Painfully naive
The terrorist Hamas organization has done a great favor to Israelis and Jews worldwide (“Palestinians don’t want a two-state solution,” January 7). At last, we all know the depth of the hatred which Palestinians, in particular, and Arabs, in general, feel for the presence of Israel and Jews in their Middle East.
It is very sad that so many Israelis had to be sacrificed on the alter of this hatred but their deaths are not in vain. Israel has awoken from a deep sleep to the existential dangers of Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, the jihadists, their duplicity, their treachery, their inhumanity.
The painfully naive mindset of the peaceniks has now been reset. We will hopefully no longer hear of peace, of worthless agreements with terrorists, of the two-state solution, of diplomacy and brotherhood to solve the problems facing Israel. Israel now knows it must rely only on its own military, industrial, economic, and intellectual strengths.
YIGAL HOROWITZ
Beersheba
Message delivery
Regarding “Blinken, Borrell call for diplomacy in North” (January 7): The constant drumbeat of messages to Hezbollah that no one is seeking a wider conflict with this terrorist organization is a terrible mistake. Every time Hezbollah gets such a message, here is what its leader Nasrallah hears: “We are afraid of fighting you, so you can keep firing rockets and sending drones into Israel, because as long as you keep it at the number you’ve been averaging every day, we won’t do anything painful about it.”
Hezbollah will continue to fire as many missiles at Israel every day that it believes is permitted. This will kill and injure more Israelis, and continue the forced displacement of 100,000 Israeli residents of the north of the country. In effect this causes a loss of Israeli sovereignty over its northern territory to Hezbollah.
The message that Hezbollah actually should be given is that the consequences of firing rockets at Israel will be unbearable to Hezbollah, Lebanon, and Iran, because it is the terrorist tyrants of Tehran who are actually ordering these launches. If that message in diplomatic form goes unheeded, it should then be delivered by the IDF. It is ultimately the only form of message delivery which Iran respects.
DANIEL H. TRIGOBOFF
Williamsville, New York
‘Tikkun olam’ and leftist
“Shame on Limmud UK 2023” (January 5) is indeed an accurate op-ed article, but for true evaluation, we need to look at the history of Limmud UK. We go back over 30 years when UK Seed was at its height and would have a yarchei kallah at this time of the year which was all haredi-based. As a counter to this, a more “modern Orthodox” approach led to a less Torah-centered similar conference and thus, Limmud was born.
Over the years, Limmud has become much more tikkun olam and leftist. Now enter the present UK Board of Deputies which, so to speak, has adopted Limmud. Rather than my making comments directly about that well-intentioned organization, please read its weekly online updates; therein all is explained.
KALMAN BOOKMAN
Jerusalem
‘Nothing new’
As I read “Defense minister presents day-after plan: Local Palestinian control aided by int’l coalition” (January 5), I couldn’t help but think back to the saying in Ecclesiastes that “there is nothing new under the sun.”
So it is in the present case. I don’t require an “international coalition” to drive home the point first expressed in the Torah. Namely, Israel/Palestine is the homeland of the Jewish people; period, end of quote.
MICHAEL D. HIRSCH
Tzur Yitzhak
New way of thinking
I have read “Israel needs a real centrist-Zionist party” by Zvika Klein (January 5) with much interest. I tend to agree with the need for new leaders, after October 7 and the multiple disastrous mistakes which have been made. The whole society, which includes politicians, the military and intelligence, and the nonprofits need to conduct a heshbon nefesh, a self-examination, which can prevent another October 7.
Starting with a new, wide, Zionist party, as Klein suggests, is a good start. It can bring a new way of looking at things, and a new way of thinking.
However, I would very much advise to absolutely not take French President Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party as an example. Anyone who looks at the way France is governed since the 2022 legislative elections, in which Macron lost the parliamentary absolute majority, will understand that a major part of democratic values has been lost. Because there is no majority supporting his policy, Macron uses Article 49.3 of the French Constitution.
This article allows the government to force a law upon parliament, without any vote. The only counter-action is to initiate a vote of no-confidence against the government. This, of course, has not happened because it would lead to a political crisis which parliamentarians want to avoid.
Everybody in Israel understands how this very undemocratic process would be unacceptable. We are very capable of not following foreign examples and should stop always looking abroad to get inspiration. We Jews, as a people, are experiencing unprecedented ordeals. Therefore, we should be inventive enough to create our own solutions, which, maybe and hopefully, France will one day dare to be inspired by.
LAURENT CUDKOWICZ
Jerusalem
Separation of powers
In “The verdict is in” (January 4), Suzie Navot claims that the decision of the High Court indicates that “checks and balances are here to stay.” The principles of a sound constitution involve the separation of powers among the executive, legislative and legal branches of government. As no branch can be trusted to control itself, it is essential that each branch is separate and is in some way able to prevent any other branch from becoming dominant.
The problem is not new. The Roman poet Juvenal, pithily expressed it about 20 centuries ago: “Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” (“Who will guard the guards themselves?’)
In the 18th century, the British intellectual and politician Lord Acton wrote “Power corrupts and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely.” We live in very different times today but people are the same; the lust for power is inherent to the human condition.
In Israel, there is no branch which can control the Supreme Court, which essentially is self-replicated; yes we have a check on the executive, but virtually none on the court. One can hardly call Israel a democracy, meaning rule by the people, when the ultimate power rests in the High Court.
The US Constitution was written by political geniuses, who had a very real fear of unbridled power, especially of government. They devised a system whereby the Supreme Court could interpret the constitution to override the executive and legislative branches, but the justices were selected by the executive, and after approval by the Senate, were appointed for life. This ensured that over time, the court reflected the will of the people. This is not the case in Israel. We have much work to do to develop an effective functional constitution.
If the Court remains dominant, sooner or later, and probably sooner, we will find ourselves divided, just as we were before October 7.
STEPHEN COHEN
Ma’aleh Adumim