STRIVING FOR MERE EXISTENCE

Moshe Feiglin
The Jewish Press
Posted Sep 14 2011

The frustration that grasped me over Shabbat reminded me of the man who told me how, at his bar mitzvah, ghosts suddenly entered the synagogue in Budapest. It was scary, with a stench of smoke and death. The ghost ascended to the stage of the synagogue and began to shout, ‘Jews, I have escaped Auschwitz to warn you that they will burn you. Run away now!’ “

“The synagogue managers,” the man continued, “dragged him off the stage and threw him out of the synagogue. I was sitting next to my father, in an aisle seat, and the man touched me. Until this very day, I can remember his smell. One month later, I was in Auschwitz.” That is what happens when the public is not willing to deal with the significance of what it hears. That is what happens when leadership is captive to the existing pre-conceptions. No facts, proofs or evidence will help. They will not listen to you. They will throw you out of the synagogue, they will say that you are an extremist and are crazy. They will do anything to save themselves from dealing with the significance of what you are saying.

I didn’t really want to write about what is happening in Israel’s south as a direct result of the Gaza withdrawal and an ongoing horrendous government misconceptions. What can I say, “I told you so?” There is nothing taking place now that I have not warned about in tens of columns. What good will come out of writing the same things again? Why should anybody listen now?

What can I write? Blame Begin, who surrendered the Sinai desert? Blame Rabin and Peres, who surrendered Gaza and injected Arafat’s army of terrorists into its streets and alleys? Or blame Sharon, who destroyed Gush Katif?
I hear the “experts” on the radio. The broadcasters are not interviewing those who tried to warn us. Instead, they interview the “synagogue managers,” those people who held senior positions and those who cooperated with the liars. They will go to great lengths to preserve the lie and the mentality that defends it.

“Feiglin, tell me what we can do,” a senior worker in the Ashkelon municipality shouted to me after a Grad missile landed in her yard. ”First of all, change all the names of the streets, plazas and boulevards here back from ‘Rabin’ to their original names,” I answered her. She, totally shocked, turned around and walked away, not comprehending what I had just said to her.

Remember Rabin. It is impossible to get through to a public that is captive to a misconception. From at least the time of Oslo, (Infamous handshake on White House lawn with Clinton, Rabin, Peres and Arafat and may this incident live in the infamy it deserves – jsk)

Israel has been captive. Instead of freeing itself from the Oslo mentality and the name Rabin that symbolizes it, they changed the names of the Katyusha missiles. Rabin promised they wouldn’t fly from Gaza into Israel. They do, but never fear. In the north, where Rabin never promised we would not be hit by Katyushas, we are still attacked by Katyushas. But in the south, where he scoffed at the thought, we are attacked by Grads.

Just a short while after the recent murderous rampage (a.k.a. terror attack) in the south, Israel’s Air Force eliminated five senior terrorists in Gaza. The news broadcasts also mentioned that they were behind Gilad Shalit’s abduction. Why didn’t they kill them earlier and prevent the murders? Because Israel has no goal other than to survive.

Its leadership cannot initiate anything because there is no national goal for which it is legitimate to fight – other than simple existence. If Israel had killed the terrorists before their rampage, tensions here would have escalated and the media that continues to pump Oslo into our bloodstream would have blamed our leaders. In other words, when there is no destiny beyond mere existence, we cannot initiate. All we can do is react. So now we have more murdered Jews – and an escalation of tensions, as well.

All that we wanted was to realize the Zionist goal of “being a normal nation like all other nations.” We tried to create an artificial reality that would replace the heavy burden of destiny that the Jewish nation carries on its back. But reality, of course, cannot be changed. We have lost eye contact with our destiny and now, even though we are stronger than ever, we cannot defend ourselves. Without destiny, all we can do is react. And he who only reacts will ultimately fall.

I am a great believer in the nation of Israel. I believe that ultimately, we will return to our destiny. When that happens, our enemies will evaporate. I just pray that the process of reclaiming our destiny will not be too painful.