The world’s greatest decoy is before our very eyes, and many in the world are falling for it.
Asleep at the wheel.
Israel the terrible! Israel the evil! Israel the monster!
In reality, real savages butchered civilians en masse, even perversely and proudly filming it. But then, in classic projection when people are actually describing themselves, they flip the narrative. They point the finger at the victim — the villain in the story.
And the world falls for it.
In a kindergarten setting, the child doing the bullying and then turning around and blaming his victim — this wouldn’t fly with the kindergarten teacher.
Even most of the five- or six-year old peers would intuitively sense something was “off” with the mean boy flipping the narrative, blaming his victim. At that age, kids still understand the basic difference between right and wrong, good and bad, nice and mean.
Many of the initial architects behind the militant, aggressive pushing of the anti-Israel and anti-Zionist narrative, as well as the genocide lie narrative, were radicalized Muslims, whose long- game goal is Shariah law, Dhimmitude, destruction of Western civilization as we know it.
The “useful idiots,” as Lenin called them, numbingly fell in line, screaming “ Israel! Israel!” “Genocide! Genocide!”.
Radical Islamists have been pursuing their goal of eroding Western society, penetrating government, and paving a path to power, as some of the masses are consumed by Israel the boogeyman, the decoy.
Slowly but surely, the gradual erosion is happening before our eyes. Slowly but surely, the quiet normalization of Jew-hatred is happening before our eyes.
Recently, sitting at the departure gate of my upcoming flight, a college age looking guy was sitting in a row of chairs perpendicular to me. He was sporting a T-shirt with the words “One Holocaust Doesn’t Justify A Second Holocaust,” replete with graphics of the Israeli and Palestinian flags.
No one flinched. No one batted an eye.
Jew-hate has surpassed being tolerated or acceptable to, sickeningly, becoming embedded. Casual. A non-issue.
Jew-hate by radicalized Islam is potentially bleeding into American government. This past week a candidate who called Israelis “bloodthirsty,” who nonchalantly brushed off Jews who were targeted by an Islamic terrorist as “hurt people hurt people,” won a primary election.
Moreover and mind boggling, a clip circulated of this candidate complaining about Americans who want to “ban Shariah Law.”
I’m not one to overreact or to warn in an alarmist way of radicalized Islamists wanting to take over. I appreciate the many moderate Muslims who live their faith in peace, dignity, and respect. But this candidate is the one who introduced those words “Shariah law” into public discourse, as though it were a civil rights issue, thus shifting the discourse.
These shifts and micro-shifts transpire with intention, as masses and mobs have been riled up about Israel.
And all this because why?
Because the one tiny Jewish state in the world dared to fight back on Oct. 7, and not volunteer itself for national suicide, now or in the future.
Pirkei Avot, “The Wisdom of Our Forefathers,” taught us to reflect on the following Jewish teaching, which in its original Hebrew holds a certain linguistic playfulness:
“Im ein ani li, mi li?”
“If I am not for myself, who will be?”
“U-che she’ani le-atzmi, mah ani?”
“If I am only for myself, what am I?”
“Ve-im lo achshav, eimatai?”
“And if not now, when?”
These particular lines that almost any young Jewishly educated child can cite from memory, is an apt summary and profound guide in grounding ourselves in who we are, and in seeing the others with compassionate action; and maintaining boundaries and balance in navigating the two modes.
Israel and Jews, these days, unapologetically stand up for ourselves, and will continue to do so against this unfortunate tidal wave of hate and the potential danger to our safety.
In our best Jewish tradition and mission, we don’t only stand for ourselves, though.
Individually, we often reach beyond our community. On a collective level, in the case of Israel (modern history’s sliver of a Jewish state), Israel consistently goes far beyond its borders across the world. For example, Israel is often the first to lend a medical help to total strangers in need, when disaster strikes.
“And if not now, when?”
Timing. Sensing the right timing for balancing the two seemingly mutually exclusive teachings that, in fact, can coexist in harmony.
Return to the first core Jewish teaching: “If I am not for myself, who will be?” Even if these exact words are not invoked, this is the anthem of modern day Israel’s right, obligation and moral charge in defending herself against future Oct. 7th’s.
I hope that this teaching won’t soon be competing in the West with rising concepts such as Shariah law and dhimmitude that seem to be subtly seeping into our fast changing society.
The gravity of this hour is sadly being numbed and eclipsed by many shouting down Israel, the world’s greatest decoy right now.
If not now that we have clarity about this situation. When?
© IJN 2026
