I grew up very close to my uncle David. Back in those days he was a bachelor and
one of those “cool uncles” (not that he isn’t cool now, it’s just that a wife
and three kids can hurt a man’s street cred). Often, David would take me to work
with him just to hang out.
I was around 10 years old when he got a job
working for the creator of The Mighty Morphing Power Rangers, so it was only
natural that I would want to spend every second I could in his office trying to
figure out how to get a glimpse of Zordon.
After many failed attempts to
at least get my hands on Billy’s morphing belt, I settled on playing with toys
around the office. One of the toys I got my hands on was a fun yet practical
puzzle box. With Uncle Dave in another room I dismantled the box and began
trying to piece it back together.
My uncle returned shortly after, and
when he saw what I was doing, he went white as a ghost. It turned out the puzzle
box belonged to his partner, a former boxer and a bit of a “wild card,” and
touching any of his things – let alone dismantling them – was a big-time no-no.
And this “wild card” was on his way back to the office.
Unable to grasp
the gravity of the situation, but understanding that my uncle wanted it fixed,
and fixed right away, I hurriedly began to put the puzzle back together. There
was just one tiny problem: one piece wouldn’t fit. So naturally, like any
brilliant 10 year old, I forced the piece in. It was jammed in there real tight,
and looked very, very wrong.
We panicked.
Both of us took deep
breaths, gently dislodged the stuck piece, slowly dismantled the box again and
finally figured out how to piece it back together properly. In the end his
partner was none the wiser – unless he’s reading this article, which is doubtful
considering he’s currently in prison for beating a man nearly to death in an
elevator.
The intriguing thing is that it was fear that gave us the
courage to calm down and figure out what the right thing to do was. It was the
pure, unadulterated fear that gave us courage.
While this may sound
contradictory, I truly believe that we derive courage from fear. Thus, it is
fear of annihilation that gives me the courage to admit the ever-unpopular
realities that Israel faces. I am not the first, and will not be the last, to
beat this drum, but let me make my beliefs very clear: The two-state solution is
dead.
THE INTERNATIONAL community is in a panic. The Arab Spring has
taken unforeseen turns that have taken a devastating toll in human lives. The
world economy is crumbling like a house of cards. Radicalization among
communities worldwide, but especially in the Islamic world, has skyrocketed in
response to these pressures and of course, the Middle East has become the focal
point of these issues.
The United Nations is panicked and thinks Israel
better start working on bringing the stubborn and ungrateful Palestinian
Authority (now apparently, and hilariously, referred to as “the State of
Palestine”) to the negotiating table.
The Obama administration is
panicked and would like to see the Netanyahu government do more to bring us
closer to a two-state solution.
The Left-wing Jewish communities of the
world are panicked and thus harshly criticize each and every Israel action for
fear of upsetting the Palestinians who are shooting rockets into our cities day
and night and plotting to wipe us out as you read these words.
The
Israeli government reiterated its commitment to a two-state solution just days
ago with elections looming, although whether that was due to panic or votes
remains to be seen. However, either way it is unacceptable.
Honesty is
the best policy.
There is no partner for peace here.
Hamas is in a
constant state of war with Israel, with or without a “cease-fire,” and all the
PA can focus on is uniting with Hamas, Israelis be damned. PA President Mahmoud
Abbas and chief negotiator Saeb Erekat are not partners for peace. Don’t take my
word for it, just take a few short minutes to read some of the blatantly
inflammatory statements they make to their own people and the rest of the Arab
world.
I strongly believe this is all a grave mistake born out of panic
and denial. Forcing Israel into a twostate solution for these reasons is as
perilous a move as the world can make. It just doesn’t understand it.
IN
HIS brilliant book The Gift of Fear, Gavin de Becker explains that only real,
honest fear gives us courage. Not everyday anxiety, but genuine fear. In fact,
once you deal with this fear in an honest and open way, de Becker explains, a
newfound confidence in your intuition and decision-making abilities is
established.
He also explains the dangers of ignoring this fact, as the
promoters of the impossible two-state solution do on a daily
basis.
“Denial has an interesting and insidious side effect,” de Becker
writes. “For all the peace of mind deniers think they get by saying it isn’t so,
the fall they take when victimized is far, far greater than that of those who
accept the possibility.
Denial is a save-now-pay-later scheme.”
I
cannot appeal to the entire international community, but I can plead and beg
with all my passion and all my soul to every single Jew of every denomination,
from every corner of the earth – especially the passionate people of this
glorious Jewish state – to recognize reality, no matter how frightful it
is.
The two-state solution is the wrong wooden piece jammed into the
puzzle box. We’re now stuck as a result. Only if we calm down, take a deep
communal breath, and allow our fear to guide us to courage can we come up with
solutions we can trust in. Otherwise Israel will become the bloodied man on the
floor of the elevator (and don’t you dare for a second think that this is not
what our enemies want).
We must calmly put the pieces of the puzzle box
back together, but only after internalizing the eternal words of legendary
basketball coach John Wooden: “Be quick, but don’t hurry.”
I pray that
whoever ends up leading this country next understands that they must dismantle
the puzzle box, and with the ever-present fear hanging over them, allow
themselves the honesty and integrity needed to put the pieces back where we
belong.
Any jamming and forcing of the “missing puzzle peace (no, not a
typo)” will make the fall harder and more devastating for our people.
The
writer is currently studying for his MA in Counter-Terrorism and Homeland
Security at the IDC Herzliya, a researcher for the International Institute of
Counter-Terrorism and writes a politics blog, E-TONE, which can be found at
http://blogs.jpost.com/users/e-tone.
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