Israeli knesset (parliament). Photo: Chris Yunker.

Once upon a time there was leadership in Israel. David Ben Gurion was a major Zionist leader and the first prime minister of the state of Israel. Golda Meir ordered the Mossad to hunt down and assassinate suspected leaders and operatives of Black September and the PFLP, and Yitzhak Shamir was a prime minister, former Mossad-man and a part of the Etzel organization. In recent years, it is no secret that Israel has been unlucky with leadership and it is affecting not only the reality on the ground, but our future as well.

In a world with so many enemies, where anti-Semitism is alive and well on the streets of Europe and America, the understanding of the need to cultivate new leaders in Israel does not exist.

A new party, Calcala, is running in the upcoming Israeli elections. The third spot on the list is reserved for Yuval Hamebulbal, also known as “Confused Yuval.” He is a clown. Yes, Yuval performs in front of kids and has achieved fame among this audience. Don’t get me wrong, he is a funny clown and kids enjoy seeing him at shows. He even had a role in the Israeli version of dancing with the stars, and now someone has decided he needs to represent Israel in the Knesset and he agreed.

Maybe we all forgot or just missed something. But the fact is that Israel is facing a major problem. This is not a joke but a sad reality. The Jewish future is being written, and more than ever we need strong, brave Zionist personalities to stand at the forefront. Israel doesn’t need famous and attractive people in the government. We need leaders.

The Jewish nation used to have a different face. Remember David? Small but strong and powerful. We had the face of a survivor and a warrior. We always believed in peace but we knew how to fight our enemies. We sent our people to speak around the world and to represent our vision and to fight for it. We were loud, even if other countries didn’t like what we had to say. Where is the Israeli voice today?

When my grandfather and aunt came to Israel on the Exodus boat, they knew that the country’s leaders would stand and fight for a better future. Unfortunately, this is not the case anymore. So what now?