by Ari Bussel and Norma Zager
"And Moses stood at the gate of the camp and said: Who to (on the side of) God come to me. And all the sons of Levi gathered to him..." Exodus 32:26
Apparently, it is raining very hard in
First a reservist Israeli Colonel who commands some 20,000 soldiers came to the battlefront on campuses and throughout communities in the
The Sergeant talked about having his men, boys not older than 18 or 19, form a line and move forward as one when under fire. While every instinct tells them to take cover, lower their heads and let the storm pass, it is his mission to galvanize in them a soldier's resolve. It is then a hero's will surfaces and manifests itself, as the young men defend their homeland, at times at a cost to their limbs, eyesight, health, youth and life.
Straightening the line should manifest, he urges, not only on the battlefield in
We lower our heads hoping that someone else will stand up to the task, reply, write, speak, correct or provide true information. Only an observer can clearly tell that head after head is being lowered in acceptance, apathy, misguided passion or defeat. Thus, we are covered with a cloud of anti-Semitism the likes of which we have not seen in our lifetimes and there is seemingly no one to fight.
Be inspired by
In his opinion, there is more that unites us, although after speaking on campuses he is clear the Muslims speak in one voice, with one narrative, and are therefore more powerful. We, on the other hand, are fragmented to the point where our position suffers. The Sergeant urges us to learn from the enemy. The enemy's work is so visibly effective; at times we start to question the validity of our own positions.
I have often witnessed the Muslim talent for speaking with one voice. It was noticeable in
In
The Sergeant and the Colonel are two examples of what is clearly lacking from
When a government fails, citizens take action, trying to fill in the void. Here the failure is on the Public Diplomacy Front. What the two men have indicated by their speaking tours is that the
At the same time, those whose responsibility it is to act, the Israeli Government and all its branches — from the Foreign Ministry and its local representatives, the Ambassador, Consul General and numerous other consuls and staff, to the IDF via its Spokesperson Unit, to numerous other Government Offices and Ministries — do exactly what?
At a recent event which highlighted heroism in the battlefield, I was treated to a lecture on how busy the Consulate staff is — running from one VIP dinner to the next gala event. Our very-well-paid public servants do little to dirty their hands. They approach their job diplomatically, socially, but the time for these niceties has long past. Some would say leaving their responsibilities to a sergeant or colonel, to individual initiatives, to those who understand what is at stake and are willing to sacrifice everything they have, once again, is nothing short of dereliction of duty.
While one is providing well-rehearsed excuses, the other does the actual work on
Israeli diplomats' participation at glitzy events apparently has not yielded the necessary results. A change of direction is necessary since the present course proved ineffective in countering the disease of the 21st Century: undermining the legitimacy of the existence of the Jewish State.
Business as usual means providing excuses or giving a passing grade for failure. It results in a Goldstone Report and soon after in another.
One needs no further explanation — spend your time doing something more than providing poignant lethargies of being over-worked and underpaid. We would be content, instead, with facts on the ground, with evidence of action, with some results.
No one expects miracles, change after more than six decades of negligence will not happen over night. But a different type of miracle will be useful — change tactics, take charge, lead by example. Show passion and simply act, and you will earn our respect. Having diplomats arrive for a few minutes as guests of honor for a photo-op or short remarks might be warranted, but its utility is minimal to the cause. Utilizing your contacts and power, as representatives of this tiny country called
We are told by a Sergeant and a Colonel to "be inspired by
So said God the Almighty: "For I will take you from among the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you to your land ... and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will instill inside you. And I will take away the heart of stone from your flesh and I will give you a heart of flesh. And My Spirit I will give within you ..." Ezekiel 36:24..27
In the series "Postcards from
Contact them at aribussel@gmail.com
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment