Anybody Home?

I can’t believe it… Congress finally did something right! My regular readers will know that a statement like that is unusual for me so let me explain: After the hypocritical outrage of the world community following Israel’s flotilla “incident” stories appeared about these reactions. We do not need to recount the self-serving lies of the UN or the President’s total refusal to stand with Israel and affirm her right to self-defense. It was all one more well orchestrated deception to condemn Israel for actions that were legal and moral to anyone willing to look at the facts (and the video!) Nonetheless it became one more chance for Israel’s enemies to appeal for help against the “terrible aggressor.” That was nothing new, the only new element was the lack of support from America. I would like to place that failure on the White House where it belongs. There is one more element to the story that has been tragically under-reported by the media- it has remained so far “below the radar” that it seems many people are not even hearing about it.
Congress has taken a definitive stand in support of Israel by writing a letter to President Obama stating that it is “in our national interest to support Israel at a moment when Israel faces multiple threats from Hamas in Gaza, Hizbullah in Lebanon, and the current regime in Iran.” This letter was signed by 87 senators. Four days earlier the House sent a similar letter signed by 320 members of the House of Representatives. The House letter included a call to the President to use the veto power of the US in the UN Security Council to block “one-sided, anti-Israel resolutions.”
These numbers indicate that at least three-fourths of American law-makers recognize Israel’s right to protect herself and her on-going importance to American security. That is an important number—it should remind us that most Americans understand the realities of the situation even if they seem to be too hard for the White House to grasp.
Congress has gone on record to support Israel and to call attention to the fact that the flotilla and its sponsor, the IHH, are nothing more than the puppets of organizations that the US government has already identified as terrorist groups. Still the White House prefers to be silent. I applaud and thank the Senate and the House for their support. I am sorry that the story is not getting more coverage. I thank these lawmakers who have sent a “special delivery” message to the White House. I only wonder one thing…. when the mailman came to deliver was anyone home?

Redefining Chutzpah

Remember when chutzpah was a Jewish attribute? Remember when chutzpah was a bad thing as in “how could you have the chutzpah to say such a thing?” I think chutzpah used to be a good thing also- it explains the “nerve” of the Jewish spirit to survive despite all the obstacles that we have faced as a people. Well, I think chutzpah has now been refined by a Muslim named Feisal Abdul Rauf, an Imam from New York. Rauf is the spiritual leader of a group of Muslims who have taken chutzpah to a new level! He and his group are behind the Cordoba House Project, a proposal to build a 13 story Islamic center at ground zero. The development would include a mosque, an auditorium, a swimming pool, restaurant, and bookstore. To put it in simple language- this group wants to build a mosque on the ground on which 3000 Americans died in the World Trade Center! If that isn’t chutzpah I don’t know what is!
As I have been following this story there is only one thing that shocks me more than the project. Mayor Bloomberg has publicly supported the building of Cordoba House. How can the mayor of New York City have the chutzpah to say such a thing? I would like to hear him explain his actions to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11. How can any American endorse covering the scars of 9/11 by the building of an Islamic outreach center? If I didn’t know better I would think that this is just a bad joke.
While I realize that those behind Cordoba House have no connection to terrorism, I do wonder what happened to common sense. How could Mayor Bloomberg be so short sighted in this insult to the victims of 9/11? If this is about “forgiveness,” or “plurism,” or some misguided attempt to show how very inclusive our society can be than I must miss the point. To me this is a shameless, suicidal betrayal of the American people. Beyond this I am angered by the limitless chutzpah of anyone who would even think to suggest this proposal. There comes a time to say no. There comes a time to stand up for yourself. I believe that the building of an Islamic center at ground zero should be seen as an insult to the American people.
While we discuss the new limits of chutzpah I would ask you to consider one new way to express chutzpah. How about a little chutzpah for Americans? How about a little self-respect? How about a little common sense? Americans died at ground zero. Americans continue to be threatened by a hostile minority within the world Muslim community. Yes, I ask you to remember that not all Muslims are terrorists- most are wonderful people who should be free to practice their religion in peace and security. But the other side of that argument is that Americans also deserve peace and security. To me the building of a mosque at ground zero will be a distasteful, insensitive, chutzpadik reminder of the murders of innocent Americans. It is time to say no to Cordoba House.

Oil and Water




As I write I am listening to the latest radio report about the oil spill- it has, unfortunately, become a daily ritual. The latest bad news is that the oil is spreading and may touch Florida’s shores for the first time today. I am sure that all of you share my frustration and bewilderment—why is this still going on? I don’t really want to watch more videos of the oil gushing into the water a mile below the gulf’s surface; I just want to hear that someone has found the answer. The proportions of this accident are so huge I don’t think any of us can really grasp it. The worst part for me is that all I can do is stand by and watch- no matter how much I would like to help there is nothing I can do. It reminds me of that very powerless feeling I get when I know that there is a hurricane coming and all any of us can do is watch, wait, and hope for the best. That sense of “powerlessness” is the worst feeling of all- when you know there is something wrong but you can’t do a single thing to stop or prevent it. We always like to feel that we are “in control” – when events remind us that we are actually very seldom in control the world becomes a hostile, threatening place. We don’t like unpredictable. We don’t like random. We humans seem to prefer a world in which we can makes plans and have some idea of what tomorrow will bring.

I think there is, in this circumstance, a certain irony to the old saying that “water and oil don’t mix.” It reminds us that even the forces of nature sometimes do battle with each other and we stand on the sidelines as observers. That sounds so simple but it is such a profound truth to grasp. Our daily lives are lived in the microcosm of our daily needs – how easy it is to forget that there is a huge world out there! How easy to forget that this huge world runs by its own rules, not by ours!

Faced with these uncertainties there are things that, nonetheless, always remain in our control. First and foremost is our ability to choose how we will react and respond to a world that does not always run the way we would like it to. We can run or we can fight. We can despair or we can hope. How we react to the unexpected is our choice as human beings. As human beings we can never be satisfied merely to observe- every observation should be a call to action. Even when the forces of nature threaten it is our ability to respond to and for each other that can lift humanity above the power of nature itself. Gushing oil is a blind force- it does not choose to flow or stop, to run onto land or into water, to cause harm or provide benefit.

While the world around us works by its own rules, our choices are always our own. While this is a lesson to be learned it comes at a very dear price. Stay tuned- make the right choices- be ready to help.