As I read the various articles and the many comments it is becoming clear. The ultimate protest against a society or a system that refuses to permit real representation in the political process is initially violence, and eventually total and "disengagement".
People ask me: "Are you for real? Israel, the shining example of 'Democracy in the Middle East' does not permit 'real representation' in the poltical process?" Yes! Please check out OrangeRevolution.net in the section 'Orange:Politics'. The members of the political parties sitting in Israel's parliament do not represent the people who voted for them, but the 'Central Committee' members who selected them. Israel's parliamentarians are not accountable to any constituency of citizens, but to power brokers and money men who run Israel's political parties. This is not represntative democracy, but the illusion of democracry.
The poltical process has become more and more openly alientated from the values the State of Israel was established to realize. The courts and security agencies have become more and more instruments of anti-Jewish values determined to destroy the religious sector before they numerically become the dominate the public life of the state. Where else can idealists turn if not to the barricades?
But what happens when even the most determined protest is met by implacable forces bent on not only meeting but breaking their opponents. What happens when the 'opponent' has almost total control of not only the decision making process, the courts but also the public arena where only they can broadcast and publish? What then? It appears that the "court of last appeal" is simply to "dissengage". Here are two responses to the traumatic events of yesterday:
[Comment to article in Jerusalem Post] Perhaps Olmert will succeed in pulling in votes, but in the end this behaviour will result in the much bigger tradgedy. I am not even talking about Jew killing a Jew in the next evacuation or rise of the anti government armed resistance movement. Trdgedy is in the decline in Jewish immigration to Israel. It was my family's dream for the past 6 years to move to Israel. We both have degrees, my children are 2,4 and 6. We are not ultraorthodox, but religious. Intefadah did not scare us, bombs, arabs, terror did not scare us. The latest barbaric acts of Israeli government scared us. Government elected by MAJORITY of Israelis! Why should we go? To be told that settlements is our future one day and to be beaten and kicked out the next day? To pay taxes for the PA bombs? To be humiliated by fellow Jews? Out of some 25 families that were planning to move only 2 went.
[Except of article in Arutz 7] Erin Sternberg, formerly the spokesperson for Gush Katif, calls for a moratorium on serving in the IDF. Only drastic actions like this will deliver the necessary message without violence, a message worth a thousand roof-top protests.
At this moment in time, still trying to cope with the trauma my children and I are experiencing I tend to agree with the above sentiments.
- If every potential immigrant to Israel, [who probably is thinking of living in Israel because they want to live full Jewish lives in the Land of Israel, not because they are looking for a "progressive Western democracy"] was to communicate their decision to put their plans on hold until the State of Israel changed it anti-Jewish policies ...
- If every potential donor to an agency encouraged by the State of Israel was to communicate their decision to withold future donations until they see a serious effort to embrace true dialog and seek rapproachment between the growing polarized segments of Israeli society ...
- If every potential tourist was to communicate their decision to postpone future visits to Israel as long as the Israeli Police proactively use violence to resolve political dissagreements ...
I truly believe that the only thing the Israeli elite respects is to be found outside the borders of our tiny country. Be it public opinion, financial support or political support. The citizens of their country were never respected. Every time the Left lost an election you would hear Yossi Sarid, Shulamit Aloni or Shimeon Peres bemoaning how the [stupid] people don't know what is good for them. In every forum you can hear the head of Isael's Supreme Court explain how the court has to defend [it's interpetation of] democracry from the people of Israel, who Ahron Barak explains, came from countries with no democratic tradition and hence don't understand democracry.
It is pretty clear what my options are. What are you going to do about what is going on here in Israel?
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