Hi _____,

Thanks for the enthusiastic responses I got to last week’s column on my position regarding Israel as a jewish and democratic state. A number of you pressed me about things that stem out of the October 7, 2023 terror attacks. That day had a profound impact on every Jew. Not just every Israeli, every Jew. And a call for a renewed form of Jewish leadership dawned on the Jewish people. Here’s how I see the the evolution of Jewish leadership after that gruesome day:

That Simhat Torah (name of the Jewish holiday) morning, as every Jew can, sticks out in my memory as our generation’s “day that will live in infamy.” My aunt lost her sister, and my sister-in-law lost her aunt; all while my nieces and nephews (as young as three years old) were being scarred in bomb shelters in central Israel. For the second time in my life I felt the need to elope to Israel and enlist in the IDF without further delay. Now I had a caveat of a wife and child, I needed to care for. So for the second time in my life I said I will fight the fight from the diaspora.

On that day, my personal identity became fused with that of Israel’s. Until that point, I still had to justify to myself that anti-Semitism and anti-Zionsim might still be legitimately separate things. Well 10/7 and the fallout made it clear that they are exactly the same. Never have I experienced an event to bring the theoretical “need” for Jews to have their own homeland to an actual need for Jews to have a homeland of their own. It was only after 10/7 where I experienced my first anti-Semitic attack.

It was only after 10/7 where I thought it is up to critically thinking and extroverted Gen Z Jews like myself to use our voices to speak up and defend her. We were just put through the most direct attack on Jews in our lives. It is our responsibility to respond and heed the call to fight for our homeland.

Jewish Leadership at that time meant using each and every one of our talents, to fight the terror sympathizers celebrating the Hamas attacks on my streets on October 8. It meant flooding social media to reach the uninformed and apathetic. It meant flooding Israel with needed supplies. It meant calling that politician who owes you a favor or singing the Hatikvah after synagogue prayer.

My idea of Jewish Leadership changed as the war went on. Israel rose back on her feet, then leadership became Jews’ willingness to call out Israel’s imperfections, while defending her right to fight this dutiful war of self defense. To speak truth to our brothers and friends is the ultimate form of love. Without a doubt, the biggest danger to Israel and the Jewish people nowadays isn’t a security concern, but a favorability one. Israel’s favorability for future generations, is in an unambiguous decline. It is up to us Americans, to speak truth to our Israeli friends and to say “you’re going too far” when we feel like they are.

For example, it’s reasonable to the average American to think that while war is ugly and collateral damage is obvious, the number of 60,000+ alleged deaths (reported by Hamas) is a step too far in its response to 10/7. Leadership became the willingness recognize there is a problem and its solution may be unpleasant, yet necessary.

It’s my contention that Netanyahu’s cowardess rejecting calls to form a commission of inquiry into how 10/7 happened is purely self absorbed and an embarrassment to his government. Further, I believe his pursuit of prolonging the Gaza war as a delay tactic to keep him in power is the same.

I invite dialogue. Reply to this email, let me know your thoughts. Disagree, compliment, or insult me. All is welcomed!

No one knows anything. Keep learning. Stay curious. Never stop questioning.

Thank you again for joining Marketplace of Ideas (what I'm calling this for now). I look forward to embarking on this exciting journey with you! To an independent-thinking, knowledge-seeking, and skeptical you.

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