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The Challenge: Educate Opinion Makers
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1
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Salomon Benzimra
said:
The most important task is to first convince Israelis themselves.
In a recent article by Meyrav Wurmser of the Hudson Institute ( http://www.meforum.org/article/875 ) the most imminent danger appears to lie in a possible split on Zionism between the Left and the Right.
Wurmser summarizes the two opposing groups as:
-the Left, attached to "culture, language and a code of behaviour", and
-the Right, attached to "the land and religion".
Now, couldn't we add "history" to both groups? I am sure no one would object. And by doing so, a rapprochement may be possible.
The Left would view "history" as the history of the Jewish PEOPLE, without necessarily attributing any divine connotation to the term. And the Right, obviously, would see "history" through GOD's plan, the Torah, the Kings and the Prophets. Only the most radical fringe in the Left would object to be associated with a "people".
If the distinction between Jews as a PEOPLE (with their history, culture, and self-determination in their historic land) and Jews as followers of JUDAISM (with its divine origins, its laws and its God-promised land) could FUSE the two dissenting groups into a single unified force, then, there will be nothing capable to split Israel asunder.
Posted by: Salomon Benzimra on January 6, 2006 02:39 AM
2
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BobW
said:
Was Zionism EVER a concise, collective noun ?
Review the dispute between Weizman and Louis Brandeis. The Cleveland Conference of 1921 fractured what was already really split.
Organizational centrality cannot exist unless the Jewish people are deemed a single (SINGLE) historical unit. Otherwise, how can a national claim be made for a Jewish state?
To delve into the political philosophy of this, it's possible to call the term "American Zionist" an oxymoron. Of course this can be avoided IF there are common denominators. Are there? If not, can they be rehabilitated or developed ?
In the current situation, it's not so much of a split but of a different "religion" that many identify with. The State of Israel is but a good place for a holiday or a vehicle if the kids can't qualify for the US Olympic trials but the Macabee Games are a second chance.
A = Jewish = "single unified force" is realistic to those who would consider the letters between Erasmus and Martin Luther as correspondence between 2 Christians.
Many, if not most, of America's Jews have, de facto, converted.
Since this is too painful for many to admit to, the order of battle in the political arena is always prepared with distortions. The distortions translate into murdered Israelis and the disestablishment of Israel.
Kol tuv,
BobW
Posted by: BobW on January 6, 2006 08:20 AM
The Challenge: Educate Opinion Makers
by David Bedein, INN
There is one way to stop the formation of a PLO state:
Reach beyond the convinced, and educate opinion makers and decision makers in the US and in Israel as to the dangers of a PLO state. The vast majority of opinion makers and decision makers do not have any real background on the issues at stake - not in the US and not in Israel.
The time has come to learn from the successful methodology applied by the New Israel Fund, Peace Now, Gush Shalom, etc. whose modus operandi rests on the idea that they must bring around the opinion makers and decision makers to their point of view.
The time has come to understand that the failure of the opposition to Ariel Sharon's "disengagement" plan rested with those who protested the plan as a threat only to Judea, Samaria and Gaza, instead of addressing the reality - which we now see - of "disengagement" as a threat to all of the people and state of Israel, and to the interests of the West. MORE
Posted by Ted Belman at January 5, 2006 10:05 AM