Category: International politics

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Myths about Gaza and Hamas

  By International politics, Middle East

Like many progressive Jews–although not enough of us–I’ve been torn and distressed about the current war. On the one hand, I do think that Israel had a right to defend itself against a bloodthirsty vicious attack. And I thought that even though Israel’s government is horrible and has been for some time. It has been taking steps, especially with regard to settlements, that make many of us despair of the possibility of a peaceful settlement with the Palestinians. But countries run by horrible governments still have a right to exist,  a right not to have its civilians attacked, and a right to defend itself against such attacks. On the other hand, I had hoped that Israel would respond with a limited, targeted military action. But instead, while there have been instances of targeted attacks for which civilians received advanced warning,  have seen a bombing campaign that seems almost indiscriminate and… Continue reading

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On Israel’s Bombing of Gaza

  By International politics, Just War Theory, Middle East

I’ve been grateful that all the work I had to do in the last weeks of the PA General Assembly has given me a respite from reading and thinking about the Israel-Hamas conflict. I have a couple of things I want to say about it. If I were making a larger argument, this one would not come first. But I finished it after reading an article comparing Israel’s bombing of Gaza with the Allied bombing of German cities in WW II. The article is in the comments. Thanks to Karly Whittaker for sharing that article. … The comparison with Allied bombing in WWII is even more telling than the article suggests. The Allies had three justification for a bombing campaign that aimed at the center of German cities and that probably killed at least 300,000 civilians. Historians are divided about which was more important at different times during the war.… Continue reading

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What a just war against Hamas would look like.

  By Just War Theory, Middle East

I am concerned about what Israel has been doing and might do in Gaza. Some aspects of Israel’s current policy is morally dubious. At the same time the issues here are far more complicated than most people seem to recognize and what Israel is doing is, at that point, not totally clear. I think charges that Israel is engaging in genocide or ethnic cleansing, are at this point, and to be blunt, absurd. Israel does have a right to respond with military force to the Hamas’ attack. But it should do so in a limited way, and one that respects the moral rules of warfare that prohibit targeting civilians. And that means, among other things, that it must provide or allow others to provide humanitarian aid to Gaza’s caught up in the war. Its unwillingness to do so now is, also to be blunt, morally indefensible. Here is how I… Continue reading

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You can’t help free Palestine by embracing Hamas

  By International politics, Just War Theory, Middle East

I’ve been paying attention to what is going on in the Middle East not the reaction of people in the US and Europe to it. So I’ve been late to see some of the horrible reactions here and and there. If you are a critic of Israel’s policies towards the Palestinians and a supporter of Palestinian statehood–or even of a one state bi-national solution–you should be appalled by and furious at Hamas’ attack this week. Not just because it was a deliberate and brazen violation of the rights of non-combatants and because the murder of innocent men, women, and children violates the rights of the same moral code and religious beliefs that serve as the basis of any call for justice for Palestinians. But because  the attack was not aimed at securing Palestinian rights but rather at killing every Israeli Hamas soldiers encountered. The nature of the attack  confirms  that… Continue reading

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Thoughts on the War Between Hamas and Israel

  By International politics, Just War Theory, Middle East

I’m terribly distressed at the war in the Middle East. Already almost 1000 soldiers and civilians have died on both sides. And the likelihood is that the war will continue for some time, with far more death and destruction. As the war goes on, Israel’s military might means that death and destruction will fall heavily of Palestinian soldiers and civilians. I’m also distressed at the one-side reaction of much of the press and also of so many of my Jewish friends, even those who have been critical of Israel in the past. I want to start with three conclusions, which I will defend here and no doubt in further conversation. Hamas is fighting a legitimate war. It has a right to launch war on Israel in the current state of affairs. The idea that it was an “unprovoked” attack is absurd. Hamas is not always fighting legitimately. It is clearly… Continue reading

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I’m a Zionist and I Welcome Marc Lamont Hill’s Remarks

  By Middle East

I remain a Zionist who believes that Jews deserve a national political entity and that such an entity must respect the rights of Palestinians to have one as well. That can be accomplished in many ways, whether two side by side states or two entities within a bi-national confederation or some new, unconventional solution that allows for the pursuit of communal interests on the part of each community while allowing for democratic free movement through and control of a shared land. Marc Lamont Hill’s op-ed today says that he is inclined to some kind of bi-national confederation and that his use of the term “from the river to the sea” was not meant to call for the destruction of Israel but reform of its policies within a bi-national framework. Especially since his speech—which I urge everyone to listen to—was focused on encouraging people to understand and stand up against the… Continue reading

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Terrorism Will Get Nowhere in Great Britain

  By Great Britain, International politics, Terrorism

I’m listening to the BBC and marveling at the resolve and sensibility of the folks in Manchester. Young women are saying, “Some things we can’t control. So we just go about our lives.” If there are any people who history shows can’t be terrorized it is the English, Welsh, and Scots. They have stood guard at the gates of our civilization before and never given up. Continue reading

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The Best and Worst in Biblical Religion: An Open Letter to Christine Flowers

  By International politics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion, Religious fundamentalism

Christine, You have asked me to apologize to your friend, who called Islam evil, for calling her ignorant and bigoted. And you have threatened to block me on Facebook if I don’t do so. I have no intention of apologizing and instead I’m going to explain why I think you need to apologize for betraying the best in the religious tradition of which you claim to be so proud. If you don’t like what I have to say and you block me, that’s fine. I frankly think I’ve learned all anyone can from reading you. Let me take a moment to explain how I look at the political, moral, and religious traditions that animate our country. I grew up in an orthodox Jewish synagogue, though I moved away from orthodoxy pretty soon after my Bar Mitzvah. I’ve spent most of the last forty years studying the history of political and… Continue reading

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So that’s what the Middle East looks like to everyone else

  By International politics, Middle East

I hope everyone read the long article in the Times on Sunday about the history of the conflict leading up to the war in Georgia. It is worth understanding how this war began. But I especially hope strong partisans on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides of that conflict read it. For I suspect that their initial reaction will be like mine: both sides are responsible for this mess and both ought to be acting a whole lot more sensibly. Its is hard not to sympathize with the Georgians with the Russian Bear next door, until you see what the Georgians have been doing to their minorities and how they are provoking the Russians. That’s more or less the way I look at the Israel-Paletinian conflict these days. I’m still a supporter of Israel’s right to exist. (And I wrote my first published article calling for a Palestinian state in… Continue reading

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Why we may have to fight

  By International politics, Published Op-Eds

It is not easy for those of us who came of age politically during the Vietnam War to support any war, let alone one that does not respond to an imminent threat to our country. We know that war is horrible, even for the victors. And we distrust those who tell us that war is necessary, especially when we can see alternatives. These are healthy instincts. They account for the opposition of many people to President Bush’s determination of go to war against Iraq in order to disarm Saddam Hussein. But even our best political instincts have to be checked against the truth of the situation we face. Unless Saddam changes direction and agrees to disarm, war is likely to be the best response to our situation. What are the alternatives to war? The first is deterrence. We can prevent Saddam from using weapons of mass destruction to pursue his… Continue reading