Standing amongst thousands of flag-waving concerned Israeli citizens, I could not help but think of Winston Churchill's "Iron Curtain" speech, delivered on March 5, 1946, in Fulton, Missouri, USA.
In this speech, Churchill, who was the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, warned the world about the growing threat of Soviet communism and the potential for a new world war. He then went on to describe the current state of affairs in Europe, saying that an "iron curtain" had descended across the continent.
The line that always stays with me goes “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent.”
In Israel, from the far north to the Eilay in the south, we also have a curtain descending across our country. A curtain of darkness and dispair.
For myself, and hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens from across the spectrum of this country, those whom Ben Gvir, Smotrich, and Yair Netanyahu call terrorists, anarchists, and Nazi Brownshirts, we are engaged in a battle for the survival of Israel as a liberal, democratic society.
I for one am proud to be called a terrorist, and an anarchist, as are hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens.
Let me be clear, a shadow is falling across Israel. A blackness is descending with such speed that soon the light of a liberal, caring, democratic Israeli society will be all but extinguished.
A few days ago, the eldest son of Israel’s prime minister called protesters ‘Nazi Brownshirts’.
"Yair Netanyahu compares anti-overhaul protesters to Nazi Brownshirts”
Premier’s son charges Israeli left is ‘one-to-one comparable to 1930s Germany’; claims demonstrators using SA-style terror tactics”
https://www.timesofisrael.com/yair-netanyahu-compares-anti-overhaul-protesters-to-nazi-brownshirts/
As ‘Peter’ wrote in the reader's comments following this nauseating article, the “poor lad is obviously unwell”.
Here’s a thought, why don’t we, the proud, loyal terrorists, anarchists, and Nazi Brownshirts start our own “White Rose” opposition movement?
For the benefit of the educationally challenged Yair Netanyahu, the White Rose was a non-violent resistance movement in Nazi Germany, active from 1942 to 1943. It was named after a poem by the German writer Heinrich Heine.
The movement was made up of a group of young university students, primarily from the University of Munich, who opposed the policies and actions of the Nazi regime, particularly regarding the Holocaust and the war.
The group distributed leaflets and graffiti encouraging Germans to resist the Nazi regime and support democracy and freedom. The leaflets were critical of Hitler and the Nazi Party and called for an end to the war.
The White Rose members were eventually arrested by the Gestapo and executed in 1943. However, their legacy lived on as an example of moral courage and resistance to tyranny.
Unit 4 + 2 was a British pop band, that had a number-one hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1965 with the song ‘Concrete and Clay’.
The Unit 4+2 concept came to mind when thinking of Israel’s dictatorial ‘evil four’ plus two (attack dogs).
I draw no satisfaction in the use of derogatory remarks to describe government ministers and would-be ministers. However the facts speak for themselves, they are, unfortunately, the face of Israel 2023.
The ‘evil four’, a prime minister currently on trial, a finance minister (Smotrich), and a national security minister [Ben Gvir (responsible for the police)], both with police records. And then we come to Ayreh Deri, a twice-convicted felon.
Meet the ‘attack dogs’, Justice Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Yariv Levin, and Chairman of the Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee Simcha Rothman.
This is the face of Israel in 2023.
These are the examples of leadership that are shown to the youth of Israel today.
I often hear the remark “have these people no feelings, no conscience, how do they sleep at night?”
Judge the answer for yourself.
It’s worth noting that Ben Gvir did not severe in the army, Smotrich spent a year as a paper clip counter in Tel Aviv. Deri also completed a shortened army service.
Should he return to the cabinet, as looks likely, Deri, together with Smotrich and Ben Gvir will be amongst the ministers who will decide to send IDF troops into harm's way.
Talking of feelings and conscience, why do we hear so little from the rank-and-file Likud MKs? A rhetorical question maybe.
The simple fact is that with just a couple of exceptions, Likud MKS are more concerned about their seats than they are about Israel. Sad but true. How else can you explain the total silence from some many Likud MKs?
Churchill completed his ‘Iron Curtain’ address with the following words “If however they become divided or falter in their duty and if these all-important years are allowed to slip away then indeed catastrophe may overwhelm us all”.
This year, 2023, Israel celebrates its 75th birthday.
The country has weathered the years of civil storms and military conflicts yet has managed to grow, prosper and remain a ‘light unto other nations’.
But as Churchill implies and Abraham Lincoln aptly said just before the outbreak of the American Civil War, “a house divided against itself cannot stand".
What does the future hold for Israel?
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