American Judaism Makes a Wrong Turn

A recent survey by Frank Luntz revealed what I personally find to reveal an ugly truth about the views of many American liberal Jews, especially those more than one generation removed from the horrors of the Shoah. He found that when pushed to choose between Israel and the liberal misconception that the reason there is no peace between Israel and the Palestinians, they almost universally sided with the liberals against Israel. What makes this dichotomy even more surreal is the fact that President Clinton, still an icon in leftist circles, after being bludgeoned by Yasser Arafat’s refusal and walkout from the Camp David Peace Accords leaving the most generous offer made by Israel in shatters without even a hint of willingness for further discourse, realized that the problem derived from the Palestinian leadership’s complete and full rejection of any peace that allowed for the existence of Israel as a Jewish State. These talks made it eminently clear that the only solution acceptable to the Palestinian, Muslim, and Arab side of the bargaining would be the total elimination of Israel and the removal or genocide of the Jews of the Middle East. Despite this, the left still holds Israel responsible for the lack of progress in the peace process. This has become evidently clear with the Obama Administration’s approach to the peace process and treatment of Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu.

Both AIPAC and the ZOA have held up the evidence for years upon years showing Israel’s willingness to make virtually any sacrifice short of suicide for peace and the Palestinian’s rejection of any settlement short of Israeli suicide and Jewish genocide as a minimum for peace, Hamas would carry it further requiring the complete genocide of every Jew on planet Earth. With the backing of wealthy leftist and anti-Semites such as George Soros, we have witnessed the ultimate expression of self abasement by Jewish liberals with the formation of J-Street in America and J-Call in Europe who, in true liberal fashion, hold Israel solely responsible for the lack of a satisfactory settlement establishing a Palestinian State existing side by side with Israel in peace and equal security. They hold the view that Mahmoud Abbas along with Mayaud Fayad, in their expensive and proper designer suits, as a reasonable man willing to work with Israel in order to make Peace. Completely forgotten in this equation are the simple facts that Mahmoud Abbas was right there as Yasser Arafat’s right hand man since the founding of the PLO in 1964 with a charter stating their goal as the elimination of Israel. There was no claim to the need for a Palestinian state as Jordan occupied the West Bank illegally at that time (most nations never recognized Jordan’s ownership of the West Bank referring to it then also as occupied land). Also forgotten is the pivotal role Mahmoud Abbas played in arranging and financing the Black September murderous raid on the Israeli team at the Munich Olympics or his role in financing the PLO’s abduction and assassination in the Sudan on March 1, 1973. Abducted were of two Americans - Ambassador Cleo Allen Noel, Jr. and Chargé d'Affaires George Curtis Moore - a Belgian, a Jordanian, and a Saudi. On Yasser Arafat’s personal orders recorded by many of the world’s security organizations, the two Americans and the Belgian were bound, lined up against a basement wall, and executed in gangland fashion. But Israel is the impediment to peace.

Some ask what happened to change the situation from liberal support for Israel witnessed up to 1967 and liberal disgust and rejection of Israel after 1967. It seems that by winning the Six Day War against seemingly overwhelming odds, Israel committed the most grievous of liberal sins, success through self-reliance and strength. As long as Israel was facing the combined total strength of the Muslim and Arab worlds, they were the underdog worthy of support. Once Israel proved to be capable of successfully defending themselves, even defeating their adversaries, the equation changed and the poor defenseless Palestinians were cast as the victims of those brutish Israeli imperialists. As long as it appeared that Israel was in mortal danger of being wiped out by the combined armies of her enemies, Israel was worthy of support. Once Israel proved their ability to defend themselves against these same odds, and with apparent ease at that, then Israel was no longer the poor victim but now was viewed as the oppressor of the poor defenseless Palestinians. Observing this shift in the leftist view of Israel, the Muslim world quickly jumped onto the bandwagon declaring the plight of the Palestinians. Push come to shove, the Palestinians still had the support militarily of the entire resources of the Arab and Muslim world who would have immediately joined any of the Intifada had it appeared that Israel could be defeated. So far, that scenario has not presented itself.

Furthermore, another overlooked piece to this tangled mess is the support in financing the terror infrastructure by the liberal west that frees the Muslim world to simply supply and arm Hamas and Fatah. America, with a program being overseen by General Dayton, are currently arming and training the Palestinian military and police units. From time to time, the truth is spoken by a Palestinian Councilman that they will use these weapons and training to finally remove the Zionist Entity, that is Israel just for clarification. Previously, the Palestinian military arms, of which there are many, were armed and funded by Saddam Hussein. This was in addition to Saudi money donated by many of the ruling family but never officially by the Saudi Government, same as with their Wahabist terrorists worldwide. Since the fall of Saddam in Iraq, the slack has been taken up with much gusto by Iran and Syria. Despite all the assistance given the Palestinians, the aid given to Israel is the only funding ever debated and under threat of being discontinued at any time. It is apparent that by Israel defending themselves, successfully and with deceiving ease, had committed the ultimate sin in the eyes of the left, they have succeeded. The only way the Israelis can get back the liberal’s support would be to lose and be subjected to genocidal consequences. Then, and only then, will the liberal establishment lament their loss and give an outpouring for the dead. I find much of this reminiscent of the events around FDR and his denial to take in the Jewish refugees fleeing Hitler’s camps of extermination on the SS St. Louis. Run a search and read about this travesty of justice against over 900 Jewish refugees that FDR made sure were returned to German control and the fate that awaited them.

thanks for posting.

It’s the media, and the media’s ability to convince people that it is the arbiter of fashionable, upper-class thought.
It’s very au courant to disparage Israel.

Most people want to be included among the elite, the knowing, the in-group. The fact that the media is tawdry, shabby, and shallow hasn’t sunk in yet.

I pray it will.

Mostly, it’s guilt. You have white liberal guilt. You have Jewish liberal guilt (as if you feel guilty for NOT wanting to be sent to the gas chambers again), Catholic liberal guilt-hence the support of priests for Ted Kennedy and Obamacare-even with its pro-abortion funding, etc. In fact, I would argue that liberalism is nothing more than one big guilt trip for your own happiness. You notice how they usually start out by saying, “We have to be tolerant,” “We have to give back to the community” “Look at what we are doing to the environment.” And, of course, “we” meaning “everyone except me” ala Al Gore.

I think that this has long been interpreted as “ignorance”, when the truth of the matter is that it is “obstinance”. And this changes the entire paradigm.

Throughout the Tanakh, there are profound examples of Hebrews who live in ignorance until taught; but also of Hebrews who reject what they have been taught, often to embrace profanity, for various reasons. Generally the latter meet a bad end.

This cuts to the heart of the matter. While a great debate among Jews is “What is a Jew?”, that asks if it is a matter of birth, or faith, or ethnic group, or affiliation, etc., the more pertinent question is “What is not a Jew?” Or perhaps, “What can a Jew do, to stop being a Jew, forever?”

Perhaps embrace the worship of a golden idol? Or become a creature who seeks the destruction of Jews, and Israel?

Jews certainly do not like to call each other out, and say that they are not a Jew, except maybe rhetorically. But Judaism needs a definitive end to a Jew, beyond even their death. That they cease being a Jew, forever.

And this is an intolerably hard thing for modern Jews to decide. Yet they should consider how, in the past, it was done. Which means that it can be done.

Then the question becomes “What is the boundary line?” Who seeks to cross it, and who has crossed it already, and irredeemably.

As I posted on another thread only days ago, the basic underlying problem with these "liberal" Jews that side with the enemies of Israel (despite the many problems that I have with the Jewish left in general, you can't classify all "liberal" Jews as anti-Israel) is their lack of a basic education as youngsters in Jewish and world history. The general decadence of public schooling in the last few decades has combined with poor or non-existent Jewish educations in the family and Jewish institutions to create this all too common ignorance in young Jewish adults today.

That having been said, I'm sure that if you polled American Jews on their attitudes regarding the Israel-Arab conflict, you would see a strong positive correlation between having visited Israel in one's formative years and a pro-Israel orientation.

I am willing to bet that Most of the major J-Street players have been to Israel MANY times.

J Street doesn't impress me as representative of a mass grassroots movement of American Jews moving toward an anti-Israel position. It's basically a satellite of the Obama regime created recently, coincident with the 2008 Obama campaign. At its core are professional left wing fringe ideologues, some of whom were cleverly imported from Israel, where such a movement has existed for a long time. It gets a lot more publicity than its numbers would warrant because of its ties to the present White House and the anti-Israel, pro-Islamist orientation of the MSM. And though it bills itself as "Jewish" and "pro-Israel," an "alternative to AIPAC" within the Jewish community, some of its support comes from Muslim activists, who have been seen prominently at its events.

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