They want to kill us

I want to take you into the everyday world of Israel's existential war. Existential War: Fighting for survival to avoid being wiped out.

Excuse my chutzpah, but I want a lot more than that. I want the right to a normal, peaceful life – I don't want neighbors whose goal is to destroy us.

How close would you get to areas that have not been evacuated but are theoretically within missile range? You have to ask yourself: Will there be air raid sirens while driving? While I'm there? An appointment at Ceders-Sinai: Should I go? I wear clothes that won't get too messed up if I have to jump out of the car and lie on the ground with my hands over my head.

These are our daily dilemmas. Fears. Stress. Who accepts this in a recognized, sovereign country?

Excuse my chutzpah, but I'm tired of hearing that we have the right to defend ourselves against terrorist rockets, missiles, drones and anti-tank missiles. I'm tired of being forced to play defense until we're so outgunned that we get short-lived international clearance to fight back. Not to win. Just to postpone it until next time.

Israel left Lebanon in 2000 and Gaza in 2005. We did not start this war.

So I have to ask: Why are we still subjected to bombings – whether sporadic (Lebanon) or routine (Gaza) – almost from the day we left? Not just since October 7th.

It's very simple.

They want to kill us. They are terrorists who want to kill Jews.

Fears of an invasion like the one in the south on October 7 led to the evacuation of more than 60,000 residents along the northern border. Even when that threat subsided, residents did not return. The North faced deadly and destructive attacks, particularly from anti-tank missiles with a range of nine miles – too close to shoot down or take cover. These “internal refugees” lived in overcrowded hotel rooms and guesthouses while all attempts at a diplomatic solution failed.

That's not a bad thing. Negotiations, withdrawals and UN agreements never got us anywhere, but they gave these terrorist organizations time to regroup, replenish and grow in numbers. They don't stick to agreements. They don't want neighborly relationships. They don't want us.

Why is it so difficult to understand this?

The Israeli army is finally taking aggressive measures that will hopefully allow residents to return:

To their homes, if those structures are still standing and habitable;

To their farms when their livestock and crops have not burned to the ground;

To their schools if they are not afraid to ride the school bus;

To their place of work, if they still have a job, if they haven't filed for bankruptcy.

Sounds extreme? Imagine Beverly Hills, population about 32,000 according to the 2020 US Census Bureau. Empty. Abandon houses, shops and schools. Visions of a coronavirus lockdown, but with deadly rocket fire as well. Some buildings have collapsed on the expansive sidewalks, their interiors blown through glass windows onto Wilshire Blvd. Or the Fairfax district (12,500) with the Farmers Market clock tower now in ruins among the stalls. The Grove is a ghost town.

Remember hiding under desks in the 1950s and early '60s? Now Israeli children riding school buses in border areas are taught to hide under seats or lean away from windows while covering their heads. You have 15 seconds. If they are in a “30 second” zone, the adults riding with them can try to keep them off the bus and away from vehicles, and make sure they are on the ground and covering their heads. Thirty seconds. Would you send your children on a school bus under these conditions?

We don’t want a “right to self-defense.” We demand the right to life without We have to defend ourselves every day.

We don’t want a “right to self-defense.” We demand the right to life without We have to defend ourselves every day.

Pardon my chutzpah for wishing for lasting security and a normal life in the new year. A new year that will bring the return of the hostages, the return of our citizens to their homes and the return of our reservists to their families.

Shana Tova.

Galia Miller jump In 1970, she moved from Southern California to Israel to become a pioneer farmer. Today she is an author and editor.