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John Eckerson's avatar

Thank you for reiterating the nonstop US fantasy of the two-state solution. Our sole Vermont US Representative Becca Balint, ironically is a Jew, a lesbian, and a woman married to a woman. I have confronted her re her adherence to this fantasy, and await her response. Meantime, she qualifies as a Hamas mouthpiece.

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s katz's avatar

Hi John, fellow Vermonter here. Forget about it with Balint. Not worth the time some donor-class friends of mine have discovered. You know she uses her Holocaust survivor as a prop. Her leftists politics supersede her Jewish background. Her lesbianism is the least objectionable thing about her

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ryan's avatar

your post Jewish POlish Senator Sanders gives her good cover. For the record , I know gay men and women who despise all this and will never vote for such a person as this woman,,,,who frankly I never heard of....good......will never vote for Mamdani and company.

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John Hardman's avatar

What does it tell you when a liberal Jewish lesbian becomes a “mouthpiece for Hamas”? How bad must you be to make Islamist terrorists a “lesser evil”? What does that say of the support of American Jews of today’s Israel? How did we get to Jewish fascists, killing Islamic fascists, while cheered on by Christian fascists?

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s katz's avatar

It is incomprehensible. Many American Jews have no idea or don’t care, or not enough.

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John Hardman's avatar

Or, perhaps Israel is now a world pariah that even American Jews cannot defend.

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Steve Z's avatar

Your “Jewish fascists” would be the IDF trying to prosecute a war against Islamist terrorists and their supporters? Give me a break.

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John Hardman's avatar

Jewish fascists are Netanyahu and his ultra-Orthodox cabal government who allowed this travesty to happen and ordered the IDF to pursue a scorched earth retaliation, war crimes, and genocide.

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Steve Z's avatar

Thanks. Just wanted to make sure you would demonstrate your true colors and throw around an absurd claim like genocide. You obliged.

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John Hardman's avatar

It is not so “absurd” when the UN Council on genocide and most of the rest of the world agree with me. What is absurd is denying the obvious.

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Steve Z's avatar

Relying on Navi Pillay, Miloon Kothari and Chris Sidoti as your sources should cause some introspection. The majority of Germans took similar positions when relying on Joseph Goebbels. Just because you have a lot of fellow travelers doesn’t make you correct. Welcome to an age old club.

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Shelly Abrahami's avatar

How can Jews, who would rather do just about anything but make war, reconcile ourselves to this destiny and find the national fortitude to go forward with continuous war as our burden?

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Grandpa's avatar

"The conflict is not about this border or that, but about us—Israel—and our existence. It’s about the Palestinians’ refusal to accept our existence, their commitment to destroy us..."

There is no choice is there? They can either stay & fight, or die--or leave!

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RDW's avatar

Drones / ground troops?

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Sheldon's avatar

Moshe Dayan was right in the 1950’s and he is still right today. Was early October 2023 a day Arabs prayed for when Israel dulled their alertness to the sea of hatred and vengeance beyond its borders? Israel will never have peace with Palestinians on their border. The Jewish State must accept this and always be prepared to defend itself against a hostile Arab world.

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Jewish Grandmother's avatar

Years before before Oct. 7, when I was still way left, I knew in my gut that this conflict will not end, “. . not in my lifetime.” Now I qualify it with “. . .not in the lifetime of my grandchildren.” When I found myself on a left-leaning tour of Israel in 2019, the belief was only confirmed. Now, I tend to use the word “never,” and that word encompasses a prayer that there will always be an Israel to defend itself.

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Howard Goldman's avatar

The truth can be hard to hear and even harder to accept.

Nevertheless, it is the truth and we must listen and learn.

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David Chinitz's avatar

Want some truths that are hard to hear? Truths ignored by Michael and his ilk? Try davidchinitz.substack.com

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peter Brand's avatar

Excellent post! It should also be noted that the core element of this conflict is a religious one. Islamists will never accept Jews as equals. This has not changed since the 7th century. Jews and other kufars (unbelievers) are relegated to being Dhimis. Just read some of Bernard Lewis's works. He was a scholar of Islam at Michael Oren's alma mater.

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ryan's avatar

Absolutely right. They ...Muslims cannot accept Jews as equals and they can't accept a Jewish nation in their midst. The sacred Islamic patrimony....but they mock ....that Hashem led and gave Israel to the Jews.....Bernard Lewis is my touchstone ....even in death......he understood the Arabs, Muslims....perfectly which is why the late Said and the Mid east studies dept won't use his work and HATE him.

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Barry   Joel Evans's avatar

So well said as the Jewish High Holidays approach. An unfortunate truth

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Stan's avatar

Well written, Michael.

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ryan's avatar

I'm very concerned when I hear a young woman who uses Jewish identity to shout "free Palestine" Didn't Dayan make a speech to the cadets/the army that they don't know that such and such an Arab village was on this and that site. Go to Wiki...they will tell you for each Israeli kibbutz and moshav....so "no dancing on stolen land " they can use Dayan's speech as a damning of Israel. Seething with vengeance ...it moved from Gaza to London and NYC ....and elsewhere....the despicable Spanish PM threatening Israel with the Nuclear bomb Spain doesn't have.

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RDW's avatar

Please edit for coherence

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Leiah Bat Ami's avatar

Very interesting and informative article. I love your work and share your pieces with friends who need a “coming to reality meeting.”

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Mike Bond's avatar

A mid 19th Century Quaker tract spoke of those who speak truth to power. Dayan spoke truth to power and his words ring true still.

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ryan's avatar

And now our FRIENDS are complete in with Hamas. NIce.

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David Chinitz's avatar

Hmmm, last couple of pieces here, about self sufficiency and war forever, seem suspiciously in tandem with Bibi. Michael, should people be judged by the company they keep? Sad, very sad, and damaging.

davidchinitz.substack.com

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Aviel's avatar

It’s not terrorism that needs to be defeated, rather it’s “Palestinianism”, or the national aspirations of the Arabs who have adopted a Palestinian identity through the forces of fate and history. They cannot ever have a state as we normally think of it.

But perhaps they can have independent “emirates”, as I believe Prof Kedar has argued. They can even unite to some limited degree and create a pseudo state, an UPE if you will.

But they cannot form a real nation state since its very idea is predicated on the destruction of Israel, regardless of what western diplomats say.

Will they accept this? Probably not for some time, but perhaps if one city like Hebron does, then others might follow.

In short, divide them, oust the PA and Hamas, and try to make peace with one city after another instead of all of them at once.

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tom_in_texas's avatar

Everyone on earth faces this dilemma eventually. As a life rule, stay strong, stay vigilant, know who your friends are. I’m not opposed to kindness, but a kindness of choice, made from a position of strength, is the kind that matters. Otherwise, strong good people keep the howling monsters in check.

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Daniella's avatar

What Dayan was saying is that Jews must sleep with their eyes open!! On October 7 those eyes were closed!! Or, were they??????

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Julia Levin's avatar

“What Dayan’s saying, Rahm, is that the conflict is not about this border or that, but about us—Israel—and our existence. It’s about the Palestinians’ refusal to accept our existence, their commitment to destroy us, and our need to internalize that. Peace, Dayan was saying, is seductive, but it must not blind us to our fate.”

Dayan was right then and his words ring true even more so today. The root cause of this conflict isn't a lack of humanity shown to Palestinians, or even the settlements, as many claim (which only began in 1967), but the perpetual rejection by the Palestinians and many other Arabs and Muslims to accept Jewish sovereignty on any portion of the land.

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