In what I consider a naive and theologically simplistic attempt to substitute slogans and emotions for facts, a group called the Shalom Center placed a full page ad in the Friday, March 21, New York Times calling on Jews to “oppose the war.”
While arguing that “disarming a dangerous dictator is a just end,” the group fails to inform us as to how, after 12 years of intransigence accompanied by Iraq’s mockery of the world’s disarmament demands, this impasse could ever come to a successful conclusion. Security Council Resolution 1441 called for a total disarmament, not a cat and mouse game with public relations efforts to imply acquiescence as the world prays that weapons of mass destruction are not transferred to terrorists around the world. (To wit: the Ricin found in the Paris subway last week.)
The ad claims:
* “War will kill innocent .. children.” Unlike Islamic suicide murderers who target innocents and civilians, the “shock and awe” campaign is a combination of psychological and military efforts to avoid civilian casualties. Within technological possibilities the attack is aimed at combatants and leadership only.
* “War will kill and wound countless American soldiers in battle.” American casualties in Gulf War I and to date have been minimal. But every human life is precious and these heroes give their lives so that our society can live and function in freedom and to ensure that any citizen can protest government policies, with full-page ads and/or marches.
* “War will subject Americans, Israelis .. to hellish terrorist reprisals.” There is no proof this will occur. Daily terror against Israel, and the attacks of 9/11, occurred absent our invasion of Iraq. To the contrary, in Israel terrorist casualties decrease as pre-emptive military action against terrorist groups increases. Further, American inaction would in no way guarantee our safety from terrorism.
* “War will give spurious legitimacy to further attacks on our civil rights.” What kind of double talk is this? If the FBI intensifies its search for Al Qaeda sleeper cells, then G-d bless the FBI. Even with all our alerts and safeguards at airports, etc., I’ll compare our civil liberties favorably with any other democracy in the world. By the way, who is concerned with the civil liberties of the Iraqis?
* “War will diminish the lives of all Americans, divest hundreds of billions of dollars needed for heath, etc.” Talk about dollar waste! Jewish education could certainly have benefited from the nearly $100,000 cost of a full page New York Times ad. Sept. 11 and its aftermath cost us thousands of lives and untold billions in property and economic loss. Our security needs will cost additional billions because we avoided dealing with these problems five and ten years ago. But the ultimate cost of waiting to clean up after a terrorist attack on our soil with weapons of mass destruction, possibly supplied by Iraq, would be far greater.
Jews must support this war on geo-political, moral and theological grounds.
Judaism does not teach us to turn the other cheek. Yes, we strive for justice, but evil has a penalty that must be meted out. Justice does not imply or mean the absence of war. We are not pacifists. War is an instrument — albeit a final one — for Jewish survival.
The war against Amalek is one of the 613 mitzvot. We are commanded to destroy, remember and never forget the Hitlers, Arafats, Saddams, Assads, and Osamas — the Amalekites of our generation.
Yes, King Solomon said in Psalm 34 (as quoted in the Shalom Center ad), “Seek peace and pursue it.” However, he also wrote (Ecclesiastes 3.1): “Everything has its season and there is a time for everything under the heaven. A time to be born and a time to die…And time to kill and time to heal…A time for war and a time for peace.”
Moreover, the Talmud Sanhedrin 72.1 exclaims, “He who comes to kill you, arise first and kill him.” Had George W. Bush been president in 1939, 6 million Jews might have been saved from the crematoria.
President Bush tried every possible means to bring peace. The Iraqis, encouraged by the French and Germans, were able to mouth the words and express a positive intent, but refused to comply with total disarmament. This from a regime that killed its own people with poison gas, attempted to assassinate the first President Bush, occupied Kuwait, attacked Iran, fired scuds at Israel and developed weapons of mass destruction.
The ad concludes with a call to pursue justice peace and Tikkun Olam — healing the planet.
If one examines the 613 commandments, the writings of Maimonides, Nachmonides, Mishna Brura, etc., there is no mitzvah of Tikkun Olam per se. Tikkun Olam requires a moral society in order to thrive. Thus, many thinkers pointed out that during the Holocaust and when Jews were threatened with destruction,Tikkun Olam could not be on our agenda. When we have the ability to live in tranquility and harmony with the environment and our neighbors, then we can shine as we perfect our efforts on behalf of Tikkun Olam in medicine, the arts, technology, human relations and so on.
The war, please G-d, will soon end victoriously. Sadly, the ad never mentions the safety of our soldiers. Hopefully the Middle East may change immeasurably for the better and perhaps — just perhaps — Israel and Jews will be able to breathe a little easier as we prepare for the next crisis in the “peace process” that will once again require Jewish unity, strength and fortitude.
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