Anyusername,
Well, apparently not, but the question is how long this initial phase will last. The Rambam supports Shmuel’s opinion, but that isn’t the final word. Nobody has the answer. Even the opinion that the world will be destroyed for a period of time is a machlokes. And if yes, the question is for how long, or does it even mean literally.
Avi K…..That Rashi is actually ad loc in Sanhedrin and the gemarrah itself says so…. That the abundant fruits is yet the greatest sign of geula… EY has for thousands of years yielded norhing to any occupier or invader in abundance. Mark Twain described how desolate and forlorn EY is when he visited there 120 years ago. The signs of geula are here .. But only believers see it. The naysers have their heads and shitot in the sand.. Too bad.