"I Am A Jew"

WARNING: LONG RANT

I read this essay by nyceve at Daily Kos. Why, oh why, did I go over there? Argghhh! The maudlin prose would have choked me up--if it weren't utter clap trap. Oy vey.

Here is what she says:

First, imagine for a moment, how out-of-whack everything is when I hear extremist Republicans embracing Israel. Do you think nyceve could possibly welcome such an event? It hurts, dear friends that these depraved souls are always among the first to step up and champion the right of Israel to exist whenever it is threatened.

That Israel is aligned with the people I most despise forces me to recognize that Jews are at best tolerated, mostly unwanted by pretty much everyone--except that is, Christian evangelicals who voice support for their own misguided and nefarious reasons. [emphasis added, -ed.]

This sad reality is still true many years after eight million were murdered. Anti-semitism is flourishing throughout the world. We escape the sting of it in the United States. But to deny its existence and that American Jews are blessed to live in a country that still treats us with relative decency, is to deny the obvious

I live in New York, a city where I don't feel as if I need to conceal my identity. But when I leave New York--an hour in any direction, even in the United States of America--I often recognize that though I am an American, being openly Jewish might engender an unwelcome encounter

Notice that nyceve says "people I despise" not people whose ideas she despises. Oh no! She despises evangelicals, those "depraved souls" who support Israel for their "own nefarious reasons." And what are those, exactly? She doesn't spell those out.

She admits that she is "blessed to live in a country that still treats us with relative decency", but worries that "being openly Jewish" an hour outside of New York might "engender an unwelcome encounter." What? My dear girl needs to travel a bit. Lessee, I live deep in the heart of Texas, a (gasp!) conservative, whose very close friend, a Long Island Liberal, or should I say Progressive, Jew (gasp!) is my son's namesake. Double gasp! I live approximately 30 hours outside of New York City. My neighbor two doors down is (gasp again!) Jewish. My neighbor across the street is (double gasp!) Muslim. (To round things out we have Catholics, Methodists and Sabbitarian Christians, for good measure. Ethnically--Mexican, Tighty-Whitey, Italian, Indian, Black, Pakistani.) Yes, it's a scary neighborhood for minorities.

She continues:

It's even more difficult to be Jewish on Daily Kos these days because opinion is clearly running against Israel. But that's okay, I love this place. I love that we speak openly here, that's why I decided to write this inarticulate diary. In truth, I'm not the right person to be writing this because what is playing out is so terribly complex. I don't understand all that is going on, so all I can contribute is a simple explanation from my heart about how an assimilated American Jew views the world.

So as unsafe as the world ouside NYC and LA are for Jews, it's even tougher being on Daily Kos. Now THAT, I believe. That would be because, honey, the anti-semites have taken up residence among the moral-equivalence crowd. Yup, suicide bombers are equal to Israelis defending their nation.

When she plays the baby girl I want to hurl: "I don't understand all that is going on, so all I can contribute is a simple explanation from my heart". Oh, puhleeeze. Read some history, honey. And don't watch the news or read the New York Times for that knowledge. Your purdy little head will spin even more than it already is. She continues:

I'd like to tell myself that the survival of Israel is not relevant in my life. But this wouldn't be true. I'd like to believe that I can divorce myself from my historic identity--but I cannot. This is why I know that as much as I try, I must stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel and pray that Israel will be victorious but never cede the moral high ground. And as I write these words, I recognize just this thought alone will enrage many of you. You will likely repond, Israel ceded the moral high ground years ago with its inhumane treatment of the Palestinians. All I can answer is, yes, this is true.

All she can say is "yes, this is true". All I can say is "what kind of Jew are you?" Are you so ignorant of your history that you've bought the relativistic garbage spewed forth? The Palestinians have suffered, true. But their plight didn't sprout in a vacuum. Israel has never ceded the moral ground. Most other countries would have wiped out the cause of consistent agitation. Israel has gone above and beyond. The only thing worse than White Guilt is Jew Guilt. I find it repugnant. Your blood has worked too hard to have intellectually vain and utterly vapid American Jews call for morality from the comfort of their hybrids.

I believe as a Jew, and of course I am speaking for myself, that I am a "guest" in America. As long as things are okay, so am I. But when events get ugly as they are today, then I must pray that the better side of humanity will prevail and the world will be kind to us.

If it isn't, I tell myself that as long as Israel exists, a country the size of New Jersey--I will have a safe haven, a refuge, if necessary.

I'd like to deny it, but I know my destiny is linked to the survival of Israel. When an El El 747 touches down at Ben Gurion Airport, the tradition is for the cabin to be filled with the plaintive, mournful sound of the Israeli national anthem. Even, nyceve, a very assimilated American Jew, sheds a tear or two when I hear that music and I am reminded of our terrible history.

Nyceve, you can pray that the world will be kind to you, but your fears are well-founded. The world won't be kind. It is simply not Politically Correct to love Israel, as your sad, rambling, apologetic tone suggests. Jew bad. Palestinian good. That's what is politically correct. And even worse, America (and the vast majority of Americans) stand with Israel. That makes Israel even more hated, if that were possible.

Let me clarify something for you, naive one. America stands for Israel because Israel stands for freedom. Alone in the Middle East, Israel is a bastion of safety and democracy and freedom. Where else is there? There are nice places to visit but they are controlled by tribes and families and mullahs and dictators. That is NOT what Americans aspire to. Americans hold out hope that Arabs and Persians can embrace a system that benefits humanity like Israel has done. THAT's why America loves Israel. One of the reasons.

Another reason: Israel has made something of herself after being on the receiving end of non-stop persecution. The fiery culmination being Nazi extermination chambers. Americans sympathize because we are a country built on religious freedom. Our nations founder's were persecuted because of how or what we believed. READ SOME HISTORY! We are brothers in arms, as it were. Our founders gave up everything for freedom. They sacrificed fortune and family and life to create a country that all people, regardless of creed could call home--including Jews. That you still view yourself as a "guest" speaks volumes about 1) your ingratitude 2) your ignorance.

Finally, the Evangelicals who you so eagerly demonize believe, even if you are too "reformed" to admit, that God views Israel as His. Evangelicals have the sense to know not to get between God and His people. You may find this repugnant. What is it? That these people show more devotion to the Jews and to Israel's plight than do many American Jews, themselves? Does it bother you that they may be right, even if you're sick of hearing about it--sanctification, a special people, a Holy Nation. Are you worried because, all that just might be true and you're not doing one damn thing, besides crying at Israel's national anthem, to be a dedicated Jew? Are you sick of the "specialness" thing because that's why everyone hates you? Get over it. Christians have. Evangelicals who believe the Bible believe you are chosen by God. You have a special mission. And if you were a good Jew, you'd know that the story isn't finished yet. Get back to Temple and learn something.

The same Bible that calls Jews God's people condemns gays, adultery and basically every other achievement of the sexual revolution. That's the problem. Those dumb, literal believers make progressive's skin crawl. The same thing protecting Israel is the thing that stops gay marriage. It's the same thing that calls abortion an abomination.

It's also the thing that throws churches into action after Hurricanes. It's the thing that welcomes thousands of visitors into a community. It's the book that Bush believes. It's the book that a huge percentage of the U.S. believes.

And all that can make a progressive feel dirty. It is also more than a tad uncomfortable for a Jew. Ewww, the nerd wants to be my friend. I'm sooooooo embarassed!

What irks me, is that the notions put forth by the evangelical movement were what the founders considered the "self-evident" stuff. Not today. Pornography is protected. Abortion is observed with the religiousness of a feminist sacrament. Every vile thing from illegal drug use to terrorism is excused. I am quite sure the Founders didn't have all this in mind.

And this is why a mealy mouthed New York Jew must simper when declaring herself to stand shoulder to shoulder with Israel. And she simpers to a liberal, progressive crowd who would be the first to let Israel fall. Unbelievable.