Dual Loyalties Watch
In this post, Mona Charen asserts that it's in America's interests to offer unconditional backing to Israel's Lebanon policy. But in this post two hours earlier, she exhorts American Jews to abandon the Democratic Party on the grounds that, as a matter of ethnic solidarity, we have an obligation to support the party more inclined to offer unconditional backing to Israeli policy.
But if this is how she thinks Jewish people should be voting, how seriously should we take her thinking on the concordance of American and Israeli interests? How does talk of dual loyalties go from being "toxic" to being mandatory according to the context?
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Comments (6)
I don't think dual loyalty is the appropriate term here, since Charen seems to believe that the sole loyalty of American Jews should be to Israel.
July 28, 2006 9:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
I am glad I am Mona Charen's little play thing.
Seriously, sometimes it would be interesting to know why you pay attention to anything these people have to say. Not because we shouldn't listen to those that disagree with us, but because haven't these people established long ago that they are nuts AND stupid?
---- Just say no to 0 ratings. Especially from petey, the ratings abuser.
July 28, 2006 9:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
"But if this is how she thinks Jewish people should be voting, how seriously should we take her thinking on the concordance of American and Israeli interests?"
This question could be asked much more widely, inlcuding in relation to the "Joe Lieberman weekly".
July 28, 2006 10:37 AM | Reply | Permalink
Heh. Hardly anything is more foolish or dangerous than ethnic nationalism; so of course, Republicans encourage it.
July 28, 2006 10:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
"Yes, the casualties of civilians on both sides are heartbreaking. But if this moment is squandered, the results for Israel, and I believe for our larger war on terror, will be serious."
I do not perceive the contradiction that Matt claims. In Mona's world, there is no difference between interests of Israel and of USA, and to the degree that American Jews are more attuned to the interests of Israel they are just more American than other Americans. Sadly, many Jews are not, so to the degree they support Democrats they are less American and less Jewish.
Criticism of that point of view is so incomprehensible --- and heinous --- that it is toxic however you phrase the argument.
Where I see a logical inconsistency is there: to what extend is Mona heartbroken? Clearly, the possibility of ceasefire disturbs her far more than the carnage which lead me to thinking that the carnage is EXACTLY what we now have a priceless opportunity to commit.
July 28, 2006 9:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't see a big deal. We already know that anyone who opposes the GOP betrays America, Jesus, and even the right way to consume coffee. So why not Israel, too? The last thing you can say about this self-serving hatred of the left is that it's inconsistent.
John
http://www.haberarts.com/
July 29, 2006 7:07 AM | Reply | Permalink