The Hebrew phrase, 'The Cucumber Season', sounds better without translation. It signifies the summer lull in political hubbub, that the media fills with all sorts of 'lesser' stories.

A cartoon drawn by a guy in New York would on the face of it seem to be such a 'lesser' story. Yet its harsh satire, and careful detail, would not leave us alone. We reproduce Eli Valley's latest creation, Dawn of the Chimpanzee, in our Seeing Israel section.

More than its blunt critique of Israel, Israeli policy, and Israelis, the cartoon points an accusing finger at all aspects of the Jewish establishment of the United States. Eli Valley is clearly no outsider to the Jewish community. The cartoon jabs at Jewish schools, camps, Israel advocacy programs, and even pokes fun at a sociologist whose work is well-known in the Jewish world. Valley himself is a regular cartoon contributor to The Forward newspaper.

We may disagree with the cartoon's sentiment, but we cannot accuse it of ignorance.

Take a look at the cartoon and click back here to tell us what you think.

Voonga Voonga...

 For more perspective:

Eli Valley's website with his other cartoons

Gawker: The original publisher of Dawn of the Chimpanzee

Beyond Distancing: A sociological look at young Jews' relationship to Israel

Israel in the Age of Eminem - creative look at Israel messaging