Numerous friends and family members have asked me about the matsav (the situation) in Israel and the escalating tensions with Gaza so I figured it would be appropriate to comment about it using this forum.
The town of Sderot in the negev has long had to deal with rockets launched from the Gaza strip. Even when Israel unilaterally withdrew from the Gaza strip, the rockets didn't cease, dispelling any myth that if Israel would end the "occupation" terrorism would also end. This week things worsened as Hamas launched up to 30 rockets per day. Thankfully most hit open fields or damaged property, with few casualties or serious injuries. However, the town of Sderot is constantly on "red alert", giving a minute warning of an incoming rocket. Children and adults are constantly running for shelter disrupting any normalcy that might exist. Most of the rockets have been primitive, but this week Hamas used a more refined and exact Russian rocket that hit the coastal city of Askelon. It served as a wake up call to Israelis and the government- how long until Hamas gets its hands on a rocket capable of reaching Tel Aviv or Jerusalem? Would the world be as judgmental of Israel's right to defend itself if Hamas was able to hit the population center of Israel?
Unfortunately, Israel has little choice when it comes to responding to such terrorist attacks. On the one hand- if it doesn't do anything, rockets will continue to rain on the cities and towns in the Negev potentially causing a substantial loss of life. Additionally, it sends the message to Hamas and the other terrorist networks that Israel will use restrain because it is a democratic country that has to respond to public demand and world outcry. It also allows Hamas to build a greater stockpile of rockets that will be capable of reaching places like Tel Aviv. On the other hand- if Israel retaliates, Hamas will hide behind its civilian population and many innocent people will die, making Israel look like it is using excessive force and punishing the local population. Additionally, it kills the possibility of progressing with a peace deal with Mahmoud Abbas since he buckles under pressure by Palestinians in the West Bank to cease negotiations while Gaza is being attacked. Hamas has obtained a disproportionate amount of power when it comes to dictating the Middle East peace process. Even though it isn't a real negotiating partner, it can derail the process with a few rockets and favorable news coverage.
The media has a way of over simplifying this crisis as it describes the escalating conflict- making Israel look overly retaliatory even in light of Hamas' aggression. Although I don't agree with every point that Helene Cooper makes in this article, it shows the complexity of the issue and the lack of choices that exist for all parties-including the US- when dealing with a terrorist network (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/03/world/middleeast/03diplo.html?hp). The reaction in Israel is equally as grim- while most people recognize that Hamas is not a viable peace partner, they see little choice but to bring them to the negotiating table. This tit-for-tat ping pong match is not a long term solution and will continue to hurt Israel's image in the world court, but until the people of the Gaza strip value their independence and children's future more than their desire to annihilate Israel, a real peace deal is not a viable option.
I am not trying to be self-righteous and claim that Israel has done no wrong when it comes to the Palestinian people and the Gaza Strip. Israel has definitely made its share of mistakes. But no other country in the world has had to show as much restraint in dealing with its enemy as Israel. This little country is surrounded by countries and terrorist organization that want to see the demise of the Jewish state and its people. I don't think any country in the world would want to trade spots with Israel yet they are the first to point fingers and judge.
The optimist in me wants to believe that a solution exists and that we haven't reached deep enough to find it. But the realist in me recognizes that you can't shake hands with the person that will simultaneously try to stab you in the back and strive for your destruction. I hope I am wrong...
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
My First Business Trip
Someone recently told me that I will never be good at things like updating a blog or keeping a journal, so I am going to try to prove him wrong! That is the hard-headed Israeli in me :)
Wow where to begin- well I will give an update on this past week because I have issues with long term memory! I had the amazing opportunity to go to London last week. I got an email from Brett, the CEO of Teach First which is the TFA styled program in Great Britain, saying that I should book my ticket because I am invited to London for the following week. So I quickly got everything in place and headed off to England for the first time. I have to say, someone else paying for it is a huge perk considering how expensive the pound is!! I spent 4 whirlwind days meeting with everyone tied to TF- praticipants, ambassadors of the program, staff, TFA alumni that are now on TF staff, donors, professors, etc. The goal of the week was to learn how the program is similar to and different from TFA and what programmatic features we can apply to Israel (I will write another post about my job so in the meantime just pretend like you know what I am talking about). What is incredible is that the program looks like a replica of TFA on paper but once I began to sift through their recruitment, admissions, training, on-going support and methodology, I realized how different it really is. Teach For Israel's Tomorrow, as the program will be called here, will combine a lot of of best practices from both programs since it can't attract people based off idealism like Teach For America does nor can it focus solely on leadership development like Teach First. I am really excited to synthesize everything I learned and apply it to the program here.
So now to the fun part. I stayed an extra four days in London with my good friend and former college roommate Sarah. We hadn't seen eachother in five years since she transferred to Columbia but it took us no time to fall right back into our old ways. We would stay up late giggling in bed, devour incredible chocolate and have deep conversations that reflected how intimately we knew eachother despite the elapsed time and distance. I, of course, managed to do all the touristy things- Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Tate Museum and even sat in on a House of Commons debate about transportation- but the best part was tea time at the Cambridge Club. Sarah and I met up Saturday afternoon and decided that I can't leave London without having a proper tea time. So we walked toward the ritziest members-only club (Sarah, using her journalist techniques, realized that she can be a member as a graduate of Columbia). However we quickly realized that I wouldn't be allowed to enter because I was wearing jeans. Sarah looked me up and down and said "Well you know what you are going to have to do? Button your coat all the way up and wear it as a dress! Take off your pants Yamit!" We giggled like school girls as we entered this glamorous place, looking like a terrible mish-mosh. She was wearing a shirt dress over tights and my crappy shoes and I was hearing my coat as a dress and her knee high boots so that I wouldn't look as naked as I felt. I couldn't believe they took us seriously! But we did in fact have tea and a muffin in their lounge and giggled the entire time by the sight of ourselves and whenever we realized that we are sitting among London's high society.
Wow where to begin- well I will give an update on this past week because I have issues with long term memory! I had the amazing opportunity to go to London last week. I got an email from Brett, the CEO of Teach First which is the TFA styled program in Great Britain, saying that I should book my ticket because I am invited to London for the following week. So I quickly got everything in place and headed off to England for the first time. I have to say, someone else paying for it is a huge perk considering how expensive the pound is!! I spent 4 whirlwind days meeting with everyone tied to TF- praticipants, ambassadors of the program, staff, TFA alumni that are now on TF staff, donors, professors, etc. The goal of the week was to learn how the program is similar to and different from TFA and what programmatic features we can apply to Israel (I will write another post about my job so in the meantime just pretend like you know what I am talking about). What is incredible is that the program looks like a replica of TFA on paper but once I began to sift through their recruitment, admissions, training, on-going support and methodology, I realized how different it really is. Teach For Israel's Tomorrow, as the program will be called here, will combine a lot of of best practices from both programs since it can't attract people based off idealism like Teach For America does nor can it focus solely on leadership development like Teach First. I am really excited to synthesize everything I learned and apply it to the program here.
So now to the fun part. I stayed an extra four days in London with my good friend and former college roommate Sarah. We hadn't seen eachother in five years since she transferred to Columbia but it took us no time to fall right back into our old ways. We would stay up late giggling in bed, devour incredible chocolate and have deep conversations that reflected how intimately we knew eachother despite the elapsed time and distance. I, of course, managed to do all the touristy things- Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Tate Museum and even sat in on a House of Commons debate about transportation- but the best part was tea time at the Cambridge Club. Sarah and I met up Saturday afternoon and decided that I can't leave London without having a proper tea time. So we walked toward the ritziest members-only club (Sarah, using her journalist techniques, realized that she can be a member as a graduate of Columbia). However we quickly realized that I wouldn't be allowed to enter because I was wearing jeans. Sarah looked me up and down and said "Well you know what you are going to have to do? Button your coat all the way up and wear it as a dress! Take off your pants Yamit!" We giggled like school girls as we entered this glamorous place, looking like a terrible mish-mosh. She was wearing a shirt dress over tights and my crappy shoes and I was hearing my coat as a dress and her knee high boots so that I wouldn't look as naked as I felt. I couldn't believe they took us seriously! But we did in fact have tea and a muffin in their lounge and giggled the entire time by the sight of ourselves and whenever we realized that we are sitting among London's high society.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
A Newly Discovered Cranny
My brother and mom have been in Israel for the past week and a half visiting the family. It has been such a whirlwind week that I can't even remember everything we have done and ate along the way. The best part has definitely been the time spent together- oohing and aahing over Gal, long walks in the park all the way to the beach, and of course the full-out Israeli breakfast's at my sister's place every morning. We start our day right with fresh bread, cheeses, Israeli salad, fruit salad and yogurt... Since they are on vacation, none of us are holding back :) This past weekend the entire family went to Almog, a kibbutz converted to a guest house just north of the Dead Sea. It was so nice to spend shabbat together with all of my Israeli family... the only downside was that my grandma, who was sponsoring the weekend, couldn't make it to Israel after falling and injuring her shoulder. We are hoping that she will come in April.
Rather than describing the entire week in vague detail, I am just going to write about one tiyul (trip) that really touched me. I feel like I know Israel pretty well considering how many times I have been here since leaving the country at the age of 8. But every once in a while, I find a new nook or cranny that I have never heard of but it ends up being a treasure chest. Machon Ayalon was one of those treasures that I recommend to anyone visiting Israel and trying to get a better understanding of the struggle to create a Jewish State.
Machon Ayalon is a kibbutz located just outside the city of Rehovat. It was created by members of the youth movement in 1945 whose aim was to create kibbutzim and settle the land. They were approached by the Haganah, the Jewish underground movement during the British Mandate, with the dilemma of a lifetime- change their plans and instead of working the field and settling the country as they had foreseen, work in an underground clandestine ammunition factory to help the Haganah defend the Jewish people. The consequences of their decision could be fatal. The Kibbutznikim ultimately decided that although it deviates from their original plan and the consequences could be grave, this was their opportunity to make a significant impact on the future of the Jewish people.
The ammunition factory was built underground, with the British only kilometers away, in one month! The Haganah had the foresight to build the factory under a bakery and the laundry mat of the kibbutz. I love the reasoning behind it! It was built under the laundry mat for three reasons: (1) Should the British bring dogs to the area, the gun powder would be masked by the scent of the laundry soap... it also looks the same so any spilled gun powder would not be cause for alarm; (2) The laundry machine is very loud and covers up the sounds of the factory below; (3) Most importantly, there is a chimney that releases all of the steam from the laundry machine but also serves as a way for the underground factory to be ventilated. All of these reasons are very understandable and logical but I couldn't figure out why underneath a bakery. It was only when we entered the bakery and I saw the enormous oven that I realized the reasoning... the oven covers up the hole that was used to move the machinery underground. It takes and hour and a half to move the oven which is why the hole had only been used three times. Each morning the workers headed out to the field, where they were supposedly working, and entered the laundry mat through the back door. The laundry machine was moved and a narrow stair well was uncovered that led them down to the factory.
Ironically, many people in the kibbutz didn't know that there was an ammunition factory right below them. Those that were unaware of the secret were called giraffes because "their heads were in the sky and they couldn't see below them." The workers made every effort to keep this important secret. The Haganah created a "tanning room" in the factory so that the workers would get some color (they were supposedly working in the field but many were getting pale and sick). Additionally, each afternoon they would clean their clothes and hair to rid of the bronze pieces. There were many procedures in place to keep this mission a secret.
The workers produced approximately 14,000 bullets per day with a grand total of 2.25 million bullets. Thankfully, in the three years that the factory operated, there was no major incident. David Ben Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel, called this one of the most important acts of courage during the struggle for the creation of the State of Israel. When Israel gained its independence in 1948, the factory was moved above ground as the secret was no longer necessary. I walked out of Machon Ayalon so proud of the struggles that people endured in order to create the state. It reminded me that Israel is such a young country, about to celebrate its 60th anniversary this May. While there are many problems here- the peace process, education, the religious vs. the secular, etc.- Israel is still in its defining stage. We can't expect to have all the answers yet nor can we compare Israel to countries that have been in existence for 200 years... they are not on the same plane. What we can do is look to the future and ask. "what do we want Israel to look like on its 200th birthday? And what do we need to do to get there?" Often times we lose perspective when talking about Israel and the Middle East; Machon Ayalon put it back into focus for me.
I will end this post with a story that our guide told us that really touched me. In the three years that the factory was operational, there was only one serious injury. There is a machine that trims the bullets because they are purposely made too long. The machine is called the mohel (for my non-Jewish readers- the mohel is the person that circumcises boys when they are 8 days old). The worker that operated the mohel was not paying attention one day and cut off his finger. An elderly gentleman came to tour the factory last year and as the guide was telling the story of the accident, the man raised his hand and says, "That was me!" and then showed his hand with the missing finger. He continued to explain that the job was boring and that he entertained himself by looking at the girl's legs that was working next to him. He then said, "Look at the women next to me... it was worth losing a finger for her!" The couple got married a few years after the War of Independence. The factory workers became a family down there... with the common secret and mission, they built a community of their own. So while maybe they didn't get the kibbutz that they originally expected, they gained a different purpose and in the process helped create the State of Israel.
(Addendum: I just found this great History Channel special about the Ayalon Institute... it really captures this incredible story http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQNw5MA3DII)
Rather than describing the entire week in vague detail, I am just going to write about one tiyul (trip) that really touched me. I feel like I know Israel pretty well considering how many times I have been here since leaving the country at the age of 8. But every once in a while, I find a new nook or cranny that I have never heard of but it ends up being a treasure chest. Machon Ayalon was one of those treasures that I recommend to anyone visiting Israel and trying to get a better understanding of the struggle to create a Jewish State.
Machon Ayalon is a kibbutz located just outside the city of Rehovat. It was created by members of the youth movement in 1945 whose aim was to create kibbutzim and settle the land. They were approached by the Haganah, the Jewish underground movement during the British Mandate, with the dilemma of a lifetime- change their plans and instead of working the field and settling the country as they had foreseen, work in an underground clandestine ammunition factory to help the Haganah defend the Jewish people. The consequences of their decision could be fatal. The Kibbutznikim ultimately decided that although it deviates from their original plan and the consequences could be grave, this was their opportunity to make a significant impact on the future of the Jewish people.
The ammunition factory was built underground, with the British only kilometers away, in one month! The Haganah had the foresight to build the factory under a bakery and the laundry mat of the kibbutz. I love the reasoning behind it! It was built under the laundry mat for three reasons: (1) Should the British bring dogs to the area, the gun powder would be masked by the scent of the laundry soap... it also looks the same so any spilled gun powder would not be cause for alarm; (2) The laundry machine is very loud and covers up the sounds of the factory below; (3) Most importantly, there is a chimney that releases all of the steam from the laundry machine but also serves as a way for the underground factory to be ventilated. All of these reasons are very understandable and logical but I couldn't figure out why underneath a bakery. It was only when we entered the bakery and I saw the enormous oven that I realized the reasoning... the oven covers up the hole that was used to move the machinery underground. It takes and hour and a half to move the oven which is why the hole had only been used three times. Each morning the workers headed out to the field, where they were supposedly working, and entered the laundry mat through the back door. The laundry machine was moved and a narrow stair well was uncovered that led them down to the factory.
Ironically, many people in the kibbutz didn't know that there was an ammunition factory right below them. Those that were unaware of the secret were called giraffes because "their heads were in the sky and they couldn't see below them." The workers made every effort to keep this important secret. The Haganah created a "tanning room" in the factory so that the workers would get some color (they were supposedly working in the field but many were getting pale and sick). Additionally, each afternoon they would clean their clothes and hair to rid of the bronze pieces. There were many procedures in place to keep this mission a secret.
The workers produced approximately 14,000 bullets per day with a grand total of 2.25 million bullets. Thankfully, in the three years that the factory operated, there was no major incident. David Ben Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel, called this one of the most important acts of courage during the struggle for the creation of the State of Israel. When Israel gained its independence in 1948, the factory was moved above ground as the secret was no longer necessary. I walked out of Machon Ayalon so proud of the struggles that people endured in order to create the state. It reminded me that Israel is such a young country, about to celebrate its 60th anniversary this May. While there are many problems here- the peace process, education, the religious vs. the secular, etc.- Israel is still in its defining stage. We can't expect to have all the answers yet nor can we compare Israel to countries that have been in existence for 200 years... they are not on the same plane. What we can do is look to the future and ask. "what do we want Israel to look like on its 200th birthday? And what do we need to do to get there?" Often times we lose perspective when talking about Israel and the Middle East; Machon Ayalon put it back into focus for me.
I will end this post with a story that our guide told us that really touched me. In the three years that the factory was operational, there was only one serious injury. There is a machine that trims the bullets because they are purposely made too long. The machine is called the mohel (for my non-Jewish readers- the mohel is the person that circumcises boys when they are 8 days old). The worker that operated the mohel was not paying attention one day and cut off his finger. An elderly gentleman came to tour the factory last year and as the guide was telling the story of the accident, the man raised his hand and says, "That was me!" and then showed his hand with the missing finger. He continued to explain that the job was boring and that he entertained himself by looking at the girl's legs that was working next to him. He then said, "Look at the women next to me... it was worth losing a finger for her!" The couple got married a few years after the War of Independence. The factory workers became a family down there... with the common secret and mission, they built a community of their own. So while maybe they didn't get the kibbutz that they originally expected, they gained a different purpose and in the process helped create the State of Israel.
(Addendum: I just found this great History Channel special about the Ayalon Institute... it really captures this incredible story http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQNw5MA3DII)
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