Radio legend Sid Rosenberg has gone from Canarsie to the kibbutz in his first visit to Israel, and has a message to Americans: “Get your act together.”
Seeing the unity and patriotism of Israelis in a time of grieving and war, Rosenberg, a Brooklyn native and lifelong New Yorker, couldn’t help but contrast it to contention in the U.S.
“We are such a divided country,” lamented the host of 77 WABC’s “Sid and Friends in the Morning,” who just returned from a week-long visit to the battered Jewish state. “This country is a mess and patriotism is at an all-time low.
“There’s nobody – not a doctor, lawyer, mechanic, or guy making falafel – who’s not willing to die for Israel,” the 56-year-old observed. “They have resilience, patriotism and loyalty.
“That’s not the case with America anymore.”
Watching the horror unfold on Oct. 7, Rosenberg, a “proud Jew” who grew up attending yeshiva in Canarsie, vowed to make his inaugural visit to the Jewish state, broadcasting his top-rated morning show abroad without missing a beat. He did a moving 30-minute interview with Rachel Goldberg, mother of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23.
Rosenberg never allowed fear to deter him or his family — he was accompanied by his wife and two teenage kids — from their important pilgrimage to the war-torn holy land.
While walking through the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem on the way to the Western Wall, Rosenberg wore his favorite sweatshirt displaying both an American and Israel flag and the slogan, “New York stands with Israel.”
“Shut the f–k up,” someone hissed.
‘I didn’t give a s–t,” Rosenberg recalled.
There were other close calls – like having to run into the bomb shelter near kibbutz Be’eri, one of the most devastated communities, where more than 100 were killed. “The ground literally shook. Physically, our bodies moved,” said Rosenberg of a powerful explosion.
He admitted he was “unnerved, but never scared. Frankly, I’m more scared to take the 3 train at 2 in the morning than walk through Jerusalem.”
And while it’s both jarring and reassuring, “everyday people have guns – men and women,” which they learn how to use during their compulsory military service, he said. “Unlike in New York, where they don’t know what the hell they’re doing.”
Upon his return to New York earlier this week, Rosenberg was honored with the “Guardian of Israel” award by the Fifth Avenue Synagogue. Now, he proudly brandishes his newly purchased gold Israel dog tags.
“These people protesting Israel and supporting Hamas are disgusting. They’re supporting people who rape women, who put babies in ovens, cut out children’s eyes, murder children in front of their parents,” he fumed.
