In the days since I have come up with an answer. I do not think it is perfect or complete, but I think it might be the only answer that could jump start the issue and get us back on track.
I think we need a war. Unfortunately.
When we come under attack from external enemies we put aside our differences and come together for the greater cause.
As I said, it is not perfect. Not just because war is always horrible but because even if it does as I suggest, it is only temporary and only provides a partial sense of togetherness and healing. After that we would still need a lot more work, but a war, being under attack, is probably, I think, sadly, the only thing that can really get the process started. When we are at war we come together and put aside our differences. Rabbi Yisrael Lau, the former Chief Rabbi, has very succinctly said, we know how to die together, we need to learn how to live together. I think at this point in our rift, this may unfortunately be the only way to get past this moment.
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First of all, I think you're right, sadly. My father, a"h, used to say that if Arafat, y"sh, had really wanted to destroy Israel, he'd have honoured the Oslo Accords perfectly and even gone beyond them. In the absence of an external enemy, we tear ourselves apart.
ReplyDeleteBut I don't even think a war will fix things. Remember that during Bibi's first term in the 1990's, Hezbollah started making trouble and there was talk about another invasion. Peres gave a press conference at which he blamed Bibi for creating the tensions and declared that the left wouldn't support the government if there was a war. That red line got crossed.
Bibi is such a dominant personality that even if Iran and its proxies launch an attack, the left will likely not support him because they would want to avoid the obvious popularity lift he'd experience when Israel won. The last thing they'd want is Bibi as the great unifier of the country. As these demonstrations have shown, if the left can't rule Israel, they'd rather there be no Israel.
"My history's a little hazy, Cassius, but shouldn't the barbarians lose the battle of Carthage?" (HT - Gladiator) My history's a little hazy, but I don't think war as a unifier worked out so well prior to the churban
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