Tuesday, June 25, 2002

Israel Gets A Break

Finally an American president has made an unequivocal move in favor of the survival of the Jewish State. While it is easy to say that Bush made his latest statement on the Israeli question out of religious fervor (Christian fundamentalists feel that a viable jewish state fulfills biblical prophesy), it may just be that he has finally realized the simple truth: Israel is a democracy, and no peace plan can work where a majority of the Israeli electorate is against it.

This occurs at a time during which the the agenda of the Palestinians is becoming more widely revealed and recognized. My father fought there in 1948, and it has been no secret in my family that the Levantine Arabs prayed fervently for the extermination of the Jews. American presidents from FDR onward were complicit in supporting this effort. Even the Israeli left was too timid to state this was the goal of their enemy.

But, the Palestinian obsession with hatred and death has become so pervasive and obvious that a majority of Israeli and American voters have finally realized this simple truth.

While no one can know how this will work out, at least there is now a modus vivendi that allows all parties to proceed toward a future based upon this truth, instead of wishful thinking.