• EJ

  Eddy Jahja -11 years ago

  Israel's Greatest Mistake
  To Rabbi and Commentators,
  
  
  
  After the second WW the Allies have a good reason for what happened with the Jews in Europe, that Israel has to set up their own country.  The Allies just like Hitler, they want in fact to get rid of the Jews from their own countries and created this solution to let the Jews fight against the Arabs, for decades.  The Asien countries consider that  the occupation of Palestine by Israel, is a colonial action and such things should be vanished. But Israel do not care so much as long as they get support from the  Allies until today. This is Israel's Greatest Mistake, because they walked into the trap, while the Allies (Identically with Christians) enjoy to watch Israel and the Arabs are killing each other. 
  
   
  
  
  

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• ACJ

  a concerned jew -11 years ago

  is rabbi jacobson right?
  It would seem like a no-brainer, after all isn't that what any normal country would do? and so I was crying this logic for years, but looking back, the Israeli government doesn't get it. 
  
  
  
  It doesn't look like the Israeli government is just going to get up one day and stand for itself. This problem must be dealt with by the entire Jewish nation. 
  
  
  
  What does a Jew in America have to do with Israel's security you ask? 
  
  
  
  The Jewish nation is like a human body. Many different limbs all connected as one living organism. And that is where the core of the problem lay. 
  
  
  
  After world war 2, and after all of the suffering the Jewish nation was quite close to being ripe for redemption. The great Rabbi's of the time announced to the Jewish nation to do Teshuvah -- Return to
  
  G-d --- and Moshiach will come immediately. And urged them not to put their hopes in a secular Jewish leadership.
  
  
  
  Unfortunately, almost the entire Jewish nation embraced this hope of a Jewish state, and felt that now Jews would be safe, they focused all their energy's and beliefs in this direction. 
  
  
  
  What happened as a result was, to put it in the words of the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe: G-d gave the Jewish people a candy -- to see whether they were serious about getting Moshiach; or they would just settle for something small -- we know what they chose. In recent years we are seeing how sweet this candy can be. 

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• A

  Alex -11 years ago

  true
  Thank you Rabbi! That is true

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• R

  RuReady -11 years ago

  Use of the word "occupy"
  There is a danger in using the enemy's word "occupy" even in quotes.  Also "reoccupy" Gaza.
  
  
  
  The government of Eretz Yisroel is the only government maybe in the history of the world (I'm not a history buff, I'm sure some readers are and may correct me) that gave up land that belonged to them before a war and then reconquered and then went to try to give it back.??????????????????? Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is what Rabbi Jacobson is saying so clearly.
  
  
  
  Eretz Yisroel needs to do what is "necessary"  as in 1948 - taking over what belongs to the country,  Just as in 1948 the Arabs LEFT and FLED to other places in the MIddle East - they have many 'friends' who support them throughout the Middle East.  If they can' take the heat, get out of the kitchen.
  
  
  
  Also, if you look at the "reasons" behind the conflict from 3 points of view : Muslim - jihad/holy war
  
  Christian support for Israel - religious mandate - why are the Jews in charge of Eretz Yisroel not pointing to the Torah - and not plans from Germany to prove they killed Jews - to explain our claim to Eretz Yisroel.
  
  
  
  There is saying that I have heard attributed to the Previous Rebbe, "When Gd was left out of the Declaration of Indpendence of "Medinat Yisroel" - the Jews accepted a lollipop instead of Moshiach."  
  
  
  
  We are not living in Eretz Yisroel because the UN voted to create a state, or because of the Shoa, or because of our great military.  Yes, it was time......Gd created the confluence of events.  He just needs to be thanked and acknowledge by Jews.  It's not a 'small world' (coincidence) when things work out for the good for Jews. It's a Gdly world.
  
  
  
  When Jews can point to the Torah it does not equalize us with other religions and make us into fanatics - it attributes our claim to Eretz Yisroel to our ancient loyalty carried into the present.  Our ancient loyalty carried into the present is to Gd and Torah.  Let's state who we are - then Gd is included in all our negotiations and discussions.  
  
  
  
  Why not try it....everyone from the left that I talk to in SF says peace - read Neighborhood Bully.
  
  Thanks very much for the reminder post of the song.

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• D

  David -11 years ago

  my article
  BH
  
  
  
  Plz see my new article on Israel. Hope u can use it. Kol tov! Laz
  
  
  
  
  
  Crybabies in the Middle East
  
  
  
  By Dr. David Lazerson
  
  
  
  
  
  During my teaching years in the Buffalo public school system, I once witnessed a pretty crazy event on our school’s playground area.
  
  There was this one student who was always walking around pushing people, hitting them hard on the back, punching other students when they weren’t looking, and in general made few friends to speak of. People tried to ignore this wild kid who, to put it bluntly, had some “issues.” The other students were counseled to not over-react. This one time, however, he slammed another student in the arm that promptly turned around and decked the offender with a solid right hook. To my amazement, this 8th grader then picked himself up and ran crying to the office that so-and-so had the audacity to punch him out. He told the principal that he was hurt both physically and emotionally, and that, in fact, the other student had caused the entire ruckus. The principal, however, knew the student quite well and simply smiled and said; “How do you like it now that you’ve gotten a taste of your own medicine!” Mr. Macho had suddenly turned into Mr. Cry Baby.
  
  
  
  This above episode reminds me of the most recent reactions from Hamas after Israel’s long overdue response in Gaza. Israel finally decided that it had had enough of the hits from behind – the more than 100 rockets launched deliberately into Israel’s civilian areas in a four-day period. Not to mention all the other rocket launches and terrorist attacks stemming from Gaza during the past several years since Israel gave them this piece of real estate in the name of peace. That blunder has simply brought the terrorists that much closer to mainstream civilian centers in Israel. Unfortunately, while Israel had good intentions in leaving Gaza, the recipients had other thoughts in mind. Israel was hoping that the citizens of Gaza would join together to build up their society with infrastructure such as roads, schools, hospitals, etc. Instead their “leadership” has chosen to focus on using lots of world financial assistance to accumulate al sorts of lovely weapons, such as long-range missiles. Hamas issued a statement that Israel’s recent actions od self-defense had “opened the gates of Hell.” No, Hamas. You chose that route a long time ago. It was you, Hamas, that opened these gates of violence and misery. Now you’re simply getting a taste of your own medicine. Hamas also dramatically labeled Israel’s response as a “call to war” - as if Hamas’s previous actions of bombings, missile launchings, and terrorist attacks had absolutely nothing to do with it! It would make a good scene from a Monty Python flic but Hamas’s cry of innocence and victimization ring hollow indeed.
  
  
  
  
  
  Interesting that there were no emergency UN meetings during Hamas’s recent bombardment of Israel population centers. The media, for the most part, was relatively quiet. But when Israel finally struck back, now we can be fairly sure that the UN will hold counsel. How dare the Israelis fight back? What utter chutzpah that they don’t allow themselves to be hit and killed so easily! Someone once described this conflict as follows: If the Arabs would put down their weapons, there would be peace. If Israel puts down her weapons, there’d be a massacre.
  
  
  
  In the above-mentioned playground incident, the pain-in-backside bully was decked out one more time, and then he finally learned to behave like a civilized human being with others. With a political and religious system that preaches open racism and hatred for Jews and other “Non-Moslem infidels,” I’m afraid it might take several knockout punches to do the same to Hamas. We can only hope that Israel has the resolve to stand up to the bigotry and bias of the UN and most of the world’s hypocritical media, and take care of business this time around. Time for that knockout punch.

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• CG

  Chana gorin -11 years ago

  article of actual situation in Israel
  B"H
  
  lf l may, we don't have an inmediate solution for all our problems then is no good, this is the world we live  in, instant gratification, in life everything has to take it's own course, but Rabbi Jacobson is right, we cannot eliminate everybody at once but all we have conquered keep it why give it back to the enemies, we are the owners of the land that our ancestors bought many centuries ago, and in orther to have peace giving it back to the enemies is the solution? definately no! we had given  them many opportunities in the past and guess what now is even worst our borders are smaller the distance between Israel and our neighbors is shorter
  
  Yeshecoah for your article Rabbi Jacobson hundred percent in agreement with your article the whole world should think like you

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• FML

  Fredric M. London -11 years ago

  Rabbi Jacobson's editorial
  Rabbi Jacobson is 100% right.  Israel needs to reoccupy Gaza, and stay there until there is real peace.

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• ESE

  Esther Sarah Evans -11 years ago

  Geore is right - never
  ב"ה 
  

  
  b"H
  
  George is right, Rabbi. That's how it's meant to be, it seems. However, there is no need to be upset, for only HASHEM can finish off the job, and that's also unlikely. What HE can and will do to maintain life on earth is intervene enough to keep a balance between Yaakov and Esav. HIS answer to Rivka before they were born already indicated that they - the twins - had HIS blessing in her womb, even though their future would be one of constant battle - one up, one down. HE will make peace within the borders HE allotted to us, but it can only be by balancing the two equally. 
  
  This reminds me of something that happened when I was a young child in school. One morning two twin boys were scrapping in the schoolyard. They were both wearing pants with shoulder straps going up from the waist. Along came the school principal - a tallish guy, who just picked them both up - and carried them suspended by their suspenders from each of his hands - into the school. Not a word was spoken. We all just stared after this "scale" - the principal with his weights suspended on either side, and we knew he considered them equal, no matter what difference there might have been. 
  
  With regard to terrorism - to which not all Muslims would subscribe - and which is not solely an Arab thing - this is an international problem, a weapon, if you will, which is used voluntarily by even the most innocent looking housewife, who wants to terrorize her husband or her whole family into submission. These come in Jewish versions too. No, Rabbi, there is not likely to be any end there. 
  
  HaYotzer Or uVoreh Choshekh, Ossey Shalom, uVoreh es hakol - provides this up and down, as you see there - the good and the bad also - as part of HIS thing. HE is the G-d of Or and also the G-d of Choshekh. Without the Choshekh we wouldn't know from Or as somebody's otherwise Yiddish-speaking  
  
  Tate would have said. 
  
  Ironically, it would seem, in Tehillim 147 we see that his making our borders peaceful directly follows his blessing (even Yaakov and Esav) in the the womb. 
  
  HIS brand of peace it will be when the time is ripe.
  
  Shavua tov.

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• SJ

  Sheldon Jacobson -11 years ago

  Best wishes to Mr. Netanyahu
  Let us all hope that Israel acts with speed and preparedness to finally stop this menace and terror.  In hind sight, we can point to these incidents as mistakes, so hopefully Israel will act with certainty --- even to the point of taking over Gaza once again.  If mistakes aren't learned from, they likely will be repeated.  These folks are the enemy, sworn to eliminate Israel.  Nothing less than total victory should be acceptable.  Baruch Hashem.

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• J

  Jax -11 years ago

  Finish the job?
  Just one little question, if I may. What do you mean by 'finish the job'? You're clearly calling for something, but I can't figure out what it is. Kill all Hamas members down to the last man? Destroy everything that could possibly serve as a weapon? Annex Gaza and the West Bank (and do what exactly with the people living there)? Just what is seeing it through to the end? A lot of people claim that the solution is military, that Israel just needs to establish its strength once and for all, but we (I happen to be Israeli) have been trying military solutions and and establishing our strength for years (remember Cast Lead?) and the violence only seems to escalate. Do you know something we don't?

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• AB

  AVI BRAUN -11 years ago

  BRINGING FUTURE TO PRESENT NOW
  U DIDNT SAY HOW ISRAEL IS SURPOSED TO FINISH THE JOB. TELL ME IN SHORT HOW ISRAEL IS SURPOSED TO GET RID OF THE INFECTION, IN A CLEAR AND PRACTICAL  DOWN TO EARTH WAY..... ITS EASY TO CRITICISE OTHERS, BUT IF U WERE IN CHARGE  RABBI  WHAT WOULD U DO,THANX 

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• GS

  George S -11 years ago

  never
  

  
  Israel never finishes the job

  
  It will be the same again now

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• S

  Shlomo -11 years ago

  Bob Dylan Said It Best
  

  
  Neighborhood Bully by Bob Dylan

  
  

  
  Well, the neighborhood bully, he's just one man, His enemies say he's on their land. They got him outnumbered about a million to one, He got no place to escape to, no place to run. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  The neighborhood bully just lives to survive, He's criticized and condemned for being alive. He's not supposed to fight back, he's supposed to have thick skin, He's supposed to lay down and die when his door is kicked in. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  The neighborhood bully been driven out of every land, He's wandered the earth an exiled man. Seen his family scattered, his people hounded and torn, He's always on trial for just being born. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  Well, he knocked out a lynch mob, he was criticized, Old women condemned him, said he should apologize. Then he destroyed a bomb factory, nobody was glad. The bombs were meant for him. He was supposed to feel bad. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  Well, the chances are against it and the odds are http://www.freerepublic.com..." id="_GPLITA_1" style="text-decoration:underline" title="Click to Continue > by Text-Enhance That he'll live by the rules that the world makes for him, 'Cause there's a noose at his neck and a gun at his back And a license to kill him is given out to every maniac. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  He got no allies to really speak of. What he gets he must pay for, he don't get it out of love. He buys obsolete weapons and he won't be denied But no one sends flesh and blood to fight by his side. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  Well, he's surrounded by pacifists who all want peace, They pray for it nightly that the bloodshed must cease. Now, they wouldn't hurt a fly. To hurt one they would weep. They lay and they wait for this bully to fall asleep. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  Every empire that's enslaved him is gone, Egypt and http://www.freerepublic.com..." id="_GPLITA_3" style="text-decoration:underline" title="Click to Continue > by Text-Enhance, even the great Babylon. He's made a garden of paradise in the desert sand, In bed with nobody, under no one's command. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  Now his holiest books have been trampled upon, No contract he signed was worth what it was written on. He took the crumbs of the world and he turned it into wealth, Took sickness and disease and he turned it into health. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  What's anybody indebted to him for? Nothin', they say. He just likes to cause war. http://www.freerepublic.com..." id="_GPLITA_0" style="text-decoration:underline" title="Click to Continue > by Text-Enhance and superstition indeed, They wait for this bully like a dog waits to feed. He's the neighborhood bully.

  
  

  
  What has he done to wear so many scars? Does he change the course of rivers? Does he pollute the moon and stars? Neighborhood bully, standing on the hill, Running out the clock, time standing still, Neighborhood bully.

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• RO

  Rivka Ozersky -11 years ago

  Send to Israel's prime minister
  Dear Rabbi Jacobson,
  
  Maybe Natanyahu doesn't know all this...Maybe he knows but...Maybe he needs  be reminded and often...
  
  How could we have him read your thoughts? Read and internalise, Read and Act accordingly?
  
  What would you doif you had his power to act today?
  
  Thanks God for Yidden like you and Thank you for your enlightning thinking!
  
  Good Shabbos!
  
  Rivka

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  • T

    t -11 years ago

    Re: Send to Israel's prime minister
    G-d bless israel. believe me rivka, mr.benyamin knows much more than we credit him. however, when surrounded and pressured he has a tendency to cave in. we must pray that does not happen again. he must realise Hashem has given him a second chance at the premier post and not to flunk it this time. its true, Hashem said you all are the light to all nations, but He never asked you all to trust us gentile nations, but only to trust Him. the problem is when the jews want to be like the gentiles or please gentile leaders. Pray that every jew only acknowledges Hashem as His leader, and the rest of us are just Hashem 's creations for israel's sake..we survive on israel's merits, not the other way around. as a noahide my prayers go out to you all. and no matter what happens, no one can or will destroy this holy nation. a noahide.

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  • M

    Michale -11 years ago

    Re: Send to Israel's prime minister
    Everyone who wants to send a message or copy of this article to Benjamin Netanyahu, ‏ his account on Twitter is @netanyahu You can go to his twiiter page https://twitter.com/netanyahu and tweet him or go to http://netanyahu.org.il and send a message there.

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• CF

  Chanan Fisher -11 years ago

  Yasher Koach
  Once again, so beautifully written and so painfully true. 
  
  Good Shabbos,
  
  Chanan Fisher
  
  Guadalajara, Mexico
  
  
  

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• C

  ch -11 years ago

  israel
  You are so on the mark! Here"s hoping that the the Israeli government will miraculously heed the call and destroy the enemy once and for all, and thereby usher in the final redemption.

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• LCC

  Linda Cohen/Larry Cohen -13 years ago

  Very Inspiring
  This is really inspiring us as we prepare for Pesach. We are in Eilat...bordering Mitzraim. With all the turmoil today we need to put our souls into all these Mitzvot. Thank you.

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• KT

  Kayo, Tokyo -13 years ago

  The Beauty of Pesach
  Baruch HaShem
  
  Thank you for teaching us the Beauty of Mitzvot of Pesach. La Chaim!

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• J

  j -13 years ago

  Thank you!
  Very helpful as my wife and me prepare for making our first seder - you and our sages will be with us at the table!:)

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• M

  Michale -13 years ago

  Crystal clear
  Your class is so crystal clear and perfect! I will revisit your class in Chabad.org. You have the talent to teach not easy subject as Talmud.

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• AS

  Avraham Schwartzberg -13 years ago

  Hi
  Looking forward.

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Eliezer Wolf

• March 18, 2011
• |
• 12 Adar II 5771
• |
• 504 views

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