For these reasons I simply do not want to go. I do not want to get shot at. I do not want to chase after terrorists through tunnels and alleyways throughout the Kasbah. I don’t want my wife to cry herself to sleep at night while dealing with a three year old, a baby and a full time job. There are other reasons I do not want to go as well.
Not everyone does reserve duty. For instance the vast majority of Israeli women do not do reserve duty. The vast majority of ultra-Orthodox do not do reserve duty or the regular army. The vast majority of Israeli Arabs not only are exempt from reserve duty and the regular army, but terrorists rarely target their communities for terror (think about it, they are the only Arab community in the Middle East that lives in peace, vote in fair and free elections, are well educated, have free health care, are economically secure, do not serve in the armed forces and are not afraid to speak their minds). Lastly, many Israelis, simply do not show up for reserve duty or show up the first day with a “doctors note” and go home. In fact, according to Ha’aretz Daily, “70 percent of [Israeli] men between 21 and 45-years-old do not do reserve service”. When I read that statistic I was a bit shocked.
The other day my friend, who did reserve duty until his thirtieth birthday, and I were talking about “the Situation”. When I mentioned I would be going into one of the West Bank’s cities for a month or so he looked at me deadpan and said, “Don’t go. There are enough insane Israelis around to do the reserves. They don’t need you. If there is a major war and they need you they will make you go.”
This got me thinking. He had a good point. Maybe I shouldn’t go. If there is a major war they will call me and I will report. Do they really need me, a slightly overweight, out of shape thirty-five year old tour guide? There are plenty of strapping young lads ready to take time off of their studies to play soldier. I have paid my dues.
Yesterday I took a group on a tour off the beaten track in the upper-western Galilee. We started off from the Christian Arab village of Maliyah to the cliffs overlooking Nahal Kziv and the mountains of Lebanon. We hiked (and slid) down the face of Mt. Ziv and into the riverbed across from an ancient Roman tomb (or temple) and finally to an ancient spring. There was a group of Ultra-Orthodox boys wading in the cool mountain pool at the mouth of the spring, decked out in black hats, tzi-tzi and skivvies. When our coed group appeared the Haradi teens frantically searched for their pants as I held my group back at a snails pace. Just then about two hundred Moslem Arab children showed up and ran into the water full throttle splashing my group of secular Israeli Jews, and the Yiddish speaking boys despite the fact that their teacher was hollering over a megaphone not to cause a “ba’la’gone” (ruckus). It was lots of fun and all involved seemed to be enjoying themselves.
As I was riding back on the Egged bus from Nahariya to my Moshav the top of the hour struck. Everyone stopped conversing with their neighbor as the bus driver turned up the volume to the radio as every driver does on every hour just after the five beeps beckon all passengers to listen to the hourly news updates.
Three soldiers had been killed by a Palestinian who infiltrated the settlement of Netzarim in Gaza, two young women aged 19 and one young man 20 years of age. No one spoke for the rest of the ride back to Afula. The only thought that crossed my mind was that at any given moment, during any day of the week there is a Palestinian who is trying to get through our defenses and into a mall, a café or a home in order to kill Jews. If soldiers are not sent into harms way then harm will come home to our citizens. That is a fact…and a wake-up call.
If I am called upon, as a soldier, to fight this war and to protect our citizens of all backgrounds then that is my duty…and I will do it. Tune in next month to see how it went.
Best Regards,
"Joseph Yudin was born and raised in Wyckoff, NJ. He has been
living in Israel for 11 years, is a syndicated columnist, a licensed
tour guide and a sergeant in the IDF paratrooper reserve brigade. He can
be reached by e-mail at joe_yudin@hotmail.com."
Duty Calls
I received this passionate letter from an Joseph Yudin, American Israeli reservist.
It used to be fun. That was the first thing I thought when I received my reserve duty call up orders last month. Yes when I was in my twenties I would actually look forward to the olive drab uniforms, the dessert hummer exercises, the endless field training of the latest weaponry and I would even be anxious to get out onto the “frontlines” whether it be in Lebanon, Shechem (Nablus) or Gaza. I wanted to do my duty and I had fun roughing it with my closest buddies and the greatest military technology at our fingertips. I felt a connection with my comrades, my countrymen and my past. Indeed looking out over the Land of Israel as a soldier in a Jewish army made me feel the connection to the warriors of the Judges, the Kingdoms and the Maccabees. Also for one month out of every year it was a relief to get out of the rat race and into the field. It was actually quite fun.
Times have changed. Today we are not patrolling cities, villages, frontiers and borders in an effort to keep the peace and a sense of normalcy until a final settlement can be reached with the Palestinian leadership as we thought we were doing just four short years ago. A war is raging and I am about to go out to the front. Today I am a thirty-five year old man with a wife, two kids and a huge mortgage. I have some major responsibilities. If, God forbid, something happens to me there will be some major repercussions. When I was a twenty something gung-ho kid I had the most to lose. Not today.
For these reasons I simply do not want to go. I do not want to get shot at. I do not want to chase after terrorists through tunnels and alleyways throughout the Kasbah. I don’t want my wife to cry herself to sleep at night while dealing with a three year old, a baby and a full time job. There are other reasons I do not want to go as well.
Not everyone does reserve duty. For instance the vast majority of Israeli women do not do reserve duty. The vast majority of ultra-Orthodox do not do reserve duty or the regular army. The vast majority of Israeli Arabs not only are exempt from reserve duty and the regular army, but terrorists rarely target their communities for terror (think about it, they are the only Arab community in the Middle East that lives in peace, vote in fair and free elections, are well educated, have free health care, are economically secure, do not serve in the armed forces and are not afraid to speak their minds). Lastly, many Israelis, simply do not show up for reserve duty or show up the first day with a “doctors note” and go home. In fact, according to Ha’aretz Daily, “70 percent of [Israeli] men between 21 and 45-years-old do not do reserve service”. When I read that statistic I was a bit shocked.
The other day my friend, who did reserve duty until his thirtieth birthday, and I were talking about “the Situation”. When I mentioned I would be going into one of the West Bank’s cities for a month or so he looked at me deadpan and said, “Don’t go. There are enough insane Israelis around to do the reserves. They don’t need you. If there is a major war and they need you they will make you go.”
This got me thinking. He had a good point. Maybe I shouldn’t go. If there is a major war they will call me and I will report. Do they really need me, a slightly overweight, out of shape thirty-five year old tour guide? There are plenty of strapping young lads ready to take time off of their studies to play soldier. I have paid my dues.
Yesterday I took a group on a tour off the beaten track in the upper-western Galilee. We started off from the Christian Arab village of Maliyah to the cliffs overlooking Nahal Kziv and the mountains of Lebanon. We hiked (and slid) down the face of Mt. Ziv and into the riverbed across from an ancient Roman tomb (or temple) and finally to an ancient spring. There was a group of Ultra-Orthodox boys wading in the cool mountain pool at the mouth of the spring, decked out in black hats, tzi-tzi and skivvies. When our coed group appeared the Haradi teens frantically searched for their pants as I held my group back at a snails pace. Just then about two hundred Moslem Arab children showed up and ran into the water full throttle splashing my group of secular Israeli Jews, and the Yiddish speaking boys despite the fact that their teacher was hollering over a megaphone not to cause a “ba’la’gone” (ruckus). It was lots of fun and all involved seemed to be enjoying themselves.
As I was riding back on the Egged bus from Nahariya to my Moshav the top of the hour struck. Everyone stopped conversing with their neighbor as the bus driver turned up the volume to the radio as every driver does on every hour just after the five beeps beckon all passengers to listen to the hourly news updates.
Three soldiers had been killed by a Palestinian who infiltrated the settlement of Netzarim in Gaza, two young women aged 19 and one young man 20 years of age. No one spoke for the rest of the ride back to Afula. The only thought that crossed my mind was that at any given moment, during any day of the week there is a Palestinian who is trying to get through our defenses and into a mall, a café or a home in order to kill Jews. If soldiers are not sent into harms way then harm will come home to our citizens. That is a fact…and a wake-up call.
If I am called upon, as a soldier, to fight this war and to protect our citizens of all backgrounds then that is my duty…and I will do it. Tune in next month to see how it went.
Best Regards,
"Joseph Yudin was born and raised in Wyckoff, NJ. He has been
living in Israel for 11 years, is a syndicated columnist, a licensed
tour guide and a sergeant in the IDF paratrooper reserve brigade. He can
be reached by e-mail at joe_yudin@hotmail.com."
Posted by Ted Belman at December 5, 2003 10:39 AM