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Religious Zionists: Neither Religious, nor Zionist

Do you Want a Barrier Running down the Middle of your Country?

ראש החודש השני תשע״ח

Times Of Israel Blogs: Israel’s separation barrier: legitimate in theory, malicious in practice

Michael Aarenau, March 22, 2018

“The Apartheid Wall,” “The Security Fence,” “The Border Wall.” All of these words and more have been used to describe the barrier that separates parts of Israel Proper from the Occupied West Bank. Interestingly enough, how one titles the structure is often a key indicator of how they view the conflict overall.

Anti-Israel activists will typically refer to it as The Apartheid Wall, focusing on the different realities faced by Israelis inside Israel Proper compared to those of the Palestinians living on the other side of the barrier in the West Bank. On the other hand, Israel advocates typically refer to it as The Security Fence, focusing on the defensive purposes of the structure, and underscoring that the vast majority of the structure is not a wall at all, but rather, barbed wire fencing. Some Israel advocates (and even some Israeli diplomats/peace negotiators) refer to it as The Border Wall, noting its purpose in dividing boundaries between a sovereign state and a hostile non-sovereign entity that may one day come to be autonomous in its own right.

I, however, will be using the term “Separation Barrier” throughout this article as it’s more politically neutral and more importantly, it addresses the central themes that I’ll be focusing on throughout this piece. (cont.)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
Sometimes, I just don’t know why I bother writing responses to opinion pieces like this. The author probably won’t read it. And even if he does, it will just make his eyes roll, and he’ll employ the strategy I myself often employ, which is to ignore and discount responses. Well, in my case, I often ignore responses, which do not include Torah-based sources to support their case.

And although I am sure I should be devoting my time and energy into writing something else, I do believe that it is worth it to point out some details about the “security fence,” or as Aarenau refers to it, the “separation barrier,” which you will not see reported by the mainstream news media.

First off, there are just so many problems with the logic of this piece, I will just hit on a few of my favorites.

But before I do that, I will point out the irony which rarely, if ever, gets picked up by the news media. The left-wing Jews, European non-Jews, and self-identified anarchists may be the primary force in protesting the existence of Aarenau’s “separation barrier.” However, they do so for the wrong reasons.

On opposite side of the barrier battle, the so-called “right wing” supports the wall. But, of course, they do so, for the wrong reasons.

The Torah nationalists — you know, those Jews who are demonized for being right-wing extremists, even though they no longer see things as being right or left — do not want a wall running down the middle of their homeland. Most of them are focusing on other crucial issues, and so they are quite happy to let the anarchists and other assorted activists take one for the team,… so to speak.

The term Apartheid Wall is also quite ironic, in and of itself. Jews get upset at this term, mostly Jews on the so-called “right,” as they are offended that we would be accused of violating anyone’s human rights. They are quick to point out Jewish participation in the anti-Apartheid movement in South Africa, not to mention those of us on college campuses in the 1980’s demonstrating for “Divestment” from South Africa, and boycotting companies doing business there. Sound familiar? (Hint: #BDS)
In spite of these Jews getting it right (this one time), they forget that Jews are supposed to be a separate and distinct people. In an ideal, geulah (redemption) based world, only certain non-Jews will be allowed to reside in Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel). But, even these gerei toshav (resident aliens) will have limitations set upon them, including where they may live, and who they may marry, according to halakhah (Torah Law).
Hmm… Sounds like Apartheid to me.

I thought Religious Zionist meant being a part of the geulah (redemption) process, and actively working toward the goal of making Torah a reality in This World, instead of waiting for Mashi’ah to come and do all of the work for us. But the rhetoric of these “Religious Zionist” Jews, indoctrinated from a young age in the Israeli public, “religious” education system, seems much more like the very groups of Haredim* they often like to bash. Sure, they encourage aliyah(Jewish immigration to Israel). But, then that’s it.  (*Haredim are often referred to by the silly term “ultra-orthodox.”)

  • “We cannot ascend Har HaBayith (the Temple Mount).”
  • “We cannot build Beth HaMiqdash (The Temple).”
  • “We cannot bring the Qorban Pesah (the Passover offering).”
  • “[We can annex land, but] ‘Im lo torishu’ of (Num. 33:50-56) does not apply today.”
  • “The mitzvah of ‘lo tehonem’(Deut. 7:2) does not apply to Muslims or Christians.” -even though the Ramba”m(Shu”T 148), the Tur (Hoshen Mishpat 249), the Beth Yosef, and Ba”Ch all say that it does.

Until when? Until Mashi’ah comes? THAT is not even clear when you ask various Religious Zionist groups.

Well, I guess, so far, I haven’t actually gone after the author of this piece himself. Rather, I have gone after the ridiculous logic used by the quasi-right-wing, including those of whom I like to refer to as Religious Zionist Light, Mamlakhtim (diehard State loyalists),…or worse. In fact, Aarenau quite correctly criticizes the separation barrier going through [east] Jerusalem and even correctly criticizes the lack of logic in this. I will go far as to call it hypocrisy. Even though Aarenu himself does not use this word here.

Leaders Will Only Come From OUTSIDE the State!

Israel Must Stop Paying Protection Money to Gaza: By Moshe Feiglin

Apr-23-2018

Israel pays ‘protection money’ to the Hamas instead of getting the bodies of our fallen soldiers back from the terror organization.

Israel sends trucks of cash to Gaza on a regular basis and provides it with free water and electricity.

The Hamas killed Oslo a long time ago. Israel has no obligation to make these payments. It is simply a type of protection. We pay the Hamas because if we don’t, it will shoot rockets into Tel Aviv. Just like we pay protection to the Bedouin in the Negev to “guard” the cell phone antennas there…

Politicians will always seek to preserve the existing order (and their seats). They make a simple calculation: It is easier to deal with the pressure from the family of fallen soldier Hadar Goldin – to blame someone else (this time it was the Egyptians) and to hold out a bit longer until the next round of fighting. Politicians will never look the public squarely in the eye and explain that our state exists under protection – that it is a state that buys quiet in exchange for its captive and dead soldiers – and also the best of its money and water.

Ultimately, we will have to fight a war manifold times more difficult.

“You were given the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, and you will have war.‘ said Winston Churchill to Neville Chamberlain. That is why the bodies of our soldiers are still in Gaza.

When we will have leaders instead of politicians, the dear families will receive their loved ones – without paying protection money.

From Zehut, here.

Don’t Forget: The Gedolim Enabled the Oslo Accords

Nearly 8.5 Times More Terror Fatalities Since Oslo: By Moshe Feiglin

Apr-16-2018

Why argue when you can just present the facts? As we approach Israel’s 70th Memorial Day, Social Security and the Defense Ministry have publicized statistics regarding the number of civilians who have been murdered in terror attacks since Israel was established. Here are the numbers:

Since Israel was established, 3134 civilians have been murdered in terror attacks. This number does not include fallen soldiers.

According to the Social Security 2007 “Civilian Casualties of Acts of Hatred” document, the total number of terror fatalities from 1947 until 1993 – in other words – just before the establishment of the State of Israel until the Oslo Accords – was 578.

A quick calculation shows that despite the obvious improvement in Israel’s internal security since Operation Defensive Shield in 2002, the ratio between the casualties in the 46 years until Oslo and the 24 years since Oslo is 4.4 times more terror fatalities since Oslo. The average casualties per year before Oslo were 12.5 citizens murdered by terrorists annually. Since Oslo, the yearly average is 106 citizens murdered annually. In other words, the updated ratio of the average annual number of terror fatalities prior to and subsequent to the Oslo Accords – civilians alone – is 8.475 times more murdered civilians annually since Oslo. This is based on the updated, official data of Israel’s Social Security.

Nearly eight and a half times more terror murder victims. That is what we have gotten from Oslo to date. This is not a political opinion. It is simply the cold, hard facts.

Please remember these facts for the next time that somebody tells you that Oslo has been a success.

From Jewish Israel. [Defunct]

Syria – Something Smells Off

Herding Hamsters And Other Cosmic Reflections

By 

April 23, 2018

Disordered thoughts on the National Cockatoo’s latest antics

One:  The aghastment and horrilation about the terrible, appalling, shocking etc nature of gas warfare is nonsense. There is nothing unusually hideous about the use of toxic chemicals. Hideous, yes, but not unusually hideous. Boring old workaday artillery, that nobody criticizes, leaves children watching as mommy frantically clutches at intestings spilling from her opened belly, leaves men without legs trying to drag themselves along until gushing femoral arteries end consciousness, causes traumatic brain injury that leaves its beneficiaries drooling and burbling for life. Poison gas can do no better.

The whole business of WMD, Weapons of Mass Destruction, is two-thirds twaddle useful for herding dim publics. Gas has very seldom been used since the World War One days of Wilfred Owen, not because of its vileness but because it has not proved particularly useful militarily. Horribleness does not bother soldiers, who are amoral when they are not actually sadistic.

Biological warfare? It sounds, like, you know, really scary and all, but in fact is not militarily enticing because it is not controllable and can backfire on its users. It serves nicely, however,  to alarm publics with minds of low voltage.  We are most especially supposed to be frightened of anthrax. Since it is not contagious it is more in the nature of a poison and in any event hard to use.

Only three weapons of mass destruction exist: Nuclear explosives, artillery, and aerial bombing. Think Dresden, Hiroshima, Guernica, Falluja.

Two: Whoever wrote Trump’s speech for him–he obviously cannot put together two sentences with dependent clauses without wandering onto the far shores of incoherence–worked the moral-outrage pump hard. The gas attack, by whomever made, killed, eeek, squeak, seventy civilians and little children. More hamster-herding: git along little furry dogies. On many days in the Mid-East, the United States has killed more civilians than all the gas attacks real or invented in the entire war. The pilots, unprincipled as are all military men, know they are doing it, and don’t care. They get paid for their humanitarianism. By us.

Three: Something smells.  The use of toxins, either by Assad in Syria or by Russia in West Pakistan–England, I meant, England–makes no sensee. Assad had won his war and had no need of gassing a few civilians. He would have to know that it would give Washington a pretext for an attack. Which it did. Is Assad so foolish?

Similarly with the poisoning of what’ s-his-spy and his daughter. Russia had nothing to gain and a great deal to lose, as we have seen. It is one thing to believe Mr. Putin capable of bad things. To believe him stupid is quite another. Note that Theresa May became hysterical before it was established that Russia did it, which has still not been established. The orchestrated expulsion of Russian diplomats by all the vassal states, also before anything definitive had been determined, was just too cute.

Hamster herding.

Four: Who had anything to gain by the gaseous adventurism Answer: The American Empire–not America, not Americans–and Israel. Both are desperate to keep Syria from surviving. Note that Washington has a history of lying the country into wars. The Maine in 1898, the Gulf of Tonkin, the imaginary WMD in Gulf I. Plus ca change, plus ca doesn’t.

Five: Syria is of no importance, at all,  to America or Americans. It has nothing America wants or needs. It poses no danger to America. It is somewhere else. This lack of vital interest to America it shares with North Korea, Afghanistan, Ukraine, the Crimea, the South China Sea, and all the other places where the Empire looks for war. Then why does Washington risk nuclear war by accident with Russia, which also poses no danger to America?

Because the Empire’s hegemony over the Mid-East, Asia, and the world weakens. The Empire totters. Syria is at the heart of the looming demise.

Things go badly, Empire-wise. Start with the war on Afghanistan, now creeping toward its third decade, and neighboring Pakistan. China invests heavily in infrastructure in Pakistan:  The Karakoram Highway, the Karachi reactors, the China Pakistan Economic Corridor,  the IP pipeline, Guadar. If–when—Amrica leaves, Pakistan will become an economic client state of China, without a shot being fired. Afghanistan will quickly follow as China invests in its minerals. This is why Washington cannot leave.

Afghanistan borders Iran, which Washington maintains as an enemy at the behest of Israel. Iran borders Iraq, wrecked by the United States and sharing a religion with Iran. Without the threat of American military power, it could easily align itself with Iran and  Asia. In Syria, Assad seems to have won unless the Empire doubles or triples down. Thus the contrived gassing of children and Trump’s missile attack. Turkey balances between east and west, and could easily decide that Asia is the future.

The Empire totters, wounded and dangerous.

Six:  Washington’s approach to hegemony is military, relying on bombing and economic sanctions. This requires huge military expenditures that cripple the domestic economy and produces countless countries that would break with America if they could. By contrast, China’ss approach is economic,  smarter and much cheaper. It is China’s Belt and Raod Initiative to integrate all of Eurasia into one huge trading block, excluding guess who, that has the Empire in a panic. How do you bomb a trade agreement?

Seven: Russia and China have adult leadership. Putin and Xi are stable,  intelligent, and competent. Their interests are not Washington’s and they will do whatever is in the interest of their countries, but they are not stupid, ignorant, weak,  juvenile, or crazy. By contrast, Trump is a loon, ignorant of practically everything, mentally chaotic, and easily modified.

Do you think this excessive? Ponder this luminous tweet

“Get ready Russia, missiles will be coming at Syria, nice and new and ‘smart’!”

This is not adult language. It is the taunting of a twelve-year-old. Nya hnya nya!  Yet it is classic Trump. This man has absolute power to launch wars whose consequences we will have to bear. Is this not splendid?

From Lewrockwell.com, here.