                                                               
                                
                      A Voice from Hebron
                     by Gary M. Cooperberg
                         March 26, 1997
             It is Time for Israel to become Jewish

     The one thing people do not like to think about is failure.  Explanations can be created to
explain away any problem, but to admit we have failed is just too harsh an option.  If someone
bought a house made of cardboard he would soon discover that it could not protect him from the
elements.  He could reinforce it with plastic to keep out the rain, and tape up each hole after it
was torn, but, as one can imagine, eventually he would just have to accept the fact that he made a
bad purchase and then build himself a new house of wood or concrete.
     The system of government which the people of Israel have inherited is made of bubble
gum and used candy wrappers. . . leftovers discarded by former powers.  Nothing fits and nothing
matches.  It is a wonder that it even functions.  Yet, as is always the case, the law of inertia tends
to keep things as they are.  While the function of the government is supposed to be to serve the
governed, those in power tend to arrange things so that they stay in power. . . even if that may
conflict with the interests of the state.
     The common man really doesn't spend much time contemplating the intricacies of how his
system of government functions.   All he wants is to be able to earn a living and live a reasonably
secure life.  But when the bombs go off in buses and restaurants; children are murdered on class
outings; platoons of soldiers are required to enable us to build Jewish homes in Jerusalem; and
Arab hoodlums can prevent Jews from praying at Rachel's Tomb, even the most accepting of
citizens has to take pause and ask what we are doing wrong.
     The fact is that we have been cheated and we refuse to openly recognize that fact.  We
have been sold a bill of goods called "democracy", when, in fact, we have little, if any, say in what
goes on in our government.  For the first time in Israeli history we directly elected a prime
minister.  It was expected that this would reduce the element of political bargaining by which
former governments came to power.  Now we would have a prime minister who is directly
responsible to the people. . . not to political threats or bribes.
     How frantic we were at election time.  Peres was literally consorting with the enemy.  He
took the most vile Jew-hater in the world and made him his personal "friend".  He elevated him in
the eyes of the world and began a process of Jewish retreat from our own homeland while
strengthening and building up the PLO!   This was treason of the lowest form.  We had to remove
this man before he destroyed our country.  
     Netanyahu was a young right-wing common sense sort of fellow.  He lambasted the
former government for yielding to Arab terror and partaking in an agreement which was harmful
to the state.  So many good Jews, all over the world, gave of their time and money to get "our
man" into office.  How sweet was the victory when he won!  Now, at long last, we would stop
the madness and get our country on the road to self respect and true independence.
     Our new prime minister did us proud when he first went to the White House and had
President Clinton mouthing his campaign slogan "peace with security" and "reciprocity".  Here
was a man who had the intelligence and fortitude not only to change Israeli policy for the better,
but to maintain the backing of the USA as well.  
     Then it happened.  For whatever reason our brilliant young statesman decided that he had
no choice but to follow in the footsteps of his predecessors. . . in spite of the fact that his own
feelings rebelled against those footsteps and, what is worse, in spite of the fact that he knew he
was clearly violating the will of those who got him into office!   The moment Netanyahu decided
to meet and shake hands with the terrorist murderer Arafat,  it should have been clear to all  that
we had been had.
     When all the pretty words and eloquent speeches are said and done, we are left with a very
strange and empty feeling.  If all we got by voting for Netanyahu is a very slightly different
version of Shimon Peres, what did we accomplish?  And, to add insult to injury, we now hear
open suggestions that a national unity government be formed.  In other words, we voted for a
new government and all we got was the so called "right wing" to continue the exact policies
which caused us to reject the old government!  And, further, it seems that we may even get much
of the old government back!  We were under the impression that democracy gives the voters a
choice when, in fact, we never really had a choice at all!
     It is bad enough that the concept of secular democracy has been misrepresented in order
to lull the electorate into accepting the decisions of the elite power brokers, but for alleged
"religious" leaders to lend their approval to such a fraud is outrageous.  Leadership really should
come from our rabbis.  Instead we find our rabbis endorsing a fraud, and throwing up their hands
claiming that this is the best we can do!
     If this is the best; if nothing is better, then I personally would prefer nothing.  At least then
we would recognize what we don't have and no longer labor under the illusion that we have
something!   
     I am not a nihilist.  I did not want to participate in the last election because I believed then
what we all know now, that Bibi is no better than Peres, and maybe even worse.  By voting we
have given up our right to choose!  It is like saying, although I do not like what we have, I accept
it.  We should not have accepted it.  Wrong is wrong, no matter how much perfume you spray on
the stench.
     If there were a party or candidate who were running an a genuine Jewish platform, by all
means we should vote and campaign for such a candidate and party.  But if there is no such
option, then by voting we are accepting leadership whose principles violate Judaism, not to
mention national responsibility and self respect.  Under such circumstances I consider the decision
not to vote to be a positive decision.  It would express my complete confidence that it is the
Creator of the Universe who will save us, and not some deceitful politician.
     No one voted for Moses or King David.  Mordechai and Esther were not elected to be
leaders.  Jewish history has clearly shown us that when we deserve leadership, G-d provides us
with a leader.  The time is overdue for us to earn the leadership we deserve by conducting our
lives as proud Jews.  The Living G-d of Israel did not return His people from the four corners of
the world to rebuild the third Jewish commonwealth so that we could portion it out to Arafat! 
We owe explanations to no one.  Our course is crystal clear and no power on earth can alter it. . .
not even our own would-be leaders.
     