After our first exhausting day in Gadna, we had some free time to shower and relax before being in bed. After ten o'clock we could not talk or use our phones, only sleep.
After an early rise the next day, we continued learning more about what it was like to be in the IDF. We exercised and reviewed the gun commands. After lunch it was finally time to go to the gun range! Some of our group was nervous to shoot the guns, including me, but it turned out to not be very scary at all, and was a lot easier than I expected.
Over the next day our responsibilities as a group grew significantly. This was most relevant when two of the three groups had lunch kitchen duty. The lunch hour was busy and involved much running around for me, cleaning up each table before ore people came to eat lunch. Some of us worked in the kitchen and some served the food. After lunch, I don't think any of us were expecting to still be cleaning four or five hours later. After cleaning the floors, tables, and every single dish and utensil used during lunch, we finally finished. Luckily, we got a nice break after that.
Over the course of Gadna, we learned so much about Israel's national army, its units, its ranks, and the soldiers' responsibilities. As we were leaving it was really nice to talk to our mifakdot like people. It was nice to see my mifakedet smile without holding a clipboard in front of her face, which she had done whenever she had laughed during the week. I'm really glad that we had this awesome experience in Gadna.
QUESTIONS
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QUESTIONS
1. What is one interesting fact you learned about the IDF this week?
2. What are your views on a national army in Israel?
3. Is Gadna what you expected and did it change your views on the IDF?
1) An interesting fact I learened about the IDF was that you need to be of a certain physical score to get the job you want, and I also learned the reality of how many different jobs there are that are offered in the IDF.
ReplyDelete2) I think that a national army for Israel is necessary. There's a reason that Israel is so strong, even with it's small size. The fact that the IDF is - like it's name states - a defense force, makes Israel hard to take on in war. The IDF stranghthens and unifies the country.
3) Gadna is what I expected in the physical sense, but I didn't expect to get so much out of it. While I was doing it, I can't say that I liked it or was enjoying myself very much but as it was ending I realized just how lucky I was to get to experience it.
A very interesting fact i learned about the IDF is that in order to progress in the officer ranks you must get degrees and education that will help you in your field. I believe the national army is very important to the state of Israel and without it we would be facing a lot more troubles then we are now. Ganda was not what i expected so much. We barely moved there was so little physical activity aside from the two test we took and we didn't learn about the military science of the national army as much as i wanted to. Overall though i had a fun time and it was still a great experience.
ReplyDeleteFor me personally Gadna is something that I will Remeber forever. It was so fascinating to be able to simulate and act as if we were a part of the defense mechanism for the state of Israel. I learned that it takes years of training to be some higher up in rankings as mefakedets, memems and other important commanders. For the State of Israel I feel that it is very important for them to have a National Army. It allows there to be a sense of equality because regardless of what backgrounds people come from everyone is the same in terms of the IDF. I did not really have specific expectations for this week, however I loved our Amefakedet Mica and found the disciplin of the week to be surprisingly helpful and it created a sense of order that I found comforting.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting fact I learned this week was about the ranks in the IDF. I learned that in order to get higher ranks, you need to get at least 1 degree which can take a long time depending on what you study to get a rank. I think that a national army in Israel is necessary because of the small size of the country and because the army needs to be very close to the more dangerous areas. It also unifies the people of Israel because of the many different types of people. I wasn't really sure what to expect during Gadna but I do know that I got to experience something really fun that none of my friends have experienced in the US.
ReplyDeleteI mostly learned about the ranking system that is in the IDF. It was interesting to know that you had a certain ranking and mark to show that you had completed a degree in college, and the order that you get various rankings. I also had no idea you had a score based on your physical profile, and that certain scores cut you off from certain jobs. I think that a national army in Israel is very smart. I think that with the situation and relation with the surrounding countries a national army is the safest decision. Without national drafting, you are not guaranteed to have enough people to serve all the time. Sure, you’ll have enough at times with volunteers, but because of the close proximity to issues Israel cannot risk having too small of a defense force. Gadna was not completely what I expected, but parts of it were similar to my expectations. I didn’t expect too much of anything though, because I just didn’t know. My views about the IDF weren’t really changed, just enhanced. This week has made me seriously reconsider my plans for my future. Now, instead of only planning and researching for college, I think that I need to research more into the IDF and my possible future there.
ReplyDelete-Rachael Coleman
One of the more interesting things that I learned during Gadna was that there is a base in the north of Israel specifically for people who want to enter the army, but don't know Hebrew. I think a program engineered for rapid assimilation is fascinating and incredibly useful, especially for those who have recently made aliyah and want to join the IDF. I have always supported the idea of Israel's national army, thus I think it's very helpful that in a country that definitely needs all the people in its military that it can get, there are programs to make entry into the military easier for non-native Israelis. Gadna as a whole was not quite what I was expecting. The week seems like a blur because to me, a lot of it was just running back and forth for ten seconds at a time. Doing the week of Gadna made me think about my future in regards to Israel and it made me realize that even though I might like to make aliyah, it might not be the most practical or feasible thing to do.
ReplyDeleteI learned about other programs like Gadna and programs that can replace army service if one doesn't want to make aliyah. I also learned that there is a special base for immigrant soldiers. I think that a national army in Israel is vital to its survival and growth. I think that people would serve if it wasn't required but I don't think that enough would serve in order to adequately defend Israel. Gadna was mostly what I expected both the first and second time and it only made me want to join the IDF more.
ReplyDeleteThe most interesting thing I learned about Gadna last week, at least from our experiences, is that there is no organized marching training. I thought before that every military has a fairly similar structure, with certain common denominators such as marching in formation. While we did have similar activities, like making chets and lines, it was surprising coming from the mindset of the American military.
ReplyDeleteDespite what they said at Gadna, I don't consider the IDF a national army. As long as there are entire ethnic groups left out of the draft, it can't be considered an all-encompassing equalizing army. Instead, I think of it as a Jewish army, which is problematic in itself. While Israel is a Jewish state, not every citizen is Jewish, and to leave out so many people of mandatory service, yet have a culture where your time serving shapes the rest of your life, is unfair.
Gadna is mostly what I expected. There were a few small things that surprised me, but for the most part it lived up to my expectations and did not change my views. I'm critical of any army, and the IDF is no different, despite my ties to Israel.
-Noah Arnold
The most important think that I learned about the IDF was the different ranks and positions within the army. I never understood what the different patches on the uniform meant.
ReplyDeleteI think a national army is extremely important because it is an incredible unifying factor throughout Israel as well as a commonality between all Israeli teens. Also is allows everyone to protect the country they love.
This week made me much more interested in joining the IDF. The IDF teaches incredible morals and gives an essence of teamwork throughout Israel.
I learned that to advance in the officer ranks you must have a degree, showing that the military has a deep respect for not just military smarts, but also for the willingness to learn and intelligence. I believe that having a national Israeli army is necessary. With such a small population and so many enemies, it is important to always have a military. Even though it raises problems like racism, I still think it is worth the problems it brings up. I very much enjoyed Gadna, and it made me think even more in depth about joining the Israeli military, something that I've thought about in depth before.
ReplyDeleteSomething I learned is how the army promotions work and what's required in order to get said positions, which I found quite interesting. I think the idea of a national army for a country like Israel is actually a really good system, it's something for everyone in a sense of equality and something everyone can bond over. However, our Gadna experience wasn't quite what I thought it'd be. I expected something much harder and more authentic army like, I think Gadna was fun and all but not as intense as I had expected.
ReplyDeleteOne interesting fact that I learned while on the Gadna trip was that when it comes to the uniform the soldiers wear, the color of almost every article of clothing matter and all has different meaning. Like the boots. If a soldier is wearing red boots, that means she/he came to the IDF with a group and didn't leave the group for another program or group. If a soldier has black boots he/she is not associated with a group to the IDF. My views on the national army before Gadna were mamshly different then they are now. Before Gadna I didn't think much of the IDF. I knew one or two people that had been in it and I didn't really have any understanding or appreciation for it. After Gadna my views on the IDF changed very much so. Now as a teen living in Israel, I feel some sort of safety because of EVERYONE in the IDF that is protecting the country. I also have a much higher respect for the soldiers and what they have to go through everyday. After being in Gadna for only 4 days and being worn out, I cannot imagine what being in the IDF for 2 or 3 years would be like. I give a great amount of credit to the safety of the Jewish people to the soldiers of the IDF.
ReplyDeleteOne interesting thing I learned about the IDF this week was the respect that the army has for weapons. I really enjoyed this aspect of the army. I think that a national army is a good thing in Israel, but that the "nationality" of it should be extended to not only include Jewish Israelis. Although this would be problematic at first, within a generation it is likely that a lot of cultural tensions would dissipate. Gadna was pretty much what I expected, but I have a hard time justifying the experience because it wasn't really what the army is like. A lot of it felt like a waste of time and energy, especially because it was right after Poland.
ReplyDeleteGadna is as I expected> And there were so many things in this program that I learned that I cannot name one that is more interesting than the other. I learned that בן-גוריון was an atrocious farmer at the same time learning about the importance of how to probably use a gun and the responsibility that comes with it. I did not expect though that each team would end up not all having the same opportunities for the same experiences (due to us arriving a day late). I also did not expect for Israeli teens to constantly make fools out of themselves just so they could piss off the commanders. (I hope if any of them have children, their children will give them the same crap they gave during that week.)
ReplyDeleteI did come out though having a much higher respect for all of those serving in the army, in all branches of the army as well. And although I do not know what it is fully like to be in the Israeli army, I do know that the people in the Israeli Army have all earned the respect of other armies. Whether the respect is for better or worse, the Israeli Army is still a respectable army- at least in my eyes.