Submitted Comments RSS Feed Comments by Alan Jay Weisbard
Posted in: Foxman blasts J Street on Palin, questions its 'pro-Israel' slogan
Abe Foxman speaks for that part of the traditional Jewish establishment for whom bringing in folks like me (I'm 59) would constitute a youth movement. He, and they, are dinosaurs, unable to adapt to changing times and conditions. (No offense, Arthur--I recognize that folks even older than I can summon the wisdom of their years and remain connected to changing realities, unlike those I am talking about here.)They continue to roar, and are infuriated that fewer ears are inclined to listen. Hence they bellow louder, and nurse their sense of "lese majeste". So sorry, Abe--we hereby revoke whatever "authorization" you may feel to confer, or withhold "authority" on others. Re the substantive points at issue in Palin's Pander of the moment: There is plenty of room for thickening and additional Jewish population centers in the Galli and the Negev--parts of historic Eretz Israel (and traditional destinations for Zionist pioneering) that somehow don't appeal to those previously drawn to Gaza. Not to speak of luxury enclaves now expanding the existing footprint of Jewish settlement in Jerusalem and along the Mediterranean coast. The notion that any foreseeable American Jewish aliyah (which I would encourage, including in my own family) requires "living space" in territory critical to the creation of a Palestinian state living in peace with Israel is simply absurd, and should not be encouraged. I agree with the decision to call out Palin, and others spouting out such wrong and uninformed gibberish, on such counterproductive nonsense. Shabbat shalom, The Wise Bard
Posted in: Goldstone's motivation
Israel's failure to engage with the Goldstone mission was a calamitous failure. Israel chose neither to respond to contestable claims of its own alleged abuses, not to fully document abuses against its own population and legitimate sovereign concerns. Nor did it adequately challenge the mission, or the world's human rights community, to consider the dilemmas posed by a democratic state engaged in asymmetric warfare, in which its adversaries act from within population centers in an obvious effort to elicit Israeli military responses that can then be used in public relations and propaganda efforts. Israel missed what is probably the best opportunity it will have to get its own story out and considered. Most of the Israeli responses to the Goldstone Report have been attacks on Judge Goldstone's character and the biases of the world community, often designed to obscure the findings of the report itself. Surely some of the report's findings are contestable on the merits; some information has begun to emerge on some of the particulars. But Israel is now well along toward forfeiting its second opportunity for a fair hearing among those potentially willing to listen, by blaming the messenger and ignoring the message. Israel can and must do (much) better if it is to counter the increasingly successful efforts to delegitimate the state on the world stage. An independent, comprehensive investigation of the findings of the Goldstone mission would constitute an important first step. Showing further contempt for the world community--at least some of which is potentially open to a fact-based examination of difficult issues and behaviors on both sides (even if all, clearly, are not), does Israel no favor and no benefit. --The Wise Bard
Posted in: Founder says Human Rights Watch wrong on Israel
Mr. Bernstein's comments surely come with a heavy heart. Human rights organizations play an important role in the contemporary world. As President Obama's regrettable decision not to meet with the Dalai Lama at this time suggests, considerations of realpolitik will always constrain the behaviors of big powers whose interests are necessarily complex and, sometimes, contradictory. (Israel's precarious course on maintaining its currently frayed relationship with Turkey while responding to claims regarding the Armenian genocide is another example.) Ideally, human rights organizations should be less compromised by conflicting political agendas. Sadly, that is often not the case. As one who has been publicly critical of some of Israel's actions on the human rights front, both domestically and internationally, I share Mr. Bernstein's frustrations that the organization he founded with high hopes, as well as a number of other human rights NGOs, have focused their criticisms hugely disproportionately on Israel, by far the region's most democratic polity and most open and vibrant civil society, and have averted their eyes from far worse transgressions elsewhere in the region and around the world. This disproportion severely reduces the credibility of these organizations among fair minded observers sensitive to human rights concerns, reduces their ability to effect positive change within Israel's imperfect but nonetheless democratic system, and aids efforts to delegitimate Israel on the international stage, a development contrary to efforts to induce Israelis to take necessary risks for peace. It also perpetuates a failure in the West to hold Palestinian and other Arab (and Iranian) regimes to international standards of human rights performance, and patronizes their leadership and populations as somehow "beneath" what is expected of others. My own belief is that those who love Israel and seek a positive democratic and peaceful future for the State and (all) its people should hold Israel to high standards of behavior. But this must be done with some understanding and compassion for the situation Israel finds itself in (for which both Israel and its adversaries bear responsibility), and with balanced and proportionate recognition of other human rights failures, both by those in Israel's neighborhood and by other far less democratic regimes around the world. I thank Mr. Bernstein for his statement, and his devotion to the cause of human rights over the decades. --The Wise Bard
Posted in: Debating J Street and the Jewish vote at the Hudson Institute
Cheryl, I posted a response to the substance of your comments elsewhere, where I first saw them. Thanks for a very thoughtful and well considered post (except, perhaps, for your first paragraph above, which was not included in your other posting). Mr. Bilek, thanks also to you for a thoughtful response. Please note that i was very careful NOT to accuse you personally of any inconsistencies; my comments were directed specifically at Mr Schoenfeld's behavior, and that of his intellectual compatriots who did, in my view, behave both inconsistently and, frankly, in bad faith, during periods of more dovish Israeli governments. On the substance of your remarks, I would only note that several of your propositions go both ways. That is, if American Jews who favor more dovish (I prefer "owl-like"--that is, far-seeing and wise--but that phrase in not in common use) positions keep quiet with their concerns, and the result is a tragedy for Israel's long term interests, status as a vibrant Jewish community, democratic status, and long term well being (which depends in no little part on its relationships with America and the democratic world and their economic, political and military support)--then an "oops, sorry" would hardly be of much solace, whether coming from those with my opinions or from those with your opinions. South Africa did not last as an apartheid state (in my view, properly so) once it lost its political legitimacy and the support of the West. The same could happen to Israel if it persists as an expansionist, occupying force in the face of worldwide political opposition and inexorable demographic changes. I do not want that to happen. Iran is a very complicated question, and I do not necessarily agree with positions taken by some of the organizations we are discussing. I'm not sure anyone (including me) has figured out a good set of options there. I would note that the situation there worsened considerably under Bush's watch, and that poorly calculated decisions on Iraq and Afghanistan have diminished the willingness of much of the American public to consider military steps (by the US or by Israel) against the despicable current government of Iran. I am withholding judgment on how President Obama's diplomatic initiatives (including complex maneuvers with Russia) regarding iran will work out; I hope a combination of carrots and effective sticks can result in ending the nuclear threat, but that is far from a foregone conclusion at this point.
Posted in: If AIPAC ain't broke...
Cheryl, let me compliment you on a thoughtful, well composed post. I don't agree with some of your critical points--for example, I fear that Jewish lives are today more at risk in Israel than in North America, and I would note that it took generations, not years, for favorable conditions in Muslim Spain to deteriorate, under both islamic and Christian regimes. But this approach is both nuanced and conducive to intelligent discussion and debate conducted in a civil fashion. Thank you. --The Wise Bard
Posted in: Debating J Street and the Jewish vote at the Hudson Institute
Do others find "blackie's" comments on this or other threads a positive contribution to intelligent discourse? For what it is worth, my late father fought the Nazis at the Battle of the Bulge, winning a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, and Purple Heart(s). He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. I do not live up to his achievements on the battlefield, but at least someone in my family fought and sacrificed for his ideals, and for his country. How about you, blackie? Any evidence of making the world a better place, other than through insulting others without any basis in fact while hiding behind a pseudonym? Talk about a horrible existence...
Posted in: Debating J Street and the Jewish vote at the Hudson Institute
I thank William Bilek for expressing his disagreements in civil fashion conducive to intelligent debate on important substantive matters. The position he advocates is a serious one, one that I once found persuasive. Indeed, I seriously explored aliya at an earlier stage in my life, and a number of my close friends with similar perspectives made a go of it. Virtually all became incredibly frustrated with the Israeli political system, whose dysfunctionality (both in terms of internal party dynamics and the excessive role of small parties necessary for the composition of coalition majorities) has become increasingly apparent over the years. Some have stayed on to fight for their positions, others have, over the years, returned to their countries of origin. A part of me retains a sadness that aliyah did not work out for me or for my family, although all of us retain close ties to Israel and our many Israeli friends. But that does not constitute a full or adequate response to Mr. Bilek's position. What has also become apparent over the years is that Mr. Bilek's proposition is routinely trotted out by AIPAC and Commentary folk in times of right-wing Israeli governments, and routinely ignored by these same individuals during periods of more dovish Israeli governments. I have no idea whether this is true of Mr. Bilek himself, but it certainly is of Mr. Schoenfeld, Mr. Podhoretz, and many others, who have vigorously and publicly critiqued Israeli policies with which they disagree, and sometimes sought to subvert those policies. Not to speak of those who responded to peace efforts by elected Israeli leaders by demonizing those leaders, and indeed by assassinating an elected Israeli prime minister in the midst of his quest for peace. I am absolutely unwilling to concede the proposition that those holding hawkish views care more about Israeli security, or are more devoted to Israel's future, than those who believe the continuation of existing demographic and geopolitical trends do not accrue to the benefit of a secure, democratic, and Jewishly resonant Israel. In the end, I am convinced that all those Jews and others devoted to Israel do best to speak their minds, openly and candidly (and with love and occasional pain), on how best to secure Israel's future. The conversation is not improved by those who castigate individuals or groups through the use of ad hominem attacks and McCarthyite tactics, such as those apparently employed by Messrs. Schoenfeld and Podhoretz (not to speak of some of this site's usual rabble rousers). There is, of course, a set of additional considerations for those friends of Israel who are also American citizens, and are also rightly concerned with what is best for the United States, both domestically and in international affairs. In my own view, there is very substantial correspondence, but not necessarily identity, in those policies that are best for Israel and for America. For the present, while I have few illusions about problems emanating from the Palestinian and broader Arab players, I still believe that an active American role in promoting a negotiated two state solution is in the best interests of both Israel and America, and that American pressure on both Israeli and Arab governing authorities may serve a necessary role in moving both sides to make concessions that are politically difficult or impossible for the parties to achieve on their own, without the visible presence of external pressure. The policies of the recent Bush Administration, so often celebrated by right wing commentators such as Mr. Schoenfeld as "pro-Israel", did little or nothing to advance the peace process, or to respond to threatening demographic or political trends. It is past time for a change in approach. --The Wise Bard
Posted in: Imagining Jewish America's future (or lack thereof)
One thing we learn from history is that long-term extrapolations of short-term trends cannot be relied upon. This phenomenon seems to be particularly true about predictions concerning religion and demographics. We are in the midst of a worldwide return to more fundamentalist religious tendencies that was completely unexpected a generation ago, and is still not very well understood. Those who predict permanent continuities in this domain do so at their own risk. I do not know what the future holds for Jews and Judaism in Israel or in America. I distrust those who claim certain knowledge. I do know, at first hand, of significant pockets of young Jews, particularly in independent minyanim and havurot, who are Jewishly knowledgeable, committed, and active both in Jewish religious life and in working to improve the world in which they live, without withdrawing from or denying the fruits of the modern secular world. May they live, prosper, and, in their time, reproduce with gusto. --The Wise Bard
Posted in: Debating J Street and the Jewish vote at the Hudson Institute
Here is one Jew deeply involved in Jewish communal life and Israeli activities for some four decades (including multiple visits to and longer stays in Israel), who has spoken out against the unbalanced and overstated views of Walt and Mearsheimer, who feels considerably closer to the ideals advocated by the pro-Israel, pro-peace community than to the ostrich-like, hidebound, and hard right conservatism of AIPAC and the Commentary crowd. As a University professor of, among other things, Jewish law and ethics and as one who also works with Jewish students through Hillel, I can testify that the Israel "right or wrong" attitudes promulgated by such folk do not appeal to a high proportion of independent minded, critically aware Jewish students at my midwestern campus, let alone to non-Jewish students. There is a powerful case to be made for a secure and flourishing Jewish State of Israel, but ad hominem attacks and distractions like Schoenfeld's contribute nothing toward it, and turn off potentially receptive students and other thinking Americans. Once upon a time, neoconservatives claimed to be the party of ideas. They have become the party of name-calling, and are well along to forfeiting any reasonable claim to be heard or paid attention to. The Wise Bard
RSS Feed Breaking News
Updated 11/20/09 @ 11:30AM EDT
- Canada's opposition Liberal Party is crying foul after the ruling Conservatives mailed out flyers extolling themselves as stronger supporters of Israel.
- Israel arrested five Palestinian Authority intelligence officers in the West Bank.
- Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Israel is conducting secret negotiations with Hamas.
- Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was welcomed Thursday in Brazil by a state governor who is Jewish.
- Prominent South African Jewish leader and philanthropist Mendel Kaplan has died at the age of 73.
- Canadian Liberals object after Conservatives say they’re stronger Israel backers
- Israel arrests five P.A. officers
- Abbas: Israel talking to Hamas
- Abbas welcomed by Jewish pol in Brazil
- South African Jewish leader Mendel Kaplan dies
- Israel will send ship to NATO anti-terror force
- Obama: New Iran sanctions coming within weeks
- What should we bring? Thanksgiving foods that travel well
- Female Orthodox scholars helping women talk about sex
- Obama half-brother has Jewish roots
- Lieberman: Fort Hood could be terror attack
- J Street confab shows generational divide on Israel
- What really happened at the Reform biennial in Toronto
- Rubashkin convicted on 86 charges
- Obama shifts to Israel’s corner, but tries not to show it
- Sniffing underwear and other high jinks in satire on intermarriage
Posted in: Hidden memorials in Berlin
11/20/09 05:32 PM
My wife and I secured a guide through Milk and Honey a few years back. We had a terrific experience--the guide was highly educated and knowledgeable and worked carefully with us to plan an itinerary (several days worth) calibrated to our Jewish interests and my physical limitations. Our preconceptions of Germany and Berlin in particular (my father fought in the Battle of the Bulge) were transformed as a result. Berlin's "memorial culture" is utterly fascinating. We highly recommend Milk and Honey.