Why, in the end, will innocence always beat evil, and love always defeat hatred?

Life is not an equal opportunity employer. Good and love are favored.

Optimism is no good unless it’s part of realism. Let’s not confuse being positive about the ending with assuming all’s OK now. We must think well about our safety so that we may live to enjoy the all is well that ends well.

If you ever held a baby, you know that innocence and being loving are part of the human makeup. Evil and hating are unnatural corruptions of us.

It takes extra effort to be wicked and angry. Turning away from evil and hatred takes effort, too, but it immediately pays back since it resonates with who you are. To be bad and hate may energize you, but it eats you.

That’s why people (soldiers) fighting for a good cause (saving lives), in the end, always triumph over those who try to end lives, who often surrender.

NB: Nice and good doesn’t always equal friendly and soft. The Sages teach that history shows that those who’re good to the bad end up being bad to the good. This is hard for people who always want to applaud both sides.

(Same idea as that democracy sometimes must combat anti-democrats, bigots, and supremacists to maintain itself. That’s a fight for equality.)

More than 1,500 Chamas terrorists infiltrated Israel with machine guns, mowing down mostly noncombatants, wounding nearly 3,000, and killing 900+. So, on average, each terrorist killed less than 1 civilian. No matter how indoctrinated with lies and hatred, it’s hard to play evil, convincingly.

Yes, Jews are seeing Miracles again, G^d’s Hand, and Atheists must credit Good Fortune, but a good ending is the only possible outcome, anyway.

To acknowledge the basic goodness of men who try to commit genocide and other crimes against humanity is not to render them innocent or to advocate not to stop them. Rather, it explains why they will not win, are often eager to surrender when cornered, and are truly guilty. If they were inherently wicked, they would have been as innocent as a vicious dog. But because of their good Souls, they are guilty of the atrocities committed.

Israelis who lost loved ones, whose close ones were injured, or even kidnapped and violated, and who have children and grandchildren going into battle, we know how hard it is. But we too need optimism to cry. To be sad/scared or cry is not the same as being hysterical, down, or numb.

Yes, on the Arab side, there is mourning too, but there is a huge moral discrepancy between SS soldiers and German bystanders being killed in a war and minorities being mowed down or gassed in genocides. Terrorists target civilians, while the IDF tries to not hit civilians. Mass murder is not the same as a mass calamity. It leaves people as dead, but ethics matter.

NB: Don’t call bloodthirsty people ‘animals.’ That’s degrading to animals. Don’t call the wicked ‘crazy.’ That’s degrading to those with mental illness.

Words to Strengthen Jewish Children in the Diaspora

Let’s talk about feelings, about being positive, and being hopeful. Our leaders and Rabbis talk a lot about tears and happiness, but often they can’t cry anymore or be happy. Never give up on your tears or happiness. Cry when you need to, and sing and dance when you like. Choose life.

Watching from afar always feels worse than being in the middle of it. You can’t do anything from a distance, and powerlessness feels very bad.

It can help you to draw pictures of your feelings.

Let no one obligate you to take in hurt from watching terrible pictures and listening to people you don’t know personally telling about their pain. You can get information without acquiring unnecessary distress. Read about it.

Without denying any bad feelings, you can also look for positive things. Johan Cruyff famously said: “Every disadvantage has an advantage.”

Many non-Jews around the world express deep solidarity. There is a lot of anger in Israel but also a lot of profound unity. In Israel, most Jews are not in danger at all, thanks to using our brains, planning, cohesion, the police, the military police, the army, and God’s Hand (religious people think).

When info confuses you, remember that doesn’t mean you’re stupid. We can feel confused when we are told untruths or only part of the story. Keep questioning (in your head?) until things make sense and seem true. Try to find honest voices that say things differently from the prejudices.

War is always very bad, but it always passes.

Nothing is ever so bad that you have to give up all hope.

You can, may, and perhaps should always have hope, even if only a little.

Bad feelings always diminish over time. Just because you feel terrible now doesn’t mean you will feel that way in a year, two years, or forever.

That’s called despair, that you gave up hope. Even if everyone around you seems desperate, you still don’t have to become all-worried.

Jews are the People of Eternal Hope, which can go a long way in helping.

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