All is quiet in Jerusalem...and that's not necessarily a good thing

I woke up to news that a rocket landed near Tel Aviv, and the FAA has suspended all flights to Israel for 24 hours. No one was directly injured from the rocket. Initially I almost felt grateful that the rocket had landed. A couple of days ago an Israel missile expert had claimed he was certain that rockets weren't even coming from Gaza at all - or at least not in the numbers Israel was claiming. It was a conspiracy to give legitimacy to the ground invasion to Gaza. He said no missile system on earth can shoot rockets out of the air that way, so it must be a conspiracy. He is a well-respected expert, and his words were troubling to me. Then this rocket hits (and others have hit as well, before the controversy of this little conspiracy theory), and my faith is restored. Of course, no one was injured, while each day dozens of Gazans are killed or injured. So perhaps I'm simply looking for validations of my faith.

Still, I can't just sweep the situation aside. I also learned today that the UN human rights committee is meeting to discuss whether Israel has committed war crimes. I am utterly horrified by the high death toll in Gaza, as I have been by past conflicts between Israel and Gaza. Yet, I would be much more likely to take this UN committee seriously if Hamas was even mentioned. It is not. No wonder Israel has no confidence in the friendly hand the world, particularly the UN, extends it. No wonder it feels the need to act unilaterally in its own defense. Assuming that conspiracy theories are not a valid way to judge the situation, hundreds of rockets have been launched from Gaza, each with the power to take dozens of lives. The fact that they haven't done so is evidence of Israel's technological advancement, not Hamas's innocence! And this is not to mention the fact that the death toll is as high as it is, at least in part, because Hamas leaders hide the rockets and launch sites in homes, hospitals, schools, etc, and urge people NOT to leave when Israel warns them they are going to strike. They encourage the high loss of life, so that they remain the victims, and Israel the aggressor. I am not so much surprised by Hamas's strategy as I am by the international community's willingness to buy into it. THAT entirely astounds me.

July and August are generally quiet months for tourism in Israel. I didn't expect this. I do know that they are hot months, but they are vacation months - at least in the US. But I guess October-November, then March-June are the high periods. Even still, Jerusalem is very quiet. This is for a number of reasons, I believe. First, in addition to the normal drop off, tourism has all but come to a standstill. At first, people were willing to come and hope the conflict would die down. Now, they are canceling reservations in droves. My tour guide friends that I have been visiting with (for my research) have commented on the number of cancelations they have had and the hit it is to their business. They are the front line.

Jerusalem is also quiet because the Arab Israelis announced Monday that they were striking as an act of solidarity of the Palestinians of Gaza. In the news report I read, it said that all factions of Palestinians were in agreement. My personal experience is otherwise. I did find it difficult to get anything to eat for lunch yesterday - all the restaurants were indeed closed. They're closed every day. It's Ramadan. (It is rather annoying to be a non-Muslim in East Jerusalem during Ramadan. So difficult to get a meal during daylight hours!) The clothing, toy, computer shops were all open and replete with customers. Likewise, my taxi driver Monday lectured me diligently on the evils of Hamas and the tragedy of the people in Gaza captive to their leadership. (All this in Hebrew, although he was quick to point out that he was a Muslim himself.)

Yet, at night Jerusalem is NOT quiet. At least, not here in East Jerusalem. There are still a few riots, although they are not large enough to merit comment. Mostly my complaint is people out partying into the wee hours of the night. After all, during Ramadan, it is the moonlit hours that count. I hear their cars honking and people yelling and singing out my window all hours of the night. Oh, and don't get me started on the bone-jarring canon that announces the going down of the sun, for dinner, and the time for breakfast before the sun rises (7:45 pm and 4:10 am, respectively). That cursed blast must be fired from somewhere near my hotel - it sends bolts of adrenaline through me every time!

I had the opportunity to walk through the quiet streets of the Old City last night, after a very productive meeting with a tour guide. I stopped off at a restaurant to grab some dinner. I was the only client. As I sat there waiting for my carry out chicken shishlek (basically just chunks of chicken char broiled), I heard an unexpected sound: a harmonica. That is distinctly NOT Arab or Jewish, in the traditional sense. Then I heard the pinched voice of Bob Dylan rattle off, "How many roads can a man walk down..." I guess someone in the kitchen likes American folk music.

After I grabbed my food I began walking back toward Damascus gate - about a 10 minute walk. The little passageways were almost empty. Most of the shops were closed, but the ones that were open had several people, almost entirely men, huddled around a metal tray of food, eating hungrily. Not everyone was enjoying their Iftar in a group. I happened to make the mistake of looking up at a sign giving directions just as I passed a young Arab. He asked where I was trying to get to, and I said Damascus Gate. He told me to take the third left, then asked where I was from and began a conversation. He wanted to show me his shop and give me a gift. Darn it! When am I going to just stop being nice and say I don't want to see your *&^% shop! (It was open to the street - I didn't go into any back rooms, at least!) He gave me a set of earrings, and then proceeded to show me how the Bedouin greet each other with a hug. It quickly became apparent that this was more than a Bedouin greeting. I told him this made me uncomfortable, tried to give back the earrings (he wouldn't take them), and left. I got away with a mere groping and attempted kiss (he got my cheek as I pulled away).

I stewed the whole way back, my key in hand ready to slash anyone who got too close again. (I made it home without any other incident.) I was so angry - at myself, at the fact that my natural kindness and inquisitiveness is merely weakness, when I want it to be a strength; but also, and especially at this young man and a culture in which women are objects. I will admit, the longer I'm here, the more the treatment of women in Islam bothers me. Almost all the Muslim women I see here are in the hijab. Some of these hijabs are very beautiful, and the women are able to find ways to express their individuality. But I know many of them (from personal conversations), really hate having to put it on every time they leave the house. I also recognize that many of them put it on for the same reasons I wear my garments every day and don't wear short shorts or tank tops: it's a choice as an expression of what I believe. However, for many of them, it is not a choice. If they are out and about, their husbands hear of it. Their husbands own them. (I should point out here that the ultra-Orthodox Jewish culture in relation to women also bothers me. Women cast aside in a divorce because they can't bear children; unable to testify of a rape because the Old Testament does not give women the right to stand as a witness; women compelled to work, in addition to bearing and caring for several children, to support their husbands as they focus all their time and energy on Torah study.) This irritation has been further exacerbated by the fact that, although only recently (not sure why), I have seen various women with the full burka (full black dress, covering head and face, with a small slit for eyes). No individuality whatsoever. Perhaps she chooses it - it is not imposed on her. I don't know. And perhaps I'm only revealing my narrow-mindedness here. (There is a wide range of opinions and experiences among women as to their relation to their faith and the expectations/requirements it places on them.) If I am, I apologize and do hope for experiences that open my mind. For now, it really bothers me. And if I see that "Bedouin" guy again, I simply won't even acknowledge him. It is my right to act and not be acted upon.

Well, enough ranting. I have a busy day ahead. But I'm looking forward to it. My research is going quite well, under the circumstances. I believe I am over the Strep (did I mention I got Strep? Thank goodness it didn't move to my ears - we all know the history of infections and my ears!), and I'm raring to go.