Like so many Israelis, I was full of hubris. Having moved to Israel in 2017, living in the heart of Tel Aviv, I experienced with pride the power of the start-up nation. I would brag to people that Tel Aviv was one of the safest cities in the world. Of course, I knew that more than two million Palestinians were living in Gaza, just 45 minutes from my home, but like so many Israelis, it was “out of sight and out of mind.”.
Yes, every few years, there would be a mini-war, which included rockets being launched at cities in Israel, mainly in the south near Gaza but sometimes at Tel Aviv. But we had the Iron Dome. I would joke that the shelter in our home came equipped with wifi and vodka (it did) because I knew the probability of being hit by a dumb iron tube was less than being in an auto accident on the way to the airport.
When I thought about the Palestinians, I thought about the West Bank. It was an area I would often see if we drove to the north of Israel or even if we went to Jerusalem for a visit. I also knew the West Bank well from the first time I lived in Israel (1974-1979) because there was no border, and we could quickly drive there. I last visited the West Bank in 2015 before immigrating a second time to Israel.
While I wished for a two-state solution, I had given up on the idea. I saw no way that Israel would accept a state so close to its significant cities and just 12 miles from its major airport, Ben Gurion, the exact distance between San Francisco and Oakland. I also could not figure out how the West Bank could be economically viable. I had ideas about Gaza, located on the Mediterranean Sea, which had a tremendous economic development possibility. However, given that Hamas ruled it, I could not see how it could combine with the Palestinian Authority government of the West Bank.
Then there were the settlements. Israelis started slicing and dicing the West Banks, making an independent state there an impossibility.
Now, I believe there must be a two-state solution. Oct. 7th shows that the sense of security and inviolability permeating Israel was an illusion. For the last several years, the Israelis were played by Hamas. Israel built a security fence above and below ground that cost close to a billion dollars. That, combined with the Iron Dome, made Israelis feel secure. Then, stupidly, the government thought that if they let some of the people in Gaza work in Israel, things would be better. How could they not realize that amongst those people were members of Hamas that used this access to Israel as a way to get information for the Oct. 7th attack?
Hamas set about to terrorize Israelis by doing the most horrific things, like butchering people in front of their children, baking babies in ovens, gang raping women until their pelvis broke, and shooting them in the head as the rapist orgasm. They knew what the Israelis would be compelled to do, and that is what they wanted to happen. They tried to rapidly turn world opinion from the atrocities they committed to the bombings and destruction of Gaza and so many of its people.
I don’t know what will happen in the short term. But clearly, not having a two-state solution did not make Israel safe. So, as difficult as it is to conceive, it is time to try something different. But Israel can not do this on its own. So if the world does care about the Palestinian people and all the protests are in support of them and just not driven by hatred of Israel and hatred of Jews, then let those countries do something, please.
Two Thirds Done 
Avram, It has been a learning experience for all of us!
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Well said, I was one of the handful of people that believed that without a 2 state solution Israel is doomed, not sure if the windows of opportunity in 67 and after the Yom Kipur war are still open, history is very cruel to nations who do not size an opportunity.
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Northern Gaza almost Hamas free. Suspect Northern Gaza shall become something like British northern Ireland.
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I suspect writing these recent posts must have been emotional devastating for you. Thank you for doing it in spite of that. Your thoughts, from your unique vantage point, have been of great value. Thanks for sharing, and for your fairness and compassion.
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Thank you. Your comments mean a lot to me. It is difficult to write these posts but it is important to try to share our perspectives without too much anger. Anyway, I mostly feel sad about the suffering of so many.
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Very few people are actually able to say “I was wrong”, when it comes to politics or major social issues. Very few even ever feel wrong, because we all look to our media for confirmation of our bias. Its very easy to find, while we are very good at avoiding media and information that contradicts what we like to believe. All of us.
For writing “I was wrong about so much”, Avram, I salute you.
I’m tempted to suggest that you should you ask yourself (and yourself only) the more important question: why? Why were I so wrong about so many things?
I want to be clear, it’s not a question I ask you, but a question I suggest you ask yourself.
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Many people reacting and protesting against what the Israeli government is doing, are not at all against Jews (many are even Jew themselves), but are against the inhuman revenge the Israeli government is taking at the moment.
Lots of Westerners are also against the Right Wing Ultra Orthodox Jews who bully Palestinians and take away their family domains, this often whilst the Israeli soldiers let it all happen.
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I accepted your comment but do not agree that the actions being taken are primarily about revenge. Hamas is evil and must be wiped out. Hamas has brought this destruction on. This does not mean that there might not be better ways to accomplish this. So I may be critical of the approach but not the objective.
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Thanks for accepting the comment. We totally agree that Hamas is a terrorist organistaion we would love to have wiped out, but the way the Israeli government is doing it now, is bringing the hostages in more danger and bringing innocent people in danger too, breaching all the international laws of warfare and humanity.
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Thanks but enough comments. I don’t;t want to turn my blog into a social media site.
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“are against the inhuman revenge the Israeli government is taking at the moment.”
This is an interesting viewpoint. Here is how I see it:
One – The Israeli government has clearly, and repeatedly stated the goal of the war: Free the hostages, eliminate Hamas and offer a normal life and normal safety to the Israeli people living around the Gaza Strip. They never talked about revenge. Ever. It’s an opinion, not a fact. Maybe – I am not sure – this negative thought could be based on the suspicion that a right wing Israeli government cannot do good or have good intentions.
Two – the “inhuman revenge” is not the decision of the government, but the war cabinet. And the war cabinet includes the opposition party to the government.
Three – a vast majority of Israelis are backing the war some people see as “inhuman revenge”. That means people reactions and protests are against the Jews, no the Israeli government.
Four – Are the Jews for “inhuman revenge”? It’s not in their DNA, not in their culture, tradition and recent history. What could give people the idea that Jews would want inhuman revenge? Jews have a history like Buddhists: they are pacifists, they emphasizes non-violence and compassion. Who would suspect Buddhists of wanting “inhuman revenge” !
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Thank you very much for your fascinating response.
Of course, it is the war cabinet that determines the warfare, but it is the ministry that distributes the assignments and has not sufficiently sought opportunities to release the hostages. Although the latter may not have been so easy with a terrorist movement.
That the vast majority of Israelis are backing the war and that they are not seeing that the way the IDF is bombarding Gaza looks more like an inhuman revenge is possible because they might be very much blinded by their sorrow.
We as believers find it also strange that so many of those having to fight, agree to go against our mtizvot, whilst some of us even are not able to travel far away from home, not able to switch on the lights or electrical or gas supplies on sabbath, and there in Israel jehudiem not minding trigging weapons to kill people on the day of Hashem!?
As you indicate Jews should be lovers of peace, we spreading the love of the Adonai and as such being pacifists.
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