Israel is Falling into a Moral Abyss

The gradual process of ethnic cleansing in the occupied Palestinian territories is accelerating, and with it so is the moral culpability of the Israeli state and the supporters of Israeli policy in the United States. More and more people from the mainstream of Israeli politics are voicing alarm. Former Israeli Knesset Speaker Avraham Burg has compared the situation in Israel today to Germany on the eve of Nazis coming to power, while former Israeli peace negotiator Daniel Levy likens Israel to a drunk and the United States to a friend who gives the drunk a bottle of vodka and keys to his car. Even current Prime Minister Olmert, who has himself ordered incessant attacks on Gaza, has called recent attacks by Jewish settlers on Palestinians "pogroms."

A state founded by Holocaust survivors should be a beacon of morality, not a black hole for it. Supporters of Israeli policy (and I distinguish between support for the country and support for its government's policies) often justify their support by saying that Israel is the only democracy in the region. Leaving aside certain problematic aspects of that claim, I wonder if these people have ever thought of the implications of Israel, as a democracy, being engaged in continual violations of international law and human rights. Israelis, benefiting from a press that is far more open to the truth about government's policies that the American media, know a great deal about what the leaders they elect are doing, yet they continue to elect them. This gives the Israeli public a culpability for their government's crimes that citizens under a dictatorship would not have.

Of course, the Israeli government could never have pursued these policies without the money, weapons, and diplomatic cover provided by the United States. Congress is particularly responsible. After all, it is Congress using its powers of the purse strings rather than the President acting as commander-in-chief that has had a more direct bearing on the colonization of Palestinian territories by Jewish settlers. So many members of Congress have taken money from organizations effectively in exchange for supporting Israeli government interests. So many Congressmen have accepted all-expense paid junkets to Israel, ostensibly for educational purposes. With too few exceptions, members of Congress are fully complicit in Israeli government crimes, including war crimes.

What about the American public? I would say that the American public is largely in the dark about what is going on, thanks to a media which makes criticism of Israeli policy practically taboo. Of course, this gives the media a special culpability. Still, there are many Americans who do know the score and fail to speak out. This is particularly true with Gentiles. Let's face it, although Jews make up only a few percent of the U.S. population, the bulk of the outspoken critics of Israeli policy in this country seem to be Jewish-Americans. It may be that Gentiles are afraid to speak out for fear of being labeled "anti-Semitic," but I say that as long as you are not anti-Semitic then you should not be afraid. In fact, if you are a true friend of the Israeli people then you should stand with those in their beleaguered peace movement.

It does Israelis no more good to control Palestinian land, exploit its resources, and inflict misery on its people any more than it did the United States any good to do the same to Iraqis. Most of us know that the crimes our country committed in Iraq were detrimental to our future, so why would we support the Israeli government when it engages in the same self-destructive behavior. My question to Israel's "friends" in Congress would be "is that what friends are for?" Of course not. Most of our Congressmen (and here is the big surprise) are too self-serving to care about the impact of their votes so long as it helps them raise money for their next election. They are the kind of "friends" Israel's mother should have warned it against. Only we were Israel's mother.

The only real threat to Israel's existence comes not from Iran or Hezbollah, but from a loss of morality. It comes from attacking and threatening its neighbors. It comes from dehumanizing the indigenous people of the West Bank and replacing them with religious fanatics who in some cases view the Israeli government as an enemy and aim to set up a second Jewish state. It comes from turning Gaza into a massive ghetto and slowly starving it. With the United States heading into the biggest economic crisis of our lifetimes, the Israeli government must realize that it cannot take American financial and military aid for granted. The Palestinians have offered so many concessions. Israel needs to accept this generous offer before it falls headlong into the abyss.

Titus North, December 11, 2008