{Originally posted to the JNS magazine}
For many of the familiar commentators in the leftist media, the election campaign is not yet over. The results of the election, which were decided through democratic means, are too heavy for them to bear. Their tremendous efforts to benefit the three former Israel Defense Forces’ chiefs of staff ended in resounding failure. A majority of the public disconnected from the false presentations and transparent propaganda efforts. Those who don’t know how to lose will never be able to win, and those who are unable to internalize the reasons for their failure will always leave the stage in shame.
Joining these tormented souls Sunday was former Supreme Court Justice Eliyahu Matza, whose leftist opinions are all too well-known. Matza has accused Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu of behaving like a mafia boss. Taking care to avoid referring to the lowly riffraff, he explained with incredible arrogance how Netanyahu’s election was an expression of how “the innocence of the people is great.” With justices that hold these types of views, it is no surprise that many of Israel’s citizens have lost their faith in the Supreme Court. The rule of law is not just a slogan to be used to justify ideological Bolshevism. Unfortunately, there are those among us for whom Joseph Stalin remains a guiding star.
My advice to the frustrated and disappointed would be to take a vacation, engage in some soul-searching and relax. Doing so will allow them to break free of the bubble in which they live, to get acquainted and connect with the people they are trying to convince and understand why, outside of the Dan region, they have no real influence on public opinion.
The old elite is under stress. They have embarked on a campaign against the possible appointment of Yariv Levin as justice minister out of concern he will bring a return to sanity and restore the balance, which was systematically violated under the leadership of the Supreme Court, between the branches of government. As a preventative step there is also an attempt underway to appoint former Supreme Court Justice Yoram Danziger as a representative to the Israel Bar Association in order to take control of the Judicial Selection Committee, which began to show some signs of independence under Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked.
We will soon learn whether Yisrael Beytenu Party chief Avigdor Lieberman will be the alternative messiah that counters the religious Zionists and the haredi Orthodox. The left is adept at quickly building up temporary heroes and throwing them away when they are no longer of use. The hypocrites who speak incessantly of division and polarization will go back to their old mantras, which hold that the haredim are blackmailers and draft dodgers, and all the other clichés taken from the legacy of Jew-hatred. The New Israel Fund, whose enormous investments have gone down the drain, will shed a tear in English as it defames the country and complains that Israel has ceased to be a democracy.
To make the establishment of the government difficult, every slip of the tongue will make the headlines, in the hope a unity government will be established. Supporters of the Blue and White Party know that Gabi Ashkenazi, Moshe Ya’alon and Benny Gantz will not be passing through the Knesset halls on their way to a meeting of the Knesset’s environmental committee or the Knesset Committee on the Status of Women and Gender Equality in an effort to garner votes for legislation they’re promoting. Under these circumstances, the left will have only Yair Lapid to rely on, who will as a result need to forgo his trips overseas and instead show up in Knesset to make life miserable for the coalition.
Passover is a holiday of unity, not a unity government. For there to be unity, every individual must look in the mirror before preaching peace and brotherhood to others. Were this to happen, the incitement might stop, people might instead engage in debate over fundamental issues and the swamp of hatred would dry up.
(Dr. Haim Shine is a faculty member of Israel’s Academic Center of Law and Science, and a member of the Jewish Agency’s Board of Governors)
