Oil and gas prices continue to rise (which in turn cause just about everything else to rise in price), and these are things that one should keep their eyes open to, and more importantly understand what the potential consequences might be for Jews. I'm no prophet, but still the Talmud says that a wise person sees tomorrow today. Jews should not just hear the news, but they should study it from the perspective of Jewish national
destiny. Historically speaking, when economic hardship hits the gentile host countries where Jews dwell, it often does not bode well for Jews.

History often repeats itself, and one should therefore keep their eyes open and not delude themsleves. One should not become too comfortable living in Golus, no matter how wonderful it may have seemed till now. We already see that violence ravages the land of America even prior to any economic problems. And to those who point to the 1930's depression as proof that things might not end up being so terrible for Jews
in America in an economic collapse, consider this: Back then, gentiles did not have the things they have gotten accustomed to today by any stretch of the imagination. One who has something and loses it is infinitely more dangerous than one who never had it at all. I have even read from gentile columnists that the only thing that keeps the social
fabric of the USA from descending into much worse violence and chaos is the pursuit of materialism and money that so many gentiles live for. Take that away from them, and their raison d'être falls apart. The wild beasts that are within them can come pouring forth. And the Jew is the likely scapegoat, as is usually the case. When in dire straits, davening and mitzva observance is great and necessary; but at least of equal importance is realizing that such frightening events are part of Jewish national destiny
where G-d is compelling the end of dwelling in exile.

Here is some more food for thought. All of the major airlines in the US are teetering on the verge of bankruptcy and ultimately insolvency chapter 7. This is not due just to the current high fuel costs they have, but because the very business model of the airline industry is terrible. Their debt to equity ratios are not just bad, but practically impossible. The main issue here is that between them all, they employ hundreds of thousands of workers, all of whom would end up losing their jobs in such a scenario. Again, a Jew should not hear this and think, "Nu, so what? It's in Hashem's hands and one should not think about and discuss such non-Torah matters with more than a cursory interest..." No, I don't agree with such an attitude. From a Jewish perspective, one should study such potential events and view them within a greater context of Jewish destiny, i.e. what often happens to Jews when there is high unemployment in their host country? Who is often made into the scapegoat by the rabble?

The Stock Market collapse is another ominous event to consider from a Jewish perspective. There are trillions tied up into this scheme, including pension fund monies. I'm not predicting that it will happen today or tomorrow, but with the vast majority of participants involved holding up the pyramid being from the soon-to-be retiring baby boomer generation, which means that when they reach the age of retirement or sooner they will almost certainly need to sell their stocks to raise cash to pay their bills, causing massive selling pressure on all stocks regardless of the companies' financial situations. It seems that that in itself would spiral stocks downhill very quickly, leaving few buyers and almost all sellers. The point is, this pyramid scheme system could leave many many Americans in dire straits financially...and desperate people often do desperate things, and that includes turning to the type of leadership that we saw the Germans turn to prior to WWII.

Now, given this possibility, is it not a good thing to have a country that has a current law of return that applies to Jews "just in case" my scenario turns out to be true? Do you really believe it is better to push for a scenario where Arabs are ruling the Land of Israel? When they do I can guarantee you they will outlaw the current Law of Return. Meaning, Jews who will be living in Chutz La’aretz, including yourself, will not be permitted entry into the Land of "Palestine." That is, you will have nowhere to flee to "just in case" am I right? Do you really want to be party to such a scenario happening to the Jewish people including yourself by promoting the concept of "no more Law of Return for Jews" by way of your promoting the idea of Arab rule over Israel? Just another thing to consider.

Meir