Op-Ed: Loose Lips Sink Ships
A mutual acquaintance of mine who was once employed at the Pentagon cafeteria, overheard very high ranking military men conversing over lunch and mockingly refer to the active troops as “fodder”. They were high and mighty luxury-office-suite- commanders and the little poor men who were under their command were merely their fodder.
Lately, I observed with horror the new rules of engagement of the IDF. They alert their enemies of their next chess move. They drop a dime on Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Fatah and the rest of the Jihadist savages. Mind blowing! And then they bury the dead [ambushed] Israeli casualties. Who wouldv’e thunk that loose lips sink ships.
Don’t you remember learning how the Americans alerted the Germans before they invaded Normandy? Neither do I.
The Israelis on the front lines are fodder. They are being set up for ambush by Israeli politicians because they fantasize that world opinion will improve due to these suicidal rules of engagement. A war fought with conceding the element of surprise is a war lost before its inception. It’s easy for government to send out the ‘fodder’ under these circumstances. After all, last time I checked, Yair and Avner Netanyahu weren’t activated to serve on the front lines. The Israeli government knows well that the implications of these rules of engagement don’t hurt their own family’s wellbeing.
Let’s either be in it to win it or not fight at all.
May G-d bless and guard over the IDF.
6 day war
preamtive strike and tefillin worked to the point the war ended in 6 days, if we use the same method will be a ok…
TuchesOnCouch
Rabbi Wolf,
Did you serve ? do u have family serving ? do you have a clue what it means to run an organization, nevermind a country ? please supply your CV.
Your comments show your lack of understanding the realities of the real world that we live in and the attacks on the israeli leaders who have been in battle and lost siblings in wars and on our dear brothers on the front lines is truly despicable. Get off your high horse and do something. Israel doesn’t need your comments from some couch drinking tea.
bob unger
Moshe Feiglin falls into all your non-sequitors—So what do you say to him????
hey
dont bash
supply information
better luck next time
wandering jew
well said Boruch!!!
chaim
AMEN
Yakov Khanin
Who wouldv’e thought not thunk
HAROLD C.
YAKOV OBVIOUSLY YOU HAVE`NT BEEN OUT & AROUND ,”THUNK” IS THE VERNACULAR.
Yak of
Boruch wolf said exactly what I was thinking, these “leaders” particularly Netanyahu and gantz are reshoim gems rim for allowing yidden to die to protect Arabs, I hope his sons go to gaza
Rebbe afraid of goyishe reaction
In the 70’s, when the major concern of world Jewry was the fate of our brethren behind the then, “iron curtain,”(i.e. Soviet union) much effort was exerted by Jewish organizations to help. One popular method was to try to embarass the Russians by having demonstrations in front of embassies and other locations of Russian interests.
One organization(JDL) even used violent tactics. The strategy was to bring the issue, out of the back pages of the newspapers, to the headlines. This worked! The Russians were so embarrased that they were compelled to allow a “token” amount of Jews to emigrate.
The Rebbe did not like this. “Yes, you did succeed in getting a few out. But, behind the scenes in Russia, this caused more suffering for our people, because you increased their anti-semitism.”
Now, parallel this to what’s going on in Israel. Unfortunately, we are expected to play by rules not imposed on other regimes. However, even though Israel has been bad-mouthed for decades – correct me if I’m wrong, the foreign aid and other benefits still flow in to Israel.
Now, let’s do an accounting. Is it the reality that with this handout (Billions of dollars, plus equipment!), more lives are saved with that than is lost through terrorism? If the answer is yes, than isn’t it better to not rock the boat in such a way that we give them an excuse to stop the aid?
Details – Isn’t Israel more advanced then their neighbors in the following:
Medicine, equipment and facilities
Agriculture
Education
Better roads (less accidents)
Security equipment and personnel
Military edge
Sanitation
etc., etc., etc.
truth
You clearly don’t know what you are talking about. The Rebbe opposed the Kahane strategy because he felt that quiet diplomacy was more effective in getting Russian Jewry released. The Rebbe had an ally in the US Senate (Senator Hecht) that achieved these ends through his great relationship with Reagan. In regards to Israel, the Rebbe never advocated for pandering to world opinion. The Rebbe advocated for the Israeli leaders to be fearless hawks.
Milhouse
The Rebbe was very clear about EY, that it must not take into account the opinons of the nations
The only country Israel gets anything from is the USA, and that money is in no danger. Congress is solidly behind Israel, and will continue the aid regardless of what the president wants. Further, it does far more harm than good, precisely because it lets the president and the state department give their opinions to Israel. Israel would be better off losing that money, which it does not in any way need, and losing the opinions with it.
to number 10
you raise an excellent point. now what remains to be done is make the actual calculations.
and, if it is worth it, push foreign aid til you find the line.
does this apply?
“When you approach a city TO WAGE WAR AGAINST IT, you shall PROCLAIM PEACE TO IT.” The way in which the Rambam formulates this mitzva (Hilkhot Melakhim 6:1) indeed points to a fundamental moral principle that underlies it – a perception which has nothing to do with military, political or economic pragmatism:
“War is not waged AGAINST ANYONE IN THE WORLD unless peace is first offered; neither in a voluntary war nor in an obligatory one… and it is forbidden to violate the covenant and to cheat them once they have surrendered peacefully and accepted the seven Noahide laws.”
The Sefer Ha-chinukh, in his first reason for this mitzva, regards it as being of fundamental moral importance:
“Since mercy is a good quality, and it is appropriate that we – of holy seed – conduct ourselves accordingly in all matters, therefore [we act with mercy] even towards pagan enemies.”
. from http://www.vbm-torah.org/parsha.60/48kitetz.htm
Milhouse
This is completely irrelevant. War has already been declared — they declared it on us. There is no requirement anywhere in the Torah that we warn them when and where we will attack, especially when the element of surprise is vital. On the contrary, the Torah says that once they reject the chance of peace — which they have done — we must not give them a second chance, but must wage total war until they fall. No ceasefires.
Right..
You forget Israel is a secular state.
Both true!
To truth:
Yes, like you wrote, diplomacy was the correct way to go. But, isn’t it also true that the Rebbe was against public demonstrations, especially Kahane’s way, because this brought danger to Jews still living in the Soviet Union?
To Milhouse:
Do the budget planners in EY also feel that they don’t need the money?
Milhouse
The Rebbe was not against public demonstrations per se, only against the USSR. Arabs and Russians are not the same!
Israel’s budget planners are socialists, and the US military aid helps them keep up their wasteful socialist spending. If they had to do without this money they’d have to spend more on the military and therefore less on other things.
YMSP
Even in a defensive war, which this obviously, ob-vi-ous-ly is, it’s good to warn civilians before an attack IF doing so does not endanger your mission.
The Rebbe suggested warning 5 minutes before the attack (during Lebanon – early mems, reshown recently). In retrospect, this shows a profound understanding for all wars. This doesn’t jeopardize your men or your mission (as the enemy has no time to coordinate an attack ch”v) and civilians can actually flee.
And….. the Rebbe’s advice is so much more true now, when Hamas terrorists y”sh go to the warned sites in advance to prevent civilians from fleeing, something they’d never be able to do with the Rebbe’s advice of a 5 minute warning.
Warn hours/days ahead – Hamas terrorists y”sh go there and prevent civilians from leaving.
Warn loudy 5 min before – you don’t jeopardize your men (they can’t coordinate a strike) and civilians can actually flee.
YMSP
As a side note, it seems that the actual casualties are not from the air force (where the warnings are given) but because of another problem (maybe even sicker), ground forces find themselves in trouble and need flyover backup from the airmen, who are usually prevented from doing so.
Israel under Netanyahu has started the first level of effective PR, probably in its entire history. It needs to up it and explain the unwarned flights that accompany ground missions later, not stop them.
PR should not be a factor in saving your own citizens’ lives. But when you can do everything that you need to, and stand up for it later so that Israel’s allies are able to counter the EU, etc. who they deal with, this should also be done – and there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be.