Israel must survive

Letters

Editor: It is hard to believe that some Jews were so manipulated by a few individuals who themselves have become pawns of militant Arab/Islamic doctrine - so much so that they demand the dismantling of the Jewish character of the state of Israel.

Almost every country in the world has its own character. Try to tell the French or the Germans to surrender their national character, or the Swedes, Finns or Russians. Jordan is a country created in the same time span as Israel, ask them to give up their Jordanian character or religious orientation. At the very least, those calling for that would be barred forever from entering the country, but Israel will forgive and even welcome them to their land. So, why do the Jews have no right to have their state with the "Jewish character"? Have they not made an impact on world civilization, disproportionately to their numbers?

I challenge those individuals to corroborate more convincingly their reasons for such an attitude toward an identifiable group of people. While appeasing the intent of their handlers, they still claim to be "Jewish."

For centuries, the Jewish people were stateless, deprived, discriminated against, persecuted and slaughtered by anti-Semitic prejudice. After the Holocaust, and with the establishment of the state of Israel, that situation significantly improved. However, as the famous Irish diplomat and writer, Conor Cruise O'Brien, said, "Anti-Semitism is a light sleeper." Last summer in Durban, it showed its ugly face again, on a big scale, and so-called "Jews" were playing into the hand of those who hate everything and everyone Jewish.

What the new/old racists want is for Jews to become homeless so attacks could be launched with little possibility of protection. They want the Jews to become defenceless and vulnerable again but they cannot do it without destroying Israel. In a twist of events, their interest coincides with the Arabs who want nothing less than full destruction of Israel. The third party in this vicious play proclaims to be "Jewish." However, I think that many of them are camouflaged under the Jewish individuals who create an appearance that Jews are in their corner too, to give their goal more legitimacy. There are a small number of individuals
considering themselves ethnically Jews who are in the same gang. They are simply cowards because such behavior is not a simple difference of opinions, but it is an incitement against Jewish people. Our strong resistance to them is a matter of survival for one of the oldest nations on earth.

If Jews are to survive in history, Israel must survive and be strong. The questions of territory and the Jewish character of the state are crucial. Less territory means a bigger danger of destruction, therefore, the concept of "land for peace," as we learned recently, is wrong. "Peace for peace" makes much more sense.

While the absolute majority supports Israel in a big way, some differences of opinion are inevitable. What is vital is to differentiate between lies, propaganda and reality, and not to jump on the wrong platform and not to harm ourselves. The fate of the Jews and Israel is inseparable.

Ted Lew
Vancouver

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