I wonder which Israel we ought to consider for the fact that there are several ideas (imagined or in some stage of conception) all lumped into an opaque State of Israel and presented as the promised land of level-headedness and peace for all Jews mentioned in Siddur, the Jewish book of prayers and rites of practice. In reality, however, it is a place for experiments and fantasies practiced by a militant Jewish minority in some sort of a trial and error scheme. The ideal of peace and tranquility has remained elusive for all 60 years of the promised nation-state since a group, self-defined as Zionists, set out to form a Jewish refuge. In reality, it has been six decades of a state of siege and the presumed mindset of war, where all adults are afraid of the draft for war duty and of bloodshed the next day. Simply put, the State of Israel has served as an arena for bloodshed of the same Jews that were promised peace. The enigma of militants was truly exposed when a founding member of the Zionist movement, Yitzhak Rabin, was killed for his decision to change course and pursue real peace. The militants celebrated by ripping up a negotiated peace deal and blockading of their peace partners.
Jerusalem is one of the most often-conquered territories in history where conquerors each roamed the turf for a few decades. Thus, I frame the most recent occupation in that regard, for the mindset of occupiers is no different than all previous conquerors-- all have congratulated themselves with pomp and ceremony and decreed themselves as the permanent rulers of an arid land. In due course, all rigid-minded rulers refused reform, compromise and the need to face reality. All eventually lost control and were replaced by others despite embargoes, wars, siege, passionate declarations or endless arguments with skewed recollections of history.
Looking beyond the central issue of occupation and conflict with Arabs, many questions easily bust the enigmatic hallow and the gloss over the reality of Israel, where a racist regime without a written constitution insists on being the last living member of the apartheid club. Murky practices of torture, disregard for the security and well-being of the occupied (mandated by the Geneva Conventions), and its nuclear arsenal are seemingly beyond query by the rest of the world.
An observer might wonder about the inner workings of the Israeli state and question whether it is a sustainable notion or a merely a self-defeating belief of a failing nation-state. After all, it is a small territory with the population of, say, London, with more than fifteen political parties and no less than seven different interpretations of Judaism and religious practice sects, where about a third of children live in poverty and a quarter are first-generation immigrants who do not speak Hebrew. An observer will quickly conclude that beliefs of being “the chosen” and not answerable to international laws, or spying against its main financial and political sponsor (the U.S.), or refusing international peacekeepers are simply rogue behavior and out of order.
Israeli desires to run short-term tactics and postpone reality are short-sighted. Modern communications, and especially the end of the Cold War, have called Israel’s bluff and the game is up for militant demagogues. These faded policies of appealing to the worst fears of others, fabrications of hyped scenarios, or deflecting attention to hoax stories are proven failures. Without substantial reform of its behavior and acceptance of reality, Israel will be hard-pressed to sustain its illogical posture and standing in the global village.
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