Oren on Existential Threats – Sovereignty

As I mentioned yesterday, Jerusalem is slipping out of Israel’s hands, and unless something is done soon, Israel will be in big trouble. This leads to another threat Oren brings up, Israel’s “Hemorrhaging of Sovereignty.”

Israel has long avoided enforcing the law in many areas under its control. In the eastern part of Jerusalem, Israel-proper by law, Arabs (who have permanent resident status) have built hundreds of illegal houses, in violation of building codes. After decades of turning a blind eye, Israel finally decided to demolish a small number of illegally built houses. However, sovereignty has never been strongly asserted over all of the city, and the U.S. felt it can get involved in this domestic matter.

The situation is similar in the Galil and the Negev. In addition to building codes, taxes are routinely evaded by large swaths of the population. In response, widespread discrimination against the Arab community is alleged. While de facto equality may not be the situation today (infrastructure and education are poor in the Arab sector), perhaps some of the problems would be alleviated if the residents funded their local municipalities, as well as other entitlements they receive from the state on a regular basis.

Oren also mentioned the Haredim and the Jewish population in Judea and Samaria. It is projected that by 2012, one third of Israeli schoolchildren will be Haredi, the overwhelming majority of which will not be serving in the army. Over the Green Line, confrontations between Israeli residents and the IDF are on the rise. There are many reasons for this (unequal enforcement and capitulation to foreign demands, to name a few), but the fact is that violence between the army and the state’s citizens is clearly a problem that needs to be addressed.

And in the Knesset, numerous members not only disavow the legitimacy of the state they serve, “[t]hey actively call for its dissolution.” Free speech is an important value, but certain elected officials have abused that right for years. Running to the High Court every time an illegal party is disqualified is counterproductive, wrong, and does not allow Israel to assert its sovereignty. Freedom of speech is not an absolute value. Yes, many Arab citizens are not happy with the state, but allowing supporters of the enemy to sling mud at the state they have sworn to serve is not acceptable.

Sovereignty is bleeding out of another gaping hole – the famed “U.S.-Israel relationship.” It is an uneven relationship, in which America pays for the “right” to intervene in issues that are distinctly Israel’s business. As I’ve said in the past, accepting these funds renders Israel beholden to the U.S., and is extremely harmful to Israel’s image. Anti-Israel “activists” believe that ending American aid will bring Israel to its knees and “end the occupation.” This is an argument that needs to be proven false. This so-called aid must end immediately.

Israel’s economy, even in this day and age, will collapse as a result of pursuing true independence. On the contrary, it will spur economic activity, and allow Israel to pursue its own policy decisions, without the State Department breathing down its neck. In any case, if Israel is a sovereign nation, then it needs to stand on its own two feet.