The son of a sabra, I am hesitant to condemn Israel. My father was born there, my grandfather's bones are buried there. They live amongst many enemies that have sworn to destroy them. It is hard for me to tell them how they should react to what they regard as an existential threat to their existence, living so many thousands of miles away.
Having said that, I honestly hate their leader, his affinty for an American President that I despise and their policies towards Palestinians. I hate how they have given impetus to a right wing and dare I say evangelical settler's movement that treats the people on the West Bank and Gaza like animals, harasses children and uproots olive trees. I have lived through a couple wars there and it has definitely changed and become an apartheid state.
The response to the horrific October seventh attacks was so disproportionate that it was unrecognizable to me that my people could indiscriminately kill their neighbors like they were, in their own words, "mowing the grass."
I love most jews but I don't have a lot of love for Israelis at the moment, especially when I hear them utter things like, destroy ten buildings in Beirut for every Israeli child hurt or fifty to one, I have heard both from them.
I hate that Israel seems to have joined the Trump, Putin, North Korea wing and only paid lip service to Ukraine. It reinforces my belief that I may stand with Jewry but I don't stand in lockstep with Netanyahu and his supporters and I never will.
Two weeks ago Israeli Ambassador Leiter said this in condemning J- Street, the Jewish Pro - Peace organization;
“But when you come and say in such a two-faced manner, ‘We’re pro-Israel, we’re pro democracy,’ there’s a democratically elected government in Israel,” Leiter continued. “You don’t like Netanyahu, make aliyah, vote in the next election and express yourself. Don’t say you’re ‘pro-democracy’ and decry and defy the position of the democratic government of Israel.”
Leiter is saying something very interesting here. If you are a jew, you can't criticize Israel. Your only option is to become an Israeli and vote if you don't like us but keep your mouth shut.
To this, I say, go fuck yourself. Israel is not my kingdom, Netanyahu is not my king. I find the concept of a Jewish state as unlivable and torturous as a Christian state or muslim state. Israel's orthodox rabbis have recently derided reform jews as monkeys, they can kiss my ass too.
I believe in humanity and people in general, I don't have an overriding tribal fealty although I do have a love for them as I try to love the entire world. But they get no special dispensation. That is what it means for me to be a jew.
And if Israel is committing unspeakable acts it is my duty to condemn them as I condemn Hamas, Hezbollah, Putin and the Iranians.
Israel, try to be better than that.
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