May 14, 2024
New York – What exactly is Israel’s strategy in Gaza? Behind all the clamor about antisemitism, films about the 1940’s Jewish Holocaust and western politicians chanting about Israel’s ‘right to defend itself’ lie some ugly facts that are not spoken of in polite society.
I know antisemitism when I see it. While still a boy, I was sent to a rustic summer camp in New Hampshire. At dinner, many of the campers would chant ‘all you guys with long, long noses, come and join the fight for Moses!’
A close Jewish friend of my fathers bought a resort hotel on New Hampshire’s Rangeley – only to be informed that it refused to rent to Jews. That was the virulent antisemitism of the 1950’s.
At the same time my mother, a renowned journalist writing about the Mideast, and I were repeatedly threatened by pro-Israel thugs who threatened to throw acid in our faces if my mother kept writing about the nearly one million Palestinian refugees driven from the Galilee region in the 1940’s who – according to the US media – did not actually exist. They did. Many are now refugees in Gaza. My mother was forced to stop writing for US newspapers due to the cascade of threats.
As pro-Palestinian students demonstrate across the US and the rest of the world demanding the massacre in Gaza end, we see growing efforts by pro-Israel groups to silence the students, curb the internet, and unseat politicians who dared criticize Israel.
The massive pro-Palestinian demos we are seeing are in part a reaction by right wing pro-Israel groups to impose Israel’s party line on independent universities and gag all non-conforming professors. Such heavy-handed attempts at censorship have enraged students,
So too the endless barrage of disinformation about Palestine we see on America’s Israel-dominated TV. Britain and Canada also suffer from similar media censorship. Big financial donors to academia are using their tax-deductible donations to stifle criticism of Israeli tactics and strategy in Gaza. The US Congress is worse. The Israel lobby seats and unseats senators and congressmen depending on their Mideast votes. It’s no wonder Israel is the world’s largest recipient of US aid. The Israel lobby is feared and obeyed.
Many members of Congress receive money from Israel and its American lobby, plus media support and freebie trips. Last week the New York Times was caught issuing orders to its staff not to use any terms or phrases that put Israel in a bad light. In Britain, the Labour Party’s left-wing leadership was purged of critics of Israel, and a bland leader installed in place of its former fiery left wing leader, Jeremy Corbyn.
Israel’s supporters must be careful not to twist too many arms. Doing so will surely engender real antisemitism and raise the famous question posed by Voltaire about who really rules us.
Right wing Israelis must lower their demands for an ever-larger Israel. They want Galilee, and chunks of southern Lebanon, including the Litani River. Plus driving most or even all Arabs out of the West Bank – designated a Palestinian state by the UN agreement that created the first Jewish state.
I was with Israel’s army when it invaded Lebanon in 1982 and, inadvertently helped create the Hezbollah movement. The notion of a second Jewish state in Ukraine is illusory. Israelis must begin figuring out how to live in the Arab World if they ever want to find peace. Getting out of Gaza would be a good beginning.
Copyright Eric S. Margolis 2024
” Israelis must begin figuring out how to live in the Arab World if they ever want to find peace” The Abrahamic Accord paved the way for Israel to have diplomatic relations to almost all the Arabic nations and they had peace accords with Egypt and Jordan. This cordial atmosphere was not favorable to Hamas and Iran who wanted to wipe out Israel and they started the rapping, killing and kidnapping on Oct 7. The Palestinians were offered two state solutions, almost all of Judea, Samaria, Gaza and a capital in East Jerusalem but all the offers were rejected by the Palestinian leaders namely Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas. Today the world is crying for peace while some factions including those protestors in the Universities in UK and US demanding everything from river to sea which includes all of Israel.
Anti-Semitism, like most hate, is based on bad economics. Suffering people need a scapegoat, and in recent times, despite our vaunted “democracy”, there have been various scapegoated groups.
Resistance follows colonialism always and everywhere, as night follows day. After 75 years of occupation without support for Palestinian rights, it’s no surprise that Hamas has been so brutal. They must be condemned. But Israel’s genocide is exponentially more brutal and cannot be allowed to continue.
Israel must call a ceasefire immediately. Israel must end it’s apartheid and it’s land theft in the West Bank, and start negotiating a two state solution.
There is a great deal of responsibility to go round for Israel’s fall into fascism. The world, led by the fascist US, has encouraged it by ignoring Israel’s increasingly cruel occupation over the course of 75 years. Israel is now the de facto 52nd state of the USA (Canada is the 51st). US domination of the world is dependent on Israel’s domination of the Middle East. Israel’s continued fascism is dependent on US support and money. Way too many people in the West have been way too afraid to speak out against the US and Israel.
Canada’s part has been ending its role as honest broker in the Middle East to join the US as a very strong supporter of Israel’s growing illegalities.
Antisemitism in the world is unfortunately easier than being anti-US. Both Israel and US need to be boycotted and isolated. Jewish Canadians haven’t helped prevent anti-Semitism. By abandoning their former role as supporter of poor and downtrodden Canadians, Canada has opened itself to increasing anti-Semitism.
Radical problems require radical solutions. With the planet in peril and endless wars threatening the survival of civilization, it’s imperative to call for radical changes.
But radicals must make sure they address the military, economic, and political issues, without personal enmities and without historical myths clouding the issues.
Thank you Eric. I now see the media disinformation and censorship as a sort of betrayal. I am most grateful for the regional insight that you shared on TVO with Janice Stein and Richard Gwyn, and happy to see young people committed to the pacifist cause.
Zionist Israel has always worked to promote anti-semitism because the goal is to terrify Jews around the world into moving to what is called Israel and Occupied Palestine. Zionism does not care about Judaism or real Jews, it just wants more Jews and more power and to rid the land of Christians and Muslim Palestinians and to eradicate Palestine from the map and history.
Getting out of Gaza is not enough. Get out of all of Occupied Palestine and end the occupation is just a beginnning.
Lonely are the brave truth speakers.
Thanks Eric.
I travelled throughout Palestine with a fact finding group of pacifists.
The brutal treatment of Palestinians was in evidence everywhere we looked.
I wondered what gave people of one country the right to suppress people of a neighbouring country, the right to bullying through ubiquitous checkpoints, evictions, arbitrary arrests, imprisonment without charges, harassment of children….(How many thousands are languishing in prisons, without charges or convictions?)
Palestinians are not even allowed to drive on some highways in their own country.
And our press referred to the Oct. 7 attacks as “unprovoked”.
Not that I approved of that slaughter…..
Violence begets violence, begets violence, begets violence.
Hello Mr. Margolis,
Been a while since I’ve responded to your blogs. Wanted to vent my pent – up frustrations many, many times but, just couldn’t; was – and still is- too depressed. Used to watch Al Jazeera, the only non-biased channel but, seeing all the sufferings of the Palestinians I stopped that too. Used to vent my anger on YouTube but where did it get me; Been banned for 24 hours three times. Was told if it happens again, I may be banned for life!
There again, they succeeded in eliminating another critic of Israel. There are only a few voices left that dare to stand up to them. What can I do? Not much! I am old, poor and not very competent in English and sometimes not even sure I am making any sense. (Must be this powerful medicine I’m taking; one more month.)
But, YOU Sir; Your voice is clear and unmistakable! I only wish your articles would be read by by many millions so that more and more people would see the truth. For that to happen, there would need to be new platform, other than YouTube or VICE! Perhaps, some day.
Thank you very much for your courage and relentless dedication.
With much respect,
Steve Behr