JERUSALEM -- This week, 4,000 American Jews convened in Los Angeles for their annual General Assembly. The theme of this year, trumpeted in June by the organizers, the United Jewish Communities, was ''Be with the Stars.'' Then Hezbolla kidnapped two Israeli soldiers, the war broke out, and everything changed. The initial motto was replaced by ''Together on the Front Line: One People, One Destiny,'' more befitting the change in circumstances.
While this response is a testimony to the deep bond between American Jews and Israel, it also highlights the fragility of the relationship. The organized Jewish community can mobilize support in times of crisis in Israel; it finds it more difficult to do it in times of calm, because, regrettably, Israel does not enjoy the same status of identity focus for American Jews as before.
The Jewish People Policy Planning Institute, based in Jerusalem, stated in its annual assessment for 2006 that, "The young generation [of American Jews] expresses dissatisfaction with the performance of many established organizations and see them as irrelevant.''
In other words, many young American Jews, despite their growing interest in their Jewish identity, and despite the crisis in Israel, will not attend the General Assembly in Los Angeles this week. Why? Because they have alternatives, as shown by a poll of the Reboot organization, entitled "Grand Soy Vanilla Latte with Cinnamon, no Foam: Jewish Identity and Community in a Time of Unlimited Choices.''
If the established American Jewish community gets older, and young cohorts are not following in big numbers, does this mean that in the future, it will become more difficult to secure the traditional American foreign aid to Israel? Attacks on the pro-Israeli Jewish lobby, like the paper by professors Mearsheimer and Walt, have already been torn to shreds by Prof. Alan Dershowitz and others. However, James Wolfenson, former president of the World Bank and special representative of the ''Quartet'' of International Mediators in the Middle East Peace Settlement, just spoke at a Jewish event in Chicago, and according to the Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot, he made some telling remarks.
Wolfenson, no foe of Israel, reportedly cautioned his listeners that a new global situation is emerging in which America will find it more difficult to back Israel: the Iraqi quagmire, the growing demand for oil, changing demographics in the United States and more. There were two years left, he predicted, before Israel is pushed out of the focus of the U.S. administration, and therefore, in the time left, American Jews should work hard for Israel and maximize gains for it.
Two years, and then what? If I were Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, I would in my speech at the General Assembly call upon American Jews not only to continue supporting Israel in the good old way, but also to develop a new strategy for their relations with Israel. Those who wish so should either emigrate to Israel or spend meaningful times of their lives there, thus becoming fuller partners in its lot. Wealthy Jews, who make generous donations to Israel, should also consider investing in its thriving economy.
'Handsome returns'
The myth that one can't make business in Israel is long broken: just ask a non-Jew, Warren Buffet, the world's greatest investor, who has recently decided to invest $4 billion in Israel. Elliott Broidy of Los Angeles, co-founder and chairman of Marxton Capital Partners, which invests heavily in Israel, is an example of how, in his words, "You can make handsome returns and help Israel's economy, too.''
By making Israel stronger economically, American Jews will also help in making Israel less dependent on American aid. This will resonate well within Israeli-American relations as well.
This article was first published in The Miami Herald on November 17, 2006.
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The opinions expressed herein are the author's own personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect those of the Israel Democra