Jewish Law - Commentary/Opinion - A ZIONIST RESPONSE TO BOILED LOBSTERS

A ZIONIST RESPONSE TO BOILED LOBSTERS
Jay Shapiro

A ZIONIST RESPONSE TO BOILED LOBSTERS

Jay Shapiro

Arutz Sheva Israel National Radio
Broadcast on Oct. 19, 2000 / Tishrei 20, 5761

In This Article:
1. Laying the Cornerstone
2. Lights Out in Gilo
3. Wanted: A Zionist Response
4. Flustered Spokesmen
5. Boiled Lobster
6. The Political Parallel

LAYING THE CORNERSTONE

Last week, I attended the laying of the cornerstone for the synagogue to be built in a new neighborhood in Karnei Shomron, roughly between Tel Aviv and Shechem. The veteran 6000-person strong community was founded 25 years ago, and its latest neighborhood now boasts seven families living in modest mobile homes. Karnei Shomron is situated in the scenic hills of western Samaria, with a magnificent view of the surrounding area and the coastal plain.

In these days of turmoil and uncertainty, a day after our Prime Minister returned from the ridiculous Sharm-a-Sheikh summit, a large crowd gathered in this warm community with the goal of providing the proper Jewish and Zionist answer to the situation: keep building and settling, despite the hardships. Friends of mine identified with Israel's political "left" usually respond to Israel's tribulations by declaring that they plan to leave the country. In contrast, the response of Jews on the right, particularly the religious Zionists - and especially those living in Judea, Samaria and Gaza - is generally to reaffirm their commitment to work harder, build more, and settle more.

LIGHTS OUT IN GILO
Several weeks ago, the media made a big issue of an Arab boy from Gaza who was killed in the crossfire of a gunfight because he was in a place where a child should not have been. He had gone to the Netzarim junction to throw rocks at the Jews while his fellow Arabs were firing live ammunition at an IDF outpost there. Accidentally, the boy was killed in the crossfire. More recently, a strikingly similar picture made the headlines. It was of a Jewish father in Gilo, protecting his son from Arab terrorist fire. In the course of the same shootings, a 19-year-old Israeli Border Guard officer was shot in his stomach by the terrorists and is now fighting for his life.

In response to the shootings, the IDF installed cement and steel fortifications around the perimeter of Gilo. Ha'Anafa St., the site of the gun battle between police and gunmen in neighboring Beit Jala, remained cordoned off by police for days. Jewish families returning to their apartments were told by police that any rooms facing Beit Jala should not be used. The head of the local residents' committee called the fortifications "only a cosmetic change," and called on the government to use the full force of the tanks stationed nearby if Gilo would again come under attack. This week, the fire resumed and our tanks shot at the terrorists a couple of times. On numerous occasions over the past week, the army put out the lights in Gilo so that Jewish residents would not be targets of sniper fire. In Beit Jala, though, the lights were mostly on, and life went on as usual.

WANTED: A ZIONIST RESPONSE
Turning out the lights, was, in my view, the wrong response. Israel used to be characterized by an important quality the confidence to deter and to punish. This government should have taken the initiative and reversed the situation. From the outset, it should have been Beit Jala that was placed in darkness - and not Gilo!

That would be possible if the Israeli army did what every army is supposed to do to defend the citizens and to let the enemy know what will happen if he chooses to attack us! Instead, we've pulled out of Lebanon and Joseph's Tomb like thieves in the night, we've abandoned a soldier to bleed to death at the Tomb, and our tanks are standing almost paralyzed on the edge of Jerusalem while Gilo residents huddle in the darkness in fear. The Arabs have gotten the message that the Jews are "on the run." That is not the proper Jewish and Zionist response. Even the secular Jews agree that one of the purposes of the creation of the state was to provide a safe haven for Jews. As the words of the national anthem "HaTikvah" say: "... to be a free nation in our Land." And this government - which last month declared that it was going to start a "secular revolution" - does not even know what it means to be a secular Jew in our Land! They have interpreted "secular" to mean to be free of Jewish history and Jewish roots and even the Jewish Land itself!

FLUSTERED SPOKESMEN
When Barak went to Sharm-a-Sheikh, he took along a special group of so-called experts to explain the Israeli position to the foreign press. The people whom Barak sent to run around Europe and explain our position are the same ones who were fully aware that the Palestinian Authority was, for some time, training children to fight and kill Jews; they kept the information quiet since it would upset their concept of the "peace process." Now, they are trying to explain why so many Palestinian children are being shot by Israeli soldiers defending themselves against the stone-throwing mobs. One of the main tricks of the Palestinians is to send children first to throw stones while behind these mobs they dispatch snipers who shoot at our soldiers. Many of these Arab kids spent the summer at terrorist training camps and are now in schools that utilize PLO textbooks that teach them to hate Jews and promote the destruction of the State of Israel.

Alas, Israeli governments over the past seven years did not wish to complain about Palestinian incitement and violence, since that might have slowed down the Oslo process. The tone for this stupid and blind approach to the Oslo process was set by Rabin and Peres back in 1995. At that time, a cassette was made available to the Israeli government, containing a speech made by Arafat at a mosque in Johannesburg, South Africa. In his speech, Arafat said that the whole Oslo process was simply a tactic to weaken the Jews. It was like the agreements that Mohammed had made with tribes that were stronger than him. As soon as he had enough power, he simply violated the agreements and destroyed his enemies. When this cassette was played to Rabin, his comment was: "If this is true, it's very bad." Of course it was true it was a recording of Arafat! But Rabin and Peres could not be bothered with the truth because it disagreed with their theory.

In this regard, it must be kept in mind that the Oslo process was not based on facts. It was based on an ideology, which, like religion, is a matter of belief, and any facts that disagreed with that belief were simply hidden or overlooked. The media in Israel share the blame with the politicians for hiding the facts that disagreed with their ideology. In events reminiscent of the Yom Kippur War, the leadership and the media were caught in a conceptual trap of their own making. The Oslo process began, and continued - because Peres and Beilin were intent on creating their "New Middle East" despite the facts. And Rabin, "Mr. Security," we were told, would never do anything to weaken Israel!

BOILED LOBSTER
Now that Oslo seems to be in its death throes, it may be valuable to take a step back and reflect on the psychology that got us into this mess in the first place.

Do you know how to boil a lobster? Those of us raised in kosher homes don't; our mothers were busy with chicken soup and chopped liver. But several years ago, an acquaintance of mine taught me how to boil lobsters because he thought it would be an important contribution to my general education.

There are some people who try to cook lobsters by throwing live ones into a pot of boiling water. This generally doesn't work because the lobsters carry on terribly and start jumping out of the pot. In order to do this properly, you have to take into account the nature and character of the lobsters. There are two facts about lobsters that are crucial: First, they are cold-blooded creatures; this means that they assume the temperature of whatever environment they happen to be in. Second, and contrary to the conventional wisdom, lobsters are very clever and they can only be beaten by cunning.

What you have to do is take a pot of water at room temperature and place it on an unlit stove. Then you place the lobster gently inside and allow it time to settle in and get comfortable. Then, very quietly and stealthily, you reach over and light the burner under the pot. It has only to be a small fire. Then you wait a while. The lobster will sense the slight change in temperature and rearrange his internal temperature accordingly. After a while you quietly raise the fire somewhat and, again, wait. The lobster will again make the proper adjustment. You continue to do this in little steps and, after a while, the lobster begins to notice that it is getting uncomfortable and more difficult to make the necessary internal changes. However, the lobster, being a clever creature, begins to reason with itself. "It is getting uncomfortable here," it says to itself, "but it used to be quite nice and maybe it will be again. Besides, why should I jump out and maybe find out what is causing all this trouble and put a stop to it. I don't know what is outside and maybe it is worse out there than in here? So there is no alternative other than to get used to this situation."

After a while, the temperature has gotten pretty high and there are bubbles coming up from the bottom of the pot. But the lobster, continuing to reason with itself the same way, pretends not to notice them. Then, finally, the temperature reaches a point where the lobster can no longer make the internal changes - and it is boiled.

That's how you cook a lobster.

That's also how you cook a Jewish State.

THE POLITICAL PARALLEL
First, you make an agreement with a terrorist organization dedicated to the destruction of the State. This is done preferably in some quiet, out-of -the-way place - say, like Oslo, Norway. The State gets comfortable with this new environment, especially when any aroused suspicions are overshadowed by an impressive ceremony, like on the lawn of the White House, with all kinds of dignitaries present.

Then, after a while, you bring the terrorist leader and his accomplices to some place where no one really knows or cares - like Gaza. And, stealthily, you let him and his friends also take over another place that's off the beaten track - like Jericho. The State gets used to this and even looks upon it as a blessing since it really wanted to get rid of those locations anyhow.

Then, you allow the terrorist to bring thousands of his friends into the area and you even arm them and turn over military institutions to their army and secret police. No one really notices this since most people are busy with their own problems and don't want to be bothered. There really isn't much time to think about these things which, anyway, are the kinds of problems that the government gets paid to worry about.

After a while, the terrorists kill a few innocent people. And the State reasons that, what the heck, this used to happen before so there is really no viable alternative. Besides, each person figures that it can't happen to him and his family so why bother. Then, the terrorists say that they want half of the capital city. And the State figures that most people don't go there anyway so why not?

Then the government allows the terrorist secret police to kidnap and kill Arabs who cooperated with the State. And everyone says, I don't know those guys anyway. Besides, they probably deserve it.

While all this is taking place, the news media keep talking about the wonderful peace partners and all the nice things that are happening since the agreement was signed at Oslo and how all the terrorists have nice titles like "Doctor this" or "General that" and they seem like such nice smiling people on television. And they speak English so nicely and dress so well. Then a settler is murdered but, the State reasons, it wouldn't have happened if he wasn't there. Besides, the Prime Minister has explained that defending the settlers is a strain on the budget and the army so who really cares? Then, the government turns all the areas near the major urban centers over to the terrorists who then bring all their armed friends there from outside the country and....

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Jay Shapiro heads a consulting firm dealing with United States Government contracting. He is the host of a popular current events show on Arutz-7 English broadcasts and is the author of several books of essays on Israeli society.
For books available from the author:
jay@IsraelNationalNews.com

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Reprinted with permission by Arutz Sheva
located at http://www.israelnationalnews.com