One of the fundamental topics in the Faculty of Life Sciences deals with the almost philosophical question of who decides whether our children are good, talented, unique and special, or whether they are somehow problematic. Experience shows that the decision is also made by mothers in their conversations in kindergartens and/or over a cup of coffee.
A mother who glorifies her children, takes pride in them, and repeatedly explains to her friends how "larger than life" they are, spreads the rumor in the neighborhood about the child prodigy growing up in our area. On the other hand, a mother who complains and talks about the problems her children are causing, internalizes the opposite. In short, the mother also decides what her son's image will be.
In a broader perspective, the country's residents decide what the image of the country they live in will be. Will it be considered a strong or weak country? Are its leaders worthy of its leadership, lest they be seen as grasshoppers in the eyes of the enemies who rise up against it to destroy it.
Want more news, videos and stories? Join the Haredim 10 WhatsApp channel >>
A day after the end of Operation Protective Edge, and almost all of us already have a firm opinion on whether or not the campaign's goals were achieved; on the loss of deterrence and/or the crushing and erosion of Hamas. Everyone has a different opinion; but what we all have in common is that we don't have the full picture to express an opinion.
However, it is permissible and okay to express feelings even if they are subjective, emotional, and lacking in various components. After all, we are human beings, and we need to express our feelings and also channel our anger. So when Hamas shoots, kills, and disrupts our daily lives, we channel our anger towards it, towards the enemy from outside; and when it stops and we are left with a feeling of failure, we channel our anger towards those who made us feel that we had failed. To the leaders at home, and in this case, to the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defense, and several other decision-makers around them.
Nasrallah is preparing
But contrary to any firm opinion, life is very complex. It is not one-dimensional and things are not divided into black and white. There are many more than 50 shades of gray. Therefore, it is very difficult to determine whether Israel has lost its deterrence, which is one of its greatest strategic weapons.
True, a terrorist organization managed to distract us for 50 days, and its announcement of an "end of fighting" is more practical than Chief of Staff Benny Gantz's "Anemones Speech." But anyone who meets our many outstanding fighters gets a completely different impression. To others, we will remind them of the days of the Second Lebanon War, the heated and critical Israeli discourse in the days that followed; and today we can bask in eight years of peace in the north.
But this complacency is also wrong. Because it is a fool's paradise. True, in retrospect it turns out that Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah, was scared. He did not imagine the strength of the force that we would use in the war. So what did he do? Face it and learn lessons. And now he has equipped himself with more sophisticated rockets, some of them laser-guided with an accuracy of hundreds of meters; he has recruited more fighters, so that today he has more than 15,000 fighters, whom he trains constantly, in part through the fighting he is doing in Syria. He is doing all of this for a clear reason: he intends and is preparing for another round of fighting against Israel, much more brutal and extensive than his predecessor.
So where is the deterrence here? Can 60,000 rockets, some of which have a range as far as Dimona, be called deterrence? If anyone thinks that something good is threatening us from the north, they are completely mistaken. The enemies talk about "conquering the Galilee," a not unreasonable goal, and they mean it.
Well, if deterrence is not enough, then what is? - The effective deterrence that we can contribute to and seriously, which is no less important than sophisticated and modern military equipment, is our belief in ourselves. In our people. In the righteousness of our path. In our rightful place here on this land. Like the mother in her garden, Nasrallah reads every piece of information that is printed and broadcast in Israel. He knows a good part of the military press, knows how to recite every assessment they make, and is well aware of our mindset.
If we cry day and night about our bitter fate, explain how defeated and how defeated we were, how weak we are in the face of this or that terrorist organization, this will also be what will be established in the jungle in which we live, as a self-fulfilling prophecy. The guys in front of us will say, "The residents of the villa are tired, come on guys, let's go ahead, let's hit them and defeat them." But if we manage to speak in clear and confident language, and make it clear that we are united and strong, they will be forced to internalize that we are here to stay, that despite the many differences between us, there are things in which the entire people of Israel is united and one - this will be the most effective deterrent, which we, all of us together and each one separately, can contribute to our national effort.
Psychological warriors
Unlike many others, my heart does not melt when I see the dancers in Gaza on their ruins. There are cases where dancing in such situations is another way of expressing helplessness. Sometimes it happens that people in a state of mourning or despair, not against us, are attacked by a frenzy of laughter, and that still does not mean that they are well. You can dance and cry, and that is what they do in Gaza. They dance a little and cry a lot.
Let's not let psychological warfare confuse us. Routine life is beyond them for many years to come. That doesn't mean they - or the North - won't try again, and maybe enemy fighters from Iraq via Jordan, and maybe we'll reach a situation like the War of Liberation 2, but victory depends on each of us no less than on the captains.
They know very well who won and who is stronger. So let's not convince them otherwise. It's true that we suffered severe and painful blows; the homes of 70 precious families will never return to normal. But the one who will decide whether we are strong and return to normal life is us. Let's not succumb to an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks itself.
