The Curious Case of Israel
Here is a snapshot of current events in Israel.
There is ongoing fighting in brutal wars with Hezbollah and Hamas and the possibility of renewed conflict with Iran.
The Prime Minister is on trial and political parties are being created and dissolved with speculation about the timing of the next election.
There are daily attacks from international press and human rights groups accusing Israel of committing genocide.
The New York Times published a column claiming that the IDF trains dogs to rape Palestinian prisoners. Canine experts and analysts have heavily criticized this as implausible and lacking evidentiary basis.
A report on crimes committed against women and children on October 7th was released. Victims, witnesses and hostages were interviewed and GoPro video taken by Hamas terrorists was analyzed. The report details events and behaviors so depraved and psychotic they are beyond human comprehension.
What else is going on?
The Israeli shekel is on a tear and has become one of the most resilient currencies.
A 1500 Square foot dirat gan (garden apartment) in Modiin currently sells for the same amount of money as a 4800 square foot house (including basement) in midtown Toronto. (To put this in perspective just think about how many people around the world have heard of Modiin and how many have heard of Toronto.)
In the World Happiness Report’s latest poll, Israel appeared at number eight out of over 140 countries evaluated. These surveys are based on polling people about their quality of life, their social support networks, and their overall life evaluation. During a period of constant war, turmoil, school and business closings, and families running to shelters to save their lives, Israelis were among the happiest in the world. For the part of the population that is often the most anxious worldwide —young adults—Israel came out number five.
After many countries tried to get Israel banned, Noam Bettan and his song Michelle represented Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest. Five countries including Spain and Iceland withdrew from the competition specifically because of Israel’s participation. During his electrifying performance in Vienna he was both cheered and loudly booed. Noam was successful in the Semi finals and came in number two overall in the Grand Finale of the competition. Noam said, “It feels like a great mission to give people light, simply light and love”.
I don’t know how to compute all these disparate current events and I won’t try to analyze them, but I will tell you about two Jewish women I read about in the past couple weeks.
Dr. Edith Eger died at age 98 on April 27th, 2026. Edith was born in 1927 in Košice, Czechoslovakia and was a talented gymnast and ballet dancer. At 16 years old her family was deported to Auschewitz. Upon arrival her parents were immediately sent to the gas chambers. On that same day, Edith was forced to dance for Dr. Josef Mengele—the Angel of Death. In 1945 Edith was discovered barely alive in a pile of bodies when American troops liberated the camp.
At the age of 98, Dr. Edith Eger died a world-renowned clinical psychologist specializing in trauma and PTSD. She was a bestselling author, teacher, mother, grandmother, and speaker whose work focused on resilience, freedom and love after suffering. One of her quotes is, “Hope is not a lottery ticket we can sit on the sofa and wait for. It’s a choice to look for light in the dark.”
Recently, I also learned about the creators of Curious George, one of the most beloved illustrated series for children. The rambunctious little monkey was created by a Jewish couple named Hans Augusto and Margrete Elizabeth Reyersbach (AKA Margret and H.A. Rey ). In 1940, Hans and Margrete built their own bicycles using spare parts and biked out of Paris just 48 hours before the German occupation. They left with nothing but their manuscripts and the bicycles they built.
They managed to make it to New York where they published the Curious George book series. The Reys lived long fulfilling lives, and their creations continue to bring smiles to children’s faces.
I can’t solve the mystery of why Israel is where it is on the currency markets and in the happiness polls, but I can recommend learning about our incredible ancestors to get a window into the spirit of the Jewish Nation.
To learn more about the Reys you can watch the short documentary The Day Curious George Escaped the Nazis, which details how they used their illustrations to navigate checkpoints during their escape from occupied France.
You can also read these books by Dr. Edith Eger: The Choice: Embrace the Possible (2017), The Gift: 12 Lessons to Save Your Life (2020), The Ballerina of Auschwitz (2024) — a young adult adaptation and retelling of her life story
You can also read, “Silenced No More: The Untold Atrocities of October 7,” compiled by the Civil Commission on October 7th Crimes Against Women and Children. Besides being unbearably difficult to read, I believe this report contains the names of some of the past, current and future heroes of the Jewish people.