When I was flying on combat missions over the Gulf of Tonkin on RC135 aircraft stationed at Kadena AB, Okinawa, many of my fellow crew members had the number 55 embroidered on their flight suits. Most people did not know what this meant. Those of us who knew, just smiled. The language spoken in Okinawa is Japanese. A high percentage of crew members on that plane, like me, were Vietnamese Linguists.  We were all very adept at picking up additional languages. The way to say 55 in Japanese is “go-jū go”. To an American who heard this, it sounded like “go jew go”. It was a way to show support for Israel, without being “politically incorrect.” Even today whenever I see 55, I am reminded of the six-day war.

Prior to the Balfour Declaration, about 90% of the people in Palestine were of Arab descent. They owned most of the land. However, after the establishment of the nation of Israel, that changed dramatically. When the Oslo Accords were signed, there were about 110,000 Jewish settlers living in the West Bank, which includes East Jerusalem. There are now more than 700,000 of them. It should be no surprise to learn that many of the Palestinians think their land was stolen from them by the Jewish settlers.

Like most Americans, I understand the reason for establishing the Nation of Israel. Prior to that time, there seemed to be no place on earth where Jewish people could even hope to live in peace. But sometimes peace often comes at a very high cost. One thing is certain, the nation of Israel is surrounded by people who long for its’ destruction.

Perhaps the best lesson to learn here is the high cost of fighting a war where no one is victorious. During World War II the United States and its allies defeated both Japan and Germany. Prior to their defeat, the Japanese people were determined to defeat the U.S. at any cost. But now, Japan is one of our best friends. The same is true regarding Germany. Our relationship with Germany is not as strong as with Japan, but the German people are no longer considered a threat to us.

But that did not happen in the Middle East. The Gaza Strip has about 2.3 million inhabitants. Gaza is not exactly a garden spot; the unemployment rate is reportedly about 45%. There were numerous problems with terrorist attacks in Israel that originated in Gaza. In desperation, Israel built a wall leaving only one entry point to or from Israel from Gaza. Technically Israel no longer occupies Gaza, but it has full control over Gaza’s borders, airspace, and territorial waters. Now Hamas is attacking Israel from Gaza and other places using rockets, a lot of rockets. Does anyone really doubt that Iran is furnishing these rockets? Israel reports at least 2,200 rockets, Hamas says more than 5,000 rockets. In addition, Hamas terrorist operatives have infiltrated into Israel in several locations. Israel has announced it is at war with Hamas.

In the ultimate irony, this happened just days after Jake Sullivan announced that the region was “quieter today than it has been in two decades.” Nailed it!  In a total coincidence, this happened just a few weeks after the Biden administration gave Iran access to $6 billion in funds, stupidly saying Iran could not use them to promote terrorism. What could possibly go wrong? We can all breathe easier knowing that someone like Joe Biden is Commander in Chief during this challenging time. We can be sure that Iran is absolutely terrified.

The good news is that this is impossible to ignore. Even hard-core left wing activist Democrats are confronted with the reality of a dangerous world. This is a stark reminder of why the President of the United States matters. Even the MSM cannot spin this away. They may try, and fail, to blame Israel or even Donald Trump, but the reality is that this happened on Joe Biden’s watch and there is zero chance he will handle this well.

In May 1940, Neville “Peace in our time” Chamberlain was Prime Minister of Great Britain. Hitler had invaded Poland and theoretically World War II had already begun. But Chamberlain was still occupying space. Then in May 1940, German troops invaded Norway and there was nothing Chamberlain could do to stop them. Leo Avery pointed at Chamberlain and said: “You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go.” (He was quoting Oliver Cromwell). Just days later, German invaded France, Chamberlain resigned, and Winston Churchill became the new Prime Minister.

One thing is certain, few people are going to have any confidence that Joe Biden is remotely capable of handling this. Change is on the way. In the meantime, we all better be praying that Israel wins this one. 55