It’s been almost 400 days since Hamas invaded Israel, murdered 1,200 people, raped women, and kidnapped civilians. 101 hostages, including 7 AMERICANS, remain in Gaza nearly 400 days later. To put it in context, Iran held 52 American hostages for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981. We don’t know when the hostages will return, or how many will return alive, but we hope and pray that it will be less than 444 days .
Recently we marked some significant dates that were once unimaginable. Oct 7, 2024 marked one year on the secular calendar since the Hamas attack on Israel. On the Jewish calendar, that anniversary was September 25-26, during the holiday of Simchat Torah. It is hard to believe that it has been over a full year since that horrible day. It’s hard to believe that we still have 101 hostages in Gaza more than a year later. It’s an embarrassment that there are still American hostages being held by Hamas and our government has not done all it can to get them back.
I saw this just before Simchat Torah and it struck me powerfully. One day, one murderous attack by terrorists, and 1,200 Yarzheits as a result. The explosion of antisemitism around the world. The hatred expressed on college campuses and at the United Nations, especially from leaders of the UN such as Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories. She is the Joseph Goebbels of today, spewing her Jew hatred and propoganda around the world from her bully pulpit. Her boss, António Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, refuses to discipline her or refute he hate and lies. When I look at the image below, I can’t help but think of the Children’s Exhibit at Yad Vashem. The link is visible and powerful.
When I think of the hostages, my heart breaks. While not particularly religious, every day I sing the Achenu prayer for them to come home. It’s one little thing that I can do, no matter where I am, to ensure they are remembered and never forgotten.
One of the faces of the hostages has been Hersch Goldberg-Polin (z’l) and his parents, Rachel and Jon. Hersh was tragically murdered along with 5 other hostages by Hamas. Last week, Rachel released this powerful video. It’s hard to watch. It’s harder to listen to. But it’s also a must watch and must listen. Hear the brutality that Hersh and the other hostages had to endure. Understand that Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran want every Jew to suffer like this. While Israel has offered pathways to peace, they only want Jewish death. As my friend, Fleur Hassan Nahoum has so elequently stated, “The problem isn’t that there is no Palestinian State. The problem is that there IS A JEWISH STATE!“
I’ve grown so tired on the lies being told. Of those with no knowledge spewing hatred based on these lies. The use of words like genocide and colonizer about Israel and Jews. The blatent antisemitism from certain political leaders and many businesses. The changing of history because it doesn’t fit their Jew hatred. Former President Bill Clinton has been vocal about how hard he worked to create peace in the Middle East and have an independent Palestinian State that lives in peace with it’s neighbor Israel. This speech is so significant because just as then General Eisenhower mandated that pictures be taken of the concentration camps as he liberated them because he didn’t think people in the future would believe what happened, this video documents FROM President Clinton what happened. He speaks directly about what was offered, what Israel agreed to, and what Yassir Arafat rejected. It’s so powerful, I have both the video and the text below.
“And the only time Yasser Arafat didn’t tell me the truth was when he promised me he was gonna accept the peace deal that we had worked out, which would have given the Palestinians a state on 96% of the West Bank and 4% of Israel, and they got to choose where the 4% of Israel was. So they would have the effect of the same land of all the West Bank. They would have a capital in East Jerusalem.
I can hardly talk about this…. And they would have equal access all day every day to the security towers that Israel maintained all through the West Bank up to the Golan Heights.
All this was offered, including, I will say it again, a capital in East Jerusalem and 2 of the 4 quadrants of the old city of Jerusalem, confirmed by the Israeli prime minister, Ehud Barak, and his cabinet. And they said no.
And I think part of it is that Hamas did not care about a homeland for the Palestinians. They wanted to kill Israelis and make Israel uninhabitable.
Well, I got news for them, they (the Jews) were there first before there their faith (Islam) existed. They were there. In the time of King David, in the southern most tribes, Hadjardia and Samaria.”
Powerful words from President Clinton. They should be a wake-up call to the woke antisemites about the lies they are being fed. But they aren’t. Instead, people are angry at him for what he said. We live in a world where the facts don’t matter, only a person’s individual truth. Hezbollah fires rockets into Israel for a year and when Israel finally responds, they are the ones who are responsible. UNRWA steals the food and aid and gives it to Hamas, yet it is Israel who is starving the people of Gaza. Iran fires over 300 missiles at Israel and then fires nearly 200 missiles at Israel in a second attack. Yet Israel is required to limit the response. Not with a proportional response of 500 missiles fired at civilians like Iran did. Not attacking their oil or nuclear facilities. Lies and double standards.
I like to think that it won’t continue but I know better. We have nearly 400 days of proof. We have hateful people like Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Francesca Albanese, Candace Owens, and many more that prove it to us constantly. Our fight must continue. As my friend Tal, a Lt Colonel (res.) in the IDF said to me last week as he prepared to go back for Miluim once again, this time in Lebanon, we are all tired but we must fight on. We must win. And so togther, we fight. Together we advocate. Together we lobby. Together we educate. It’s day 393. We won’t stop.
Israel just did what nobody thought they could. They not only eliminated the leadership of Hezbollah, destroyed many of their rockets and rocket launchers, and eliminiated Hassan Nasrallah, an evil terrorist responsible for murdering Israelis, Americans, Syrians, and Lebanese people in large numbers. You think that the world would celebrate the elimination of this evil man.
Many did, with meme’s like this filling the internet.
Even the Lebanese people are celebrating his death. It gives them a chance at freedom.
Yet there were so many more who mourned him, despite his despicable life of murder and terror. The Irish Republicans have idolized him and created things like this.
In America, we see far too many mourning his death and attempting to make him into a martyr. In Dearborn, Michigan, three separate mosques are holding martyr mourning sessions that they are live streaming as well.
This is what happens in Jihad capital of America, three separate Shia mosques in Dearborn are hosting their own "martyr" mourning sessions this evening while a live stream is also are going on. People in the Middle East are celebrating his elimination while in America their mourn… https://t.co/DuNUcWsEOV
In Ottowa, the antisemites pretending to only be against Israel, went to a Jewish neighborhood to hold a protest. They didn’t go to the Israeli embassy. They didn’t go to the Israeli consulate. They went to a Jewish neighborhood. But this has nothing to do with hating Jews. Their hypocrisy is obvious.
Holding a hate rally in a Jewish neighborhood in Ottawa is clearly against Canadian laws.
The college campuses continue to reek of antisemitism and Jew hatred. The University of Pennsylvania continues to fight with Columbia to see who can treat Jews the worst and who can be the most antisemitic school in the country. Students for Justice in Palestine (most of whom aren’t students, don’t want justice, and couldn’t pick out the countries in the middle east without help) posted this. Will the University do or say anythig? The odds say no.
SJP is really a hate group on college campuses
McGill University says, “Hold my beer!” to UPenn
McGill University wants to compete for the most antisemitic campus in North America
Then there is the media. I don’t expect anything different from them but I thought with how evil Nasrallah has been, with as many American’s he has murdered, with his mass murder in Syria and the acknowledged leader of a huge terrorist organization, they would at least be factual. It seems that is way too high a bar for them, as seen by the Washington Post and the Guardian
Yet the people of Lebanon, Iran, and Syria feel differently. Take a look at these signs and messages. They send a powerful message from the people of Syrian, Iran, and Lebanon about what they want. It speaks to the evil of Hezbollah from those living under their rule. Unfortunately, the elitists in the West and the antisemites in America, Canada, and Europe think they know better.
Please bear with me for posting so many videos and pictures. It’s simply amazing that the people directly impacted are clearly saying one thing yet the Western Elites think they know better. It’s the ultimate superiority complex. It is pretentious, ego-centric, and arrogant.
Syrian people with the sign in hebrew that says, “Thank you very much Netanyahu. By killing Nasrallah you light the path of peace”
Graffiti spotted in Tehran: “Antisemitism has no place in the future of Iran.” pic.twitter.com/vBaBiohPFg
From Iraqi 🇮🇶 to Israel 🇮🇱 THANKYOU! Congratulations to my Jewish brothers & sisters, congratulations to #Israel 🇮🇱 & the civilized world on the elimination of #hizballah ter*rorists weapons leader #Nasrallah , this major achievement by Israel 🇮🇱 will bring peace to our region… pic.twitter.com/girwwlWBfS
Iranian and Jewish Canadians come together in Toronto to celebrate the world without Hassan Nasrallah. Here is @SalmanSima handing out sweets to the crowd. 🦁☀️🇮🇱🇨🇦📟📟💥 pic.twitter.com/PZaN0Ec1px
Then there is one of my all-time favorites, Abu Mazen/Mahmoud Abbas. The President of the Palestinian Authority (PA), who is now finishing his 20th year of a 4 year term. Despite this incredible fact, the UN, Europe, and the United States give him credibility as a ‘democratically elected leader’. While many of the liberal elite fear that a Trump presidency would be more than the 4 year term, they have no issue supporting a man who is in year 20 of a 4 year term. The hypocrisy is brutal.
Mahmoud Abbas has had many opportunities for peace. Three consecutive Israeli leaders – Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon and Olmert – sought to hand over permanent control of territory to the Palestinians. First to Yasser Arafat and then to Abbas. Olmert offered Abbas a map that showed Israel would give Palestinians nearly 94% of the West Bank, with Israeli territory in the remainder that would have been compensated for via a land swap, and a corridor connecting Gaza and the West Bank. Yet Abbas rejected it outright.
When Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, they gave the PA an opportunity to build a state. Instead of building a state, instead of building the Singapore of the Middle East, Abbas and his leadership squandered the opportunity before Hamas took control in 2007. He has shown through every action he has taken that he doesn’t want a Palestinian State that lives next to Israel. He wants a Palestinian State with NO ISRAEL. Yet he has the chutzpah (yes I used a yiddush word with a terrorist) to say to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) that, “We want a solution that will protect both countries – the State of Palestine and the State of Israel – so they can co-exist in peace, stability and security.”
The man who responded to the Olmert peace offer by starting the second intifada also said to the UNGA, “we cannot fight Israel, and we don’t want to fight, we want protection.” This from the man who sent suicide bombers into Israel, who denies the Holocaust, and ensure terrorists in the West Bank/Judea and Samaria and places like Jenin have become a breeding ground for local terrorist groups. And the UN loves him.
When Nasrallah was killed, Abbas mourned his loss. He offered his condolences to the Lebanese Hezbollah members. Once again he showed he doesn’t care about the people of Lebanon just like he doesn’t care about the Palestinians. What does he care about? Lining his own pockets. Arafat died a billionaire. Abbas is a billionaire. The money that comes in goes in his pocket first. As long as he can stay in power and not have peace, he gets wealthier and wealthier. Yet the world closes their eyes, continues to send him money, while the people hate him and everything that he represents.
Condolences to Hezbollah from Mahmoud Abbas
So what’s the point of this rant? We have clearly seen that bowing to pressure from the US or the UN does Israel no good. As important as the relationship with the US is, Israel must do what it needs to do for the safety and security of her people. When Rafah was said to be a ‘no go’ and that it was impossible to evacuate that many people, Israel went ahead and evacuated the people and went anyway. When the pressure from the US was to leave Hezbollah alone and try dipolomatic efforts that never work with terrorists, Israel proceeded to eliminate the leadership of Hezbollah in about 2 weeks and is reportedly preparing a ground incursion to push Hamas back to the lines agreed upon in the UN Resolution 1701 that the UN, the US, and the world has failed to enforce over the past 18 years.
Israel can no longer sit back and cowtow to the US or the world’s opinions. After October 7th we have seen that most of the world would happily let Israel die. The US does not exude strength which means listening to them only emboldens the terrorists. Israel must do what Israel must do in terms of security. Otherwise they have no country.
As former Ambassador Michael Oren said when he spoke at a local JNF event earlier this year, “Israel was founded with 2 covenants between the government and the people. The first was “Never Again” and on October 7th that was broken. The second was that “the IDF will always be there.” On October 7th, that was broken. Israel needs to renew that covenant. They need the citizens who live in the north to return to their homes. They need the hostages to come home. They need to rebuild the south where Hamas destroyed the kibbutzim. They need to rebuild the trust between the government, the IDF, and the people of Israel.
And then, in the words of Mia Schem, “We will dance again”. I can’t wait until there is another Nova dance party to remember the last and celebrate life. I plan on being there.
I boarded the flight to Israel today around 11 am. We took off at noon for the 11 ½ hour flight from Miami to Tel Aviv. This is my least favorite flight to take as it’s very difficult to sleep during the daytime after a good night’s sleep and when we land, it’s the start of a brand-new day. It’s great to land and have the full day in front of you, but when you are tired and it feels like midnight, it’s not always so easy.
On the flight, I chose to get the internet package. Knowing it was daytime and I’d be awake for most, if not all, of the flight, I thought it was a good investment. As I spent the flight checking emails and responding to texts, I realized that when we landed in Israel, not only were we going to start by volunteering to help by picking fruits and vegetables, but we were also going to spend the afternoon at the Kotel, the Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism. One of the traditions is to write prayers and put them into the wall so they are close to God. Since I had such a long flight, I went on social media and offered to put prayers into the Kotel for whoever wanted one. All they had to do was message me what they wanted the prayer to be.
I didn’t think much of it and expected a few people would respond. I was overwhelmed as the requests kept coming in. Without sharing any specific people or what they requested, I will say that a great deal of them were related to health issues. It is a reminder that there is a reason the saying is, “healthy, wealthy, and wise.” Health comes first. Without health, we have nothing. There were requests for a better world. Requests to help loved ones who are struggling. Nobody was asking for the ‘wealthy and wise’ part of the saying. All the requests were truly selfless. A few people thanked me for offering to do this for them. I often take going to Israel for granted. This is my 22nd trip and the 23rd is already on the books this year. Israel is truly a core part of my soul and my personal identity. Today, on the flight, these requests were a reminder of how lucky I am to go to Israel once, let alone 22 times.
These requests also got me thinking about the world we live in today and the world it appears most people want to live in. They are not the same place. The world we live in is filled with selfishness. It is filled with ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’. It is filled with people who desperately want to obtain and keep power. It is a world filled with ego. When half of the United States hates the other half, we are not living in the world that most people want.
These requests made me think about the world we would like to live in. A world where we cared about other people. A world in which doing the greatest good really mattered, whether it helped the individual or not. A world filled with love, not hate. A world in which we were more concerned with giving than getting, with doing rather than taking. What would it look like to live in a world where kindness was the most valued commodity?
Imagine a world where we didn’t hate but rather worked to understand each other. Our differences were celebrated rather than used to create a reason to hate. As I watched this video, I couldn’t help smiling when he said, “Babka is my middle name” or when he called rugelach, “roo ga losch”. He is filled with curiosity. He wants to explore a different culture. I want to watch him try gefilte fish, kasha varnishkas, shakshuka, cholent, and so much more. How much fun would it be to watch people of different cultures explore the unique foods of another culture?
On this trip to Israel, we have 12 young adults. 6 males, 6 females. Twelve very different people, who come from different backgrounds, with one similarity. As I met most of them for the first time, I loved their differences. I can’t wait to spend two weeks exploring a post October 7th Israel, leadership, and Jewish thought with them. I can’t wait to hear their thoughts, their impressions, their opinions, and their ideas. As I write that, I can’t imagine our world leaders saying the same thing about each other. I can’t imagine our country’s leaders saying that about each other. It shows me that there is a path back from the cliff we are on, if we want to take it. It’s not easy. It’s not comfortable.
A perfect example of how close to the cliff we are is the text exchange between Deans at Columbia University that was released by the Department of Education. The texts are bigoted. They are hateful. They are unbecoming a leader and an educational institution. Three of the Deans are currently suspended pending an investigation while one, Joseph Sorett, has falled on his sword and not only won’t be suspended, he is guaranteed to keep his job. Normally, with evidence this damning, you could count on them getting fired. Yet in the world we live in, with what we have seen in the past 3 months on college campuses, there remains a good chance they will all return to their positions with merely a slap on the wrist and by making an insincere apology. As you read the text thread, your blood may boil the way mine did.
Instead of approaching this with empathy, care and concern for Jewish students at Columbia, these four Deans, Susan Chang-Kim, the Vice Dean and Chief Administrative Officer, Matthew Patashnick, the Associate Dean for Student and Family Support, Cristen Kromm, the Dean of Undergraduate Student Life, and Josef Sorett, the Dean of Columbia College, utilize stereotypes, antisemitism, hate, racism, and everything they are supposed to fight against to mock Jewish students, Jewish professional leadership, and antisemitism. Their titles show how powerful the positions they hold are.
The 3 Columbia Deans that have been suspended
We all have a choice. Do we want to be like the Deans of Columbia University or do we want to work to change the world, seek to understand rather than to be understood, strive for the best for humanity, be kind, and treat others with dignity and respect. It seems like a simple choice, however in the world we currently live, it isn’t.
I choose the latter. I choose to do things like meet with my Palestinian friend in East Jerusalem to have meaningful and respectful discussions. I choose to listen and learn both with and from the twelve young adults on this trip. I choose the harder path, one that leads to a better world but isn’t easy. When I go to the Kotel later today with all these notes from other people, detailing their prayers, their hopes, their dreams, I choose to be an instrument of good, placing each one carefully into the wall. With each one I place, I will ask God to grant them their prayer, their wish.
We are not stuck in the world we live in. We have the ability to change the world one step at a time, one day at a time, one action at a time. I hope you will join me.
Terrorism is one of those things that as Americans, we have always thought of happening elsewhere. Even when the Oklahoma City bombing occurred, it was by an American who many people made excuses for. It didn’t feel like real terrorist.
September 11, 2001, was supposed to have changed everything. Arab terrorists hijacked airplanes and flew two of them into the Twin Towers, one was crash landed in Shanksville, PA, and one crashed into the Pentagon. Nearly 3,000 Americans were murdered that day by terrorists. We felt what terrorism was like. We engaged in a war in Iraq and then Afghanistan that lasted for 20 years. But we were never hit again. Despite the concern that more attacks were coming, the United States has been spared a second terrorist attack after 9/11. And so, we have forgotten the horror of terrorism and terrorists. We have forgotten the evil.
Each September 11th, we remember in a lesser and lesser manner. It is not a national day of remembrance. It is not a sacred day. There isn’t a school assembly where all the names of the victims are read. Perhaps it’s the 20 years of war that came after that has us tired. Perhaps it is our lack of an attention span. Perhaps it is because we choose to get partisan and blame ‘the other party’ for either entering the war, not winning the war, or the way we finally exited the war. We paid a terrible price on September 11th and it’s a day that I will never forget. But as a country we remember it like we remember Pearl Harbor Day. “A day that will live in infamy” is no longer a recognizable quote to the millenial generation. I wonder if they would even recognize ‘Let’s Roll’ two decades after it was one of the most inspiring statements we heard.
Israel on the other hand, has had to deal with terrorist every day. I have spoken with IDF leaders who have told me what they stop every single day. And we see in the news what happens when a terrorist gets through. The first and second intifada along with rockets from Gaza and Lebanon, stabbings, shootings, kidnappings, and more.
I’ve been in Israel for Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israeli Memorial Day and Israeli Independence Day) and they are days you won’t ever forget. The country shuts down on Yom HaZikaron. TV only shows stories of heroic soldiers. The sirens at 7 pm and then at 11 am are dramatic and unforgettable. The names of those lost are read in each community. It is a powerful experience. Yom Ha’atzmaut starts right at the end of Yom HaZikaron and the mood changes from sadness to joy in an instant. Freedom is celebrated, not sales on mattresses or appliances. You can literally join any party going on in the country whether you know the people there or not. Israel never forgets.
But even Israel never imagined the horrors of October 7, 2023. Nobody, other than Hamas and Iran could imagined that occurring. Having seen the 47-minute Hamas video from October 7th, it was horrifying. And I know there is far worse that Israel has video of that they refuse to put into the public domain because of just how horrifying it is. Rapes, murders of babies, women and the elderly. Burning of people alive. Cooking babies alive in the oven while their mother is forced to watch, sometimes while also being raped. Seeing what the IDF soldiers saw, in real time, when they came upon the Nova Music Festival was haunting. I’ll never forget the bodies strewn everywhere, the anxiety in the voices of the IDF soldiers as they hoped to find anybody alive and the disappointment each time they realized that nobody was left alive.
The Nova music festival. I’ve seen the video of what the first responders of the IDF saw when they arrived and it’s horrifying.
In the United States, it is as if 9/11 never happened. We blame Israel for it happening. We hold Israel responsible for the evil of Hamas, using children, women, and the elderly as human shields. We ignore the hostages, now taken over 160 days ago. We excuse UNRWA for their participation in the horrors of October 7th, in hiding hostages after their abduction, and for their theft of humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza and diverted to Hamas. When the people of Gaza riot because humanitarian aid is coming in and going to UNRWA to distribute and they know that means it goes to Hamas, we blame Israel. When Hamas fires on the people of Gaza trying to get the humanitarian aid before Hamas can steal it, we blame Israel. We continue to fail to hold Hamas responsible or recognize that they are pure evil.
We, and the world, have convinced ourselves, that this is between the Palestinians and the Israelis. We have convinced ourselves that this is about the need for a Palestinian state or about Israeli construction in Judea and Samaria. We fool ourselves into ignoring the influence of Iran and their goal of creating a new Caliphate, with the Iranians and radical Shiite Muslims in charge with everybody living under Sharia law. We forget that we are the infidel they rail against, thinking it’s just Israel, it’s just the Jews.
We also forget that they hate anybody who isn’t like them, even other muslims. On October 7th, Hamas didn’t care if you were Jewish, Muslim, Christian, American, or Thai. They hated everybody. That’s what happens with evil. And if you don’t destroy evil, evil wins.
Even the people of Gaza are now holding Hamas responsible. Now that they don’t have to fear for their lives because Hamas killed any opposition and are not in charge any longer, they are speaking out loudly. While some of the people were involved with October 7th and many more support the hatred, there are plenty who want to live in peace with their neighbor Israel. I found the same thing in Judea and Samaria when, in 2019, I went to meet with leaders of Palestinian civil society. Take away the corrupt government and the evil of terrorists and there is a possibility for peace.
We choose to blame the government of Israel, Bibi Netanyahu, the far right fanatics in the government like Itamar Ben-Gvir, or the ultra-religious Jews in Israel for the hate coming from Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran. We choose to excuse barbaric behavior because it is against Jews. Remember #BringBackOurGirls from 2014 after 276 high school girls were abducted from a government school in Chibok, Nigeria? Remember the number of celebrities who stood out, loud and proud, that no woman or girl should be taken captive, raped and held against their will? That only counts if you aren’t Jewish.
Julia Roberts is one of many celebrities who spoke out in 2014 that remain silent now. Shame on them.
Remember 1979 and the hostage crisis in Iran? It spawned the TV show Nightline to keep everybody up to date on a daily basis. Yet the hostages taken by Hamas – including Americans and Muslims – draw no attention. Kfir Bibas, stolen when he was 8 months old, celebrated his first birthday in captivity. His four-year-old brother Ariel was also kidnapped and remains in captivity. What type of barbarism is this and better yet, what type of human beings are we that allow this happen and aren’t marching in the streets of every country to free these babies?
Kfir and Ariel Bibas. Babies. Hostages. How the world is not outraged is inexcusable. It’s only a matter of time before it happens here.
Noa Argmani and Naama Levi, two beautiful young women were attending a music festival, like many of our young adults do. They were attacked by butchers who murdered young adults in cold blood, savagely raped them for the crime of being in Israel. Noa and Naama were taken hostage. Who knows what brutality they have faced since October 7th? We can all imagine the worst after what we saw these Hamas terrorists do to girls, women, and the elderly.
Noa Argmani and Naama Levi, taken hostage by Hamas on October 7th. We don’t know what brutality they have faced or if they remain alive. Where is the outrage?
They aren’t the only young women taken hostage and being brutalized in the tunnels beneath Gaza. And if you think it’s only over there and only Jewish women so you are safe, look at the signs held by AMERICANS in NEW YORK CITY on Sunday. “Rape is resistance”. “Babies are occupiers too”. After the killing of George Floyd, we had resistance in major cities like Seattle, Portland, and Minneapolis. Today these people would tell you that raping your wife, daughter, or mother would be acceptable because it’s ‘resistance’. I remember reading about how in Seattle people went to homes and told the owners that it wasn’t their house. That they were occupying land and had no right to live in the houses they purchased. These same people would say that kidnapping their children would be acceptable because they were ‘occupiers’. Don’t fool yourself that it is only there and only for Jews.
Remember these signs when your baby is taken or when your wife, sister, daughter, or mother is raped. This is in NYC this past weekend!
Jews have long been the ‘canary in the coal mine’. What happens to Jews happens to others afterward. Take a minute to do a search for “Jews canary in the coal mine”. You will see articles going back years documenting this. It’s not post-October 7th. It’s history. When we allow this to happen, we encourage it to happen to us.
Just last week, an illegal migrant from Lebanon was caught at border. He admitted that he is a Hezbollah terrorist and was hoping ‘to make a bomb’ and was headed for NY. Terrorism is in the United States. It’s just a matter of when and where the event happens. Or events happen. We are worried about planes that have issues with maintenance and construction while nobody has died in a major airline plane crash since 2009. How will we reconcile our priorities when people die in America at the hands of terrorists? Who will we blame? One thing we know for sure is that nobody will take responsibility.
Two weeks ago, a grenade was found in the back seat of an Uber in New York. As the bomb squad tried to get to the car to assess the situation, defuse the grenade, and save lives, Anti-Israel protesters blocked the police from reaching grenade in the Uber during a Times Square march. Luckily the grenade was inert and nobody was harmed by it. The hatred for Israel and Jews was more important than saving the lives of people in the area from a possible live grenade. We were lucky this time that it was inert. Next time?
People climbing on the police care as officers try to address a grenade in a nearby UberProtesters climbing on the police car and blocking police from getting to a nearby Uber with a grenade in it.
Last night was the ZOA gala in Hollywood, Florida. Peopel who support the existance of a Jewish homeland gathering together to celebrate it. We have many nation states in the world for people of all backgrounds, faiths, cultures, etc. There is only one Jewish state and that’s what Zionism is – the belief that we should have. Zionism is not colonialism as there is no desire to expand beyond our historical homeland. There is no aparthaid. The declaration of independence speaks clearly about being a home for all peoples. Zionism isn’t about Bibi Netanyahu, merely the most recent elected Prime Minister. His time will end and there will be a new Prime Minister. And a new one after that. And so on and so on. At this wonderful event last night, in order to ‘help Palestinians’, people assaulted a Jewish person with an Israeli flag. How does that help Palestinians? How does that help the people of Gaza? We know they don’t care about the hostages because they are Jewish. Instead of listening to the people of Gaza about Hamas and working to create a place where Palestinians can live peacefully with their neighbor Israel, instead of building a country with hospitals that are not armories, schools that teach math and science, not hate, these people merely want to hate. Watch th video and see hatred, see evil. If they really wanted to help the Palestinians and the people of Gaza they would listen to them and push for an end to Hamas.
Violence outside the ZOA gala just because he has an Israeli flag
Last week, I heard Senator Chuck Schumer speak passionately about Israel and Israel’s right, as a sovereign nation, to defend herself. He spoke about the evil of Hamas and how they must be defeated. He spoke about the special relationship between the United States and Israel. He was animated. He was passionate. Three days later, he completely backtracked, calling for early elections in a sovereign country. He let partisan politics overtake his moral, ethics, and values. I was disgusted. Not just disappointed, not just angry, but disgusted. Here is one of our elected leaders, in one of the most high ranking positions in our government, a self identified Jew, talking out of both sides of his mouth without integrity. This isn’t about likeing or not liking Bibi. This isn’t about thinking he is the problem or the solution. This is a democratic country that has free elections and has a process for them. Unlike the Palestinian Authority, where Mahmoud Abbas is now in year 19 of his 4 year team. Let that sink in for a minute. No calls for elections in year 19 of his 4 year term. I’m not sure Senator Schumer can regain my trust. Our leaders continue to lose our trust based on their lack of integrity, lack of morals and values. When our leaders don’t have them, how much longer can we exist as a democracy (or a republic for those who want to be critical).
A TikTok trend in 2023 asked women to ask men how often they think about the Roman Empire. Women were shocked that men think about the Roman empire so often. I think men think about it so often because it was an amazing, powerful empire. It gave the world so much. When we look back on it, we don’t understand how it ever fell. It was so powerful. It covered all aspects of life. It was on the cutting edge of everything. It was simply the best of the best. How did it every disappear? How did the Roman Empire fall?
I think we are seeing it firsthand now in both Europe and the United States. We are so full of ourselves that we have lost all common sense. Instead of striving to look at people as people, to find our similarities and focus on them instead of our differences, we now highlight our differences and minimize our similarities. We fill ourselves with hatred towards those that are different. We allow babies to be hostages. We allow women to be raped if it supports a cause. There is no right and wrong any longer. In the words of the Presidents of Penn, MIT, and Harvard, ‘it depends on the context’. It never depends on the context. Evil is bad. Period. You cannot justify evil. There is good and evil and there is a difference. The world is now attempting to justify evil. The world is ignoring the definitions of words like genocide and apartheid to make them into catch phrases that sound powerful and allows people who use them incorrectly to feel superior.
Rome fell for many reasons. The three most common reasons cited are corruption, the division of the empire, and invasion by Germanic tribes. We are filled with corruption in our world today and in our country. We are as divided as we have been since the civil war. All that is missing is the invasion. As we saw last week when a Hezbollah terrorist was caught with the intention to set off a bomb in NY, the invasion has begun.
Can the fall of the United States be that far away? Will future generations study us and the Roman empire and see the pattern and do better? Do we have a chance to save our country and our world? I don’t know but I get less optimistic each day as we sink further and further into the abyss of hate, divisiveness, and stupidity.
May the hostages come home safely and soon. May the war in Gaza end soon with the surrender of Hamas. May we wake up from this bizzaro world and return to one of sanity where, in the words of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
The great Dr. King. We need him now more than ever.
Right now, our nation and the world is getting a failing grade on the content of our character. And I fear for our future.
America has always been a beacon of hope. A melting pot or a salad bowl, depending on which analogy fits you best. As a Jew in America, I always felt different but also felt safe. We are a country who follows the rule of law. We strive to do better and to treat people better. While America has a troubling history with slavery and the incarceration of Japanese during World War 2, I always felt we tried to recognize our errors and do better. While racism is real, I also saw strong efforts to combat and eliminate it. Marriage equality was a big step towards recognizing people are people.
After October 7th, I realized I was living in a bubble, in a dreamworld that doesn’t exist. I understand my African American friend and my LGBTQ+ friends much better. The America I thought existed doesn’t. Hate is encouraged and allowed. Far too many people, especially ones who call themselves leaders, are more interested in being re-elected than in doing what is right. I am embarrassed by my naivety when it comes to the struggles of other minorities as my worldview was simply wrong.
I was impacted this weekend with the story of a horrific murder of a Jew in San Diego and the attempted murder of a Jew in Switzerland. Their offense? Being Jewish.
Jewish dentist Dr. Benjamin Harouni was killed and two other people were wounded in a shooting at a dental office in El Cajon, California on Thursday. The killer was Mohammed Abdul Kareem. Immediately it was decried that it had nothing to do with Dr Harouni being Jewish or Mohammed Abdul Kareem being Muslim. Violent attacks on Jews are typically immediately denied being because they are Jews. Unlike similar attacks against other minorities, attacks on Jews are excused and minimized. How can be expected to feel safe in America when this type of violence occurs against Jews and is immediately minimized?
On Saturday night, as Shabbat ended, a 62-year-old Orthodox Jew was stabbed outside the Agudas Achim synagogue in Zurich, Switzerland, by a 15-year-old Swiss citizen who shouted ‘death to Jews’. The man was critically injured. The rise in Jew hatred is astounding and the lack of response by leaders around the world is frightening. How are Jews expected to feel safe in this type of environment?
On Saturday, in Times Square, an Uber driver found a grenade in the back seat of his car. The bomb squad was called to make sure it didn’t go off. There was a large Israel protest mob there and they wouldn’t let the bomb squad through. Their hatred of Israel and Jews was so great that they would rather have a grenade go off in Times Square, around them, and have loss of life, than allow the police and the bomb squad through.
The Uber with a grenade it – anti-Israel and anti-Jewish protesters wouldn’t let the bomb squad get there
As I began to spend a little more time reading about both of these incidents, I noticed a trend occurring. More and more stories of Jew hatred have been occurring. And the response to them is absurdly inadequate and being allowed by leaders of organizations, schools, City, State, and the Federal government.
For example, Origins High School in Brooklyn has become a haven for Hitler-loving hooligans who terrorize Jewish teachers and classmates. On Oct. 26, just three weeks after the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre of 1,200 Israelis, 40 to 50 teens marched through Origins HS in Sheepshead Bay waving a Palestinian flag and chanting “Death to Israel!” and “Kill the Jews!” That is horrific by itself, yet school, city, and state leadership failed to but a stop to it.
Origins High School Global History teacher Danielle Kaminsky has publicly stated how afraid she is to go to work due to being targeted as a Jew by students, yet the school has done nothing. How do we know for sure? Here are few examples of other things that have happened at the school:
A student painted a mustache on his face to look like Hitler and banged on classroom doors. When someone opened, he clicked his heels and raised his arm in the Nazi gesture, security footage shows.
Three swastikas in one week were drawn on teachers’ walls and other objects.
A 10th-grader told Kaminsky, 33, who is Jewish, “I wish you were killed.”
Another student called her “a dirty Jew” and said he wished Hitler could have “hit more Jews,” including her.
Students pasted drawings of the Palestinian flag and notes saying “Free Palestine” on Kaminsky’s classroom door. One scribbled note that said simply, “Die.”
A Jewish sophomore found three swastikas scribbled on his laptop charger when he returned from the restroom.
The door of Danielle Kaminsky’s classroom
The school, the City Government, and the State Government are failing to do anything about this. No suspensions. No expulsions. No disciplinary action. No protection for Jewish students or teachers.
At Berkeley, a pro-Palestinian mob surrounded a campus auditorium, broke a window, and harassed Jewish students trying to enter the building. Israeli lawyer Ran Bar-Yoshafat was invited by a Jewish student group to address the subject of Israel and international law. This included “the rules of wartime conduct and how the [Israel Defense Forces] can better protect civilians.” An estimated 200 protesters chanted “intifada” and “free Palestine” and banged on windows. Three Jewish students were injured. What has happened to freedom of speech on college campuses? Is it only freedom of speech if you aren’t Jewish? Doesn’t the University have an obligation to protect the students and speakers who are exercising their right to free speech and sharing information that an educational institution is supposed to value for debate and deep thinking?
It gets worse, however. The leaders of Bears for Israel, the pro-Israel group that organized the event, had been seeking a meeting with Berkeley’s chancellor since October 2023. Nearly 5 months and the chancellor hasn’t made the time for Jewish students with concerns about Jew hatred, antisemitism, and the safety of Jews. They reached out again last week but have not heard back. They have been told the chancellor would “absolutely” consider a meeting with them but declined to say more. Think about that. Absolutely consider. Not that the chancellor would meet with them, but that the chancellor would CONSIDER a meeting. It’s clear that the safety and security of Jewish students don’t matter at Berkeley.
A few weeks ago, on February 19, the Jewish studies director at California State University at Long Beach, Jeffrey Blutinger, was invited to San José State to give a talk on “how to achieve peace between Israel and Palestine.” Pro-Palestinian protesters showed up outside the classroom. A San José State history professor and supporter of Israel, Jonathan Roth, got into an altercation with some of them, grabbing a person’s hand after they tried to block him from recording with his phone. Blutinger was escorted out of the classroom by police. Once again, freedom of speech doesn’t apply to Jews. Ensuring there is an opportunity to listen and learn on a college campus used to be sacrosanct. In today’s world that happens for everybody but the Jews.
If that wasn’t enough, the next weekend, signs were found on the walls of UCSB’s multicultural center attacking the student-body president, Tessa Veksler, who is Jewish. The signs said, among other things: “You can run but you can’t hide Tessa Veksler,” “Tessa Veksler supports genocide! You cannot hide,” and “Zionists are not welcomed!” The signs were removed, and the multicultural center is temporarily closed. The students who did this will not be held accountable and Veksler has to live in fear of being targeted at her university because she is Jewish.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has filed a federal complaint against the Berkeley Unified School District, alleging officials ignored the bullying and harassment of their Jewish students. The harassment has led some families to decide to move out of the district. One parent publicly stated:
“What drove me to leave the district was a pervasive bullying, as well as an antisemitismand the inability of the district to educate my child while keeping her safe.”
Jewish children are not being kept safe in public schools in America. I think about the stories my Uncle Ralph talks about being in elementary school in Berlin in the late 1930s and I don’t see much of a difference between what is happening in the world today and what happened to him as a child. It’s frightening.
In Canada, it might even be worse. The Canadian International Women’s Day (INSPIRE) cancelled its keynote speaker because she had previously served in the IDF more than 30 years ago! INSPIRE had rescinded its speaking invitation to Leah Goldstein, a Jewish motivational speaker and the first woman to win a grueling 3,000- mile bicycle race across the United States, citing as the reason “a small but growing and extremely vocal group” that took issue with Goldstein’s IDF service more than 30 years ago.
It gets worse. I am not old enough to have seen the ‘No dogs, no blacks, no Jews’ signs on stores and restaurants. Yet in 2024 here is a sign in Toronto saying, “No service for Jews.”
Sign from the days of Jim Crow Sign in Toronto March 2024 – not that different
The college campuses aren’t just antisemitic in the US. At Toronto’s Ontario College of Art & Design University (OCAD) a Jewish student said she feels unsafe returning to class after antisemitic messages, including death threats, were scribbled on the walls of her school.
She stated, “I had never felt so sad in my life. They were all like horrible things about me, horrible things about Jews.” She is the former president of the university’s Jewish Club and reported that the messages were found in the school’s so-called “yellow staircase” – a six-story space where students are encouraged to express themselves freely on the blank wall space.
She tried to combat the hate with painted words of peace, but those, too, were covered up by messages like “F U Zionists.”
“I started getting death threats. There was even sexual connotations relating to my mother and Hamas.”
And in shocking news, she has not received an adequate response from the school following the incident and has missed more than two weeks’ worth of class due to concerns about her safety.
“There were talks about a meeting three weeks ago and they still haven’t followed up about that.It took them forever. It took them days to shut down and paint over the stairwell.”
I wish this was everything but unfortunately, it’s not. Before winter break in a public school in Toronto, there was antisemitic graffiti drawn on the walls.
The graffiti included an X drawn through a sketch of an Israeli flag and the Star of David, the words “Free Palestine,” “get rid of the k-kes” and “Hitler was right,” plus a sketch of a Palestinian flag and a sloppily drawn swastika. There was also the hashtag “KillTheJews.”
Antisemitic and Jew hatred graffiti in a Toronto school.
The school didn’t even inform parents for more than a month. Nothing was done to address the hateful graffiti or ensure the safety of Jewish students.
Let’s not leave out our federal government. The Houthi’s are still not designated as a terrorist organization. Iran continues to fund Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis and has instructed Hezbollah to increase attacks on Israel and they will send rockets and money to them to do it. We continue to think we can use diplomacy with Iran. Congress can’t pass the financial aid package for Israel to defend herself. Just the other day, Vice President Kamala Harris called for Israel and Hamas to accept immediate six-week cease-fire, stating that the ‘Deal is on the table’. The challenge is that Israel has been ready and its Hamas that refuses. Yet there is no criticism of Hamas. Reports have come out that Sinwar wants to incite violence during Ramadan and won’t accept a ceasefire because of that. Yet no outrage from our government about this. No outrage at the Red Cross for failing to see the hostages and deliver medication. The hostages have now gone 150 days without ANY medication. As a son with Type 1 diabetes, I know that if he didn’t get insulin for 150 days, he wouldn’t survive. Where is the outrage?
I never thought I wouldn’t feel safe as a Jew in the United States. Yet here in 2024, I do. I refuse to let fear dominate my life. I wear my new, special Magen David (star of David) proudly outside my shirt. I have two dog tags I wear, one ‘Bring them home now’ and the other ‘We will dance again’. I put a piece of tape on my shirt, over my heart, with the number of days the hostages have been in captivity. I won’t hide but I don’t feel safe.
A friend of mine in Israel recently asked how many of his friends have changed their last name on their Uber account due to fears of safety. It was a sad question, and the answers were sadder. My younger son still wears his Chai necklace but no longer wears it outside his shirt when he is on campus. My family is concerned when I wear my Israel sweatshirt, t-shirt, or soccer jersey. I want to fly an Israeli flag but don’t due to safety concerns for my family. This is the world we live in today and this is the America we live in today. Jew hatred is not just on the rise, it is here. In June 2016, I wrote an op-Ed in the Seattle Times about the rise of antisemitism and there was real pushback by many that it wasn’t really happening. I wish that they were right. What was happening nearly 8 years ago has only gotten worse.
We’ve seen the hate groups locally, most recently in Winter Park just 2 weeks ago. We see it happening nationally and internationally. We see it with the anti-Israel and Jew hating mobs. It’s why I chose to write this blog today. And as I was finishing writing it, my wife sent me this article from The Atlantic about how The Golden Age of American Jews is ending. Some of what I have written about is included. There is much more involved and it’s a long read but well worth it.
We live in scary times. Unlike the 1930s in Germany, we now have Israel and Jews aren’t afraid to stand up and speak out. I know many Jews who have gotten their conceal carry permits and who now are gun owners and practice at the range. I have to admit that I am one of them. America today isn’t safe for Jews. We are being attacked everywhere we go. Public schools, Universities, Synagogues, restaurants, and in the streets.
For those of you who have previously stood up against hatred against other groups, thank you. Hate is not acceptable PERIOD. I ask you now to stand up against Jew hatred. You can dislike the Israeli Government and Bibi Netanyahu. You can want the war to end and no more innocent civilians on both sides to be killed. That happens when the hostages are released and Hamas surrenders. Put the pressure on Hamas to release the hostages. Put the pressure on Hamas to surrender. If you pay attention, you will see that the people of Gaza, particularly in the north where Hamas is no longer in control, and publicly condemning Hamas for creating all the problems they face.
Everybody in the United States is supposed to feel safe. It’s clear from the past few years that there are many groups who do not feel safe. I don’t know that I truly understood what they faced until now. I stand with them and their right to live in safety and security. I hope they, and you, will stand with me and the Jewish community as we only want the same thing.
I’m going to finish with an ask. JOIN Orlando, a group I am involved with and get much value from and have much gratitude for, is doing a 36 hour fundraiser where all gifts are matched 3X. So your gift of $100 is really $300 to JOIN. I agreed to be a champion and help raise money for their programs. I personally have been to Israel with JOIN, I learn with a Rabbi from JOIN, I am friends with leaders of JOIN. During these challenging times that I just wrote about, JOIN helps keep me grounded. So if you would consider making a gift, not only does it get matched 3X, it would be a personally meaningful thing to me. Click on the link to donate. And you can watch the video below to see the work that JOIN Orlando does. Thank you for considering making a gift.
As a Jew in the United States of America, I have been struggling since October 7th. It is difficult to put into words and explain but I am going to try to do so in many ways and hopefully one of them will be clear enough to understand.
I grew up with my Great-Grandma Rose, my grandparents and my parents teaching me the value of helping others. Whether it was through Tzedakah (charity), Tikkun Olam (repairing the world), doing acts of random kindness, holding the door for others, or something similar, it was a core part of our identity and what we did. As kids, we were taught to make the world a better place when we could and as a result, the world would end up being better. If we were there to help others and were good people, others would be there for us and we would find good people. We were taught that part of how the Holocaust happened was because people didn’t speak up, people weren’t allies, and our job was to change that. To speak up, to build relationships and allies, to ensure that NEVER AGAIN would really mean NEVER AGAIN. I believed that implicitly for a very long time.
I have spoken out publicly for more than a decade about the rise of hate in general and the rise in antisemitism. I have publicly condemned all hate against any and every community. Hate against the LGBTQ+ and the Trans community is not acceptable and must be decried. Hate against the African American community is not acceptable and must be decried. Hate against the Muslim community, the Asian community, the Sikh community, the Hindu, the Christian – it doesn’t matter what community, hate only breeds more hate and being silent because it’s not against your group merely ensures that your group will end up being targeted. It is why I was one of the first to sign the Central Florida Pledge, a call to action for residents of Central Florida to create a safe and inclusive community for all. The pledge asks residents to commit to treating all people with kindness and respect, especially those with whom they disagree.
Unfortunately, for the past few years, I have been amending that statement because of the realities of the world. When talking with my kids, I have reminded them that ‘hate isn’t ok against any group, except the Jews’ because the rise in antisemitism was being excused and other groups chose not to speak up, not to speak out, not to stand up and be counted against hate when it was against the Jewish community. I wanted my children to remember not only their responsibilities to stand up to hate but also set proper expectations that when the hate was directed at them, they may not have the support they expected. I hated doing this but I wanted them to be prepared for reality.
The book, “Jews Don’t Count” calledthis out well before October 7, 2023 happened
The October 7th happened. The horror was unspeakable. I sat, staring at the TV, following news from Israel, flipping channels, reading updates of Israeli newspapers, sending whatsapp messages to friends in Israel, scanning the names of those confirmed murdered and those kidnapped and taken hostage for the names of friends and family. As I spoke to my friend Maor, the Consul General for Israel in Miami, he told me to turn it off as it was too much for the soul of anybody to keep watching. I tried but couldn’t do it.
I started focusing on Twitter/X and getting angry at what was being posted and arguing back. It only made me more angry and more frustrated at the lack of information, the strong hatred, and the absolute joy people were taking in the murder and kidnapping of Jews. I started blocking people and trying to looking only at sports related posts which used to aggravate me but now seem inconsequential.
Celebrities started advocating for Hamas and the terrorists and against the Jews. Susan Sarandon, Mark Ruffalo, and John Cusack became new objects of disgust and the short list of celebrities who I no longer would watch or listen to their movies/music continued to grow. Certain members of the US Congress actively spreading hate against Jews made me shake my head and beyond being angry, got me scared about what could be ahead. The similarities to the 1930s in German were too real. While many have been saying this about the far right for a number of years, I was now watching it happen in real time from the far left. I began to question being safe living in the United States as a Jew. I began to think where I would move if I had to and when that might be. I began to think of who would hide my family and me if it was too late to leave and I needed to hide. When I identified who that would be, I actually asked them if they would hide my family and me if/when the time came that we needed to hide.
Mark Ruffalo apologizing for his Jew hatred before continuing to hate Jews publicly. Celebrities like him only apologize when called out and then go back to their Jew hating ways.
Susan Sarandon clearly not know what River and what Sea they are talking about as she advocates for the destruction of Israel. Her later apology was insincere.
John Cusack was an active antisemite on social media before being called out here. Embarrassed, he defended and apologized for his stance but continues to hate Jews and continues to say things incredibly hateful, hurtful, and antisemitic.
When I visited the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam in 1989, I imagined what it would be like to have lived there, in hiding, fearing for your life from the leaders of your country. In late 2023 it was no longer theoretical as I began to think what it would be like living in hiding in the United States and where I would be living. Would I be freezing in the winter? Would I be hot in the summer? Would I be able to live inside? Would it be living outside?
I came across this thought about Anne Frank today and it struck home. For many, the line in her diary, “In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good heart.” Is inspirational. I admit until recently it was inspiring to me. Today I read it very differently. There was a time that I shared her hope and optimism about people really being good at heart. I might have even written something like that in the past decade. Today I wonder.
Today I wonder how she felt when they loaded her on the cattle car. Did she still have hope and belief in the goodness of people? Had she no longer questioned it and only saw evil? What about when they shaved her head and tattooed a number on her arm? Was that when she no longer saw good in people? Was it when she was starved and got sick that he lost her belief in the goodness of people? Was it when she got typhus and began to die that she lost her belief in people being inherently good? Was it when she finally realized that she was going to die in that concentration camp, alone, bald, starving, sick, dehumanized, that she finally came to grips with people perhaps being inherently evil instead of good?
It is frightening how easy it is to envison ourselves in this picture instead of them
The piece I read was clear that the Diary of Anne Frank is not meant to be inspirational but rather a story of horror. It’s meant to show us the evil in people extinguishing the light in people. It’s meant to show us that without our ACTIVE intervention, evil wins over good. We have been reading it wrong all these years. It’s a warning to us from a beautiful and innocent 13-year-old girl filled with hope and belief who, step by step, loses it all until she dies a horrible death.
The Diary of Anne Frank is a warning, not an inspiration. We’ve gotten it wrong for decades.
I hear that warning loud and clear. We have many people who are good and who are fighting against evil. Yet we have far more that are showing their inherent evil and hatred. UNRWA and the UN and the Red Cross have been shown to be evil organizations, despite their stated goals of good. The Red Cross still hasn’t visited the hostages, still has refused to ensure they get their needed medication. It’s now 120 days. UNRWA had at least a dozen employees ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE in the atrocities of October 7th who were not fired until last week. There are at least 10% of all UNRWA employees who are part of Hamas or Islamic Jihad, terror organizations. Estimates are that at least 1,300 of the 12,000 UNRWA employees are part of Hamas or Islamic Jihad. The UN’s mission, “maintaining peace, advancing human rights and promoting justice, equality and development.” applies everywhere except the only Jewish state in the world, who they constantly target and refuse to defend. As countries begin to pause funding to UNRWA, there are now cries about the impact on the people of Gaza. Yet there is plenty of documentation that UNRWA ensures Hamas gets the aid before the people. That UNRWA aids Hamas and the people of Gaza need to riot and storm the supply areas to get the food, water, medicine and other supplies provided to UNRWA to dispense to those in need. The people need help, not Hamas. And UNRWA is effectively Hamas. Will we ever learn?
Statement by US Representative Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on UNRWA
Today is February 3rd. Tomorrow my mother-in-law turns 80 and my oldest child turns 24. At the end of the month my father would have been 80. Would my father even recognize the world he left in September 2022? Would he be telling me how it looks just like his parents told him the 1930s looked? Will my oldest live to 80 as a Jew in America? Will he be able to live in America his entire life as a Jew?
During Covid in October 2021, when Israel was still shut down to tourists, I had the opportunity to go on a special trip. Instead of the normal 400 people, there were 80 of us. The country was empty. When we went to visit to Yad Vashem, the Israeli Holocaust memorial, there were only two other people in the entire museum besides us. It was a deeply moving experience and for the first time I identified with the middle-aged people in the pictures who were mostly murdered immediately at the death camps. It was no longer me who was the freedom fighter. I was no longer the leader in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. I was no longer the person kept alive to work in the death camps trying to survive and help others survive. Those were my children. I was the either the one who betrayed my people by playing the role of ‘good Jew’, excusing what was happening in order to survive another day or sent directly to the gas chambers. It was a shocking moment for me that I had to process with the group later on.
The Hall of Names at Yad Vashem. Will our pictures one day be there? Will our stories be told to future generations and if so, what will those stories be?
In February 2024, I know who I am. While I am not the leader of the resistance, of the Warsaw ghetto, nor the active partisans fighting in the woods, I am also not going to excuse what’s going on for another day of survival nor am I going willingly to the gas chambers. I will speak out, I will demand change, I will not allow the growing hate to continue to grow while I sit silent or excuse it. I see others who choose to be quiet and fly under the radar. I see others who find excuses for October 7th and the Jew hatred that has been shown day after day since then. I get incredibly frustrated and angry as Jews excuse evil against our community that they would never excuse against anybody else. I will not be one of them. I will not hide, nor will I be quiet. While I fear another Shoah may be coming to Europe and America, I will not be someone who simply believes in the goodness of people and that good will win over evil. Good only wins over evil with a lot of help. We are facing evil like we haven’t seen in 80 years. I’m in the army of good, fighting that evil, with whatever I have. I will not let evil win because I believe in good. I will fight for good to win over evil. I hope you join me.
It’s not just what side are you on. It’s are you actively fighting evil. If you don’t actively fight evil, it will win.
We choose in our hearts and our actions if we will actively support good or evil. Failing to support good is unconsciously supporting evil.
Good has the final say but only if you use it. We can’t be silent or we waste of final say.
Choose to actively feed the good. If you don’t feed good, it won’t win.
Evil will win if we don’t fight for good. Are you going to stand up and speak out for good or let evil win?
We must remain vigilant and continue the struggle for good or evil will take control
The evil of Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthi’s and the Iranian government are currently better organizaed, better trained, better armed, sneakier and gutsier than good. What are you going to do to change that or are you going to let evil win?
Gandalf is right. It’s the small, everyday deeds that we do that will defeat evil. We each have the power to change the world. Are you going to use the power you have for good?
On Sunday Jan 14, 2024, it will officially be 100 days since the violent attacks by Hamas resulting in the murder, mutilation, rape, burning, and kidnapping of Israelis. There remain 132 people held hostage by Hamas in Gaza including infants, toddlers, children, women, and the elderly. They have not been provided their medication in 100 days. They have been held in underground tunnels for 100 days. Birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays have come and gone while they are being held captive. For the past hundred days the attacks on October 7th, the murders, mutilation, rape, burning, and kidnapping of my Jewish and non-Jewish brothers and sisters just because they were in Israel has weighed heavy on me.
I ordered a new Magen David (Star of David) from Israel that I wear. I got two dogtags from Israel, one saying “Bring them Home Now” in English and Hebrew, the other quoting released hostage Mia Schem, taken from the Nova music festival, and her tattoo, boldly stating, “We will dance again.” I want to fly an Israeli flag at my house, however due to the rise in antisemitism and the fears of my family, I don’t.
This rise in antisemitism has fueled my anger and rage. Seeing what’s happening on campus and watching and listening to then President of The University of Pennsylvania, Liz Magill, then President of Harvard College, Claudine Gay, and President of MIT, Sally Kornbluth refuse to state that calls for the genocide of Jews would violate their University’s code of contact was infuriating and unbelievable.
Watching some members of the US House of Representatives who previously stood strongly against sexual violence keep silent because the victims were Jews burns in my gut. People shamelessly throwing around words like ‘ethnic cleansing’ and ‘genocide’ without knowing the definition or the proper application has fire in my eyes. When South Africa has the nerve to charge Israel with genocide at the International Criminal Court my body cramped and ached with exhaustion. Israel, and the Jewish people, are being singled out compared to every other group or nation and excluded from protection.
When Germany, of all nations, comes out with a strong statement in support of Israel, clearly stating they are not involved in genocide, it provides relief. When Canada stands up and says that while they believe in the process of the International Criminal Court, it “does not mean we support the premise of the case brought forward by South Africa.” it is both surprising because of recent events in Canada and relief that they are doing what’s right. When the U.K. calls these claims “unjustified’ it generates major news. The United States has called these claims ‘unfounded’. It took watching and listening to Dr. Tal Becker’s incredible opening statement, 30 minutes of powerful and clear statements, to truly provide me with some relief.
This is not the way I lived my life prior to October 7, 2023. It’s not how I want to live my life today. Yet the realities of what occurred on October 7th and what has happened since, have me struggling on a daily basis. I was talking with a friend on Friday over coffee who saw the 47-minute Hamas video with me about the experience. She commented on how she hasn’t been able to process it with anybody because they can’t imagine the horrors she witnessed. And how some of the images will never leave her memory. I feel the same way and some of the images that have deeply disturbed her are the same that deeply disturb me.
So how do I move forward? How do I find inspiration and hope in a world that continues to suck hope and joy out with such incredible hate. How do I get past these feelings when I already know where I will go and who will hide me and my family if that time should ever come? How do I come to accept that not only have I had that thought but spoken to that person who agreed to do it? That in 2024, in the United States of America, I feel so unsafe that I need to have a secure place to hide. That the hatred of Jews is so strong and accepted that people feel safe screaming it from the top of lungs in public settings.
I have found inspiration in three places. The first is the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. A true leader in times when the African American community was facing the same type of public hatred, he remained a beacon of light. Nearly 56 years after his assassination, his words, spirit, and leadership remain powerful. How fitting is that as I write this, it is the weekend celebrating his birth. Dr. King has many famous quotes that are filled with inspiration. So many inspired me. I picked 5 that speak to me now.
Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.
We must walk on in the days ahead with an audacious faith in the future.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.
I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.
Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.
You will notice that 3 of the 5 relate to love instead of hatred. It’s easy to be filled with hate after October 7th and the 100 days the hostages have been kept. It’s easy to hate when the Red Cross refuses to see the hostages or get them medicine. It’s easy to hate after watching the 47-minute Hamas video. Yet hatred, as Dr. King states, is a burden, paralyzes, confuses, and darkens life. As I struggle with my anger and rage, Dr. King inspires me to be better and to do better. He reminds me that those who are sincerely ignorant and consciously stupid are dangerous and I have an obligation to continue to learn and to educate others. And most importantly, he reminds me that I must have faith in the future and focus on love, not hate.
The second may be seen by some as controversial. Joe Paterno was more than a football coach. The investment he put into his players as people is legendary. I know so many people who weren’t players who had interactions with him and his focus was always about being better people. What type of person do you want to be? What type of parent? Spouse? I have friends who played on his teams and they all talk about how he invested in them as people. Due to the Sandusky scandal, the statue of him was removed. Penn State fans want it back and recently I read something about it once again. The thought came to me that were he still alive, the statue wouldn’t be something he cared about. But the type of people he coached and how they live their lives today is something he’d care about. One of my middle and high school friends who was on the team from 1985-1990 is a great example. Darryl is also in coaching and has been a mentor to my son Evan. Along with being a friend to me, he is always available to help Evan. I have seen the way he interacts with the players he coaches and like Joe Paterno, he cares about them as people first. As I struggle with the feelings since October 7th, I think of the lessons from Coach Paterno and how that relates. “Success with honor” was one of key goals for Coach Paterno. It’s also how the IDF behaves. They have their mission however they go above and beyond to what they can to ensure civilians aren’t harmed. Unfortunately, Hamas does everything they can to ensure that civilians are harmed. Coach Paterno had to compete against those who cheated. Israel has to fight against Hamas who uses hospitals, schools, mosques, and homes as military bases. Yet neither Coach Paterno nor the IDF compromise their values even when it makes things more difficult.
The third place I find my inspiration is from my father. I had a very close relationship with my father and when he died in September 2022, it had a huge impact on me. My dad always focused on what you do, not what you say. He focused on family and how important it is. He cared about people and was always there as a resource to anybody and everybody. As I struggle with these feelings, I often hear my dad in my head, giving me advice and guidance. I have wanted to go to Israel since October 7th but my family is too concerned about safety and doesn’t want me to go. I hear my dad telling me that as much as I want to go, as much as I need to go for myself, nothing is more important than family. I know he would tell me to do what I can from here and be grateful that I can do things from here, even if it isn’t what I would prefer to do. As I struggle with the anger and rage, he would tell me to focus on the beauty in my life, my family, my friends, and appreciate what I have rather than be consumed with anger and hate. Like Dr. King, my dad focused on love and light. I miss him terribly but even now, he is helping me deal with these feelings.
My brother, my dad, and me. He was my mentor and idol and he continues to teach me every day.
Today was the Ride for Israel in town. Some wonderful community members put it together and a large crowd showed up for motorcycle and cars driving with Israeli flags, signs, and more throughout Orlando. For two hours we drove all around town as people honked in support. We had a great crowd and it felt good to be together as a community in support of Israel and the Kibbutzim that were attacked on October 7th. It was a day of love, hope, community, friendship and fun. As I struggle with the feelings post October 7th, it’s things like this along with the inspiration from Dr. King, Joe Paterno, and my dad that get me through it.
Leaders of the Ride for Israel. What an incredible day.
I do believe and have hope for the future. And perhaps that hope is what will get me through these challenging days.
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