David Suissa is Publisher & Editor-in-Chief of Tribe Media/Jewish Journal, where he has been writing a weekly column on the Jewish world since 2006. In 2015, he was awarded first prize for "Editorial Excellence" by the American Jewish Press Association. Prior to Tribe Media, David was founder and CEO of Suissa Miller Advertising, a marketing firm named “Agency of the Year” by USA Today. He sold his company in 2006 to devote himself full time to his first passion: Israel and the Jewish world. David was born in Casablanca, Morocco, grew up in Montreal, and now lives in Los Angeles with his five children.
Maybe it’s because our 250th birthday is right around the corner. Or maybe it’s a statement of defiance, a way of telling Jew-haters I’m giving them the very opposite of what they want.
Israelis seem to have a special affinity for that electric energy of the here and now. Maybe that is how the country has made it this far— millions and millions of “What do we do now?”
I was no longer on my laptop writing about Israel-hatred. I was on a street corner confronting that hatred. If I could write in my columns about the need for a winning attitude, this was now my chance to show it.
It’s not easy to think about love during times of crisis. When the battles facing us are so hard, we don’t look for emotions that appear soft. When we’re surrounded by hate, we don’t run to something like love.
Emphasizing Israel’s value to America must become a community-wide effort. From the ADL to the AJC to the Federation system to Hillel and every pro-Israel activist group in the country, the collective priority must be to strengthen the U.S.—Israeli relationship.
What are we to make of such flimsy evidence behind such incendiary and harmful accusations? Perhaps one answer is that the Times must have a reflex for assaulting Israel’s image.
In his column, Schapiro has written about a range of subjects, including the need for hope and optimism and improving the public discourse. But he has also expressed supportive views of Israel, and that was a bridge too far for a group of law students.
While so many Angelenos have lost trust in the political class, Miller is asking us not to lose faith. He sees competence as the road back.
Behind this humble and obscure day lies an idea that can reenergize our lives.
A “joke” on the possible death of a president doesn’t win you the glory of becoming a free speech martyr with your Trump-hating comrades. It just makes you a lousy comedian.