israeli politics

what if - 4.29.24

What if Hamas agrees, returns the hostages, we call a ceasefire, and we can begin to talk?  What if the residents of the kibbutzim down south are able to rebuild the ruins of their little Edens and are not terrified of living near the border?  What if Hizballah stops bombing us and our 100000 citizens can return to their homes in the north.

It seems like a dream, and all the remaining problems – enormous as they are – solvable.  We could even put Bibi into a bearable position without his cabinet.

But for me, I absolutely must have those women, those girl,  back first.  The fact that Hamas is suddenly showing videos of man in good shape makes me fear even more that the women are not in shape to be seen.

 

 

what if – 4.29.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

family history trip - 4.27.24

Ezi spent all day yesterday preparing a powerpoint with all the family history, childhood photographs, and dozens of pictures and diagrams of buildings and bridges his family built.  This morning our neice came with her daughter to preview the powerpoint before the trip around Tel Aviv to visit the sites themselves. 

Some of our grandkids have seen the watertowers, the breakwaters, the edifices Ezi’s father and gradfather built.  Some even know Ezi’s part in the story.  But I wish we could have filmed it all.  We wound up refreshing the tombstones of Ezi’s grandparents in Trumpeldor cemetery.   

This is definitely my favorite cemetery – not only because so many of Ezi’s relative are there. and all the ‘streets of Tel Aviv’ are there, but because it’s so informal.  You can see that a cemetery in Judaism is just a place to dump the body and not to take up space.  There are dozens of ‘anonymous’ graves too, that remind one that lots of people came here alone, usually because their families had been killed, and they never got the know anyone before the wars took them.  

i also love the fact that it’s in the middle, part of the city – and it’s hard to distinguish the famous poet’s grave from the apartment building around it.  This is Tschernichovsky’s grave

and if you know nothing else about him, remember these lines: 

“Laugh, laugh at my dreams

I laugh at them too

laugh that I believe in mankind

that I still believe in you.”

(Most people translate it a more formal tone like here: https://www.emjc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Tchernichovskythe-other-national-poet.pdf

And not far away is Arik Einstein, who turns my heart upside down every time a song of his is played on the radio:

https://www.haaretz.com/life/books/2013-12-25/ty-article/.premium/poem-of-the-week-our-sinatra-our-cleese-our-seeger-our-jew/0000017f-db06-df62-a9ff-dfd7a9d40000

 

Arik

 

The last time I saw him

he pushed back from the table

stood and pulled up his shirt

to show his stomach.

“This,” he said, “this is solid.”

And I agreed.

 

Last month I passed

the restaurant,

“Crown of the East,”

and thought –

it’s still there

 

Where I sat once with Eli

who’s long dead, and they’re even now

probably talking song and soccer,

and Arik still drops by.

 

But today comes with news

suddenly with his death

the spontaneity of a people’s love,

the same public fervor he would have said

distracts us from important issues…

 

And always always I hear him

on the radio, on my smartphone,

in my head,

wherever I am

and I think:

this, this is solid.

 

 

family history – Read Post »

israeli politics

divestment - 4.26.24

One of the achievements I’m most proud of in my life is my part in educating Arab students, and helping them achieve careers.  Especially women.  I’m tempted to put up pictures of my Arab students who achieved doctorates, many of whose families were almost illiterate.  Divest from them?

Next to my offices is the medical school, and at least half the students are Arab.  Divest from them?

We embrace them – we don’t divest from them.

 

divestment – 4.26.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

star - 4.25.24

just a note – I’m getting an uncontrollable urge to wear a yellow star at Columbia University.  Not because I think the students are antisemitic, but because I think they should be aware of some of the consequences.

I actually think they have some justifiable points.  If children are starving,  it is terrible.  If we are killing Gazans because they are Gazans and not because we’re looking for the people who killed thousands of our loved ones, we are definitely to be blamed.  Still, even if we are to be thrown into the sea, most of the Jews around the world have never been connected to Israel, so they should be left alone, right?

If all Jews are to be killed, then I think that’s called genocide, right?

 

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israeli politics

Rehearsal - 24.4.24

Nili’s Acting Class is doing two poems of mine for the June 6th launch of the Hebrew book about household objects.  Nili and I mention that since the book came out in September the significance of things has changed, the meaning of objects has changed for us, and the students immediately change gear.  At first it was a humorous poem about leaving a note for the burglar about the value of the household effects, but their understanding of the loss endured by our lack of watchfulness permeates their interpretation of the poem.   

I would say these students are particularly perceptive, but it isn’t that.  There is no one who doesn’t translate everything that happens to the massacre.

But when the students at Columbia say that there will be 10000 October 7ths, I think of the difference in their knowlesge and education about this situation.  Not that I think that Nili’s students are smarter or more politically wise, but we have gone through much more.

rehearsal – 4.24.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

informed demonstrating - 4.23.24

I have to admit that when I was in college, I too demonstrated.  I demonstrated for equal rights, and against the war in Viet Nam.  The situation was simpler, though, and the demonstrators knew exactly what they were fighting for. 

And it was never the death of the other.

 

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israeli politics

couldn't do it - 4.23.24

a holiday of freedom when we have kidnapped victims whose fate is unknown, makes us all slaves again.  Even though we wore the shirts of the communities massacred, I couldn’t concentrate on the freedom. 

We cut the seder short and went home – but I didn’t sleep all night.  I was broken.

A friend called to ask why we have to involve the whole world in our conflicts, as my granddaughter, stuck in school at Columbia, show me the people shouting for the destruction of our people.  “10,000 times October 7th”.  That’s a bit more than “Go back to Poland!” which assumes we have another country, and that more than half of our population wasn’t evicted from Arab countries.   The ignorance of history, of sociology, of society, of the facts on the ground – astounds me.

Take for example, the support of Hamas by LGBTIQ – they would not fare well under shariya law.  what would make them ignore that danger?

 

couldn’t do it – 4.23.24 Read Post »

israeli politics

"resistance is not terrorism" - But Terrorism is not Resistance 4.21.24

I look at the signs at Columbia University, and none of them make sense.  They don’t apply to the situation.  As if the students have no connection to the real live situation. 

Do they know that there are Bedouin who are hostages? Americans?  Thais? Are they enemy as well?  Do they too deserve to be tortured as resistance?

Do they know that most of the Jews they’re threatening don’t have any connection to Israel or the subjects of their protest?  

There is so much we all need to learn – but we’re not going to learn it on the south lawn of Columbia.

I spent 3 years as a visiting scholar at Columbia,  I saw Edward Said walking to class with his wife behind him carrying his briefcase, and using the stairs while he took the elevator.  That was my lesson at Columbia.

 

“resistance is not terrorism” – 4.21.24 Read Post »