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Israel's War Separates Decent Left From Indecent Left
RealClearPolitics.com ^ | 7-25-2006 | Dennis Prager

Posted on 07/24/2006 10:02:41 PM PDT by spkpls4

. . . another longtime liberal critic of Israel, historian and Boston Globe columnist James Carroll, wrote last week:

"As one who rejects war, I regret Israel's heavy bombing of Lebanon last week, as I deplored Israeli attacks in population centers and on infrastructure in Gaza. . . . Yet, given the rejectionism of both Hamas and Hezbollah . . . is the path of negotiations actually open to Israel? . . . There is no moral equivalence between enemies here. . . . It seems urgent [to] reaffirm foundational support for Israel. . . . The fury of anti-Israel rage among Arabs and Muslims is accounted for only partially by the present conflict. It resuscitates . . . the long European habit of scapegoating Jews. . . . No one should think that embedded contempt for Jews -- anti-Semitism -- is not part of the current crisis."

Amos Oz and James Carroll are men of the Left who have been tested and passed the most clarifying moral litmus test of our time -- Israel's fight for existence against the primitives, fanatics and sadists in Hezbollah and Hamas and elsewhere in the Arab/Muslim world who wish to destroy it. Anyone on the Left who cannot see this is either bad, a useful idiot for Islamic terrorists, anti-Semitic or all three. There is no other explanation for morally condemning Israel's war on Hezbollah.

(Excerpt) Read more at realclearpolitics.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; Israel; Miscellaneous; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: dennisprager; prager; theleft

1 posted on 07/24/2006 10:02:41 PM PDT by spkpls4
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To: spkpls4

Yes, this is a litmus test that will separate the semi-sane leftists from the absolute antisemites.


2 posted on 07/24/2006 10:08:51 PM PDT by zot (GWB -- the most slandered man of this decade)
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To: spkpls4
There is NO decent Left. Dennis Prager, I'm sorry to say is dead wrong in his conclusion. Its not one of his better essays. The Israeli Left no more supports Israel's war in Lebanon any more than the American Left supports America's war in Iraq. Both camps are dominated by extremists who hate their country, side with the enemy, and do see their country's history as a long catalogue of crimes against indigeneous peoples. Israel has its Tenured Reds and post-Zionist professors and America has its Marxists and pacifist moonbats. Neither one is decent. And how Dennis could have arrived at such a nonsensical distinction is all the more surprising, since in his column, he lists everything the Left got wrong in the 20th Century. A decent Left would admit it was wrong, it would mend its ways and learn from past mistakes. The Left in Israel and America are always wrong, always side with their country's enemies and keep repeating their mistakes. As for those who have, they abandoned the Left after they saw the light. If Dennis can show us one truly decent Left he may be onto something but otherwise I just think for once, his overly optimistic view of the Left's decent nature is at odds with its real world record of treason, betrayal and desertion of the cause free societies hold near and dear.

(Go Israel, Go! Slap 'Em Down Hezbullies.)

3 posted on 07/24/2006 10:52:18 PM PDT by goldstategop (In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives On In My Heart Forever)
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To: spkpls4

"As one who rejects war..."

Someone should remind the author that the reason he's not writing this essay either in Japanese or German - indeed, that he's free to write it at all - is because someone fought his wars for him.


4 posted on 07/25/2006 12:18:32 AM PDT by Jack Hammer
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To: spkpls4

Okay, how come so many liberals reluctantly side with Israel even under a Likud government but cannot support their own President?


5 posted on 07/25/2006 1:29:40 AM PDT by Roy Tucker
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To: spkpls4

To understand the Left one must understand its essential puerility. Leftist reasoning runs something like this:

We abhor all suffering, even if self-inflicted, because it cause us pain. Those who suffer are victims; all victims need to be supported; the Palestinians are victims; the Palestinians need to be supported.
If we support the Palestinians, our pain will be assuaged.


6 posted on 07/25/2006 4:22:43 AM PDT by quadrant
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To: goldstategop

the only decent leftist is a dead leftist...


7 posted on 07/25/2006 4:29:31 AM PDT by snuffy smiff (used to hang folks for treason; wish they still did...)
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To: dennisw; Cachelot; Nix 2; veronica; Catspaw; knighthawk; Alouette; Optimist; weikel; Lent; GregB; ..
If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel.

also Keywords 2006israelwar or WOT [War on Terror]

----------------------------

8 posted on 07/25/2006 5:07:52 AM PDT by SJackson (The Pilgrims—Doing the jobs Native Americans wouldn’t do!)
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To: dennisw; Cachelot; Nix 2; veronica; Catspaw; knighthawk; Alouette; Optimist; weikel; Lent; GregB; ..
If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel.

also Keywords 2006israelwar or WOT [War on Terror]

----------------------------

9 posted on 07/25/2006 5:08:33 AM PDT by SJackson (The Pilgrims—Doing the jobs Native Americans wouldn’t do!)
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To: goldstategop

I agree.

Moreover when the rockets are flying at Amos Oz's head, then he sees the point of fighting back. But he was a loud supporter of Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon. And he cared nothing for the buildup in 2002 that created the Hezbollah missile menace.


10 posted on 07/25/2006 5:56:44 AM PDT by dervish (Bolton for Secretary of State)
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To: Jack Hammer

I believe that anyone who states that they "reject war" has lost any claim to any sort of rational meaningful position. By declaring such an idiotic thing they are announcing that they have no understanding not only of all of human history but of human nature and the condition of the human state. War is a far more natural state for mankind than peace. It may be an ugly truth...but its still a truth.

Saying that you "reject war" also means that you reject the notion that something is worth fighting for...worth defending against the ravages of an enemy or heaven forbid evil...but I would argue that someone who "rejects war" most likely has difficulty with such clear cut notions of good and evil. Things are too gray for them.

Regardless someone who holds such a position is so isolated from the reality of the world at large that they forfeit any claim to relevancy in their opinion and should be dismissed out of hand.


11 posted on 07/25/2006 5:58:54 AM PDT by Prysson
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To: goldstategop


Well said!
12 posted on 07/25/2006 7:09:52 AM PDT by Convert from ECUSA (The Arab League jihad continues on like a fart in an elevator - FR American in Israel)
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To: spkpls4

Good article, too few views. bump


13 posted on 07/25/2006 4:30:48 PM PDT by listenhillary (Only the stupidest of animals fouls it's own nest - Democrats provide a fine example of this)
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To: Prysson

"Saying that you "reject war" also means that you reject the notion that something is worth fighting for...'

hmmmm .... interesting way to put it!!!!


14 posted on 08/09/2006 11:23:34 AM PDT by malia (How do you get a ceasefire with terrorists?--John Bolton)
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