Israel has recently denied entry to two US Congresswomen - Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar who, together with two other Congresswomen, Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Ayanna Pressley, have been bashing Israel and American Jews at every opportunity, expressing conventional antisemitic and anti-Israel tropes, while backing and reinforcing BDS. They have infected the Democratic party with their venom and employed their gender and minority status (Muslims, Black, Hispanic) as a shield against criticism.
Anyone who disagreed with their uninformed, dimwitted, biased and ignorant views has been labeled a racist, a label that the extreme and even less than extreme Left, as well as Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, together with a vast majority of the media, loved to embrace and celebrate. And since, in the age of “me too”, a person, once accused of misconduct, is considered guilty before being proved innocent, most people are reluctant to challenge the antisemitic “Squad” comprising these four racist women, because most people try to refrain from being accused of racism, even though the accusation may have no merit. It was made very clear by way of these two Congresswomen’s proposed agenda what was behind the visit to Israel and the West Bank. They intended to go to the Palestinian population centers in the West Bank and promote a “suffering” image of the Palestinian people with the help of the media who would follow their every step and devour the red meat these two would disseminate. It would have brought about a negative perspective of distorted reality and cause a great deal of damage to Israel’s image in the eyes of the uninformed public. Denying this opportunity was wise and mandatory. As it turned out later, Israel was able to expose Rashida Tlaib’s true intentions for all to see by lifting the restriction on her entry to the state, allowing her to come and visit with her grandmother, only to be rebuffed by Mrs. Rashida, who declined Israel’s open arms, justifying her latest decision by means of a hate speech against Israel. It should be noted that these two antisemitic squad members had been invited a short time earlier to visit Israel and the West Bank together with a delegation of US dignitaries including senators and House Members. They declined that invitation because the agenda was not to their liking. Apparently, the opportunity to demonize Israel with no pushback or interference was lacking. They wanted to go solo; they wanted more freedom for broadcasting their toxic message without a challenge backed by reality. Still, many supporters of Israel including AIPAC (America-Israel Public Affairs Committee) were disappointed with the Israeli government’s decision. They wanted the Jewish State to maintain the democratic semblance of the Israeli system; they perceived the visit’s denial as a biting inconsistency contrasting Israel’s democratic values. They voiced their opinion in an attempt to change the Israeli government’s decision. But wait a minute. These same people never objected when the US was doing the same or worse when it came to the US own interests. No intelligent person found it appropriate to accuse the US of being undemocratic in consequence. The US has recently sanctioned the foreign minister of Iran, Mohammad Javad Zarif. (Those who dislike President Trump may blame him rather than the US for this specific sanctioning, claiming that Trump does not represent the US. It’s a ridiculous claim but it could very well be argued by his opponents), but then, President Obama sanctioned over 400 individuals from Russia, Crimea, Ukraine following the Russian takeover of the Crimean Peninsula. The US has sanctioned many prominent individuals from many parts of the world to protect its own National Security. Did AIPAC accuse the US of being undemocratic as a result? (Note that sanctioning goes way, way beyond denial of entry). Why then, Israel, in trying to protect its National Security (protecting a national semblance is important to preserving national security)—by refusing to bend over to BDS representatives and help them accomplish the spreading of their spite—why then is the Jewish State viewed as if it exhibits an undemocratic conduct in denying entry to its crooked enemies? Standing up to your enemy and refusing to be rolled over is not undemocratic when the US is doing it. That same standard should be applied to Israel as well. By standing up to Its enemies israel demonstrated bravery in the face of all these naïve critics. Enemies of Israel should be treated as enemies regardless of whether they comprise kings, queens, presidents, government ministers or even US Congressmen or Congresswomen. Their hostile actions should not be facilitated by the Israeli government. On the contrary, they should be fought back on every single front, whether it is their home turf or especially inside the Jewish State where Israel maintains its homecourt advantage. These anti-Semites must be defeated.
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It was one more outrageous statement by Congresswoman Ilhan Omar who referred to the 9\11 al-Qaeda’s terror attack on the US as a trifling “something” made happen by some Muslims. This statement unmasked Omar’s mindset with respect to where her loyalty was dwelling. Her minimization of the 9\11 calamity, and her implied tolerance of Islamic terrorism clearly placed her allegiance with the Islamic fundamentalists who view the US as their chief nemesis.
She did not see herself as an American first. She deemed herself as a poor, ill-treated Muslim who happened to reside in America. But if this portrait were not instructive enough or not contemptable enough, the rest of her statement was even more alarming. She was seeking power to commit atrocities with impunity by her and her comrades, Muslim members of antisemitic CAIR, a terrorist organization masquerading as a civil-rights movement. She claimed to be a victim of Islamophobia— “Someone did something, then all of us (meaning Muslims) started to lose our access to civil liberties.” Her statement clearly implied that criticism and enraged expressions directed at her were an unswerving upshot of racism borne out of Islamophobic predispositions rather than a reaction to her own stir-frying. “Some people did something” and now all these racists blame her and all Muslims for that “something”. Only that her description of the 9\11 atrocities were highly offensive to non-Muslim Americans. When President Trump and others criticized and condemned Omar for her impertinent stance, some left-minded, useful idiots, including some highly-positioned Democrats, reacted to these condemnations by coming out in Omar’s defense, attacking those who had decried her statements and disrespectful insolence, blaming them for racism and islamophobia. Many of these Democrats encourage Omar to keep on pursuing her outrageous scandalous activities, her anti-patriotic attacks on America, her antisemitic attacks on Jews, by painting her as a victim. They let her use her Muslim, black female status as a shield; They told her that she could go on spreading venom with impunity since any condemnation, any criticism, would be pushed back by framing them as racism against her race, religion and gender. Unlike antisemitism, Islamophobia is not entrenched in bigotry but rather in fear, anxiety and suspicion of Muslims and their potential acceptance of Islamic Terrorism—Terrorism committed in the name of their religion. Unfortunately, these Islamic terrorists illuminate Jihad and the Dhimmi culture comprising the worst part of Islam. They bring it out to the fore, persuading the rest of the world that they are the true representatives of that religion. They are the reason for; they are the ones who have been breeding and promoting Islamophobia. And although they may be a small percentage within the billion plus Muslims out there, they still account for many millions. Problem is that Ilhan and many of her friends do not come out condemning these radical acts, neither do they distance themselves from the sick brutes who perform them. Take the recent slaughters in Sri-Lanka. Where are these Israel-bashing Muslims now? Don’t they have “something” to say? Some of these Muslims justify or even support the terrorists’ actions; some of them minimize the magnitude of the atrocities, dismissing them as “something”, and many of them keep silent in light of these acts of violence. Many including Omar, view these terrorists as family members who have gone astray. Still, they are family members; “Don’t they deserve our love and understanding?” And there is a worrisome phenomenon among Democrat Jewish leaders in Congress. They were supposed to stand up and fight antisemitism regardless of whether it stemmed from their hometown, their district, their state, their Democratic Party or Ilhan Omar. These prominent politicians have been keeping silent, and some, like Chuck Schumer, the Jewish senator and minority leader, even joined those useful idiots (those who came out to uphold Omar’s remarks on 9\11) in condemning President Trump’s justified denunciation of Omar. Jewish leaders, especially those who used to have Israel’s back, should not come to the defense of this anti-Semite, loud-mouth even if they feel that it serves them politically for the moment. Their approval of her conduct enhances her credibility; it provides her with assurances that her reasonings are sound. Next time she spews her antisemitic tropes, she will do so because she has been emboldened by her fellow Jewish comrades’ approval and support and their politically-motivated bolstering arguments in her favor. She will do so because these same Jewish leaders upgraded her victimhood status by fashioning an impunity-filled domain for her to play and propagate her antisemitic indoctrination. Ilhan Omar is not a victim. She is a privileged freeloader. She makes use of her minority status to establish impunity for her antisemitic and anti-American campaign. And she has been successful. Democratic Jewish leaders have come out for her support. Where are you Chuck Schumer? Where are you Elissa Slotkin, Kim Schrier, Max Rose, Dean Phillips, Elain Luria, Andy Levin, Susan Wild, Jaimy Raskin, David Kustoff, Josh Gottheimer, Alan Lowenthal, Lois Frankel, Suzanne Bonamic, David Cicilline, Ted Deutch, John Yarmuth, Steve Cohen, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Adam Schiff, Susan Davis, Jan Schakowsky, Brad Sherman, Jerry Nadler, Bernie Sanders, Nita Lowey, Eliot Engel, Jacky Rosen, Brian Schatz, Richard Blumenthal, Ben Cardin, Ron Wyden? Have you all gone to sleep? Has politics clouded your senses? Are you all going to stand silent or even sponsor the onslaught when American Jews are being stricken, while your Jewish Family members in Israel are threatened with demolition, while American values are being dismissed? Don’t let this shameful victimhood-disguised impunity develop or you’ll be signing yours and your loved-ones’ downfall. Get up and fight back, just like the Black Caucus, CAIR, and many others who do so - justifiably or unjustifiably - whenever they feel threatened. The latest action by the Democratic House of Representatives condemning all forms of hate—rather than singling out an anti-Semitic Spring within its own ranks—has contributed to a gross distortion, typical of an ignorant liberal thinking, presuming that all forms of hate may be thrown into a single bowl to fashion one appealing salad.
It’s very possible that the ineffectual resolution was not sorted out under malicious intent, but rather under an ignorance-soaked naivete. Still, the outcome was a shameful misrepresentation of reality, serving the wrong purpose, leaving the door open for more of the same antisemitic outbursts by those who had been left unscathed. Antisemitism and Islamophobia are both depraved forms of hate, but the root causes affecting them are light years apart. Antisemitism’s origins were pioneered, borne and promoted by those who were looking for scapegoats. It was originally instituted by religious zealots who tried to promote Christianity by spreading fake historical counts, blaming Jews for killing Jesus, while masking the true executioners—their own Roman predecessors. Their followers looked for the easy prey, the weak faction, the ones who looked different, dressed differently, worshiped God via a competing religion, celebrated different holidays and attended to different customs. In short; antisemitism was originated by the losers who were able to move the masses on hate-waves against a frail, vulnerable sect. It also presented an opportunity by these anti-Semite losers to legally rob these “subhuman” Jewish creatures and feed on their belongings. Islamophobia, on the other hand, did not find its roots in bigotry by those who practiced it. Unlike anti-Semitism, it was instigated by those who feared this religion. Islam was spread by conquest, by violence, by the Dhimmi culture, which preached Jihad and absolute intolerance. Islam in its pure form was, still is, a political religion. It has been attempting to dominate the rest of the world, and not necessarily by way of peaceful means. Muslims who practice this religion to its fullest deem non-Muslims as blasphemous subhuman beings of the worst kind, deserving death through torture. This is not true of all or even most Muslims, but the extreme zealots among them, like ISIS, al-Qaeda, al-Shabab, and even the ruthless dictatorships practiced by so many Middle-eastern and Africa’s Muslim states or sub states, instigate fear and anxiety about Muslims in general. Muslims—the ones we do not know personally. We never know whether we should or should not fear them. But we are on guard; we suspect them. Their presence makes us anxious. Are they terrorists? Even a relatively small violent minority out of the huge peaceful populace comprises a very large number. Hence, we, instinctively, profile them; we become Islamophobic out of fear and anxiety. It’s automatic. It’s human nature. This is never the case of anti-Semitism. We do not fear Jews. We do not suspect them of being potential terrorists. The anti-Semites hate them because they believe in the lies concerning Jewish influence and power in politics and high finance. Some Anti-Semites hate the Jews because they hate Israel and Zionism. They feel for the Palestinian underdogs regardless of the fact that the Palestinians want to keep this underdog status. They like being viewed as victims and they do not want to change that image. They even use violence, inviting retaliation to sustain that underdog, victim image. They keep fooling the fools and the bigots. Packaging antisemitism and Islamophobia into the same bucket and condemning unjustified hate as if these two are undistinguishable is like viewing Nancy Pelosi and Donald Trump as a potential couple just because both are politicians. The roots driving these types of hate are vastly diverse. Any medicine designed to fight and suppress these phenomena must be tailored to the specific syndrome. Antisemitism and Islamophobia should never be treated as equals. Anything else is ineffective, confusing and misleading. The recent debate in the US on what constitutes antisemitism has exposed the Democratic party to a dark side it has been trying to disguise in its effort to keep the progressive image it has been identified with for a long time. The word “progressive” is rooted in the word “progress”. It implies broad and open-mindedness, forward-thinking, and most importantly, non-judgmental and unprejudiced bearing. Anti-Semitism is the exact opposite of that definition.
The Democratic party is no longer embraced by a true progressive prospectus. The newly elected younger troupe, an inexperienced, big-headed but ignorant bunch, who believe in their own boundless wisdom and moral superiority, have now taken control of the far-left agenda and have had it wrapped around the entire party. These days, these ignorant, boorish party members are calling the shots. The entire group of declared Democratic presidential candidates, in their attempt to win their party’s acceptance, try to outdo each other’s designs of how to spend other people’s money, how to punish the successful, how to kill entrepreneurial spirits, while letting the government take care of things. They have distorted the definition of “virtuous” versus “evil”, characterizing the rich and the successful as the bad guys by definition; the poor, the underdogs, and the losers as the good guys. They project this state of mind into the Arab-Israeli conflict, where naturally, the Palestinian Arabs (ignoring, of course, the super wealthy Arab states that fund Arab terror) play the part of the poor underdog while Israel is painted in the colors of the false propaganda the far-left is so keen on guzzling. Accordingly, they demonize Israel and they disseminate brotherly love to Israel’s enemies. And although the radical horde is a minority within the Democratic party, their loud voice and their extreme political positions have not been suppressed by the adult, more practiced and skilled veterans. On the contrary, the Democratic leadership in Congress made it a habit to appease these loudmouths and let them paint the entire party in their far-left colors. In my debates with some far-left enthusiasts whose Jew-hatred frame of mind is legitimized by focusing on the Jewish State’s perceived wrong-doing and its effect on the American Jews, I discovered the arguments they employ in condemning Israel and its supporters in the US, and where the chasm in their understanding of the truth is. The first and foremost argument—alleged by the far-left anti-Semites in the Democratic party and their supporters—accuses Jewish American folks of disloyalty to the US. Support of Israel is characterized as a pledge of allegiance to a foreign country. This distortion of facts and intentions must be refuted. The innuendo implied by the “foreign country” designation carries the connotation of an allegiance to an adversarial or even an enemy entity like ISIS, al-Qaeda, Iran, North Korea, Russia, China, etc. Israel is none of those. It’s light years incongruent. The US government under previous Democrat and Republican presidents has supported Israel to an extraordinary degree. This support is a result of US clear security interests (in addition to intelligence sharing and security cooperation), and feelings of closeness due to similar culture and democratic value-system. The US government supports South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, with their defense needs. That includes risking the lives of American soldiers. The US is a member of NATO. That includes an American military intervention in case one of the NATO countries is attacked. President Roosevelt, during WWII, sent his military to fight for the UK, France, Holland, Belgium, Italy, Greece against the Nazis. He sent weapons to the Soviet Union. He may have or may not have signed a pledge, but he spilled American blood. Did he exhibit dual loyalty? President Eisenhower sent troops to South Korea to save them from the North. A lot of American blood was spilled. Did he exercise dual loyalty? Does anybody believe that American support of these foreign countries is reflective of disloyalty to the US? Why then, is support of Israel considered unfaithfulness to the US by the new progressives? Is it antisemitism in disguise? This is what the Democrat Party has turned into. Another depraved accusation pointed at Israel is the “Illegal Occupation” of Palestinian and Syrian territories and Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinian residents in these territories. This one is a typical far-left deceptiveness-based argument in favor of the perceived underdog—the Palestinian Arabs. The territories in question were conquered by Israel in 1967 in a defensive war where Syria (in control of the Golan Heights), Jordan (in control of the 'West Bank') and Egypt (in control of the Sinai Peninsula) declared war on Israel with the objective of wiping the Jewish State off the map. (And by the way, Is that legal?) Had they won, they would have instigated another Holocaust, but fortunately, they lost. And now, they want to ignore the reason Israel had no choice but to remain in these territories to defend the Jewish land from further attacks. Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in 1979 as part of a peace accord. Israel withdrew from most of the 'West Bank' after the Oslo Peace agreement in 1993 between Rabin and Arafat but had to return after The Palestinian Arabs drew on their unregimented land as a staging ground for attacking and murdering innocent Israeli civilians. Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza and uprooted all the Israeli communities there and their Jewish residents in hope of securing a peaceful neighbor who would utilize the unfettered territory to boost their economy with Israeli assistance. But once again, the Hamas terrorist organization decided to exploit the newly acquired territory as a staging ground for rocket launches aimed at the civilian population inside the Jewish State. A blockade of Gaza boils down to restrictions on imported goods. Gaza has no seaport or airport. Israel does not allow that for good reasons. These facilities will be used for smuggling military ware designed to harm Israel. Accusing Israel for blockading Gaza is like blaming zoo keepers for keeping hyaenas confined to a fenced habitat. Accusing Israel for “occupying" the 'West Bank' is like blaming the babysitter for keeping an eye on the unruly kids who are fascinated by matches and fire. The Democratic party has failed to censure its young, ignorant, Israel-bashing, anti-Semitic members. The party leaders have appeased them, accepted their disruptive conduct and have let this antisemitic movement inside the party grow legitimized and keep metastasizing with no serious attempt to throw a bit of chemotherapy in their direction, barring their poisonous venom from becoming a new norm. This is not what the US is meant to be. This party should never be allowed to rule over the American people. I am done with them. I only wish that many other potential voters and especially the Jewish voters amongst them will see the light, will see the truth, will see the danger. As of late, there has been a raucous discussion in the media and in Congress on whether criticism of Israel should be considered anti-Semitism.
Somali-American, Ilhan Omar, the newly elected representative to Congress has been the most vocal anti-Semite who adopted classical anti-Semitic sentiments in her ceaseless criticism and demonization of Israel. She has done that under the guise of the first amendment to the constitution, i.e., under “Free Speech”, And she justified it further by claiming that Jews supporting Israel are exhibiting disloyalty to the US since they pledge an allegiance to a foreign country. Had it been limited to just Omar and a couple of other petty-minded, insignificant individuals, we would have accepted this grand spectacle of Jew-hatred as a non-event, but the worrisome sequel of that episode is the danger to Israel’s existence it has unveiled. All present Democratic candidates to the 2020 presidential elections in the US have stated support for Omar’s right to Free Speech (Even though this form of free speech has been clearly smelled and felt like classical anti-Semitism). These candidates excused Omar by explaining away her wrong choice of words—she should be more careful next time, they contended. If one of these candidates is ever elected to the highest office in the free world it would wreak catastrophic consequences on the Jewish State. This looming jeopardy could potentially become the greatest existential threat Israel has ever faced. The growing clout and influence of the Far-Left movement within the Democratic Party in the US, the great influence and exposure of Alexandria Octazio-Cortez (AOC), Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Bernie Sanders and others, has only served to underscore that danger. What’s more, voices and influence of BDS and the many anti-Israel and anti-Semitic movements on campuses, supporters of these anti-Semites all over the US have been rising, and the anti-Trump crusade has been getting louder and louder as the Democratic Party’s shift to the far-left has been gaining persistent momentum. But the two arguments, the ones that argued by those in the far-left herd-- 1) "Criticism of Israel should not be considered a form of anti-Semitism” 2) “Jews who support Israel do pledge an allegiance to a foreign country”, and therefore the direct implication is that Jews who support Israel are traitors, double agents, turncoats, spies, etc. This is clearly another form of Jew-demonization, or what anti-Semitism is all about. Let’s take each one of the above and refute it by applying facts and logic. 1) When criticism of Israel concerning "lack of human rights for Palestinian Arabs," coined by supporters of those who are the chief violators of human rights, it is a form of hypocrisy on steroids. It can only be rationalized by pointing to an irrational hate that drives this bearing, or in other words—anti-Semitism. Criticism of Israel that is based on lies, hateful and false propaganda without resorting to fact-checking, is a form of irrational hate for the Jewish State. Relying on hateful and false propaganda is nourishing when it seems to validate this Jew-hatred frame of mind. Those who justify criticism of Israel by resorting to arguments like “Occupation, Blockade (of Gaza),” “support Israel’s right to exist can only be granted if Israel supports the Palestinians right to exist”— These arguments are entrenched in ignorance. So-called "Occupation" is a necessary evil designed to secure peace inside Israel. Israeli citizens living in Israel would not be able to live in peace if the Israeli military and security forces abandoned the "West Bank". If Palestinians want to be in total charge of their areas (at present, they have independent rule in what are called Areas A and B) they must prove their intent to be peaceful neighbors, something they refuse to admit to. And recent history past the Oslo Accord and the Israeli withdrawal from the "West bank", proved to be fatal to Israel. The Israeli military had to come back and control the territory. It was the only way peaceful existence and security for Israelis could materialize. Fact—There is no occupation of Gaza. There is, however, control over material goods entering the Gaza Strip. The control imposed on imported material is designed to stop smuggling of arms and other military ware designed to harm the Jewish State. If these Hamas skippers wanted to have their own seaport or airport bypassing Israeli control, they should have abandoned their rocket launchers and false dreams of wiping Israel off the map before talking about blockade removal. What’s more, Gaza has a border with Egypt. The so-called blockade is implemented by the Egyptians as well, but Israel is the only one criticized for it. Singling out Israel for reasons that the Palestinian Arabs are responsible for and ignoring the part played by Egypt is a form of anti-Semitism. 2) Claim of allegiance to a foreign government by those inspired by their hate of Israel and love of Israel’s enemies exposes these same people to a counter claim of allegiance to Israel’s enemies. These claims are clearly anti-Semitic as I explained above. Anti-Semitism is a cancer that has started metastasizing inside the US. It has started with the far-left, and it has conquered hubs inside the Democratic Party and within Congress. The Democratic party has been moving bit by bit farther to the left and closer to Israel’s enemies. The party has failed to condemn anti-Semitism. It failed to condemn anti-Semites within its own ranks, and it has gone belly up my support. Shame on them. |
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