Salute to Israel Parade
[Note: If you are not from New York and/or you are not familiar with the Salute to Israel Parade, look here or here for some background.]
Another of the many advantages to writing an anonymous blog, is that I can be obnoxious and/or I can vent (often the two occur simultaneously!) without inhibitions or fear of repercussions..... even if I know I’m wrong.
So here goes.....
I have been marching or attending the Salute to Israel parade for many years. I did it single, I did it with my wife; I did it with my children. I’ve worn the t-shirts, and the buttons and the stickers and, yes, the blue and white makeup. I’ve cheered and yelled and had many, many great memories from it.
It’s an important event for a lot of reasons. Off the top of my head (and briefly):
1) the world should know that thousands and thousands of Jews and non-Jews support Israel.
2) The above sentence could also be said about politicians, other Jews, other non-Jews, Israelis, Israeli politicians, etc.: They all should know too that thousands and thousands of Jews and non-Jews support Israel.
3) The marchers and viewers themselves should get recharged in their love and support for Israel. They may not all be able to move here, but it’s still nice to know they’re there.
Having said all that - and I believe it all wholeheartedly - and knowing the importance of the parade and all of the hard work that went into it, I had a different take on the parade this year. In short, my feelings were: blah blah blah.
Yes. I said it. Blah blah blah.
No one besides my wife told me (without me mentioning it first) that the parade was going on. No Israeli that I know even knows that there is, was, or will be a parade! On page 3 of the Jerusalem Post there was a picture with no accompanying article with a blurb which said something about Mayor Bloomberg and Hillary Clinton and I can’t remember who else. That’s it. No more exposure that I know of.
Blah blah blah.
And here’s the obnoxious part which I’ll regret in the morning: if even 10% of the people participating in the parade made aliyah this summer, imagine the impact it would have on the economy, the demographics, on history! Maybe the schools would become better; maybe the roads would become safer; maybe our sons could serve less time in the army in general and less time patrolling dangerous zones in particular; maybe people who do make aliyah would be able to pay their bills easier; maybe politicians would respond more to the people who continue to inject this beautiful country with life and manpower and brainpower and, yes, with dollars.
And if 20% of the people made Aliyah!? Or 30%!? The parade website says that 100,000 people march in the parade! If 30,000 people moved to Israel (the math doesn't even include the spectators!)... wow! Maybe things could really be different here.
If even some of the money that was spent on t-shirts, transportation, secirity, sponsors, etc. came to Israel... imagine the impact!
I know that not everyone who wants to make aliyah actually can. For more than 2 decades I participated in the parade with a little sour taste left in my mouth saying, “Maybe this is the year....” and I am certain that many people did the same this year. I know that I am blasting good, hard-working people who have hearts in the right place. But still, I cannot help but feel that it was just a lot of fluff. Sorry.
Blah blah blah.
I got a call from a friend who was at the parade screaming on the phone because the background noise was so loud. His first question, “I’m at the parade. Is it on the news in Israel?”
Huh?
(I don’t have a TV, but the answer was no anyway!).
My first reaction to his question was, “I don’t know, I am too busy helping my daughter with her algebra homework.... in Hebrew.... and navigating the phone system at the Office of Collections.... in Hebrew.... so I can pay our mortgage on time with funds we barely have. In short, I’m too busy living in Israel to watch people in America show support for us.”
But I didn’t say any of that. I just said, “No.” Short and to the point.
Maybe I should have been short and to the point on this post too.
It’s hard to deny emotions. Even if they’re irrational.
Oh well.
Blah blah blah.
Another of the many advantages to writing an anonymous blog, is that I can be obnoxious and/or I can vent (often the two occur simultaneously!) without inhibitions or fear of repercussions..... even if I know I’m wrong.
So here goes.....
I have been marching or attending the Salute to Israel parade for many years. I did it single, I did it with my wife; I did it with my children. I’ve worn the t-shirts, and the buttons and the stickers and, yes, the blue and white makeup. I’ve cheered and yelled and had many, many great memories from it.
It’s an important event for a lot of reasons. Off the top of my head (and briefly):
1) the world should know that thousands and thousands of Jews and non-Jews support Israel.
2) The above sentence could also be said about politicians, other Jews, other non-Jews, Israelis, Israeli politicians, etc.: They all should know too that thousands and thousands of Jews and non-Jews support Israel.
3) The marchers and viewers themselves should get recharged in their love and support for Israel. They may not all be able to move here, but it’s still nice to know they’re there.
Having said all that - and I believe it all wholeheartedly - and knowing the importance of the parade and all of the hard work that went into it, I had a different take on the parade this year. In short, my feelings were: blah blah blah.
Yes. I said it. Blah blah blah.
No one besides my wife told me (without me mentioning it first) that the parade was going on. No Israeli that I know even knows that there is, was, or will be a parade! On page 3 of the Jerusalem Post there was a picture with no accompanying article with a blurb which said something about Mayor Bloomberg and Hillary Clinton and I can’t remember who else. That’s it. No more exposure that I know of.
Blah blah blah.
And here’s the obnoxious part which I’ll regret in the morning: if even 10% of the people participating in the parade made aliyah this summer, imagine the impact it would have on the economy, the demographics, on history! Maybe the schools would become better; maybe the roads would become safer; maybe our sons could serve less time in the army in general and less time patrolling dangerous zones in particular; maybe people who do make aliyah would be able to pay their bills easier; maybe politicians would respond more to the people who continue to inject this beautiful country with life and manpower and brainpower and, yes, with dollars.
And if 20% of the people made Aliyah!? Or 30%!? The parade website says that 100,000 people march in the parade! If 30,000 people moved to Israel (the math doesn't even include the spectators!)... wow! Maybe things could really be different here.
If even some of the money that was spent on t-shirts, transportation, secirity, sponsors, etc. came to Israel... imagine the impact!
I know that not everyone who wants to make aliyah actually can. For more than 2 decades I participated in the parade with a little sour taste left in my mouth saying, “Maybe this is the year....” and I am certain that many people did the same this year. I know that I am blasting good, hard-working people who have hearts in the right place. But still, I cannot help but feel that it was just a lot of fluff. Sorry.
Blah blah blah.
I got a call from a friend who was at the parade screaming on the phone because the background noise was so loud. His first question, “I’m at the parade. Is it on the news in Israel?”
Huh?
(I don’t have a TV, but the answer was no anyway!).
My first reaction to his question was, “I don’t know, I am too busy helping my daughter with her algebra homework.... in Hebrew.... and navigating the phone system at the Office of Collections.... in Hebrew.... so I can pay our mortgage on time with funds we barely have. In short, I’m too busy living in Israel to watch people in America show support for us.”
But I didn’t say any of that. I just said, “No.” Short and to the point.
Maybe I should have been short and to the point on this post too.
It’s hard to deny emotions. Even if they’re irrational.
Oh well.
Blah blah blah.
posted by T.Y.I.I. at
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
8 Comments:
Moreh-Derech,
I'm so sorry that you are having a difficult time of things right now. It sounds like you are very frustrated with your situation. I pray, with time, that life in Israel will be easier on you and your family.
As you imagined, it was quite unsettling to read your remarks. For many people on the state side, this is the one and only time they show support(I'm speaking about the non-observant or less observant Jews) for Israel...it is a connection. One that will hopefully inspire more and continued support for Jews, Judaism and Israel. Also, if the 10%, 20% or 30% of the crowd, that you suggest, moves to Israel and they do not have a way to support themselves once there, that would be hugely taxing on the system.
Also, it's not our fault that the people in Israel are not aware of the parade. That is truly a shame! Why else are we marching year after year if it is not to show the people in Israel how much we care and love them? Maybe you could do something about getting the word out Israeli T.V. and radio. I would think that seeing 100,000 people gathering for the State of Israel would give many there happiness and strength!
As a person who has gone to The Israeli Day Parade for as long as I can remember, I would say that this parade is so important for ALL denominations of Jews - frum included. In one of your posts I recall that you talked of the downside of your children not having grown up with that longing that you did. A tiny piece of that longing may have come from your many years of going to the parade. I, like your friend have called Israel from the parade and made my family proud that I was there (gee, I hope that they weren't pretending). Anyhow, even though what you say about those parade monies being better spent on Israel is so true, I don't believe that it would end up getting allocated that way if there were no parade. It kind of reminds me of when my mother would tell me to finish my spinach because of all of the starving people in the world...Your right, if 10%...if 20%...if 30%...but those percentages just aren't happening INSTEAD of the parade. So...in closing I'd like to say that your honesty was refreshing, your emotions totally understood, but I say the parade is needed if not for you guys, then for us believing that it helps you. Kind of like how we daven for us even though we are davening to Ha-shem. Ha-shem doesn't need it, but we certainly do.
P.S. Just out of curiosity, if you came back for a visit would you go to the parade?
I, for one, am offended by this post. How long have you lived in Israel, M-D? Have you forgotten all of the difficulties of contemplating making aliyah? Yes, you did it, kol hakavod to you and your family, and I mean that very sincerely. Many of us dream to do it too and hopefully will. But until we do, showing our support, and more importantly, showing our kids how important it is to be out in public supporting Israel, is still one of the things that we can do. Implying that we should feel like self-congratulatory hypocrites is not very fair.
I don't see how anyone could be offended by this. A man - a woman too - is entitled to an opinion. MD's got feelings, passion. I respect that.
And it so happens that I agree. I was there marching. Not for the first time. Will do it again. But it's always seemed to me that it's more for us - for the community here, than for the people living in the state of Israel. It's a statement to eachother, we're all of one mind.
It's also a reunion of old friends, we wave to eachother and hug. It's nice. But I would never call Israel and say "did you see me on the news?" I might call Brooklyn and ask that, but not Israel.
I have been thinking about this post and the reactions, and in processing it I hear the position on your side of the ocean as well as the voices here. Still, in the words of Rabbi Fleischmann, "Tough crowd."
Please don't be disheartened. Your writing is insightful, spiritual, poetic, and smart.
I am wondering about fluff . . . If we believe everything is relative then that is true for fluff as well. I can CERTAINLY see from your perspective how the parade feels like fluff, definitely so! From another's vantage point, like a child of mine who after marching feels even more passionate about making aliyah, or for a friend who just completed the conversion process and finally joins the parade as a member of Klal Yisrael, or yet another who had eye surgery, altering their lifetime of blurriness, that glasses couldn't correct, to crystal-clear vision, and seeing for the first time a sea of Jewish hearts united toward a holy purpose for a parenthesis in time, are all taking steps moving them closer to our beautiful country. For them, it isn't fluff; it's substantial.
Ultimately, it's what we choose to make out of things, out of our lives, and out of ourselves; it's all in how we use white, airy stuff. Does it just look ethereal and pretty for a moment but then dissipate and float away like the clouds, or does it become the glue cementing our dreams?
Kol Hakavod (!!!) for being an inspiration by marching yourself to Eretz Yisrael to live a life of substance.
thanks, i love having my name mentioned. that's what this was all about wasn't it? me. seriously, i stand by my opinion that you're entitled to your opinion. i think you're doing a favor to others by not only writing the happy and peppy side of your new israel life but a real and honest opinion of the materialistic and idealistic ups and downs.
also, you did a good job on addressing the comments. i assume maayan will still get a response, and that she came in after you wrote your reply.
Hajew, Hajew, Hajew ("did you enjoy that?") I don't think that Maayan came in after Shloimetas's post on addressing the comments because he clearly acknowledged five comments. So, either it was an oversight or he chose not to comment. Though, I can't imagine why - her comments were reflective and supportive.
It seems you may be on hiatus. Maybe you'll get this anyway. I just want to say, I'm sorry. You're right. You who are there truly are doing the hard stuff, and thank you.
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