FRIGHTENING

     Am in a rush this morning but must take time to comment about Nice and the Bastille Day Massacre and what it all signifies to me. First, it makes me even more grateful that a similar event did not take place here July 4 when we too celebrated our Independence Day, when Americans braved the rain to gather to sing and cheer. For that, a thank you, G-d and a huge thank you to the officers who were out there en masse protecting us.
     But what does all this carnage mean? What does it tell us, signify and what are we missing? I believe we are missing the truth of the matter and that we must face it if we are to get out of this murderous mess. Extremist Islamic terrorism is real. It is an accepted tool of their path in life, the path that means the death of so many others all over the world including their fellow Moslems. What does that tell us and why do we ignore it?
     We are at war and we must can the scaredy cat statements that our politicians make, the worthless words and actually do something. Screen better, protect better, and speak the truth and stop pandering to these animals. There is no compunction within them, no borders, no deed too horrific to commit, to reject and we must accept that. We must accept the fact that each inch we give them only gives them more victories. Appeasement never works on a permanent basis and we certainly saw that with Hitler and Chamberlain. Buying off people works for a while and then they want more, so people, when we see them dance in the streets and celebrate on social media after a particularly awful deed what are we allowing? Why do the various outlets of social media allow this, the equivalent - no, more than that - to incitement and yelling Fire in a crowded theater.
     And yet, we see the same countries who suffer from these terrible acts and atrocities agreeing to overlook truth elsewhere in the name of what? Peace? That certainly is not happening. Being PC? Well, what is that but being cowardly and afraid of speaking, or recognizing the truth. Solid example happening this month, right now and that has been taking place for decades within one of the organizations that is supposed to be neutral yet all know it is not. The UN has turned into a joke. They are biased in many ways and directions and when they send troops - they do nothing. In Juba where slaughter is taking place in South Sudan, the UN troops sat in their base, not allowed out. So why are they there? Why do we hold out false hopes to people and why does the USA continue to fund so much of the budget of the UN?
     And how about UNESCO. I remember learning about them and all the "wonderful" things they were doing for the world, yet upon growing up a bit more, I realized that they were doing worse than nothing. In fact, they were complicit in the stripping of the truth from the world and in aiding terrorists and hate mongers. They acquiesce in the blatant lies and denial of truth and history. The Temple Mount. No place more holy for the Jewish people and religion than that. It is in the very DNA of our makeup, from the time of the creation of the world through Abraham and Isaac, Jacob, David, Solomon, the destruction of two Temples built there, the determination of thousands of Jews who made the dangerous journey there throughout the ages, who prayed there and by the side of the Wall, the joy that spread through the Jewish people when we liberated it, when the farce of free access under Jordanian rule since 1948 was denied to Jews. For Christians, this is where Jesus walked, lecturing and pleading. If there were no history here, if the Jews had no part here, then what is all that that is being uncovered in digs; what is all that that the WAKF is frantically and illegally and dangerously digging up and throwing on the garbage heaps of the Old City? Temple Mount, the place in whose direction the Jewish people prayed for millennia, the place which was mentioned always in their prayers, in their yearnings, even in the death camps of Hitler, the fires of the Inquisition, the expulsions from  France, from England, from Spain and Portugal. It is a constant, yet UNESCO is ready to deny this truth.
     Truth is truth. Denial in one place makes it easier to deny it in others and the result is death in mass amounts such as in Nice, in Orlando, at the Towers, in every bombing and stabbing and shooting and car ramming all over the world. See, one is not safe anywhere and that is a fact and the sooner we realize and accept that, the sooner we can openly state that we are at war with no boundaries in a geographical manner, but in a worldwide one and we must act and fight accordingly. It is a terrible prospect, a terrible truth, but is it any more terrible than having 3,000 people killed in one shot, or 84 in Nice or one in a stabbing in one's bed or at concerts, night clubs, ice cream parlors and anywhere else that terror intrudes upon life.
     It is a hard war, a war that has already claimed thousands and thousands of lives, that has destroyed countries and will continue to do so until we face the truth. No, we cannot condemn an entire group but we must insist that people stand up and deny others who are committing murder and mayhem in their supposed names, for their supposed benefit. We must recognize terrorism in all its aspects and deny them the power to destroy women for daring to learn, for daring to love someone, to destroy one who is gay and throw them off the roof, to terrorize children who wish to play ball, listen to music and fly kites. To kill those who are different, who pray to a G-d with a different name, to kill and mutilate those who wish for peace, for freedom for all, for the truth that we must see people as people, individuals and not merely as an anonymous mass. Until we do that, until we have a world where that is the status quo, we will have more of these horrific events and more people will cry and more people will be maimed and more candles will be lit and more teddy bears and flowers will pile up and all for naught.
     If terror is not ripped out at its roots, it will never go away. We have the resources to do what we must - do we have the willpower and the power of the mind and heart that tells us what must be done? I truly believe the fate of the world rests upon the answers to those questions. Terrorism must be fought vigorously and sensibly. In our choice for President this election year, I believe that Clinton has that ability - if, and only if - the Republicans and the Democrats grow up and out of their tantrum and toddler behavior and remember that they serve a country first and foremost and not a Party.
     Are you not tired of looking around you wherever you go and judging people, suspicious of them, wondering if they are dangerous? Are you not tired of walking into a mall or theater or even a store and looking for the nearest exit or a good hiding place?These are terrible days and terrible deeds and terrible thoughts. What have we wrought? May G-d watch over us and may we all be safe. Prayers for those caught in all these attacks and for all their loved ones.