An 'Obsolete' Job for the New Right By Nadav Shragai 

Ha'aretz -- Thursday, March 18, 1999

An 'Obsolete' Job for the New Right
By Nadav Shragai

The new rightist party has arisen too late and under difficult conditions.
The chances of stopping the continued transfer of West Bank land to Arafat
do not appear promising. Nonetheless, contrary to what the National
Religious Party is claiming, the rightist front is far from
irrelevant.Benny Begin and friends are not necessarily condemned to the
position of a sterile opposition, as was argued this week, and the
possibility of inclusion in a narrow rightist coalition under Netanyahu -
on the basis of the cabinet decision that froze implementation of the
territorial clauses in the Wye Memorandum - is but one of the options
available. An alliance, if only tactical, is also feasible between the
Likud and Oslo's opponents if the Likud obtains a relatively small number
of seats and if the Oslo opponents obtain a relatively large one. In that
scenario, Netanyahu would need the Oslo opponents' "dowry" of Knesset
seats whether or not he wins the election or not. Even Begin's removal of
his prime ministerial candidacy and his party's support for Netanyahu in
the second round could be demanded at the appropriate time.

Even if all the optimistic (from the new right's standpoint) political
scenarios prove fantasies (a distinct possibility), the new group led by
Begin has a value that can be measured not just in territorial terms but
also in terms of what Ben-Gurion used to call "our national spirit." For
years, the country's political and military leaders have been conveying a
message both of fatigue produced by our national struggle and of reduced
motivation to pay the price for that struggle. This message has seriously
jeopardized our deterrent power vis-a-vis our enemies and has dangerously
eroded our national stamina. Over the past few years, such slogans as
"this is the best we can hope for under the circumstances" and "we have no
other option," which we used only in extreme cases, are now almost the
only slogans we know how to use. The new rightist alliance has created a
new option, which is radically different from that offered by Labor, the
Likud, the Centrists or the NRP.

Dr. Israel Eldad once wrote about the "emotional underground." Apparently,
ideological concepts such as Zionism, a Jewish homeland and Jewish
settlements, which symbolized the individual's contribution to the general
good, have become part of that emotional underground and have been
replaced with "me first" thinking. For years, Israeli society has been
avoiding terms such as justice, mission and historical and religious
rights and has instead been spouting terms such as utilitarianism, "what's
in it for me," and pragmatism.

Ever since Yitzhak Shamir left the political arena, nearly every issue is
subjected to the acid test of (physical and economic) security.
Originally, security was intended to enable the realization of Zionism's
vision, but now the tables have turned: security is no longer a means but
rather an end in itself. Values that security was supposed to serve -
Jewish settlements, immigration to Israel, etc. - are no longer absolute;
they are now merely tentative.

Begin, Hanan Porat and Recahvam Ze'evi can take hold of the steering wheel
and make a sharp turn to the right. They could dramatically change our
national orientation and provide us with new material for our public
relations work, our educational system, our protest demonstrations, our
media, the speeches of our leaders, even perhaps our parliamentary debates
and cabinet discussions after the elections.

It is hard to remember the last time when a Knesset member, in addressing
an audience, has made demands on the public, instead of automatically
promising that "everything is going to work out just fine." When was the
last time we heard a public figure challenge an audience to accept goals
instead of accepting its weakness and trying to sell it magic potions?

The rightist front's assumption of this "obsolete" role is very much
needed. In a period when surveys have become the main instruments for
determining policy and when fundamental values and beliefs are being
pushed aside, there is a vital need for individuals like Begin who are not
power-hungry and who are not interested in popularity contests, but who
can provide the public with a different message.

The public and its leaders have been moving too long along the narrow
corridors of "we have no other option" and other messages of national
fatigue and indifference. The "old right" must try to free us from these
narrow confines. As Nathan Alterman once wrote, Satan's only wish is:
"This is what I will do - I will dull their brains so that they can forget
the justice of their claims."

Begin's "irrelevant" rightist party may perhaps be able to remind us that,
even if our brains have been dulled, our claims are still just

c copyright 1999 Ha'aretz. All Rights Reserved