The irony of the situation is hard to miss. If Israel is a Jewish State — and is seen as responsible for promoting halacha and sponsoring Yeshivas etc –shouldn’t all its citizens act with Zrezus to contribute to the survival of this state? Of course, Israel is seen as only a medina, and one that is not 100% (or even 50%, or 25%) kosher by many charedim. So why contribute to such an enterprise? One really can’t have it both ways: (1) Expecting the state to promote and sponsor Yiddishkeit; (2) Refusing to participate in the defense and economic health of the state because it is not Heilig. Having said that, there are better ways for the state to proceed than it has been doing. One can’t change a situation that was built on political deals overnight. Nor is it right to attack all Charedim for proceeding on a path that was agreed upon for years. Finally, the business of Tzava is in many respects symbolic and designed with less than up and up intentions — do they really think a Golani or Shaldag or 669 or any sayeret unit is screaming for a Yeshiva guy? Probably not.
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