Latest / HERO ISRAEL / Meet the Heroes 🇮🇱 HERO ISRAEL with Yehuda Meitav & Shana Meyerson
Transcript
- 0:08Shema Yisrael, welcome to the Hero Israel podcast,
- 0:13where we introduce you to the incredible unsung
- 0:16heroes of Am Yisrael. Every Jew is born with
- 0:20a mandate to be a hero of Israel. The mission
- 0:23is possible, should you choose to accept it.
- 0:27Hey, I accept it. I'm Yehuda Meitav, and I'm
- 0:30with my co -host, Shana Meyerson. now Shana
- 0:34do you remember the very first time we had this
- 0:36conversation a long time ago before anything
- 0:39else and we thought wow we need to do something
- 0:42with it like it's quite good i love our conversation
- 0:46i love where it's going and we thought we need
- 0:49more heroes we can't be the only ones what do
- 0:52you reckon i don't think is that we need more
- 0:56heroes i think that Israel has so many heroes.
- 1:00And the problem is that all the focus gets put
- 1:03on the superstar influencers. And there's so
- 1:07many smaller people who are doing really big
- 1:10things that definitely need to be recognized.
- 1:13Yehuda, I have to be honest, you've been doing
- 1:15a really good job of that already. I remember
- 1:19when we started talking initially about, you
- 1:22know, I was telling you, Shana, there are so
- 1:24many people out there who are trying to help
- 1:26the IDF. The IDF needs so much help. And we need
- 1:30to shed light on them. We need to create a platform
- 1:32from them and say, let's put them out there.
- 1:35Let's create a platform and say, look at these
- 1:38amazing people. Look at all these amazing charities,
- 1:40the unsung heroes out there, the true heroes
- 1:44out there that we need to say, hey. This is who
- 1:48they are. Let's support them. Let's hear them.
- 1:50And let's give them that stage that we are creating.
- 1:53And I remember in the car, I was in the car,
- 1:55we were driving and you were like, brilliant,
- 1:57let's do it. And here we are. Well, also the
- 2:01reason I'm laughing, Yehuda, is like, so we had
- 2:04this idea and then you immediately rattled off
- 2:07like a hundred thousand people that we should
- 2:10feature. I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Having been
- 2:14in this podcasting business for two and a half
- 2:16years and knowing how much time and effort goes
- 2:19into scheduling, my mind was ready to explode.
- 2:22And you're like, and then we can do this person
- 2:23in this organization and these and these and
- 2:25that and this and that. And I already talked
- 2:28to this and you should talk to that and let's
- 2:29get this and this. And I'm like, okay, okay,
- 2:31okay. Which is nice. Honestly, it makes me feel
- 2:35like I'm going to be able to like just receive
- 2:38the work for change instead of do all the work.
- 2:41Because that's what happens when you're a hero
- 2:42of Israel. You and I, we are heroes of Israel.
- 2:47We're the super Zios, yeah? Check our bio. I
- 2:51had no idea when you told me, calm down. Yes,
- 2:55we can do it. Relax. But one step at a time.
- 2:58And I thought, okay, show me the steps. And I
- 3:01was like, no, no, we got to do it. And I was
- 3:02thinking about soldiers in Israel. And I was
- 3:04thinking about charities. And I was thinking
- 3:06about people that I know. that really need to
- 3:09be heard we need to hear their stories we need
- 3:11to not necessarily for any particular reason
- 3:14to collect money or anything like that because
- 3:16the more how much platform us as jews really
- 3:19have to actually shed light on who we are what
- 3:22we're about what's really happening to us among
- 3:25the mist of lies and blood liable and we thought
- 3:29okay you've got this amazing ability to create
- 3:33those platforms i just write songs you know and
- 3:36i put it out there people seem to like it so
- 3:39i thought how can we blend it together and create
- 3:41this amazing platform bring about that amazing
- 3:45light as heroes as jewish heroes and shed it
- 3:48on everybody else that is a hero and boy there's
- 3:51so many of us there's so many heroes out there
- 3:53from the smallest person that think that he's
- 3:55a hero and doesn't know how what a giant they
- 3:58are We need to tell them and we need to show
- 4:01them. And yes, the list is long, but we've got
- 4:04a long, long, long, long, long job ahead of us.
- 4:07But hey, we're heroes. We can do that. Well,
- 4:11the funny thing is, Yehuda, is that you really
- 4:14sort of downplay what you're doing. Okay, you're
- 4:18having songs that are each getting like millions
- 4:21of hits. It's so amazing. So first of all, as
- 4:27I told you, because I happened to meet you. say
- 4:30we've been talking about this so long because
- 4:32it seems like we've been talking about this so
- 4:33long. It's been like, what, two or three weeks
- 4:35since we met. But I happened to meet you on the
- 4:38same day that Mike Huckabee decided that you
- 4:41were his world's famous person. And I told you
- 4:44that day, Yehuda, by the end of this year, you
- 4:47are going to be the world's most famous Zionist.
- 4:51Dude, you are so well on your way. You're not
- 4:55just a songwriter. I didn't believe you at the
- 4:58time, but I'll tell you what, I was so jealous
- 5:00once you showed me this photo of you and Huckabee
- 5:03shaking hands. And I'm going, I love this man.
- 5:05I want to shake his hand. And I thought, okay,
- 5:07if Shana shook his hand, I'm going to hang around
- 5:10with her for a little bit so I can shake her
- 5:12hands. And, you know, like talking about heroes
- 5:15and what we're all about, I think heroes are
- 5:18born within the need of survival. I mean, us
- 5:22Jews invented Superman. We literally did. We
- 5:25invented Superman. Yes, we did. And many other
- 5:27heroes around the world. At times when it was
- 5:30so dark for us, it was so hard for us, and we
- 5:34needed to kind of fantasize that there's someone
- 5:36who's going to come out there and save us. You
- 5:38know, Superman's name is Kal -El, which means
- 5:41in Hebrew, light god, a very light god. What
- 5:45do you mean his name is Kal -El? the real name
- 5:48of superman from the planet he came from is cal
- 5:51l yes oh my gosh see i came to this tonight not
- 5:56expecting to actually learn something and now
- 5:58i've learned something there you go cal hell
- 6:00is l means god in hebrew mean light not light
- 6:05as in light as in right light as yeah yeah yeah
- 6:09so so it's a hebrew name and it was created by
- 6:12two people who lived through the second world
- 6:14war yeah and they created so i think we are the
- 6:17new generation you and me at a really dark time
- 6:21of our people who are not creating new heroes
- 6:25we don't need to we've got heroes we are literally
- 6:28pointing them out and telling them you are heroes
- 6:33because they're so busy in saving our people
- 6:35they don't know that they're heroes they need
- 6:38to be they're unsung heroes and you and i are
- 6:41going to sing their song Nobody wants to hear
- 6:45me sing. Believe me. Oh my gosh. Okay. I always
- 6:51try to get Andrew Fox to sing with me and he
- 6:53won't. So you and I have got to do some duets.
- 6:57I'm all about the singing, but I have to tell
- 6:59you, I guess I never told you about that Huckabee
- 7:02thing. That wasn't just me shaking his hand.
- 7:05I took a full meeting with him. And it was literally
- 7:10like, the coolest, but also the most random thing
- 7:14to come out of my first podcast, The Yoga of
- 7:16War. What happened was there was a guy who was
- 7:20on my show actually two or three times. His name
- 7:24is Ehab Shlian. And he is the highest ranking
- 7:27Christian officer in the IDF. And he and I became
- 7:31friends because he was on my show a few times
- 7:33and we met in Israel and whatever. So we became
- 7:36friends. Now, he asked me if I could set him
- 7:40up with a meeting with Mike Huckabee which was
- 7:43sort of funny because I didn't know Mike Huckabee
- 7:46I didn't know anybody at Huckabee's off I knew
- 7:48nothing like I knew who he is of course like
- 7:51right Huckabee so anyway somehow don't ask how
- 7:55I actually got him the meeting okay so they had
- 8:00a meeting and then they had like a follow -up
- 8:02meeting when I was coming back to Israel and
- 8:06Who was in this? It was a meeting about Christians
- 8:11in Israel. Okay, Christian rights and stuff in
- 8:17Israel. And here I am, the Jew. I was in the
- 8:21room. It was the most amazing meeting. It lasted,
- 8:23I don't know, half an hour, an hour. And it was
- 8:26all these Christian leaders, literally, like
- 8:29all these priests and, you know. whatever, whoever
- 8:33the Christian, like, you know, Christian IDF,
- 8:35Christian this, Christian that, and me. And I'm
- 8:38the Jew in the room, but I was the one who was
- 8:41actually there representing America. Because
- 8:43remember that Ambassador Huckabee happens to
- 8:46be the U .S. ambassador and you want to have
- 8:48a U .S. connection. So I actually got to do a
- 8:51lot of talking in the meeting. I was felling,
- 8:54believe me. I was like, ah! It was really...
- 9:00The last thing I expected to come out of the
- 9:03Yoga of War podcast was Christian advocacy. It's
- 9:07not, I'm all for it. I'm all for advocating for
- 9:11anyone, but it was literally the last thing I
- 9:13would have imagined to come out of it, but also
- 9:17by far. Two things. Number one, thank you for
- 9:21making me more jealous of hanging around Huckabee.
- 9:23Thank you. And the other thing is, this is. A
- 9:27platform also for a non -Jews Zionist and non
- 9:30-Jews heroes. And you mentioned one of the greatest
- 9:33one, like Huckabee. Finger crossed we can get
- 9:35him on our show because he is a hero. He's one
- 9:37of my personal heroes. You know, and then we've
- 9:40got Douglas Murray. I don't think we'll ever
- 9:43get Douglas Murray. These aren't what we would
- 9:45call unsung heroes, Yehuda. Yeah, but you know,
- 9:49they're heroes. They're still heroes. And I think
- 9:51people knows about them and everything. when
- 9:55i say heroes i mean the heroes comes in different
- 9:58shapes and forms and of course in among our peoples
- 10:02we need to highlight them because there are many
- 10:03of us but we have to also remember those heroes
- 10:06that standing by us the non -jewish heroes there
- 10:09is even muslims heroes that stand by us and support
- 10:13us you know so many of them like the green prince
- 10:15and so on um so these heroes are standing you
- 10:21know like against the wind of hatred and they're
- 10:24standing strong with us and those wins as we
- 10:27know are harsh right now but we will stand against
- 10:31them as we always did this time in a different
- 10:34way you know those those haters have different
- 10:38shapes and different forms they keep changing
- 10:40but we will find different weapons to fight them
- 10:43one of them is going to be our stage Yeah. Well,
- 10:47actually, I mean, I've had a lot of the Christian
- 10:50Zionists, the Muslim Zionists, I've had Drew
- 10:52Zionists, I've had all of those on my shows,
- 10:55most of the big, big names. I think that the
- 10:59difference in focusing on the smaller people
- 11:03is that what happens is we have to keep in mind,
- 11:07not that it doesn't help to highlight the other
- 11:11heroes, the big, big heroes, but that AI, right
- 11:15you're the king of ai so ai really depends on
- 11:20pushing out as much content as possible and when
- 11:24we only focus on you know the top 10 the top
- 11:2720 people and keep pushing their stuff and keep
- 11:30pushing their stuff it's not that it hurts it
- 11:33but it doesn't help the algorithm to learn more
- 11:35information so that's why we need not just our
- 11:40unsung heroes to be celebrated but we need everybody
- 11:44who watches the show to like to share to comment
- 11:48like people have to understand like so if you
- 11:51love Yehuda's songs and who doesn't love Yehuda's
- 11:55songs they're amazing um you know of course that
- 11:59that is not the actual guy that's AI twin guy
- 12:03I think that's pretty much the name we came up
- 12:05with AI twin yeah my twin Yeah, yeah. But a lot
- 12:10of people don't understand how AI works. And
- 12:13if we want AI to be our hero, we need to feed
- 12:18it. And every single person can play a role in
- 12:22this fight. If you want the algorithm, meaning
- 12:27what it takes in, it pushes back out to change.
- 12:31We need as much new content from as many different
- 12:36people. as possible. And guys, we need to be
- 12:40generous about sharing. Sharing is caring. And
- 12:44I'm not just talking about sharing money or sharing
- 12:49even volunteer time. I'm also just talking about
- 12:52sharing content. If you see something you like,
- 12:56share it. It helps. It helps a lot. Some heroes
- 13:01will be people who will do massive charities.
- 13:04Some heroes will be people who will maybe just
- 13:08decide to donate to a certain cause or whatever.
- 13:11But some heroes, and they are probably to us
- 13:14the most important heroes, are those who will
- 13:16press their keyboard and say share, like, move
- 13:20on. These are heroes. These are heroes. And talking
- 13:23about heroes that are basically... um um twin
- 13:28heroes if we all remember superman he had superman
- 13:33was just in a way hidden behind an image of a
- 13:36normal human being he was uh you know he was
- 13:39working for for a news agency somewhere there
- 13:42and he was very like lame and all that he was
- 13:45covering himself in this image but then there
- 13:47was this hero out there so in a way what you
- 13:50and i are doing is very similar behind the scene
- 13:52we're just people and then in our ai we are the
- 13:56superheroes because it does give people this
- 13:59feeling that there is hope but behind the hope
- 14:03there is an another human being that is just
- 14:06like them that is is just struggling and trying
- 14:10really hard and then they can basically relate
- 14:13to this human being just like carl l yeah yeah
- 14:17you know Yeah. I'll tell you something funny.
- 14:22I actually have a theory about, about Superman's
- 14:26Cape. Um, who was it? Was it Stanley who created?
- 14:29Yes. Yes. Okay. Um, I might, cause all the comics,
- 14:33I don't know the difference between Marvel and
- 14:35DC. They're all, they're all Jewish, but I have
- 14:38a theory and it turns out my theory is wrong,
- 14:40but I think you're going to like it anyway. My
- 14:42theory was that the idea of a Cape, because no
- 14:46one really flies and like, why a cape was that
- 14:50it came from the tallest wow that gave people
- 14:54superpowers right when they prayed when they
- 14:56connected to god now i thought this was like
- 14:58a brilliant theory there's actually like a superhero
- 15:02exhibit going on right now at the skirball center
- 15:05which is the jewish museum here in la and I thought,
- 15:09oh, maybe they'll say something about my tallest
- 15:12theory, and they didn't. So I decided to look
- 15:15it up online, and there is nothing to corroborate
- 15:18my theory. But I like it. It's a good theory,
- 15:20right? Maybe there isn't, and maybe there is,
- 15:22because I'll tell you something. We see every
- 15:26day when an Israeli athlete goes out there, and
- 15:30they're so proud, they will wear the flag of
- 15:32Israel on their shoulder like a king. Now, the
- 15:34flag of Israel is based on a tallit. when we
- 15:39created our flag it's based on the tally that's
- 15:42how we decided the same colors we'll just put
- 15:45them again david in the middle but that's what
- 15:47it's based so your theory i think is not that
- 15:49far -fetched and you'll see most of my ai videos
- 15:53i wear the tally like exactly yeah yeah you know
- 15:59it's i think it's it's there's a notion of pride
- 16:01behind it and and it's something that That covers
- 16:06you at the same time, but also helps you fly.
- 16:10Ah, yeah. It more than covers you though, right?
- 16:13It holds you. Yes. Right? It's something that
- 16:16surrounds you. So it's a way to be hugged by
- 16:21God. Yeah. Right? To sort of separate you from
- 16:26the outside world, from the distraction. to delineate
- 16:31like a spiritual space but it also creates not
- 16:35a real physical barrier obviously but some sort
- 16:38of a physical barrier saying that okay when i'm
- 16:41in here i'm i'm in my spiritual space and when
- 16:45the toilet comes off then i'm just in my everyday
- 16:48walking around being my everyday hero space but
- 16:51there is something i do also want to say and
- 16:54it actually is about about donations and I'm
- 16:57going to encourage people to really, really listen
- 17:00to our guests and consider donating. And don't
- 17:04be afraid if it's just $5 that you could give
- 17:06or just $10. I think a lot of people feel like,
- 17:10oh, if I can't give, you know, $50 or $500 or
- 17:14$1 ,000, then, you know, it's embarrassing or
- 17:17they're going to think that I'm cheap or whatever.
- 17:19I can tell you as somebody who's been doing fundraisers
- 17:22like nonstop for decades now, believe me every
- 17:27five dollar and ten dollar donation counts i've
- 17:30had people who i know barely have five dollars
- 17:34to their name who give me five dollars and i'm
- 17:37so so appreciative um so remember that it's not
- 17:43really about the quantity but another thing for
- 17:46people who really really do have the disposable
- 17:48income i think that now is a time when the Zionists
- 17:55of the world, the supporters of Israel, need
- 17:57to reckon with where our money is going. I say
- 18:01this as somebody who used to give to every charity
- 18:05that you could possibly think of or name on earth,
- 18:07as long as they weren't anti -Israel, but all
- 18:10of them. Now is the time, now meaning the last
- 18:14three years. To step back from the tikkun olam
- 18:19and start tikkuning ourselves, we need to focus
- 18:22on Jewish and Israeli charity. Right now, we're
- 18:26in a time where Israel needs every dollar. If
- 18:31there is a soldier who does not have an appropriate
- 18:35bulletproof vest and you're giving $500 to whatever,
- 18:40the Kennedy Center, that money is better used
- 18:44elsewhere. I'm praying for the better times when
- 18:47we can start making donations to charities that
- 18:52aren't existential. But right now in this existential
- 18:56moment, this is our chance to be the heroes.
- 19:00Yeah, and that's why we're having this show,
- 19:02to highlight where the money should be channeled
- 19:04into, directed. And it's interesting that you're
- 19:07telling me all that because just today I got
- 19:10some incredible, literally incredible text messages
- 19:14from... our next podcast person that we're going
- 19:17to introduce and she was telling me how what
- 19:21they're doing with their charity saved literally
- 19:24saved five idf soldiers that had the right equipment
- 19:29that they supplied to them in the right time
- 19:32we're probably going to hear it from them in
- 19:34our next podcast but that's why we're doing it
- 19:36because then we are highlighting and creating
- 19:38channels to direct and redirect monies and energy
- 19:43Don't think about it as money. Think about it
- 19:45as an energy. We're living in a day and age that
- 19:47money becomes a form of energy. In the old days,
- 19:51we might have had things like we will give someone
- 19:53a sheep or an egg or something so they can survive.
- 19:56Today, this is the energy how it's been transformed.
- 19:59This is the age we're living in and money can
- 20:01help save life, our people life right now. An
- 20:06IDF soldier, debt. guard our land that if god
- 20:10forbid we will be as jews in a situation where
- 20:12we will need to go to a certain place to save
- 20:16ourselves we don't have no other place to go
- 20:18to that little country out there is the only
- 20:21one that will save us if and maybe when the time
- 20:24will come so think about it that way we are living
- 20:28in different times but at the same time we are
- 20:31living in a very familiar times ouch Yeah, we're
- 20:37going to really ask everybody to be very, very
- 20:40generous in how you give, whether it's financially,
- 20:43whether it's volunteering, wherever you can.
- 20:48Again, I mean, for some people, it may just be
- 20:50praying, but it is important that we all look
- 20:54deep inside and say, what can I realistically
- 20:58afford? For anybody who doesn't know that I was
- 21:03canceled from the entire yoga industry, I've
- 21:06been living on donations. Sorry, I've been living
- 21:11on savings and some donations for three years
- 21:16now. But I'm still giving all of my commitments
- 21:20to all the Jewish causes that I have ever had
- 21:23commitments to out of my savings because that's
- 21:26how important it is to me. Please dig down deep.
- 21:30Know that there are people giving their lives
- 21:35right now for our safety to live as Jews, whether
- 21:40in Israel or in the diaspora. difficult time
- 21:46for all of us in a million different ways. But
- 21:51as Yehuda said, money is energy and it feels
- 21:54good to give. Imagine knowing that your money
- 22:00saved a life. You can't even put a price on that.
- 22:06That is the most amazing thing you could possibly
- 22:09deal with the money that you've earned. So please
- 22:12dig down deep. And I'll simplify it even more,
- 22:17I think, and make light of it a little bit. Coffee.
- 22:21I drive by McDonald's so many times and I buy
- 22:24myself a cup of coffee. Here in Australia, it
- 22:26can go between $6 to $9 Australian dollars. A
- 22:29cup of coffee that you drink every day can literally
- 22:33build up to save one of our people's lives. Not
- 22:37only in Israel, around the world, to create protection
- 22:40around synagogues, to create another God, something.
- 22:44to small communities of Jews around the world
- 22:48that don't have the American Jewish people or
- 22:50even the Israeli Jewish people to protect them.
- 22:52Here in Australia, there's only 150 ,000 Jews
- 22:57and Israelis. It's a tiny little community. And
- 23:00we're totally self -reliant on ourselves. But
- 23:03if there is some way that we can protect Jews,
- 23:06kids that go to synagogue, I mean... The charities
- 23:10that we're going to work with and highlight are
- 23:13going to cover many, many, many of our people
- 23:16around the world, including Israeli soldiers,
- 23:19families of survivors, families who lost soldiers.
- 23:23They all need us. They all need us right now.
- 23:26So let's all put our capes on or our tzitzit
- 23:33or whatever it is that we could put on top that
- 23:36remind us where we are right now. and what we're
- 23:39really about. And let's all be superheroes in
- 23:43the smallest way or the biggest way we can. Yehuda,
- 23:47I am just thrilled to be doing this with you.
- 23:51I just want to say a couple words about Yehuda
- 23:55for any of you who don't like really know him
- 23:58beyond the amazing Zionist videos that he makes.
- 24:02This guy is a teddy bear. He is one of the most
- 24:07humble people I have ever met. He is so appreciative
- 24:12of every ounce of love that he gets from around
- 24:16the world. And there have been so many tons of
- 24:20love. Yehuda, I am just enthralled with you and
- 24:26your kindness and just your gentle manner, your
- 24:30graciousness. you have so much gratitude and
- 24:35you have so much goodwill and i it's really just
- 24:40such an honor to be able to do this show with
- 24:43you and i'm really looking forward to it thank
- 24:47you shana i couldn't have thought about a better
- 24:49person to do it with and i think i think it's
- 24:52a perfect combination and you know me all the
- 24:55way here from australia you all the way there
- 24:56from l .a but you know why when at times like
- 24:59this time space and distance means nothing when
- 25:04you're a superhero that's true i could just snap
- 25:08my fingers and there i am in melbourne just don't
- 25:12come to la when i snap my fingers and come to
- 25:14melbourne because then we're gonna wind up yeah
- 25:16we'll just do this no yeah hey we can give a
- 25:19high five on the way we can do that well you're
- 25:23flying here and i'm flying there the u -turns
- 25:26get a little bit precarious so We'll meet somewhere
- 25:29in the middle. Each time we high five, you will
- 25:31see some light in the sky. Yeah. So anyway, guys,
- 25:35thank you so much for joining us. We look forward
- 25:39to seeing you here every week. There are hundreds
- 25:42of thousands of IDF soldiers right now who are
- 25:46risking or even giving their lives for this fight.
- 25:51All of Israel. is giving heart and soul for their
- 25:55nation, for the survival of the Jewish people.
- 25:58So the question is this, are you going to join
- 26:02us or are you going to sit this one out? How
- 26:05much are you giving to Am Yisrael? How much money?
- 26:09How much time? How many prayers? Give more. We
- 26:15want you and we need you. And remember, we are
- 26:20all heroes of Israel. Hear the call. Absolutely.