Ga’avah – Hubris: A Double Edged Israeli Sword

To a degree, the confidence and ego manifested by Israelis is necessary. After all, the society has had to stand up to enemies from without throughout its history. And to a large degree it has been very effective, at least against external enemies. However, this ego has artificially created enemies within which threatens the entire fiber of the country.

I refer to every extreme sector of Israeli society: right, left, secular, religious. We live in a parliamentary democracy, sadly not a representative one. That creates a divide between the members of parliament and the people. What has developed is that he who screams the loudest often gets his way. This is true both in Knesset and in the streets. I will focus on the street.

One of the necessary principles of a democracy is the need for the “rule of law” to guide our behavior in the public domain. Having lived in New York City both prior to and during the reign of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, I can attest to the absolute need for a strict implementation of law and order to the quality of all the residents.

Yet here in Israel, every group feels they can do as they please. As noted in the book of Judges multiple times. The Jews got into trouble each time they followed the dictum of “איש הישר בעיניו יעשה” Each man does whatever he feels is correct. This is certainly the motto of each of the aforementioned sectors in Israeli society. The secular left always cries out that democracy is being threatened and thus they feel they can protest and block any road they see fit. They also cry out for the hostages when they really want to attack and destroy Bibi. They have no concern for the thousands of man-hours of work that are lost because they block the roads. They have no concern for ambulances and other emergency vehicles that might need to go on that road. I ask a simple question: what makes their “freedom of speech” take precedence over the needs of thousands of others. Can’t they just as well gather in a public park with a permit?! I would like to assure them that their actions will only support our enemies and make ordinary Israelis reject their arrogance.

I feel the same way about the Charedi protests that also close down public transportation and access. They are also guilty of a lack of respect for the police as well as the rule of law. They have no problem making their needs for financial support from the State paramount yet have no guilt at risking the lives of those that do serve. Yes, those that sit from dawn to dusk and learn conscientiously may deserve a draft deferment. But those that don’t and go out and work should get no benefits from the State. The army is fighting a milchemet mitzvah – a mandatory battle and should be supported. Additionally, this sector is committing a terrible chillul Hashem – desecration of God’s name by refusing categorically to help their fellow Jews!

Although I agree with the need to support settlement growth throughout the land of Israel and appreciate those that go out to establish new settlements, we also need to condemn the minority of settlers who commit violent acts. Just because the Palestinians commit violent acts does not give permission for civilians to take the law in their own hands. I agree that the government and the army need to take a stronger stand against Palestinian violence but their lack of response is not an excuse for violence on our part.

In summary, I believe that the majority of Israelis want peace between our various tribes. If we want to bring the Mashiach, he won’t come unless we learn to treat each other with the respect that we each deserve. “My rights” do not trump anyone else’s. Until we learn that lesson, each group will continue to tear our nation apart.