BinZiad
04-12-2002, 19:57
Subject: If you Live by Gun, you will die by Gun - Advice to Israelis by a US Jew
The Washington Post, July 6, 2002 the following Letter to the
Editor.
"As an American Jew, I am outraged by Abraham Foxman's
irrational conclusions from the Anti-Defamation League's poll
on anti-Semitism in Europe. If 45 percent of those Europeans
polled think that most Jews have a strong loyalty to Israel,
they are right, - from an early age, we are taught that Israel
is a homeland to Jews, and thus most Jews develop a strong
connection to it. This perception being accurate, how is it that
those who have noticed can be categorized as anti-Semitic?
By the same token, Foxman reports that 62 percent of those
polled see the outbreak of violence against Jews as a result of
anti-Israel sentiment, not anti-Jewish feelings. Yes, criticism
of Israeli policies is on the rise. But how is this tantamount to
anti-Semitism? If I criticize the government of Zimbabwe, am
I somehow a racist?
Many Jews, myself included, are highly critical of Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon's policies, as they feed into an endless
cycle of violence that threatens Jewish and Arab lives. We are
long overdue for a serious intellectual inquiry as to how the
president of a leading American Jewish organization can
falsely equate criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism, or, as I
prefer to more accurately call the phenomenon, anti-Jewish
sentiments. Our cousins the Arabs are Semitic too.
Foxman also dares not look too closely at the fact that
Malaysians and Japanese would indeed have no reason to
have a negative opinion of Jews whatsoever unless they were
witnessing the misbehavior of "The Jews" in Israel and in the
Occupied Territories toward the Palestinians. What is on the
rise is a clear worldwide condemnation of Israeli war crimes
and Sharon's diabolical plans for ethnic cleansing of the
Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank.
It is time for Zionists to assume responsibility for a situation of
their own making. Once they enter aggressively into the
political realm as Foxman has done and turn their whole
religion into a debating society over the rights and wrongs of
Israel, they should expect people to criticize!
Again, any time that we hear that Jews are "suddenly" being
persecuted, we have to ask what is really going on. Are their
opponents attacking them only because they are Jews? Or is
the anger directed at them as promoters of Israel?
Activities of the state of Israel are wide and complex, and
some of them deserve severe condemnation. Immediately the
Zionist organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League
label any opposition to Israeli misconduct as anti-Semitism. It
is not anti-Semitism that is growing by leaps and bounds
against Jews for being Jews. It is anti-Israelism that is on the
rise! And rightfully so.
My advice is that Jews, who think like Foxman does about
their unique Jewish specialness, should rejoin the human
race. We need to stop isolating ourselves and relating
ourselves to "The Jews" down through the ages, or to "The
Jews" who happen to live in Israel, or to "The Jews" who
have set up the illegal settlements on Palestinian land.
When other Jews are wrong, we should say so. When Israel
is wrong, we should say so. Only from this commitment to
truth and justice will peace eventually come to the Middle East.
The Washington Post, July 6, 2002 the following Letter to the
Editor.
"As an American Jew, I am outraged by Abraham Foxman's
irrational conclusions from the Anti-Defamation League's poll
on anti-Semitism in Europe. If 45 percent of those Europeans
polled think that most Jews have a strong loyalty to Israel,
they are right, - from an early age, we are taught that Israel
is a homeland to Jews, and thus most Jews develop a strong
connection to it. This perception being accurate, how is it that
those who have noticed can be categorized as anti-Semitic?
By the same token, Foxman reports that 62 percent of those
polled see the outbreak of violence against Jews as a result of
anti-Israel sentiment, not anti-Jewish feelings. Yes, criticism
of Israeli policies is on the rise. But how is this tantamount to
anti-Semitism? If I criticize the government of Zimbabwe, am
I somehow a racist?
Many Jews, myself included, are highly critical of Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon's policies, as they feed into an endless
cycle of violence that threatens Jewish and Arab lives. We are
long overdue for a serious intellectual inquiry as to how the
president of a leading American Jewish organization can
falsely equate criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism, or, as I
prefer to more accurately call the phenomenon, anti-Jewish
sentiments. Our cousins the Arabs are Semitic too.
Foxman also dares not look too closely at the fact that
Malaysians and Japanese would indeed have no reason to
have a negative opinion of Jews whatsoever unless they were
witnessing the misbehavior of "The Jews" in Israel and in the
Occupied Territories toward the Palestinians. What is on the
rise is a clear worldwide condemnation of Israeli war crimes
and Sharon's diabolical plans for ethnic cleansing of the
Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank.
It is time for Zionists to assume responsibility for a situation of
their own making. Once they enter aggressively into the
political realm as Foxman has done and turn their whole
religion into a debating society over the rights and wrongs of
Israel, they should expect people to criticize!
Again, any time that we hear that Jews are "suddenly" being
persecuted, we have to ask what is really going on. Are their
opponents attacking them only because they are Jews? Or is
the anger directed at them as promoters of Israel?
Activities of the state of Israel are wide and complex, and
some of them deserve severe condemnation. Immediately the
Zionist organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League
label any opposition to Israeli misconduct as anti-Semitism. It
is not anti-Semitism that is growing by leaps and bounds
against Jews for being Jews. It is anti-Israelism that is on the
rise! And rightfully so.
My advice is that Jews, who think like Foxman does about
their unique Jewish specialness, should rejoin the human
race. We need to stop isolating ourselves and relating
ourselves to "The Jews" down through the ages, or to "The
Jews" who happen to live in Israel, or to "The Jews" who
have set up the illegal settlements on Palestinian land.
When other Jews are wrong, we should say so. When Israel
is wrong, we should say so. Only from this commitment to
truth and justice will peace eventually come to the Middle East.