The Israel Conversation

402 When can we critique the government?   “Don’t swap horses in the middle of the stream” - associated with Abraham Lincoln’s re-election campaign.  Israelis, and Zionists worldwide, consistently complain about whatever government is in power.  But in the middle of a war, what are the rules? Can we openly critique, complain or even demand change of a government in the middle of a national crisis?...

401 - Proportionality and International Humanitarian Law (IHL) After defining proportionality (enjoy the audio clip from the West Wing) there is so much to debate about the ethical conduct of the current war. While it is difficult for citizens to debate these issues with limited information, it is arguably their duty to do so. Is Israel correctly protecting civilian life in Gaza? Should it be send...

308 Framing the Conflict Post October 7 Israelis and Zionists all had to have some understanding of the conflict with Palestinian Arabs. This was as true before October 7th as afterwards. In what ways do we need to reframe those understandings after the massacres? What discomforting truths did we avoid? What misconceptions have been disproven?  Calev hosts this episode’s debate, where Benji takes...

Israel Citizens Filling the Breach When Government Fails This is an era when citizens around the world don’t have a tremendous amount of trust in government. Israelis and Jews around the world are still shaken by the intelligence and operational failures that led to the October 7th massacres. In the weeks and months since, many are still complaining that the work still isn’t being taken care of. W...

Are Shoah Analogies Appropriate? We are all living with the trauma of the post October 7th world. It is often referred to as the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. But do comparisons to the Shoah help us contextualize and understand the world we live in? Or are any such comparisons not at best unhelpful, and at worst inappropriate? Can those analogies help us understand the victims? The p...

Who should be hired to do the labor in Israel? Evidence has been uncovered that Arab laborers from the Gaza strip provided Hamas with intel on the Israeli towns where they worked. In the wake of this shocking news, Israelis are debating who to hire for many basic jobs. How should we balance insecurity with inclusivity? Should Israeli Arabs return to work in Israeli Jewish businesses? What about We...

Should Israel Fight Hezbollah? While most of our attention is on the war in Gaza, there has been constant combat on our northern border. Will the battle with Hezbollah heat up to a full scale war? Should it? While war is always horrible, should Israel extend the conflict and eliminate Hezbollah as it has pledged to do to Hamas?  Benji hosts this episode’s debate, where Calev takes the position tha...

What will happen after the war? When the dust settles, what will Gaza look like? What would be success for Israelis? What could make a better future for Gazans? While the war is far from over, the question is already relevant.  Many are speaking about this issue in Israel and around the world. While we aren’t privy to the discussions behind the scenes where people in power are working the plans ou...

What will winning the war look like? This episode was recorded before the deal to recover hostages was announced.  Has Israel set realistic goals in its war with Hamas? What would victory look like? Is it possible to eliminate Hamas as an organization? As an idea? Can the hostages be rescued? Can Israel win the public relations battle? Should it?  Join us as we dissect these complex events, aiming...

How did we get here? In this gripping podcast episode, Calev, Alan, and Matt delve into the intricate factors that led to the October 7 massacre. Was it a result of tactical errors, intelligence failures, or misinterpretations of Hamas' intentions? Or does the root cause trace back to Israel's strategic decision to disengage from Gaza in 2005?  Join us as we dissect these complex events, aiming to...

Special: Israel at War - Episode 3 Crisis on Campus In this third special current event episode, Calev, Liel and Mike, discuss what is happening outside of Israel in college campuses during Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza. How should students understand the anti-Israel protests? What should they do?  We hope these special episodes help our listeners understand and process these difficult events in...

Special: Israel at War - Episode 2 What happens next?  In this second of two special current event episodes, Mike, Alan, Mordechai and Jordana discuss what may come next in Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza. They share their feelings and observations in this difficult time. We hope these special episodes help our listeners understand and process these difficult events in order to build up our own re...

Special Israel at War - Episode 1 Where are we now?  In this first of two special current event episodes, Calev, Liel and Matt discuss where we are on day 4 of Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza. They share their feelings and observations in this difficult time. We hope these special episodes help our listeners understand and process these difficult events in order to build up our own resilience. Tog...

Are there boundaries to Jewish caricatures?  We didn’t even know that Ben was recording. But he was!  He recorded our discussion of a political cartoon. ( you can look at it on this link ) It made Matt particularly uncomfortable and we debate its appropriateness.  The issue was that the government was defunding existing programs to transfer more money to Haredi causes and institutions. And so the...

Should Israel Do More to Support Ukraine? Israel faces a complex dilemma when it comes to supporting Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. On one hand, Israel maintains strong historical ties with Russia, particularly regarding the Russian-speaking Jewish community. Russia has also been a key player in regional stability, particularly in Syria, where Israel has concerns about Iranian influence. Isr...

Haredi Draft The debate over drafting the Haredim, or ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Israel, has been a contentious issue in the country for several decades. At its core, the debate revolves around the question of whether or not Haredi men should be subject to compulsory military service like the rest of the Israeli population. This issue stems from a historical exemption granted to the Haredi...

Can Israel Have a Constitution?  Israel’s Declaration of Independence calls for a “Constitution which shall be adopted by the Elected Constituent Assembly not later than the 1st October 1948...". It doesn’t look like we’re going to make the deadline. The current judicial reform crisis exists because of that. So too the current crisis over the role of the Attorney General . There simply aren’t agre...

Apartheid Type the word “ apartheid ” into a google search bar and the second search that pops up is “apartheid Israel”. We’ve all heard the accusation. It is also a demonstrably false descriptor for the State of Israel. This ridiculous calumny may make a nasty sound-bite sized accusation. But for anyone genuinely trying to understand the conflict, it clearly fails to explain anything in an honest...

Is There a Future for the Jewish Diaspora ?  Jews have been living outside of the land of Israel for thousands of years. It is a historical truth that this process started by enemies driving them into exile. But these diaspora communities settled in, expanded, and continued to migrate around the globe for over two millennia.  In the 20th century, Jews chose two strategies for building a thriving J...

Herzl vs. Ahad Ha’am There is an old saying that “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” We deeply believe that knowing the history of Zionist debate brings a richness of perspective and understanding to the issues that we face today. So we submit for your approval one of the first deep debates that divided the Zionist world.  In past episodes when we’ve mentioned Ahad Ha’am in pass...

Does Israel Need America?  Everyone knows that Israel and America have a strong relationship. As allies their economic, political, military, and cultural ties are deeply rooted. It remains so across multiple administrations in each of the countries.  But is America a necessary ally for Israel? What would happen if that relationship changed? Could Israel survive and thrive if for some reason it los...

Note: This is the beginning of season 9, which is season 2 of our new debate format!  We decided to get this episode published in a timely fashion. Normally, our debates are meant to be “evergreen” educational discussions about Israel and Zionism.  But we’re breaking the format because so many people are asking how to process the Knesset vote this week. What does the removal of the unreasonablenes...

We are excited to announce the upcoming second season of our new debate format! This episode was recorded and edited by the amazing Ben Wallick Studios . Ben is awesome! Theme music by Akiva Y. Unterberg. Masa Website Facebook page Please rate, review, share and recommend our podcast.

How Should Diaspora Jews Express their Ideas About Israeli Politics? Note: This is the end of the season and our podcast will be on a brief hiatus. Keep subscribed for season 9!  There are several factors that can make it complicated for diaspora Jews to express their opinions on Israeli politics. Here are a few: Lack of firsthand experience: Diaspora Jews may not have firsthand experience living...

Should Israeli Reserve Soldiers Refuse to Serve as Protests? The protests against Judicial Reform have continued on a smaller scale over the past weeks. With Passover behind us, and the national holiday season underway, Israelis are gearing up for whatever is coming next.  One aspect of the protests in particular has been hotly debated. Should reservist soldiers refuse to perform their duties (“mi...