Holier than thou
Reply Letter:
Here is one in answer to Jack Cohen which you might wish to send him..
Jack has not answered my question which made it clear that I (and others) think many of the settlements are doing Israel more harm than good. I know all the legal arguments but they no longer have any meaning to anybody else than Jewish people. Legal arguments are being used, too, for many injustices. Seek these out yourself.
I am reminded of a recent Israeli court case where a Yeshiva boy was up for stealing.”How is it that a religious boy like you can do such a thing?” he was asked. “I learnt all the Jewish Laws” the boy replied “But no one told me stealing was wrong.”
In short, what I want to say is that Israel now has little or no moral authority in the world. And that is saying something for a State founded by Ben Gurion. Its government has feet of lead. How can this happen to a country that has so many good reasons to be admired, supported and cherished by every democratic country?
Without this authority it will continue to lose its natural friends. I read the Israeli newspapers and every PMW bulletin every night before I turn off my computer and I am not some ill informed crank.
I do not think being tough will bring the PA to the conference table in the way Jack suggests. Neither humiliation nor force of arms brings peace in this day and age. There are other ways. If there will be peace someday and a two state solution then Israel should do nothing that will make that solution impossible. This is what she is doing and it is clear that the present government does not want peace. The price is already too high. We do know that time is against Israel and Israel is making any settlement less and less likely by its own actions. Nothing seems logical or coherent to me.
I fear that terms will be thrust upon Israel and the sacrifices it will have to make are increasing every day by its government’s own actions.
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My Response:
There are several outrageous statements in your reply that indicate that all your overwrought soul-searching is in vain.
"I know all the legal arguments but they no longer have any meaning to anybody else than Jewish people," First, it does matter that Israel has a perfectly legal basis for settlement on the West Bank, and in fact in all of what was Mandatory Palestine. If not you can imagine how we would be pilloried by you and your friends!
"It is clear that the present government does not want peace" This is untrue, Israelis do really want peace, and the Government of Netanyahu really wants peace (he accepted the two-state solution and froze building completely, but it's never enough). Why don't you ask the Palestinians why they don't return to negotiations with us now? And if they don't, why should we be preparing to make concessions to them, such as not expanding existing settlements, while they still consider themselves in a state of war with us? Is that rational or reasonable? And which Palestinians are you talking about, Hamas in Gaza that shot 51 mortars into Israel last weekend and thens hot Grad rockets at our cities, or Fatah in the West Bank that just named a square after a notorious terrorist who killed Jews?
"Israel now has little or no moral authority in the world," not in a world dominated by the Muslims at the UN and the leftist dominated pro-Palestinian media, all of which you apparently uncritically accept There is an opposite narrative that you ignore by default.
"Without this authority it will continue to lose its natural friends," such as yourself? Many people, especially over-compensating Diaspora Jews who want to be politically correct and go with the flow of the prevalent view of the predominantly leftist society around them, want Israel, i.e. the Jews, to be the ones to make concessions, while we are waiting for the Palestinians to decide to stop killing us. In order to understand this phenomenon (of liberal self-hating Jews always pressuring Israel) you should read "The Oslo Syndrome" by Kenneth Levin, it's been well-documented. Also, see"The Finkler Question," by Howard Jacobson that satirises Jews like yourself.
"We do know that time is against Israel," how do you know this, it's another liberal article of faith. I can argue the opposite, with the Palestinians split and the world focussed elsewhere (Japan, Libya) and Israel's economy surging (7.5% last year) we are managing quite well, thank you.
"I do not think being tough will bring the PA to the conference table," Like most biased liberals you forget that for us survival is more important than peace. If being tough with the Palestinians won't bring peace, what will, being soft? You have got to be kidding. Are you not aware that there are very evil men who are trying all the time to kill us. When your children's or grandchildren's lives are on the line then you can preach to us! Until then stop being holier than thou!
"Nothing seems logical or coherent to me," apparently.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
PS. This was written before the Palestinian bombing in Jerusalem.
Here is one in answer to Jack Cohen which you might wish to send him..
Jack has not answered my question which made it clear that I (and others) think many of the settlements are doing Israel more harm than good. I know all the legal arguments but they no longer have any meaning to anybody else than Jewish people. Legal arguments are being used, too, for many injustices. Seek these out yourself.
I am reminded of a recent Israeli court case where a Yeshiva boy was up for stealing.”How is it that a religious boy like you can do such a thing?” he was asked. “I learnt all the Jewish Laws” the boy replied “But no one told me stealing was wrong.”
In short, what I want to say is that Israel now has little or no moral authority in the world. And that is saying something for a State founded by Ben Gurion. Its government has feet of lead. How can this happen to a country that has so many good reasons to be admired, supported and cherished by every democratic country?
Without this authority it will continue to lose its natural friends. I read the Israeli newspapers and every PMW bulletin every night before I turn off my computer and I am not some ill informed crank.
I do not think being tough will bring the PA to the conference table in the way Jack suggests. Neither humiliation nor force of arms brings peace in this day and age. There are other ways. If there will be peace someday and a two state solution then Israel should do nothing that will make that solution impossible. This is what she is doing and it is clear that the present government does not want peace. The price is already too high. We do know that time is against Israel and Israel is making any settlement less and less likely by its own actions. Nothing seems logical or coherent to me.
I fear that terms will be thrust upon Israel and the sacrifices it will have to make are increasing every day by its government’s own actions.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
My Response:
There are several outrageous statements in your reply that indicate that all your overwrought soul-searching is in vain.
"I know all the legal arguments but they no longer have any meaning to anybody else than Jewish people," First, it does matter that Israel has a perfectly legal basis for settlement on the West Bank, and in fact in all of what was Mandatory Palestine. If not you can imagine how we would be pilloried by you and your friends!
"It is clear that the present government does not want peace" This is untrue, Israelis do really want peace, and the Government of Netanyahu really wants peace (he accepted the two-state solution and froze building completely, but it's never enough). Why don't you ask the Palestinians why they don't return to negotiations with us now? And if they don't, why should we be preparing to make concessions to them, such as not expanding existing settlements, while they still consider themselves in a state of war with us? Is that rational or reasonable? And which Palestinians are you talking about, Hamas in Gaza that shot 51 mortars into Israel last weekend and thens hot Grad rockets at our cities, or Fatah in the West Bank that just named a square after a notorious terrorist who killed Jews?
"Israel now has little or no moral authority in the world," not in a world dominated by the Muslims at the UN and the leftist dominated pro-Palestinian media, all of which you apparently uncritically accept There is an opposite narrative that you ignore by default.
"Without this authority it will continue to lose its natural friends," such as yourself? Many people, especially over-compensating Diaspora Jews who want to be politically correct and go with the flow of the prevalent view of the predominantly leftist society around them, want Israel, i.e. the Jews, to be the ones to make concessions, while we are waiting for the Palestinians to decide to stop killing us. In order to understand this phenomenon (of liberal self-hating Jews always pressuring Israel) you should read "The Oslo Syndrome" by Kenneth Levin, it's been well-documented. Also, see"The Finkler Question," by Howard Jacobson that satirises Jews like yourself.
"We do know that time is against Israel," how do you know this, it's another liberal article of faith. I can argue the opposite, with the Palestinians split and the world focussed elsewhere (Japan, Libya) and Israel's economy surging (7.5% last year) we are managing quite well, thank you.
"I do not think being tough will bring the PA to the conference table," Like most biased liberals you forget that for us survival is more important than peace. If being tough with the Palestinians won't bring peace, what will, being soft? You have got to be kidding. Are you not aware that there are very evil men who are trying all the time to kill us. When your children's or grandchildren's lives are on the line then you can preach to us! Until then stop being holier than thou!
"Nothing seems logical or coherent to me," apparently.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
PS. This was written before the Palestinian bombing in Jerusalem.
posted by Jack Cohen at 4:01 PM
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