Except for a handful of Deplorables, New Yorkers whom I met recently were 100 percent aligned with Hamas in terms of what they’d like Israel and the Israel Defense Forces to do. At the same time they say that they are “anti-Hamas”. How does it work? Note that most of these folks are non-observant Jews whose principal current religion is expressing hatred for Donald Trump and contempt for Americans in “Red States” (they’re stupid and unproductive and survive only as parasites on the hard workers and heavy taxpayers in Blue States).
The New York Righteous say that, yes, Israel has the right to try to arrest or even kill Hamas fighters, but only if there is no possibility of injuring a civilian or a child. In other words, a Hamas fighter who keeps a child strapped to his chest would be permanently off limits. They accept at face value assertions that Israel is starving the Gazans, not noticing that the moms of the purportedly starved children have double chins. Here’s the most persuasive photo that CNN could find, for example:
One New York Jew in his 60s, despite being a 100 percent loyal Democrat and frequent spontaneous expresser of Trump hatred, seems to have found an area of agreement with Marjorie Taylor Greene of Jewish Space Lasers fame. He believes that Israel knows exactly where each Hamas fighter is located and has weapon systems capable of killing those fighters without harming anyone else. For reasons that aren’t clearly specified, Israel has chosen not to push the buttons in a control room somewhere that would result in the deaths of 100 percent of Hamas-affiliated Gazans. Israel is instead bombing and shelling Gaza for no reason other than Israelis enjoy killing civilians and making the noble Gazans suffer. So… he says that he is “anti-Hamas” but also that he is “pro innocent children” and that the IDF is free to fight Hamas so long as it does so in a way that no other military in the history of the world has managed to fight or win.
I’m culturally a Congregationalist, not observant, which means some of my ancestors were Puritans–who had IMO minor issues with the Church of England. Some migrated to America (Taxachussets, I think, sorry), kicked the Indians out, and started burning witches (i.e. Puritans they didn’t like) at the stake and persecuting Quakers. Pretty messed up.
Some of my ancestors were also German immigrants, via Russia, given asylum by the Catherine the Great, and Lutherans. They moved to a fly-over (quite red) state in the U.S. and became farmers, until factory farming displaced and scattered them, mostly peaceful.
I’m very ignorant of the politics and culture of the Middle East (and obviously of my own)–most of the people I grew up with had never met a Jew, there were some Muslims. When I went to college in New York, I met many Jews. I couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to kill any of them, or the Muslims I met either. (I’m not completely naive, I know there are evil people in the world that need to be removed from participating in it, I remember staring straight down from the top of one of the towers, and that it is gone.) The more observant Jews knew the New Testament better than many of my Christian classmates in our Lit Hum class, I recall.
Call me a wuss–I really wish we could just find a way to stop killing one another in the name of God, the devil, or any cause–seriously. We have too many problems we need to work on, I don’t think anyone would disagree with that. One prime problem being evil, which we should all fight, especially in ourselves.
Becky is using Margaritaville in her condo marketing, but my anthem is (speaking of Ohio):
That old guy still had game, yo. As an old dude, if I would have approached her to dance, she would have said “buzz off creep”. I guess I don’t look like I have $1M. Wait, either did he…
That’s a good secular demonstration why my/our people lost our state and could not restore one for 2 thousands years. It has deep Biblical reasons.
> That’s a good secular demonstration
You mean the YouTube video? Or Phil’s stuff?
So more:
> contempt for Americans in “Red States” (they’re stupid and unproductive and survive only as parasites on the hard workers and heavy taxpayers in Blue States).
I think Phil was being sarcastic, not needing an example.
> my/our people
Who are your people? Jews? Palestinians? We actually did study the bible in Lit Hum, and Sunday School, and in my spare time. I’m probably ignorant by your standards, but I know Jews have not had it easy. You could even be a Roman, their state seems to be in the process of restoration as well.
Your offhand, one-liner comment with nearly zero context, I would argue, is a good demonstration of how this echo chamber of an Internet is going to cost us our world, including your restored one. Really, no animosity–humans deserve a home and a state–except criminals who deserve jail. My people, Americans, are fighting for their state too. We might agree at a deeper level than you realize.
How about some constructive ideas for peace? It should be our priority.
@Trust skeptic, I responded to Philip’s post. I could be more clear but I responded in parallel with first commenter, I did not expect this post being so popular. I identify with Jewish people, who discovered many of modern vices back in antiquity. For example, over-reliance on allies (Rome, you probably can not believe it but Roman Republic was at he beginning Judea’s ally); as a result of reliance on Rome’s muscle – pacifism and anti-militarism, going from being feared regional power to not knowing how to field armies; affirmative action for our conquered cousins the Edomites, Jewish king (from a priestly dynasty, which in itself was not right) elevated opportunistic convert Herod 1st and Romans selected him as a ruler, to separate and rule and because Romans were closer to Edom then to Judea; and wokeism – dissolved courts when law required enacting death sentences, instead of following the law.
It has deep reasons in God’s word, you can read from Bible literally and map paragraphs to what had happened, but from secular view it looks similar to modern Western politics. Judea did not invent this – it was happening across many ancient civilizations.
As for the clip in first comment, I like the song. But the clip and the sentiment are as realistic as old fit people feeding on beer that it shows.
@In God We Trust
That’s a happy thought. Not sure how it reconciles with the death cult that is Hamas and many of the other similarly inclined inhabitants of the Middle East who would probably agree that the problem we need to work on before most others is the presence of Jews in the Middle East.
Maybe this will be illuminating (from 2014):
https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/why-dont-i-criticize-israel
> That’s a happy thought.
Christ taught us to hold peace in our thoughts, as well as our actions. I’m not criticizing Israel either, that wouldn’t be my prerogative. “Thou shalt not kill,” applies to all, IMO. And I won’t let the madness, actions or mindset, of others interfere with my happiness. I’ve been through some shit in my life too, trust me sir/madam/xhe, medical doctors can’t even bear hearing.
Have a nice day!
Oh, by the way, my people have a saying–when they chose to separate from England:
“Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” — The United States Declaration of Independence
https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/the-declaration-independence
All three of which I agree with, and mentioned. Maybe that would be illuminating for us all to read again. 🙂
Mazel tov.
@Trust skeptic. Thou shell not kill should be translated as “Thou shall not murder”.