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Commentary by Ben Cohen In the days since the massacre of 49 people and the wounding of hundreds more by an Islamist gunman at a nightclub in Orlando, America’s political leadership has sounded more discordant than ever. Never mind the absence of a bipartisan consensus
about what we should do; our politicians are engaged in unsightly squabbling about the nature of the problem itself. In one corner, we have the Democratic Party, led by President Barack Obama, aggressively steering the national debate towards gun control. According to this camp’s account,
there was this vague, slippery phenomenon known as “hatredâ€? that prodded and pushed the febrile mind of gunman Omar Mateen, but what really matters is that he legally purchased an assault rie to carry out his bestial attack. In the other corner, we have presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump and
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Shabbos Beha’aloscha • June 24, 2016 • 18 Sivan 5776 • Candlelighting 8:11 pm, Havdalah 9:20 pm (Luach page 19) • Vol 15, No 25
By Alex Traiman In less than a week, deadly shooting sprees at the hands of gunmen afďŹ liated with Islamic terror movements rocked Orlando and Tel Aviv. In America, the deadliest mass-murder attack since Sept. 11, 2001, has strengthened calls for stricter gun control laws. Yet in Israel, where many civilians carry ďŹ rearms, questions on how the terrorists acquired their weapons did not spark national debate. “Israelis relate to guns totally differently than Americans,â€? said Marc Provisor, director of security projects for One Israel Fund, an organization that provides security equipment to Jewish communities in Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley. Most of terrorists who have attacked Israelis in recent months have been neutralized by armed Israelis, including police ofďŹ cers, off-duty soldiers, and even civilians. While “people here have guns out of a grim necessity — it’s not a hobby,â€? Provisor said. Israel’s Basic Laws (there is no Constitution) does not protect the ability of any individual to have access to ďŹ rearms. Israelis face strict controls on who is allowed to possess a weapon, Provisor added, and citizens who carry them are required to go through gun
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his rainbow coalition of the angry, the cheated, and the merely racist. Listening to Trump again advocating for a ban on Muslims entering this country, one could easily picture the many Republicans who would gladly transfer to a parallel universe where a Marco Rubio or Continued on page 6
training and are typically restricted to a single handgun and limited numbers of bullets. “There is a medical review, there is a psychological review, and Israeli police and security services check you out before you are approved for a handgun. It’s not that easy,â€? he said. “In Israel, a gun is not looked at as a privilege, but rather as a responsibility.â€? Avi Dobular, master shooting instructor at the Magnum 88 Range in Jerusalem, argued that the motivations are different when it comes to Israeli and American citizens wanting to own guns for self-defense. “Here [in Israel] we’re not talking about somebody wanting to break into your house to steal your jewelry. Here it is an existential threat to your life,â€? he said. “Armed citizens increase the overall security of the nation and its people. There cannot be a policeman or an armed soldier on every block. So an armed citizenry is very important.â€? Self-perceived cultural differences between Israel and America may contribute to the fact that the unprovoked use of ďŹ rearms by civilians is a rare occurrence in Israel. “Random gun violence is low here because people are more serious,â€? said Dobular. “Israelis grow up in a gun culture. They see people carrying guns from a young age. They Continued on page 22
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