Yad Vashem (Holocaust) Memorial

I spent a day at the Yad Vashem (Holocaust) Memorial in Jerusalem and I wouldn’t ever presume to suggest any insights that are more profound than the thousands, (millions) that have been made by people much more perceptive than I am.

The first thought that came to my mind was if one is going to perpetuate a genocide, it would be wise not to pick one of the most literate groups in Europe. I know all the arguments about the “holocaust industry” and I think it was Spike Lee who once said if you are going to make an Oscar winning movie, don’t release it at the same time as a Holocaust movie. I’m not much of an authority on other genocides, but there can’t be anything as deeply documented as the Holocaust which leads to both its uniqueness as well as criticism from survivors of other genocide. Another thought that came to me was that if you really want to piss off Israel and the Jewish people, just try making a few comments (ala Ahmadinejad) that maybe the Holocaust was overrated. This is automatic grounds for starting WWIII. The furor over the cartoon of Mohammed is nothing compared to this blasphemy. Wasn’t there a US Senator who said that Bush’s reaction to 9/11 should have been to bomb the Ka'bah in Mecca? Finally, it is obvious that this Memorial is not a tourist trap, there are no trinkets as at the Bethlehem manger scene or hawking of wares near the Wailing Wall, this is serious business, with not a piece of litter or a commercial sign anywhere to be seen.

A haunting sculpture called something like "Trail to the Gas Chambers."

The most impressive exhibit for me was the Valley of the Communities. Located on the far end of the Memorial, about a 30 minute walk, was a 2.5 acre expanse of 107 huge bedrock cubes with the names of 5,000 Jewish communities destroyed in the Holocaust. It went on forever and I even gave up about 80% of the way, I was too tired to continue. I was also the only person in the exhibit and felt dwarfed by the stones and frequently got both lost and overwhelmed.

Valley of Communities: Miles of cut rock squares arranges in a maze with the names of lost communities including my grandfather's home of Vilna.

The Cattle Car Memorial was hidden from view and suddenly jumped out at me. It is an authentic car retrieved from Poland and is suspended over a valley on a train track that ends hanging in space. There is a personal inscription on the wall that describes the experience inside the car. The solitary quality of the car combined with its sudden appearance in the forest was overwhelming.

Cattle Car Memorial: a powerful image hanging over a ledge

The Hall of Names contains the archives of the names of every Jew who perished as best as can be determined. The walls are covered from ceiling to floor with thousands of binders containing certified “Pages of Testimony.” A computerized database has been set up to record every single person who is known to have died and one is reminded that millions of names are still missing. What is most breathtaking is just the sheer size of the effort that has been made to keep track.

Even though I visited the Children’s Memorial first, I was really too numb to feel its effect. It is estimated that 1.5 children were killed and their names are continuously being read as one walks through the darkened memorial. The central column has several burning candles which strike many mirrors and then reverberate all around the chamber. It is too heavy to even contemplate.

Children Memorial: This is the view which surrounds one in the darken chamber of the memorial.

The Monument to the Jewish Soldiers and Partisans was very interesting and I didn’t realize it formed a Jewish star until I loaded it on my computer. The claim is that 1.5 million Jews fought the Nazis as Allied soldiers, partisans in the resistant movements and in the ghettos. It is a lesser known story, since the common belief is that the Jewish offered little resistance, so I found this memorial especially interesting.

Monument to Soldiers/Partisans: a very interesting and subtle design

Finally, the Hall of Remembrance is simply overwhelming. It is laid out chronologically and every square inch of it from top to bottom was covered with items of historical and personal importance. At the end of the very long “tunnel” of exhibits is a spectacular view of Jerusalem.

The view of Jerusalem at the end of the tunnel coming out of the Hall of Remembrance.

It’s unnecessary for me to comment more on the importance of the Holocaust to the Israeli psyche, even to my psyche. My first memory of going to Temple in Aurora, Illinois (circa 1948, age 4) was putting a quarter into a blue box and being told that a tree would be planted in my name in Israel, one for each person killed in the Holocaust. I don’t know who came up with that image or mantra, I don’t know what ever happened to my quarter, I would be shocked to learn that no tree was planted; it would probably be more shocking than coming to the conclusion as a teenager that there was no God.

Just to complete the intense images of my visit, afterwards I went with my friend, actually my Aurora West High School debate partner, to the Jerusalem Mall near the train station. This is an ultra-modern, high end Israeli mall that was busy with shoppers. To travel from the depths of the Holocaust Memorial to the heights of the Jerusalem Mall, while I might add passing through the scene of the recent bulldozer attack, was a most bizarre experience to say the least.

Current Events:

Iran v Israel: I was having breakfast with a woman who causally said to me, “Did you hear that Israel bombed Iran?” I said, “Oh, my God, when did that happen?” and she said “Yesterday.” I said, “I’m a news junky and check the internet every 15 minutes, but didn’t see any report.” See say, “I think it was a secret!” As you can imagine the papers are filled with Iran talk 24/7. When I tell people that I have Iranian friends they are absolutely shocked. I have to say, that while all the opinions about Iran are negative, there doesn’t seem to be any one voice speaking. One government minister says, Iran should be bombed, but by the US and not Israel, another says, there is less than a one-month window to bomb, another says the bombing plans have already been written up and practiced to perfection. My Iranian friends, if I still have any, tell me everyone is bluffing and specifically the Iranians do not want any trouble. I, of course, am at the bottom of the information food chain, but it seems to me that the Israelis are really up for this fight. If they are bluffing, they are very good at it and it feels like they would be honored to be chosen by the U.S. to pull the trigger. There was an interesting analysis on the French news channel that said the Israelis are trying to bring the Arabs together in an anti-Persian coalition, based on the belief that Arabs hate Iranians more than they hate Israel. Thus a settlement with Syria, some agreement with Abbas on the West Bank, plus stoking anti-Shite/Persian feelings in Jordan/Egypt/Saudi Arabia would tip the balance against Iran. I thought that was interesting strategy.

Local dispute: One of the prisoner exchanges is for the “remains” of Dalal Mughrabi, a famous Palestinian female martyr who blew up 36 people in 1978. She is a huge heroine to the Palestinians; everyone knows the story and schools are named after her. The Israelis are giving the remains to Hezbollah on the sole condition that she be buried in Lebanon so there cannot be cause for celebration in the West Bank. This has pitted Fatah against Hezbollah. Should this be off great interest to you, I’ll keep you posted on how the conflict is resolved.

There is a new pro-Republican political button in Israel: McKen: LoBama (“ken” means “yes” and “lo” means “no” in Hebrew) I think you have to be here to get the full effect.

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