Comments on BlueTruth: Walt and Mearshimer: With Friends Like These, Who...

Lee Kaplan
$500 per Israeli ciitzen, eh? And ho...

2007-11-22T23:22:00.000-08:00

Lee Kaplan
$500 per Israeli ciitzen, eh? And how much per Palestinian Arab since
Oslo in 1993. I bet the figures are considerably higher and money sent for infratructure to make peace was used to buy guns.

Thank you for your analytical report on the Mearsh...

2007-10-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

Thank you for your analytical report on the Mearsheimer and Walt phenomenon.

It is astonishing that the universities to which the two professors belong, don't blush in shame, not because of the subject, but because of the sloppy research and faulty methodology which reflect badly on the academic standards at these prestigious schools.

Of course there is no objection to academics expressing unpopular opinions, but it’s scary to realize that some university students are being taught by mentors who, in their public pronouncements and publications, exhibit shockingly low standards of scholarship and even ignorance. Even when they don’t write in the names of their universities, serious readers are entitled to expect a minimum standard of objectivity and intellectual honesty from tenured professors.

The website of Students for Academic Freedom pinpoints one of the most egregious sins of a growing number of academics in its slogan: "You can’t get a good education if they’re telling you only half the story".

Too many opinion-makers mislead by telling half the story; deliberately omitting all relevant information that may contradict their preconceived opinions. The much discussed articles, seminars and latest book by Professors Mearsheimer and Walt, attacking the Israel Lobby, are glaring examples of misleading by omission of vital relevant data.

An article discussing this aspect may be viewed at http://maurice-ostroff.tripod.com/id148.html

Last month, in an interview, Lawrence Wil- kerson,...

2007-10-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

Last month, in an interview, Lawrence Wil- kerson, who was Colin Powell's chief of staff at the State Department, and who is an adversary of administration neo- conservatives, told me that Israel had been consistently warning the administration that Iran was the main threat, not Iraq. "The Israelis tried their best to persuade us that we were focused on the wrong enemy," he said, "and that they were very leery of destroying the balance of power in the Middle East. But once they understood that we were going to war, come hell or high water, they weren't going to get on the wrong side of the president of the United States." (Wilkerson, of course, makes no appearance in this book.)

Emerald: "Seems there should be a campaign to go a...

2007-09-27T10:56:00.000-07:00

Emerald: "Seems there should be a campaign to go after Lerner and Tikkun for this vile betrayal of the Jewish people to make him either change his position or isolate him as an anti-semite."

I don't agree with you, Emerald.

'If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all." ~Noam Chomsky

Criticizing Israel does not make someone an anti-Semite,and I can't imagine anyone legitimately accusing Rabbi Lerner of anti-Semitism. You can be an enabler of anti-Semitism, a fellow traveler of anti-Semites...you can give aid and comfort to anti-Semites, and not actually be an anti-Semite.

Confused, Emerald?
Try this:
Natan Sharansky has a litmus test for distinguishing legitimate critism of Israel with anti-Semitism. He calls it the "3 D's"

DEMONIZATION

The first D is the test of demonization.

Whether it came in the theological form of a collective accusation of deicide or in the literary depiction of Shakespeare's Shylock, Jews were demonized for centuries as the embodiment of evil. Therefore, today we must be wary of whether the Jewish state is being demonized by having its actions blown out of all sensible proportion.

For example, the comparisons of Israelis to Nazis and of the Palestinian refugee camps to Auschwitz -- comparisons heard practically every day within the "enlightened" quarters of Europe -- can only be considered anti-Semitic.

Those who draw such analogies either do not know anything about Nazi Germany or, more plausibly, are deliberately trying to paint modern-day Israel as the embodiment of evil.

DOUBLE STANDARDS

The second D is the test of double standards. For thousands of years a clear sign of anti-Semitism was treating Jews differently than other peoples, from the discriminatory laws many nations enacted against them to the tendency to judge their behavior by a different yardstick.

Similarly, today we must ask whether criticism of Israel is being applied selectively. In other words, do similar policies by other governments engender the same criticism, or is there a double standard at work?

It is anti-Semitism, for instance, when Israel is singled out by the United Nations for human rights abuses while tried and true abusers like China, Iran, Cuba, and Syria are ignored.

Likewise, it is anti-Semitism when Israel's Magen David Adom, alone among the world's ambulance services, is denied admission to the International Red Cross.

DELIGITIMIZATION

The third D is the test of deligitimization. In the past, anti-Semites tried to deny the legitimacy of the Jewish religion, the Jewish people, or both. Today, they are trying to deny the legitimacy of the Jewish state, presenting it, among other things, as the last vestige of colonialism.

I have many, most or even more of the same fears y...

2007-09-26T21:04:00.000-07:00

I have many, most or even more of the same fears you do about Israel somehow falling out of favor with most of the American people. What keeps me from being negative in the face of all these selfhaters and Jews-for-Jewish-Extermination is the very real belief that most of the American public know 'good' from 'evil' instinctively. A human being with a functioning moral compass can see the gulf between Israel and her neighbors.

Lerner's Tikkun will "laud" M&W&...

2007-09-26T09:09:00.000-07:00

Lerner's Tikkun will "laud" M&W's book?! I didn't know this. For us in the Bay Area this is something to pay attention to. Lerner has a big mouth out here and many see him as the resident liberal Jew. I've never liked Lerner, but this takes it to new level. Seems there should be a campaign to go after Lerner and Tikkun for this vile betrayal of the Jewish people to make him either change his position or isolate him as an anti-semite.

A huge irony here is that Mearshimer-Walt would de...

2007-09-26T01:22:00.000-07:00

A huge irony here is that Mearshimer-Walt would describe Lerner himself as part of "The Lobby." Learner has advocated for Israel amongst the far left and has strongly criticized groups like ANSWER.

Recently, Lerner even blasted the groups Jewish Voice for Peace and End The Occupation for not endorsing Israel as a Jewish State.

When you read the writings of Mearshimer-Walt, this makes Lerner a part of "The Lobby" despite Lerner's hatred of AIPAC.

Mike: As usual you are both very comprehensive and...

2007-09-25T23:54:00.000-07:00

Mike: As usual you are both very comprehensive and perceptive in your recap and critique of W&M. i have no argument with what you say, but wish to add a different perspective.
Just as with Tony Judt, Jimmy Carter and now these guys, we israel-Jewish activists tend to put a great deal of weight on what we perceive as their impact in the American perception of Israel and the dialog around Israel's value to the US. We are also concerned with the perception of "dual loyalty" because of Jewish support of Israel.
Yet, surveys over many years consistently indicate that the majority of Americans view Israel as a steadfast ally and are very positive on it as a Jewish state. Indeed, despite great power and money lavished in the same political process Arab-Americans and Arab states such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia have not moved the sympathies of most Americans towards their viewpoint.
So I think that when taken on balance the Bret Stephens and Michael Orens have far greater impact on the decision-makers and influential policy makers than W&M. Bottom line is in the U.S. marketplace of ideas and perception Israel has a very good place among Americans because of shared values and Israel as a reliable ally for security and contribution to US global power.

Keep up your good work and I look forward to your future posts.

Dr. Mike
You are so right, I heard them in LA w...

2007-09-25T21:44:00.000-07:00

Dr. Mike
You are so right, I heard them in LA with Standwithus. We were floored at the support and claps they received.....from Jews! Mark Weber from IHR was there, and loved being on the back of the pamphlet that SWU put out. Women in BLack, and anti Zionst rabbi Leonard Beerman were there. It was horrible, some people left crying.