Here's a rare note of appreciation to the editors of Haaretz. For some time now, as Qassam missiles have been raining down on whichever parts of Israel the Palestinian Arab terrorists can reach with their deadly missiles, headlines have habitually referred (accurately but problematically as we shall explain) to Sderot. Sderot Under Fire. Sderot Hit Again. Qassams Rain Down on Sderot. And so on. (That's a snapshot of a Sderot bomb shelter, with aesthetic mural, at right.)
This way of looking at events is factually correct, but quite misleading. We wrote a note to the editors yesterday pointing out that these missile attacks are directed at Israel, and that it's Israel that is under constant attack. We also expressed concern at the constant references to Sderot which is a town very few Israelis visit or even know, other than through its being mentioned in the headlines... and as the home of the current defence minister. Sderot is physically and in other ways peripheral to Israel and to the lives of most Israelis.
Our real concern is that it is this very peripheral-ness that is being exploited by the headline writers. In other words, so long as the Arabs are firing on our margins, hitting open fields, occasionally destroying someone's solar roof-panels, it isn't really that big of a concern. If we're right on this, then it's simply appalling - but also characteristic of much of the in-denial reporting and thinking that goes on in this country.
This morning, whether because of our note or (more likely) without connection to it, we see this headline: Six Qassams Hit Israel. The point is not a small one. Our country is under daily belligerent attack by armed forces with murder and mayhem on their minds.
Failing to understand this - and from experience we can say that many of the reporters and photographers providing stories for the major media outlets do fail to understand this and so, therefore, do their readers - means that you can never understand the things that Israel does on the battlefield. Failing to understand this leads to viewpoints like those of many Israelis - not to mention foreigners - who say: "We're strong, we're powerful, we're safe. Let's not over-react to small irritations." That attitude - in simple terms: if it's not hurting us here in Herzliya or Ramat Hasharon, it's not worth reacting to - is undermining more aspects of Israeli life than we can describe here.
It's a major concern, at least to us. It's an issue which goes to the very heart of how a society ought to react when parts of it are under life-threatening attack, and other parts feel safe. The traditional view in Jewish thinking is expressed as: Kol Yisrael Areivim Zeh B'Zeh - All Jews are responsible for looking after one another. It's the sort of high-sounding aspiration that many people will feel goes without saying. But it doesn't go without saying, particularly in these challenging times. Israel is under attack - real, physical, daily attack - and we're all threatened by it even if the shopping center in our town remains undisturbed.
We need to get used to the notion that Sderot under attack is precisely the same as Israel under attack. And to respond accordingly.
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