As great as the tragedy of his death is, I have found it amazing, from the start, how much effort was being put out by people - Israel, Chabad, and of course his friends and family - to find one single person. They could have given up early saying they'll never find him - it is like searching for a needle in a haystack. Yet they continued, they persevered, and they succeeded, unfortunately with a tragic discovery, but they found him nonetheless.
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This really shows how Israel - the nation and the State - are different. I had seen discussion in several places how the efforts to find him exceeded rational use of resources and manpower. It went beyond what most peoples and states would do to find one lost hiker. Gov't interest in these cases is always more than what one sees from other countries. What binds Israel together is made of different stuff, however one tries to explain or articulate it.
ReplyDeleteBaruch Dayan Haemet. What a lovely young man, and a war hero too. It's so terribly sad. I prayed that he would be brought home alive and well.
ReplyDeleteAs ever Israel is criticized for anything it does: for sending a large rescue and medical delegation to help the Nepalese, and for investing so much in assisting its own nationals. But people are so stupid that they don't understand that they are two sides of the same coin. The desire to help and save lives is so Israeli, and if that is what Israel does for a distant nation, with no ulterior motive, how much more so it will do to save its own citizens. Gilad Shalit was everyone's son, and so was Or Asaraf.
In the meantime, there are hundreds of Europeans still missing, and what exactly are their governments, amongst the richest in the world doing? Little Israel sent 260 personnel and 95 tonnes of supplies, and the rich UK 60 people and 11 tonnes. And in the talkbacks the tourists blame Israel for not saving them. Unbelievable.