THE PARABLE OF THE WONDERFUL BANK ROBBERS

I have written the following analogy in an attempt to expose the twisted logic that reflects our leaders’ reasoning regarding moving our embassy to West Jerusalem. Suppose some criminals have robbed the same bank several times, and the authorities know that these criminals are keeping the stolen money in their home in an upstairs bedroom. However, due to a legal technicality, the money cannot be recovered, and the criminals cannot be arrested. Even though the mayor and the city council know that these criminals robbed this bank more than once and are keeping the stolen money in an upstairs bedroom, they accept an invitation from the criminals to come to a series of dinner parties in their home.

The city’s leaders truly know in their hearts that it is wrong to openly support those involved in criminal activity. But, on the other hand, they feel that in this unique case, there are extenuating circumstances, which justify their support of blatant illegal activity. Their justifications are:

- The parents and the grandparents of the robbers endured much suffering and injustice.

- The robbers are not the kind of persons that you would expect to rob banks.

- These particular criminals maintain a very nice house in a respectable part of the city.

- The city officials have a much stronger personal relationship with the bank robbers than they have with those who own the bank that was robbed.

- The bank management has made statements, which have offended the city officials.

- The officials would not be eating in the part of the house where the stolen money is being kept, but would be eating in another part of the house.

- The bank robbers are such impressive people that the city officials do not think that it should be against the law for these particular robbers to rob this                   particular bank.

- The bank robbers could do certain favors for the mayor and city council like being tough with bank personnel or any of their friends who might give the city officials a hard time.

- One of the members of the bank robbery team had grown up in the same neighborhood as the city officials, spoke their neighborhood dialect, and had impressed the officials when he had spoken at their meetings. This was in contrast to the bank personnel who were all total strangers to the city officials.

- The mayor and city officials could not appreciate the style of clothing worn by the bank manager. But they liked the clothes worn by the bank robbers because they were so much like their own.

- The bank robbers and the city officials had such a close symbiotic relationship that the city officials had actually given weapons to the bank robbers, for them to use in their robberies.

But this final reason is what totally convinces them that it is right to attend the dinners in these fine criminals’ home:

- They think that ALMIGHTY GOD favors these robbers over those who have been the victims of their robbery.

Tragically, all those who are close friends of both the robbers and of the city officials agree that the officials’ reasons for accepting the robbers’ invitation to the dinners in their home are very valid. Consequently, it seemed appropriate for the city officials and the robbers to have many wonderful dinners together at the house of the robbers. These friendly dinners continued even though everyone knew the monetary evidence from the bank robberies was piled high in an upstairs bedroom.

Americans must realize that just because West Jerusalem is considered legally owned by Israel, it does not give permission for the U.S. to put their Embassy there when the Israelis are illegally occupying East Jerusalem.