Can the news from Israel teach us about our country?
You could say Israel and the U.S. were each was admirable in concept, yet deeply flawed. You could attack each for violently stealing land and decimating other peoples. Each sometimes lets religion control its government, as Hindus and Moslems do in India and Iran.
The U.S. was founded by adventurers, passionate Protestants, and criminals, who built a civilization from nothing, in a land so far from home that the first settlers’ great-grandparents hadn’t even known existed.
Our revolution and our democracy were a shining light to thoughtful citizens throughout Europe, and eventually throughout the wider world. And if, like a poor person who grows rich and is corrupted by power, we grew from nothing to the most powerful nation in the world, economically, culturally, and militarily. Although we have repeatedly abused our power, inexcusably, we have also retained a reasonable semblance of our democratic values and done some good around the world.
Israel was also a moving story, particularly if you read Exodus as a kid: a people who wandered the world, rootless and often abused, even persecuted, suffered an unthinkable loss of six million human lives. Other genocides have occurred (e.g., Rwanda) but hardly on such a scale and as irrationally. They find a land where they can be. The founders’ concept was more socialistic and tolerant than Israel actually is, a place where Jews could live in peace, together and with other folks in the area, free from persecution.
Both stories were flawed. “Columbus discovered America!” Comedian Dick Gregory did a great routine: “How would you feel if you’re sitting in your car, I’m walking down the street and like the car, ‘Hey, I just discovered this car!’” There were people here. We destroyed their world. Arguably, we committed genocide. Certainly we killed many. We destroyed their culture, freedom, and homes. Our beautifully success story rested partly on that crime and partly on kidnapping and enslaving another set of people. Obviously there were also people living in the land the Jews found, and whatever the founders’ hopes might have been, those people have not been well treated – and the mistreatment seems to be increasing. Israel’s shiny democracy, originally meant to include others who lived there, has never been fully democratic.
Now Israel is run by a right wing and allegedly corrupt man whose power depends on pandering to the greediest, most prejudiced, and most religion-crazed of citizens. Having been in and out of power, he now clings to office partly to evade criminal charges, and perhaps imprisonment. While most Israelis are modern, moderate folks, who practice a liberalized form of their religion or are mostly secular, the government, partly to maintain its leader’s freedom, is attacking democracy, destroying the supreme court, regularizing violence against Palestinians, and plotting to spare the most zealous orthodox Jews from military service. Courageous Israeli citizens have responded with weeks of passionate, courageous, unprecedented protests.
Here, a rightwing and apparently corrupt figure gained (and abused) the Presidency, by pandering to greed and prejudice, and seeks it again partly to avoid criminal prosecution, including for attacking our democratic process. While most of us are modern and tolerant, he panders to the chauvinists, racists, and haters among us, has helped destroy our Supreme Court, and incites his supporters to violence, while elevating Fundamentalists.
Sad. Tragic. Inspiring a new passion for threatened democracy, in Israel and here.
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[The above column appeared Sunday, 13 August, in the Las Cruces Sun-News and on the newspaper's website, as well as on the KRWG website. A related radio commentary aired during the week both on KTAL-LP (101.5 FM / http://www.lccommunityradio.org/) and on KRWG Radio. Apologies to folks who read these columns on this site! Getting this and the next one up belatedly, and will try to get back on the beam this coming Sunday – but that’ll be a challenge. The bridge folks have a Sunday unit game, then KTAL – Las Cruces Community Radio – will have an open house 6-9 pm Sunday, at the studios, 121 Wyatt Drive, Space #9. Should be food and live music and plenty of fun, so if you have an interest in the station, join us!]
[This column grew out of a radio discussion regarding Iran and Israel. They’re enemies, but have some similarities. For one thing, in common with much of the world, while majorities of individuals seem to be growing more tolerant, secular, and modern, governments (in parts of Europe, Burma, Iran and Israel, and the U.S.), or at least significant population segments, seem to be retreating into more conservative and intolerant religious passions, for various reasons. The word-limit for a Sunday column led me to omit discussion of Iran above.]
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