Comments on the disengagement

The debate was much too standard. Each side gave the same old lines that everyone repeats.

My take on the issues is that Israel is in a state of war. The pro and anti - disengagement forces both argue as though Israel were at peace with its neighbours, and the only problem with the neighbours is that they are not talking to us.

From my state-of-war premise it follows that the democratic process is almost irrelevant to the situation. No one went to a referendum to see whether to have the Six-day war or not. No one needs to go to a referendum to see whether to lose the Six day war 4 decades later. For example, even if a democratic government had been elected on a peace platform they would still be expected to go to war if the circumstances required it.

How the PRO disengagement people ought to see things.

So the pro disengagement people ought to be looking at the situation as follows :- Sharon and the generals have realised that they can no longer hold a certain tract of land. They must retreat to cut their losses. They don't need to ask anyone whether to do this. They don't need to look at their election platform from 3 years ago. They just need to do what they need to do.

What they MUST address is to understand the reasons for the retreat and make sure that they plan and strategise the war better, playing their cards differently so that further retreats do not occur. I have grave misgivings about whether the Sharon Generals / Chiefs of staff are doing this. They seem to be deluding themselves that disengagement is some kind of win.

How the ANTI disengagement people ought to see things

They need to understand that a military loss has occurred and that you cannot win a battle just by staying in an un-holdable position. You cannot "vote" your side into being stronger than it actually is.

Sure, they "ought" to be able to stay in Gush Katif theoretically, but the real enemy - the Palestinian terrorist forces - will not allow them to reside there peacefully. They have to understand that Palestinian antisemitism is so great that the Israeli chiefs of staff have said they can't keep up the war to defend them. A retreat will take place and mercifully the residents of Gush Katif won't stay back and get killed. Yes, they will be forcibly evicted by a government that has the power EVEN IN PEACETIME to move people. How much more so in a state of war does a government, any government have the power to move people forcibly for their own good !

To pray for a miracle is reasonable, and consistent with normative Judaism. To pray that the Israeli people and army become suddenly strengthened seems valid and appropriate. However, to pray that the bureaucrats in Jerusalem should just "up and change their minds" and cancel the decree is like praying for them to defy logic. As the saying goes "be careful what you pray for, because it might just happen".

Whilst praying for a miracle is obligatory, relying on a miracle in one's planning process is prohibited in normative Judaism.