I spent close to 2 hours the other day talking with a candidate for elected office.  We discussed his positions on many things including education, vocational education, student loans and student loan debt, the rising cost of college, the stock market and how that only helps those who have the funds to invest and how most people are struggling with the high cost of food and gas, as well as the housing concerns with the cost of rent and buying a house.  When we got to the topic of Israel, he was supportive of State of Israel and believes that Israel has the right to defend herself, but he didn’t know much about the history or the facts of what is going on since October 7^th,

I had an opportunity to give him real information about Israel. About the history of Israel. About the politics in Israel in the past and currently. I could discuss with him the many challenges related to the conflict and various things that have been tried to resolve it and unfortunately not worked. I had a chance to share information with him about October 7th, about the war with Hamas in Gaza, about Hezbollah attacking in the north, the Houthi’s, and how it’s all coming from Iran. We discussed the Abraham Accords and the future opportunities for peace.

It’s why education about Israel is so important.  Not just Hasbarah.  Not just the talking points.  Real Israel education.  Knowledge of the history.  Knowledge of the geography.  Knowledge of how the government works, the fact that Israel does not have a constitution, and how Israel is a democracy but isn’t exactly the same at the US in how things are run. If all I knew was the talking points, if all I knew was hasbarah, the conversation would have been short and he would have known that I only knew the talking points. It’s why finding sources of real information is so critical, especially in a time when getting real information is challenging and not easy.

Knowledge and education about the history of both ancient and modern Israel is critical. But where can you find reliable information? Information that you can depend on? Information that has citations and source documents? Information that isn’t filled with misinformation? In today’s world, it takes some real effort to identify those resources. I’ve done a lot of the work for myself so now I’m going to share it with you to make your life a little easier.

The Center for Israel Education (CIE) is the premier source destination for reliable content about modern Israel. CIE’s robust website provides informed access through multiple innovative learning platforms to curriculum materials, online courses, workshops, source compilations, webinars, and curated readings. They are an organization I have been very involved with and for full transparency, I am also the Vice-President of their Board of Directors. I chose to do this because of the quality of the content they provide. It is not hasbara. They do not gloss over the challenges of the modern state of Israel. Rather, through the use of source documents, with an academic focus, they provide amazing resources. If you want to explore the website, you can get lost for hours in different sections. If you want information sent to your email to review, they offer emails that focus on the following areas:

• Today in Israeli History (weekly)
• Contemporary Readings (monthly)
• CIE Newsletter (quarterly)
• The Chalk (biweekly updates)
• The Israel-Hamas War 2023

In addition, they have all sorts of programs to teach Israel to different constituencies. From youth, teens, college students, adults, and seniors, CIE is the content provider for factual, accurate, and historic information. None of this is enough however. Because of this reality, CIE just created 6 online courses you can purchase.

• How Did the Zionists Create the State of Israel?
• How Anti-Zionism Is Antisemitism
• Israel’s Democratic Origins and Its Pluralistic Political System
• Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict, Pre-State to 1973
• Arab-Israeli Conflict: Quest for Normalization, 1973-Present
• Israeli Identity and Society Through Music and Pop Culture

Although they are incredibly affordable, through the end of August 2024 there is a 30% discount!! If you want information, use the website, get the emails sent to you, think about the programs they offer and possibly even take the online course. You will learn. You will talk differently about Israel. People will notice and won’t be able to brush you off when they are lying and libeling Israel.

What about today’s war with Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthi’s and Iran? If you don’t think Israel is at war with all of them, you really need to both learn from CIE and sign up to get updates from the Bernie News Network (BNN). Using Whatsapp or Telegram, real time updates from Israel are shared. Videos of what’s going on. Facts in real time. I need to give a warning though – the information overload can be real. A lot is happening and BNN shares it all with you. You will get the good, the bad, and the ugly. Things that give you hope and things that scare you. It’s real information. You can also access information directly from the Israel Defense Force (IDF). The IDF has a Telegram account with realtime updates.

There are also some excellent podcasts where knowledgeable people have discussions. They even sometimes come from different points of view and still talk civilly! Here are some to check out:

• The Quad – Featuring Fleur Hassan-Nahoum (former Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem), Emily Schrader (Activist and Journalist), Ashira Solomon (African American Jew & Global Moderator) and Vivian Bercovici. For transparancy, Fleur is a friend of mine but more importantly she is truly awesome and amazing.
• For Heavan’s Sake – by the Shalom Hartman Institute
• Honestly – by Bari Weiss and The Free Press. Not specifically Israel focused but when they are, it is a must watch.
• Middle East Focus – Discussion and analysis on U.S. foreign policy and contemporary political and social issues in the Middle East.

It takes effort to truly understand Israel and the Middle East. To understand the geopolitics. Even with all the knowledge I have, it took a trip I took in 2019 to meet with leaders of Palestinian Civil Society for me to really understand the complexities. I still talk to the people I met and befriended in East Jerusalem, Ramallah and Bethlehem. They still teach me. It’s dynamic and takes effort. It’s not easy. But it is well worth it.

Make the effort. Begin to really learn, not the hasbara and talking points but the deep answers. The deep questions. The challenging situations. Israel has not always been right. The history of Israel, like the history of every country, has situations that we look back on with shame. We can’t hide from them. We can learn from them and we can make sure nobody can use them against us because we know. We can discuss. We can cite history, documents, and much more. I was told early in life that education was the most valuable commodity you could ever have because nobody can take it away from you. So get start getting educated. It’ll make you rich!!