The Best of Times, the Worst of Times

There are no politics in war. Today, Israelis are all one party in this struggle. Will this unity continue after the ceasefire?

Rockets rain down on Israeli cities. A bomb blows up a bus in central Tel Aviv. Civilians and soldiers are killed and wounded. Houses and cars are destroyed. This is war, but as in war, Israelis are united today and stronger than ever before.

A recent poll published in Haaretz stated that 90% of the population supported the decision to launch the Pillar of Defense operation against the Hamas terrorist infrastructure in Gaza. Even rock star Aviv Geffen, a longtime symbol of the peace movement, spoke in favor of the action. Rallies have called for even stronger strikes at Hamas. While most of the population is against launching ground operations, today the country stands firmly in support of its government.

The Gaza War, In Memes

August 2014: This article was written during a previous confrontation between Israel and the Hamas in Gaza. Please read updated information:

Where I Stand on the War in Gaza

This evening nearly one million Israeli citizens raced to safe places when sirens sounded in many areas, including Tel Aviv, warning of incoming rockets. This morning, three civilians were killed when a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip scored a direct hit on an apartment building in Kiryat Malachi. Meanwhile, Israeli aircraft continue to strike at terrorists and their rocket supplies in Gaza. Tanks congregate on the Gaza Strip border in preparation for a possible ground offensive.

The situation is very worrisome. This is war. We've fought against the Hamas terrorists in the past, given them the benefit of the doubt through periods of relative quiet, yet they continue to launch their rockets at Israeli civilians. What other country in the world would allow its citizens to come under such attacks? Israel has a right to defend itself.

The war is also taking place on the Internet, with activists sharing posts and tweets. I've collected some of the memes being shared, some of them prepared by the IDF, the Israel Project, and Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and others whose origins are unknown. I hope that this war, which started so quickly, will end just as quickly and that the citizens of Israel will no longer face the threat of rocket attacks.

Sunrise in Eilat

Tweet

While my colleagues are sleeping off their hangovers from a late night company party, I am up at the break of dawn, taking in the beauty of Eilat, Israel's southernmost city.

The day's intense heat is still hours away, but now it is comfortable along the shores of the gulf. The waters are calm, there is a pleasant breeze, and the sun rises in spectacular brilliance over the distant mountains in Jordan.

Walking along the beach I come across fishermen and fisherwomen, casting their lines to tempt the colorful fish. Cats are plentiful among the rocks and await their share of the morning's catch. Here are some of the scenes of Eilat in the new day.

Birds of Another Feather

My friends have an ostrich farm in the middle of the desert. Jodie and I visited there on Saturday, surprised that the middle of the desert was much closer to our home than we had imagined. The El Hayaen Ostrich Farm is located near Ofakim, not far from the Gaza Strip. Once there were 22 such farms in Israel, exporting 20,000 ostriches a year to Western Europe. El Hayaen is the only farm still operating today.

Ostriches were once an indigenous species in Israel, but they disappeared from the desert landscapes in the 1920s. I had previously seen ostriches roaming in the Hai Bar Nature Preserve near Yotvata, and on a visit to Kibbutz Ha'on near Lake Kinneret many years ago.

Shalom Tower in the Beirut Skyline

Israel has just bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities, but the latest intelligence reports suggest that only 4 out of 5 plants were taken out of operation. This news is playing in the background in the opening scenes of the new season of Showtime’s “Homeland”, the Emmy-winning series that has its origins in an Israeli television drama.

Each new episode of “Homeland” is airing in Israel on YES satellite television only days after being broadcast in the United States, so Israelis are fully up to speed on bipolar former C.I.A. agent Carrie Mathison and former POW-turned-terrorist Nicholas Brody. Israelis watching the show will be pleasantly surprised to recognize some of the settings of the initial episodes of Season Two.

You're Never Too Old for an Adventure

How hilarious is The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared? Everyone I know who has read the book has ended up laughing out loud. Repeatedly. It's just that enjoyable and funny!

The international bestseller, written by Swedish author Jonas Jonasson, tells the story of Allan Karlsson, who is about to celebrate his one hundredth birthday. Everyone will be at the party in the old age home - the mayor will be there, the local press will be there. Everyone except for Allan, who escapes through his bedroom window in his slippers and makes his getaway.

I Built My Sukkah Upside Down!

When you purchase a sukkah in Israel it's supposed to be a lifetime investment. The so-called sukkah l'netzach is easily constructed and then stored away after the holiday for future use. How is it, then, that I've gone through four or five of the contraptions over the years?

The first "ever-lasting" sukkah I bought was nothing more than a set of irrigation pipes. The end of each pipe had to be screwed onto the next pipe's connecting threads with the help of a monkey wrench. This sukkah swayed dangerously in the slightest breeze. After one or two holidays, the end of the pipes broke off, effectively shortening its shelf life.

Into the Mindset of a Suicide Bomber

It begins with a suicide bombing. An explosion in a restaurant in central Tel Aviv. At least 17 people are dead, including a group of teenage girls celebrating at a birthday party. Ambulances race to Ichilov Hospital, where doctors and nurses labor around the clock to save as many lives as possible. One of the surgeons is an Israeli Arab citizen, Dr. Amin Jaafari, who has been trying to contact his wife, due to return to the city from a visit to her grandmother in Nazareth.

After endless hours in the wards, Amin returns to his home in an affluent neighborhood only to be woken hours later by police knocking at his door. He is called back to the hospital to identify the body of one of the victims. In the morgue he sees the remains of his wife. The police tell him that the extensive wounds she suffered are due to the fact that she was the suicide bomber who detonated in the restaurant.