The heart-wrenching truth, as always, from my friend Ruthie Blum:It is one thing to be convinced, as I was and still am, that a ground incursion (with Israeli soldiers going literally and figuratively door-to-door to snuff and stomp out terrorists and tunnels) is the way to go. It is quite another to cheer on such a campaign when ones own child is taking part in it.An infantry reservist, my son was called up on July 9. Contact with him has been sparse, as he has had limited use of his cell phone. Nor did I get a chance even to give him a hug before he left, since I had just returned from a month-long visit with my own parents in the United States. And though he is a married man, in addition to being one of the most mature, capable, talented and dependable people I know, he is still my baby....Hamas is... a well-oiled murder machine, comprised of blood-thirsty Islamists who abide by no rules of combat. Unlike my son and his comrades-in-arms, who are trained to take human life and the rules of war into account, Hamas warriors are taught the opposite.It is this asymmetry that makes it so difficult for the West to confront, let alone defeat, global jihad. While soldiers of the former fear for their lives and try to avoid collateral casualties, those of the latter are willing martyrs for their cause.Knowing that my son is entering a strip of land densely populated by such demons is frightening enough. Aware that he is doing so with a weapon in one hand and a law book in the other is beyond my capacity as a mother to bear.Israeli parents, famous for over-protectiveness at the playground and dinner table, must constantly make our peace with this particular form of parental cognitive dissonance. It is a feat I wish on my enemies. Only then will there be hope of genuine coexistence.Until that time, however, all I can do as I watch the news -- weeping with a mixture of resolve and dread -- is pray.
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 13:49:22 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015