Hope - more than just our national anthem By Dan Illouz August 1, 2013 Characterizing those who oppose an enemy Palestinian state in the historical homeland of the Jews as not having "any hope for a better tomorrow" is misleading, superficial. With the announcement of yet another round of negotiations that will be based on the flawed two-state paradigm, I immediately expressed my opposition. After hearing my opposition, many of my colleagues looked at me with puzzled expressions and asked: "Do you not have any hope for a better tomorrow?" I am a realist, and as such, I think our foreign policy should not be guided by "hope," but by reality. However, characterizing those who oppose the creation of an enemy Palestinian state in the historical homeland of the Jewish people as not having "any hope for a better tomorrow" is misleading and superficial. In this column, I will speak about my various hopes for a better tomorrow - hopes that strengthen my opposition to the two-state solution. I will move away from my usual realist approach, and take an ideological approach, in order to show that deep values lie behind my realism, which justify my opposition to the creation of a Palestinian state. Hope for a secure Israel Every time we have entered a peace process with the Palestinians, the result has been increased violence. Oslo brought bus bombings, Camp David brought the second intifada. Even the unilateral disengagement from Gaza brought Kassam rockets to all of southern Israel. Why are we to believe that this round of negotiations will be any different? My hope is that Jewish mothers will stop burying their sons simply because enough pressure was put on the prime minister to make concessions that endanger Israeli lives. My hope is that it be known that if the State of Israel is attacked, there will be significant repercussions against all those who threaten its security. My hope is that this new level of deterrence will enable us to finally get some quiet here in Israel - an absence of war, or, in other words, the peace for which we have been longing. Hope the Jewish people embrace their sovereignty My hope, however, is not limited to the issue of peace. I hope that Israel will one day regain the courage to assert its sovereignty. I hope that it will not be afraid to build in all of its historical homeland. The return of the Jewish people to the land of Israel is one of the most inspiring stories ever told. After 2,000 years of yearning and exile, the Jewish people returned to their biblical homeland and the very cities of their forefathers: Hebron, Shechem, Beit El and of course, Jerusalem. These cities are now threatened by the creation of a Palestinian state and are referred to by proponents of this solution as "occupied," or, at best, as "disputed." My hope is that the dispute ends, and that after 2,000 years of exile we finally gain the courage to act as a sovereign nation in our homeland. I yearn for the day our nation will be proud enough and courageous enough to defend the right of Jewish people to pray on the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism. I yearn for the day a when a Jew legally purchasing a home in Hebron will not need the army’s approval. It is a 2,000-year-old dream, and it is a much greater dream than the less than 100-year-old dream of the flawed twostate solution. Hope for the Land of Israel and the People of Israel to finally realize their love One of the most powerful metaphors in the Bible views the people of Israel and the land of Israel as a couple in love. This is one of the popular interpretations of Shir Hashirim, the Song of Songs. As the metaphor goes, the Land of Israel and the People of Israel fell in love, got married and realized their love when the Jewish people became a sovereign nation in the Land of Israel. However, this loving couple was violently separated by a third party, who tried to establish his sovereignty by stealing and raping the bride. The separation of this loving couple seemed eternal. For 2,000 years, every single day, they dreamed of reuniting. For 2,000 years, they prayed three times a day that they should meet again. For 2,000 years, every year, on the Ninth of Av, they mourned their separation. Finally, after 2,000 years, they got back together. They met once again, resumed their love once again, and were incredibly happy. This is the story of the Jewish people’s love for the land. Today, some suggest that we cut off part of this land, which we love so dearly, to appease those who want to kill us. They make these demands without any guarantee that such concessions will solve any conflict. Would a husband ever agree to amputate his wife's limbs to appease those who keep harassing them? Or worse - would he agree to "share" his wife? Of course not! He would stand up and fight to defend her. My hope is not for the establishment of a Palestinian state. My hope lies with the age-old dream of the Jewish people being eternally reunited with their land. Hope - our national anthem Interestingly, the founders of Israel chose "Hatikva," "The Hope," as the national anthem of Israel. While most people know the sections of Hatikva that are today part of the anthem, most people do not know the full version of the poem. In the full version, the poet refers to the Temple Mount, to the tombs of our forefathers in Hebron, and to other historical and religious symbols that exist in Judea and Samaria. Many academics claim that Zionism was inspired by the rise of nationalism in Europe. There is no doubt that they are right. However, without the hope of return to Jerusalem, Hebron and Bethlehem, which fueled the Zionist movement, it would have never gathered major support within the Jewish nation. This hope is what caused most Zionists to oppose the Uganda proposal. This is the hope that caused millions to move to Israel. This age-old hope is what encourages Israeli soldiers, to this day, to risk their lives in order to defend Jewish sovereignty in Israel. Differences in utopias The claim that those who oppose negotiations, which are based on a flawed and already-tried program, have no hope for a better tomorrow is simply baseless. We, like the proponents of the two-state solution, have utopias - we just have different utopias. In the utopia of supporters of the two state solution, Judea and Samaria are left empty of Jews so that the Palestinians can establish their state. Then, according to their utopia, peace will come. In my utopia, the Jewish nation will not run from Judea and Samaria but rather will once again embrace it. Jews will appreciate every day they get to live in their historical homeland and, because of their deep love for this land, will refuse to part with any of it. Peace with the Palestinians will also come. However, it will come from local cooperation and not from the establishment of an enemy state. You can decide for yourself which vision is more hopeful. ----------------------------- The writer is an attorney, and graduated McGill University Law School and Hebrew University’s honors graduate program in public policy.