Amir - you are a ray of light shining upon the darkness of antisemitism. For the interested, the interview between Piers Morgan and "The Green Prince" will also show how Hamas cares about the Palestinians in Gaza.
You can’t imagine how much this means to us, liberal Jews who feel abandoned by our Western institutions. We are constantly being gaslighted and tarred as Islamophobic for understanding the world you’ve described. My daughter is at the University of Michigan, where the young woman activist who posted “Until my last breath I will utter death to every single individual who supports the Zionist state. Death and more. Death and worse” was also the recipient of the 2024 MLK Spirit Award that honors students “who best exemplify the leadership and extraordinary vision of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” It’s Orwellian. Thank you for standing up for sanity.
I can't recall reading anything about anti-Semitism more enlightening than this, Amir. Really, it is stunning in its honesty and courage. Deeply insightful. Thank you.
An excellent piece. There is no doubt in my mind that your journey was far more gut-wrenching and harrowing than your matter-of-fact portrayal; I greatly appreciate both your courage and modesty.
1. Some of the very first Israeli protests boasted Palestinian flags, but the organizers quickly realized they were hurting their cause in the eyes of the Israeli public; the flags were quickly banned. (NB. This suggests the protests were not a grass-roots campaign, but one funded by powerful interests.)
2. The objection to Smotrich and Ben Gvir is in truth an objection to Netanyahu's entire government, even though together they represent a majority of Israelis. Who objects? The Israeli left, which has been in remission since 1977 brought Begin and the Likud into power.
3. There are two basic reasons for settlements: 1. they are necessary for Israel's security; 2. the historical connection of the Jewish people to the land. Denying either of these two needs is unquestionably antisemitic. Yet the settlements have all been built on public, state-owned land, not on private land.
But both of the above reasons are only issues for a Palestinian collective which refuses to see Jews as human with indivdual and collective rights. Otherwise, the Israel/Palestine border would be as safe as the US/Candian border, and Jews would be free to live under the Palestinian collective with the same rights afforded to Arab citizens of Israel.
Thus, the objection to settlements is itself rooted in antisemitism.
Nothing antisemitic about critical thinking, or questions asked in good faith.
1. Most of the West Bank has a higher elevation than undisputed Israel, overlooking Tel Aviv and the rest of Israel's densely populated center. Gaza envelope residents have 15 seconds warning to get into a bomb shelter when rockets are fired from Gaza; imagine all of Israel - including Ben Gurion airport - under those conditions.
Also, without the West Bank, Israel is very narrow. It would be almost trivial for a Palestinian army to cut across to the Mediterranean and split Israel in two.
2. Palestinians weren't seen as a distinct national grouping until the 1960s. UN documents up to that point refer to the Arabs of Palestine, not Palestinians. Even then, they didn't demand sovereignty from Jordan or Egypt, who occupied the West Bank and Gaza; a true national sense - which would be associated with a historical connection - would have driven them to take what they could get.
OTOH pre-1948 Arabs of Palestine were as likely to push for annexation by Jordan or by Syria as for independence. Which is perfectly reasonable, as all three were of the same ethnicity.
There are certainly archeological finds and sites with Arab/Muslim artifacts (as there are Jewish, Greek, Roman, Byzantine); but nothing Palestinians can point to and say, "this is uniquely associated with our culture."
Well if Arabs lived in the same region as ancient Jews, then I suspect that hailing from ancient biblical Palestine (Palestina - Exodus 15:14 and Isaiah 14:29), that they would be Palestinians no? They must have come from somewhere. I think it's dis-ingenuous to suggest that the territory was always "Jewish."
Secondly, just because it provides "more security" doesn't mean that one can take land. Using that rationale, Russia should re-take former Warsaw Pact territories. I acknowledge that the territories were taken in war. However, the "skinny state" of Israel you refer to, was what was given in 1948.
But the modern-day Palestinians are Arabs from the Arabian peninsula, who came to the region in the 7th century. The ancient Philistines were a Greek sea-faring people, who faded away as a people long ago, leaving no visible descendants. Even a cultural connection doesn't exist; monotheistic Palestinians (Muslim or Christian) reject the pagan Philistine culture.
Moreover, it has been demonstrated that a significant part (40%) of the Arab population came from the surrounding region, in the wave of prosperity and economic opportunity created by the returning Jews. https://www.meforum.org/522/the-smoking-gun-arab-immigration-into-palestine This is also evident from the high rate of growth of Arab population centers near Jewish ones during the pre-Mandate and Mandate period, with far lower rates - and even negative growth - in other areas.
More, during that entire period only Jews created a sovereign state there (actually, they created three); everyone else - Ottomans, Mamluks, Crusaders, Umayyads, Fatimids - saw themselves as part of a foreign colonialist empire. Except for the Canaanites, who also vanished into the mists of history.
Also evident in the Arabic original of "Free Palestine", which goes "From the river to the sea Palestine shall be Arab" not Palestinian.
RE security: have any of the former Warsaw Pact nations expressed interest in territorial conquest of Russia? Is there a country beyond those nations who have done so? In stark contrast, Palestinian leadership explicitly states its ultimate goal of a Palestine from river to sea, and backs it up with violence and strategy.
More, the idea that someone on the western side of Russia could threaten someone on the eastern side is patently ridiculous. Even in its west, Russia still has extensive strategic depth.
What was "given" in 1948 - the UN Partition Plan - was even less than the area Israel was left with after the war of independence, and wasn't either defensible. The partition was drawn based on concentrations of Jewish population. But the Arabs never accepted it; the remaining lands were occupied by Jordan and Egypt, who later waived all claim in Israel's favor. Israel is thus the current shareholder.
(Which only reinforces the impression that the Arabs' goal is not self-determination for themselves, but denying self-determination to Jews.)
If you want to make a moral argument that Palestinians deserve self-determination - which is precisely the argument made by the Israeli left in the period leading up to the Oslo Accords - it should be obvious that Palestinians must use said self-determination to benefit themselves, not to attempt to destroy Israel; and this moral obligation doesn't obligate Israel to commit national suicide.
For Jew-haters (euphemistically called "AntiSemites") -- the "Jew" is often a substitutional manifestation of self-loathing, and in many instances a psychological excuse for personal failings. IOW, people who are not successful tend to look-around for someone else to blame. "The Jews" are successful, so the Jews get the blame.
Thank you for this. It reminds me of a podcast I heard recently with Yasmine Mohammed and Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib - a must listen.
I am also a big fan of Douglas Murray, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Yasmine Mohammed, and Bari Weiss. I will check out the others. Thank you for your voice, your courage and moral clarity. 🙌🏼🫶🏻
Thank you for this post. The only safe space in the ME for Arabs and Persians is in Israel(except from militant Arabs and Persians).
"It is Islam which degrades once remarkable countries like Iran and Lebanon to hellholes for their citizens. It is Islam which inspires doctors and engineers in the West to give up their livelihoods to join an apocalyptic cult in Syria and Iraq, where they proceed to mass rape Yazidi girls, behead kuffars and even slaughter fellow Muslims for not being zealous enough."
I recently learned that Lebanon was a Christian nation and prospering accordingly before the militant rats moved in.
You are David standing up to Goliath, in terms of speaking truth versus a Mount Everest of lies and propaganda. That makes you a hero in my book. Much love and respect.
I found this painful but a powerful argument for standing by Israel (and all Jews).
We will never abandon Israel, our Jewish friends, our neighbors, our inclusive family.
Antisemitism is a disease driven by ignorance and foul indoctrination. It cannot be tolerated any more than a pandemic be left to (as some depraved not to mention truly stupid people maintained) ‘kill off the weak.’
We either embrace an enlightened view of morality, an idea of civilization based on mutual respect- or we retreat, grunting like, well, the mindless, back to a cave.
This is the best written analysis I have ever read about this subject.
I am grateful for your courageous pursuit of honesty and truth.
That’s far too kind, thank you. Seriously nothing courageous about this, the courageous people are those who fight Islamo-Nazism on a daily basis. 💚
Amir - you are a ray of light shining upon the darkness of antisemitism. For the interested, the interview between Piers Morgan and "The Green Prince" will also show how Hamas cares about the Palestinians in Gaza.
I really am not, Steve, but thank you so much for your kind words. I’m just a random guy who was lucky enough to stop being a disgusting antisemite.
You can’t imagine how much this means to us, liberal Jews who feel abandoned by our Western institutions. We are constantly being gaslighted and tarred as Islamophobic for understanding the world you’ve described. My daughter is at the University of Michigan, where the young woman activist who posted “Until my last breath I will utter death to every single individual who supports the Zionist state. Death and more. Death and worse” was also the recipient of the 2024 MLK Spirit Award that honors students “who best exemplify the leadership and extraordinary vision of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” It’s Orwellian. Thank you for standing up for sanity.
I can't recall reading anything about anti-Semitism more enlightening than this, Amir. Really, it is stunning in its honesty and courage. Deeply insightful. Thank you.
Damn, dude, that was an awesome read. Thanks for sharing it on TFC the other day, and for talking with all of us on the monthly Zoom.
Thank you! I can’t believe Moynihan picked me out, was completely start struck! Thank you for your kind words.
Incredible
Thank you for this.
A remarkable essay, thank you for this!
An excellent piece. There is no doubt in my mind that your journey was far more gut-wrenching and harrowing than your matter-of-fact portrayal; I greatly appreciate both your courage and modesty.
1. Some of the very first Israeli protests boasted Palestinian flags, but the organizers quickly realized they were hurting their cause in the eyes of the Israeli public; the flags were quickly banned. (NB. This suggests the protests were not a grass-roots campaign, but one funded by powerful interests.)
2. The objection to Smotrich and Ben Gvir is in truth an objection to Netanyahu's entire government, even though together they represent a majority of Israelis. Who objects? The Israeli left, which has been in remission since 1977 brought Begin and the Likud into power.
3. There are two basic reasons for settlements: 1. they are necessary for Israel's security; 2. the historical connection of the Jewish people to the land. Denying either of these two needs is unquestionably antisemitic. Yet the settlements have all been built on public, state-owned land, not on private land.
But both of the above reasons are only issues for a Palestinian collective which refuses to see Jews as human with indivdual and collective rights. Otherwise, the Israel/Palestine border would be as safe as the US/Candian border, and Jews would be free to live under the Palestinian collective with the same rights afforded to Arab citizens of Israel.
Thus, the objection to settlements is itself rooted in antisemitism.
1. How are settlements necessary for Israeli security?
2. Don't Palestinians also have a historical connection to the land?
This is not anti-semetic, just critical thinking.
Nothing antisemitic about critical thinking, or questions asked in good faith.
1. Most of the West Bank has a higher elevation than undisputed Israel, overlooking Tel Aviv and the rest of Israel's densely populated center. Gaza envelope residents have 15 seconds warning to get into a bomb shelter when rockets are fired from Gaza; imagine all of Israel - including Ben Gurion airport - under those conditions.
Also, without the West Bank, Israel is very narrow. It would be almost trivial for a Palestinian army to cut across to the Mediterranean and split Israel in two.
2. Palestinians weren't seen as a distinct national grouping until the 1960s. UN documents up to that point refer to the Arabs of Palestine, not Palestinians. Even then, they didn't demand sovereignty from Jordan or Egypt, who occupied the West Bank and Gaza; a true national sense - which would be associated with a historical connection - would have driven them to take what they could get.
OTOH pre-1948 Arabs of Palestine were as likely to push for annexation by Jordan or by Syria as for independence. Which is perfectly reasonable, as all three were of the same ethnicity.
There are certainly archeological finds and sites with Arab/Muslim artifacts (as there are Jewish, Greek, Roman, Byzantine); but nothing Palestinians can point to and say, "this is uniquely associated with our culture."
Well if Arabs lived in the same region as ancient Jews, then I suspect that hailing from ancient biblical Palestine (Palestina - Exodus 15:14 and Isaiah 14:29), that they would be Palestinians no? They must have come from somewhere. I think it's dis-ingenuous to suggest that the territory was always "Jewish."
Secondly, just because it provides "more security" doesn't mean that one can take land. Using that rationale, Russia should re-take former Warsaw Pact territories. I acknowledge that the territories were taken in war. However, the "skinny state" of Israel you refer to, was what was given in 1948.
But the modern-day Palestinians are Arabs from the Arabian peninsula, who came to the region in the 7th century. The ancient Philistines were a Greek sea-faring people, who faded away as a people long ago, leaving no visible descendants. Even a cultural connection doesn't exist; monotheistic Palestinians (Muslim or Christian) reject the pagan Philistine culture.
Moreover, it has been demonstrated that a significant part (40%) of the Arab population came from the surrounding region, in the wave of prosperity and economic opportunity created by the returning Jews. https://www.meforum.org/522/the-smoking-gun-arab-immigration-into-palestine This is also evident from the high rate of growth of Arab population centers near Jewish ones during the pre-Mandate and Mandate period, with far lower rates - and even negative growth - in other areas.
More, during that entire period only Jews created a sovereign state there (actually, they created three); everyone else - Ottomans, Mamluks, Crusaders, Umayyads, Fatimids - saw themselves as part of a foreign colonialist empire. Except for the Canaanites, who also vanished into the mists of history.
Also evident in the Arabic original of "Free Palestine", which goes "From the river to the sea Palestine shall be Arab" not Palestinian.
RE security: have any of the former Warsaw Pact nations expressed interest in territorial conquest of Russia? Is there a country beyond those nations who have done so? In stark contrast, Palestinian leadership explicitly states its ultimate goal of a Palestine from river to sea, and backs it up with violence and strategy.
More, the idea that someone on the western side of Russia could threaten someone on the eastern side is patently ridiculous. Even in its west, Russia still has extensive strategic depth.
What was "given" in 1948 - the UN Partition Plan - was even less than the area Israel was left with after the war of independence, and wasn't either defensible. The partition was drawn based on concentrations of Jewish population. But the Arabs never accepted it; the remaining lands were occupied by Jordan and Egypt, who later waived all claim in Israel's favor. Israel is thus the current shareholder.
(Which only reinforces the impression that the Arabs' goal is not self-determination for themselves, but denying self-determination to Jews.)
If you want to make a moral argument that Palestinians deserve self-determination - which is precisely the argument made by the Israeli left in the period leading up to the Oslo Accords - it should be obvious that Palestinians must use said self-determination to benefit themselves, not to attempt to destroy Israel; and this moral obligation doesn't obligate Israel to commit national suicide.
For Jew-haters (euphemistically called "AntiSemites") -- the "Jew" is often a substitutional manifestation of self-loathing, and in many instances a psychological excuse for personal failings. IOW, people who are not successful tend to look-around for someone else to blame. "The Jews" are successful, so the Jews get the blame.
Thank you for this. It reminds me of a podcast I heard recently with Yasmine Mohammed and Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib - a must listen.
I am also a big fan of Douglas Murray, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Yasmine Mohammed, and Bari Weiss. I will check out the others. Thank you for your voice, your courage and moral clarity. 🙌🏼🫶🏻
Thank you for this post. The only safe space in the ME for Arabs and Persians is in Israel(except from militant Arabs and Persians).
"It is Islam which degrades once remarkable countries like Iran and Lebanon to hellholes for their citizens. It is Islam which inspires doctors and engineers in the West to give up their livelihoods to join an apocalyptic cult in Syria and Iraq, where they proceed to mass rape Yazidi girls, behead kuffars and even slaughter fellow Muslims for not being zealous enough."
I recently learned that Lebanon was a Christian nation and prospering accordingly before the militant rats moved in.
Amir, you just became my hero. Thank you so much for writing this.
Thank you Simon, although I assure you that I don’t deserve any mention of heroism. I’m just someone who stopped being an idiot.
You are David standing up to Goliath, in terms of speaking truth versus a Mount Everest of lies and propaganda. That makes you a hero in my book. Much love and respect.
I found this painful but a powerful argument for standing by Israel (and all Jews).
We will never abandon Israel, our Jewish friends, our neighbors, our inclusive family.
Antisemitism is a disease driven by ignorance and foul indoctrination. It cannot be tolerated any more than a pandemic be left to (as some depraved not to mention truly stupid people maintained) ‘kill off the weak.’
We either embrace an enlightened view of morality, an idea of civilization based on mutual respect- or we retreat, grunting like, well, the mindless, back to a cave.
Best description of antisemitism and the foundation of its nonsense I have ever read.