“O L-rd, You know I hate those who hate you, and loathe Your adversaries. I feel a perfect hatred toward them; I count them my enemies.” Psalms 139: 21-22 (JPS Hebrew-English Tanakh)
The infamous “Hunting Season” has returned to Israel, a season of blood libels and unrelenting persecution against those the political elite deem threatening. Jew-hunting, that is. Never Arabs. In Israel, it is always “Jew season”. The Likud has long forgotten the leftist bludgeons that once crushed their grandfather’s skulls. Today, the elitists of the Likud and their coalition lackeys wield the same weapons of war against good Jews.
We have all heard the latest tales of arson attacks against Arabs and the burning of churches perpetrated by alleged “Jewish terrorists.” I am referring to the arson in the Arab town of Duma which we are told led to the death of an Arab baby and the father. I want to emphasize that there isn’t a shred of evidence against the many Jewish suspects who are being detained. And bear in mind that Israeli forensics are very sophisticated. Without a doubt, they would have found evidence if it existed. Nevertheless, Netanyahu and his henchmen are rounding up Jews in a manner that would have made the KGB proud. And the establishment elitists have all given their OK to this latest witch-hunt, and have themselves opined on the matter with their own blood libels.
We have seen the ugly reactions of the Jew hating world, who ignore the endless stream of Jewish blood spilled by Arabs, yet rise to lynch Jews based upon unproven, unwarranted allegations. Jewish reactions to this obvious double standard are as varied as are the various ideologies that prompt their respective reactions. As the narrative goes, when Jewish blood is spilled, there is nary a word, but when Arabs are allegedly targeted or killed by Jews, the anti-Semites go wild.
Many Jews who are outraged by world hypocrisy, tacitly accept the allegations and are quick to demonize these Jews. They usually counter the blood accusations by arguing that 1) these Jewish suspects (whom they have already found guilty) represent a minority group, 2) and they emphasize with righteous assuredness that Israel is dealing with them with heavy hands, unlike the PA which actively supports Arab terrorism. My thesis is premised on facts and not assertions, and so my perspective has nothing in common with them.
What Do You Expect?
As I see it, those who nakedly ignore the thousands of Jews eviscerated, incinerated, lynched, riddled with bullets, bludgeoned, and hacked to death (in shul) by Arabs and Muslims cannot be expected to act otherwise. They are the quintessential examples of chazal’s age old maxim. Esau hates Jacob. I expect nothing of these Jew hating creatures. There is no dignity or point in convincing enemies of Am Yisroel of obvious truths.
This is precisely the behavior of Jew haters of all persuasions, regardless of the ideologies that fuel their poison beliefs. As an example, in defense of his recent treasonous Iran “treaty” and in order to threaten those liberal Jews who may vote against his deal, President Obama easily resorted to leveling the same charges of “dual loyalty” and intimations of “war-mongering neo-cons” that Pat Buchanan trademarked. Anti-Semites are consistent will share their weapons of war with one another and even align themselves when it comes to damning Jews. One should never be shocked by their actions.
I cannot react to this age-old hypocrisy with any sentiment other than the standard all-consuming hatred I already have for all enemies of Am Yisroel. I expect nothing less from them. Yet I reject the standard knee-jerk reaction of undignified, patronizing Israeli “hasbara” we are wont to see, since it neither defends Judaism nor Israel. It skews the issues and creates facts based upon false assertions and non-Jewish constructs. To the extent that I partake in any limited form of contained and dignified “hasbara” it must always adhere to these rules:
A reasoned explanation/articulation of authentic Torah positions, without pandering, muting the message, or apologizing for Torah views.
All explanations are solely directed to the best of the gentiles, who aren’t mired in anti-Semitism, but who may be somewhat mired in ignorance.
When Jew haters react with their double standard, they barely register with me. I expect Esau and Ishmael to behave the way they always have: in accordance with their nature.
The “Mixed Multitude”
More disconcerting to me are the classical “uglies” of the Israeli Left, the contemporary “mixed multitude” who cause so much damage to the Jewish people. Consider the case of Shimon Peres whose every breath is committed to the wicked follies of his life. Worse still, Peres’ ideology is embedded in the very spine of the ruling Likud party and the various factions that make up the current coalition.
I hate the quislings of Haaretz, and the pompous self-righteous leftist bloggers who tear kriyah and write poems, and beat their breasts for imagined crimes against Arabs. And yet, much like the overt anti-Semites of the non-Jewish world, I’m not surprised by the erev rav in Israel, since they hate G-d and Torah. Many of them deem any kipah wearing person as a murderer of Yitzchak Rabin, the same way they were willing to demonize all chareidim as murderers for the lone action of an evil, twisted individual who recently ran riot with a knife. The mixed multitude is as old as the exodus from Egypt. Yair Lapid is his father’s son. And he will always show his true self when he can no longer abide the sight of skullcaps and side-locks.
Far more upsetting to me are those who purport to be right-wing, (even religious!) who adopt the language and behavior of the worst elements of the left. I cannot abide that those who endure blood libels from gentiles are quick to perpetuate the same against fellow Jews. Netanyahu and his crony Yaalon are using the abusive tools of the British Mandate, the notorious Administrative Detention, to harass Jews. They are desperate to pin “crimes” on “hill top youth.” It suggests that Netanyahu is ready to embark on another campaign of appeasement and that he is trying to quell resistance to any future territorial concessions to the Arabs.
A young man named Meir Ettinger, the grandson of Rabbi Meir Kahane (may G-d avenge his blood!), is now being held in administrative detention, and in accordance with the draconian tenets of this abuse of power, they can hold him for six months without charges and without a trial. After six months of enduring whatever abuses the Shabak puts him through, they can renew his detention for another six months under the same Bolshevik conditions. And it is my understanding that they can indefinitely continue this process. During this time, the Shabak and other nefarious agencies of the Israeli government will surely torture him physically and psychologically and try to extract a confession.
Like grandfather like grandson. If Meir Ettinger is being held for the same reasons as his grandfather, then one thing is for certain: his grandfather would have been proud of him and the other Jewish freedom fighters being detained. He too was innocent of the many unwarranted charges against him. Rabbi Kahane’s sole “crime” was speaking the Torah truth, regardless of the consequences.
Again, it must be emphasized that were there ANY evidence of criminal activity, they would have all been charged. That is what is so grotesque about this whole process. Administrative detention is used precisely when there is no evidence. It is a means of punishing those they deem to represent examples of Jewish militancy and extremism. The intention is to crush any vestige of Jewish resistance to the culture of surrender and appeasement. The use of this immoral punishment is proof that there was no crime!
Shame on Netanyahu and Moshe Yaalon, the purveyors of this latest “Hunting Season.” Shame on Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked, the darlings of the loyalist, weak-kneed religious right, for partaking in this immoral hunt against Jews. They are acting as the Left did during the notorious hunting season when they preyed upon heroic fighters and handed them over to the British to be tortured and killed. Jewish history will remember their roles in this sin. Additionally, they are inciting the Arabs with their own propaganda, and the end result will certainly be more murdered Jews. There will be no atonement.
Reflections on Allegations of “Jewish Terrorism”
How should we react to these charges against Jews? (I will respond accordingly in future articles based upon these principles):
Rule #1: I refuse to play Bolshevik games. There is no evidence against these young Jewish men. In accordance with Jewish law, I assume that they are not “guilty” of any of these alleged crimes. Even one who eschews Torah for a western styled democracy should value the basic principle of “innocent until proven guilty.” In truth, Jews are being preyed upon by those who react with Stalinist ire whenever their appeasing policies are contested. This is the ruling Likud coalition of today. With thanks to Habayit Hayehudi. (They need a new name.)
Rule #2: The dangers of language are apparent. Even were there any proof of arson, how quick they resorted to the blood libel of language, hurling charges of “burning Arab babies” with intent. How many acts of deliberate Arab arson in the form of Molotov cocktails are overlooked by these hypocrites, who have a sickening level of tolerance when it comes to death and maiming by Arabs?
Rule #3: Any future examples of “evidence” against Jews will be analyzed solely from a Torah perspective, both in the analysis of any actions (i.e. what constitutes a crime) and the reflections on what a Jewish response should be to such actions. The words of the gaonim, rishonim and acharonim will be cited.
Habayit Hayehudi?
Naftali Bennet supports the death penalty for what he called Jewish terrorists. It is critical that people understand the context of his statement. In the absence of any proof, save the Bolshevik tactics of the Shabak, Bennett is advocating that Jews should be put Jews to death. The same goes for Ayelet Shaked who accepted the anti-Semitic charge of arson and murder against Jews and reacted with her own hysterics. I call this incitement. Essentially, Bennett is calling for the death penalty against Jews who are surely being tortured to extract a confession.
Ironically, many supposed ideological heirs of Lechi and the Irgun carefully omit the history of “fire and blood,” of collateral damage when the Left sat in silence when Arabs burned Jewish babies. And today they do likewise. They have accepted the Arab/anti-Semitic narrative and ran with it. With such leaders, we really have no need for enemies.
Once upon a time, Rabbi Meir Kahane (may G-d avenge his blood!) sat in Administrative Detention because the powers that be were threatened by his Torah message. While in jail, he penned a brilliant work entitled “They Must Go!” which presented a detailed plan for dealing with the Arab problem. Rabbi Kahane’s entire life was dedicated to fighting for Jews, a cumbersome yoke which cost him his freedom on many occasions, and ultimately cost him his life. If the slogan “Kahane Tzadak” means anything at all, other than the oft mentioned sentiment expressed around the safe environs of the Shabbat table, then it’s time for Jews to fight for the Torah principles that were Rabbi Kahane’s lifeblood.
Demand the immediate release of the Jewish freedom fighters, Meir Ettinger, Evyatar Slonim, and Mordechai Meyer. Use every available means to disseminate information about their plight. Above all, fight for all expressions of mesirat nefesh and Kiddush Hashem that these heroic young men espouse.
Self-Incrimination: Contrary to Torah Law
The Torah was concerned with the danger of immoral political entities extracting confessions tough torture. That is why Jewish law prohibits self- incrimination. Since Israeli law is intrinsically un-Jewish, one cannot expect Torah morality. Yet in the absence of such an ideal, one would hope for a system of governance to safeguard us from the worst excesses of tyrants. In Israel today, there is neither Torah law nor secular democracy. Forget about your individual liberties when you make Aliyah.
In Benjamin Netanyahu’s delusional mind, he probably considers himself the twenty-first century torch-bearer of Jabotinsky’s ideals. Perhaps. But it’s not a stretch to say that Ben Gurion would be proud of Bibi’s iron fisted tactics against right-wing detractors, using the very same tools of Mapai totalitarianism. And that should speak volumes.
I speak to all sane Jews who know what is going on: keep your eyes and ears peeled. It’s Jew-hunting season.