Children of the Jewish intifada
Israel cannot exists without certain respect for law and order
“You had better get used to the images,” an IDF commander in Gush Katif said. “What did you think would happen here, flowers in rifle barrels and girls on tanks?”
We have not seen people placing any flowers in the barrels of the soldiers’ rifles in Gush Katif, but we have seen girls on tanks. Everything that has happened there and on Israel’s roads this week was expected. The only surprise is the timing: It happened too early.
Up until Tuesday evening the IDF believed the problems in Gush Katif could be solved in a more or less peaceful manner, with the cooperation of the settler leadership and the Muasi Palestinians.
But the (settler) youth of the hills and the children of the peyos (side curls) have thwarted the plans.
The emphasis of public debate is shifting from the question of whether the disengagement is good or bad for Israel to the question of who is in charge here.
Only a few Israelis would want to live in a country lead by those who wave Kahane’s yellow flag or the yellow flag of the rabbi from Lubavitch (a distinction must be made between the two).
It seems that the vast majority of West Bank and Gaza settlers also despises these youngsters. They despise and fear them. They blame the government for ruining their life’s work, but they know in their hearts that those who will eventually destroy them live among them.
The argument that has been raised regarding national authority is a blessing. It is no less important than the argument over the disengagement. Yesha Council heads and right-wing Knesset members are making excuses and are uttering weak condemnations, and the extremist rabbis, whose voice has been heard on every stage until now, remain silent.
The miserable rabbis do not understand how their behavior is similar to that of Palestinian politicians. Just like the politicians, the rabbis are dodging responsibility and are letting the tail wag them.
The proud parents of the road-blocking children also do not understand how similar they are to Palestinian parents. Both are parents of the intifada. An entire generation of Palestinian children was screwed up by the terror. Not all of them, of course.
Talking phase is over
An entire generation of settler children that was screwed up by years of education that emphasized lawlessness, is now being screwed up by an unruly, blind struggle against the state’s authority. Not all of them, of course. Not all of them.
Israel can live without Gush Katif. It can even live without Jerusalem (it has lived without Jerusalem the day it was established on the 5th of the Jewish lunar month Iyar, and for several months afterwards). But without national authority, without a certain amount of respect for law and order and the elected institutions’ decisions, and without a victorious army and an effective police force, Israel would have a hard time existing.
Those who wonder what life in a country ruled by anarchy and armed, bearded men would be like are welcome to look over the fence toward Gush Katif, Khan Yunis and Gaza.
Civil disobedience is legitimate, even if it entails certain fraction with the law. But disobedience is not a free lunch. It must have a price. Several Israeli governments have avoided their duty to collect the price of disobedience from both right and left-wing insubordinates.
This does not mean there is justification for arresting these rabbis or interrogate them for every inciteful word they utter. The talking phase is behind us. However, it does mean that the country cannot finance those who renounce it and challenge its authority.
The hesder (arrangement) is a mutual act. Once the hesder yeshivas (which combine Torah study with military service) do not abide by the arrangement, there is no other choice but to dismantle them.
Let him clean the latrines
Each soldier will arrive at the army induction center on his own, without a rabbi or supervisor.
A 56-day prison sentence was imposed on Avi Beiber, the poster soldier who was only called to evacuate an abandoned structure on Gaza Beach but was insulted when he saw that his friends were being evacuated from the area by force.
The punishment is reasonable. The IDF should impose the truly deterring punishment on him later: Let him do guard duty for the remainder of his military term; let him clean the men’s latrine and wash dishes in the kitchen. This should be the punishment handed out to all insubordinate soldiers that will follow.
If the IDF will be successful at deterring one insubordinate soldier in this way, it is to our benefit.
I suggest the decent right-wing people wave two flags from here on end: An orange one in protest of the disengagement, and a blue one against violence.
Perhaps in this way the next two months will pass by in a more pleasant manner for them.
Nahum Barnea is a columnist for Israel's leading newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth
