Tag: palestine

What world are we living in??

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

The amount of lies, misstatements, and falsehoods I have seen since October 7th are truly amazing.  I had stopped watching most major media news because of their agendas a while ago.  I now see their ‘highlights’ on social media and it disgusts me even more.  Critical analysis is to be expected.  Factual and fair discussions are to be expected.  Disagreements on policy is to be expected.  None of that is what we are getting.

What we are getting is truly unethical journalism.  It’s agenda based, largely focused on Jew hatred.  What we are getting is completely unanalyzed propaganda being spread as fact.  I remember going through Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust Museum, the first few times and wondering how that type of crazy propaganda actually worked.  We are now seeing it in real life, in real time.

I watch somebody like Piers Morgan go for ratings instead of the facts.  I listen to him say the most ridiculous things to get views and clicks on social media.  When faced with the facts, he chooses to bulldoze over people and shout them down unless they push back powerfully and argue with him.  Which then gets him more views, more clicks, and more ratings.  He is now the news version of Jerry Springer. Watch his interaction with Fleur Hassan-Nahoum. He could have asked, “Why don’t Palestinians have the same rights as Americans?” When caught, he quickly shuts down the conversation.

I listen to what Christiane Amanpour says regularly and it makes me sick.  A once respected journalist is a shill for terrorists and those who hate Jews.  When interviewing people from the UN, UNRWA or UNICEF, she never bothers to ask why Hamas terrorists are being found in their schools and medical clinics.  She doesn’t seem to wonder why the entrance to Hamas tunnels are found near the UNRWA schools and clinics.  She is happy to highlight that the people near the schools and clinics are in danger but leaves out the reason why – the connection to Hamas.  She is happy to report on the Israeli people being unhappy with Netanyahu but neglects to discuss that there is an electoral process that will enable them to choose somebody else.  She fails to discuss how Abbas is now in year 20 of a 5 year term or how Hamas has been in power since 2005 with no opportunity for the people to select another form of government.

The lies I see in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal or told on the nightly national news make my stomach turn.  I’ve been to Israel since October 7th and am going back in a few weeks.  I see the pain and struggle of the Israeli people.  I see the impact of the war and how everybody wants it to end as soon as possible.  The hostages are on the minds of everybody, and their return is felt throughout the country.  Other than far right extremists, nobody is talking about taking Gaza in a land grab.  They are talking about a military grab of the hostages.  They are talking about eliminating Hamas and their leadership as a risk to Israel.

On my last trip I went to both Kibbutz Kfar Aza and the site of the Nova music festival.  It was one of the most powerful experiences of my life.  At Kfar Aza I saw what Hamas did.  I had seen it on the 47-minute Hamas video and other clips.  I saw it in the Sheryl Sandberg documentary, “Screams of Silence”.  Yet standing there, listening to the story of each family at each house, burned my insides.  Seeing the street of young people where EVERY SINGLE PERSON was either killed or taken hostage was brutal and I’m not sure I will ever truly recover from that.  Walking up to the back gate where the Hamas terrorists came through followed by the second and third wave of ‘innocent Gazans’ who came to rob the people they had become friends with and ate lunch and dinner with regularly, was infuriating.  Seeing how close Jabaliyah was (less than a mile from the gate, less than half a mile from the back of the Kibbutz) was a bit shocking.  Knowing I could walk to Jabaliyah in 10 minutes or less from the Kibbutz was a reality check.  These are the things the media doesn’t show to the masses. 

Jabaliya from the back of Kibbutz Kfar Aza. The fence is halfway to the back. It’s less than 1 mile away.
All those killed or taken hostage at the Nova Music Festival on October 7th.

I listen to the cries for a cease fire, and I wonder what these people are thinking.  A cease fire with people who say they will do what they did on October 7th over and over and over again until all the Jews are dead?  How do you have a cease fire with that type of person?  You certainly can’t trust them to keep their word.  You know that it’s only temporary and the end result will be even more people killed.  It seems that the long-standing complaints about our education system are finally showing themselves with so many people unable to do any critical thinking or analysis.  Before September 11, 2001, I understood American’s lack of understanding about the risk of terrorism because we had not experienced it.  After 9/11 I can’t understand the desire to defend terrorists, especially those who merely call Israel, “Little Satan” because the United States is the “Great Satan”.  They openly call for our destruction and American’s still defend them.  Who have we raised?  Where is basic intelligence? 

In the last week, I have begun to see the next wave of this propaganda.  Israel is now going to take over Lebanon in the next land grab.  The bombs Israel is dropping and the attacks they are involved with in Lebanon are somehow not related at all to Hezbollah sending rockets into Israel on a daily basis for the past month.  The fact that Israeli’s who live in that northern area have been evacuated for months due to the bombing by Hezbollah is ignored.  Israel fighting back to keep her citizens safe isn’t reported.  Once again, it is framed as Israeli (Jewish) aggression and a land grab.  They are denying that Arab nations kicked out Jews and that Jews left freely of their own will. They deny their own Judenfrei stated goals. The lies continue.

France has banned Israeli citizens and companies from attending a defense technology trade show. 

The Maldives banned everybody with an Israeli passport from entering, now creating an issue for the Christians, Muslims, Druze, and Baha’i Israelis.  That’s because the Maldives really only intended to ban Jews and is now trying to find a way to backtrack. 

The tent cities are popping back up on college campuses, now not covered by the media because interest in that story has passed.  Gabby Deutch highlighted in her X posting that, “The New Republic, a historic institution in American journalism, has a writer covering antisemitism who spent the morning of Oct. 7, after the crimes of Hamas were clear, calling the actions a “rebellion” & writing “good morning” above a picture of the attack.” 

Just today, the Department of Education brought the first cases brought since October 7th to a close, finding that The University of Michigan and CUNY didn’t adequately investigate campus antisemitism and Islamophobia There are still more than 100 cases open.  Think about that.  100 open cases on college campuses in the United States where they have not protected Jewish students from antisemitism. 

This is the world we live in today. I know most people who read this know most of this already. The key is for those of us who know, to keep learning. For those of us who don’t know to learn. And for everybody to educate those who don’t know. There are plenty of people who hate Jews and do this intentionally. There are far more who simply know nothing and believe what they see or read because they don’t have a way to get information. This weekend, I spent time with some friends in Central Illinois. I had a long conversation with one of them who told me he really didn’t know. He didn’t believe what he was reading and seeing because it made no sense, but he didn’t know the history. He didn’t know what was going on. He didn’t know the basic facts. That’s our job. To educate. To challenge the lies. To show proof. When they claim there were no rapes, we need to shout them down and show the facts. When they claim Israel murdered the Israelis on October 7th, we need to shout them down and show the facts, the Hamas self taken videos.

As my friend said today, it’s time to play offense. As Jews, we have hidden or played defense for thousands of years. Playing defense is no longer acceptable. We need to play offense. We need to be educating those who don’t know. We need to be speaking out loudly about what is going on. We need to challenge the lies. We know from our many thousands of years of history that it never just goes away. We can’t hide and escape. Just as Israel is fighting back from the pogrom of October 7th, so must we, in the diaspora, fight back against the lies and hatred since October 7th. Never again is now. How will you answer your grandchildren when they ask what you did to protect the Jewish people after October 7th? This is your chance to choose your answer.

Nes Gadol Hayah Sham, a great miracle happened there.

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

There hasn’t been a lot of joy since October 7th.  Sure, there have been family simchas.  There have been birthdays and anniversaries.  Life continues which means meaningful events occur, but there hasn’t been much sheer joy.  Briefly when the hostages were released in December after 50 days of captivity.  There has been a lot of stress, a lot of grieving, a lot of worry about friends and family members serving in the IDF.  Concern with the rise of antisemitism on campus and in our cities and towns. 

This morning was joy.  It was announced that four (4) of the hostages were rescued from the market in Nuseirat.  They were being held captive in private homes by ‘civilians’.  The same ‘civilians’ that participated on October 7th.  The same ones that held hostages after October 7th.  The same ones that hide guns and rockets in their children’s bedrooms, a baby’s crib, in the schools and in the hospitals. 

Noa Argamani (25), Almog Meir Jan (21), Andrey Kozlov (27) and Shalom Ziv (40) are free today. The IDF had a very detailed and daring rescue planned and got them out. They were being held in “civilian homes’.

Almog Jan spoke after being released and said that they were moved from house to house during the 8 months of captivity. When the media and other groups talk about the innocent people being killed, remember that the innocent people helped with October 7th. They were involved with the second and third waves of the attack. They turn their homes into military bases, even their children’s rooms and baby’s cribs. They hide hostages in their homes. The definition of ‘innocent’ seems to not fit very well.

The rescue of the hostages has reverberated throughout the Jewish world. Friends in Israel reached out with a joy I haven’t heard in a long time. Friends in the US shared their excitement and gratitude. It has been the topic of the day. These two videos are what it is all about. It’s the importance of Jewish community. They are why we want and need Israel. When I read that Noa Argamani said, ‘There was a knock on the door. A voice said, “It’s the IDF. We’ve come to take you home.’” I got chills.

Noa Argamani reuniting with her father. I cried watching this.

Shlomi Ziv talking to his wife for the first time in 8 months.  I am not embarrassed to admit that I cried watching it too.

As wonderful as the news of the rescue of the hostages was, there was sad news as well. Arnon Zamora (z’l), an IDF soldier who was a part of the force that broke into the apartment where the hostages were being held, was severely injured during a battle, and later died in the hospital. This brave IDF soldier risked, and lost, his life for Israel, for the Jewish people, and for the hostages. Arnon left behind a wife and two children. On October 7th, he led the battle at the Yad Mordechai Junction, eliminating dozens of terrorists and preventing the terrorists from infiltrating northwards. He then went on to fight in the battle at Kibbutz Nahal Oz and Kibbutz Be’eri. Unlike America, who still does nothing to rescue the American hostages in Gaza, Israel takes action. Arnon knew the risks. He also understood that rescuing the hostages was far more than saving these four people. It was saving a nation. It was saving the Jewish people. What a hero. What a huge loss. What a lesson. What an inspiration.

Arnon Zamora (z’l), killed in the rescue of the four hostages. May the memory of this hero always be for a blessing.

Almog Meir, shown above with his grandfather, learned today that his father died today. When they went to notify Yossi Meir about his son, they found his body. Yossi died before learning his son was alive and had been rescued. I can’t think of much worse for a parent, not knowing if your child is alive or what type of abuse they are undergoing as a hostage. Almog celebrates his freedom by preparing for the funeral of his father a day later. I can’t imagine what he is going through. Hamas stole his time with his father and may even be the reason his father died, so worried about the fate of his son.

Those who hate Israel and Jews have already come out strong with criticism. They focus on the approximately 200 dead and 400 injured in Gaza during the rescue. They like to overlook the fact that the hostages were kept in personal homes. They like to forget that the market and the UNRWA camp had become Hamas military installations. They don’t like to admit that Hamas firing at the IDF killed many of the people. They call them ‘innocent civilians’ despite the fact that they participated in the keeping of the hostages, they allowed Hamas to have military bases inside their community, and were actively involved with Hamas.

They also use the pictures of Noa Argamani and claim that she wasn’t raped (we don’t know if she was or wasn’t on October 7th or since then) so there was no sexual violence or rape by Hamas and that she gained weight so was treated great and somehow got food when there is none available and Gazans are starving. In their rapid Jew hatred, they actually are proving that UNRWA is giving the food to Hamas and not the people. They are showing their Jew hatred because Noa isn’t pregnant which automatically means there was no rape or sexual violence by Hamas. The rabid antisemitism is unbearable to watch especially with the lies they spread.

They criticize the tactical approach Israel used which involved pretending to be humanitarian vehicles to get into the area. They neglect all the times Hamas has used ambulances, hospitals, schools, and mosques to attack Israel and Jews. It’s a very self-indulgent approach to attack Israel and the Jews. It is their pattern. We cannot allow it to continue. We must call out the lies every time we hear or read them. We must call out the Jew hatred and antisemitism when we see it.

The IDF showed us today the importance of fighting back. We each have that responsibility. We cannot allow the lies and half-truths to stand unchallenged. We cannot allow the facts to be manipulated and twisted. At my age, I can’t join the IDF to fight back but I can fight back with advocacy, with knowledge, and with relationships. I can stand up and speak out. I wear my Magen David everywhere. I wear my dogtags for ‘We will dance again’ and for ‘Bring then home now’. I wear my lapel pins, one for the hostages and one with the US and Israeli flag on it. I wear short sleeves to show off my ‘We will dance again’ and ‘Nova’ tattoos.

The world we live in is one filled with Jew hatred. We have a choice. We can fight back or we can try to hide. Throughout history, our attempts to fit in and hide have not worked. Fighting back has been the only way to ensure our safety. I choose to fight back. Just like the IDF rescuing the 4 hostages today by fighting back, so will I fight back. I refuse to run and hide. I refuse to pretend I am not Jewish and try to fit in, hoping that they will leave me alone. Those who side with evil because they hope they will be spared should look at history. It never works out that way.

Israel and the IDF showed us how we fight back today. They showed us how every Jew matters. They inspired us. Now it’s our turn to show them how we fight back. How every Jew matters to us. We need to inspire them. We fight back by speaking up. We fight back by writing to our legislators and holding them accountable. We fight back by voting and making sure the incumbants and challengers know that Israel matters to us. We insire our Israeli brothers and sisters by our actions. We visit Israel to show them we care and they matter. We visit the Kibbuzim that were devastated on October 7th, the Nova festival site, the displaced Israelis from the North and the South, and soldiers on bases to give them a hug and remind them that they matter to us. After my trip to Israel in May, it became clear how important just showing up was to Israelis. I’ll be back in July in part to do the same thing all over again.

Today was a great day as 4 hostages were rescued. There are 120 more to get home. The leadership of Hamas must be stopped. There is a lot left to do. One of the famous sayings in Pirke Avot, the Ethics of our Fathers, is, “You are not required to finish your work, yet neither are you permitted to desist from it.” This holds true with the war in Gaza. We must engage. We must fight back. The world thinks they can bully us and as the IDF showed today, they are wrong. Let’s make sure they see it from all of us.

My head hurts as the world spins out of control

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

 Every day, I find myself getting more and more frustrated at the lack of leadership in our Jewish communities, in our country, and around the world.  The rise of Jew hatred is not just what we see on college campuses.  It’s not just the ICC and the charges from South Africa that other countries are now joining.  It’s not just the shooting at Jewish schools in Toronto and Montreal or a synagogue in Vancouver.  There is a systemic effort going on to make us think we are safe while the walls close around us.  We are once again putting our heads in the sand and failing to see what is actually happening.  This scares me.

As things in the north of Israel are now literally on fire, we have reached a new point in both the war and the Jew hatred around the world.  Israel has been attacked from the south and many people are no longer living there while the war in Gaza continues.  Evacuations from the north are well known but not appreciated.  Kiryat Shemona, where I have visited numerous times, now has only 8 houses left standing because of the bombing.  Iran has said any offensive by Israel against Hezbollah in Lebanon will result in a full war with Iran.  And yet the United States continues to kowtow to Iran and its role as the number one sponsor of state terror in the world.  Israel is literally being squeezed from three sides (the third is the Mediterranean Sea).  How much longer before the terrorists get an uprising in the West Bank/Judea and Samaria to squeeze Israel on all four sides while the United States plays games with Iran and our upcoming election?  This chalkboard image describes a scary future.

My great-grandfather told us that once, we could go traveling in Syria.

My grandma told that once, we used to be able to travel in Lebanon.

Mom tells me that once we could travel in the Galilee.

And yet, as Jews in the diaspora we continue to fight with each other.  We continue to ignore the existential threat to ourselves and work to defend those who openly declare their hatred and desire to murder us.  The Jewish apologists in the diaspora, specifically in America make me physically ill. Their efforts not only undermine Israel, they put every Jew in America at risk. They encourage the hatred of Jews by legitimizing it. The encourage attacks on Jews by legitimizing it.

Former Staff member of the US Department of the Interior, Lily Greenberg Call, was quoted as saying,

Instead of fighting for peace and the end of Hamas, true evil, her ‘Jewish values’ requires her to sacrifice the lives of Jews.  Instead of being a Queen Esther, a Hannah Senesh, a Golda Meir, she gives up the ability to save Jewish lives.  This is the same thinking in Spain prior to 1492 and in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s.  It is what led to the destruction of the 2nd Temple by the Romans in 70 and our 2,000-year exile.  We refuse to learn.  We refuse to stand up for ourselves and fight back.  Thankfully we have Israel now who fights back.  Israel inspires many of us in the diaspora to also fight back and not put our heads in the sand. Lily Greenberg Call represents a generation that would have Jews eliminated because of their sense of fairness. They, like generations before them, believe that if they stand with those who hate Jews, they will treated as if they aren’t Jews. That never works out. History has shown us that a Jew is a Jew is a Jew.

Somebody I follow on Twitter posted this.

I would add to the bottom, “Don’t defend their actions.” the Lily Greenberg Calls of the world excuse this behavior and blame the victim. The wouldn’t do this for any other group, just for Jews. It is amazing how quickly the world has forgotten the horrors of October 7th. Of the videos made by Hamas of what they were doing that day. I’ll never forget the joy in the voice of the Hamas man who was telling his parents that he personally murdered 10 ‘Yehuds’ (Jews). The joy in his father’s voice. How proud his mother was of him. I’ll never forget watching a terrorist behead a Jewish man on October 7th. Of the father jumping on a grenade to save his children who, traumatized, are taken to their kitchen by the terrorist while he gets a drink. The pain in their voices will never leave my mind. I’ll never forget walking through Kibbutz Kfar Aza and seeing the destruction from not just Hamas, but the second and third wave of Gazan civilians who came in and did more damage, robbed and mutilated Jewish bodies. These were people who the day before had sat together, talking peace, sharing a meal, hoping for a better future. A day later, these Gazans had no problem mutilating them. My friend from the trip, Mikey, posted this on Instagram that captures the feeling of being in Kfar Aza better than I have.


I haven’t given up on the many Palestinian people I have met who do want peace. Who want to live next door to Israel. Unfortunately I am giving up on the world who would rather support terrorists that want them dead than those who want peace. Iran and their proxies Hamas and Hezbollah have been clear that they want a Caliphate. They want the world to be their type of muslim and sharia law to be the law of the world. No more England, France, or Spain. No United States, Canada, or Mexico. No China or Russia. Everywhere must follow their version of Islam and live under sharia law. It won’t take too much longer for the first of these countries to experience this impact. Some are struggling with it again. It continues to be a self-inflicted wound.

I can only hope that our American leaders wake up to the threat. That they decide it is more important to lead than it is to plan for the next election. That being a leader means you do what is needed for the benefit of the country, not what is needed for you to be re-elected. That the threat of Iran, almost a nuclear Iran, is so great that action must be taken. That the corruption of the UN, UNRWA, and the Palestinian Authority is so great than none deserve to survive. That the Abraham Accords, bringing never before seen peace in the region, are a good things and worth investing in. Saudia Arabia and Indonesia were ready to normalize relations with Israel prior to October 7th. The world was changing.

Today we have UNRWA turning their schools in Gaza into military institutions. Tunnels with openings inside or next to the schools. Weapons stored and fired from the schools. These are UNRWA schools, funded by the UN and by the world.

We have Hamas using homes as militiary bases and the world cries when these homes/bases are destroyed. The picture below was from a child’s bedroom in Gaza.

The world wants to be social justice warriors and ignore the realities. I am fearful for the future of not just the United States but the world as a whole. What happens when Europe falls? When mass casualty events are occuring in the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, and around the world? Are we really that far away from the post-apocalyptic world of the Mad Max movies? I’ve been watching the new TV show Fallout on Prime with my kids. Is that our near future?

I am also amazed at the power of the protesters who know nothing. They attend Ivy League universities. The attend top academic institutions and yet show their indoctrination and lack of knowledge every time they open their mouths. We all saw the Columbia woman who wanted food delivered to their illegally occupied building at Columbia. We have seen many interviews of people who don’t know what river it is nor do they know what sea it is. This woman might be the worst of them all, self proclaiming she spent a semester in Israel/Palestine yet not knowing anything when asked. She even thinks Israel is a muslim country!

I returned from Israel two weeks ago. I go back to Israel in four weeks. Just as I wasn’t sure what Israel I was going to in May, I’m not sure what Israel I will be returning to in July. Will the hostages, or at least some of them, be freed? Will there be a ceasefire? Will Hamas leadership still be in place? Will there be a full war in the north? Can we go further north than Tel Aviv and Jerusalem? What will my second visit to Kibbutz Kfar Aza and the Nova site feel like? How will the world have changed in just the 6 weeks between visits?

Since my return from Israel, I have dug deeper into what is going on and it makes me sick the more I dig. The systemic hate. The lies that are told. Some of our ‘leaders’ who are filled with hatred and misinformation. I am usually a very optimistic person. I usually can find the good in any situation. I’m known for finding a pathway through challenges to a better place. As I sit here today, I am at a loss. As a world traveler, there are few places other than Israel that I would visit today. As an American, I don’t want to visit many of our states. Part of me thinks the only solution is what some of my Israeli friends have told me – to make Aliyah, to move to Israel where I will be safe. Yet I also know that running from the fight for security isn’t the answer either. The fight is here. There is no escaping it. Leaving it to people like the woman in the video who knows nothing isn’t acceptable. Abandoning people like Mikey who are fighting the fight here isn’t acceptable. Leaving it to apologists like Lily Greenberg Call is doing self harm and not acceptable. So I will stay and fight. I will urge you to join me. The future of the Jewish people is at stake. The future of the United States is at stake. The future of the world is at stake. Don’t sit by idly. Don’t stay uninformed or be quiet because you are afraid of the consequences of speaking out. I promise you, the price of your silences is far worse than the price of using your voice.

The words of Elie Weisel are more important now than ever.

We are the ones suffering and being humiliated. The people of Gaza are suffering and being humiliated because of Hamas, Iran, and those who would sacrifice them on the idol of Jew hatred. We cannot be silent. We cannot be neutral. We are the tormented. And we refuse to the victim once again.

You must choose – so choose wisely

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

Having been to Israel so many times, I know what is reported in the media isn’t true.  I know they exaggerate and like to say and show what they think will draw eyes and clicks.  It used to not bother me that much because it was so obviously not the truth and people would ask me about it.  It used to be like that.

Since October 7th, the media’s coverage of Israel has been worse than ever.  The big difference is now people believe what they are being fed is true and don’t bother asking questions.  They see something on social media and that becomes the truth.  A perfect example is the recent fire that occurred in Rafa after Israel dropped a bomb on Hamas terrorist leaders.  The bomb was a smaller caliber one, targeted to hit an exact spot, which it did, to eliminate the terrorists (which it did).  However, the terrorists had additional weapons with them that created a secondary explosion that started the fire that killed civilians.   

The media was all over the fact that Israel bombed a civilian area.  That Israel attacked a safe zone.  That Israel was burning civilians alive.   That the explosions beheaded babies.  The “blame Israel” narrative from the media and on social media has been brutal.  Now that Israel is responding to the daily massive rocket attacks from Hezbollah in Lebanon, the “blame Israel” narrative is growing.  The tent cities are returning on campuses.  There were shootings at Jewish Day Schools in Toronto and Montreal and a synagogue in Vancouver (luckily nobody was there when they happened so there were no injuries).  Yet the media stays quiet.  Since returning from Israel, what I have noticed the most is the combination of silence in defending Israel and the massive attacks on Israel and Jews from all over the place, including Jews.

I understand well-meaning Jews who care about morals and ethics having issues with the Israeli government’s decisions with the war.  I don’t understand those who haven’t been to Israel or at least those who haven’t been since October 7th leading the charge against Israel.  Being at Kibbutz Kfar Aza was an unbelievably powerful experience. Hearing the stories, seeing the devastation, and seeing Jabaliya so close, there was clarity in the war and the need to eliminate Hamas.  Standing at the site of the Nova Music Festival, sitting in front of the pictures of those murdered or kidnapped brought clarity of the evil of Hamas.  Stopping to visit the bomb shelter where Lee Sasi hid and survived while so many others died was deeply moving.  When I see Jews defending Hamas or using terms like ‘genocide’ for what’s going on, I am reminded of an old joke.

Throughout our history, we continue to make the same mistake over and over and over again.  We forget that we will always be Jews first.  We think we are Americans.  We thought we were Germans.  Polish.  Austrian.  We aren’t. We are always Jews. So those who forget this often times are at the front line of our persecution and then are shocked when they find themselves facing the hatred they denied existed or fought to defend. When I see these Jews posting on social media or being used as props in demonstrations, it makes me sick. We know the ending as we have seen it repeatedly over the past 3,000 years.

Since I have been back from Israel, the other thing I have noticed is the pressure being put on Israel to unilaterally solve the problem without the answer being war and defeating Hamas. It’s as if Hamas never videoed the events of October 7th for the world to see. Or that they didn’t publicly state that there will be many more October 7th events in the future. UNRWA is treated as a legitimite agency despite the proof that their employees participated on October 7th, were involved in hiding the hostages, and their schools and hospitals not only store weapons for Hamas, not only are the base for tunnels built by Hamas, but Hamas uses them to fire rockets at Israel. UNRWA gets the aid coming into Gaza and somehow it ends up in the hands of Hamas instead of the people. This is the agency people are listening to about humanitarian issues – one that behaves as anything other than a humanitarian agency.

Tunnels found under an UNRWA school – they were filled with weapons.

We have a leadership crisis. In the Jewish world. In America. Around the world. In Israel. Our leaders are determined to continue doing what has failed. The President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, dies in a plane crash. Raisi, The Butcher of Tehran, is then eulogized at the UN, in the US Congress. A man who murdered tens of thousands of people in Iran is treated as a great leader. Our lack of leadership is appalling and yet we do nothing about it. One of my favorite movies, The American President, addresses leadership incredibly well.

  • Lewis Rothschild: People want leadership, Mr. President, and in the absence of genuine leadership, they’ll listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone. They want leadership. They’re so thirsty for it they’ll crawl through the desert toward a mirage, and when they discover there’s no water, they’ll drink the sand.
  • President Andrew Shepherd: Lewis, we’ve had presidents who were beloved, who couldn’t find a coherent sentence with two hands and a flashlight. People don’t drink the sand because they’re thirsty. They drink the sand because they don’t know the difference.
The quote begins at the 2:44 mark but the whole scene is amazing

We often get hung up on our elected leaders and think that they are the only ones who can be leaders. I’m reminded of Rami Davidian, the farmer who lives near the Nova music festival site. Rami is a farmer. A regular guy. Nobody special. Elected to nothing. And yet on October 7th, he rescued 750 people from the Nova festival while Hamas was trying to murder them. We can all be Rami. We can all step up to lead when it is our turn, elected or not. We can speak out and speak up. We can change our small part of the world which changes the entire world. We can get educated and confront those who lie and spread lies.

As Spain recognizes a Palestinian State and calls the war genocide, they quickly backtrack when they realize that by doing this they make every person in Gaza a political refugee able to enter Spain on a humanitarian visa. They quickly stopped being public about either because they realized their words and actions had consequences.

As the Maldives now refuses to allow anybody with an Israeli passport to enter the country, they will see the impact as people with resources and morals refuse to visit the Maldives and pick other options instead, hurting tourism, their top industry.

As politicians lose their seats in the upcoming election because they tell lies and support terrorists, our leaders will shift what they say and what they do.

All of this happens because we take action. We lead by our example. We stand up and speak out when we hear people telling lies about Israel and about Jews. We refuse to be silent and refuse to stand by and allow others to attack us. For generations we were visitors in other countries and so we tried to fit in and keep quiet. We wanted to stay under the radar until it was impossible and then, too late. Today, with the modern state of Israel, we have a homeland. We don’t need to stay under the radar and quiet. Yet too many of us do. Too many of us remain convinced we are Americans first. Too many of us are afraid to lose what we have by standing up and speaking out when history tells us time and time again, if we don’t stand up and speak out, we are guarnteed to lose what we have. We each get to choose if want to be lambs to the slaugher or fight back. We have our examples. Abraham argued with God about Sodom and Gemmorrah. Queen Esther risked everything for the Jewish people. Moses gave up the chance to be Pharoah and rule Egypt to serve God and the Jewish people. King David took on Goliath. Hannah Senesh risked it all and paid the ultimate price for the Jewish people. The list goes on and on.

Hannah Senesh sacrificed her life for the Jewish people

So in these crazy times that we live in, who are you going to be? Are you going to be Nachson, who bravely walked into the Red Sea until it was over his head before God parted it to save the Jewish people or are you going to be the one who served the Egyptians and the Nazis to harm the Jewish people? Are you going to speak up for Israel and the Jewish people like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did or are you going to be Mark Ruffalo who constantly criticizes Israel for existing and posts his own antisemitic digs at Jews?

I choose to be Dr. King. I choose light over darkness. I choose love over hate. I choose peace over war. I choose hope over despair. I choose being Jewish over hiding who I am. I choose good over evil. I choose action over inaction. I choose speaking up over being silent. Like our historical ancestors, I choose risk to flourish over safety to hide and eventually lose everything.

We each have to make our own choice. I hope you choose wisely.

The wise choice will give you life but the wrong choice will take it from you

More thoughts and inspiration from Israel

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

As I continue to process my 10 days in Israel this month, I can only do so in bite size pieces.  Here is my second bite at the experience and what it has meant to me and what I have learned.

On my trip in 2021, we had a number of Israeli men on our bus.  I wrote about Alex, whose son died on October 7th, in my last blog post.  Another person I met on that trip has become a close friend. I can’t use his name or pictures for security reasons.

There were a few things that he spoke about that really resonated with me then and as I unpack the time in Israel, reinforce common themes that have come out of the trip and that I want to apply in my life.  One of the most significant was when he talked about holding his son’s bar mitzvah at Kibbutz Be’eri.  After being decimated on October 7th by the Hamas terrorists, he wanted to bring light and life to Kibbutz Be’eri, so that is where he held his son’s bar mitzvah.  It’s like saying that I want to get married on the still smoldering ruins of the Twin Towers in 2001.  Let’s celebrate a significant event at the devastated site of the apartment building in Sunny Isles, Florida.  Let’s celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary at any of the sites of school shootings a few months after children were murdered there.  In many ways, it doesn’t make sense.

Yet through a Jewish lens, it makes total sense.  We value human life more than anything.  The Talmud teaches that Whoever Saves a Life Saves the World.  The idea of bringing light and life to a place where light and life was destroyed is incredibly Jewish.  It’s similar to what Noa was saying at Shura Army base when she spoke about making a better dinner for her family, being better for her children and husband.  We can take the sad, the dark, the bitter, and find a way to make the light shine again.  That’s what he and his family did at Kibbutz Be’eri.  They door a place stained with death, kidnapping, torture and pain and brought light to it.  They brought joy to it, if even for just a few hours or a day. 

Noa, a true inspiration about how to live life. Our teachers show up when we are ready to learn.

The lesson I take from this is that we all have an opportunity to bring light and joy to the world every single day.  It doesn’t matter what is happening in our own lives, in our country, or in the world.  We have the ability to make a conscious decision to do things that bring light to the world.  Sometimes it can be something as simple as holding the door for somebody.  Helping somebody cross the street.  Say a kind word to somebody that you see even if you don’t know them.  It doesn’t take much to bring light to our lives and the world.  It does take a conscious effort.  After this trip, one of the things I am going to do is find ways to bring light to the world around me.  Pay attention to the opportunities that present themselves every day and act.  The small random acts of kindness brighten somebody’s day and improve the world.  Thank you Yaron and Noa for inspiring and teaching me.

Our trip leader, Saul Blinken, was incredibly inspiring.  We spent most of our time based out of Jerusalem and he said something that had an immediate impact on me.  Saul said that every day we wake up in Jerusalem, it’s a miracle.  Every day we breath the air in Jerusalem is a miracle.  Every day we walk the streets of Jerusalem, it’s a miracle.  And every night we go to sleep in Jerusalem, it’s a miracle.  He asked us to imagine if somebody told the Jews who were being exiled by the Romans not to worry, that 2000 years later the Jews would be back in Jerusalem and there would be a Jewish state.  They wouldn’t believe it.  Yet it happened.

Saul passionately speaking to us. What an incredible teacher and friend.

From the time Saul said that I took it to heart.  Every day when I woke up, it was an incredible feeling to know that I was waking up in Jerusalem.  As I walked the streets, I had a deeper appreciation of what it meant to be able to do that.  Going into the old city, visiting the Kotel, walking freely throughout the city – everything became a WOW moment.  It reminded me of what my friend Roni Akele, the Director General of the Ethiopian National Project said about being a Jew in Ethiopia.  He said that they always dreamed of returning to Jerusalem.  Everything was about Jerusalem.  The psalm we sing is “If I forget you, oh Jerusalem….”

I fell in love with Jerusalem on my first trip to Israel in 1989 and it has never changed.  I am not an overly religious person, yet going to the Kotel is powerful.  This trip I got to visit Temple Mount for the first time.  Incredibly powerful.  As we stood there and said the Shema, I felt a connection that is indescribable.  Saul’s words hit home and deeply.  I’ll never take Jerusalem for granted again.  I’ll never take for granted all the time I have spent there, all the sites I have seen, all the friends I have who live there. 

It’s an opportunity to think deeply about gratitude.  This was my 21st trip to Israel and I hope to be back in Israel a few more times this year.  I don’t think much about it yet now I am filled with gratitude that I have these opportunities.  Each time I go to Israel, I get a deeper connection to Judaism and to understanding myself.  As I have said, I’m not very religious but I am very Jewish.  Israel brings that home to me.

I also think about how many things I have to be grateful for in my life.  Jerusalem can easily be representative of so many important things.  My family.  My health.  Doing work that is personally meaningful.  The success of my children as people and in life.  The life I have is truly beyond my wildest dreams.  It is easy to lose track of that and focus on the things that aren’t going well or that I don’t like.  Temple Mount was a good example.  I wish we could go there whenever we want.  I wish we could openly pray there and celebrate that holy space.  I could focus on the things we don’t have.  Or I can focus on the fact that we can go there.  That I did find a private place to pray quietly.  That I did feel the connection with God in this special place.  Our choices determine everything.  Do I want to focus on what I don’t have or what I have?  Do I want to be bitter about the things I think I deserve or be grateful for the wonderful things I actually have?  Just like I’ll never take Jerusalem for granted again, I won’t take the wonders and gifts of my life for granted either.  Nothing is perfect but it sure can be great.

A picture I took overlooking the Western Wall plaza. The beauty never disappoints.

The last thing I want to unpack in this post relates to Israelis.  Not since the second intifada have I been in Israel where I was thanked so much by Israelis for being there.  During the second intifada they were happy to see Jews coming because most were not.  It was the Christians who were coming to visit.  This time they were grateful for Jewish solidarity.  For knowing the Jews of the diaspora love Israel and support them as brothers and sisters.  That we are willing to come in the middle of a war because of our love for Israel and the people of Israel.   That the Jewish community truly is global.  There was a unity we felt and that they needed.  I never expected to get the thanks we did or for it to mean as much as it did to me. 

During the second intifada, part of the thanks was due to the economic benefit the country needed by our visiting.  While that is very true right now, that wasn’t what I was being thanked for.  The Israelis need to see us in person.  They need get our hugs and love.  They need to know they aren’t alone.  When the guys on our bus from an LA Jewish Day School gave the soldiers letters from kids at the school, they were deeply moved.  October 7th, the hostages, and the ensuing war is taking an incredible toll on the entire country.  Seeing their Jewish brothers and sisters from America and the rest of the world makes an incredible difference.

It’s a reminder to me that not only do I need to show up both through WhatsApp and in person for my Israeli brothers and sisters, I need to do the same for my friends and family.  That random phone call, text, or email may often mean far more than I ever thought.  Checking in on friends and family doesn’t take much effort and the payoff is always significant and meaningful.  This trip reminded me that the 30 seconds it takes to send a text or email, or the 15 minutes I allocate for a phone call, may change a person’s entire day and outlook.  It doesn’t matter if they reply or if they answer the phone.  The effort is what is meaningful.

The other thing that was surprising to me was the Israelis response to my tattoos related to October 7th.  I got them because of their meaning to me.  My children could have been at Nova.  I could have been there with them.  It hit home and hard.  The Mia Schem quote, “We will dance again” and the tattoo she got inspired me as well.  It is a reminder that we never give up hope.  We will overcome the challenges and not just survive but thrive.  Whatever is taken from us, we will get back.  They will never take our spirit or our soul.  Here in America, I get very few comments on them.  People are very used to tattoos and I have been surprised at the lack of comments or questions because of the uniqueness of them.  In Israel it was just the opposite.  Not only did they notice them, but people were stunned that October 7th meant that much to me.  ‘Wow’ was the most common thing said to me, followed by questions and a conversation.  At a t-shirt store where I got a few meaningful ones for myself, the owner was so taken by my tattoos that he asked if he could take pictures of them and use them on t-shirts he would sell.  Of course I said yes.  On my next trip, I’ll swing by and see if he has them on a t-shirt.  How cool would that be??

Nova music festival – it could have my kids and me.
The Mia Schem saying and tattoo

Standing up for what you believe in matters.  The old saying, “If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything” really holds true.  I’m not advocating that everybody should get a tattoo.  I am advocating that whatever matters to you, whatever you stand for, make sure that you actually do it publicly.  It matters.  People notice what you say and do and what you don’t say and don’t do.  If they are your values, make it public.

Trips to Israel, especially the Momentum Men’s Trips, always have me returning with my head spinning.  There is always much to unpack.  More is coming as I continue to process the time I spent there, the people I met, the things I saw, and how I felt.   If you have never been, I urge you to go.  If you have been, I urge you to return.  It truly does change your life.

Meeting with my friend Mahmoud, a Palestinian living in East Jerusalem

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I met Mahmoud in 2019 on my Encounter trip.  You can read about the trip starting with this blog post and continue forward.   It was great to see Mahmoud and we hugged when we saw each other.  He asked us to sit as we caught up on our families, work, and life changes.  This of course brought up the war which has impacted him both economically and in terms of how safe he feels for his family.  It was another connection point as I have those same feelings as a Jew in the United States. 

Mahmoud is incredibly smart.  The conversation was deep and not stuck on talking points or things that often impede real conversation.  It was refreshing to have somebody to talk with about what is happening without the incitement of specific words.

We didn’t use words like Genocide.  We both agreed that lots of people were dying, and we wanted that to stop.   We didn’t use words like forced famine.  We agreed that not enough food was getting to the people, and they were hungry.  He doesn’t believe enough food is getting in even if it wasn’t being stolen and sold.  He said there were fewer trucks going in now than before the war.  From what I understood that wasn’t accurate but I didn’t have the facts in front of me so chose not to dispute that point and just agree that people were hungry.  We agreed that the Hamas attacks on October 7 were unacceptable. We agreed that Hamas was evil.  We agreed that Hamas must be removed and cannot continue to exist in power. The murders, rapes, burning of bodies, and other actions were evil and unacceptable.  He shared that he and his friends were horrified when they learned of the attack.  We agreed that taking the civilian hostages was unacceptable and he shared that his hope was that they would be released the very next day.  He also said that he felt the taking of soldiers was different as this was an act of war by Hamas and taking military personnel for future prisoner swaps was ok.  While I understand his position on this, I struggle with it because of how Hamas treats prisoners. 

We talked about Zionism.  When we met in 2019, he made the comment that, “If Zionism means the Jews have a right to the land and we do as well, then I am ok with Zionism.”  When I said that the definition of Zionism is that the Jews have a right to a homeland and says nothing about anybody else, he commented that too many people disagree with me.  There are people who believe all of historical Israel belongs to the Jews and not only should we have the West Bank/Judea and Samaria but also Jordan and more.  That Greater Israel should be ours.  Just like there are Palestinians who believe there should be no Jewish state at all.  They believe the entire land should be Palestinian.  We can’t listen to the extremes and that’s where we are at the current time.  The media only covers the extremes.  That is what sells.  That’s what gets ratings and advertisers. 

We talked about the campus protests.  He wasn’t aware of the number of outside agitators that were involved with them.  As we discussed it, he commented that the fascists and communists always do that.  This is their pattern throughout history, so it isn’t a surprise.  I shared that in my opinion they were stealing his story and his pain for their own agenda which had nothing to do with Palestinians.  It was about anarchy and changing the United States government.   He agreed.

We discussed how the status quo in the relationship between the Israelis and Palestinians was not something that could continue long term.  When I participated in the Encounter trip, one thing that was clear to me was that the status quo couldn’t continue.  We agree on that.  From the day I met him, Mahmoud has been a proponent of a one state solution.  For him this doesn’t mean someplace that is free of Jews.  It is his position that Israel already controls the entire area and that it is already one state in which some of the people who live there get treated differently.  The challenge of a one state solution is that it would mean that Israel would no longer be a Jewish state.  That’s the cost of peace in a one state solution.  Unfortunately, I agree with him that the cost of a one state solution is the loss of Israel as a Jewish state.  I chose not to tell him that this would be unacceptable to the world Jewish community as the entire purpose of having a state of Israel is to have a Jewish state.  It is why I believe a one state solution will never occur.  The Palestinians would have to agree to leave the land and they are not going to do that.

He was pessimistic about any chance of a two-state solution working.  He made the point that Gaza was effectively a two-state solution. We see how that worked out.  I agree with him.  The challenge of a two-state solution is that the Palestinian leaders and people need to not just accept that Israel exists as a Jewish state but also there will be travel limitations and challenges because there are two countries with sovereign boundaries.  This also doesn’t even consider the trust factor needed.  The current trust factor is at best zero right now.  When I made the comment that it might take ten (10) years to get to a real two-state solution he shook his head and told me that was likely too long.  He said if it is going to take 10 years, it is dead.  I don’t agree with him here and we spent a lot of time talking about leadership. 

For those who have been reading my blog, you know how critical I have been about our lack of leadership.  This lack of leadership exists in the Jewish community, in America, in Europe and certainly in Israel and with the Palestinians.  The Palestinian Authority President Abbas was elected to a 4-year term in 2005.  There have not been elections since.  He is in year 20 of a 5-year term.  The world stays silent and supports him.  Prime Minister Netanyahu has been in power longer than any other Israeli Prime Minister.  While he has been in and out of power due to free elections, there is a reason why many countries have term limits for these and other positions.  A new voice is needed.  New leadership.

Both Mahmoud and I expressed our concerns about future leadership.  Who might it be?  Mahmoud is concerned Israel will elect Ben-Gvir, Smoltrich, or somebody on the far right like them.  I don’t share those same concerns as the Israeli people are not far right like them.  They are given a far too large platform because Netanyahu needs them to remain in power.  I am concerned that the leadership that will follow Abbas is going to be Hamas or Hamas like.  Somebody who will not lead towards peace but will lead back to the days of the intifadas and violence.  Both of us are stunned that in the United States, with well over 300 million people, these are the two candidates we have for President.  Because of their age, it is unlikely that either of them will be running in 2028 (one won’t be eligible per our constitution) so perhaps we can see some change in the US in four years but no matter who wins, it will be a very challenging four years.  With all this negativity about leadership, Mahmoud wanted to talk more about the people rather than leadership. 

His concern is that leaders are elected by the people.  His concern is that the anger and rage at Hamas is spilling over to the Palestinian people and will make things worse.  There are people who say, “just bomb them all” or “flatten Gaza and kill them all” or “they are all terrorists”.  I shared with him that as I was in Kfar Aza and at the Nova site, I felt rage.  I didn’t share that at Kfar Aza, as each bomb exploded in Jabaliyah, I felt better, as not only does that really bother me that I felt that way but also it would have been counterproductive to our conversation.  He isn’t wrong.  Israel is not the same country as it was on October 6.  The people of Israel are not the same.  The events of October 7 have altered the people and the country.  I don’t know where it is going to end up.  I told him I remain hopeful that when the war ends, and the war will end at some point, I am hopeful that the Israeli people can heal and look to a future where there can be peace and something like October 7 will never happen again.  He was much more pessimistic and really fears that the long-term impact on the Israeli people will be to radicalize them further and further to the right.  I shared my hope that after the war, it would bring them back towards the center due to the desire to live life. 

We also spent time talking about how important it is for Jews and Palestinians to talk the way we were.  To respect each other and share ideas, not ideology. To work towards finding solutions, not arguing and fighting for the sake of arguing and fighting.  He shared that while some Israelis do some to talk with him, he has no platform in Israel to do this.  Coming to the United States to talk to Israelis and Jewish communities isn’t the answer either.  We need more dialogue.  We need more discussion.  This brought me back to my points about leadership and how they can’t and won’t do this.  Perhaps after the war ends and Bibi is replaced and in the next few years when it is likely that Abbas will die, we will have a chance for new leadership that is willing to engage with each other and really work for the benefit of their people rather than to remain in power.  Maybe I am overly optimistic.  Maybe I am being too positive and too hopeful.  I don’t see another way to live.

As we wrapped up our 90-minute conversation, there is much to think about and much to contemplate.  We hugged goodbye and made plans to get together on one of my future trips to Israel.  Because of the time and the heat, we chose to take a cab back instead of walking.  Matthew and I began to talk a little about the experience, but those conversations will happen back in the US over a coffee or twenty. 

I appreciate Mahmoud for giving his time.  For sharing his opinions and concerns.  For listening to both Matthew and my comments, concerns, and opinions.  For being open to a real discussion and conversation.  For looking to the future and not being stuck in the past.  As we said during the conversation, we can’t change the past, but we can change the future.  I look forward to future conversations with Mahmoud and to a future where there is peace. To a time when the Palestinians can live in peace with their neighbor Israel.  When the thought of another October 7th isn’t on everybody’s minds. 

My friendship with Mahmoud and a number of other Palestinians living in East Jerusalem and the West Bank/Judea and Samaria (two names for the same place) are examples that we can live together. We can have difference and get beyond them and live together. It gives me hope that when we finally get new leadership who truly cares about a different future, we might be able to have peace.

Mourning, Air Force Base, and celebration

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

The last day of our trip was a powerful one on many levels. The amazing thing is that we only went three places and one of them was the restaurant for lunch!

We left about 30 minutes late which frustrated our staff. It ended up being perfect. Our first stop was at Shura Army base, a forensic center near Ramle where most of the victims from October 7th were brought to be identified. As we got there, they were loading the body of one of the IDF soldiers who was killed on Saturday in Gaza into the van to take him home to be buried. We go to watch them put him into the van, one of our group who was saying Kaddish for his mother said Kaddish, and we then escorted him out of the parking lot on his final journey. It was incredibly powerful and moving. To be able to do that type of honor for a soldier killed defending Israel and the Jewish people was overwhelming. These kids, and they are kids, put their lives at risk every day to protect Israel and the Jewish people. In America when I see a soldier, I always thank them for their service. In Israel, I want to begin doing that as well. It’s the very least I can do.

We met Noa, the woman who works to prepare the bodies for burial and for identification. Noa told us that she has 8 children and on October 7th, 7 of them, plus her husband and herself were drafted into the army. Think about what that must be like. It was yet another reminder that the Israeli people do not want this war. They do not want this war to go on indefinitely. They want the hostages returned. They want Hamas out of power and not able to kill Israelis any longer. They want peace and quiet on the border. They want to go back to living thir lives. They don’t want to worry about their children or their spouses in firefights. They want normalcy and that only comes with the return of the hostages and Hamas removed. They will deal with the emotions and fear to accomplish those goals. But it’s not what they want to do, despite what the media may tell you.

Noa speaking to us

We entered the base and came to the meeting room where we learned what they do here. After October 7th, this is where most of the bodies came for identification. They have a lab on the second floor to do DNA testing. They have DNA, dental records as well as fingerprint records for every IDF soldier . It made some of the identification easier but many of the bodies were burned or were just ashes. As we entered the actual area where they did this work, we were silent as the gravity of the work settled in each of us.

The meeting room in the base before you enter. Notice the pictures on the wall are all faces of those murdered on October 7.

In the room where they do the ritual preparation of the bodies, we heard what it was like after October 7th. I’m not sure that i can even try to describe what she was telling us. The condition of the bodies that came in. Some of the challenges identifying them. Some that were just ashes or parts of bodies. And the blood. That is the one thing that I will never forget. Her description of how much blood there was and they had to deal with. She told us about a Hassidic man who came in with bodies. He had been pulling dead bodies out of bomb shelters that Hamas attacked at Nova. He had blood halfway up his calf because to pull them out he had to step in pools of blood. The more stories she told us, the more horrified we were. Then she said something that has me thinking. She said that she can’t focus on how awful it was and what happened. Instead, she chooses to focus on the good in her life and what she can do to make the world better. She wants to cook a better dinner for her family. Be a better mother for her children. Be a better wife for her husband. Be a better friend, neighbor, and boss. It’s an incredible way to look at the world and an incredible attitude. It made me thing about what I am willing to do to deal with the anger and rage from Kfar Aza, Nova, and being at this base. Am I going to let the anger and rage consume me or am I going to turn it into something to make the world a better place. If Noa can do it after what she has seen, I know that I can as well.

We left the room and moved to the room where families have their chance to say their last goodbyes to their loved ones. It was hard sitting in that room, looking at the table where the body would be, knowing what families must be feeling and experiencing when their loved one is on that table. We were all quiet as we sat in the room and Noa talked to us. I think we were all grateful to have been in the room but even more grateful to leave it.

Listening to Noa talk about what she and her team have gone through since October 7th makes me think about all the people we normally don’t think about. They aren’t family members of those murdered or kidnapped. They haven’t lost family members who are serving in the IDF. Yet they are traumatized by what happened on October 7th and what has happened since October 7th. What is it like to have 7 of your 8 children drafted into the army to fight a war? What is it like to have both you and your spouse drafted into the army during a war, potentially leaving your chidren as orphans? What is it like to deal with that many dead bodies? With that many mutilated people? With remains that are just ashes? The entire country is dealing with PTSD and I’m not sure what it will mean long term.

Our last stop on the base was to visit the place where all the IDF Torahs that need repair or can’t be repaired are kept. It was incredible seeing how many Torahs they have there. As the Rabbi who is in charge told us, it’s the largest Aaron Kodesh (ark) in the world. He also told me that the IDF needs thousands of mezuzahs for their soldiers. They need them for the rooms where soldiers sleep in bases, outposts and bunkers both within Israel, along the borders (south and north) and in Judea and Samaria. They also need a few dozen at this point for buildings inside Gaza seized and used for headquartersWhen you watch this video I took, you will be amazed at what you see.

The IDF torahs in need of repair or that can’t be repaired
The sofer (scribe) repairing a Torah

As we left the base, we were all shaken by the experience. Like at Kfar Aza and Nova, we felt the death. We felt the overwhelming loss related to the murder of 1200 people on October 7th. As I think about how Israel has changed since October 7th, these feelings are a part of it. If I am feeling it after only 8 days, how powerful must it be for Israelis who have been feeling it for over 7 months?

We headed to our last stop of the trip, the Palmachim air force base. This is where they fly drones from. The base is highly secure, no pictures were allowed, and things were off the record. What I can tell you is that I was blown away by what we learned. I can tell you that the process Israel uses to actually have a drone drop a bomb is multi-leveled and requires multiple approvals. And I can tell you that the drone operator ALWAYS has the authority to abort the mission no matter what the supervisor says if they determine that there are civilians, women or children in the area and that it would not be appropriate to execute the mission. I can also tell you that this happens more often than you would expect. The drone operators are kids. Their support staff are 18-19 year olds. It’s always amazing to look at who comprises the Israeli military. It’s largely the 18-22 year old population. This is very different from the US military and not what most people think of when they think of an army. These are kids who are willing to do whatever is needed to defend their country and the Jewish people but really want to finish their service, travel, and then go to college and live their lives.

After the briefing, we had our final barbecue with the soliders on the base. These 18-25 year old men and women were so happy to have us there. We sat with them, talked, and got to know them. The DJ played great music, the food was good, and we had fun. After we ate, the DJ really got things moving and we got up and started dancing. The soldiers joined us as we danced and laughed and had a great time. As it got to be time for us to leave to take people to the airport, they had difficulty getting us to stop. We finally did, celebrating with the soldiers. Some of the guys on our trip were from Emek, a Jewish Day School in Los Angeles. They had some of their students write letters to the soldiers. The day after our visit, we got this note from the wife of one of the soldiers on the base. If you ever wonder if the letters you write, the visits you take to Israel, the support you provide really matter, I think this note proves how much they really do.

It was sad as some of the guys headed for Tel Aviv and then we dropped a bunch at Ben Gurion airport. The rest of us returned to Jerusalem and a few of us made plans for the next day. The trip was over but the experience will last a lifetime. There is so much for me to unpack from this trip. So much to understand about what it means to me to be a man, a husband, a father, and a Jew. What does it really mean to be a Zionist? what am I willing to die for that shows what I actually live for? Much much more. As I unpack it, I will share them.

I still have 2 days in Israel, two precious days in Israel. Two days to wake up in Jerusalem, smell the air, walk the streets. What a blessing that is. A day in Tel Aviv with meetings. Time to see friends. Israel is truly in my heart and in my soul. As my 21st trip approaches the end, I am already looking at possible trips 22, 23, 24, and 25 in the next year. I appreciate how lucky I am to get to go to Israel. How lucky I am to have the contacts and connections in Israel that I have. The Israeli friends that I have. An understand of the land, the history, the challenges, the struggles, and just how much it means to me as a Jew. If you haven’t been to Israel, I urge you to come, especially now. If you have been to Israel, I urge you to come back. I promise you will experience a different country and a have a different experience.

Yom HaZikaron in Israel – this year is different

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

There is something special about being in Israel.  For those of you who have been here, you know.  For those of you who have not been here yet, I can’t explain it.  It’s the air, the sounds, the smells, the energy that exists.  Even in the middle of a war, I feel peaceful.

I got my frozen Aroma (the best coffee drink ever) and went to get a taxi to my hotel.  My driver was former military (like most people in Israel).  As we discussed the war, he shared that when he was on active duty and reserves, his unit was like the one in the TV show Fauda.  If you haven’t seen the show, it is a must, especially with what is going on now with the Hamas-Israel war.  It might provide some insight into the challenges that exist to finding peace.  He showed me a picture of him undercover.  It was incredible to see.  As we pulled up to the hotel and got out of the car, the 8 pm siren went off.  I have been here for Yom HaZikaron two other times and know what the siren is like, however this year was different for me.  As I stood outside my taxi with everybody else around, standing proud, silent, and thinking about all those who have lost their lives in defense of the Jewish people and Israel, I got emotional, and tears came to my eyes.  The minute was over far too quickly, and it made me long for the two-minute siren today and to be in a large group like I will today.  There is something about being a Jew and being the majority especially during significant times like this that is indescribable until you experience it.  It is something that you can’t comprehend and can’t even imagine until you experience.

I went for my walk on the beach, sat there enjoying the sound of the Mediterranean Sea, the fresh Israeli air, and the sand between my toes.  My friend Matthew finally arrived after spending 30+ hours traveling after United cancelled his flight a few days ago and we hung out before crashing for the night.

Monday was the full day of Yom HaZikaron.  It also meant Israeli breakfast.  For those of you that have never been here or had Israeli breakfast, it is simply the best meal of the day.  The options are endless, the fruit and vegetables fresher than anywhere at home other than your own garden, the dairy product incredible, and the best way to start the day.  The hotel had one of the best breakfasts I have had and I sat with friends eating and drinking coffee (lattes and cappuccinos not Nescafe like my first trip in 1989!) 

We left the hotel for the ceremony with the Machal soldiers.  I didn’t know we were going to be with Machal soldiers, and this was very meaningful to me.  When I was running UF Hillel, I learned about Machal and Aliyah Bet from Ralph Lowenstein z’l, who in 1948 was the second youngest North American to volunteer to fight in the war of independence.  Those who volunteered from other countries were part of Machal.  The museum for Machal and Aliyah Bet was included when we constructed Norman H. Lipoff Hall, the home of the Hillel the University of Florida.  Ralph would regale me with stories of his time on the boat traveling to Cypress to immigrate to Israel, his time driving a halftrack in the war, and the conditions they had to fight in.  When we dedicated the museum in 2005, most of the living members of Machal from 1948 came.  They kept thanking me for my part in the museum happening.  I told them that all I did was say yes to a great idea and that they were the true heroes.  It was one of the most humbling moments of my life as these true heroes, who risked everything including being arrested and losing citizenship to fight for Israel and the Jewish people. 

I had been asked to bring some things with me to give to individual soldiers that I met during the trip and was able to hand them out before the ceremony.  I shared this opportunity with some friends on the trip so they could share in the joy of doing something nice for the soldiers.  As I spent time talking to them, most of them from France, I was struck by a few things.

  1. How young they are.  These were babies.  They were younger than my own children. 
  2. They shared how bad it is in France for Jews.  I knew it was bad from reading the news, but they shared much more. 
  3. How happy they were to be in Israel, serving in the IDF, protecting Israel and the Jewish people.  In the middle of a war where they could lose their lives at any moment, they were happy to be able to serve.
Two French IDF soldiers in the Machal unit
A French IDF soldier serving in the Machal unit

They thanked me for coming from the depths of their soul.  I have had this happen in Israel two other times.  The first was during the second intifada when Jews weren’t coming to Israel. The only ones coming were Christians.  When a Jewish group came, they thanked us profusely because they hadn’t seen American Jews coming to Israel in a long time.  It made me sad then and makes me sad now.  The other time was when I came in 2021 just before Israel was reopened due to Covid.  Tour groups hadn’t been allowed to come until ours and the looks we got wearing our badges were incredible.  People came up to talk to us, ask questions, and thank us for coming.  We brought a sense of relief and support once again that had been missing.  It reminds me of our obligation as diaspora Jews to come to Israel, to support of brothers and sisters all the time.  How much they need us even though they appear to be tough and can take care of themselves.  They need to see us, to hug us, to talk with us, and to laugh and cry with us.

During the ceremony, which was very moving, there were a few things that stuck out to me.  First, as Jews we always live with hope.  We always have.  We always will. Hope for the future.  Next year in Jerusalem at every Seder for generations.  My Ethiopian Israeli friends often talk about their hope when living in Ethiopia to one day return to Jerusalem. 

An originial Machalnick from 1948 speaking at the ceremony. May he live to 120.

Secondly, the impact of North American Jews in the creation of the State of Israel in 1948.  Ralph would always share the role we played with the air force in 1948, with getting the planes, weapons, and equipment needed to fight the war.  It was illegal for Americans to help provide Israel with any of this at that time, yet so many brave people did.  My friend Ann Bussell would tell me stories about her father, Shepard Broad, and how he provided the funding to retrofit the ships in the Miami river.  She loved telling me stories about how as a little girl she would play on the deck of the ship, Exodus, in the Miami River.  How American Jews took incredible risks to give Israel a chance to survive.  If they could risk everything on a state fighting with an army that was overwhelmed in numbers and equipment, what are we prepared to risk today for the incredible State of Israel.  It made me think deeply.

As the ceremony ended and we gathered for lunch, our trip leader, Saul Blinkoff, shared some wisdom with us.  I took three things to heart.

One, “if you don’t stand up, you can’t survive.”  It sounds so simple, yet it is very true.  We are not the Jews of the 1930s and 1940s who went to the gas chambers.  We are not the Jews who stood by during the pogroms in eastern Europe.  We are not the Jews who converted during the Spanish Inquisition to avoid prison, deportation, or death.  We stand up today.  We fight back today.  After Hamas violently invaded Israel and murdered 1200 people on October 7th, we didn’t sit back and apologize for existing.  Those days are no longer.  As Jews we are proud of who we are and will fight for our survival.  NO MATTER WHAT.  We have Israel to thank for that.

Two, one of the reminders of the horrors of October 7th was that the Sukkahs were still standing for a long time afterwards.  The attack came on the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, the end of the holiday of Sukkot.  There wasn’t time to take the sukkahs down as people were reporting for reserve duty immediately.  Many had been murdered in the Gaza envelope so there was nobody to take those sukkahs down.  The sukkah, a reminder of the temporary nature of life, designed as temporary structures, stayed up for weeks after they should have been taken down.  Temporary had become more permanent.  But they were temporary and came down.  Just like the horrors we are dealing with right now are temporary and will end.  The IDF will succeed.  Israel will be kept safe.  We won’t be in Gaza forever, just longer than anybody would have hoped to ensure Israel and the Jewish people are safe. 

Third, time is the one thing we can’t get more of.  We never know how much we have, and we can’t make more.  Yet on Yom HaZikaron, time stops.  This was my third time being in Israel for Yom HaZikaron and time does stop.  Things are much slower.  It’s a day of thoughtfulness, of mourning, of reflection.  The contrast between Memorial Day in America is profound.  There are no sales.  There are no barbecues.  Stores and restaurants are closed.  The siren goes off for a minute at 8 pm as the holiday begins and then for 2 minutes at 11 am the next morning.  The nation stops and stands at attention. 

When we got back to the hotel after the ceremony, we had some free time, which was greatly needed.  My friends Matthew, Michael and I went to the beach to sit, talk, relax, connect, and then go for a swim in the Mediterranean Sea.  The water felt incredible, the wind making us a little cold, but it was refreshing.  In some ways it was like a dip in the mikvah (ritual bath) that refreshes and renews you.  We headed back to the hotel for some time in the steam room to relax before getting ready for our final speaker and then dinner.

Our final speaker of the night was my friend Yaron.  He was a commander in the IDF in Gaza for the first 4 months.  He responded on October 7th.  He had an incredible military career and I have written about him many times.  He is a true hero and a real badass.  He is also one of the nicest and humblest people you will every meet.  He and I gave each other big hugs and caught up a little before his presentation.  Brothers.  Friends.  Judaism is so much more than a shared religion; it is a shared family.  Yaron is like a brother to me and I worry about him during this war. 

Hanging with my brother Yaron

As he talked about October 7th, ‘a day of hell’ as he described it, the day came to life for me in a way it never had before.  His commander ended up at the Nova festival by accident, fighting terrorists and trying to save lives.  Yaron had to defend his military base which was under attack.  He had to defend another military base that was under attack.  He had to fight his way to get from one place to another as terrorists were controlling the area.  The frustration in his voice as he talked about all the phone calls he was getting from people who needed the IDF to save them was palpable.  For some reason, his cell number was given out to people, and he was getting calls from all over, trying to figure out logistics and how to attempt to save people from the terrorists that were committed to murdering, raping, and kidnapping Israeli civilians.  When Yaron decided that he was going to go back to the main base to better help defend Israel, he was questioned about the risk to his own life in trying to get there.  He responded that he had to do it to save lives.  As he went to go alone, one of his friends who served under his command jumped in the jeep with him.  When Yaron told him to get out and not risk his life, his friend told him that he was in the reserves, so Yaron wasn’t really his boss, and he was going.  Two young female soldiers in their early 20s jumped in the back. Yaron ordered them out and they gave the same answer his friend did.  That’s Israel.  Saving lives was most important, even at the risk of their own lives.  When they got back to the base, they began searching for people to save.  I’ll never forget Yaron telling us that ‘there was nobody to save’. 

One of the things that tied together the sadness of October 7th and the way the Jewish people focus on the future and on hope was a picture and story Yaron told us.  He has 7 children and not too long ago his 6th child had his Bar Mitzvah.  They held his Bar Mitzvah at Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the places that was devastated by Hamas terrorists on October 7th.  Despite the death.  Despite the sadness.  Despite the loss.  The Jewish people will live on.  We will celebrate joy.  We will not just survive, we will thrive. 

Yaron with his son at the Bar Mitzvah at Kibbutz Be’eri

Yaron had to leave after the presentation because he had to back to Gaza.  He said it to me the way I would have said, “I have to go back to the office” or “I have to go to the grocery store.”  That struck me as well.  He was going back into harm’s way as if it was no different than going to the store.  He understands what is at stake is the future of the Jewish people. I’m hoping to see Yaron again today or tomorrow before he has to fly to the US but neither of us in charge of that.  It depends on what is needed in Gaza.  What a strange sentence to type and thought to have. 

The group of us went out to dinner at a great meat restaurant.  They fed us like at a Brazilian steakhouse and we ate and talked.  The sun set over the port of Tel Aviv and we shifted from Yom HaZikaron to Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day).  Normally this is an incredible transition with sadness erupting into incredible joy.  I’m still processing how different it was last night and will write about that in my next blog post.  It’s too much right now, especially with the entire day of Yom Ha’atzmaut ahead. As Saul was talking to us about the transition, he talked about pain and suffering and the difference between them.  He told us a story about a woman giving birth and her husband was there with her.  As she was in excruciating pain, he began making faces of pain.  She stopped, mid push, and asked why he was making faces when she was in pain. He told her he didn’t like to see her suffering.  She took a deep breath, paused again between pushing, and told him she was in pain, not suffering.  Saul, and the story, reminded us that suffering leads to nothing.  Pain leads to growth.  As we deal with the pain of October 7th, the pain of the war in Gaza, the pain of the loss of life, we can also grow.  Suffering is useless.  It leads to nothing. 

Today was filled lots of pain but no suffering. I’m so glad to be here in Israel, my homeland, with my brothers and sisters. I can feel the healing beginning.

The journey begins – return to Israel post October 7th

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

The journey begins.  My son took me to the Orlando Brightline station so I could take the train to Ft. Lauderdale so I can board me El Al flight to Israel.  My bags are heavy, filled not just with my clothes but also with things to give away to my friends serving in the IDF and their fellow soldiers.  I usually bring some things to give away but this time it feels like a holy mission as they mean more than the usual knickknacks. 

When I go to Israel I tend to write a lot, often daily.  So, I hope you bear with me as I chronicle this trip.  It already feels different.  My family really doesn’t want me to go but they could only delay this trip for so long.  Israel is in my entire being.  It isn’t just my heart and soul but it is core to my identity.  This is my 21st trip but is very different than any before.  I came during the start of the first intifada and again during the second intifada when few Jews were traveling to Israel.  It broke my heart every time somebody thanked me for being Jewish and coming to Israel because all they had seen were Christians on a pilgrimage.  I was here when Jordanians were massing on the border and we could hear gunfire from our hotel room on their side of the border, not knowing they were going to breach the border.  I came during Covid, before the country even was open.  We got special permission and were limited to one of three flights.  We had to have been vaccinated and boosted, get a Covid test before we left, two when we arrived plus a blood test.  We were forced to quarantine for a day until the results came back. 

As you can tell, I’ve been here under a variety of circumstances.  Yet none is like this.  It is not because it is an active war zone.  It is not because there are still three active fronts (Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in the north, and the Houthis).  It is not because this is a solidarity mission, as I have been to Israel for that in the past.  This trip is about healing the rip in my soul that happened on October 7, 2023.  Similar to the Harry Potter story when Voldemort ripped his soul into many parts, mine was torn and damaged as I watched the horrifying events unfold on television.  The frantic texting and WhatsApp messages to my friends and family throughout Israel to check on how they were doing.  I remember one telling me about those dead at one of the kibbutzim near the Gaza border and I thought she was telling me about the Moshav that she and her husband lived on.  For more than an hour, I thought they were under attack and the terrorists were near their house until she corrected me.  My friends who were in the IDF reserves who didn’t respond to me because they were responding to the attack.  Were they alive?  My friends who had children in the IDF.  Were they alive?  Who did I know that might have gone to the Nova music festival?  While the initial reports were bad, they were nowhere close to as horrifying as what really happened there. 

I lived near Three Mile Island when it almost melted down. We evacuated, not knowing when or if we could go home.  On 9/11 I had a campus of Jewish students at University of Florida who were scared and unsure what was happening.  I had to let people go during the financial crash of 2008 for no fault of their own.  I had to lay off 136 employees when Covid shut down The Roth Family JCC in 2020.  I’ve dealt with crises before.  Nothing prepared me for the internal impact of October 7th.  This trip is entirely about that.  It is a healing journey for me. 

When I arrive, Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day will begin.  This is the third time I will be there for it and both were incredibly impactful.  This one will be very different.  The next day is Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day.  I have also celebrated two of these in Israel.  It’s usually a joyous day, filled with celebrations, parties, fireworks, barbecues, and a parade of boats and planes on the beach in Tel Aviv.  It’s one of my favorite days of the year when I can be in Israel for it.  This year will be very different.  We will go to the south, to a Kibbutz that was attacked on October 7th.  Visit the Nova music festival site.  Go back to Sderot, a place I have been many times but looks nothing like it did prior to October 7th.  I will spend a few days with two friends who are IDF reserve officers.  One spent the first four months in a high-ranking role in Gaza, the other spent the same time in a high-ranking role in the north.  My visit to the Kotel (Western Wall of the Temple) will be unlike any before.  We will volunteer on a farm, picking fruit and vegetables.  That is one of the things people have either forgotten or don’t know.  The people who worked in the fields were largely either Thai or Palestinian.  Since October 7, the King of Thailand won’t allow any workers to come to Israel and Israel has not been able to allow the Palestinians to come to work in the fields for security reasons.  Volunteers have been ensuring produce is harvested and food is available.  Imagine taking a day off from your work to go into the fields and pick produce that will help feed the entire country.  Not once.  Not twice.  It is now seven months. 

One thing will be the same.  When I walk out of the airport, that first breath of air will be sweet.  The sound of Hebrew spoken everywhere will warm my heart.  When I get to Tel Aviv tonight, I will go for a walk on the beach, feel the sand in my toes and see and smell the Mediterranean Sea.  I will dip my feet in the water and realize that I am home.  In a few days when we pull into Jerusalem, the city of Gold, I will see the breathtaking view as we drive in and be captivated.  When I go into the old city of Jerusalem, I will be overwhelmed with a closeness to God that I will work to keep with me when I am not there. 

The view of the beach and the Mediterranean Sea from my hotel balcony

I’ll miss going to the north, where it is not safe due to the Hezbollah rockets that land daily.  I’ll miss going to Tzfat, one of my favorite cities for its mysticism and beauty, because it is too close to the north.  I’ll miss being on the top of Masada and at the Dead Sea because that’s not what this trip is about.  I’ll miss the opportunity to go to Hebron and visit the tomb of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs due to security issues.  Those are all things I can do on a future trip.  There will be future trips.  Israel will win this war and survive.  That is what the media doesn’t communicate.  Israel is fighting for her survival.  And as Golda Meir said, our secret weapon is that we have no place else to go. 

Gen X, Israel vs. the US, Free Speech and the Roman Empire

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

For many obvious reasons, I have been thinking a lot about the world we live in today and the attitudes people have today.  It is truly a fascinating time to be alive in so many ways, not all of them good. 

I am part of Gen X.  I think this has a huge impact on the way I view the world.  I know it has a huge impact on how I both raised my children and how I see what is happening on college campuses, in the school systems, and in our country.  My generation grew up with freedoms that future generations didn’t have.  We were latchkey kids.  Most of our parents worked so after school we were free to do what we wanted. 

We didn’t have computers or screens.  There was no internet or cell phones.  We played outside until the streetlights came on.  Often times our parents had no idea where we were after school and that didn’t bother them.  We were independent.  We’d ride our bikes miles to get to other friends’ neighborhoods.  Our friends were our friends because of who they were.  Race, religion, sexuality didn’t matter.  My public school was closed for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur because 1/3 of the students and teachers were Jewish.  We were also closed the first day of deer hunting season because 1/3 of the students and teachers would be out hunting.  We were an eclectic group of people tied together.  I grew up with friends that came from family’s that had lots of money, those who were middle class, and those who didn’t have much money.  It didn’t matter.  Many of us are still in touch today.  We had real friendships that stand the test of time.

I remember when two of my childhood friends finally came out.  I, like the rest of our friends, were happy for them that they felt comfortable coming out.  We also knew they were gay when we were in elementary school, so it wasn’t a big deal and changed nothing as far as we were concerned.  We paid attention to who people were, not identity politics. 

As I look at the world today, I wonder how we lost that specialness from my childhood.  We are more divided than any time since the civil war.  We no longer focus on the quality of the individual but on what sets them apart from us.  We no longer care about who people are but rather how they identify.  When I was running nonprofits, my goal was always to hire the best person for the job.  It didn’t matter to me if it was a man or a woman, what their race or their religion was.  I didn’t care about their sexuality.  I wanted the best person for the job.  Today’s world seems to have more and more focus on the identity of the person as we focus on how we are different instead of how we are similar.

My older son is home for a bit and he took me to the Brightline station (high speed rail between Orlando and South Florida) so I can get my flight to Israel later tonight.  As we were talking, he told me about how many of his ‘friends’ he has had to block on social media because of how they were minimizing what Hamas did on October 7th and the need for Israel to eliminate Hamas to ensure the safety of Israelis and to free to people of Gaza.  It saddened me to hear this.  I don’t know how all my childhood friends feel about the conflict.  What I do know is that the vast majority of them have reached out in support of me.  I’m not asking them to believe what I believe.  I am asking them to be my friend and understand what I am going through as a Zionist and as a Jew since October 7th. 

I have long looked at the difference between Israeli youth and American youth.  From the time I first began to engage with 18-21 year old Israelis, serving their country in the IDF, and comparing them to my own college experience and then, when working on the University of Florida campus, with the UF students.  The similarities and differences were dramatic.  On the many Birthright Israel trips I staffed, we had 8 Israeli soldiers join us.  They were the same age as our students on the trip.  When they showed up in uniform, they were imposing.  Awe inspiring.  A few minutes after arriving, when they changed out of their uniforms, they became peers with our college students.  For the part of the trip they were with us, the similarities between the Israelis and Americans was striking.  When they first arrived and then, when they put their uniforms back on at the end of their time with us, the differences were striking. 

As a result, it didn’t surprise me that after October 7th, so many members of the IDF reserves showed up.  I read that Israel recalled 250,000 reserve soldiers and hoped to get 200,000 to actually show up.  Instead, 300,000 showed up.  People in America were doing all they could to get flights to go back and serve.  My friends who were retired IDF soldiers in the 40s and 50s showed up to serve.  They understood the existential threat that Hamas is as a result of October 7th.  Many of them went from protesting the Netanyahu government and some of their policy positions to a united front for Israel.  It was extraordinary but if you know Israel and Israelis, it was also not unexpected.

Last week, Douglas Murray, one of my favorite people to follow, was given the Alexander Hamilton Award for his ‘unwavering defense of Western values.’  His speech, in text here and the video of it below, was extraordinary. 

He spoke about “What it Means to Choose Life”.  He uses examples of both the Ukrainian people and Israeli people that make me long for the days of my youth.  Unlike our entitled generation that believes everything should be given to them, the people he talks about understand that everything comes with a price.  Unlike the protesting college students who think they have the right to incite violence, take over buildings, violate campus rules and break laws without any consequences, the people Murray talks about understand that everything comes with a cost. 

I want to be clear that I am not saying the college students shouldn’t protest.  Protesting, especially on college campuses, is a right of passage.  We have freedom of speech in the United States and as President Andrew Shephard says in the great movie, The American President,

“America isn’t easy. America is advanced citizenship. You’ve gotta want it bad, ’cause it’s gonna put up a fight. It’s gonna say, “You want free speech? Let’s see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil, who’s standing center stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours.” You want to claim this land as the land of the free? Then the symbol of your country cannot just be a flag. The symbol also has to be one of its citizens exercising his right to burn that flag in protest. Now show me that, defend that, celebrate that in your classrooms.  Then you can stand up and sing about the land of the free.”

I disagree with the campus protesters position, and I disagree with how they characterize what is going on in Gaza.  I also firmly stand with their right to peacefully say it.  To gather in the public allowed space, in the manner that is allowed for everybody, and protest and hold signs, and say what they want.  Crossing the line to blocking Jewish students from going to class, harassing them as they walk on campus, threatening them, physically assaulting them, breaking the campus rules and breaking laws is not acceptable and comes with consequences. 

I laughed when the spokesperson for the student protesters who took over Hamilton Hall at Columbia University asked for ‘humanitarian aid’.  Nobody was forcing them to stay in the building.  They could walk out of the building to get food and water any time they wanted.  The entitlement was absurd.  The students at Princeton who have decided to hold a hunger strike to protest the war in Gaza also made me shake my head.  Nobody is forcing them to go on a hunger strike.  They aren’t in prison or jail where their care belongs to the state and monitoring them is therefore the state’s obligation. They are choosing not to eat and as a result, they are responsible for their own health monitoring.  When they got upset that the University wasn’t monitoring their health as they were on the hunger strike, I thought to myself, ‘What entitlement’. 

I missed the protests of the 60s and 70s because I was too young.  I have had the opportunity to talk with many people who were part of those protests.  Every single one that I spoke with could tell me how many times they were arrested for their protest.  Every single one of them was proud of their arrest.  They knew there would be consequences for their protest, and they embraced it.  They didn’t whine and cry when the consequences came.  They had that level of conviction.  Today’s protesters seem to lack that conviction.  They want the best of both worlds.  They want to protest with no consequences and have the rest of the world cave to their demands because they protested once.  There are Universities who have done this, and I believe they will face long lasting consequences for doing this.  Others have held their ground and ensured that freedom of speech is protected, and inappropriate actions are held accountable and face consequences.  Those who have made the second choice are also bearing the fruits of this effort.  Their students feel safe.  Their graduations are not cancelled.  Their donors and alumni are not up in arms.  Their University Presidents are not having to testify in front of Congress about how they are failing to protect Jewish college students. 

Our world today has the ‘news’ in the ‘entertainment’ department.  We have the 24 hour ‘news’ cycle and each station has its own agenda to push.  The days of Walter Cronkite reading the news and you getting to interpret it are long gone.  Whatever channel you watch feeds you their narrative.  Critical thinking is dying.  Deep conversations are dying.

On this trip to Israel, one of my hopes and plans is to go visit my friend Mahmoud in East Jerusalem.  Mahmoud is a Palestinian Arab, and his family owns the big Palestinian bookstore in East Jerusalem.  When we met in November 2019, he pushed some of my buttons and challenged me to think deeper and in different ways.  In the 4 ½ years since we met, I have thought deeply on many things he said to us and very much look forward to sitting down for a few cups of coffee or tea, a bite to eat, and having a robust and deep conversation.  We won’t settle the conflict, but we can do our little part to build friendships, understanding, and perhaps share what we learn from each other with our other friends that might impact change.

I think that’s the most important lesson of all of this.  I remember hearing the stories of how President Ronald Reagan and Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill would argue and fight all day long and then go have a beer together.  Mahmoud and I will come from different points of view and will sit over coffee and talk and share.  Even as I write this, a friend reached out to share information I wasn’t aware of and it changed my mind and I went back and edited something that I wrote as a result of this new information.  We need to find a way to get back to that being the norm.  Yelling at each other, only speaking with people who agree with you, repeating lies because they advance your point of view, and anything else that fits into this area does not solve problems.  It doesn’t get us to solutions.  It doesn’t bring us together.  It divides us.  It separates us.  It leads to physical harm.  It degrades us as human beings and as a civilization.

There was a fascinating September 2023 CBS News report that said most men think about the Roman Empire once a day, and some think about it as often as three times a day.  My wife asked me about it and I said that I think about it at least once a week.  She was stunned.  Why do men think about the Roman Empire so often?  My theory is that the Roman Empire is a symbol of amazing strength and power.  Incredible things came from the Roman Empire.  It seemed to a power that would last forever.  And it fell.  I always wondered how the Roman Empire could fall.  It had a strong military, powerful leaders, good economy, art, and culture.  It seemed to be the type of society that would last forever.  Yet it didn’t.  The past few years have given me an indication of how it could have fallen.  Internal bickering.  Divisiveness.  Lack of humanity.  Lack of understanding.  Growth of hate.  Poor leaders in control.  I hope that we can learn the lessons from the fall of the Roman Empire to avoid the fall of the American experiment.  Freedom, democracy, and our future are too important to just throw away the way we are.