                                                           B"sd

                      A Voice from Hebron
                     by Gary M. Cooperberg
                  Self-Deception or Redemption
                       The Choice is Ours
                       December 28, 1998
                                
     I must admit, as always, it is a special treat to listen to our Prime Minister speak.  He is a
skilled orator and an able politician.  If only he had integrity, honesty and Jewish principles as well
he would be the perfect Prime Minister for our nation.  Unfortunately he has none of the above. 
The main advantage he enjoys as of now, is the appearance that his opponents are even more
dangerous than he is.    

     The people of Israel want to believe in someone.  They want a real leader.  In the absence
of genuine leadership they are easy prey for a skilled demagogue such as Netanyahu.  The Prime
Minister knows how to say what the people want to hear. . . or how to almost say it to the point
that his listeners willingly fill in the blanks with wishful thinking.  Were he a strong and good
leader he would not have lost so many cabinet ministers nor would so many of his colleagues have
defected from the party.  Certainly it is unheard of for an incumbent Prime Minister to be
challenged for leadership within his own party, a fact which only accents the mistrust he has
generated, even among his own supporters.

     The alleged  "right wing" in this country is still trying to get its act together.  Rumors are
rampant that Benny Begin will lead a new right wing party.  Indeed, if all those parties and
individuals who reject Oslo and the PLO outright would band together to begin a new party and
pick a viable leader they would have a small chance to unseat Netanyahu, and if not, at least they
could put together a serious opposition block which could help shape the future of this country.  

     It is still too early to tell how the political picture will pan out.  At this moment I would
guess that, despite his many difficulties and faults, Netanyahu is most likely to be reelected as
Prime Minister.  He has two things going for him.  First of all he is the incumbent, and secondly
he is also the underdog.  Both statuses give an edge, and it is rare for one person to have both
statuses.  Of course he also presents a very suave image on the television to which few can come
close.  He is the Israeli version of Clinton whose appeal to the television is far in excess of his
leadership ability or moral fiber.

     In times of crisis good people want to believe in their leaders.  We are living in a time of
extreme crisis and we are desperate for good leadership.  Lacking any alternative and wanting to
believe in something tangible, it is easy to believe in a talented demagogue.  Netanyahu speaks
like a strong leader.  He comes very close to saying what we want to hear.  He speaks with
conviction and sounds very sincere.  The problem is that he is a deceiver and lacks genuine
ideology.  He has appealed to our most urgent desires. . . the hope for real peace and security.  He
declares this to be his policy and that he is able to achieve these things.  He is a liar on both
counts.  Peace will never result from negotiating with bandits.  The only lesson which Arafat will
accept is a good solid kick in the teeth.  He respects power and ruthlessness.  Anything less will
only guarantee more bloodshed.  Netanyahu will never teach the terrorist to become a prince of
peace.  On the contrary.  He has given him good instruction on how to deceive us by playing the
wolf in sheep's clothing.

     In true demagogic style our Prime Minister told us that the "left" will give Arafat the 1947
borders.  He only said this to make his surrender appear to be a victory.  It is outrageous to listen
to our prime minister list violation after violation of both the spirit and letter of Oslo and Wye by
the PLO, declare that it was a bad agreement, and yet insist upon continuing to honor it!  Were he
an honest and courageous leader he would immediately declare that the PLO rendered all of their
agreements null and void.   He would then begin to reclaim all of our lands given away under false
pretenses.  This would not be a radical "right wing" belligerent move.  It would be the just and
proper thing to do under international law.  But this will never happen because Netanyahu still has
only one principle.  He wants to be Prime Minister of Israel.  

     The irony of all this is that Netanyahu is capable of achieving all he wants honestly.  He
could be the best prime minister this country ever saw were he strong enough to stand up for
Jewish principles above political ones.  The vast majority of Jews would stand behind him had he
the courage to throw out Wye, and Oslo and Arafat.   By so doing he would earn the respect of
friend and foe alike and bring real security to the Jewish State by instilling fear in the hearts of our
enemies.  Instead he is trying to please everyone, and, as we can clearly see from the result of his
antics, he has displeased nearly everyone.

     It is no accident that we are having early elections.  The Living G-d of Israel is giving us
another chance to redeem ourselves from the mess we have created.  If we can find new
leadership which will hold high the torch of Zion, with true Jewish pride, we will avert the tragedy
which is in store for us.  If not, the redemption will commence in spite of us, but with unnecessary
pain and tragedy that could have been avoided.  Now, more than ever, we must all work to
restore Jewish self-respect to our only homeland.