2009 Presidential Conference

Shalom Shalom!

Excuse the lag in my posts - I know it has been a while. Work is fine - still love my boss, just baiscally waiting to settle in and have things pick up a bit. New roomie is fine as well. I don't really see him much since I am so busy, so it's not really an issue. Okay, now that we have that out of the way.........guess where I have been for the past two days, and all day tomorrow.....

THE ISRAELI PRESIDENTIAL CONFERENCE OF 2009!!!!
http://www.presidentconf.org.il/en/

The first opening night of the president’s conference was quite the experience and in some ways - even a culture shock. The hall was really big, filled with about 2,500 people, and the stage was set with a piano, podium, and some chairs (for other musicians). We were all sitting in the balcony with a great view of the stage – there were also 4 video screens. Most people were dressed in very nice business clothes (which is highly unusual for Israeli’s) but to compensate for the uncharacteristic attire- the event started late and it took about 25 minutes before they got the crowd to sit (VERY Israeli).
And so the night began! I got to hear President Shimon Peres give his opening speech; Prime Minister Benyamin Netenyahu give a speech on the need for true and committed leadership and called on Abbu Mazen (Mahmud Abbas) to be that leader (read the speech here: http://www.thejerusalemgiftshop.com/israelnews/israel-news/83-israeli-news/1983-pm-netanyahus-speech-at-the-2009-presidents-conference-making-the-impossible-possibleq.html#); I also got to hear Tony Blaire speak and let me tell you – he is very charismatic, pleasant and relaxed on stage, and proud to be a supporter of Israel. The crowed (and dare I say Israelis) love him. One of the things which was really new for me, was to witness and actually feel the immense and unbridled amount of love which Israeli’s AND the international community have for President Peres. People were not just flattering him, but were sincerely and happily singing his praises, making jokes about his age, and lauding his optimism and positive spirit. It’s remarkable and I felt extremely lucky to be in the room for all of this. There was also some music performances and the evening closed with the singing of Hatikvah (the national anthem). As funny as this will sound - I honestly felt like I was at the Oscars. Not only have I never been to an event like this before in my life, but I also couldn’t believe that I was lucky/privileged enough to be wearing the entry tag with my name on it. Here I was, sitting in a huge auditorium, listening live to some of the most important leaders of the Jewish world, while being surrounded by renown scholars, politicians, dignitaries, scientists and activists from around the world!!! How the hell did I get into the room?!?!? It was a very humbling and exciting evening – to say the least.
The next two days were spent, in full, at the conference attending the plenary sessions and picking various other lectures/seminars which were being held throughout the day. You can view the schedule of sessions and speakers online, but I’ll just go over some of the events which I attended/made an impression on me. The primary session (of day 2) I picked was called “Geopolitical developments and the Jewish people”. The panel was basically discussing the various problems going on in the world and how the Jewish people/state should respond to them. For me, the most striking speaker on the panel was Irwin Cotler (http://irwincotler.liberal.ca/default.aspx#) who spoke about the 3 dynamics affecting the Jewish as well as entire world as a whole:
1. Ahmadineja’s Iran – berating the world for giving him a platform in new York and not bringing his incitements of genocide to the genocide counsil
2. State sponsored propagation of hate/genocide – state sponsorship of such activity being extremely dangerous and cannot be ignored
3. The betrayal of the elites – organizations such as the UN and UNHRC not just failing to live up to their standards but actually acting completely in contradiction to the values they were established to uphold (amen Irwin)
Day two I went to the panel entitled “Islam: between moderation and extremism”. Overall it was interesting and there were many intriguing panelists, but there was not nearly enough time for the discussion to really bloom. (http://www.presidentconf.org.il/en/media.asp?rId=15). I attended this panel not just because the topic interests me, but because I also wanted to see/hear the leaders of moderate Islam. I have never had a doubt that these leaders exist and I do believe that Islam has beautiful teachings and is not an evil/purely violent religion – but it is incredibly unfortunate (if not frightening) how easily the moderate voices are drowned out by the extremists and radicals. The panelists were truly noteworthy, committed, and extremely intelligent people – but listening to them speak was both relieving and frustrating. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for them and I’m sure that all efforts are being made – but it’s just not good enough. I just hope that one day their voices and teaching will not only be heard but be respected and considered (globally) as natural.
Panel #2 for me was under the title of “Jerusalem, Washington, US Jewry – is the honeymoon over?” this panel basically discussed the relationship between the three entities and how/if it has been effected by the new governments/leaders. To be totally honest – much was what was said was rather sophisticated and somewhat hard to follow. However, the one thing that I did understand is the general consensus and confidence in America’s real, passionate, and stable relationship to Israel. *whew* it’s so good to hear that from smart and experience people ;-)
The last panel (and possibly my favorite) was “the young take initiative”. This was a panel comprised of young activists/entrepreneurs who saw a problem, took initiative, and have managed to make a difference. One of the girls (only American) was Rachel Fish who managed to successfully petition Harvard to reject an endowment from a Shiek (of the UAE) who was also funding a seriously anti-American and anti-semitic think tank. I really liked her (not just because she was the only one speaking English) but she was also very well spoken, clearly passionate and hardworking but also humble and down to earth! There was time for Q&A and I got to ask a question: “all of you were lucky enough to have a distinctive moment where you saw a problem and knew that you were going to try and tackle it. but what would you say to budding leaders who are passionate, driven, and motivated – but just don’t know which problem they want to apply their passion to?” Rachel was the one who answered me and she said: “The more educated you are, the more you will understand what your passion is, and then it will burn so strongly inside you – you will not be able to ignore it” I could have jumped up on stage and kissed her right then! :-D
The conference ended with a statement from Natan Sharansky , a ‘discussion’ on Israel in the year 2020 by Tzipi Livni, Ehud Barak, and Eli Yishai, and a closing statement by Shimon Peres. I won’t really go into too much detail about this, but what I will say, is that if there is one thing which ALL of these people have in common – it is their commitment and dedication to the state of Israel and the Jewish people!!! Their debates, tempers, excitement and disagreement all stem from this single unifying characteristic – and nothing is more reassuring and exhilarating than being witness to this fact!
In other words – the conference was fantastic! There aren’t enough thanks I could express to IGF for providing me with such an opportunity. Really!
The only other thing I would briefly add to this blog entry – is that I will be leaving for Tel Aviv (at some point) today because tomorrow is the Nike Tel Aviv 10k Night Race I am running in! I feel totally unprepared (though I have been running), nervous as all hell (since I have NO idea what the hell I signed myself up for), and in complete shock/disbelief (that I would ever do something so completely against my nature)! Haha. I am definitely taking my camera and will be sure to tell you how it all goes. I have no idea what is going on or what to expect – but hopefully everything will go well and I will come back with to write a new entry “first completely race of my life” ahha. Wish me luck!
p.s. miss you