5th Thought

The article I will be discussing, from the Jerusalem Post:
Here

Noam Levy was accidentally shot and killed by his commanding officer. The officer has been discharged. Levy's family responded by saying, ""We do not want the officer, who is 21 years old and is doing a tough job, to be blamed in the headlines."

My heart goes out to his family. I can't imagine dealing with a tragedy of that magnitude.

As I said in a previous post, my partner served in our military. We're expecting a baby boy in just a couple of weeks. I have no idea what his path will be in life; I do know that I'd be worried sick if he followed his father's. In this country we have the luxury of choice. I wonder what it's like to live in Israel, knowing that you or your partner or you children will serve and can be killed? It's impressive, really, that so many are willing to take on that burden for our homeland.

A character in a beloved novel of mine notes that it's not just their willingness to die that we so highly value, but their willingness to kill, to take that blood upon them. Honestly, I'd be terrible in the military. And a lot of that has to do with my reluctance to kill, even in self-defense.

I feel terrible not just for Levy, and for his family, but for the office who has such a grevious burden on his palms. For all of their sakes, I offer up Isaiah: "Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore".

Hopefully the IDF will not have to carry this weight much longer. I look to the day when a military is no longer necessary, when this doesn't have to be a "recognized risk".