June 2024 — Page 2 of 5 — Karen Alkalay Gut קרן אלקלעי גוט

phoenix - 6.22.24

David Grossman said it tonight – if we don’t rise from the ashes now, we’ll never rise up. This is such a crucial moment in our history.

In a zoom workshop tonight I couldn’t concentrate – I kept wanting to be at the demonstration, at the 20th birthday party of Naama Levy, a hostage in Gaza. I didn’t go because I’m feeling very vulnerable physically, and I’m afraid of the violence. But there is nothing else we can do to change this situation.

I am even beginning to believe the rumors that Bibi is acting so unpredictably because he’s made a deal with Trump to make Biden look bad.

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israeli politics

Lost Men - 6.20.24

A dear friend told me today about a man she had seen many times in the neighborhood and had secretly longed for. He was killed in the war – she told me – and only later she discovered his age, the story of his life, his hobbies, his ex-partner, his loneliness.

And she started to cry.

Every time they start to talk on tv about a man killed in the war I change the channel. I cannot bear the loss. Each one makes me think of their lives, their loves, their children, and I break up.

When I see pictures of victims in Gaza it is more blurry. It doesn’t always come automatically – sometimes I have to conjure up their individuality.

And that too breaks my heart.

Lost Men – 6.20.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

Homage to Anne Sexton - 6.18.24

Waiting for the rockets to fall, I thought about how Anne Sexton viewed her life over the years

I’ve written a few articles about her, about her use of pop culture, and about her use of her name, and of how she puts a poem together. Amazing person.

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israeli politics

Building Sabotage - 6.17.24

It’s an old story. A few months after you move into a new house, the toilet blocks up and after you’ve gone through the plumber to new pipes and a new toilet you discover you’ve had rice poured into the plumbing from the beginning. Or your wall is all wet and it turns out that sealing material wasn’t used in the building of the wall. I hear about this all the time from broken-hearted home owners who are forced into rebuilding again and again. There are also stories that workers engrave their names into the blocks so when the building is in ruins they may claim it as theirs.

I’m telling you this because my kids won’t remodel or build if they know this goes on. So I don’t want to tell them – just make sure you get workers you can really trust.

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israeli politics

Soldiers - 6.15.24

Because one of the actresses in my little troupe is on reserve duty, we’re waiting to have more rehearsals, so I thought I’d use this opportunity to mention this point. Israel doesn’t have an army. We have a draft of 32 months for men, 24 months for women and then annual reserve duty until the age of 40 or45. That means we’re totally integrated in the military whether we want to be or not.

The extreme religious community is exempt and even though there is a war going on they will not be drafted.

So my beautiful acting student is serving in the war. There just aren’t enough men.

soldiers – 6.15.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

Villages - 6.15.24

Crime is rampant in the villages. And it’s a very complex kind of crime – that I don’t pretend to understand. I remember standing by the wall in the auditorium in Muhrar with Naim Araidi and asking about some of the procedures in the festival, and he answered in a way I will never forget. “You cannot understand the complexity of the workings even of this village. You cannot begin to understand what crime is.”

And today I learn that his son was murdered and decapitated in a very gruesome manner in https://www.timesofisrael.com/son-of-former-israeli-ambassador-found-decapitated-in-north/.

Naim died a terrible death of throat cancer but this is so much worse. the 92 Arab death this year.

I will publish Naim’s poems on my site now.

villages – 6.15.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

First Thing in the Morning - 6.15.24

First thing is to check out what happened in the night – what bombs, what houses destroyed, what announcements made. Then we go to the politics, anything – radio, papers, substacks, etc.

Then it’s time to get to the people we know – how everyone is in the family, friends, neighbors

It’s only then that we start our day.

first thing in the morning – 6/15/24 Read Post »

israeli politics

Why I'm Stressed - 6.14.24

At last SOMEBODY is saying what I’ve been worrying about for a year: Yahya Sinwar’s aims in rejecting and amending Biden’s hostage deal – The Jerusalem Post (jpost.com)

He doesn’t want to settle. He’s relying on world pressure to get rid of us. That’s why he’s sacrificed 30 thousand Gazans.

That part has been obvious, but what I didn’t realize is that I’m really stressed by this situation. Last night I flipped out over a crazy neighbor, and only a walk on the beach could ease my mind. Today we went to the Land of Israel Museum and wandered into an exhibit meant to calm us down – an asan moment.

It’s a good exhibit but I was infuriated, and it took me a while to realize that my anger stemmed from something familiar. You know how someone tells you to ‘calm down’ when you thought you were calm and that instruction makes you angry? Well, that exhibit made me realize how justifiably stressed I am. As long as all the world believes the lies they’re planting – we’re trapped.

I’ve been reading the New York Times for ages, but only recently has the news about Israel become so slanted that even I have noticed it. Check it out. Check out HaAretz or Times of Israel and see if there is any connection at all. You’ll see that we seem to be publishing both sides, but the NYT only discusses negative elements. Maybe some complaints might help. But it really grieves me that my former favorite paper has betrayed me.

Why I’m Stressed -6.14.24 Read Post »