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Blue and White: Shmuel Sackett

The World Was Right

Within a month after the beginning of the war in Gaza, many voices around the world started...

Read more: The World Was...

Blue and White: Shmuel Sackett

When Everyone Is Not Everyone

Israeli Politics

Colors: Green Color

By the time you read this, we may well know the result of the Special Election for the City Council. But if you think there will be a respite from politics, guess again. The big election this year will be the Primary on June 22. The winner has already started running for re-election and potential opponents are already gearing up. They will start collecting signatures to get on the ballot in less than three weeks.

Within a month after the beginning of the war in Gaza, many voices around the world started screaming that there was no food for the people in Gaza. Hypocritical liberals begged Israel to send food and supplies as part of humanitarian assistance so “innocent” civilians wouldn’t die of starvation. The government of Israel held strong for a few days but quickly buckled and succumbed to world pressure. Food was sent in by the truckload. Most of the food, however, did not reach the people. It was seized by Hamas for their personal use or sold on the black market for loads of cash, so the starvation continued, and so did the world pressure, as if it was Israel’s fault that Hamas was letting its own people starve.

Many of us would not consider ourselves political individuals and do not put going to the polls on our list of priorities. Nonetheless, casting your ballot gives you a voice on issues ranging from housing and education to employment and healthcare. Being involved in the voting process allows you make a real difference in the makeup and decisions within your community. Casting a vote has dire consequences for the quality of life that both you and your family experience today and in the years ahead. From riding the bus or train to raising minimum wage to getting better textbooks in school, your vote decides how these issues will play out. Casting your ballot affords you the opportunity to delegate how your hard-earned tax dollars are divvied out for necessities like medical expenses and social services that many take for granted.

I told everyone I knew living in the United States to vote for Trump, and I’m very happy he won. I believe that he will be good for America as well as a strong ally for Israel. His Cabinet picks have been amazing, and there’s no need to explain how pleased we are with his choice of Mike Huckabee as Ambassador to Israel. That said, and contrary to the feelings of many of my fellow Israelis, the Mashiach will not been riding into Washington on January 20.

The issue of the chareidi draft has, once again, risen to the top of Israel’s “to-do list.” Politicians from all sides of the spectrum are banging their fists on the table – some demanding that it must happen, while others are vowing that it will never happen. Regular citizens have begun taking this fight to the streets with protests, both pro and con, and Israel’s media has been more than happy to stir the pot of Jew vs. Jew. Recently, Lt. General Eyal Zamir, the newly appointed Chief of Staff of the IDF, made his position known with the clearest statement possible: “Everyone will serve…and when I say Everyone, I mean Everyone.”

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