Some preach pacifism, which means that one, under any circumstances, is not allowed to use force against another. In theory the idea of pacifism seems to make sense. If everyone would put his arms down, there would be no war. Indeed, the best way to stop war is to stop fighting, and that is only an act of the will.
Yet pacifism cannot work unless both sides agree to refrain from warfare. Pacifism can never work as long as someone believes that he can enrich himself through force. Pacifism will never work as long as the possibility of force remains an option in this world.
That does not mean that there are no people with the temperament of pacifists. There are, and they suffer mightily every time they are put in the position of armed conflict. For them war is always an act of the will, something that they must force themselves to do. Sadly in our imperfect world, warfare will always be an option and while we may try to solve problems in a peaceful manner, we must always be ready to fight.
The Torah does not teach that pacifism can be a life style. While the intent of the Torah is a peaceful world, and the End of History for the Jew is an absence of tyranny, in the world in which we live we must always be prepared to fight. This Torah portion goes even further. It teaches that certain enemies, even if they are unsuccessful will try again and again to vanquish the Jewish people.
For that reason we are commanded to remember and not forget what one of those enemies, Amalek, did to us. Only in that way can we prepare ourselves for a peaceful future because we are constantly on guard and ready to fight those who we perceive as enemies.
Israel’s reason for the fence separating that country from Palestine is based upon the premise that those who have tried to kill Jews in the past will continue to try to kill Jews in the future. No matter the criticism of other nations, that fence and Israel’s policies to the territories only emphasize that words do not provide protection; that protection will only come from people who are ready to defend their land with more than diplomacy.