The Jerusalem-Golan Bill

It is commendable to defend the welfare of Jerusalem and the Golan.

It is deplorable to fail to do the same for Judea and Samaria.

By setting the standard of defending Israel's rights to it's historic homeland selectively, the current Knesset brands itself hypocritical but with good intentions.  Mr. Prime Minister, why go merely half way? Your "Jerusalem is not a settlement" statement is true. But then neither is Hebron and the rest of Judea and Samaria a "settlement" either. The Jerusalem-Golan Bill represents only a beginning of the correct path to take in your foreign policy structure.

The Jerusalem-Golan Bill would be a good safety measure in case a left wing party ever gained control of the Knesset again, Heaven fore-fend.  It does little, however, to protect Israel from it's current government's policies taking a turn for the worse. It is historic in the sense that it helps to protect things from getting worse than today.  But today the Temple is in ruins, most of Israel's heartlands are being called settlements by it's own government, and nations still plot against Jerusalem.

Yet perhaps there is hope:

"Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu responded (yesterday) to the Palestinian Authority's denial of the link between Jewish people and the Western Wall, saying the denial is "reprehensible and scandalous," according to a statement released by the PM's media adviser." (Jpost.com)

By not defending Israel's history and rights to Biblical and current Jewish hometowns such as Beth El and Hebron, a foot in the door appears for the enemies of Jerusalem.

Why the attempt to cut off your nose? Why spite your face? Why not put your enemies on the defensive?  If you sit passively, while there are criminals to be arrested in Gaza and Ramallah, then at the very least can you not be a bit more aggressive at the negotiation table?

In a November 10^th CNN interview, Israeli Ambassador to the USA, Michael Oren said:

"We' don't say to the Palestinians that you have to prove things ( for peace), We don't say Hamas is ruling half your people, get your house in order first before you sit down to negotiate. We don't say stop naming town squares after terrorists. ...praising the terrorist who killed a Knesset Member in cold blood, praising him as a great martyr. We don't say stop all of that or we won't talk to you. We say sit down, negotiate, everything is on the table, come and talk to us."

To that I ask, why the heck not say those things to them?!

It is the way of the world to take a shower with both feet in the tub.  It is the way of the current Israeli government to bathe only half the body, just in case the other half must get dirty again soon.

Perhaps it is time to learn from the clean part of your body, and complete the task you have only begun, by the grace of God.