Afterall, I do not believe that the formation of a Palestinian State that wants to blow up my house would be a good thing. Perhaps I am “right-wing” since I do not believe that throwing people out of legally built houses is such a great idea. Or maybe the reason that I am “on the right” is that I have made it clear that I don’t believe the trading of 10,000 Jewish residents of Gaza was worth the 10,000 rockets that we received in return.

All this is true, so maybe I am a “right-winger.” But when I read with disgust the actions of the lunatics who also fall under the term, I feel I have to speak up. Let no one think that all of us settlers or right-wingers agree with the extremists who usually speak in our names. Case in point: This Rabbi’s call for settlers to shoot at Israeli solidiers.

If he was a Palestinian, he would already be in jail.

It goes along with the attempts of others last week to block major Israeli intersections. There was even a group who stood in the train tracks and said they were trying to block the train to Tel Aviv. Yeah, smart. That’s a great way to get your point across. 

Don’t misunderstand, I am all in favor of protest against government decisions that I believe are against Israel’s best interests. Rallies, marches, mass vigils — these are all critical to drawing attention to your arguments. But shooting at young Israeli men and women in uniform? Shooting at our own kids?

Are you guys really nuts?

Actually, the only thing that actions such as these do is make everyone else in Israel just want to wash their hands of settlers and settlements as quickly as possible. Even if they don’t think that taking down settlements will lead to peace, they are getting sick of the ridiculous extremism on the right. You know what? I don’t blame them.

The main thing that we tell the world that differentiates Israel from its enemies is the fact that we are a Democracy, a nation of laws. But when a segment of the population declares that neither laws nor decisions of a democratically elected government need to be followed, we have just compromised our moral standing.

Now don’t get me wrong, I do not believe that a majority or even a significant minority of settlers believe we should start shooting at soldiers. But like the handful of haredim who harass women and throw stones at cars on shabbat, this minority misrepresents whole  communities. This IS how more and more people perceive the right.

So as a settler whose views on the Israeli political spectrum are “right-wing,” I must stand up and say that I reject the actions of these extremists. They are hurting our efforts to retain territory and weaken, rather than strengthen the Jewish claim to Judea and Samara.

Brrrrr!

When I first heard that there would be a “settlement freeze,” I thought “so what?” I mean, having lived in Neve Daniel for two winters, I have come to accept the fact that five months a year I will not be able to see out my windows because of the fog. I bundle up the kids and watch them disappear into the cold mist. Sometime after Pesach, spring comes back, and we all warm up again.

Then I realized that the “settlement freeze” had nothing whatsoever to do with the weather. Apparently, our government is trying to prevent Jews from building homes, schools, and synagogues. In addition, we might go ahead and let a few hundred terrorists out of jail. These are referred to as “confidence building” measures. They are efforts to show the Palestinians that we are serious about peace. (The last time we tried this approach, we ended up with 8,000 homeless Israelis. In exchange for all the land of Gaza, the Palestinians gave us a few thousand Qassam rockets.)

Now, this time our Prime Minister is not just on the giving end, he expects something serious in return. He could have demanded that our peace partners stop shooting rockets at us. That would have been a good start. It would have made sense. If you are making peace with someone, you might think that they should stop shooting you.

He could also have asked the Palestinians to release Gilad Shalit, the young man that Israel abandoned over a year ago. I don’t think it would have been asking too much that in exchange for releasing several hundred bomb-makers and throwers, they let one poor kid go whose crime was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

But no, Prime Minister Olmert decided that in exchange for freezing us all out, he would DEMAND that the Palestinians… recognize that Israel is a Jewish State.

Excuse me? Did I read that correctly? We are asking the Arabs to recognize something as obvious as the sky being blue? We are the state of kosher Kentucky Fried Chicken where the buses stop running on Shabbat. That’s all we want from them. “Sure guys, go right ahead and keep shooting up the schools in Sderot. But please admit that these are JEWISH schools, okay?”

After they finished laughing, the Palestinians of course claimed that this demand was too high. Instead they will probably work out some sort of deal that they won’t shoot rockets between the hours of 2 and 3 on Thursdays…. Except for when they do.

Should I be worried? No, I’m not. Just as the cold eventually thaws and we have a beautiful spring, I am confident that eventually we will have a government that is strong enough to make peace on terms that will actually benefit the nation of Israel.

Until then, hand me another blanket, it’s getting cold!

Shabbat Shalom from our blessed nation.

The Wandering Jew

I have no home.

It’s not quite as bad as it sounds though. In fact, it’s quiet nice.

In Israel, we are always under-estimating time. When the government says that Jerusalem’s light rail system will be done next year, we hold back on the excitement. I doubt that the “separation fence” that was supposed to be completed several years ago will ever be done. And when the government promises political reform, holding our breath would be quiet dangerous.

We don’t really expect repairmen to come when they promise “next week.” “Next week” usually means “over the next few weeks.” And of course, I have already written about Bezek coming “definitely” by Thursday. And if not, then within a few days.
Time is just viewed differently here. When we got tired of being the first to show up to smachot, we asked a friend what time we should really come to his son’s Bar Mitzvah party, scheduled for 7:30. He told us to come by 8:30. Most of the other guests were there by 9:00.

So when our builder told us that our new house would be “completed” by August 1, we didn’t really believe him. And the truth is, it really is done. It just needs a little more paint…. And a little more electricity. And a little more ceramics. And a little kitchen. You get the picture.

So when August rolled around, we moved out of our house into… Neve Daniel.

We were pleased, but not shocked, when we ended up with multiple invitations to come stay with others while we waited for our house to be completed. Over the last two years, we have gotten used to the attitudes of people who choose to live “out here.” It takes a special person to want to live in the “West Bank” in an age when even our own government seems a bit ashamed of us living here. No, contrary to popular belief, you do not have to be a violent extremist to live here. (I consider myself an extremist when it comes to bicycling and chocolate, but certainly not violence.)

If most people living in settlements are extremists, then we are extreme in our idealism. Despite the “situation” which every year seems to get a bit darker, people out here have high hopes for the future. It is extreme optimism that fuels the settler movement. There is a great willingness to put personal comfort behind national goals. Whether it means leaving family to do reserve duty or housing refugees from the North, there is a serious sense of obligation here.

People viewed helping us out no differently than they do baking a cake for the soldiers at the “pina chama” or buying challot from bakeries in Sderot. It’s the “how can we help” settler instinct. Without having to ask, we found ourselves with more than enough places to stay. Because it is clear that the future out here depends on what people are willing to do to help each other out, people are more than willing. It doesn’t matter whether that means giving someone a trempto Jerusalem or letting a temporarily homeless family stay in their home.

So my opening statement is wrong, we do have a home.

Our home is called Neve Daniel.

Shabbat Shalom from our blessed nation.