My girlfriend is a Jew, from a long line of Jews. She's been to Israel on two separate trips, each about a month in length.

Her parents have both been to Israel multiple times, a total of a few months between them.

She has family living in Israel right now. Shitloads of cousins.

Their experiences have informed my view. Also, my reading of history has informed my view.

I see it this way:

Israel is a result of general western sympathy for the Holocaust and the many pogroms and general anti-semitism of the previous 1000s of years. Its location in Moses' promised land was both a huge tactical error and an example of poetic justice. There's so much nuance in this story.

The idea of a Jewish homeland is sweet, so sweet, after how Jews have been persecuted throughout the ages. I went to law school, a solid 10% of my class was Jews (also, there were a more-than-population percentage of Mormons and Asians there, too). Jews in America are doing just fine nowadays. Jews in Europe are doing just fine, now, too. And a big part of that success story is their culture of perseverance and hard work.

Jews do not receive any benefits in admissions protocol. Women, African-Americans, Latinos are given priority. Jews and Asians are the minorities that receive no help in admissions or minority categories. If you're a white male, well, fuck you, hopefully you've got the stats to go the distance (I did, full ride scholarship at law school at a first tier school).

I digress. Jews, like Israel, have a complicated story to tell. Yes, they are totally killing it now. But from creation to about 50 years ago, they were mostly poor, uneducated, and persecuted.

Israel's location in the holy land was a terrible idea. It guaranteed that the Jewish nation would be surrounded by anti-semites. Luckily for Israel, they had a big friend in Uncle Sam. Uncle Sam gave Israel the tech they needed to win the 6 day war. And every war since. Before the 6 day war, Israel was nothing but a couple hard-core Jews that decided they weren't going to take no shit from nobody. They built that country out of their own bones.

I think modern Israel is too hard. But I can't imagine what it's like to be them. They inherited a desert country and turned it into a green country, full of life. They turned a shithole into a great place to visit.

But living there is another story. They are still surrounded by people who hate them because of who they are and wish to eradicate them from the Earth. I can't blame Israel for being hard as fuck.

Israel is the best at what they do. I have no doubt that regardless of the politics of the moment, Israel will get Israel some.