Wednesday August 17, 2005

I've Been Thinking:

Did You Know:
That the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza is called "Operation Brotherly Hand."
That the army and police are unarmed and not about to use weapons on settlers.

That every single Gaza settler/resident I spoke with assured me that they would not fight the army because they or their children are soldiers.
That they describe themselves as good citizens of Israel who just vehemently disagree with this decision by the government.

That over 4000 outsiders have infiltrated into Gaza over the summer.
That almost all of them are religious high school kids on the summer vacation and they call the activity "The Summer of Disengagement."
That the kids outnumber the settlers in many places and that they, these kid/infiltrators, are setting the tone.

That these high school kids are ignoring their rabbis who have asked them to stop any physical violence, not to slash tires, not to throw or burn things, not even push.
That the rabbis are deeply concerned because the kids are smoking cigarettes and illegal substances and are "fraternizing and more" in ways that are natural but inappropriate for religious kids and especially inappropriate given the cause that brings them together.

That the tensions and conflict brought about by the Gaza Withdrawal has impacted the lives of almost every Israeli.