The Italian captain of the ship I'm traveling on told me proudly that three years earlier, he had taught his crew to read instructions in Hebrew for Israeli passengers. He said an amazing number of Israelis sailed with him. You might think Israel was a giant country, whose citizens were spread over multiple continents. The Israelis on board weren't tycoons or high-tech entrepreneurs, or even former senior officials in state-run institutions. It used to be that they were the only ones who could afford to take an ocean cruise. But now the travelers are Israelis who work for a living and pay their own way. Their financial situation is good, their spirit is strong and their pride in being Israeli is impressive.
Gazing out at the waves, I am reminded of a poem by Nathan Alterman in which he thanks an Italian admiral for steering a rickety illegal immigrant ship carrying Holocaust survivors safely to the homeland, whose gates were locked. I close my eyes and think about where we were just 70 years ago. A small state, surrounded by enemies, who citizens carried weapons to defend themselves in one hand and with the other plowed some of the most glorious furrows in all of Jewish history. It's too bad that now, in this wonderful time, we are seeing it all being taken for granted.
There are those among us who are full of hatred, who rather than looking toward the heavens, keep their eyes down and slander the Land of Israel out of political needs. They sow dispute and desperation. Bolstering desperation is nothing new in Jewish history. The spies Moses sent from the desert saw wonderful things and still, their message was depressing and even caused the people to weep. For two thousand years we've paid the price for that weeping. Only two of the spies, Caleb ben Yefuneh and Joshua, encouraged the people and waved a flag on which was written in gold and fire: "We should go up and take possession of the land."
Israel is in the midst of an election campaign unlike any I remember. Hatred is flowing through the public sphere like sewage. One of the best prime ministers we've ever had is being personally delegitimized. The biggest inciters have joined forces and take advantage of every platform to accuse others of creating rifts and polarization. The skyscrapers in which they live make it hard for them to see what unites Israeli society, which exists and functions on the ground. Not even smoking a joint will calm the small minority who are convinced that the state has been stolen from them.
This week's Likud primaries proved that collective wisdom is always impressive and victorious. They expressed the superiority of open, free democracy over any other system of government. The candidates who were chosen are excellent and proof that dictatorial parties in which the leader determines their Knesset lists have no advantage. Only a party whose members elect their own representatives can truly serve the people, rather than the party leader.
Election Day appears to be the only day in a democracy in which the people are sovereign. It is the right of every citizen to vote for the party whose platform best expresses their hopes and aspirations and choose the most talented representatives to bring that vision to fruition. On Election Day, we should remember this: everyone who votes for a party that does not have a platform is voting for something that cannot be trusted. A party's political platform isn't changed like sheets in a hotel, which are supposed to be cleaned for every new guest. It is especially important to be careful of pretenders. Political masks can't stay in place for too long – they suffocate. Only the gullible could believe that Israel Resilience leader Benny Gantz is right-wing. In less than two weeks, it turned out he was a leftist who has not realized the price Israel paid for its disengagement from the Gaza Strip and wants to pursue the same path. Tearing the right-wing mask off his face saved many from a mistaken vote that could have caused them great distress.
The country is facing major challenges and only someone who believes in the citizens' strength and capabilities can meet those challenges. Anyone who preaches about how wretched we are can only exacerbate poverty. Anyone who sells fake goods about being able to strike a peace deal with the Palestinians will only imperil our security. All the candidates who talk up a two-state solution will lead us to a single state with no place for Jews.
In an election, it is important to seek out the truth and not fall prey to prestidigitators, jugglers, pipers and especially amateurs.
