poland

I am leaving for Poland tonight. I'll be back in Israel on Feb 14. In preparation for the week, I ran from my apartment in Ramat Gan to the beach and back this afternoon. I hope the endorphins will last the whole week. If you DC folks look out your windows at the thirty inches of snow and imagine me standing there for about six hours a day, I think that's approximately what Poland will be like.

amos elon and poland

I'm reading The Israelis by Amos Elon (published in 1971). I just found a section that explains why my "game" works. From page 305:

The average Israeli recognizes few regulations of universal applicability. In his dealings with the authorities he invariably demands, firmly and loudly, exceptional treatment. His demands are frequently accompanied by an emotionalism so intense that a public official, if his heart is not wholly stone, will be hard put to resist.

How exceptional can the treatment really be if everyone demands it? More:

In dealings with the Israeli bureaucracy, few measures are as effective...as a high tone of outrage, a demanding wail.

Maybe this explains some of the difficulty of enforcing a settlement freeze.

I'm going to Poland next week with the North Americans and Europeans who were on Boneh and some guides from hanoar haoved vehalomed. The journey will focus on the Shoah. I spent all day yesterday with the staff of the program, preparing for the emotional and moral issues we'll encounter.