A New Year’s Accounting

Posted on: August 30th, 2006

Most Israelis feel the cease-fire was imposed on us before we finished the job. Hizbullah is not disarmed, our kidnapped soldiers have not been returned, and Iran and Syria seem to have been let off the hook.

Something Less Than Victory

Posted on: August 30th, 2006

For generations of Diaspora Jews raised on the idea of an invincible Israel, the last month has been something of a blow. While historians will probably have better luck sorting out the results of the recent weeks of fighting between Israel and its Hizbullah antagonists than journalists, there is little question that the result was a lot less than most of Israel's supporters in this country were expecting.

Olmert’s Liberal Mindset To Blame For Lebanon Fiasco

Posted on: August 30th, 2006

Clichéd postmortems analyzing Israel's failure to deal Hezbollah a clear defeat miss the point in blaming Prime Minister Olmert's lack of military experience or native ineptness. The key reasons for Israel's poor performance are deeper and far more ideological.

Encouraging Islamist Zealotry

Posted on: August 30th, 2006

It pains me to write this. But it is becoming increasingly clear to me that Israel, in so many ways on the front lines in the fight against Islamo-fascism, is actually a force promoting it.

Questions For Barak And Olmert

Posted on: August 30th, 2006

If a truly independent Israeli government inquiry is commissioned to scrutinize all aspects of the Jewish state's recent war against Hizbullah, the two Israeli political leaders most likely to undergo the most severe grilling are former prime minister Ehud Barak and the current premier, Ehud Olmert.

The War Israel Chose To Lose

Posted on: August 23rd, 2006

It was a war Israel was more afraid of winning than of losing.

Gibson Syndrome – Friends of Israel Go Wobbly

Posted on: August 23rd, 2006

Here's a syndrome for the books: A renowned filmmaker gets stinking drunk. Angry and bizarre words then spew forth - from the lips (or pens) of others.

A Truckload Of Goodwill

Posted on: August 23rd, 2006

Undeterred by the Heathrow shutdown, I turned up for the Aug. 10 night flight to Israel. I had no business there and no formal holiday plans. I just felt I needed to be there, perhaps to help out friends and family whose breadwinners had been called up for reserve duty.

Civilization’s Lament

Posted on: August 23rd, 2006

As the Hizbullah-Israel war wound down last week, pundits were quick to label winners and losers. Some said Hizbullah won because it survived, bombed Israel with 4,000 rockets, and earned the applause of the Arab "street." Others maintain that Israel won because Hizbullah was partially crippled, its leadership is in hiding, and the Lebanese will emerge from the dust furious at Hizbullah for a war they did not seek.

The Time Is Now – Israel And The West On The Brink

Posted on: August 23rd, 2006

Our beloved Israel is engaged in an existential fight for survival. From the moment of its birth in 1948, Israel has been under constant siege. This latest war, however, feels different. It comes upon Israel after decades of non-stop terrorist attacks, large-scale military battles, and endless international boycotts and condemnation.

Things Worth Remembering

Posted on: August 23rd, 2006

A general mood of depression has gripped Israel since the cease-fire in Lebanon came into force on Monday, August 14. It is unjustified. True, we again lost many precious sons in the quagmire of Lebanon. A large number of our soldiers and civilians are still crowding the hospitals, some of them seriously wounded. Our cities and settlements in the North suffered gaping wounds that will require months of rehabilitation.

The Sin Of Yehoyakimism

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

It is as unpleasant as it is impolitic to point out - in wartime, especially - that, despite all protestations to the contrary, the emperor indeed has no clothes. Neither spin nor sloganeering can conceal from the Jewish public and world opinion the obvious deterioration of Israel's security situation.

Ice Cream Cones And Rockets

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

One night last week I heard a bloodcurdling scream coming from upstairs. "Mommy!" Cries at that level of urgency, panic, and volume can mean only one thing: My children had seen a cockroach that had wandered out of a newly-formed hole hidden behind the bathtub.

One God, One People, One Land

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

Although we have been pressured into accepting a cease-fire, which will only give our enemies an opportunity to rebuild their war machine meant to destroy the Jewish people, this war has not come to an end. As with our previous wars, beginning with the war of liberation in 1948, we are continually forced to fight for the very existence of our people and the independence of the Jewish homeland.

Less Secretive Than The Jets?

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

During a recent trip to Israel, I couldn't help but notice the dearth of fellow visitors and think of the many religiously observant American Jews who stridently demand that Israel never cede any land.

The Right Stuff – Showing Our Appreciation For The IDF

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

There is a story told about the great Mirrer rosh yeshiva, Rav Chaim Shmulevitz, zt"l. During the Six-Day War a bombshell landed near the yeshiva, just missing it. No one was injured. Rav Shmulevitz decided to make a seudas hoda'ah, a festive meal thanking God for this nes nistar (hidden miracle) that spared his students any injury.

Lebanon War A Tale Of Israeli Mistakes, American Fortitude

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

The war in Lebanon should not have surprised anyone. For many years, Hizbullah, which is funded, equipped and ideologically supported by Iran and Syria, has made it crystal clear that its goal is to conquer Israel, expel its Jewish inhabitants, and place the entire land under Islamic rule.

An Unmitigated Disaster

Posted on: August 16th, 2006

There is a good reason that Hizbullah chief Hassan Nasrallah has accepted UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which sets the terms for a cease-fire between his jihad army and the State of Israel.

Psychological Roots Of Islamic Rage

Posted on: August 9th, 2006

Islamic terrorists routinely kidnap the most vulnerable civilians and hold them hostage. Hamas and Hizbullah, like Arafat's PLO, hold their own people hostage as well, and hide both themselves and their weapons among Muslim civilians.

Jerusalem Diary

Posted on: August 9th, 2006

Tuesday, July 25, 2006 - The close of another day that I had hoped would be the beginning of an epitaph, the inscription commemorating the end of this war. However, it wasn't meant to be. Instead, another day of enduring news of rocket fire, wounded, and dead.