PrintMay 25, 2009
Land of the Free Because of the Brave
I recently met a Jewish man who was born in New York but has been living in Israel and raising his family there for most of his adult life. He has dual citizenship, while his seven year old son is an Israeli citizen. When I noted that he had some time to hope for peace in the Mideast before his son would have to join the Israeli military, he responded to me that his son would never join the Israeli army. When I asked him why, how would Israel survive without mandatory military service, he replied, "No war is worth dying for."I was a bit surprised as I had never spoken to an Israeli who questioned their military service. On our recent trip to Israel, we did meet young people that opted for certain community service positions, but that seemed unusual. And my assumption, that anyone who made aliyah (the Jewish immigration to the Promised Land) was a Zionist willing to fight for the survival of the State of Israel, was apparently incorrect.This man's statement, "no war is...(Read Full Article)
