I can’t help but wonder what would have happened to this poor man if regular British citizens were carrying guns. Perhaps a bystander could have shot the attackers and saved his life. Perhaps if the attackers knew that this was a possibility it would have stopped them from doing it in the first place.

I am happy that I live in Israel, where my soldiers are allowed to carry guns in public and know how to use them. I am surrounded by the good guys who have the means to defend themselves (and me of course).

The security guard was doing his job checking everyone’s bags, but one gentleman was in a rush and wanted to get through quickly. The guard became angry, and “pushed back” (not physically, but almost) and insisted that the man slow down and get checked as he should. The crowd behind the man, also wanting to catch the train, started to complain and demanded that the guard take the man aside and let everyone else go through.

The guard reacted very strongly and told everyone in a very loud and firm voice that NOONE was going through until the man in question was checked as he should be. Meanwhile the train closed its doors and left the station, leaving a group of very annoyed Israelis.

Many were annoyed at the man who caused the hold-up, some were angry at the guard, and others were angry at the station master, thinking he should have stopped the train for them. (Chutzpah, no?)

Personally, I was very reassured at this incident.

Just think, if you were a terrorist trying to get a bomb onto a crowded train, how would you do it, if there is a security guard at the entrance to the station checking bags? Perhaps you would join up with someone else, who would cause a distraction, and you would rush through while the guard spent his time checking someone who seemed to be more suspicious than you?

This is obviously what the guards are trained to look for – and the one at my station ignored the annoyed crowd behind the first man and insisted on checking everyone thoroughly. Of course noone was a terrorist this time around, and every bag turned out to be fine.

But you never know – and the fact that the guards are doing what they should be doing is keeping all of us safer. Even if the crowd grumbles and yells at each other afterwards. Security comes first.

I usually take the time to say my daily Tehillim, but afterwards I usually have some time left over. I started to take the free daily newspapers that are given out at the station. There is competition between two – Yediot Achronot (sometimes called Idiot Achronot by those who don’t like the rag) and Yisrael Hayom. I of course take Yisrael Hayom, since it has a right wing stance.

I can’t tell you how important this newspaper is. It used to be that the public was exposed just to the left wing point of view. Then Makor Rishon came along and started to change things. The problem with Makor Rishon is that it is still only bought by the dati leumi public, with a smattering of charedim and traditional Jews joining in. It doesn’t really reach most of the Israeli public.

The free daily newspaper does reach the Israeli public – and it can be a game changer.

The coverage of the financial situation and the budget cuts are a prime example. Yisrael Hayom had full coverage – and it skewered Yair Lapid. It had a full page spread just on what Lapid said about the economy in his campaign promises before the election, and what he says now that he is in a position of responsibility. It showcased a middle class family – and how much more they will be paying now in taxes, etc.

In the past the newspapers would do the same thing – but the left wing papers would put all of the blame on the Likud and especially Bibi Netanyahu. Now, with a more objective stance, the newspapers are putting the blame on both the Likud and Yesh Atid – as it should be.

You can’t underestimate the power of this communication tool. Those of us who are somewhat politically active and aware of the media and its power can see how important media bias is. Most people don’t think about it too much – they are too busy working and raising their families to get really involved. These people do read the papers though – especially if it is free and handed to them at a gas station or a train station. What is written in these papers has a lot of power.

The people behind Yisrael Hayom are doing a great service to Israel.

The other Tzipi in the Knesset, Tzipi Livni, of course takes another tack and completely ignores reality, when she says she is optimistic after talking with Senator John Kerry about negotiations with the Palestinians.

The blah blah blah doesn’t mean anything, but the bigwigs need to have their photo ops. The reality on the ground is what is important.

When it comes to Israel and what we need to do to protect our people, the phrase should be “shoot first, explain later”.

Except now, after reading this opinion piece in the Times of Israel, by Sarah Singer, I think that too much explaining is a bad thing too. (And yes, I agree with the premise that too many curse words cheapens the writing. Sorry Sarah, I was raised to be a lady.)

I am sick and tired of hearing that Israeli hasbara is terrible. Our hasbara is fine – the world just doesn’t want to hear an intelligent explanation. We could dumb our explanation down to “they started it”, but who wants to lower the level that far?

In any case, given the way the crazy jihadists are going, the rest of the world will pretty soon be on the same page as we are on now.  It doesn’t take fancy explanations to convince you who the bad guys are when they blow up little kids watching their father run marathons.

It is interesting that Prime Minister Netanyahu was in a helicopter on his way up north at the time of the sighting of the drone, and they landed until the drone was destroyed.

It seems that the IDF is very alert, given the craziness going on in Syria.

It is a bit disturbing, though, that one of the terrorists had been interviewed by the FBI after a tip from a foreign government (I wonder which one….).

In Israel the security services are top notch, for a number of reasons. One, we unfortunately have a lot of experience and this helps develop instincts. Second, we are very motivated. The people who work at this know that if they mess up, a terrorist might very well kill someone they know and love. Israel is a very small country, compared to America, and we are very close knit, relatively speaking. Three, when it comes to security, people here are not afraid of being politically incorrect. Lives are at stake, and this trumps hurting someone else’s feelings. Fourth, and probably the most important, is that we are a country of immigrants – so there is always a huge pool of ethnically diverse people who can become spies. Jews come to live in Israel from all over the world, and speak many different languages. These people’s children grow up motivated to serve in the IDF, and in turn are used in some cases as spies to keep an eye on potential terrorists.

For those of you in America who are in shock and wondering if there is something you can do now, a few pieces of advice:

One – know that you can always pray for the victims and their families. Pray for the injured to heal quickly and for the families of those killed to be comforted.

Two – donate blood. It is always needed but now more than ever.

Three – become more aware of your surroundings. Here in Israel every citizen is very aware of his vicinity, especially in public places. If we see a bag or box in a public place that is unattended – we immediately ask if it belongs to someone. If noone answers, we call the authorities and warn others to back away. The army will be notified and a special bomb squad will come to investigate. Nine times out of ten it is nothing, but all of the effort will be worth it to protect people when the tenth time turns out to be a real bomb.

Please know that we here in Israel are thinking of you…