No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon—Matthew 6:24
by Roy Tov
Understanding Western Culture withoutvisiting
Strategically sprinkled amid the Guccis and the Pradas, the Tiffanys and the Diors one can spot Swiss banks. UBS and Credit Suisse Group, Switzerland’s largest banks, have their headquarters there. Branches of other banks are also placed along the almost mile-long street. Hiding behind classy trees supporting feather-light whiffs of snow, these entities leave no doubts regarding their holy nature.
Bahnhofstrasse
The Cross of Bethlehem
Sumptuous beyond belief, they practice what in business administration is known as the “American Gambit.” Blind the customer with such a shiny display of power that he would accept any deal proposed without negotiating it.
After seeing a few of these secular cathedrals, one starts to look around. Golden calf monuments must be around somewhere. “Silly me! All the gold is in underground vaults,” one thinks after an unfruitful search.
“Poorest Rich Country” or “Richest Poor Country?”
In May 2010, Israel joined the OECD, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, a rich countries’ exclusive club. During the event, Netanyahu said that joining the OECD will enable Israeli to access sources of investment and boost its economy. In 2013, the club has 34 members and is centered in Paris. In The Poorest Rich Country I analyzed this odd membership.
On May 15, 2013, the OECD published a report showing that Israel is the poorest country among its members. The rate of poor people in Israel’s population almost doubled since 1995, rating worse than Mexico and Turkey. Israel is one of the top five countries in the world when measuring the income gap between rich and poor.
Hasan Bek Mosque, Tel Aviv
The Racial State
This last bit of statistics places Israel among the top ten countries in the number of millionaires. 84 Thousand rich families live in Israel, almost 4% of the households according to the Central Bureau of Statistics. Israel is both the “Poorest Rich Country” and the “Richest Poor Country.”
This financial dichotomy didn’t escape the attention of the Bahnhofstrasse bankers.
Boris F.J. Collardi, CEO of Bank Julius Baer, in Mamilla, Jerusalem, July 2013
The most spectacular event was the collapse was of Wegelin & Co. Founded in 1741, it was the country’s oldest bank and a privately owned one. Between 2002 and 2010, American citizens used its secrecy to evade American taxes. Following American Government pressure, the bank was closed. After a complex affair, what remained from the bank was purchased by Raiffeisen, Switzerland’s version of a central bank.
One result of the affair is that Swiss banks are losing international investors. Bahnhofstrasse bankers are nowadays roaming the world, searching hidden treasures. Golden calves abound, though they know how to hide, especially among the yellowish sands of the Middle East.
In July 2013, Boris F.J. Collardi, CEO of Bank Julius Baer—Switzerland’s largest private bank—reached Jerusalem. He spoke to local tycoons at Binyanei HaUmar, a place reserved usually for State events and met a few old friends. It was a Prime Ministers’ level visit.
Interlude: Sweaty Toes
International businesses must find local partners to succeed. Simply, cultural differences can spoil businesses easily. What is trivial to one, easily becomes an unbearable insult to the other.
The first period of my exile was centered in Thailand. Walking properly along Bangkok’s streets is less trivial than it seems. More than ten million people live in this metropolis. During the rush hours, cars can be seen to be oddly parked on the avenues themselves, in lines that run for miles. In every direction, thousands of people walk swiftly; no physical contact is done. No matter how dense the traffic is, graceful Thais would find the way to move around without bumping into others. If paying attention, one would easily discern a few rules for proper walking in Bangkok. The most obvious thing is the way Thais move their arms. They are no less expressive than Westerners, but they are more delicate, moving in subtle and sophisticated ways. They won’t wave their arms wildly around unnecessarily pointing at every flying dragon crossing their way.
One of the horrors Thais face daily is watching Westerners attempting to hail a taxi. The tourist would raise his hand as high as possible—sometimes even a bit beyond this point, standing on his stressed, sweaty toes—and wave towards the taxi as boldly as he can. Invariably, the tourist won’t check if someone would be hit by the stray arm. The Singled-Eyed Thai urban legend tells that many Thai eyes were lost in such a fashion.
Swiss bankers are sophisticated enough not only to understand this, but also to choose the right local partner.
A Zionist Napoleon
Ehud Barak, former Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, enjoys an odd nickname.”Napo” is a short form of “Napoleon,” a Napoleon without the “lion.” A coward. A small half-person with a Napoleonic self image. After his recent withdrawal from politics, he returned to his publicized, yet questionable, businesses (see Barak Reborn: Businesses and Corruption in Israel).
Recently, he was approached by Julius Baer Group, asking him to be his local partner. No better choice could have been done. He hit at the core of Israel’s emergency plans.
There are three levels to the Israeli emergency plans. I do not mean the military ones. “Metzuda” and “Sde Kotzim” are little more than low-quality scholar papers written by officers seeking a higher rank. I mean the real plans: how to save the upper-echelon Zionist hides by escaping Zion when the day comes. In Hebrew, it is referred to as “The Day of the Order” (Yom Pkuda).
Napo Napoleon
The Cross of Bethlehem
On that day, the IDF will find itself fighting hard to find its escaping soldiers. In the Day of the Order, Zion would be evacuated by the Zionists elite. The vaults in Zurich would crumble under the weight of Zionists retrieving their golden calves. From a military point of view, one could only wish military plans were always so well structured. The event can be divided in 3 parts (the IDF divides everything in three):
VIP Level: Hayarkon Street in Tel Aviv is next to the Mediterranean seashore, though not on the promenade itself. In Israel, its name doubles as a reference to Tel Aviv’s Red District, though it houses mainly foreign embassies. This is not casual. Most of the embassies officials as well as the main Israeli politicians and generals would be evacuated by the American Sixth Fleet, which is in constant stand-by for that. That’s why the Ministry of Defense and the IDF General headquarters are both nearby, at the Kirya.
Wealthy Level: Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres used to live on Ravina Street in Neve Avivim, near the person appearing in The Cross of Bethlehem
Erev Rav Level: Ultra-Orthodox Jews use an insulting term for those who are not kosher Jews—the Kosher-Nostra—as per their definitions. “Erev rav” can be translated as “the great mix,” alluding to impure ethnic origins. It is often used towards secular Jews, the bulk of the Israelis.
In the Day of the Order the erev rav would find itself abandoned, their leaders fulfilling again the “lehu tajlu” imperative of WWII.* They won’t run to fill the IDF orders but would pack their cars, scooters and skateboards and run away as fast as possible. Where to? All the land border crossings will be closed. You don’t need to be a Napoleon—half-a-one is good enough—to solve the problem. Sinai. Many thousands will cross into the desert from near Eilat, taking down any barrier put on the desolated line. The Final Exile will then begin.
Epilogue
The match was natural. Julius Baer Group has the largest international presence of all Swiss private banks with over 40 locations in more than 20 countries, mainly in Asia. It offers state-of-the-art assets managements as well as a decentralized international presence. Exactly what Israeli tycoons need for the Day of the Order. Zurich reached Zionism riches.
Ehud Barak advertising Julius Baer
While in Jerusalem, Mr. Collardi was quoted as saying: “It was an opportunity to meet a lot of clients, and also to bring here clients from various countries. We want to offer local clients a global perspective and to show international customers the success story that Israel is.”
It is impossible to end this article without a question to its star, Mr. Collardi. Israel was defined by the UN Human Rights Council as terror inflicting. Do you feel comfortable serving Mammon?
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full version and subscriptions at http://www.roitov.com/articles/zurich.htm
* Neturei Karta is an Orthodox, non-Zionist groups of Jews with congregations in New York and Jerusalem. In its website, one can find an excerpt from Sefer Min Hametzar (page 92) by Rabbi Michael Ber Weismandel. The excerpt is a literal translation of the letter the Jewish Rescue Committee in Czechoslovakia received from the Zionist Jewish Agency Executive Officers in Switzerland. This was in reply to the call of the Jewish Rescue Committee for help, with Documentary evidence furnished, concerning the fate of millions of Jewish people in Nazi occupied Europe.
The letter says: “So, insofar as the masses are concerned: RAK B’DAM TIHJE LAKU HAAREZ, (Eretz Yisroel will be ours only by paying with blood), but as far as our immediate circle is concerned, ATEM TAJLU. The messenger bearing this letter will supply you with funds for this purpose.” The book explains “After I accustomed myself to the peculiar writing, I trembled when I realized the import of RAK B’DAM TIHJE LANU HAAREZ. But many weeks passed, and I was still confounded by the meaning of ATEM TAJLU. Until one day, it struck me. ATEM TAJIU meant “You escape”, for the word “tiyul” (walking trip) was used by them as a euphemistic code for “escape”. They meant to say – you fifteen or twenty “party members”, escape from Czechoslovakia and save your hides. The price of Eretz Yisroel is the blood of the men and women, hoary sages, and babes in arms, – but not YOUR blood! Let us not spoil this plan by giving the Axis powers money to save Jewish lives. But for you, comrades, I have enclosed carfare for your escape. What a nightmare! The Zionist agent “diplomat” comes to Czechoslovakia and says ‘Now is a very critical time. But comparatively speaking, it is not at all critical for you trapped Jews. For there is an emergency of far greater proportions; namely, BINYAN HA-ARETZ (the prize of Modinat Yisrael). Shed your blood cheerfully, for your blood is cheap. But for your blood, the Land (of Israel) will be ours!” The Hebrew transliteration and translation could be further improved, but overall, the assessment made is true. The Jewish leadership during WWII made an Abraham-like decision to sacrifice their flock in order to get material gains in a near future. Under the circumstances, who is to blame? Who was The Nastiest Nazi?
Roi Tov is a graduate—among others—of Tel Aviv University and the Weizmann Institute of Science. In addition to his memoir, Tov is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Molecular Physics and other scientific journals. He won various travel writing and photography awards.
In his writings, he tries to reveal life in Israel as a Christian Israel Defense Force (IDF) officer—from human rights violations to the use of an extensive network of underground agents. He was recognized first as a refugee and subsequently as political prisoner of Bolivia.
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