Comments on: A “Holy” War?

By: Adam

Adam — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 00:26:43 +0000

This article was very thought provoking. After doing a little online research, it appeared to me that a strong motivating force behind the United States’ support of Israel is Christian Zionism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Zionism). “Christian Zionism is a belief among some Christians that the return of the Jews to the Holy Land, and the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, is in accordance with Biblical prophecy.” Id. Religious motivations for political action are seldom stated explicitly, and other rationales are often used to justify actions that are based upon such motivations. Furthermore, religious motivations can be very strong and can exert a powerful influence on politics. However, I am somewhat puzzled that U.S. support of Israel has stayed relatively strong even as the U.S. has become increasingly more secular and less Christian since 1948 (realizing, of course, that only some Christians embrace Zionism). Perhaps motivations such as supporting democracy and maintaining a close ally in the Middle East have surpassed Zionism as political motivations for supporting Israel. Thanks for the well-written article.

By: Wataru

Wataru — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 23:23:27 +0000

Lori: Israel is a doecmracy with fair elections, a free press, an independent judiciary and a diverse population. The idea that you or I can explain to them how to run their country or fight their battles is either condescending or foolish. There probably is a reason why Israelis (or at least Jewish Israelis) have decisively rejected the Left, and those who would preach to Israelis should probably understand that reason. What friends of Israel can do is support Israel, even when they disagree with the positions of its elected government. Probably a good start to supporting Israel would be to refrain from comparing it to a drunkard who beats people up. A good example of how to support Israel was provided by my evangelical Christian friends, who certainly opposed the withdrawal from Gaza and regarded PM Ehud Olmert as a doofus at best, yet still strongly supported Israel.With regard to Israel, I am uninterested in your self-assessment of your Zionism and Jewish identity. What interests me is your willingness to support Israel in word, deed and through your associations. In particular, I am interested in what you are doing to prevent Israel from being isolated, terrorized and overrun by murderous savages, or obliterated with nuclear weapons by genocidal fanatics. To me, that is the bottom line for supporters of Israel.I am not a blind supporter of Israel. I am keenly aware that Israel is not a utopia and not populated by saints. I would like it to be better (as I define better , of course), but as a Zionist I respect the choices of the Israeli people, because they have a lot more skin in the game than I do.Eliot: You are certainly within your rights as an American to urge the US government to reduce the amount of our tax dollars spent on aid to Israel? There are any number of reasons to advocate such a course of action, some of which are not animated by animosity to Israel. But if you do so with the intent or effect of coercing Israel to do actions that its elected government thinks are detrimental to its security, then honesty demands that you cease to refer to yourself as pro-Israel or Zionist.

By: Quincy

Quincy — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:56:51 +0000

I think that for many Americans, the decision to support Israel is based primarily on religious belief and pity for what Jews had to suffer during the Holocaust. An example of this is found in the following video from a debate in Indiana among candidates for the 2010 republican nomination to the U.S. Senate: http://www.youtube.com/embed/65y3Zk6bUhU?start=424 The candidate mentioned democracy and the war on terror, but his "most important reason" was religious, and that is what drew applause. I have always been a bit puzzled by the religious motivation. Israel as a political state is not the same as the house of Israel or the tribe of Judah mentioned in the Bible, and it doesn't make sense to apply to it the promises and privileges given to biblical Israel. The pity argument, that the U.S. should support Israel because the Jews suffered so much during the Holocaust, doesn't make sense either. History is full of examples of terrible suffering and brutal genocide, and the U.S. response has not been remotely proportional to its treatment of Israel. The Armenian genocide, in which over 1.5 million were killed, is a useful example because it has been a controversy for President Obama's administration. Obama originally promised to recognize the Armenian Genocide. He has taken this statement off of his website, but an archived copy is available here (pdf). However, he has subsequently failed to do so. Moreover, Secretary of State Clinton recently said that recognizing the Armenian Genocide was a dangerous, and that it was still subject to historical debate. The reason for all the hemming and hawing about the issue is, of course, the U.S. relationship with Turkey--another strategic resource. I know that most of this is only tangentially related, but it is a good example of why it doesn't make sense to justify supporting Israel out of pity for the Holocaust. The Holocaust was terrible and inexcusable, but that doesn't mean that the U.S. should fund Israel for the rest of its existence.