Trump and the American People regarding Jerusalem and the Jews

I was pleased with President Trump’s speech of the US recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and beginning to create a beautiful US embassy here. And I’m not the only one, as one can see here and read here and here and here.

Applause

And I have the right to applaud it, because when the enemies of peace, as their way of expressing their angry opinion, again would try to murder Jews, my life and that of my fellow Jewish Jerusalemites or Israelis are on the line. (Isn’t it telling that the US president says something and they seek to kill Jews? If that isn’t Jew hatred, then what is?) And if they would try to intensify their armed struggle again, the lives of my son in the army and his fellow soldiers are more in danger too. Heaven forbid.

I say: well done, Mr. Trump for speaking truth to power — the whole rest of the world, especially the Muslim world. (Well, actually, there are other exceptions!) Jewish History always takes note of our allies and friends. And we as Jews have a memory as no other People in the world (an eternal memory).

Tone

Even if Trump’s whole performance was possibly make-belief, theatre, this is irrelevant as long as he stands by his word. He can despise and hate all Jews, but if he says he loves us and keeps acting as if he does, and doesn’t say one thing and does another in closed chambers, any insincerity is immaterial.

And Trump was extremely presidential – believe me. The day before, he even called the five most disgruntled national leaders to reassure and placate them. Wow.

(While the US is tightening its grip on the Arab Palestinian leadership, the US President himself adds an accessory smile and talks about being fair to both sides – which is a code for insiders for reining in the villains on the one side they are.)

Further, he underpinned his decision with reasons and didn’t stress that Israel is the home nation for the Jewish People and other expressions of fondness for Jews that always set off anti-Semites.

He did point out – fruitlessly, because our enemies don’t want to hear of peace – that this does not change US policy and he will keep working to help establish a peace in the Middle East to the liking of both Israel and (lehavdil) the Palestinian Arabs. They don’t want peace. They only dream of greater Arab Palestine – anything less is defeat. (I know for years that ‘Christmas celebrations’ in Bethlehem were just theatre, since the Christian Palestinian population has been largely removed by the Muslim Palestinians – they are now sheltering in Israel. But now the proof is in.)

I Missed

What I missed in Trump’s lengthy, balanced and dignified presentation was: an acknowledgement that this move was not born from his greatness (he did gave respect to his predecessors who did not do so “for no doubt their own good reasons at the time”) and that of Congress, but rather a reflection of the deep friendship of the American People for the Jewish State. They should be proud of themselves. Especially in light of almost all other Nations rejecting this.

I also missed the announcement to release Jonathan Pollard from the restraining measurements against him. Maybe a bit later. It would be nice if he could recover here first and then cut the ribbon to open the new US embassy in Jerusalem.

What’s the Problem?

Last but not least: The condemnation of the world’s leaders is informed by aware and unaware hate against Jews.

In some it’s clear: they long for the day that all Jews will be dead or subjugated. But in others, who truly see themselves as our friends, their subconscious anti-Semitism doesn’t want us to be powerful. We should be a People like all other Nations. And that is challenged by Trump’s new position.

The problem for no one is that Jerusalem will be acknowledged as the Capital of the Jewish State and even not that all embassies would be here or Jerusalem stays united. Rather, the outright haters see the lack of embassies as a sign of a non-peace phase on its way to Israel’s total loss, Heaven forbid. This US move builds up Israel. That is their problem.

The so-called neutral leaders take it also as underwriting Israel’s Six Day War’s victory of uniting Jerusalem. They like and honor dead Jews, and want to see Jews successfully fight for survival or as equal to others. But they cannot bear to see powerful and safe Jews, Jews standing out.

And many of the Arabs in Jerusalem do not want to become part of a Palestinian State. They want to stay part of a democracy. Guess which State that must be. There is no future in splitting up the Holy City.

A parallel problem shows in the conflict Israel now has with Germany – one of our best allies – what means even more because it used to be our worst enemy. The Germans will not guarantee to return a Dead Sea Scrolls exhibition to Israel after touring there. These ancient Jewish texts are being claimed by Arab Palestinians. How can one fall for such a chutzpah?! Next thing we know they will declare that the Patriarchs and Matriarchs were Palestinian Arabs too, hijacked by the Jews.

Conclusions

I find it disgusting to see how Arab leaders against Trump’s declaration agitate and incite their followers. And then when the population responds with violence it is described in the foreign media as if “unrest broke out,” “erupted,” as if it is caused by the laws of nature, like the forest fire now threatening Los Angeles, and not by human wickedness.

And the world does not condemn the incitement and calls for terrorism. Very distasteful. Even when Israel has done nothing new, nothing wrong, Jews in Israel are still fair game and the world is silent again.

I don’t know how the US Population got things so right, where so many others get it wrong. I can only say: kol-ha-ka-vod – Well done!

About the Author

MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. * As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. * This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. * Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. * Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. * Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. * He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. * He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. * He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. * His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. * To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. * His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1