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There is one fiction about Israel that is common even
among some very good friends and supporters of Israel. And that is the notion
that Israel in general and Jerusalem in particular are dangerous places to
visit. In the minds of many, terror is ever-present and the recent stabbings of
innocents has only abetted this notion.
An issue
that come up when recruiting for trips to Israel is how safe is it to visit
there. Spouses and parents worry greatly when their loved ones go to Israel and
even my son, Yoni's school almost called off their graduating class Israel trip a few
months back.
During my visit two weeks ago, we had the good fortune of meeting
the mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat. He pointed out that there is a universal
method and statistic to judge how safe a city may or may not be. And that is to
see how many murders there are per 100,000 residents.
When you
do your homework on this issue, you will find that
-
Caracas,
Venezuela is the most dangerous city in the world with 120 murders per 100,000
residents.
-
St.
Louis tops the US cities with 59;
-
Detroit
has 44.
-
London,
England with 1.5.
-
And
guess where Jerusalem finds itself on this scale? Alongside London with 1.5. So
let me ask you, when you hear of someone going to London, do you wish them,
"Come back safe"? Do you worry for them?
If you
expand your research beyond Mr. Barkat's presentation and look at the overall crime index of cities worldwide you will find
that once again
-
Caracas
is the worst of the 277 cities studied with an index of 85.9.
-
Detroit
comes in at number 12 with an index of 75.75,
-
Miami at
66 with a score of 57.41,
-
London
at 120 with a score of 47.24 and
- War torn Calgary is listed at 212
- Jerusalem is way down at number 236
So as
Mr. Barkat related to us, when people regularly wish us a good trip when we
visit Israel and "to come back safe", he turns that greeting on its
head and when he knows someone visiting the USA with its much higher murder and
crime rate, he wishes for them to return safely from the USA to
Israel.
People
have this false impression of Israel because whenever any act of violence
between Palestinians and Israel occurs, it becomes sensational international
news. But almost all of the shootings and stabbings in St. Louis, Detroit,
Miami or even Calgary are merely local news that never make it beyond their
respective newspapers.
Truth be
told, I admit that when I was leaving Jaffe Gate after Shabbat at nighttime and
passing many Arab young men, I did glance over my shoulder. But at the same
time, whenever I drive I-95, I am also glancing over my shoulder to check my
blind spot for drivers zipping into the next lane or drivers distracted by
texting as they lane-drift like drunks. In fact, last year when my daughter, Tzippy
spent the year in Israel and the stabbings were more frequent, people would ask
me if I was worried about her. And I always answered the same way, "I am
more worried about my son Yoni driving up and down I-95 to school each day than
Tzippy walking the streets of Jerusalem."
So if
safety is your issue and that is what animates much of your life, then it might
be time to pick yourself up and move to Jerusalem – a lively and vibrant city
where little children walk the streets alone, thousands hang out late into the
night at bars and restaurants, where the Light Rail Train zips within inches of
people (including me) along Jaffe Road without incident, barriers or lawsuits,
and where violence and crime is at one of the lowest rates in the whole world.
Not only will you be safe in Jerusalem, but you get all the great spiritual
benefits that go along with being at the place that Jewish tradition calls The
Gateway to Heaven and where you can touch and feel God's Presence.
