accurate, they figured that I would not be remaining very long as I seemed to be a restless spirit. They were correct and the reason was as simple as it was accurate; I seemed to be seeking a place where the Jewish community was of a similar attitude as myself. The truth I can refer to is that such did not exist in my travels as, almost to a ‘T,’ the congregations all had their few who were pro-Israel amongst a sea of at best apathy and at the worst animosity, placed Israel as one of their most dear and important issues, and who still remembered and strongly believed the lamentations of Psalm 137, also called the “Song of Babylon”, in particular the more benign but heartfelt first six lines which read:

 

137:1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.

137:2 Upon the willows in the midst thereof we hanged up our harps.

137:3 For there they that led us captive asked of us words of song, and our tormentors asked of us mirth: ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion.’

137:4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?

137:5 If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.

137:6 Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I remember thee not; if I set not Jerusalem above my chiefest joy.

 

I usually had to look far and wide to find fellow Jews who believed in being capable of taking responsibility of their own defense and not relying on the state, enlightened Jews who knew about Ze’ev Jabotinsky and had learned the lesson that no matter how egalitarian, how initially accepting, how incorporated into the various professions throughout the society, how assimilated the Jews had become, and how much they believed that, “It can’t happen here,” such was the large mistake the German Jews and the other Jews of Europe in the mid-1930s made and their refusal to believe things were heading south when the lists of registered firearms from the Weimar Republic were referenced by the Nazis for early use by the government to confiscate weapons, initially from Jews and other minorities and political groups they opposed and finding out far too late that those who had warned of the coming eclipse of life, as they had known was a definitive signal that the end was approaching. Even amongst the small minority of Jews who would seek me out at functions or services and confess their conservative views and even their membership in the Republican Party, a faux pas extraordinaire in virtually every non-Orthodox Synagogue which are all one can find in all too many locations outside the major cities, east and west coast states, as well as Ohio and Illinois. In the majority of congregations which I either joined or visited for a period of time before the differences became too uncomfortable for all, had there been Jews who wished to have the Rabbi perform a same-sex marriage there would have been little if any problems and such would be viewed as acceptable to hold such in the Synagogue using the same main hall where services were held on those occasions when sufficient numbers were expected such as weddings, Bar and Bat Mitzvah services and the High Holidays as the congregation was accommodating and would be shocked should anybody find such use of the synagogue to be beyond acceptable accommodations. Where I have absolutely no problem with somebody with such proclivities as long as they remained Torah observant and did not act on their sexual urges, just as all Jews must guard against overindulgences and other forbidden sexual territories, but a same-sex marriage was taking acceptance too far though I held my tongue and simply skipped any services held that day.

 

The standing mitzvah which was the highest observance was their interpretation of Tikkun Olam which largely was interpreted as fighting global warming, fighting perceived persistent racial discrimination, healing society from and wiping out all vestiges of white privilege, amending social class differences, and above all else, voting for Democrats with blind and dedicated obedience. Nothing has brought their disregard not only for Israel, but also for the United States and perhaps the entirety of the free world with their inability to watch the unfolding events in the world or even in their own nation. The problem actually goes beyond any description or understanding. It almost appears as when it comes to voting many in the population vote for their party no matter whom the candidate is or who the opposing candidate is and when it comes to other than either of the two main parties it is as if the others do not even exist. Much of the blame goes to the media and particularly to the mainstream media as they are totally in the box for the Democrats and if not the Democrats, then for the Republicans. It is understandable how and why the United States breaks down to a two party system which is a direct result of their choosing the President basically in a direct vote and the requirement that they gain greater than fifty percent of the electorate rather than simply a plurality. This has worked just as much due to the requirement that the winner must attain fifty percent plus one of the Electoral College votes and not just a plurality of the electoral votes. This problem was brought to the fore when Ross Perot took a fairly large percentage of the voting and still had minimal impact on the Electoral College though Perot may have influenced the result in some states causing them to go from one of the major parties to the other party. There will be debates for another decade when this subject is discussed by the relative few who are informed and knowledgeable but when compared to the entirety of the eligible voters, but then barely over half even bother to vote, these so informed are but a small and impotent of voters due to their lacking numbers but that may be changing. George Washington, the United States first President and second elder spokesperson after Benjamin Franklin, warned about the evils and machinations of political parties in his farewell address (which can be read here)which was delivered to the media and leaders of the day on September 19, 1796. The most quoted of lines from this dissertation are, “The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge natural to party dissention, which in different ages & countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders & miseries, which result, gradually incline the minds of men to seek security & repose in the absolute power of an Individual: and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction more able or more fortunate than his competitors turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of Public Liberty.”

 

There was a time before the great world wars and possibly even after where the public was not only knowledgeable on the every discussions and issues of their day and now the average voter honestly, whether they are aware of it or not, vote exclusively along party lines and in many cases are voting for the values the party might have arguable held decades before and had long since moved on in their trip to whichever end they favor as long as it is to an ever increasingly invasive governing of our daily lives with slightly different results and endgame. In Europe, despite there being dozens upon dozens of parties, the differences from the two extremes would not even test the bounds of one of the American political parties, both extremes in Europe are just reminders to Americans of where their party has transgressed on its inevitable end vision of government and their role in serving and controlling, an emphasis on controlling as both parties support any legislation which places ever greater control and monitoring of individual’s actions and approved views. Truth is you can harbor any thoughts you desire as long as you never act upon them.

 

Try to challenge the status quo and see how fast the government inspectors are snooping around your property and giving you ten days’ notice to have this repaired, painted, replaced, cleaned or whatever they can dream up. Before long you start to desire moving someplace where your name is far more anonymous. Successfully gain ballot access for Federal United States House of Representatives and win a number of points in meet the candidates functions in Churches, Synagogues, recreation centers and any other rally where an informal debate is held and you end up being refused place on the televised debates ten days before the election and when you get a hearing in court you walk in and the judge rules that your chosen representative may not address the hearing and the panels siting at the other tables, one for each major party, there are seated a representation of the State’s Attorney General’s office lawyers to bring witness against you and you get a real sinking feeling that if you had gained more traction they would have buried you, quite literally. With the onslaught of inspectors one has basically two choices, one is accept every summons stating you have anywhere from ten working days to as much as a month to rectify the problem the inspector claims to have found, and some of the “repairs” would require hiring a contractor to make actual physical changes to one’s residence, which gets even trickier if you are renting, or one can actually face them down by first walking them back off of your property and onto the sidewalk or street which demarks your property line and then require that they show you the exact particular problem and as they take that first authoritative, now I have the initiative back, step onto your property you stop them dead with an immediate verbal demand that they, “Please remove yourself from my property.” Should they ignore your request repeat it and ask if this will require the State Sheriff’s Office or will they comply with your demand to vacate your property immediately. Once they are back on the sidewalk or wherever you then repeat that they show you the problem and no matter how obvious the situation you just continue to not see what it is they are complaining about. When they try to gain entry to your property again you politely ask if they have a warrant. They will not have such so you simply hold to your Constitutional rights to keep your property inviolate without proper warrant. Any signed piece of paper other than a warrant is simply a useless piece of paper and warrants are most often accompanied by a police officer to enforce compliance. After the elections, unless you are a real glutton for punishment or have a real drive to buck the system and prove you’re actually the answer to the two party system, and especially if there is a family crisis requiring you to be elsewhere, moving is definitely the easiest solution to stop the inspectors because once they have your address they will never lose it and be back right on que every year, especially if a large puddle of water follows every rainstorm in your front yard, they will be right there to threaten to write you up for a potential wetlands hearing. Fortunately the parade of the heartache ends soon after the election either way, if you lose they go back to ignoring you unless they get a real hard dislike to you and if you win, they desire keeping their job and you have such power to affect that status when you win.

 

Running for Federal office can and will give you insights to the political system and the first item you will learn, if you present a solid and appealing presentation of ideas, is that the two parties are actually so cooperative and often same sides of a coin and may even take up both sides of that coin such that the election is mostly meaningless. The only way the system will change is if more people run as third party, meaning no party which is best if you can manage that plus was the desire of George Washington who warned of the inherent evils of political parties, and the electorate begins to take notice and the political landscape returns to having an attentive and informed electorate which turns out to vote in numbers approaching or exceeding seventy-five to eighty percent in off-year elections and the public knows, understands and have debates amongst themselves and vote their minds, their hearts if necessary, and never settle for a candidate who does not agree with at the least sixty percent of the issues and completely on your three or four most important and meaningful particulars at the very least. Unfortunately such an electorate will require forty-years-wandering-the-dessert until all of the offending generation, with a few notable exceptions such as the two spies, Caleb and Joshua, who brought back optimistic and supportive reports out of the twelve spies, one from each tribe, went and gave witness to the Promised Land while the other ten told about a land full and bountiful but also included cities with towering walls manned by giant men of formidable strength who would be unbeatable by the Hebrews. They ignored the promise that Hashem would give them the lands if only they made the effort. For the sin of not believing and for allowing the rumors and timorous reports of the few to sap their will and faith in Hashem to fulfill His promises, they spent forty-years wandering the desert until only the next generation born outside of slavery was ready to take possession of the Promised Lands.

 

Meanwhile, the approximately three-quarters of Jews who voted for President Obama twice, both in 2008 and again in 2012, have either no knowledge of or are completely comfortable with a President who refuses to be seen with the leader of Israel in front of the media, insists the Prime Minister of Israel enter the White House for their first meeting by a side delivery entrance, and who goes to every extreme to place Israel in a compromised position, makes a statement which he knows is a lie to AIPAC and then within eighteen hours makes a retraction calling an impromptu press conference just to make completely sure that everybody knows he “misspoke” and did not mean what he said in his speech about Jerusalem and who has taken the Arab Palestinian side in-toto as his position on negotiations over disputed lands claiming Israel has no claim to these lands. President Obama’s statement and complete backing in heart even if not in vote as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations after vetoing a resolution against Israel and recognizing the Palestinian undisputed right to all of Judea and Samaria and sixty-percent of Jerusalem held a press conference where she announced that she, and implying the administration, actually agreed completely with the resolution but political pressures prevented their supporting it in the Security Council as a Chapter Seven binding resolution but would work towards the stated end in that resolution through actions taken in the Middle East. It could reasonably be believed that well over fifty-five percent of Jews would vote for President Obama again if he could legally run. The Jews in the United States as a whole care little to nothing for Israel and believe Israel should become a multicultural haven just like the United States and when informed that such would result in it becoming an Arab run state where the Jews would be persecuted, forced to leave, or murdered; they claim that would be a better result than allowing Israel to remain a, and I quote from the video above, “A Jewish supremacist State.” This is completely the opposite of the views of the Jews in 1967 when Jews dropped everything and watched the unfolding of the Six Day War in amazement and with pride that this was their people, this was Eretz Yisroel, their promised lands. I guess I was amongst the last of those Jews who I did finally find; they were all here in Israel.

 

Beyond the Cusp