I just saw Herzl at a bar.

Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl at a bar
Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl at a bar

I just saw Herzl at a bar.

You know, Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl.

At first I thought, oh boy, maybe he’s here to drink away his sorrows, with Israel, the modern state he envisioned, forced to fight, defending itself from Hamas’ barrage of missiles, and from ridicules public opinions, blamed for not being careful enough in its fight against terrorists that use civilians as human shields, and want nothing but  killing all Jews.

Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl Drinking Water
Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl Drinking Water

So I looked carefully. All he drank was water. I thought, hey, Benyoomin, you don’t seem so stressed. What are you really thinking about?

Then he texted a bit. Maybe tweeted. Glanced at me for a split second. Watched a bit of TV. Looked pretty calm. Not as troubled as he was during the Dreyfus Affair. Interesting.

Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl Tweeting

Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl Tweeting

So it looks like he’s pretty chill. Maybe it’s something to learn from. What’s on his mind? I tried to imagine what he could be thinking now:

Israel is a strong state. Innovative and creative, highly educated population, with an amazing infrastructure built over the last 66 years. An army that is considered one of the world’s best. Peace-striving yet strong enough to defend itself against most anything.

Times are tough, no doubt. Civilian targets being attacked day and night by Hamas. Some, from the UN through the likes of Roger Waters and Barak Obama, show different levels of irrational thinking condemning Israel’s actions, while being blind to the facts and actions of terrorists and organizations that threaten not only Israeli, but western life and culture as a whole.

But Israelis are tough. Their motivation is aligned with right causes and a strong righteous code of behavior. Being Innovative and strong-willed does and will prevail. Naysayers will eat their hats. This cannot result in anything but Israel winning.

Well Benji, I agree. Now I know why you’re calm. Just as I considered  to maybe walk over and buy him a round of Pellegrino, he walked out, and I thought to myself, if a man that had such an amazing forward looking ability stays so calm, he must have a reason. He surely knows that there is no other way this will end but with Israel on top.

Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl Walking Out Of  a Bar
Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl Walking Out Of a Bar

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