AND YET ANOTHER ONE

 Another anniversary. Can't get enough of them. One could go through the Jewish calendar and find more anniversaries than not. So many, that we have been able to 'gift' some anniversaries over to the secular calendar. A plethora of special days we would cheerfully cede over to anyone who has a dearth of anniversaries on their calendars. Such a plethora of these 'special' days that we would cheerfully hand them over to anyone who needs some - but no backs! 

Then there's that not so funny joke that we do have about our holidays. Kind of shorthand when people ask what they are about. They (the enemy) came, they tried to destroy us, we beat them back. Let's eat! Of course, somewhere in there is a thank you to Hashem stretching His arms down from the Heavens to gather us into His protective hands and keep us relatively safe as He frustrates yet another enemy from one of our overflowing buckets of such.

 At times the damages are less than at other times, but it seems the nations of the world never tire of trying to wreak harm and havoc upon the Jewish nation.  Hey, people out there. Do you not ever get tired of this same ugly game. You know the inevitable end - you lose, we win, and hopefully we keep some sort of quiet going for a while. Even if you gnash your teeth together the whole time. We're okay, so go ahead. You will probably have to see your Jewish dentist to fix your abused teeth.

Chanuka, Purim, even Lag B'omer - those are ours. We beat the bad dudes and celebrated. Special activities, of course special commemorative prayers and prayers of gratitude addressed to our ever-present Lord, albeit at times a tad slow on the timing, and of course, special foods. Always. And delicious. These holidays and our other biggies get their special Hebrew calendar dates, though always with a variance during the years, as the Hebrew dates show up on differing dates of the English calendar. These holidays are notoriously always either late or early, never on time, but we manage to muddle through all these millennia, so not to worry. We got it handled.

However, and ever increasingly, we are having to observe other anniversaries. These come on the English calendar mostly, though the appropriate Hebrew date is attached, at least for us. Let's see, perhaps some examples so you will understand. Our Independence Day is marked by us on hey Eyar, the fifth day of the month of Eyar, even as the rest of the world holds it as May 14. Their problem, for we are too busy celebrating that miracle event to notice the rest of you, sulking, particularly of late. Get with the program guys, much healthier, happier that way. And the traditional barbecues are yummy too.

However, we do have those anniversaries we would have preferred that they had never materialized. These are the days of terrible events or are days set aside to remember and mourn on one day that which actually consumed many days, months and even years. Almost immediately after Passover we have the days wherein the nation is awash with tears, honoring those slaughtered during the Holocaust, or the soldiers who fell defending this nation from those who would see us dead and gone, and victims of terror attacks over the years. Following immediately upon the heels of those days we celebrate Yom Ha'atzmaut - Israel's Independence Day. We celebrate on our dates, in our way, and need not the English calendar dates.

However, there are current dates on the English calendar which unfortunately will remain with us into the foreseeable future, unless G-d works one of His miracles for us again. One such anniversary is the unfortunately long lived one of the infamous "Zionism is racism" vote or declaration from our eternal enemy - the UN and its member states, most of whom have never mssed an opportunity to trash and demean and delegitimize the state of Israel and the Jewish people.

While the history of the United Nations and Israel never had any true peace between them, other than the one time it voted to ratify, Israel's ratification way back in 1948. That infamous UN Resolution on Racism was the beginning of the end for any possibility of true neutrality, of true understanding of what Israel is, what it means to the Jewish people and why it must exist, its historical imperative through all time. 

November 10th, 1975. 

November 9th and 10th, anniversary of Kristallnacht. A night of destruction and death and horror for Jews of Germany. 

November's affinity for these ugly events and anniversary remembrances is sad indeed. Frankly, the situation has only worsened and deteriorated to the point where I do not think there's any chance, any hope, of true reformation. The UN at this point is a cesspool of hate directed at Israel and the Jewish people. As far as I am concerned, it is a waste of money and expensive real estate.

It's revocation sometime later did not and does not change the fact that it was approved and remains etched into the tainted soul of the world. The lonely little Jewish state was singled out to be condemned by 46 countries. From that point on anti-Zionism was presented to the world as anti-imperialism, a gross smear of Israel by the world. This statement, spoken or unspoken, ran through the world and Israel was held to a double standard, calling for its behavior to meet expectations that are not placed upon the other nations, and that attitude persists to this very day. There have been some positive steps but mostly they are drowned by the noise put out by the haters. It is not nearly enough to induce reversal of these accusations, not nearly enough at all. 

Neither must we forget to remember the most recent horrifying anniversary date. Oct7,2023, ongoing for two years plus, with no true end in sight. October 7, 2023, a date like Pearl Harbor, which will be long lived in infamy. To be s, long to be engraved in our souls. This state current state descends in a straight line from that resolution on racism all the way to the present. And frankly, I see little chance of it ever coming to an end, particularly so as it has now found rich and fertile ground in which to implant itself as nations around the world buy into it, and to our shame as well, deeply shamefully so, has found a home here in the United States of America.

At the time of that resolution a brave man came forward. Chaim Herzog was  the ambassador from Israel to the U. N., became Israel's six president, his son is now the President, and had the courage to stand up there in front of the eyes of a hateful group and tore his copy of that resolution in 2. Prior to that, he had spoken and said thus: "Zionism is nothing more - and nothing less - than the Jewish people's sense of origin and destination in the land linked eternally with its name." He added that this was not a trial for Israel but rather was a trial for the United Nations. 

Needless to say, it failed, abysmally, and continues to do so to this very second.

This situation has remained the status quo. Israel is constantly the bad one, the evil one, the instigator accused of misbehavior and criminal actions and motivations. Our dead, our wounded, our tragedies discounted, even ignored, downplayed to where they are barely of any relevance, at least in the eyes of this awful world. Will there ever be a change?

Honestly, I doubt any optimistic return to that question. Even if, unlikely as it is, it does change, I cannot see any promise of a long, healthy life for it. The position of Jews today, no matter where they are, is on less secure footing than at any time I can recall. This is a whole world buying into this hate, taking huge bites and gobbles. No restrictions. No humanitarian conditions and considerations.

No, I am not optimistic. I love my friends who are not Jewish. I love them for their attitude towards Israel as they stand with me. I am grateful for all those Jews who now realize that we are all one nation and what happens to one, will happen to all. But any possibility of true optimism is cast into great doubt by the actions of those treacherous, traitorous, treasonous, moronic self-hating and self-killing Jews who stand with their enemies and call for their own death. They delude themselves, convinced that the destruction of the State of Israel and their out there enthusiastic participation in bringing about that situation would eliminate all anti-Semitism. Their lack of understanding, that anti-Semitism does not have a reason justifying it, as it is not justifiable. It passes right over them, right through them. With idiots like this how can we possibly see some positive, strong chances for a better future.

Perhaps new glasses? But I doubt that.

Would, that it was so simple.

Yesterdays filled with pain.

Todays still rocked by the waves of hate.

Tomorrows covered in doubt.

And the eternal prayer sent out to the heavens by God's children.

 Anenu, beyom carainu. 

Answer us, please, in our time of need.