I was also a girl soldier in the IDF. Fuck the army's rules, you can actually AMA.

Does anything provocative ever happen between the male and female soldiers in the barracks?

Lol yeah. For sure. Life in the barracks is super weird, especially on my base because it was a "closed base" (meaning we slept there) and there are a lot of girls. Sex is not allowed, but the little convenience store that every base has technically has to supply condoms "just in case."

But yeah, people are fucking. Not as much as you'd think since you literally see these people all the time, but enough that the army will pay for one abortion if you're a girl and get knocked up (two if you work as a fitness instructor or the army's equivalent of an HR clerk, which are typically the two positions that allow the most opportunity for sex between male and female soldiers.)

Wow how practical! Weird but practical.

The really ironic thing is that, while they'd pay for your abortions, attendance at religious events was necessary.

"We'll get that unwanted fetus out of you, but God forbid you miss the lighting of the Shabbat candles you filthy heathen!"

I mean what?

They really sell condoms in shekems? I've NEVER heard of such a thing

Haha for sure at ours! Durex. Ultra-safe and some other kind. One time someone bought some to blow up as balloons for a birthday. Most expensive balloons ever.

How do you feel about Israel displacing Palestinians?

I don't know I think it's fucked? I can't think of anybody barring religious/patriotic nut-jobs and government contractors that go around rubbing their hands and thinking, "yes, yes, another Palestinian family run out of their home, it's all coming together!" Most Israelis, even really conservative ones, aren't out to wreck families. They might support the settlements because of the principal, but they don't want to dominate the world or fuck up someone's life. It doesn't mean lives aren't getting fucked because of certain political leanings, but it's become quite an "out of sight, out of mind" thing for a lot of Israelis I think. Most of the gung-ho, "drive 'em out!" sort of people are ones that are scared and drawn to fanaticism for any which reason. For some people it gives their life purpose, thinking they're the chosen people. For some it's vengeance, either for a loved one lost or injured, or a fucked military service, or it's guilt turned outward.

If you don't support he occupation why did you volunteer to join the IDF?

People think the IDF is totally synonymous with the Occupation, but it's presence in Palestine is not the focus of the Israeli army. The IDF is huge and multi-faceted, it spans the length of the public sector and is involved in plenty of things that aren't combat related. At the time that I decided to draft I wanted to be part of something bigger. I thought the Occupation was wrong, but I also thought that I could change that, and I thought that as a Jew it was good to ensure "the continued safety of a Jewish safehaven." I don't really feel those things anymore, but at the time that is why I decided to volunteer.

Was joining the US Armed forces a consideration for you? If so, what factored in your decision between the two? If not, what drew you to the IDF?

Joining the US Army was never in my plans. I came to Israel when I was 17 on a program and kind of got swept away by the country and the people. I had this big plan in my head, I was going to do it, I was going to forge a path for peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. I had this vision of me being this sort of beacon of progressive light, going in and teaching empathy and reason towards Palestinians to the right wing soldiers while at the same time fighting for a cause I believed in. I had this view of the IDF as as close to a righteous army as you could get, because they taught things like "the sanctity of the weapon", and because you could swear into the army on the Quran, etc.

Also I was extremely depressed and thought that if I was in the army, it would force me to get out of bed and do something. Maybe a bit of structure and discipline would get me functional again. (Just a note going forward to people with clinical depression: armies aren't a great idea. Try meditation. And mushrooms. And maybe therapy.)

How come, if you were dealing with depression, the army's strict regimen and procedure didn't help? I figured it would, y'know, get your mind off of it.

Just wondered cause that was an idea i had. Im gonna graduate high school in a year and, since i can't really figure out what to do, and am so dispassionate about my future, the military seemed like a good fit for me.

Probably a dumb question, cause i think i know why, but just in case im wrong im curious as to what you'd say.

It's not as ideal as you think it will be. When you're depressed you need to be in environments that allow you to get through the episode without offing yourself. If you're stressed, sleep-deprived, hate your boss, aren't getting proper nutrition, and feel there's no way out, you may off yourself. If you want to be in combat and you're seriously depressed, you will probably off yourself.

I can't give you any advice on what to do about your future. The only thing that's ever offered me any insight is the present. Then again I graduated high school early and never looked back at that fucking hell hole. I think quiet existences with lots of nature mixed in are best for people like us. Maybe find yourself a girl, and settle down. Lead a simple life in a quiet town. Steady as she goes, you know? And maybe do some peyote. Anyway that's just one suggestion, who knows where you'll end up, right? But no, I don't recommend the army.

because you could swear into the army on the Quran

Wait, the Quran? Isn't that Islam's holy book? Or am I misunderstanding something here?

Yeah, when you swear into the army you have to swear on a religious book. The army makes a point to offer the Torah, the Bible, and the Quran, the 3 major religions in Israel. There are a couple units of bedouin soldiers and they are Muslim so they swear in on the Quran. At the time I thought that was really progressive.

Wait, what? When I joined the military in 2004 we didn't have to swear on any holy book, that's the first time I'm hearing about this. Since when is this a requirement?

I don't know if it is a requirement but we all did it in 02. Anon said it's not mandatory, which makes sense, but I don't think they actually told us that. After you swore on your little book you got to keep it. :) Nothing says "onward Jewish soldiers" like receiving the word of God with the IDF logo emblazoned on it!

Huh, TIL. Never really thought of Muslims in Israel as a thing, much less joining the military. But that's a cool tidbit, thanks for sharing!

It's not a common thing. Only Bedouin muslims. Most arab muslims are actually denied enlistment, even if they wanted to.

Why do you love cows?

They are my spirit animals. Have you ever looked into the eyes of a cow? Brilliant. I sometimes dream that I am a viking warrior princess, and my steed is a beautiful heiffer named Ingrid, and I would ride her into battle wearing nothing but my breast plate and helmet, and all the men would faint at the site of our beautiful splendor, and then Ingrid would gore them while they were down.

Cows fucking rock.

http://i.imgur.com/ODiFC9E.jpg

Warmup work of the evening. :)

Dude. DUDE!!! This is amazing!!!!! Thank you, wow, you are really talented!! Can I make this my facebook profile picture?!

Hey! I am a Palestinian, and I have to say it is really refreshing to see someone talk like that with an open mind from the other side. Although it is a shame that you couldn't achieve your goal of bringing peace, but don't lose hope yet; independence day 2 is coming soon and we can forget our differences and fight the god damn aliens together. I wish you the best of luck in your future plans...Reddit told me I'm supposed to ask a question, so how are you today?

Hi, I'm good today, working in the garden. It's been really nice talking to people from Palestine on this thread, I've never really heard from Palestinians before or been aware that there were so many on reddit. The other day I was asking myself why I haven't gone to the West Bank yet and part of me realized I was scared, scared people would be really angry with me and that someone might try to hurt me or something if I went, but I realize how bullshit that is. It's total bullshit. Even while actively avoiding it I managed to drink a little bit of the Kool-Aid. It means a lot that you wrote this comment, to me and maybe to other Israelis who are lurking here.

I really hope the aliens come soon and this bullshit is put behind us. I hope you're doing well and are also having a good day, and I also wish you luck in your future plans. I think our paths might cross sometime in the future. :)

Ok guys I am going to bed, if you have any more questions or just want to chat send me a message! Good night :)

What do you believe is the root cause of this whole problem with the Israeli/Palestinian conflict? Do you believe that it all roots back to religion? Who do you think is at fault? Thank you for your time.

I think the root of the problem is that Israelis and Palestinians are so much like one another they've reached a dead lock. Both Israeli and Palestinian people claim to be the rightful inhabitants of the same area of land, both Israeli and Palestinian culture was forged in the face of oppression from a perceived "Goliath" with an us vs. them mentality, both Israeli and Palestinian society has aspects of extreme religious fanaticism that influence their political structure, both Israeli and Palestinian people have lost people they care about and live more or less constantly on the brink of war, both Israeli and Palestinians vested history in the region extends for thousands of years, the list goes on.

Sometimes I will enter this mentality of "screw the Palestinians" and start listing all the things I see wrong with them and their society, and then realize that I think and do the same things that I am criticizing this imaginary Palestinian counterpart for, and then I feel like a big dummy.

edit: toned down the self-righteousness a little bit ;)

When you train the dogs in the canine unit, do you like some of them more than others?

For sure. Some dogs were real dicks. They would bite you and pull your fucking arm out when you walked them on the leash and run out of the cage when you weren't expecting it. I maintain that dogs are just as smart and complex as humans, only with much shorter attention spans.

Also there was this one dog that was super cute and would come up to you like he just wanted to be pet and snuggled, and then he'd knock you over and hold you down and start humping you from behind. I hated him the most I think, but maybe just because I didn't want to admit to myself that I was dumb enough to get molested by a dog. Twice.

What's the worst thing you were forced to do? Anything you regret?

They don't treat the dogs very well, and there were a lot of times where I was given too many dogs to take care of and couldn't give each the attention they deserved. The official trainers could be quite harsh with them and that would always upset me, too. They stopped inviting me to training sessions after I started intervening, towards the end I didn't really give a fuck about the consequences and there is nothing commanders dislike more than a soldier that doesn't care about getting punished. So yeah, abuse by unintentional negligence was probably the worst thing I was "forced" to do.

Probably one of the more interesting AMA's right here. I might have missed it, but did you move there just to join the IDF, or were you an Israeli who lived in America and moved back?

Also, with the most recent events in Gaza, what are the true opinions of those in the IDF about the recent operations in Gaza? I personally think they were mostly justified unlike many others.

Thanks for doing this!

In the beginning I moved here just to serve in the army. I was in a special program that allowed foreigners to draft if they were Jews. It's called "Volunteers from Abroad", that's why I got a shortened service, 18 months instead of the usually mandatory 24 for girls (now 28). When I finished my service I completed the process for becoming a citizen but I have no Israeli family to speak of.

My opinion on the operation, like all operations I guess, is pretty complicated. Ultimately I am very disinclined to intervene in shit people do. Gazans can throw rockets, Israelis can drop missiles, we are all just humans scrambling around and trying to justify our existence with things we think make life "meaningful", no one is inherently more right or wrong than anyone else.

That being said, it is pretty surreal to see rockets being blown up over your head. I saw it on a daily basis for awhile, and there was a very animal element to me that wanted to survive and for my clan to win. If bombing Gaza meant I would stop having to run to the bunker then I was all for it. If it meant the army would stop sending dogs into the tunnels and my friends to the border, go ahead. But there was still a dark awareness that in the frenzy of things, and in the kind of druggy sort of high you get in the shared experiences of fear and patriotism, that I was just actively perpetuating something a lot of people in Israel and Gaza have money and politics invested in. So while I wouldn't really say any sort of violence is "justified", I also don't really know what else Israel was supposed to do.

Hey there!

Did you actually go out on missions with the special operations unit? Or were you backside support?

What is your opinion on women in special operations?

No, I was just combat support. I'd be oversimplifying a little if I said I was just a glorified poop scooper, but my job literally required 0 security clearance so I wasn't taking any real action in big operations.

I think it's funny that people even need to have an opinion about women in special forces. I've heard it a lot in the army that women shouldn't be in combat, we're not emotionally strong enough, we shouldn't be in the army at all, etc. If someone meets the requirements, physical, mental, and otherwise, why the hell not? I worked with a lot of girls in the unit that were special forces infantry and most of them were tough as balls. Or to paraphrase Betty White, tough as vaginas, because they could take a real pounding.

What was the absolute worst part of the entire experience being a soldier? The best?

I was going to say the worst part was all the shitty bitch work you had to do, but thinking back on it doing something you hate with people you like provided me with some of my best memories. The bitch work could be really, REALLY unbearable at times but I wouldn't say it was definitively the worst thing. I think the worst thing was kitchen duty, which is technically a facet of bitch work, but a breed all it's own. Kitchen duty made a day in the Korean sweatshops look like fucking cake. 13 hours of hard, physical, disgusting labor without any breaks except 20 minutes at meals. You think I'm exaggerating, but I'm not. SOMETIMES they'd give you an hour off in the afternoon if you got all your work done on time, but sometimes they'd keep you there from 6:30 to 11 at night because of some stupid fucking event. You'd come back from kitchen duty on a bad day and your arms would be shaking. Your boots were so water-logged layers of skin would just peel off with your socks when you took them off, and you reeked of chicken fat and bleach. You had to do this once every 3 weeks and every time you'd think, "maybe it won't be so bad this time!" and it was that bad ALMOST EVERY TIME!!

The best thing was the boys. Never in my life have I felt so much like a lecherous old man in heaven as when I would sit alone at a table during lunch time and just watch the soldiers go through. So many hot guys that I could stare at all day. Hot guys in uniform, all the time, sometimes doing push ups and sit ups, sometimes snuggling with their dogs, sometimes giving you orders, yes sir! Plus they were so fucking horny and desperate that you would get hit on all the time, even if you were an average looking girl. If you're not attracted to men, I can't explain what it is about guys that is just so cool, but living around really fit ones all the time was just amazing, and you can tell how much they appreciate just the fact that you're there and you're a woman and you're soft and nice, because they're actually quite sensitive, and then there's something really sexy about the fact that they're soldiers and carry weapons, and oh my god do I miss the hot guys!!

Also the dogs. Yeah I change my mind the dogs were the best. I miss my dogs more than I miss the boys. :(

You mantioned that you came to Israel 3 years ago, so what where you doing in Israel before you join the army?

What are your favorite things about Israel?

what are your least favorite things?

When I first came to Israel I did the intensive Hebrew course, Ulpan, for about 5 months. I was on a kibbutz and spent half the time studying, half the time working on the dairy farm. Then I moved to another kibbutz, where I ended up living for a year, and for about 9 months I volunteered on an organic farm. I also started meditating quite a lot, fell in love and got my heart broken, took a lot of mushrooms, and generally had the best time of my entire life thus far. I also experimented with nihilism which was fun. The other 4 months in between all this were spent visiting home or traveling around.

My favorite thing about Israel would be the people. I can't describe Israeli people, although from your username I'm guessing you're Israeli, so maybe you know what I mean when I say Israelis are something else. They're really just something else. This place is like no other in the world, the mix of people, of cultures, of food, the language, the energy, the natural beauty... I change my mind I think my favorite thing about Israel is Israel.

But Israel is also my least favorite thing about Israel, you know? Also it gets so fucking hot, and then when it get's cold, everyone freaks out and acts like it's the first time this has ever happened.

I've been reading all your answers in this AMA, you're amazing. You put the Israeli experience unfiltered eloquently and with vivid images. I wish I had that ability, thanks for one of the best IAMA's I've read!

Woohoo! No problem. :) I'm glad you liked it!

I'm an Israeli citizen living abroad and having been worried about joining the army ever since I was young, I'm Israeli/Canadian and don't speak really good Hebrew, should I be nervous?

Haha, I don't know, it depends on what you expect to get out of it I think. If your Hebrew is not good enough then you will go to Ulpan, no big deal. But you know you don't have to join if you don't want to, right?

I'm fully aware that I'm not required to join, although, my father (Canadian citizen at the time) joined the army voluntarily which is putting a lot of pressure on me.

Should I be worried about anything? Is basic training hard? Is there any tips you have?

Try not to join because you feel pressured. Life decisions you get pressured into don't always turn out that well. I know it's easier said then done.

You don't have to be worried about anything. Basic training is hard, especially if you're in combat, but you will make some great friends and your mutual hatred of your commanders will forge a bond much stronger than you could hope to find in other social situations. My tips would be to sleep when you can, where you can, if you can, and don't sweat the small stuff. :) And get laid as much as you can in Canada (if you get laid at all) since Israeli women can be kind of prudish. If you're not getting laid then you won't feel much of a difference! ;-)

I love the internet

What are the day to day operations of the average IDF soldier? I imagine they are different than any other military because of Israel's unique situation.

Do you feel like female soldiers are treated differently than male soldiers?

With your first hand experience in the palestinian/israel issues, If you were in charge of Israel, what would you do differently than Israels current policy makers?

thank you

Day to day operations vary as much as any other army. It depends on your role. If you're a combat soldier in training, then your life is hell, 4-5 hours of sleep a night and running and training all day, pretty much every day, for however long your "circuit" takes (amount of time and training until you are deemed fit for combat in your specific role, typically 7 months, up to a year and a half for special forces.) Some jobs are like a typical 9-5 in an office. You live at home, take the bus to base, work at a desk and go back in the evening.

Female soldiers are for sure treated differently, but it actually tends to work in our favor. You can get away with so much more shit if you are a girl, especially if you are a cute one. Want to get the warmest sweater from logistics for those cold winter nights on guard duty? Flirt with the guy in charge of distribution. Want to get sick leave or a rest day but you're not really ill? Cry to the doctor. Don't want to scrub chicken fat and bone marrow from 20 industrial sized pots when you're on kitchen duty? Say you're not strong enough to lift them. If you're feeling really adventurous you can strike up a sexual relationship with one of the officers and have him pull strings for you. But don't tell anyone, or he might get a stern talking to about sexual harassment. Of course, in return you also have to put up with a lot of overt (and not so overt) chauvinism. Women's "nice" uniforms (the ones you travel with and wear to Shabbat dinner) are much tighter and you're not allowed to have pockets. Which is super fucking annoying. If you're a woman you're not allowed to leave base until you've presented the bottle of mace you're given at draft day, ostensibly for warding off potential rapists, to your commanding officer, although I've never heard of one being effectively employed to stop a buggering, while stories of some moron spraying herself in the face accidentally are astronomical. Plus if you're a woman you're just overall considered "less important" for the most part, compared to fighting men. Although non-fighting men are also considered "less important". Still, when Bibi came to speak to our unit, he made a lot of references to the sacrifice the men were making, seemingly forgetting that there was a sizeable group of women combat soldiers sitting right in front of him and not really getting their dues.

If I was in charge of Israel I'd probably shoot myself because there's no way I'd ever want to inherit this giant fucking hot-mess of crazy. But in an ideal world I'd shut down the rabbinate, stop building the settlements, seriously reevaluate minimum wage and try to bring taxes down enough so that I could start offering subsidies for settlers to move back to Israel, make more alternatives to army service in the public sector and allow easier access for Arabs to enlist if they wanted to, cut subsidies to Hasidic families with 15 children and parents who don't want to work because they think it's beneath them, and for the love of god start trying to build some sort of shared economic endeavor between the Israelis and the Palestinians in the West Bank because if it's one thing Jews and Arabs seem to agree on, it's that money is cool and the more of it the better, and maybe one day we can find something that would make us enough money that we could bury the bad blood between us. Also I'd offer more subsidies to organic and sustainable agriculture, just because that's cool and it's a good idea in general. :)

as a Palestinian-American currently living in the West Bank, I FEEL YOU. Maybe we can trip shrooms together and be the face of progressive peace?

Yes! That sounds great!! You know tenuous peace will truly be in the process when young people from two countries that consider each other enemies can come together and do drugs. I really liked your video by the way!!

Women's "nice" uniforms (the ones you travel with and wear to Shabbat dinner) are much tighter

Oh come on. All the girls tighten the uniform themselves, the uniforms don't come that way.

That's true. They do get them fitted. Although I never got mine fitted, and I had a pair of boys pants as well, and the boys were hella more comfortable, I'm sure I wasn't imagining it.

Just a heads up couldn't your id's barcode be scanned to find out who you are too?

Edit spelling

Yes, I think so. Although if someone in the IDF was trying to find me even without the bar code it wouldn't be hard at all. I gave my name, unit, position, and time of discharge.

Your AMA is so much better than the other one. Thanks for doing this.

And since I must ask a question, WTF are you doing in Ramat HaGolan?

I am volunteering on a berry farm! It's fun, you should come join me.

Lol I had no idea there were so many Hebrew speakers on reddit. The JIDF is real!

Hey I'm 16 from modi'in. Have been wondering about what's next, you know, after the army, where do you start, what's your plan?

Ultimately my life plan is to team up with rap duo Die Antwoord and tour the world with them as their hype girl. Until then, I really have no idea. I think I might go chill out in Northern California and see what happens. Maybe I'll stay here and try to find a place that teaches herbalism. I'm just kind of winging it I guess. :)

Woah woah woah... DUO!?

Don't you dare forget about the elusive DJ Hi Tek.

Oh god don't tell him that I forgot about him! You know how Hi Tek gets, he'll come kill me in the middle of th

Nah hell probs just fuk u in the a$$

Punk-ass white boy! :)

What is the psychedelics culture like in Israel?

Almost no mushrooms. Sadly. SWIM smuggled some in once, which was stupid, and then somehow found some through a friend. Lots of acid and lots of ayahuasca ceremonies. Smoking DMT is also very popular, maybe because Israel is one of Alex Grey's favorite countries. :)

This sounds like a great experience! Were you a lone soldier?

Anyway, my question is despite your job as a poop trooper poop scooper (lol), has your service made you tougher and more prepared for life in general?

Do you think Israel's conscription of both men and women has made the general populace tougher and stronger? Recently, I saw a grown woman bawl in tears after getting a tiny cut :(. This makes me wonder if America would be better off with a universal draft.

Yeah I was a lone soldier. I don't know if I feel tougher or if I really learned anything. I definitely matured in a lot of ways, although I don't know if that was because of the army or just age appropriate.

I do think that mandatory conscription for both genders adds something. I don't necessarily think it makes people stronger, but it acts as a catalyst for all sorts of people from all sorts of backgrounds to have a shared experiences with each other. When you're a big white Ashkenazi guy from a wealthy background and you have to sit down and get lectured on how to self-tourniquet an open wound by some tiny 18-year-old Ethiopian girl from the Israeli "projects", I think it makes you look a little harder at the people you deal with day to day, whether you realize it or not.

As for the paper cut thing, some Israeli women cry about tiny things, too, I don't think the army is a cure all for being a little bitch (I'm speaking from first-hand experience, being a little bitch myself and having gone through the army.)

I'm also an American living in Jerusalem. Why is it when you ask someone what they did in the IDF, the answer always involves some type of special unit? I swear nobody is ever a cook or other type of regular soldier.

Because the IDF looooves Americans and will always try to get them into special units. It's good publicity and it encourages more guys from abroad to enlist. Kinda sneaky, but as a beneficiary of such "protekzia" I'm not really complaining.

If you're a male and you're non-combat it's usually because a) your health profile isn't high enough to be a fighter or b) you don't have your heart in the fighting and asked to be a jobnik (hard to get out of it if you're a guy, though) and these two types of people aren't usually the ones that become citizens and want to enlist.

You worked in agriculture in, or near, a desert.

What is your advice to Californian farmers who are facing an extreme drought?

Stop farming beef! Free the cows! ;-)

Hi there! Thanks for doing this AMA. My question revolves around your "dabbling" in psychedelics. What kinds of psychedelics did you do? While you were serving? Did they drug test you? Answering any of these would be great! Thanks a ton

I did mostly mushrooms and acid while I was in Israel. A couple times while I was serving. Our unit was never drug tested, although that isn't true for all. I think the tests are only looking for the "major" drugs (weed, coke, etc.) that come on a standard drug test, not so much psychedelics. If you get caught you get thrown into army jail and get a civilian criminal record. Weirdly enough, though, I heard that your commanders cannot "force" you to take a pee test. They can say you have to but you can refuse to follow orders. Refusing to follow orders will put you in jail, but (so the rumor goes) you can then just wait in jail until the drugs are out of your system (about three weeks) and then agree to take the test.

I don't know if that's true but it's smart if it is. :)

Are you Jewish? Why Israel? How do I get there without being haggled by everyone and possibly shot? Have your feelings changed about the situation there since joining?

I am Jewish. You won't get shot in Israel, it sounds ironic but I actually feel way safer here then I ever did growing up in suburban America. Can't help you with the haggling, although that really only goes down in the market. Most stores are just like stores anywhere else in the developed world.

My feelings about the situation here have certainly changed since moving to Israel and joining the army. They've gone from, "This is what needs to be done," to "I have no fucking idea what is going on, or how anyone can do anything about it."