Judea: Two Young Hikers Murdered by Terrorists

Arutz-Sheva ^ | Dec 28, 2007 | Gil Ronen

[justiceseeker93]

...when Jews are killed by terrorists it's somehow just par for the course; but if a Jew defends himself, he is somehow painted as wrong.

You are correct in many instances, but this surely has not been the new tradition of Israel, at least until recently under the Olmert regime. As you probably know, Israel would never have come into existence had the Jews there not defended themselves from unprovoked attack after a Jewish state was declared by the UN in 1947.

As for Haym Salomon, his work on behalf of the American Revolution is still in some history books, but the significance of his role is sometimes debated. Fairly recently, a US postage stamp with his likeness was issued in his honor. Part of the problem may be that his decendants did not do such a good job of perpetuating his legacy.

Antisemitism in the United States at the time of the founding was not much of a problem, perhaps because the total Jewish population then was only a few thousand. The founding fathers had a deep respect for ancient Jewish history and the Old Testament, and some Christian clergymen in the US were well grounded in the Hebrew language. There were Jews who served in General Washington's army with distinction and without discrimination.