I had told myself that I would get back to writing about families and marriage and spirituality, but frequently the times dictate what I write.
Yesterday was a terrible day in Israel. We lost twelve soldiers and three civilians. In the last few days there have been a large number of tragic deaths. To deny that it is traumatic for the country would be a lie. All of us are affected. All of us cry.
Once again I found myself angry. I decided to ask a couple of questions. Has anyone seen the following headline, “World condemns the targeting of innocent Israeli civilians� Hmmm I didn’t think so. How about this one, “Hezbollah orders investigation of hit on Israeli civilians� No? Really?
Let’s look at disproportionality: Hezbollah targets Israeli civilians—homes, shops, school, hospitals—and no one in the very moral international community (save President Bush) objects. Hezbollah kills children and grandmothers, Jews and Arabs, and no one protests. But Lebanon claims that 60 people were killed by an Israeli strike and before the words are out of the spokesman’s mouth, people are jumping to condemn Israel. When later the people are all found alive and safe, who apologizes? Who would that be? No one?
When I was a little girl, my parents still had fresh in their mind what had been done to Jews in Europe. They said, perhaps too often, that this one or that one was Anti-Semitic. After a while, I thought it was a thought pattern that they had picked up that really didn’t mean anything.
Now I am beginning to understand that to the rest of the world, we really are not worth caring about. Vast amounts of money are being collected for the “poor Lebanese†whose government stands behind the targeting of Israeli civilians. Who is helping us pay for the damage inflicted on us? Who is sending us money to feed our refugees and provide summer camps for the children and who sent us an air shipment of eight ambulances today? Jews around the world and American Christians.
May G-d bless them and may G-d protect our soldiers and citizens from harm. May he grant us victory over those who would murder us and who seek to spread their hate throughout the world.
