Okhi!!

בס''ד

 
Copyright 2005, 2011, R.Kossover


Israel has much to learn from General Metaxas. He did not temporize, 
compromise or set up commissions. HE SAID "NO."

"Okhi" is Greek for "no." One bright day in the autumn of 1940, while the Fascists were still in control in Italy, after the Italians had annexed Albania, Benito Mussolini, the prime minister and dictator, decided to expand his new Roman empire by adding the island of Corfu (Kerkira) which was then, as it is today, under Greek control. His legate marched into the office of the Greek dictator of the day, General Metaxas, to outline his demand.

Metaxas was a simple man. He said "okhi" - "no".

I don't know exactly what happened after Metaxas said "okhi." Presumably the Italian legate made threats and warnings, trying to intimidate this simple dictator. One easily imagines the fist hitting the table and the screaming so common to Mediterranean culture occurring in General Metaxas' office that day. The answer remained "okhi."

Not long afterwards, the Italian army invaded Greece. One was not supposed to say "okhi" to the great descendant of the Romans, and the descendants of the Roman legions were going to teach this lesson pointedly. The descendants of the brave Romans were hoisted on their own petard by the Greeks. Not only was the Italian army driven from Greece, but the Greeks conquered a fourth of Albania in the process. This is what was found in a Google search at http://www.terrorism.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Countries&file=index&view=95

October 28, 1940: Okhi DayThe third most important holiday (after Independence Day and Easter Sunday) in the Greek calendar; commemorates the Greek rejection of Mussolini's ultimatum to the Athens government, which led subsequently to Italy's invasion of Greece from Albania. The Greeks held the Italian army at bay in the mountains of Epirus until military intervention by the Nazis in March 1941.

Only when Hitler invaded Greece was this embarrassing defeat of Fascist military power rectified. The defeat of the Italians by the Greeks - which began with the simple word "okhi," - "no," spelled the beginning of the end for Fascist Italy.

After this, the obvious guarantor of Mussolini's power, even to the Italians, was the German Army. It is not clear to me whether Hitler forced Mussolini to enter WWII, but the Italian military leaders knew that their army was not prepared for war. Mussolini overruled his generals, and, as is so often the case, the generals were right and the megalomaniac with the authority (fasces) was wrong.

Historically, the Italians dislike the Germans and still dislike them today. When Italy was invaded in 1943, the Germans fought very hard to resist the Americans and the British - the Italians did not.

General Metaxas is known in modern Greek history as a despicable man, but for this one act of saying "okhi" to the Italians, he is a national hero. To this day, the Greeks celebrate Okhi Day to commemorate this event.

We Jews have much to learn from General Metaxas. He said "okhi" to an imperialist's demand on Greek territory. He did not temporize, compromise or set up commissions. HE SAID, "NO!"  We Jews need to begin to say "okhi". And then to stand by the word, "no" and act on it. We have plenty of things to say "okhi" to. 

There are the demands by the Arabs on our territory. There is the pressure of the European Union, the United States, and the United Nations to withdraw from our own land and surrender it to the Arabs. There is the immense pressure of American and European culture - eroticism, consumerism, violence, drug abuse and drunkenness that we need to resist in order not to become mere Hebrew speaking pagans. That is just the beginning.

But even before we get to these things to guarantee our survival, we have to begin by saying "no" - "okhi" - to the traitors who presently constitute themselves as the government. These bought out and corrupt individuals are leading this nation to death and disaster. Every terrorist bombing, every attack on Jews here or overseas is a sign that we need to begin saying "no".

OKHI!!

Author's Note: I wish to thank historian and accomplished linguist, Sergio Tezza, for his help in refining points of Italian history.