Celebrate Israeli Independence Day

The week between the emotionally draining Yom Ha'shoah and the upcoming two-day commemoration of our country's wars, fallen soldiers and freedom is when the blue-and-white Israeli flag flowers on car windows, balconies and light poles throughout the country.

It is as good a time as any to step back a little and think about what too many of us either take for granted or are cynical about these days.

So-called "post-Zionism," which calls into question the motives and results of the formation of the state of Israel, and aims to knock down national myths and beliefs, remains a potent force, as is wielded by an iron triangle of media, academics and pampered elites.

Tel Avivian cynicism and a lack of moral clarity is rampant in some circles. And a tiny minority that receives far more attention than its true numbers would suggest (see above for the reasons) even advocates creation of a so-called one-state solution that would in reality do away with the Jewish homeland in favor of a multi-ethnic state in which Jews would not be sovereign.

I say feh to all of that. This is an amazing country, full of people who have done - and continue to do - remarkable deeds that not only has a right to exist, but in its shining core demonstrates more moral clarity, purpose, and vision than virtually any place on earth.

It doesn't take much to remind me of that, and that's not because I'm some starry-eyed idealist fresh off the boat. I've been here long enough now to have had my share of disappointments, hassles, fights, and troubles. I know people who have been injured in terror attacks, and am only one degree further removed from those who have died in such incidents.

The government has socked me for more money in taxes, penalties and bizarre situations than I ever could have imagined; and employers have done the same. Individual Israelis have been rude, obnoxious, aggressive, and condescending to me; and I see the problems in our economy, educational system, environment, and governmental structure.

Yet we here, today in Israel, are still living lives of meaning, beauty, and adventure at the tail end of the most momentous century in the history of the Jewish people in 2,000 years, since the destruction of the Second Temple and the fall of Jerusalem.

I am reading "The Brigade," a five-year-old book by U.S. writer Howard Blum that details the heroism, patriotism and fiery adventures of the Jewish Palestinian soldiers that fought for the British Army in World War Two, extracted a terrible price from hidden Nazis in the days after the war, and helped bring the tattered remnants of European Jewry to the shores of British Mandatory Palestine in the days before establishment of the Israeli state.

It is a story of terrible beauty, tragedy, and hope.

In our shul this past weekend we celebrated the bat mitzvah of a young woman who is a relatively recent immigrant from the United States; for us in our shul, which primarily is composed of immigrants, the magnitude of her accomplishment resonated for all of us as we danced around the crowded sanctuary.

Just two weeks ago we visited the Israeli Air Force museum in the desert near Beersheva, and viewed with pride and a little awe the development of the Israeli military machine's airborne components. This display, which featured everything from the original Piper Cub, which comprised the entire air force in 1947, to the latest defensive marvel, the Arrow anti-missile system, reminded us of the struggle, sacrifice and continuing dangers facing Israel today.

My patriotism is neither naive nor near-sighted. I understand and regret the mistakes, corruption, and arrogance that taint our accomplishments.

But then I take a step back and think about where the Jewish people were 100 years ago, 70 years ago, and where the Israeli people were less than 50 years ago, and I realize the awesome accomplishments - and the long way we still have to go.

Ours is not an easy time; ours is not an easy life. But ours is a life of meaning for ourselves, our children, our children's children, and the millions of Jews around the world who still face anti-Semitic forces subtle and overt, assimilation pressures, and an inchoate yearning for Eretz Israel.

Happy Israeli Independence Day.

Alan Abbey is Founding Editor of Ynetnews. His Web site is www.abbeycontent.com, and his email is alan@abbeycontent.com.com