כל הארץ חזית

In the War of Independence (1948), there was an expression 'כל הארץ חזית' or 'The entire country is the Front.' That experience taught Israel to take its wars to its enemies. In that, it largely succeeded until the onset of the Oslo War in September, 2000. (I say 'largely,' so please don't jump all over me about pigu'im and katyshas in smaller doses.) Then, we relived the fight for the roads that was at the heart of the 1948 War. Now the country is the front in another way.The whole Gallilee is under constant rocket fire from Lebanon. Much of the South is being held hostage to the Qassams of Hamas.

Ironically, owing to the valiant efforts of the army and the GSS, Jerusalem and Yesh(a) are the safest places in the country. The irony is not lost on any of us graduates of the Oslo War. However, despite the apparent quiet, we are still on the front lines. Our children have been called up. Those who are left behind, consumed with worry, are making extraordinary efforts to help our northern brethren. (The best source is Naomi Ragen's e-mail list). Most of all, it's that look of instant understanding we give each other, especially when we know someone, who knows someone who fell defending us (and every other Jew in the world).

That deep, empathic understanding is an expression of the mystical bond that derives its strength from God Himself. It's the bond the Left has been trying to kill, unsuccessfully, for over two decades. It's the bond that every enemy of Israel has tried to crush.

But they can't.

עוצו עצה ותופר, דברי דבר ולא יקום כי עמנו א-ל