More silence on ARZA (Isaac "בוז׳י" Herzog woke me.
I mean "awakened." No dhimmi here.Updated 1.25.25
Reading time: Eight minutes.
I woke up with Buzhi in my ears. If you give me 8 minutes, I will circle back on President Herzog. I have never met him.
The silence of ARZA to Elon Musk’s deliberate Nazi salute was louder. I am still searching for comments from Reform Leaders, any one of them, ARZA Delegates or not.
We must always take sides (1).
“Who am I?” (Exodus 3:14)
Who do you want to represent us at the WZC? The silent? The gossip?
Or, the small voices that are annoying?
“I want to hear my neighbors say how much they object, regret, condemn, and do not accept in any way the tragedy of the terror attack of Oct. 7.”
—-Isaac Herzog, President of Israel
“We will continue to fight for the return of the remaining hostages and hope that this is the first step toward a lasting peace.”—Rabbi Lindsey Danziger, World Zionist Congress Campaign Manager/Assistant Director of Organizing, RAC
A stark contrast in a vision of the world going forward.
Elon Musk performed two deliberate Nazi salutes at his inauguration this week.
Silence from ARZA. Not even a tiny voice said, ”Jonathan, grow some.”
We must always take sides (1).
It would have been less embarrassing had Greenblatt accidentally gotten on stage and danced with the Village People because he had just danced with 47 and the leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, whose sentences 47 had just commuted.
As Bess Kalb notes below, I, too, decline to post a photo or video of what Musk did. You can see it here. His “awkward gesture” has been heralded by the 4chan alt-right neo-Nazi gutters of the Internet in precisely the way Musk contemplated mens rea.
None of us are mind readers.
I once witnessed an astute Judge admonish a litigant not to read minds, saying it was inadmissible. The wise Judge failed to read my mind, but she tried hard.
So, reading minds is not the sole purview of first-class members of the Dunning Kruger Club, the ones David Dunning described as not knowing they are stupid.
And yet, of course, ARZA is deafeningly silent.
Because why?
If only Elon Musk were a liberal arts major like Adyn Brenden at Hamilton College, the Oneida County DA might charge him with a Class E felony, such as Aggravated Harassment, rebuke him, and not upgrade the indictment to a felony under NYS Hate Crime Law 485.05.
The DA might also take note of Bill A1862 by Assemblyman Charles Lavine, which broadens the definition of a hate crime.
ARZA is silent on Brenden and Assemblyman Lavine’s antisemeitism bill, too.
We must always take sides (1).
The only recent thing more harrowing than a deliberate Nazi salute behind the presidential seal are we Jews, who excuse it as harmless.
No. Wait. It was slightly more annoying having a man point toy guns at your head and say
“Kill All the Jews, Hilter had it right.”
ARZA’s President wrote the text below.
Powerful as a tango step.
However, I do not minimize the benefit of having tall friends, even if they tolerate gossip:
We must always take sides (1).
In her recent column, The Bengelsdorf Jews of the New American Reich, Bess Kalb reminded us of Rabbi Lionel Bengelsdorf in Philip Roth’s prescient novel The Plot Against America.
She recalls, which I had forgotten:
“Lionel Bengelsdorf, a Republican rabbi, cozies up to a Nazi-sympathizer President Charles Lindbergh, who defeated FDR. Rabbi Bengelsdorf insists that since Lindbergh’s “America First” (!) platform would strengthen the economy and keep America’s borders safe from foreign interference, he would be good for the Jews. He makes excuses for Lindbergh’s antisemitism and convinces other Jews to join the Lindbergh fold. And at the end of the novel, Rabbi Bengelsdorf is among the first Jews rounded up and arrested under the white supremacist regime.
We are entering an era of Bengelsdorf Jews like Jonathan Greenblatt. Jewish Americans so blinded by the evangelical far right’s (duplicitous, creepy, Rapture-mandated) support of Israel, that they excuse their obvious antisemitism. Even when it’s Sieg Hiel-ing them in the face.”
How is ARZA “fighting for the return of the remaining hostages”? Tango?
Escalating “influencer” talk to warrior status seems to borrow interest. Tango?
Who is listening to ARZA “fight”? Bibi? Smotrich? Ben Gvir? Qatar? Egypt? Steve Witkoff? Amos Hochstein?
Tango?
Who tells Jonathan Greenblatt, “No, Elon’s salute, it’s a duck.”
Who?
We must always take sides (1).
בוז׳י, President Herzog, noted this week that the threshold for peace with Israel’s neighbors shifted after October 7th, and 47 has now appointed Hollywood’s leading Holocaust denier as “Special Ambassador,” and the crucial question for Jewish Americans is what our role should be in Israel if we are not going to send our adult children to bleed with our brothers, and sisters, risking the possibility of losing them.
How will electing slates to the WZC best protect our families in Israel, on college campuses, and in our communities?
Who are we if we cannot stand up to Jonathan Greenblatt and Elon Musk at home?
ARZA delegates allocating JNF funds, which is currently the primary responsibility of WZC delegates, may not best address the price of unrepentant terrorism and its viral influence in our colleges and communities. They believe this. However, a closer look at the corporate governance of the JNF-KKL budget reveals that the WZC delegates have little sway.
“A secure Israel alongside a peaceful Palestinian state is vital for stability.”
“Regional security through peace and stability for Israel, Palestinians, and neighbors.”
Which peaceful Palestinian state?
Which peaceful neighbor? Jordan?
Since 2001, Jordan has withheld surrendering a terrorist wanted by the FBI for the 2001 killing of a Jewish American in Jerusalem. Queen, Rania Al Abdullah (انيا العبد الله) cites the Pact of Umar. The Pact of Umar contains a list of rights and restrictions on non-Muslims (dhimmis). By abiding by them, non-Muslims are granted the security of their persons, families, and possessions. So, Rania believes the Jewish hostages were protected by a “peaceful neighbor,” Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein, King of Jordan and the 41st direct line descendant of The Prophet.
Israelis, nor Diaspora Jews, are dhimmis. Not for a few centuries. Whoops, that did not work out.
Peaceful neighbors: Hamas and Jordan.
When avoiding gossip, where does ARZA stand on issues at home, and what is President Herzog’s paradigm shift this week?
Is the character of your Delegates suited to represent our voice?
What is your Delegates’ “skin in the game?”
Do they have a “dog in this fight?”
Or are they Instagram TV talking heads, highly paid bureaucrats, or self-aggrandizing personalities seeking attention?
How do dual citizens vote? (Asking for a friend.)
Do American slates lose votes if their constituents make Aliyah?
What is optimal, more young Jewish Americans joining the IDF?
Or, voting as Americans for the WZC?
Cui bono? Who benefits?
Between March 10 and May 4, 2025, American Jews and Jewish Americans will vote for their delegates to the 39th World Zionist Congress, the “parliament of the Jewish people,” which will convene in Jerusalem in October 2025.
Voting in the election is the second most powerful opportunity to have your voice heard in Israel, make an impact in Jewish communities worldwide, and stand up for Zionism.
The first option is to encourage our sons and daughters to join the IDF through the Israeli Scouts administered Garin Tzabar program that, in 2002, sent 120 American Lone Soldiers to Israel and, in 2024, sent about 400 out of the total worldwide 7,000 Lone Soldiers who currently serve in the IDF.
With this participation level, why do we complain about Haredi IDF enlistment?
The elected WZC representatives—one-third of whom come from the United States—believe they will fight over allocating over $1 billion annually to support the most pressing needs in Israeli society and the Diaspora.
The elected delegates include the 152 who fill American seats within Congress. They believe the larger the voter turnout, the more the Jewish American voice is heard.
The five years since the previous World Zionist Congress election in 2020 have seen no shortage of seismic crises. Claiming that there are no “winners” and “losers” in this election — that participation is a victory in and of itself, is not too believable.
The registration and voting fee is $5, which covers the election's operating costs. Ballots are cast for one of the 20+ slates of candidates submitted by Zionist groups. Voting is done online and via mobile devices, but paper ballots are available upon request.
The election is administered by the American Zionist Movement (AZM), which is comprised of 46 national Jewish Zionist organizations. The AZM works across a broad ideological, political, and religious spectrum, uniting the American Jewish community in support of Israel, Zionism, and the Jewish people.
An all-time-high 22 slates representing diverse political beliefs, religious denominations, and cultural traditions compete in the 2025 election, marking a 69% surge from the 13 slates whose candidates won seats in the 2020 Congress.
Here are all the 2025 WZC Slates.
Warning: Influencers are among them.
Many of the 2020 winning slates and the new slates will contact you to persuade you their slate is better qualified.
Ask them:
Have you written Jonathan Greenblatt a letter about the salute?
Would votes for Knesset not be more effective?
What are you doing to increase Americans’ 400 personal contributions to the IDF and to influence Jewish American participation in Israeli life?
How many of your delegate’s adult children have committed to IDF service?
When Jewish Americans become Israeli citizens, do they lose their right to vote in the AZM elections?
How does your slate handle dual citizenship voting?
Who are we if we cannot stand up to Jonathan Greenblatt and Elon Musk at home?
We do not leave anyone behind.
Gossips diminish others to leave them behind.
Why is a person who cannot recall all the gossip trusted to lead when trusted leaders abhor gossip? (1)
Never an “if” here:
Captains depend on their crews.
The best ship deserves the best captain and crew.
No crew is strong with gossip on board.
Vote, or don’t vote.
“If” you don’t vote, that is your truth, too.
Ask yourself:
He has my vote; he never tells, but he has a few, and he’s not my “dog in the fight.”
Shabbat Shalom!
Philippe du Col © 2025
Nota Bene:
1.” "We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, [never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the victim"
---Elie Wiesel