In last Friday's Jerusalem Post I saw a letter to the editor which so perfectly explains the issue. No great surprise that it was written by a long-time friend of ours, Doug Greener.
Here's the letter:
Sir, --
As the son of an American World War II veteran, I completely identify with Nelly Gootin’s frustration over the different war narratives as understood by Israelis and the rest of the Diaspora (“The Russian Mimouna,” May 4). One could easily go through the Yad Vashem Museum, or listen to the stories on Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Day, without realizing that the Holocaust was ended only by the military defeat of Nazi Germany. (Quite possibly, it has been the Israeli left which suppresses this fact, since one of its core beliefs is that “violence only begets more violence.”) Be that as it may, we in Israel should be celebrating V-E Day, whether on May 8 (as in the U.S.) or May 9 (as in Russia).
I would like to offer a suggestion to prevent the celebrations and parades from becoming a Russian-only holiday, as Ms. Gootin fears. Like Soviet soldiers stretched out their hands to American GIs when they met at the Elbe River, the Red Army veteran organizations should welcome World War II veterans from the U.S., Canada, Britain, Free France, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and other nations, to join in the parades and parties. Let them drink vodka and sing together, like our fathers did 62 years ago. I’m sure they’ll find a common language – and perhaps every Israeli will understand it too.
Doug Greener, ddwgreen@netvision.net.il
Pisgat Ze’ev
Jerusalem
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