You can't replace the public - Dror Eydar

by Dror Eydar

Hat tip: Dr. Jean-Charles Bensoussan

Israeli youth, along with the general public, are turning toward the right because they understand reality for what it is, and not as the other side presents it • The Left is bypassing Israeli democracy and taking its campaign to the international arena.

Israeli youngsters prepare for combat military service (Illustrative photo) | Photo credit: AFP

1.

The recent Israel Hayom poll that demonstrated a growing rightward trend among Israeli youth is not indicative of excessive ideology, but rather of a realistic outlook and of maturity. We have been trying to implement ideas for a future arrangement with our neighbors for the last quarter-century. Not only have all attempts failed, they have made the situation worse. Like in Hans Christian Anderson's tale "The Emperor's New Clothes," the youth are pointing to the naked truth "whose tiny, pure sandal, the elders, in wisdom or in foolishness, kiss," as poet Nathan Alterman wrote in "Songs of the Plagues of Egypt."

One hundred years after the Sykes-Picot Agreement, the map of the Middle East has been redrawn. Modern nationalism, imposed on the region by European colonialism, is falling apart, and like ghosts, ancient tribalism, ethno-religious groups and clan structures are reemerging. In contrast to the long-held narrative that Israel is to blame for the failure of peace agreements, today's youth makes a simple comparison: Before the Oslo Accords we dealt with a complex security situation, but it was still infinitely less problematic than the reality that has followed the Oslo Accords.

On May 24, 1992, a month before the elections that ushered in the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's second term, a Palestinian terrorist stabbed to death 15-year-old Helena Rapp on the Bat Yam boardwalk. The country was outraged. Several years later, we dealt with a much more difficult reality security-wise, after we brought terrorist battalions into Western Israel and armed them, thinking that they would keep us safe. It's unbelievable. What were we thinking? Since then, we have been through the Second Intifada (2000), Operation Defensive Shield (2002), the evacuation and demolition of Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip (2005) the Second Lebanon War (2006), Operation Cast Lead (2008-2009), Operation Pillar of Defense (2012), Operation Protective Edge (2014) and the ongoing wave of terrorist attacks over the last six months. Is that not enough to make people see reality for what it is?

2.

It's not only the security situation that is clearly reflected in the poll results. Even more so than security, it is about identity. As the security situation deteriorated, some among the Left distanced themselves from symbols of Jewish identity that they perceived as "nationalistic," "fascist," "anti-democratic," "racist," or "ethnocentric," among other similarly condescending descriptors.

The Israel Defense Forces became the "occupation army" in the left-wing lexicon (and, alas, terrorists are referred to repeatedly as "freedom fighters"); parts of our homeland are now "the territories"; Jewish religious tradition and faith, which has withstood tests that no other nation has survived (and here I distinguish between these traditions and beliefs and the religious establishment), are shamefully presented as "racist" excess baggage that holds us back from integrating into the world; and the concept of a Jewish state is described as a "nationalistic" idea that borders on "apartheid."

In their simple way, Israeli youth understand that the issue before us is not about "territories" or some "piece of land," but what the "territories" signify -- what these regions of Israel represent in the minds of the Jewish People in Israel and abroad. In other words, the issue of Jewish identity, national and religious as one. This is the reason behind the high percentage of poll respondents expressing love for their country, willingness to enlist in the IDF, appreciation for the education system etc. -- basic values that have fizzled out among certain sectors under the guidance of leftist discourse.

The widespread support expressed for the soldier who shot a neutralized terrorist in Hebron last month is not support for disobeying orders or indiscriminate fire, but rather a simple comment on the fundamental difference between our troops and our enemies. In my opinion, the notion of withholding medical treatment from injured terrorists is less about principles and more of a protest against the steamroller of political correctness and the attempts to educate youth through the media and politics, when these outlets themselves are not always well-educated. Talk is one thing and reality is another; at the moment of truth, a helping hand will be extended to the terrorist.

Likewise, opposition to Arab representation in the Knesset among Israeli youth is also not a statement of principle against democracy, but rather a statement of protest against Arab MKs' nationalistic actions within the Israeli Knesset that are perceived as efforts to undermine the foundation of our existence.

3.

It's not just the youth -- the majority of the Israeli public is not blind to the radicalism developing within the Left, so it is keeping its distance. Last week, liberal newspaper Haaretz ran an editorial supporting the Palestinians' diplomatic warfare against Israel. Our enemies are incessantly quoting that newspaper, which has become a powerful weapon in the campaign against Israel.

In George Orwell's dystopian novel "1984," the fictional controlled language "Newspeak" influences the public consciousness. Note the opening lines of the article that supports the Palestinian initiative to try, for the thousandth time, to unite the Security Council against us: "Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas keeps coming up with moves that could advance the peace process." Nice, right? The main point of the Palestinian proposal is to define Jewish settlements in Samaria, Judea and east Jerusalem as "illegal and an obstacle to peace." This is a dangerous proposal for Israel, which, if accepted, would pave the way for BDS policies to be adopted by the U.N. and would change Israel's status to that of South Africa during the apartheid years.

Haaretz even rebukes the United States, lest it miss the opportunity and, God forbid, veto the proposal instead of adopting it: "A veto of the latest resolution ... would constitute a diplomatic and moral renunciation of the peace process. It would give Israel permission to continue its settlement policy and would heighten the Palestinians' frustration and despair, which feed the terror attacks."

Therefore, Haaretz concluded, agreements must be imposed on Israel. This imposition is defined as an issue of "morality," no less. Even though this diplomatic coercion has cost many lives so far, it is presented as "moral."

Furthermore, Haaretz justifies the indiscriminate murder of Jews with the "Palestinian sense of frustration and despair." You see, it is not that the region's Arabs have refused time and again to compromise with the Jews; it is that the Jews are frustrating the Arabs so they deserve to be killed. This kind of incitement should prompt us tear our clothes in mourning and cry out the words of Jerusalemite prophet Isaiah: Your hands are full of blood! Your words are indirectly justifying terrorism against Israel.

4.

Since the Left's efforts to win over the public in the last election failed -- despite having enlisted the help of the media and the academia -- it has given up and turned to international diplomatic and judicial guerilla action against Israel. It has aligned itself with the militant stance of the Palestinian Authority, which is not looking for a peace deal, but is operating against Israel. In fact, the internal core that unites all the Arabs between the Jordan River and the sea is the struggle against Israel and the desire to harm it. When it comes to any other issue, there are more dividing factors than uniting ones among the different tribes and ethnic groups there.

Haaretz's plea to the world, along with that of various left-wing organizations, reveals the lie behind the claim that the Right is harming Israeli democracy. The exact opposite is the case: Those bypassing Israeli democracy and turning to the world to impose suicidal agreements upon us are the ones who have given up on democracy. The Festival of Freedom (Passover) is approaching, and in light of this battle of hearts and minds against us, we will hope first and foremost for freedom of consciousness.

Dror Eydar

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=33099&hp=1

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