Gina and I are in Tel Aviv through March 18th. Our daughter Maya is studying at Tel Aviv University for the semester and is having a fabulous experience.
My life-long affair with Israel continues. I have been here many times (often on CRS or RSS trips) sometimes for long periods such as my junior year at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, sometimes for incredibly short periods. When I was President of the New York Board of Rabbis, we were invited to testify before a Knesset Committee named the Neeman Commission which was examining how religious movements in Israel might cooperate better than they do and wanted to hear about the work of the New York Board. I flew in for the morning meeting and flew out the same day because, if memory serves, my son was graduating the Rodeph Sholom School.
The three of us walked along the beach on the way to dinner and familiar impressions returned: what a vibrant, beautiful, miraculous country this is; how normal everything appears. Though Israelis live in a very rough neighborhood, they live full, happy lives. Joggers and dog walkers dotted our path. Guys playing volleyball and pumping iron were a common sight. We felt totally safe. In fact, I worry about Israel’s safety more in New York than here in Tel Aviv.
I write this less than a week before the Israeli election. Politics permeate the country. Campaign posters of Prime Minister Netanyahu and his principal challenger the Zionist Union’s Isaac “Bougie” Herzog are everywhere. Newspapers are filled not only with the drama of which party will finish first, but also who can best put together the coalition of parties to take over leadership. To show you how daunting this is: 61 seats in the Knesset form a majority, and Bibi Netanyahu’s Likud party is polling today as winning 21 seats. Typically, the party which captures the most seats is asked to put together a coalition. Both leading parties face a daunting task in this regard.
The feeling you get everywhere is that this is a crucial election, the most important in a long time. Here there is an unmistakable yearning for change, leadership that can solve pressing social issues and improve Israel’s image around the world. Yet there is also nervousness. Can Israelis trust another Prime Minister to deal with Iran, Islamic fanaticism and the Palestinians?
These are difficult questions, so I was struck by the simplicity of the campaign signs on every other block:
Netanyahu—It’s either us or the Left
Herzog: considered and responsible.
One side plays on fear, the other works to make the challenger plausible.
No one knows who will win this cliffhanger. While we are here, I will record my observations and share a few with you.
Gina, Maya and I send our love from Tel Aviv. Shalom and L’hitraot.
March 11, 2015
This just happened this morning as I was getting coffee:
an elderly woman approaches. We chat in Hebrew.
Shalom, I say.
There is shalom? She quips.
Not today says I.
If not today, when?
Maybe the day after tomorrow.
[Trust me it sounds better in Hebrew]
