Such a good piece, Micah. I am at wit's end. So many of my fellow Jewish lefties (even some former SDSers) are attacking me (and anybody else) who whispers as much of a criticism of Israel as "dupes of Hamas." Stuck between Hamas and the ADL is not a place a like to be! Watching liberal Jews knee jerk denounce all critics as Hamas supporters is redolent of the Cheney-Bush charge of anti-Americanism thrown at critics of Iraq war policy. What I don't fully get is this: tons of American liberal Jews know Bibi for the corrupt authoritarian thug he really is and have no confidence in him as a domestic leader. Why all of a sudden do they believe this self-serving demagogue has any rational "strategy" for Gaza. He apparently doesn't. And how is that so many liberals have forgotten that ALL governments lie...especially during war and Israel is hardly an exception. Ibi is setting th table for another 50 years of conflict that in short run is just fine as Hamas and Netanyahu desperately need each other and need to keep fighting and killing.
This was an enlightening read. Admission: Michelle Foxman is a friend/acquaintance but I am not a member of that group. My daughter at Wesleyan says that things are pretty uneventful there. I received the same impression from this piece by Wesleyan President Michael Roth. https://slate.com/human-interest/2023/11/israel-palestine-universities-student-demonstrations.html She said that in the first weeks after October 7th, her social media was difficult to navigate. I'm commenting to wholeheartedly agree with this statement: "More work needs to be done to connect those dots, literally and figuratively." I'm definitely one of those dots, grateful to J Street, New Israel Fund, American Friends of Peace Now, T'ruah, and similarly minded organizations.
Such a good piece, Micah. I am at wit's end. So many of my fellow Jewish lefties (even some former SDSers) are attacking me (and anybody else) who whispers as much of a criticism of Israel as "dupes of Hamas." Stuck between Hamas and the ADL is not a place a like to be! Watching liberal Jews knee jerk denounce all critics as Hamas supporters is redolent of the Cheney-Bush charge of anti-Americanism thrown at critics of Iraq war policy. What I don't fully get is this: tons of American liberal Jews know Bibi for the corrupt authoritarian thug he really is and have no confidence in him as a domestic leader. Why all of a sudden do they believe this self-serving demagogue has any rational "strategy" for Gaza. He apparently doesn't. And how is that so many liberals have forgotten that ALL governments lie...especially during war and Israel is hardly an exception. Ibi is setting th table for another 50 years of conflict that in short run is just fine as Hamas and Netanyahu desperately need each other and need to keep fighting and killing.
This was an enlightening read. Admission: Michelle Foxman is a friend/acquaintance but I am not a member of that group. My daughter at Wesleyan says that things are pretty uneventful there. I received the same impression from this piece by Wesleyan President Michael Roth. https://slate.com/human-interest/2023/11/israel-palestine-universities-student-demonstrations.html She said that in the first weeks after October 7th, her social media was difficult to navigate. I'm commenting to wholeheartedly agree with this statement: "More work needs to be done to connect those dots, literally and figuratively." I'm definitely one of those dots, grateful to J Street, New Israel Fund, American Friends of Peace Now, T'ruah, and similarly minded organizations.