"I can forgive the Arabs for killing our children, but not for forcing us to kill theirs".
This famous quote is from PM Golda Meir in 1969, shortly after the miraculous victory over our enemies in the Six-Day War.
This diametric inversion of Torah and, therefore, Jewish morality, was meant to win friends in the "enlightened" world.
Golda understood Jewish/Gentile history and its subconscious currents. She understood that the world has only a limited tolerance for strong Jews and must be placated when Jews disturb the disappointing outcome of well-planned massacres
The "enlightened" world (LBJ, de Gaulle), not wanting to upset world order, insisted that Israel not preempt the announced Arab onslaught.
While Arab armies tightened the noose around our necks in the weeks before the great victory, Israel was warned by our best "friends" not to make trouble."
Had events followed professional evaluations, the enlightened world would have read their prepared eulogies about yet another unfortunate Jewish tragedy. They would have built a museum dedicated to yet another unfortunate Holocaust, and moved on.
Today, we know that humiliating massive pogroms wins us sympathy or friends. The Surge of Jew hatred on October 8, 2025, is a witness.
Golda was not a pacifist, and she was not a "progressive" useful idiot.
Surely she did not really forgive our enemies for killing our children. Surely she did not feel the pain of the enemy's children more than the pain of our own
She must have pronounced the anti-Jewish, immoral, absurd statement to win points in a world that had difficulty with Jewish power; she felt she had to use the language of the hypocritical Jew haters.
We know that it doesn't work
We know better today.
I was reminded of the famous Gola statement when listening to a lecture by a well-known Liberal Rabbi.
He ended his talk with the quote from Gola and explained that Judaism is all about being a light unto the nations, and we absolutely do mourn the need to kill our enemies more than our own.
This is Torah and true Judaism.
He hoped that we would return to this true Jewish morality.
The same rabbi told me that Jewish soldiers should be sacrificed rather than kill "innocent" enemy civilians.
A group of similar rabbis signed a petition that called upon Israel to "stop starving Gaza babies". and rush more aid to the Gaza enemy.
On Hanukkah, we celebrate the victory of some very tough Jews who did some very rough things to our merciless, implacable enemies, both Gentiles and their Jewish allies.
What did a "light unto the nations" mean then?
Probably not sacrificing our own children to save the enemy's
The Maccabees read the Torah from right to left and not upside down.
Unhappy enemies were a reason for celebration not contrition.
May we learn from the Maccabees and not be misled by would-be moralists.
Happy Chanukah
You are invited to an amazing tour on December 29
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