this annoys me. The voice fills the room and I am sure that it can be heard on the street and in the neighboring houses. A complete disre-gard for rules of conspiracy which have shaped our lives for the last two years. Occasionally I notice that I am also being swept away. But I pull myself together and resist the hypnotism, analyzing the sen-tences and differentiating between demagogy and logical argument.
"You are the chosen few, whose blood will build the new state ..." For the first time a few clear questions form themselves in my head. State? What kind of a state? What form will it take? How will it be governed? Will it be a repressive regime or one of justice? Does the Irgun really have a clear idea about the future society?
"And if the old Zionists stand in our way, we will sweep them from the stage..."
The Irgun has already acted against the orders of the Old Man. Has he not disregarded its ideas? Isn’t he basing himself on those narrow nationalist ideas, combined with a shallow religiosity? Isn’t he also hemmed in by the narrow-mindedness of the Jewish ghetto? Has he any new ideas which the masses could follow? How can a struggle for freedom be led without offering the masses new ideas?
"We will break the Arab resistance with an iron fist..."
It may be that we will be able to found a state against the resistance of the Arabs. But then what? How will we be able to exist in a sea of Arabs full of hate? Do we want to fight an endless war? Do we want to be dependent for ever on foreign help? Today from the Italians, tomorrow from the Russians or the Americans, and the day after tomorrow, perhaps, from a new league of nations? Is it not our task to get the masses of the Arab world on our side? Should we not be developing a new idea, a vision that includes the Arabs? A vision that won’t lead to the founding of a new chauvinist ghetto state, but one that can breathe new life into the whole region around us?
The deep voice doesn’t answer any of these questions. It gets high on its own words - state, liberation, kingdom, Zion, artillery, sub-marines. I can see in the semi-dark how the eyes of my comrades are shining, how their muscles are tensed.
The speaker can feel in the darkness that he has conquered their hearts. He winds up his speech with a clever trick. "... and any of you who is afraid to accompany us on this road of sacrifice and suffering, let him get up and leave."