Israel Stories: To all you "embarrassed" Jews

When you come and live in Israel, that comfortable Diaspora fence you have been perched on all those years suddenly disappears. There is no more grey area; you're either for us or against us.

It's ironic that such a symbol of security should also be the symbol of indecisiveness. Such is the nature of The Fence.

It's easy to criticize Israel from afar, it's easy to be drawn in by the ludicrous political correctness, western liberalism and, in many cases, a sense of extreme embarrassment forced on and often embraced by Jews in the Diaspora. It's easy to shout and scream and criticize, worrying what your non-Jewish neighbors or colleagues may think, becoming the ultimate apologists. It's easy to scream from your comfortable pseudo-Jewish ivory towers. What seems to be harder is for you to muster some sense of loyalty and support for your own people (Jews) and your own country ( Israel). (Just a reminder.) And there aren't enough righteous gentiles to save us all.

'But it's for precisely that reason' you will cry, 'that we are so tough on Israel. We are enlightened, we understand because we live in the West where diplomacy rules. (Bosnia, Hamburg, Dresden, Iraq, Algeria, Congo, Falklands, we love Western diplomacy). Where we know Israeli concessions will bring peace and where we see an oppressed Palestinian people and a ferocious Israeli occupier.' Except of course Israel doesn't occupy Gaza.

Let me tell you something about you, you are not readily able to admit. You ignore the fact Israel no longer occupies a square inch of Gaza. You forget who created the infrastructure left there. You have no sense of history, are blind to the blatant anti-Semitic tide that drives most anti-Israel feeling. You probably receive all your skewed information about Israel through the media. You have never once tried to understand the facts from Israel's point of view. You have no idea of the reign of terror Hamas is conducting on its own people. You have no idea of the suffering of Israelis living close to Gaza suffering barrage after barrage of missiles. You conveniently forget all the facts in order to justify your hateful rhetoric against your own people (Jews) and your own country (Israel). Sorry for the reminder. You have never once asked why Hamas needs to attack Israel, when they could live side by side in peace. You have never asked why, if the people are impoverished, Hamas doesn't use its resources for food and education instead of hand-made bombs and more sophisticated weaponry. You will cry that the 'blockade' on Gaza is plunging the people into destitution. What you won't ask is why is there a blockade. Did I mention that Israel relinquished control of Gaza relocating 8,000 of its citizens?

Oh and you won't read this blog entry properly.

Your identity as a Jew has been stolen. You have turned your back on thousands of years of history siding with the media and Arab propaganda, not really understanding the true facts of the ground. Every other nation has the right to defend itself, show nationalism and expect support. But you deny this for your own people.

So now that Israel, after months and months of restraint and in the wake of thousands of rockets, has finally returned to Gaza to deal with Hamas, you say that you are "embarrassed" by Israel's actions?

You'll tell me I am insecure in my beliefs, that I am ultra right-wing, and that I am blinded by fanaticism. You'll tell me that you know what the problem is and what should be done.

I am not ultra right-wing, just a realist who takes the facts and history into consideration. This is not a simplistic view but a carefully considered opinion. This is not based on a persecution complex but a simple historical formula. They want us out. The President of Iran wants our total destruction. Hamas, Hizbullah, Islamic Jihad, Al Qaida are all vying for the opportunity to drive us into the sea. Many other Arab countries would love to see us gone. That's a fact.

There is no room for diplomacy with an organization that wants your total destruction and perpetuates terror for the sake of an anarchic, megalomaniac blood lust.

There can be no more sitting on the fence. You need to understand that.