Reflections on My Life and Times
Reflections on My Life and Times
and our people. Perhaps in due time, some clarity can be achieved. At the beginning of World War II, many European intellectuals be- came anti-Semitic, perhaps out of fear, perhaps out of ignorance. Understanding or pinpointing exactly what happened is difficult, but clearly the intelligentsia of Europe did not do its job. Moslems are a different stoiy altogether. Jews did not experience extreme religious persecution from the Arabs in the Middle East until recent generations. However, as I understand it, Islam is not very charitable to other religions in general. It does not regard peo- ple from other religions as fully equal to Moslems. Islamic regimes have traditionally held Jews as second-class citizens, called dhim- mis, but these regimes have not persecuted the Jews as happened in Europe, and they have not endorsed and encouraged pogroms as happened in Russia. Some of the most influential Jewish writers and sages emerged during the Moslem renaissance in Spain. Perhaps Moslems cannot accept a Western-style state in lands they consider to be within the Moslem sphere. Perhaps their leaders see Israel as a foreign body in their region and are con- cerned that its democratic way of life will contaminate the re- gion and draw power away from them. In my opinion, what we are experiencing is due largely to political, rather than religious, considerations. As I write this, there are over five million Jews living in Israel. The country is economically viable, with a high standard of living that is, in some cases, over ten times higher than that in neighbor- ing Arab countries. We have a democratic society, and the people and the press can speak freely. The Arabs in Israel are citizens who vote and have all the rights of citizens, except for service in the military and, in some cases, the right to hold certain positions of power. Nevertheless, Arabs are entitled to the same educational, medical, and other opportunities as other Israeli citizens, and they have the right to elect members to the Knesset. Nor are they shy to speak out against the State. Israel is a free country. I would like to see a more peaceful world and the end of blood- shed in Israel. We have suffered enough. Perhaps we can find some story
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