I couldn’t help but think of the topic of boats sailing off the coast of Israel in times long ago, and also in recent weeks.
In the last couple of weeks, we had the nefarious boat carrying Greta Thunberg and her “selfie flotilla” who certainly did not have Israel’s best interests at heart and thankfully seem to be fading from public consciousness.
This week, the latest boat sailing off the Israeli coast seemed to be cruise ship that was evacuating 1500 Birthright participants from Israel to Cyprus and hopefully safely on to their home destinations after a bizzare end to their Birthright experience in Israel.
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-858061
But I wonder how many of us are old enough to remember a different ship. Namely, the one that used to sail quixotnically up and down the coast of Israel, just offshore Israel’s territorial waters, carrying a peace crusader by the name of Avraham “Abie” Nathan who used to broadcast the good old American rock and roll music that Israeli radio so lacked in the 70s, 80s and 90s…
“One of my fondest memories of my early years in Israel was the late afternoons. As the sun edged toward the horizon to make way for evening, I would turn the dial of my pre-digitized radio to 1540 AM to tune in to the “Voice of Peace” radio station and listen to the enchanting and tranquil melody by The Eagles, “I Wish You Peace”, which the station played every day at sunset.
Abie Nathan passed away at the age of 81.
Abie Nathan was a peace activist and lifelong maverick, who made a career of pushing the envelope. He advocated positions when they weren’t popular and waited for the rest of Israeli society to play catch-up. He employed controversial methods that most of his fellow countrymen thought “uncouth”. He exposed himself to harsh criticism and even put his own safety and health on the line in order to challenge the stagnant normative refrain of Israeli society: “There is no Arab partner for peace”.
https://www.progressiveisrael.org/in-memory-of-abie-nathan-the-original-voice-of-peace/
“… From somewhere in the Mediterranean, this is the Voice of Peace broadcasting on…
So when you look at these three boats, you think of three very different situations with three very different political leanings, but all of them related in some small way to Israel.
I hope we have Shalom (peace) sometime soon and may the Ayatollahs be defeated as soon as possible.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLFsMq2th_Y/?igsh=MXZjM21kc21seGV0Zg==
The Tao of Steve 