Israel Served Up Without Controversy

I was invited to join the Israel information committee at my Temple.  Fine, I thought, and went to my first meeting.  They discussed this and that.  And, in the course of their discussions, one committee member warned, "We don't want anything contentious."  (Or, for that matter, controversial.)

That unleashed a flood of thoughts.  Was it really possible to think of Israel without evoking something of controversy?  Were Russian pogroms controversial?  Was the Dreyfus Affair controversial?  Was the Holocaust controversial?  Was the vote in the UN with Pres. Truman having to over ride his state department controversial?  Was Israel declaring its statehood controversial?  Were Israel's efforts to defend itself controversial?  Was the conflict between Ben-Gurion and Begin a matter of controversy?  What is there about Israel that isn't controversial?

Its very narrative, as set forth in the book Exodus, has become controversial.  I hear it said that the book is really not a very good piece of literature.  (I leave that up to lit majors.)  But, it did inspire hundreds of thousands of Jews.  Did the author posssibly get a detail wrong here, or perhaps there?  Perhaps.  But, in the main, it's true to life and captures Israel's struggle to survive.

Let's turn it around.  Let's try to avoid controversy.  You have the wonderful Jewish museums.  But, again don't peer at things too modern.  You have the kibbutzim.  But, again, they're not what they once were.  They're now very much into specialization.  You have kibbutzim that serve tourists much as any warm and friendly hotel would.  You have kibbutzim that have specialized into dairies.  Others have gone into furniture making.  And, of course, the number of kibbutzim is very much reduced.

Israel developed the drip method of irrigation.  It's now used around the world.  Israel has gone into the hybridization of plants as well as their genetic modification.  But that too is controversial.  It's pioneering work in UAV's (drones) has put it in a leadership position in the design and operation of these devices.  Then too it has extended its work into robotics.  (When you think about it, you realize that the drone is little more than a flying robot.)  Oops, all of this is controversial.

You want to visit the grave of Abraham.  That means going to Hebron.  Again, you find yourself in the midst of controversy.

You go to the Dead Sea and find it's disappearing.  Yes, there is a solution; namely, pumping water into it from the Gulf of Aqaba.  But, the Palestinian Authority disapproves.  Again, you have controversey.

I could go on, but I think you get my drift.  Israel is controversial.  And, why not make the most of that?  Why not visit Hebron and Sderot?  Why not visit towns and cities across the green line?  Why not walk the length and breadth of Jerusalem -- east side, west side, all around the town?  Controversial?  You better believe it.  But, you'll have fun.