The Gaza War and the Warriors
Thursday, January 15th, 2009
My country is at war, and I can’t help but feel a little guilty. Thousands of young people, Israel’s finest, are battling their way through the streets of Gaza city as you read this. This is a city where schools are named after suicide bombers and mosques serve as missile launching grounds. This is a city in which a cheering crowd showered appreciation on a Hamas play in which a terrorist pretending to be Gilad Shalit begged for his mother and father. This is a city in which the main hospital also serves as the headquarters of one of the world’s most notorious terrorist gangs.
Originally, I was not going to write about the Tiveria Marathon. With soldiers in harm’s way, it seemed to be a bit inappropriate. Yet it was the proud father of one of our Golani heroes who made me promise that I would write about the race. He told me that the reason his son is fighting, risking his life in Gaza, is so the rest of us can lead “normal” lives. If those of us who are not in the military cower in our homes, it would defeat the whole purpose of what the soldiers are fighting for. So, in honor of all our IDF heroes, here we go: 
