I happily watched action movies with glee. Stallone, Schwarzenegger, and all the others. Even Cruise in Mission Impossible and Jack Reacher, (even though Tom Cruise is an idiot Scientologist and out of his mind.) I love those kind of movies.
There was action, and there was always a “hostage” to be saved. But who cared then? It was all fiction. All just film and screenwriters. No biggie. Those things never happened. Except for us in Israel every few years. One at a time.
Hostages, in the plural, were something we never really lived with. 239: Two hundred and thirty-nine hostages. I only wish it was from a movie where some bad guy hijacks a train or plane and whatever the action hero’s name is - saves the day.
I woke up at 6:45 AM on that Black Sabbath, on a joyous holiday, and less than 5 hours later, the term “hostage” took on a whole new meaning and reality. As the hours and days went by, more information was released, and more videos were seen on social networks, the term hostages took on a whole new meaning beyond understanding.
Entire families, babies, the elderly, women, men, grandfathers, grandmothers, disabled, and infirm - all taken hostage.
Honestly, the word Holocaust came to mind by 1 PM that afternoon. That was after my son was called up and my sons-in-law. By then, in less than 5 hours four members of my family were already on the way to war.
The world gathered behind Israel in support at first, but we knew that was just a fleeting show of words. Hamas thought we would just sit back and begin to negotiate. They sorely underestimated Jewish resolve. And they sorely misjudged our anger, and yes even our rage, at what they did. They have no clue who they started with.
What part of the words “Never Again” did they not understand?
Before I loved action movies and “hostages” was just a term for screenwriters, action heros and the bad guys on screen. After our lives have become consumed with the term “hostage” - not one person will rest until they are returned. Make No Mistake. One moral imperative guides Israel and the entire Jewish people -
I worked happily in technology in the fields of AI and Virtual Reality. I owned my own company. It was a struggle, and my worry was for my children and grandchildren and making enough money to close the month.
When I looked at my children, their spouses, and grandchildren, I felt joy and love. Yes, I worried. But at the normal things. Were they happy? Were they satisfied with the way life turned out? Were they all healthy? The normal things every single normal parent worries about.
After October 7, 2023
I watched as one son, and three sons-in-law were called up and all are in special units. I have not seen any of them since that day. My children and their families were now on my mind 24 hours a day because I knew what going to war meant. I knew what a battlefield was. And I knew, based on my own life experience, that there are no guarantees.
Before life had normalcy. After our lives have two purposes. Return the hostages NOW! And destroy, annihilate, and wipe from the face of this earth all Hamas-ISIS-Nazis.
Before October 7, 2023
I had a rule for over 40 years. I never discussed politics. I hated it. It brought division and anger to all those who entered such a conversation. I went so far as no one, not even my children, knew who I voted for in elections.
After October 7, 2023
I still resist entering into heated political debates. To be honest, among most of the people I know, left-center-right, there is an overall consensus on what must be done. Yes, political debate is very much alive. But now, I do not think twice about making my voice heard in the strongest terms possible. Now is not the time for political debate.
Before was the time to try to listen to politics and decide who you would vote for. Now is a time for generals to take the mantle of war, bereft of all political thinking. Now is not the time for Israelis and Jews the world over to be divided. Now is a time for war.
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Before October 7, 2023
After 26+ years of being a battlefield medic in the IDF reserves and having been in some exceedingly difficult and heart-rending situations, I still believed that somehow, some time, when sanity reigned, Israelis and Palestinians would have to find a way to at least talk with each other. To continue a positive dialogue. I was even on television in a show where I reiterated this view after one of our wars.
After October 7, 2023
There is no more talk. There is no more empathy. There is no more discussion. There is no longer give-and-take. Sanity means every single Hamas-ISIS-Nazi is six feet under or in chains. Period. Evil must never be allowed to propagate. It must never be hidden under the guise of giving pity. I now understand the Talmudic statement:
“Those who show pity to the cruel are destined to be cruel to those who require pity and empathy.”
Before was the time to try to understand and empathize. Now is a time for the annihilation of those who have shown the evil of hate rotting inside their souls. Those whose only desire in life is to murder, maim, rape, burn, mutilate, and wipe all Jews off the face of the earth have one hell of a surprise coming.
After October 7th, 2023, there is no more empathy, no pity, no talk without action. Period.
Before October 7, 2023
Conversations with friends in Israel revolved around work, money, and laughter, along with life's joys and hardships.
Conversations with friends for over 40 years in the USA centered around joys, laughter, memories, and love. I would never tell any friend of mine who lived outside of Israel to move to Israel. Life here is different and often hard. Taxes are high. The cost of living is high. The mentality is different than living in the United States.
After October 7, 2023
Conversations in Israel are based on WhatsApp messages about who was killed and who was wounded that day. Who knows whom? When is the funeral of this soldier or that civilian who was killed during the attack and was just identified?
Conversations with friends in the USA center around them pulling their children out of university due to the antisemitic riots. About whether they should move here or stay there. Because there, wherever “there” is, is not Israel, and it is clear that no one is going to protect them. Facing an angry mob ready to rip you limb from limb with no police around and total absence of law is not anyone’s idea of a fun Sunday stroll.
Before was a normal life. After is becoming a struggle to stay sane and safe, in countries where that should not be a question.
I never listened to the news, except during the worst parts of the COVID outbreak. Indeed, I didn’t own a TV. I relied on all my news from my computer and from the radio in the car while I drove. I relied on my WhatsApp to bring me important news from family and friends.
My worst nightmare was thinking about supermarket shopping. It drove me crazy. I started buying online instead. This was the thing that drove me crazy.
After October 7, 2023
I wake up and go to sleep with the news. When my WhatsApp or SMS goes off after 11 PM, in one millisecond, my blood pressure goes through the roof. What message is waiting for me? Did someone else get killed? Every knock on my door or ring of my doorbell makes me break out in a sweat if I am not waiting for someone. Please, God, let it not be three soldiers, standing in starched uniforms with faces that have no sign of life. Imagine that fear.
Before was a ride in the car cursing over the supermarket. After is a rollercoaster that makes the Nightmare on Elm Street look like a comedy.
I lived with the impression that our borders were safe. Now and then some missiles were aimed at us, and I knew in 95% of the cases, the Iron Dome system would shoot them down. I live in the center of Israel, so I did not worry much. I did not even have the special app, from the IDF warning of missiles coming in, activated.
After October 7, 2023
Now that app goes off every time there is a missile over any one of the numerous areas where my kids and grandkids live. My cell is glued to me. The term: “never leave home without it” has taken on new meaning. It is, without hyperbole, the difference between life and death, even though there are sirens.
For the first two days after the horrific events of October 7, I had to convince myself that the IDF would catch up. I had, and I admit this fully, lost faith. I am from the Yom Kippur War generation, so I knew what that attack meant. It took me 48 hours to realize this was worse than the Yom Kippur war in many ways.
But there are missiles, and there are missiles. We are at nine thousand missiles (no, that is not a typo), 9000 missiles, and counting, having been lobbed into Israel from Gaza. This does not include the missiles from Lebanon by Hezbollah or the missiles from Yemen. (You still want to tell me Iran has nothing to do with this war? But more on that with proof in a later newsletter.)
Before we kind of lived with it, hoping someone in Gaza would grow brains. After, we will make sure this never happens again. It is that harsh and that simple.
Before October 7, 2023
I had faith in the United States. People were prospering or having better lives. I did not get into any politics in the USA. Even though I am also an American citizen, I did not think it was correct to comment on the political antics and philosophy of both Republicans and Democrats. Trump, Biden, or someone else, it was not my business.
After October 7, 2023
President Biden shocked many of us. We did not expect him, especially him, to take such a stance at the beginning. And all the more power to him for doing it. No matter what the reasons were, but I was wary. I was waiting for the knife in the back while he hugged us. It did not take long for it to come from the Secretary of State.
But then we received a lecture on the rules of war.
For a moment let us educate ourselves on these laws:
Modern Warfare – “jus in bello” & “jus ad bellum”[i]
The purpose of international humanitarian law is to limit the suffering caused by war by protecting and assisting its victims as far as possible. The law therefore addresses the reality of a conflict without considering the reasons for or legality of resorting to force. It regulates only those aspects of the conflict which are of humanitarian concern. It is what is known as jus in bello (law in war). Its provisions apply to the warring parties irrespective of the reasons for the conflict and whether or not the cause upheld by either party is just.[ii]
Beginning with the Vietnam War, the “Law of Armed Conflict” (LOAC), based upon the principle of “jus in bello,” began to be implemented on a system-wide basis. Though the United States did not adhere to the entirety of this law at the time, many military missions and targets were guided by LOAC. Simply put, civilians and innocents could not be targeted. In our terminology, CD must always be weighed and judged before any military mission. LOAC has since become a mainstay for many countries.
International humanitarian law, jus in bello, regulates the conduct of forces when engaged in war or armed conflict. It is distinct from jus ad bellum which regulates the conduct of engaging in war or armed conflict and includes the crime of aggression. Together the jus in bello and jus ad bellum comprise the two strands of the laws of war governing all aspects of international armed conflicts. The law is mandatory for nations bound by the appropriate treaties.
LOAC now comprises “jus in bello” and “jus ad bellum” within its legal parameters.
The avoidance of collateral damage can even be determinative for nations like the United States (U.S.) who value LOAC. A decision based on avoidance becomes problematic where key objectives cannot be targeted because of an adversary’s invitation or fabrication of collateral damage to discredit operations. Any targeting decision must be premised on LOAC; however, a decision based on avoidance must carefully evaluate the loss of initiative and tactical superiority, the increasing and persistent nature of these events in the context of a well-organized strategy, and the effect on tactical, operational and strategic objectives.[iii]
However, let us be clear. There is almost no reality where collateral damage can be avoided in its entirety. The reality of war is often inclusive of CD. The intent of the law is to force nations to comply with a maximal attempt to reduce CD in any given situation.
[i] Wiktionary (n.d.) ‘jus in bello’, available at: https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=jus_in_bello&oldid=65215073 (accessed 16th March, 2022).
[ii] ‘IHL and other legal regimes – jus ad bellum and jus in bello’ (2010) International Committee Of The Red Cross,
[iii] Reynolds, J. “Collateral Damage On The 21st Century Battlefield: Enemy Exploitation Of The Law Of Armed Conflict, And The Struggle For A Moral High Ground”, Air Force Law Review, Vol. 56 Page 2
You see there are laws for war. Wonder of wonders! All the writers, journalists, interviewers and statesmen and women out there - do you actually know and understand these laws? Moral ambiguity takes on a whole new horizon now. The USA is preaching to us to follow the rules of war! WTF??? Does Biden have such a short memory that he does remember 9/11 and its aftermath? And did that hypocrite, Obama, ask anyone about killing Bin-Laden’s family? Did he order the Navy Seals to knock on the door and say, “Pretty Please”? Again WTF?
Before, politics outside of Israel was not my business. After, I will be damned if the US or any other country dares to give us speeches on morality. What a bunch of hypocritical bullshit! At least we expected it from Obama. How Obama got to be President with his inner hatreds so skewed is a mystery to history.
Before October 7, 2023
I was a history buff. I watched many World War II videos on YouTube, partly, I think, because my father had been in that war. Nazis were history. They were as Hannah Arendt said, "the banality of evil." I studied them as if what they did was an aberration in an enlightened world.
Make no mistake. The Holocaust was a major part of my education. The horror of it was imprinted upon my mind from a young age. Yet that sort of evil did not seem to be possible again. It just could not happen.
After October 7, 2023
It took some time to sink in. Suddenly I realized the pure unadulterated evil of the Nazis, which the world thought was impossible to duplicate or compete with, was outdone by Hamas.
Murder, rape, beheading, burning, mutilation, shooting children in front of their parents and parents in front of their children, cutting a baby out of its mother’s womb while she was still alive, beheading people and babies, attacking. peace concert - how evil can one get?
Before I lived thinking that the evil of the Nazis was beyond humankind. After I realized evil is alive and well and there is absolutely no bottom to that well of darkness.
Before October 7, 2023
England was interesting. The saga of Harry & Meghan was entertaining. Their total avoidance of any sort of responsibility made me laugh. The UK detective shows were the best out there.
France was a symbol of freedom from World War Two. The President of France did not concern me one way or another.
I was ambivalent about Germany. It was hard not to think that most Germans had grandparents who were Nazis.
Japan was great at electronics and innovative projects. They also make great cars, though I will say, I will never buy a Toyota again. (And the Corolla was my second car and the best I ever owned.) It seems terrorists have a love of Toyotas. They are firmly embedded in videos in every Israeli’s memory.
Besides having one business client there, I was assured that the EU and the UK were fairly safe and a good home.
First came the support and then the moral ambiguity. Emmanuel Macron, President of France, first made sure to show his face in Israel and offer words of undying support. But what can you do? At home, he allowed in so many radical Muslims, and there was so much antisemitism, that he bent the knee.
The UK faced with the same riots and protests did not waver as much. It seems their lines in the sand are a bit less foggy and muddied.
But the two countries, besides the US that surprised the hell out of Israel were Germany and Japan.
Germany is standing fast with Israel. Perhaps because they know where such evil can lead. Perhaps they know it won't stop here. Perhaps it is out of guilt. I do not know. I prefer to believe it is from a deep sense of morality that only a country like Germany could have - because of what they went through.
Then unexpectedly, way out in left field, Japan appears. We thought Japan could not care less. Perhaps in Japan as well, because of World War II, and because of the way Japan had to recover, a greater purer sense of understanding exactly what Hamas will do, makes them more sensitive to the situation.
Before the world was, well, the world. Now it is “if you are not firmly with us you are against. us. Period. And we, the Jewish People, this time will not forget nor forgive.
Before October 7, 2023
Pure evil was saved for the True Crime podcasts coming out of the US. They reported on aberrations, especially the parents that killed their children, such as Chad and Lori Vallow Daybell along with Alex Murdaugh. This was evil. It was a crime. They were tried and convicted. Society wins. End of story. A few lucky podcasters got to report on it and make some money.
Then, every month some crazy person in the US would shoot up a school or mall. But to me, they were crazies who slipped through the cracks.
After October 7, 2023
I realized these parents and parents and partners were not aberrations. They were just the unlucky ones who got caught. And they were not evil. They were just sociopaths, psychopaths, or whatever term Candice DeLong decided upon. (And Candice is a wonderful, no-nonsense professional.)
Evil is an entirely different genre. It is squarely on the soldiers of Hamas and those that support them - including all those dumb-ass, spaghetti-brained, spoiled, entitled brats that make the American student population. They are evil as well.
Before I never really understood the term “evil.” After evil took on a whole new dimension.
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Before October 7, 2023
I had faith in humanity. I had faith in the inherent good within all people. In my worst nightmare, I would never have thought it would be necessary to defend Israel and Jews against such heinous atrocities.
I never understood the depth of antisemitism all over the world. Whatever the cause, Jews are at fault. Kill them! Gas them! Send them into the sea! Why? A million reasons not one of them can be proven in fact. A million excuses. But hell, it is still good to hate Jews - so why not?
After October 7, 2023
I no longer have faith in humankind. It is gone. Do you want to befriend us? Prove yourself first.
So there is a Before and After. With so much more to add.
So, there is a Before and After. There was once a man who believed in peace for humankind. There was once a people who wanted nothing to do with war because it is our sons and daughters who have to die. There was once a country willing to accept terrorist acts and missiles from time to time, because maybe, just maybe someone will finally knock some sense into those attacking us. Maybe just maybe we could make peace.
Once there was a dream for humanity. Now there is anger, rage, and hate. Now we have truly clear goals. Get the hostages home and destroy every remnant of Hamas. It is that brutal and that simple. What part of “Never Again” do you Jew-haters not understand?And it is terribly sad that humankind has come to this point.
