Opinion

In the 46-year history of Iran’s theocratic government, American political leaders in both parties stood by sanctions and condemnation of the country’s sponsorship of terrorism, repression of dissent, and nuclear ambitions, even when the door was open to negotiations. In the dozen days after Israeli warplanes struck Iranian military targets, with American stealth bombers delivering the much-sought coup de grâce with 30,000-pound bunker-busters on the Fordow nuclear enrichment site, the outcome remains uncertain domestically and abroad.

“Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” So, how is it that the Arab world manages to fool so much of the world over and over? 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the State of Israel made the courageous decision to cut off the head of the octopus that has been terrorizing them and the world for years. On Thursday night, Israeli jets breached Iranian airspace and took complete superiority over the skies above Tehran. Mossad agents on the ground took out high-level targets, and Iran’s nuclear program has been set back decades. Predictably, Iran retaliated, targeting civilian centers throughout Israel, killing many and wounding more, with numbers still being reported. Equally predictable was the reaction from all those who hate Israel, hate Jews, and want to destroy Western civilization. Those people should not only keep quiet—they should be openly professing gratitude to the Jewish state.

(Author’s note: At the end of the article there will be strategies on how to rank your ballot to ensure that socialists get as few votes as possible in the Ranked Choice Voting system.)

My plan was to be in Queens by the time this column appeared. The airport has been shut down, and all flights were canceled. I have spent the bulk of the last few nights in a secure room, awakened every few hours by air raid sirens. Within the past two weeks, my nephew has been wounded in Gaza, and a piece of shrapnel landed in front of the building where my cousin lives in a suburb of Haifa. Many shuls in my neighborhood are not having minyan because they don’t have bomb shelters.

Would you ever have believed that the city with the largest Jewish population in the world could elect an anti-Semitic mayor? Yet that is a very real possibility in less than two weeks. Zohran Mamdani is a leading candidate in the upcoming Democratic Primary. Our best—and perhaps only—hope of stopping him is to support Andrew Cuomo for mayor. Early voting begins on June 14, and Primary Day is June 24. Be sure to rank Andrew Cuomo as #1 and do not rank Zohran Mamdani or Brad Lander at all.