somejew, quoting Chofetz Chaim> and for salvation by way of war, meaning, by fleeing and thereby being saved. And behold — whenever we have followed this tried and true strategy, Hashem has saved us from our enemies.
I hope this quote is not taken out of context – I only saw it on anti-Z websites. Taking as it is, Chofetz Chaim here raises a verifiable position: if we follow him, Hashem will save us. Sadly, this position utterly failed in pre-WW2 Europe – Jews were slaughtered first in Soviet Russia during his lifetime and soon after his petirah by Nazis. Furthermore, I suggest reading his letters in 1920s in Poland during the wave of assimilation – Chofetz Chaim is pained by what is happening, but he is not offering any solutions beyond “have at least one kosher heder in a town”. So, by his own definition, Chofetz Chaim’s position was proven wrong. Same as R Akiva did not defend Bar Kochhba after the latter’s failure, Chofetz Chaim presumably would not cling to the same position were he lived through those facts. As some say, big tzaddikim are taken from the world before punishment comes …