Israel's Left, (backed by whom? --follow the money) has been chipping away the general moral and patriotism of the ordinary Israeli citizen. This illness/cancer has expanded to Center in the political spectrum with the acceptance of the "two state solution" and support for a Pseudostinian aka Palestinian sic state in the historic Jewish Homeland. This is based on the fallacy that there is a Palestinian people and that we took their land and country. The truth is that the word/name/label "Palestine" was put on maps when there was no country, national functioning government in this part of the world. The mapmakers were Christians who didn't want to use the Biblical names of Judea and Israel, so they chose to immortalize our ancient enemies the Philistines who haven't existed for thousands of years.
Now the Left is denigrating army service by insisting that those who serve are fri'erim, suckers, fools. This is very dangerous for the health of the State of Israel. It's connected to the spoiled "me" mentality that controls Leftist post-Zionist ideology. It's also connected to the very personal and inaccurate though successful campaign of Noam Shalit to force the government to release over a thousand dangerous convicted Arab terrorists in exchange for his son Gilad, who was an IDF soldier at the time of his capture.
By calling IDF soldiers fri'erim, suckers...
- They're making a mockery of our brothers, husbands, fathers, friend etc who were killed in action.
- They're making a mockery of those idealistic Jews who come to Israel to volunteer in the IDF although no human law requires them to do so.
It's no chidush, revelation or surprise for me to say that their conclusions come from secular G-dless thinking. They don't see their service in the army, regardless of whether it's on the frontlines or in an office to be connected to a great mitzvah, G-d given commandment. My husband and I and many of our friends are immigrants עולים olim from all over the world and all different backgrounds. We consider it a great privilege to be part of the IDF, whether as a soldier or just supporting the soldiers, like myself who was not eligible for the draft.
My neighbors in Shiloh, of all generations, serve in the IDF with great honors in the most difficult and dangerous units. Statistics show that soldiers raised in dati le'umi, national religious homes, especially in Judea and Samaria excel out of proportion to their demographics, just like the kibbutznikim two generations ago.
It is terribly, terribly dangerous for Israeli society when army service is equated with being a sucker. It's even worse when those same people are blaming others for dodging the draft, even though they are doing it, too. The numbers of secular Left finding legal loop holes to be exempted from the draft is growing while the number of religious, even chareidi soldiers is increasing.
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25,000 people hold mass rally in Tel Aviv urging government to enact universal draft legislation. 'Equal draft – social justice. July 07,2012. The protesters are calling: "One people, one draft" and "Barak, you promised – now live up to it." Some activists are waving Israeli flags and holding signs reading "No army – no allowance" and "equal draft – social justice." Photo by Tali Mayer/flash90
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Although the demonstrators are blaming the chareidim (ultra-Orthodox,) they are really thinking of their neighbors' children and family members who have found legal ways of avoiding army service. Of course they won't admit it, but it's the truth. That's why they see themselves as "suckers." It's always easier to blame others.
If we change to a totally "professional," volunteer army, the staff aka soldiers will be reviled as fools. It will be staffed by the same sort that joins the police. The tzfoni Tel Aviv crowd won't let their sons endanger themselves even if the new frontline is a computer screen, because their priority is the "me," not the Nation, not the Jewish People.
7 comments:
This is a sad state of affairs. Here in chutz la'aretz, I grew up very proud of the near-100% army service in Israel and even as our aliyah draws nearer and, with it, the day one of my sons may serve, I tell myself it's the only way to keep the land - let alone keep it safe. I wouldn't ask other mothers' children to serve without strongly urging my own to do their duty as well.
That is exactly why I think the draft should be abolished.
Why should those who don't serve or can't be forced and why should the IDF be forced to take in people that are a good fit for it?
I think if someone wants to serve the country they can enlist of their own free will. The IDF will find high quality people proud to enlist and serve the state.
It might not be politically correct but its the right thing for Israel. The country has better things to do than to chase down draft dodgers and punish them.
A professional, all-volunteer army is exactly what Israel needs now. Those who hate Israel won't constitute a burden on the IDF's resources and its mission of defending the country. Those are the kind of people those who defend the draft want to force the IDF to take in whether it wants them or not. I don't think so and its about time to change it.
>> It will be staffed by the same sort that joins the police
Gosh; not a very positive way of alluding to them.
Reminds me of when a Magavnikit told me that Yisrael Medad is a political hanger-on Knesset-staffer hack who never had a real job; I told the cop she was wrong.
You're closer to the situation than I am; is the Mishtara in Shiloh really that bad?
Here's the interesting thing about the quality of the Mishtara: no one will buy that "it's the Arabs fault" or "it's the Americans fault". The Israel Police as they are, are a true reflection of the.... well, let me hold my tongue.
The police are trying to raise the level of quality of the manpower, and in some areas they are succeeding, but the problem is that because they are career personnnel and not conscripts they are very vulnerable to pressure from the command level threatening them with internal censure or losing their job for refusing to follow orders, unlike drafted soldiers or reservists. In any case the government and high command can always get manpower to carry out the ugliest order, including violence, sexual abuse and bringing in Arabs to steal property of evicted settlers. Psychologists have been used to brainwash soldiers into following orders, dehumanizing both the victims and perpetrators in the process. Refusing orders has been shown to be insufficient to stop an expulsion. It will take massive civil disobedience to do that. Unfortunately religious Zionist Jews with a love of the state per se don't have the inner stuff to do that. That's why they declared Rav Kahane illegal and harassed him until his death and the death of his son and daughter-in-law.
goyish, interesting points
Norman, you have ignored the Torah aspect which I brought up
Alan, obviously, you don't know
Jennifer, the Left doesn't value the state
I don't believe in universal military service. That's not saying that I don't believe in universal service - just not in military service.
I believe the sherut leumi (national service) program needs to be broadly expanded, and in that way the Arabs (those who want to retain "blue card" Israeli citizenship,) can also compulsorily serve the nation. While it's nice that people can serve in hospitals or to a limited sense in schools, the nation needs more, much more.
A major part of our national expenditure is in infrastructure and construction, and a missing part of our labor equation is in the understaffed agricultural sector that is rapidly drying up and forcing us to rely on more and more imports of foodstuffs to keep our fast-growing population fed and sheltered.
I would like to propose the creation of a national "labor battalion." Those who can't or won't qualify for the security screening necessary to serve in the military, and who are not cut out for interpersonal service in health / education, should be forced to serve a similar term of duty in a uniformed labor corps.
The labor corps would be under similar strictures and salaries as hayalim (soldiers.) The men (and women) would wear uniforms, live mostly on bases, and eat crappy food in mess halls. But they would go out building roads and laying rails, putting up public buildings like schools and hospitals, harvesting different crops in season, and otherwise contributing to the national economy as a source of cheap labor.
This would have three distinct advantages that I can see. One, it would suck up some of the excess energy in the "minorities," and have them contributing to the nation the way mostly Jews and some Druze and Bedouin do today. Two, it would enfranchise those and other segments of the population by giving them a way to participate in the national life, earn the benefits of honorable service fulfillment as hayalim meshuhrarim (discharged soldiers,) without giving them weapons training or empowering them to endanger national security, and slowly breaking down their alienation from a "Zionist" nation. And three, as a compulsory option for Jews, as well, it will help break the unhealthy attitude against "Arab work" which keeps Jews out of the manual trades that are so necessary for a healthy economy; when lots of Leftist kids who don't want to serve in the army find that they are paving roads or picking oranges for two and a half years, they'll have a harder time holding up their noses at others doing the same work when they get out. They might even like it and continue working as plumbers, electricians, etc., when they get out. That would also reduce our need on importing foreign workers, and possibly eliminate it altogether, which I would consider almost a fourth benefit.
It would also give us a way to accept the aid of young philo-Semites who want to contribute to our nation but have no money - they can volunteer in mahal (foreign legion) units attached to the labor corps, the same way they used to volunteer for kibbutzim.
I think such a program would allow universal conscription, including of the Arabs, without reducing the Army's integrity.
Eliyahu, I consider everything concerning Israel and Jews to be in a differnt world from what we were raised with. What makes sense all over the world doesn't make sense when G-d has a personal stake.
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