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Until the aftermath of October 7th, 2023, I would have been sure that America, in the balance, was squarely in Israel’s corner and ready and willing to do the right thing to defend the Jewish state. I still feel that America is 70% there, but my confidence has frankly been shaken by the egregious antisemitism displayed on American universities, as well as the unabashed linking of further Abraham Accords progress with Israel’s willingness to negotiate a Palestinian state. (Imagine if, after 9/11, the EU had linked support for America’s war against Afghanistan with political support of the Taliban.) Netanyahu has been strongly against rewarding terrorism with political concessions, and I hope he and Israel continue to stand against it.
We need America to stop using “strategic ambiguity” to walk back her support for allies. When Putin invaded Ukraine, it was clear to me that President Biden’s so-called incompetence was intentional, to capitulate on Afghanistan and Ukraine, partly to reorient toward China, and partly to reconsolidate NATO and make more profitable deals going forward. There was never any intention to help Ukraine “win” against Russia, which is amazingly tragic. The U.S. has been losing on purpose. To a certain extent, Nixon to Carter served a similar purpose. America was on the decline, until mysteriously she resurged in the late 80s, up until the early 2000s.
Big picture, what does such a pursuit do to society? It separates the citizen from the state (contrary to the wishes of progressives) and the local from the global. This is mainly because politics are now almost indecipherable. Most people realize that secret deals now define American foreign policy (and much domestic policy), not public discussion or elections. What does such a policy mean for antisemitism? At home, it means people, unable to find straightforward reasons for political upheaval, will put forward increasingly virulent scapegoating conspiracy theories, and unfortunately Jews will bear much of that abuse. In the minds of antisemites, surely the Jews are manipulating world events and causing the world to go downhill.
Abroad, using allies such as Ukraine as bargaining chips does not bode well either for U.S. support for Israel in the future or for the use of U.S. soft power to counter global antisemitism. For part of Israel’s history, the loose tie that bound it to the U.S. was mutually agreed upon. Israel didn’t want to be the 51st state of the U.S., nor did the U.S. seek to annex Israel. Given the events of the last decades, and certainly since October 7th, 2023, it is clear that the U.S. is the only major ally that Israel has. If the U.S. were to utilize similarly ambiguous logic as has been used with Ukraine, it could lead to a capitulation on Israel’s sovereignty. America must not do this.
Finally, as it appears that President Biden’s White House has already accepted that Iran will get a nuclear weapon; if Iran and Saudi Arabia get nukes soon, will they largely use the weapons to threaten each other? Or will they, in concert, use the weapons to coerce Israel into conceding increasingly more of her sovereignty and security preferences? Both are likely and are not mutually exclusive. If the Abraham Accords move forward, America must provide for explicit provisions within the Accords to safeguard Israel’s security interests. Israel cannot abide ambiguity from America’s corner, and America must recognize this fact.
Discussion (116)
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Good post. Welcome to Ricochet, Ryan.
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Seconded! Looking forward to reading more.
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Hello, it's interesting how you've managed to get almost every single point wrong !
How is it right or in Americas' interest to defend the jewish state ? The USA gets absolutely nothing in return and no gratitude from Israel for providing huge financial and military support. Both of which are actually illegal under US law btw - Israel has obtained nuclear weapons by stealing material and technology from the USA, and has never signed the non-proliferation treaty. Under the Symington amendment and Glenn amendment, all aid to Israel is in violation of US law ( although good luck getting congress to act against their jewish owners.... ).
Not rewarding terrorism ? Well the zionist terrorists, like Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir for example, were rewarded with recognition of their state after using terrorism and widespread massacres to drive the original Arab population out of what is now Israel.
"In the minds of antisemites, surely the Jews are manipulating world events and causing the world to go downhill."
Well it's not a figment of the imagination of antisemites, it's a very easily observable fact. And just earlier today, the fanatical jewish government attacked the Iranian consulate in Damascus as part of their continuing effort to (a) provoke a war with Iran and (b) get dimwit Americans to fight that war for them.
You mention the war in Ukraine, which is entirely a project of the fanatical ( and seemingly not very bright ) jewish neocons who have been dictating US foreign policy for decades. A good first step ( although I'm not holding my breath for this to happen ) would be to bar anyone who does not have undivided loyalty to the USA from holding any job or appointed office relating to foreign policy. That means most of all jews who, whether they hold dual US-Israeli citizenship or not, clearly put the interests of Israel above all else.
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The bombs hit the building next door. They took out a top Iranian military guy.
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Well, the browser just ate my response, and I don't really feel like retyping it completely. So the Inigo Montoya version.
The US has tons of space. Our current population density is about half that of Europe (and Russia, Ukraine, and the Baltics make up 47% of Europe's landmass but a much smaller % of population. Remove them from the equation and the US is almost a quarter the density.
Why does that matter? Well, prior to the EU, and even afterward, if someone was facing a pogrom or harassment moving from the USSR to someplace else, even Israel wasn't easy. Even moving from France to Germany before the EU wasn't simple. The US allows for free and open movement anywhere with no restrictions. That means that people could move where they were not hated.
The US has a long and sordid history of anti-semitism and many other forms of prejudice. Even though we have taught, until recently, that we are a melting pot where ethnic, religious, and national origins are all part of our strength, that didn't mean that people didn't still hate groups...it just meant that we taught our kids that we were open and tolerant. That message is not the one that we teach kids today, and that stems from the loss of Higher Education to the Left 4 or 5 decades ago. Now our educators, especially in colleges, focus on the wrongs of America and educate our kids that the US is a bad, even evil, country that isn't better than anyplace else. That our history is one of prejudice, hatred, and bigotry and that everyone who isn't a straight, White, cis-male is a victim of oppression, and learning exactly how you have been oppressed is vital to your ability to claim your slice of compensation. It's not that our variety makes us strong, and we are stronger together than apart, but rather that our variety is our chisel to break the patriarchy and it is through realizing that you are oppressed and must hate the system that you are freed.
In that world, anti-semitism only works when one realizes that Jews are seen as part of that patriarchy. They are White and thus oppressors. They moved from Europe to Israel and thus colonizers. They have won war after war against the Arabs and thus are the bullies of the set piece.
Now take that worldview held by way too many of the college-educated of the past 2 decades and understand that they cut their teeth working for Obama and have even more power and influence under Biden and it is a wonder that we are even supplying ammunition to the Israelis.
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