For nearly 3000 years, Hebrews and their Jewish successors have been the most well distributed traders in the world. Because of successive military defeats, and plain old opportunistic settling, there were more Jews living outside Judea than within by the year 0 CE. All around the Mediterranean and many other places as well. Everywhere Jews settled, they set up trading operations (and often banking too). Often taking the place of Phoenicians, who had blazed this trail first, but who suffered great defeats in their home Canaanite cities and were never restored (as a Temple, not a state) by a friendly power as Jews were under the Iranians (aka Persians) under the ancient multiculturalist Cyrus. Phoenicia lived on for awhile just as Carthage, only to be sacked by Rome in 146 CE.
In the first millenium BCE, and sometimes later, Judaism was very successful at getting converts, especially marry-ins to successful Jewish families. Later, Rome levied special taxes on Jews which meant that people tended to convert to Christianity instead (a religion which had originally been created by Jews), and for quite awhile there were Jewish Christians too, a loophole that was closed down when it was de-recognized by both Jews and Christians around 500 CE.
This trading gig was even more true in the first millenium when the Talmud was being written. Talmudic education was designed to be training for being an international trader. It attempts to answer the questions of how you can be fair and respected to your customers and clients, and still make a profit too, and also make your family successful in a hostile or indifferent land.
When I grew up in LA, it seemed almost every kind of specialty shop was owned by Jews. Hifi, Cameras, whatever. And I remember these Jewish shopkeepers very favorably, they gave me good prices and good advice. (Later Arabs and Indians took over, but that was after my time in LA.)
Which is one more reason why the exploding pager debacle is so incredibly self-defeating for Jews.
Many people point out we can no longer trust electronics, and that is true, the image of safety has been blown up.
What few realize, is that it adds uncertainty to the 3000 year trust Jews earned in banking and trading.
And not just Jews...any country which is friendly to Israel.
It wasn't just technology, it was technology that passed through the hands of various trading firms in different countries. That was where the explosives were planted. (Note: actually, they may have been planted while being held in an extended "customs" in some western allied country, where Mossad in some guise was permitted to "inspect" (modify) them. So what we may be talking about is not trading but security work. A lot of what Israelis do these days. It matters little to the argument I am making as it all relies on trust.)
Defending a state built on and sustained by violence may lead to such things as antisemitism, which is not good for business, which is probably why the Talmudic sages wrote the Three Oaths as coming from God, that no Jewish State can be created before the Messiah comes. (Sadly, that wasn't strong enough, there have been endless claimants to this Messiah thing, including the ill fated Bar Kochba, and later arguments appeared as to why The Oaths and earlier warnings in the Torah as well no longer applied though no ancient Talmudic Sages or Hebrew Prophets reappeared to say this.)
The only way to start earning back that trust, is completely repudiating Zionism. No Jewish State in Palestine, not now, not ever.
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