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A dangerous silence

I weep as I witness outrageous verbal attacks on Israel. What makes these verbal assaults and distortions all the more painful is that they are being orchestrated by President Obama.


For me, the situation today recalls what occurred in 70 AD when the Roman emperor Vespasian launched a military campaign against the Jewish nation and its ancient capital of Jerusalem. Ultimately, Masada, a rock plateau in the Judean desert became the last refuge of the Jewish people against the Roman onslaught. I have been to Jerusalem and Masada. From the top of Masada, you can still see the remains of the Roman fortifications and garrisons, and the stones and earth of the Roman siege ramp that was used to reach Masada. The Jews of Masada committed suicide rather than let themselves be taken captive by the Romans.

In Rome itself, I have seen the Arch of Titus with the sculpture showing enslaved Jews and the treasures of the Jewish Temple of Solomon with the Menorah, the symbol of the Jewish state, being carted away as booty during the sacking of Jerusalem.

Oh, you may say, that is a far fetched analogy. Please hear me out.

The most recent sacking of the old city of Jerusalem - its Jewish quarter - took place under the Jordanians in 1948 in the first war between the Jews and the Arabs, with at least five Muslim states - Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq - seeking to destroy the Jewish state. At that time, Jordan conquered East Jerusalem and the West Bank and expelled every Jew living in the Jewish quarter of the old city, destroying every building, including the synagogues in the old quarter and expelling from every part of Judea and Samaria every Jew living there so that for the first time in thousands of years, the old walled city of Jerusalem and the adjacent West Bank were "Judenrein" -- a term used by the Nazis to indicate the forced removal or murder of all Jews..

Jews had lived for centuries in Hebron, the city where Abraham, the first Jew, pitched his tent and where he now lies buried, it is believed, in a tomb with his wife, Sarah, as well as other ancient Jewish patriarchs and matriarchs. I have visited that tomb and at the time asked an Israeli soldier guarding it - so that it was open to all pilgrims, Christians, Muslims and Jews -- "where is the seventh step leading to the tomb of Abraham and Sarah," which was the furthest entry for Jews when the Muslims were the authority controlling the holy place? He replied, "When we retook and reunited the whole city of Jerusalem and conquered the West Bank in 1967, we removed the steps, so now everyone can enter," whereas when Muslims were in charge of the tomb, no Jew could enter it. And I did.

I am not a religious person. I am comfortable in a synagogue, but generally attend only twice a year, on the high holidays. When I entered the tomb of Abraham and Sarah, as I recall, I felt connected with my past and the traditions of my people. One is a Jew first by birth and then by religion. Those who leave their religion, remain Jews forever by virtue of their birth. If they don't think so, let them ask their neighbors, who will remind them. I recall the words of the columnist Robert Novak, who was for most of his life hostile to the Jewish state of Israel in an interview with a reporter stating that while he had converted to Catholicism, he was still a cultural Jew. I remain with pride a Jew both by religion and culture.

My support for the Jewish state has been long and steadfast. Never have I thought that I would leave the U.S. to go and live in Israel. My loyalty and love is first to the U.S. which has given me, the son of Polish Jewish immigrants, so much. But, I have also long been cognizant of the fact that every night when I went to sleep in peace and safety, there were Jewish communities around the world in danger. And there was one country, Israel, that would give them sanctuary and would send its soldiers to fight for them and deliver them from evil, as Israel did at Entebbe in 1976.

I weep today because my president, Barack Obama, in a few weeks has changed the relationship between the U.S. and Israel from that of closest of allies to one in which there is an absence of trust on both sides. The contrast between how the president and his administration deals with Israel and how it has decided to deal with the Karzai administration in Afghanistan is striking.

The Karzai administration, which operates a corrupt and opium-producing state, refuses to change its corrupt ways - the president's own brother is believed by many to run the drug traffic taking place in Afghanistan - and shows the utmost contempt for the U.S. is being hailed by the Obama administration as an ally and publicly treated with dignity. Karzai recently even threatened to join the Taliban if we don't stop making demands on him. Nevertheless, Karzai is receiving a gracious thank-you letter from President Obama. The New York Times of April 10th reported, "...that Mr. Obama had sent Mr. Karzai a thank-you note expressing gratitude to the Afghan leader for dinner in Kabul. ŒIt was a respectful letter,' General Jones said."

On the other hand, our closest ally - the one with the special relationship with the U.S., has been demeaned and slandered, held responsible by the administration for our problems in Afghanistan and Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East. The plan I suspect is to so weaken the resolve of the Jewish state and its leaders that it will be much easier to impose on Israel an American plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, leaving Israel's needs for security and defensible borders in the lurch.

I believe President Obama's policy is to create a whole new relationship with the Arab states of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt, and Iraq as a counter to Iran - The Tyrannosaurus Rex of the Muslim world which we are now prepared to see in possession of a nuclear weapon. If throwing Israel under the bus is needed to accomplish this alliance, so be it.

I am shocked by the lack of outrage on the part of Israel's most ardent supporters. The members of AIPAC, the chief pro-Israel lobbying organization in Washington, gave Secretary of State Hillary Clinton a standing ovation after she had carried out the instructions of President Obama and, in a 43-minute telephone call, angrily hectored Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Members of Congress in both the House and Senate have made pitifully weak statements against Obama's mistreatment of Israel, if they made any at all. The Democratic members, in particular, are weak. They are simply afraid to criticize President Obama.

What bothers me most of all is the shameful silence and lack of action by community leaders - Jew and Christian. Where are they? If this were a civil rights matter, the Jews would be in the mall in Washington protesting with and on behalf of our fellow American citizens. I asked one prominent Jewish leader why no one is preparing a march on Washington similar to the one in 1963 at which I was present and Martin Luther King's memorable speech was given? His reply was "Fifty people might come." Remember the 1930s? Few stood up. They were silent. Remember the most insightful statement of one of our greatest teachers, Rabbi Hillel: "If I am not for myself, who is for me? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?"

We have indeed stood up for everyone else. When will we stand up for our brothers and sisters living in the Jewish state of Israel?

If Obama is seeking to build a siege ramp around Israel, the Jews of modern Israel will not commit suicide. They are willing to negotiate a settlement with the Palestinians, but they will not allow themselves to be bullied into following self-destructive policies.

To those who call me an alarmist, I reply that I'll be happy to apologize if I am proven wrong. But those who stand silently by and watch the Obama administration abandon Israel, to whom will they apologize?




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No one contended that the Sacariis were suicide bombers, or killing to "as a way of getting to heaven." They were, however, murderous thugs and terrorists. It"s a fact, albeit not a flattering one. You might want to check your facts before calling someone else wildly inaccurate!

Posted by brian_007 on 2010-04-13 13:13:33 GMT


Despite my empathy, I have to take exception to Mr. Koch"s representation of facts, and in so doing perhaps challenge the rush to judgment that might be occurring. Note, I"m not an Obama supporter, but while we tend as Jews to romanticize the heroism of the Sacariis, who in 70 CE rebelled against the brutal Roman Empire, and all died at Masada. And, we have to avoid the historical revisionism we accuse other’s of: That band of zealot hero"s was in fact a criminal gang of radical extremists that many historians compare with today’s Al Queda. They were driven out of Jerusalem by Jews. Led by Eliezar ben Ya"ir, and not unlike radical Muslims of today, they were equally violent and contemptuous of Jews who weren"t ideologically in line with themselves, as they were against the Romans. That they held out for 3 years and elected to commit suicide is the basis for creating martyrs out of them, much as Muslims radicals who idolize suicide murderers who blow themselves up with a bus load of civilians. So, yes, it is a far fetched analogy. I own an original edition of Funk & Wagnalls "Jewish Encyclopedia." – a meter of 12 volumes of history, through Jewish eyes. As such, one cannot turn to the name of a European city without reading of the horrors, persecution , and injustice waged against Jews who lived there. Not just the Crusades, or Hitler - it was before, between, and today. History drags itself forward on a viscous trail of Jewish blood. It’s the reason Israel must count on no one for it"s ultimate protection. But, that recognition demands that we think outside the box, and realize that not we – nor Obama – can take on, and insult by association, 1.4 billion Muslims and win, nor can we similarly, condemn all Catholics for pedophilia due the crimes of it’s chaste clergy – crimes that have gone on for millennia. Expedience and greed drive history. With that said, the growth of GDP in the West bank in 2008 has been the 3rd fastest rising economy on the planet Earth. The creation of jobs, commerce, tourism, and co-operative infrastructure investments in the West Bank is the greatest threat Hamas is facing. It’s a rocky and mine filled road, but we need to find strategies that work, rather than ones where the ‘opposition’ gains adherents, and we rigidify. Terrorism a strategy that works for radical Islam, despite it’s violence, dogma, envy and ignorance. Do w expect a winning strategy to change?. We need to think outside the box. The Persian Empire, the Greek Empire, the Roman Empire, the Nazis, the Communists, etc etc., gone and dusted, with hundreds of millions of lives lost as their legacy. That little, stubborn group of 0.02% of the world’s population – Jews - remain, and celebrate life - despite their mistakes, meanderings, exile, persecution and what has seemed like the end of the world many, many times. I stand with you in your pride, and I share your sorrow. But, at the front stands young Israelis – kids who should rightfully be in university, learning, partying and enjoying their youth – but instead they kick down booby trapped doors, protecting the front line of freedom for Jews and the Western world alike. I think that Obama knows that, and respects that. While you cite Hillel, I reflect on Rabbi Akiva, asked during that same reign of Roman terror, to stand on one leg and explain in a nutshell what the Torah and Talmud teaches. He responded, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you!’ And then he put his foot down. Could it be that a somewhat impetuous Obama is searching for a means to do the same?

Posted by Brian_007 on 2010-04-13 11:35:51 GMT


What a wonderful, passionate statement from Ed Koch. I weep with him at the outrageous behaviour of the President, the continuous haranging and dishonest reporting from the Western media and the silence (or outright fury) of some professed Christians ... hopefully, not the majority .... who disregard the evidence of the Scriptures, which so clearly define their own origins and history. How shocking it is that they too mouth anti-semitic statements or turn against any fellow believer who dares to voice support for Israel. I haven"t yet visited the sacred sites of the Holy Land as has Ed Koch, but one day I hope to visit Jerusalem especially. Not so long ago, I attended a marvellous Passover meal, where in loving, joyful detail, all the prayers and rituals were explained. I almost was overwhelmed with a personal sense of history and so strangely felt part of it all. I was never brought up to be Jewish (or anything at all for that matter), but for the first ten years of my life, my beautiful Jewish grandmother endeavoured to teach me prayers. Her own grandfather lies buried on Temple Mount. It has been personally very costly to mouth support for Israel, but, as (a Jewish?) Christian, I shall go on doing so until the day I die.

Posted by Anna on 2010-04-13 11:15:46 GMT


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Posted by timer on 2010-04-13 11:03:09 GMT