Michele Bachmann said that Jewish Americans hate Israel. If we ignore for a moment the fact that Michele Bachmann is legally insane, she accidentally makes a good point. I have never understood why Jewish Americans routinely vote for Democrats and why Democrats routinely favour ruthless dictatorships over progressive democracies. I have been told by Americans that I cannot understand this because I am not American. In other words, you have to be American to understand the twisted American logic. But that does not explain why so many Americans, many of whom are not nearly as batshit crazy as Bachmann, are just as confused as I am. Americans by definition, regardless of political party affiliation, are supposed to favour progressive democracies over ruthless dictatorships. But we all know that history has shown otherwise.
Bachmann’s main argument is that Jewish Americans should not have voted for Obama because he is the antichrist. Clearly, she knows very little about Jewish theology. Obviously there is no antichrist in Judaism. People like Mel Gibson would even argue that all Jews are anti-Christ.
Bachmann’s secondary argument is that the United States should continue with sanctions against Iran. She and her gang do not want to sanction Iran just because Israel wants to sanction Iran. Their position has nothing to do with Israel. They simply hate Iran. They would hate Iran even if Israel and Iran were friends.
Bachmann assumes that all Jewish Americans should vote according to whatever is in Israel’s best interests. This makes no sense to me. These people are American, not Israeli. Most Americans, Jewish or otherwise, have no idea what life is like in Israel. I would hope that they vote according to whatever is in America’s best interests. Do all Catholic Americans consider how Italy might feel when they vote? How often do Hindu Americans consult with India before voting?
Some people think that there is a separation of church and state in the United States. And some people want to revise their own history to make all of the founding fathers bible fisted televangelists. Either way, Americans of any religion are still Americans.
What people like Michele Bachmann will never understand is that being Jewish does not mean one has to automatically agree with everything Israel says and does. In fact, the vast majority of Israelis will never agree with everything Israel says and does. Unlike our ruthless dictatorship neighbours, we are a democracy. We can complain about our government. And we do it all the time.
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4 comments:
Israel and the US have plenty in common. They both have special phrases for those who disagree with their governments' policies and they both say that foreigners don't understand how their countries really tick, as if that makes them different from every other country.
The Democratic Party has no monopoly on favouring dictatorships.
I don't hate Israel. There are some Jewish people in my town but I don't think there are many. I met a Jewish girl working at the groc store who once gave me a homemade marshmallow.
Every country in the world thinks that foreigners who have never lived in their borders do not understand what it is like to live there. And they are correct.
The irony being that marshmallows are not generally kosher.
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