War Musings #71 Real Life Under Attack

 

My simple battery alarm clock

I first posted this as a "rant" on my Facebook page and then realized that it needs wider exposure. I know that some people won't agree with me. I want to make it clear that we don't have a "safe room" certified shelter in our house, but our house was built relatively well, double outer walls and a ceiling prepared for a second floor. My husband and I are both "elderly" and don't run out of the house when there's a siren. We go to inner walls away from windows, but when sleeping in bed... we rarely do more than cover ourselves. Sorry that's the truth and the situation with many people I know, even if their homes are more fragile than ours.

Another important point is that the alerts, which come by cellphone, are 5-10 minutes before a missile may reach our area. Most of the time, even when followed by a siren 5-10 minutes later, the missile was destroyed by the Iron Dome. And many of the missiles would have landed miles and miles away. 

"Last night's "alerts" were the last straw for me. I had gone to sleep early because of total physical and emotional exhaustion, but a couple of hours later I was awaken by a serial of alerts via my cellphone. Except for Shabbat and Jewish holidays, it's kept on -not just during the war- and within grabbing distance of my bed. It's also set with an alarm for those super rare nights I sleep late.

The alerts we get are supposed to give us time to get to a "safe" location, just in case the "sighted" missile may land nearby; if there actually is a missile close by the siren will shrill. A very high percentage of the warnings are NEVER followed by a siren. So last night I was woken for no reason at all. None of the sensed missiles ended up near Shiloh. We weren't actually in danger.

That's it for me. I plan on turning off my phone at night and turning on my simple battery alarm clock. When I wake in the morning, I'll turn on my phone."

Antidemocracy Rioters Disrupt Life in Jerusalem -- The Truth About Judicial Reform

Black day for Israeli democracy and liberty. 

Please get this right. I'm talking about the attempt by the elitist Israeli Left to overthrow the legally elected government. 

Democracy is a numbers game. It means that if you get the most votes, you've won. In Israel, to be more precise, if you can create a coalition of a majority of the 120 Members of Knesset, 61 or more that's a legal government. THAT'S DEMOCRACY! 

If you didn't get enough votes to create a coalition, if you don't have the MKs, you've lost. That's it. Very simple. Try harder next time. Marching and screaming in the streets won't give you the right to rule. If you insist on demonstrating, then you're acting like fascists or worse. I don't know why those demonstrators on Monday took black flags, but it really showed their true color. 

They can scream all they want, but grow up! That won't give them more votes, more MKs. Rule by taking over the streets? That's dystopia, not utopia.

The antidemocracy anti-judicial reform protests on Monday stopped public transportation and inconvenienced, to put it mildly, tens of thousands or more ordinary Israelis like myself. I had been at the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens with the Ayelet Chapter of Amit Women and discovered that bus service to the center of Jerusalem or Ammunition Hill, where I needed to get a bus home to Shiloh, had been stopped. Yes, the buses were stopped because of those demonstrators.

Thank Gd, I found the physical strength to walk, and please remember that in a few months Gd willing I'll be 74, towards the lightrail on King George and Yaffo. I finally caught a bus on King George and took it less than two stops. Why less? That very junction where I needed to transfer from the bus to the lightrail had been taken over by the mobs, and the bus had been forced to stop, and the lightrail stopped, too.

Since the rioters had stopped public transportation, I was forced to keep walking and finally caught a bus at the Buchari Shuk.

It was clear that the demonstrators were having fun, but lots of ordinary Jerusalemites and visitors like myself were inconvenienced and angry. I saw people trying to explain to the rioters that they were interfering with our human rights, but... you can finish the sentence...

These antigovernment demonstrations/riots have been going on since Netanyahu's previous administration, then stopped when he was out of office and now resumed. Now they're harping on the Judicial Reform issue. They claim that the judges need "independence." That's absurd! 

Do you know what they mean by it? They mean that judges should use their "judgement," their personal ideology/philosophy to decide what's right and just. They don't decide according to law. They decide if a law suits their moral, political opinions. That's means that the courts are political, not legally based. Not only that! They get to choose their replacements. It's not the elected Knesset Members who choose judges, it's the judges themselves. That way, although the judges don't hold the opinions of the majority of the citizens, they can perpetuate their ideological power over the citizens and the elected government. 

Does that sound kosher to you?

Who made them god? 

Most of us ordinary Israelis are too busy getting through our busy days to take to the streets, like the elitist Leftists. Also, we did our patriotic duty, voted. There's a coalition that holds the ideology of the majority of Israelis. We definitely need Judicial Reform, so our courts will be based on law, not politics.

Why should the minority have the right utter chutzpah to overrule the majority?

Davka, very much like last week's Torah Portion, Yitro, someone who isn't Israeli explains our situation very well, Mark Levin. Please listen to what he has to say.

COVID Corona Update-- Almost Two Years and...

The photo above shows people/cars gathered at the Shiloh COVID Corona testing site. 

getting COVID vaccine #4
aka booster #2

Numbers of "positives," whether with symptoms or asymptomatic are skyrocketing. I have my theories...

From what I understand most of the "positives" would never have gotten tested if the "law" hadn't demanded it. They had/have no symptoms. Here in Israel at least, many people need to be tested for work, studies, visiting the vulnerable, such as those in old age homes, or because they'd been identified as exposed to someone sick with COVID Corona.

This latest version of COVID Corona is much milder and less dangerous than the previous ones, otherwise the hospitals/healthcare system would have totally collapsed. I'm not surprised.

Epidemics like COVID Corona usually last about two years, and  it looks like the virus is getting less dangerous, though spreading easily.

IMHO we're getting to the time when the vaccine and booster will be recommended periodically, and COVID Corona will join the flu and common cold as part of life.

I also think that some of us will keep masking in public and closed places. It's a relatively easy precautionary measure against all air-borne viruses. 

What do you think?

Back To Matan- Life's Getting "Normal"

Last week I was back at Matan for one of the pre-Rosh Hashana learning mornings Yom Iyun. I didn't do the entire program of a few days, but Wednesday worked out perfectly for me.

I have been studying Tanach/Bible in Matan for years. I love the approach of the teachers there.

Some students were home or wherever via Zoom, but there were plenty of us in the auditorium. It was so wonderful to return to my favorite studies and see teachers and friends in person.

There were three classes. One by Yael Ziegler, one by Shani Taragin and the last by Yael Leibowitz. They were all excellent. In order to attend in person, we had to show our "green passport," or whatever you want to call it. And we all had to wear masks. Only the teachers took theirs off to teach.

My friends and I are looking forward to the resumption of regular classes. There's a limit how long we can maintain isolation. Besides my formal Matan studies, I'm part of a study group, yes Bible, and we've covered a lot of material this past year and a half, since we meet on zoom more frequently than we used to meet in person.

I don't know if life will ever really go back to what it once was, at least for us senior citizens. We must consider this the "new normal."

Letters From Planet Corona- A Book Review

Letters From Planet Corona is a series of "letters" written by Chaya Passow during the first half year plus of the COVID corona pandemic, which has changed our lives in so many ways.  They had been sent out to numerous family and friends, who enthusiastically read them and encouraged her to publish them in book form. Now all of us can buy and read Letters From Planet Corona, which also makes a great present for others.

Chaya Passow is, davka, someone I had known in my teens way back when in the old country, and we had just gotten reacquainted* a short time before COVID corona closed down what we all now refer to as "before" or "normal life." 

It's rather ironic that Chaya began sending out these letters to friends and family, as my blogging went into paralysis of sorts. But I must admit that Chaya's letters are much better than any of my musings aka blogposts. She combines, humor, stories, philosophy, news, religion, fantasy and more.

We can all identify with the subjects and emotions Passow describes in Letters From Planet Corona. I love how she suddenly notices the flowers in front of her building, because on Planet Corona she exits the front door to walk in her immediate neighborhood instead of going out the back to her car. Yes, on Planet Corona our world has shrunken. For many of us, we only travel to go to a doctor or the dentist.

I look forward to seeing Chaya again in person, but in the meantime I've enjoyed getting to know her via Letters From Planet Corona. I'm sure that you will, too; buy her book.

Product details

• Publisher : City of Gold Press (December 1, 2020)
• Language : English
• Paperback : 239 pages
• ISBN-10 : 9655994058
• ISBN-13 : 978-9655994056

*Chaya Passow's son plays quarterback for the Jerusalem "Big Blue" Lions which is coached by my son. Yes, it's a very small world. We had been looking forward to cheering the team onto its fourth straight IFL national championship when all sports activities were stopped in order to prevent/reduce infection.

Shiloh is Growing- See The New Streets

This week one of my walking buddies and I  decided to explore the new streets in Shiloh. We've both been living in Shiloh since almost the very beginning. In those days and even the entire first decade or more, it wasn't hard for us to know absolutely everyone who lived here including their children and "back stories." But now, over forty years since the return of Jewish Life to Shiloh, we've long passed the tipping point. Shiloh is a town of neighborhoods. I'm thankful to Gd that I, at 70+, can still walk from the "bottom" to the top where I live, but I have neighbors, even younger, who can't.

Most of the new housing is being built by Amana, but it's still possible to buy land and build your own home in addition to the option of purchasing an older home.

Like every place else in the world, each street/neighborhood has its own personality and quirks. When  my friend and I moved to Shiloh with our young families, we didn't even have phones in the beginning. At that time, such a situation wasn't a rarity in Israel. But today with all the smartphones and computers there's great communication and much easier contact between people. Most neighborhoods have their own whatsapp groups to share information, instead of knocking on doors or meeting outside or at the grocery store or in the bus or the schools. And concerning education in Shiloh, today a child can start as a baby in the local daycare center and continue in Shiloh until high school graduation.

Today there are two large supermarkets in Shiloh and two clinics. Also most people have cars. My husband and I are in the tiny minority of those totally dependent on public transportation and the goodness of others. This new neighborhood has been built with driveways for each house.

Since most people travel by car, whether their own or tremps/rides in others, getting to Petach Tikva takes no longer than to Jerusalem, and to the Jordan Valley can be a much shorter ride. Actually, Shiloh is in the true Center of Israel.

I've lost track of how many people live here in Shiloh. Many of the families are what's called "dor hemshech," continuing generation, having grown up in Shiloh and wanting to raise their children as part of a larger family. Others grew up in different yishuvim and want the community life you can't get any place else. We have new and more veteran immigrants from all over and of course those who grew up in different parts of Israel.

Of course, I shouldn't leave out the fact that Shiloh is the biblical Shiloh where the Mishkan, Tabernacle was located for close to four hundred 400 years. There's a lovely archeological park called Shiloh Hakeduma.

For anglos who may be curious, there are certainly enough English speakers to make one feel comfortable, but here in Shiloh you'll learn Hebrew. It's not an anglo "bubble/ghetto." You can always contact me if you have any questions.

Here are some pictures. Enjoy.

Drenched and Sick, Why Did I Vote in The Likud Primaries?

When I walked out of the house mid-morning to vote in the Likud Primaries, I thought that there was a break in the blessedly raining weather. To be safe, I wore a heavy winter coat and took an umbrella. Also the voting station wasn't far from the house, less than a ten minute walk...

Yes, you guessed it. It began to rain, but not too heavily. So I got to the voting station and voted.

Unlike at other elections and primaries, none of the local activists were there schmoozing. In all honesty I had been counting on their being at the voting station. If someone had been there, I could have gotten a ride home. I needed a ride home, even though the walk up wasn't that far. The rain had gotten stronger.

By the time I got home, I was soaked, feeling sick and totally miserable.As you can see from the picture, my coat and skirt were both soaking wet. Water even snuck in through the top of my waterproof boots. Yes, it was raining that hard. I had to change pretty much everything; that's how wet I had gotten.

Now, I still don't know who won, Bibi Netanyahu or the "challenger," Gidon Saar. I wasn't happy about Sa'ar's forcing these primaries before getting soaked in the rain. And now I'm even angrier.

If Sa'ar loses, not only has he added fuel to Blue & White's campaign against Likud, but he wasted money and made me sick.

Politics!

Strange Sounds in The Night

Friday Night, Lail Shabbat, after we had finished eating, suddenly a piercing wail filled the air. It was an emergency alarm. I locked the doors and then all the easy to access windows. My husband pooh poohed it, insisting that it was just an "electrical problem."

Then the siren wailed again.

The street was quiet. If something was going on, we'd hear noises.

Friday nights have been chosen by Arab terrorists to attack innocent Jews. They've snuck into homes through open doors and windows and murdered, maimed, terrorized and scarred Jews, young and old.

Again the siren wailed.

Should we turn on the phone to check for messages? No, the house felt safe. It was Shabbat.

The siren wailed wailed loudly. This was no "electrical problem."

I didn't want to turn on the phone. If there was bad news, it could wait.

We used to have a beeper that gave security announcements without our having to touch it, but since nowadays everyone has phones, the beeper is passe. I sure missed that beeper. I refused to turn on my phone.

My husband went to sleep. I couldn't imagine sleeping. I was at high alert. It would take more than an "all clear" siren to get my body to fall asleep.

Yet again, the siren pierced Shabbat's silence, like a terrorist in the frenzy of murder.

If the sound of the siren is unbearable in the living room, then there's no way I could attempt to sleep in our bedroom, which is much closer to the siren's loudspeaker.

Our street was silent. No soldiers rushing around, nor ambulances providing first aid to injured.

If something has happened in Shiloh, it didn't happen in my neighborhood.

Siren, stop your screeching. I can't take it anymore.

No doubt my blood pressure is sky high.

Gd willing the sirens are just to tell us to stay indoors, because of a suspected incursion. This happens periodically in Jewish villages. Today's security is high tech, which can detect movement on the borders, even when there aren't any fences. Many times it's no more than a patrolling soldier taking a discrete "leak." But until it's known for sure what triggered the alarm, we must stay put. It's already past bedtime, so I have no plans to leave.

Again a siren...

And now I see lights rotating like at a disco from army vehicles in the street. They must be looking for terrorists, or just missing kids...

Our kids are grown up and don't live at home.

I'm tired. Can I risk falling asleep? What if the sirens resume?

I finally get myself ready for bed, but end up reading on the couch.  And then I dozed off.

Did someone just call me? I'm up again.

I try to sleep in bed. Again I doze off, but I thought I heard knocking. I'm up again. But I'm silent.

Back to the couch, and then back to bed.

Finally asleep...

My husband tries to wake me up to go to synagogue.

"No," I tell him. "I need to finally sleep. You go, and when you find out what had happened at night, come home and tell me."

Later on my husband returned with a report:

"Suspected incursion."

Nobody found. No injuries or damage reported, Baruch Hashem, Thank Gd.

Later I went to the synagogue. A young neighbor said that she had to turn on her phone and call the parents of children who were in her house when the sirens had began. Instructions are that nobody is to go outside during security alerts. She, in turn, got calls from other parents who had her children.

Thank Gd we only lost sleep, not lives.

Shavua Tov

Have a Wonderful Week

Guest Post: Letter From an Israeli Mother on The Gaza Border

We live within 7 kms of the Gaza border fence. We don't live as close as some and for that we are lucky and thankful but we are close enough and being in the center hear all the noise from the north down to the south and the activity in the Sinai from the Egyptian army.

An abnormal way of life has become 'normal' for us. When there is quiet, life is fine but always in the back of one's mind is the realization that it will not last.

My husband was evacuated from the Sinai as a result of the Camp David Peace Accord with Egypt in 1982 and we built our house before the Israeli withdrawal from Gush Katif. Why do I mention this? because when we built there were no rockets and we, along with a few other families, built the our mamads* according to the legal requirements which means that they are the size of a broom cupboard. We can't sleep in it, standing room only. Ok for when there's no rockets but a nightmare when they rain down and you have to scramble from bed at 02:00 wake and shift the kids and do it all in less than 15 seconds. !!! What about disabled people ?? Two of my girls suffer from living here. The middle one suffered for years from Compulsive Stress Disorder and the youngest has other stress related symptoms.

The kids here are terrified from the balloons** and bedroom windows have to be locked and securely covered by curtains so that there are no cracks because they are terrified of seeing faces at the windows.......as they explained .....the terrorists come at night. Whenever we go anywhere the first thing they do is check out where the shelters are and if they have enough time to reach one should there be an alarm. A few years ago when I took my youngest to visit her grandparents overseas she stunned us by one day asking quite matter of factly as we were driving along:

"Imma, the bus stops....where are the bomb shelters? Where do they hide when the rockets fall?" 

We were lost for words.... and then explained.

Last summer my youngest went to a Bar Mitzvah pool party, and we had to run the gauntlet and fetch her as rockets were falling all around us and kipat barzel*** sent out above our heads as we drove home. She was shaking like a leaf but didn't say a word. So yes the kids are traumatized here and sadly many of them don't know any other way of life. Years ago the school would take out the odd child from class to have a tipool (therapy session.) After Tzuck Eitan**** the situation was so dire that they decided to treat the kids by class. They would start the day with meditation. Kids wet their beds, siblings sleep together and nightmares are frequent.

Even in the quiet times there is noise but I think one of the most unforgivable things is being lied to by the security forces, being told that nothing happened when clearly something has. When rockets have fallen and they've denied it. We aren't stupid and people talk. The lack of information is frightening and frustrating. We are told (sometimes) on a need to know basis which doesn't help a parent when their kids are all over the area with friends.

Mary-Ann Lev

*shelter/secure room
**For the past year, Arab terrorists from Gaza have been launching balloons and kites equipped with incendiary devices that have caused serious fires here
***Iron Dome defense system
****Operation Protective Edge]

Voting in The Likud Primaries, A Day in My Life...

Tuesday night, after a very full day, which included Rosh Chodesh Prayers at Shiloh Hakeduma, Tel Shiloh, a reunion lunch with college friends, a dentist appointment, lunch at a son's home after some quality time with his baby, I finally made it to Binyanei Hauma to vote in the Likud Primaries.

Now, I must admit that I've probably never voted for the Likud in Knesset Elections, but I am a member of the party. That does sound strange, but if you understand the Israeli political system and history, there's a logical reason or two. This post isn't the place for an explanation, but if you're curious, please ask.

In theory I could have voted in Shiloh, where we had a polling station. Davka, in Shiloh voting would have been rather simple. That is if I had been home when it was open. I had carefully checked and calculated my day's plans and logistics and realized that I just didn't have time between the poll's opening and the bus to Jerusalem. Besides that, I sleep in Jerusalem Tuesday nights in order to get to Matan early Wednesday for my chevruta, group learning. 

By the time I was on my way to the #15 bus to Binyanei Hauma, I was exhausted and wondering how long it would all take. So far, none of my traveling had gone as simply as I had expected/planned.

After dovening at the Tel, I had waited at the bus stop to Jerusalem, and the efo bus app showed no sign of the expected bus. Finally, I got tremp after tremp to Jerusalem with enough time to drop off my bag, so I wouldn't have to schlep it around all day.

I ended up waiting a long time for the first leg of my trip to the dentist, because one of the scheduled buses never showed. And then I was shocked to discover that the route had changed. I would have saved time even walking from Cinema City to the String/Chords Bridge to catch the second bus. That's because there was a change in the route of the #15, which I was unaware of. The area around the central bus station was so awful, and the red lights so badly timed, that at least a half hour was added to my travel time. I had to call the dentist office to say that for the very first time, I'd be late instead of early.

Amazingly, the trip to  vote went very smoothly, but then I was stumped trying to find the underground passage to cross the street and then the entrance to Binyanei Hauma. There's so much construction, and it was dark where I needed light.

I was too stressed and rushed to photograph the outside of Binyanei Hauma when trying to enter. The whole area was full of tables and loudspeakers. Papers were all over the floor, and I was constantly accosted by campaign workers handing out promotional literature. I also recognized some well-known Likud ministers and MKs, who were trying last minute personal campaigning. I ignored them. With hundreds of candidates for a few slots, competition and bedlam were rampant. We could only vote for twelve 12, no more no less.

There were mobs of men and teens blocking the way, but finally I made my way in. And when I got to the area where it was forbidden to campaign, what a contrast. There was such silence and space.

All around the room there were tables staffed by two mostly young and very polite and helpful clerks who explained what to do. I was surprised and happy that the Likud gave up on high-tech voting, which it had tried a few times in the past.

Only after I had exited the building could I take the time to photograph the carnival scene. No doubt that the cleanup has been a challenge.

If you're interested in the results, read this and this.

Learning to be Late and Accepting Blessings

For as long as I've known how to tell time and been old enough to have control over "arrivals," I've been fixated and obsessive with being not just "on time," but early. I've never seen a stated "time to start" as an approximation. For me, even as a little girl going to a birthday party, I was horrified, totally mortified at the idea that I may be late.

No matter what the occasion, I'd treat it like catching a train or plane or making sure I made it to the theater well before the curtain was to go up.

When I got older, I learned that, at least here in Israel, times stated for wedding invitations were always much earlier than we needed to be there. After arriving too many times while the caterer was still having the tables set up, we learned how much time we had to add to the "invitation time." Here in Shiloh, it took a few years to learn that events are on what they call "Bnai Akiva time," which is nothing like the exact scheduling in NCSY or the LIRR.

Since we don't have a car and not only can't one rely on the bus schedule, besides the fact that sometimes there aren't buses from Shiloh to our destinations, I've learned to accurately plan my departures for all eventualities. But yesterday afternoon/last night, even I failed.

I needed to get to a "surprise party" in Kfar Saba by 6:30pm. With the help of google maps, I discovered that with bus connections at both the Yarkon Junction and Morasha, it would be very doable. There is even a 5pm bus to Kfar Saba from Ariel, though is goes through Rosh Ha'ayin. My plan was to give myself two and a half hours, which should have made me about a half hour early, at the latest.

Man plans and Gd laughs, as they say. At 3pm, I got a message from my kids that there had been a horrific fatal accident "outside of Ariel. The roads are blocked in both directions." Click here for report and photos.

"Maybe you should meet one of us in Jerusalem, and we'll take you." My kids suggested.

Considering that going via Jerusalem also would include traffic jams and double the distance, I declined.

"The Trans-Samaria Highway is wide road. No doubt it will be cleared by the time I get there."

To be honest, I was wrong.

At first it seemed like "business as usual" in Ariel, lots of buses and traffic near the university. I even declined to get on a Petach Tikva bus, because it wasn't going to Morasha, which would give me the quickest and best public transportation to Kfar Saba. Since I couldn't find the bus stop to the direct bus, I waited for the 386, which not only goes to Morasha, but it doesn't do the "grand tour" of Ariel. It's a great bus, but although the electric sign kept saying it was coming, the bus never showed, nor did any other for at least a half an hour. Finally, in desperation I took the next bus to arrive, which was a 296. The driver said that he goes to Yarkon but not Morasha. He warned us that the road was still blocked, and he may need to make a detour.

Actually, even with all the delays, I still had a good chance of being on time. That's how much "extra" time I had allocated to my trip.

The driver was optimistic and even said that it looked like the road had opened. But as we got a few kilometers from the accident scene, all we could see was the long line of lights of cars stuck in traffic. Yes, it was very dark by then. I began to realize that I'd probably be late and arrive long after the joyous "surprise."

When we passed the almost totally burnt up bus, all that remained was the spooky skeleton, I became very grateful for the fact that I was on a functioning bus, sitting comfortably and safely. Gd willing I'd arrive safe and sound, albeit a bit late. It wasn't the end of the world.

At the Yarkon Junction, I quickly caught a bus to Kfar Saba, and one of my kids picked me up to take me the rest of the way. I was glad, because even with the help of Google maps, I'd have trouble finding the house in the dark.

Yes, we walked in after the guest of honor, but it was before the "program." We had a wonderful joyous time. It was no tragedy to be late. It certainly wasn't the end of the world. Everyone was happy to see me and appreciated the efforts I make to attend all events. B"H, going home was easy; we had a ride with one of our kids, who would anyhow have passed Shiloh on the way home.

It's so important to remember to say תפילת הדרך Tefilat Haderech, the Traveler's Prayer when you start a trip. It may not guarantee a safe journey, but it reminds us that all journeys have their potential dangers, and we must thank Gd for our safety.

Waiting for rides/tremps and buses yesterday, Eli Junction and the Ariel University bus stop

Israel's Municipal "Election Day Vacation" a Fake

I hate to break it to all of you, especially those who have been so quick to condemn all those who didn't vote claiming that since it was a "vacation day," voting was easy for all. Election day was not a vacation for all.

• Didn't you notice that the stores were open?
• Didn't you notice that restaurants were open?
• Didn't you notice that lots of fun places for kids were open?
• Didn't you notice that the movies were open?
• Didn't you notice that there was public transportation?

Do you really think these places were open without staff?

Start thinking about all of the people who had to work on Election Day.

Of course not all of the non-voters had good excuses, but for some voting wasn't easy.