Tamrurim תַּמְרוּרִ֔ים

Tamrurim (Guideposts) are brief thoughts about Israel.

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  • Same Same.

    I wrote this Facebook post in July 2014 with this accompanying image. I could have written it today:

    It is important for my colleagues and friends to understand my views on this … I believe Israel military is in a fight with Hamas (a terrorist organization) to defend its citizens and not with the country and citizens of Gaza, Palestine. The nuance is that Hamas runs Gaza …. Imagine if the KKK ran our government. Imagine if the state of New Jersey were surround fully by states that allowed the KKK and similar terrorist groups to run their State Government or at least heavily influence the social and psycho status of the residents.

  • Zionism isn’t … Zionism is.

    It would seem that lots of folks (Jewish and not, Jewishly educated and not) are very confused as to what Zionism is and isn’t.

    First, I offer this text study and this discussion guide for folks that are interested in digging into the concept a bit more through an historical and modern text/commentary lens.

    Zionism isn’t a 1948 (or anywhere near that time) idea.

    Zionism is a longing to be living and thriving as a community in our ancestral homeland which is documented in Psalm 137: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat, sat and wept, as we thought of Zion….”

    Zionism isn’t the belief that Jews want to eliminate (exterminate) anyone not-Jewish inside the land or out of it.

    Zionism is the belief that Jews are entitled to a safety net in our ancestral homeland. Many non-Jews are also Zionists, sharing in this belief of Jewish self-determination.

    Zionism isn’t the belief that Jews have no desire to share that land with others.

    Zionism encompasses the belief that without the existence of Israel, the existence of Jews is a stake.

    Zionism in an implemented form is not pre-determined, is malleable, negotiable, and translates into a continuum of belief of what Israel is and should be.

    Zionism cannot be uncoupled from Judaism. It is inextricably linked to our history, our prayers, our texts, our peoplehood, our identity. Those who loudly proclaim their anti-Zionist Judaism are a minority who are living outside the lines of vast majority of mainstream Jews.

    Anti-Zionism is deeply rooted in JewHate (aka antisemitism).

    Zionism will not cease to exist no matter how much vitriol is aimed as the Jewish people.

  • Who is to blame for where we are?

    As I am having the same conversation in many threads (and in texts), I thought I would share my response here as well.

    Of course I blame Iran and Hamas.

    But, I start with the UN. They are 100% complicit in what happened on 10/7. Israel had been telling the world for years about misused humanitarian funds in exchange for tunnels and weapons of war. The UN did nothing the last decade about the on-going attempted murder of Israel’s via thousands of missiles from Gaza (if it weren’t for the Iron Dome and David’s Sling the casualty rate would be obscene – and no one talks about attempted murder). The UN was warned repeatedly about UNWRA and it was ignored. The JewHate in every vein of the UN is the core of how we got here.

    Then I blame the greater Arab world – from 10/8 until now their lack of total pressure on Hamas, their lack of work to manage Gazan civilians (in contrast the global Jewish world has taken care of all of the displaced Israelis in the North and South).

    And next I blame Bibi and his antagonistic, self-serving, war-mongering coalition. Ben Gvir’s statements have made negotiating in good faith harder. Bibi and company turning a blind eye on extremist violence makes global support harder. Bibi ignoring Shin Bet warnings months ahead of 10/7 has to make me wonder. He and his team cannot be trusted and we need a trustworthy leader for us.

    I saw an interview on i24 last night with a hostage family member. She said this: imagine a robber has a knife to the throat of your child and demands you give him something in exchange for their life …. Is there nothing you wouldn’t give them in that moment? Why is Bibi not willing to do whatever it takes?

    Everyone keeps reporting he has “accepted every deal” but critical thinking tells me that there is a negotiation time before a deal that Bibi is not coming to the table on and therefore there isn’t a deal. Him saying he’s said yes to every deal doesn’t mean he’s negotiated in good faith every time they are at the table.

    Clearly 700k+ Israelis think he is an impediment to getting a deal done. So does Biden. They know more than me. (Link to real photo of Israelis protesting Bibi and his government.)

    Any “blame” I place on the US leadership, I file jointly with NATO and G7. (And I actually think this group is the solution to Egypt and Philadelphi.)

    And then when we ask, so if we blame all these parties, who do we blame who can actually solve it today? That answer is Hamas and Bibi.

    I have zero influence on Hamas, but as a leader in the American Jewish community, I have a voice to influence Bibi.

    As usual, I’m open to a respectful discussion. I will not accept propaganda as fact, and I won’t accept slurs against an entire people.