Why we choose Israel over its enemies

[SeattleUte]

http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/why-dont-i-criticize-israel

http://dish.andrewsullivan.com/2014/07/31/why-sam-harris-wont-criticize-israel/

I pretty much agree with Sam Harris in his rambling blog-cum-essay. Andrew Sullivan's rejoinder is thought provoking as well and I agree with it too. Israel is hardly above reproach. But Sam Harris actually doesn't never criticize Israel, as he points out, and Sullivan makes clear that he doesn't disagree with Sam Harris that in siding with Israel against its enemies we are on the right and the righteous side. Actually, the only thing they really disagree about is whether the Israeli appropriations of land advance Israeli security. That's an interesting issue and I don't know the answer to it.

[MarkGrace]

Depositions finally ended!

Hurray

[old_gregg]

rambling blog-cum-essay.

aren't those blocked by your work filter??!?

[Eddie]

I don't even need a full essay to answer that question. The people fighting Israel want us dead too. As long as they're fighting Israel, they can't focus all of their psychotic anger on us. We have a vested interest in Israel's survival for those reasons alone.

How many words did they need to explain it?

[Jeff Lebowski]

I don't even need a full essay to answer that question. The people fighting Israel want us dead too. As long as they're fighting Israel, they can't focus all of their psychotic anger on us. We have a vested interest in Israel's survival for those reasons alone.

How many words did they need to explain it?

Why do they want us dead?

[Donuthole]

Why do they want us dead?

ALS Ice Bucket Challenge videos.

[Maximus]

I don't even need a full essay to answer that question. The people fighting Israel want us dead too. As long as they're fighting Israel, they can't focus all of their psychotic anger on us. We have a vested interest in Israel's survival for those reasons alone.

How many words did they need to explain it?

Exactly which of the people fighting israel want me dead?

[SeattleUte]

Why do they want us dead?

Because they're bad people and we're good people who only want to live in peace glued to our Inernet screens?

[Eddie]

Why do they want us dead?

Exactly which of the people fighting israel want me dead?

I guess I should ask if you're Islamic first...maybe they DON'T want you dead.

Unless you are saying that the reason the ISIS folks want to kill folks like the Kurds has something to do with the Kurds being displaced US citizens. As I see it - groups like ISIS/al Qaeda/etc. have made it clear that if you aren't Muslim, there is only one thing left for you.

Yes - I get that I'm oversimplifying things here. I did that because I didn't want to type out an entire essay - remember?

The psychotic muslims (I'm not talking about all of them, just those in favor of continuing the beheadings) are operating under a belief that non-believers like us should be killed or converted. THOSE are the guys who want us dead.

There are probably some others fighting Israel too, who are somewhat less psychotic.

But in all honesty I don't believe for a minute that if every Jewish person in the middle east were removed from the area and given the state of Arizona as their own...and the US picked up and completely left with the Jews so that the Palestinians could have it to do what they want with...that suddenly there would be peace and we would be left alone forever more.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

I guess I should ask if you're Islamic first...maybe they DON'T want you dead.

Unless you are saying that the reason the ISIS folks want to kill folks like the Kurds has something to do with the Kurds being displaced US citizens. As I see it - groups like ISIS/al Qaeda/etc. have made it clear that if you aren't Muslim, there is only one thing left for you.

Yes - I get that I'm oversimplifying things here. I did that because I didn't want to type out an entire essay - remember?

The psychotic muslims (I'm not talking about all of them, just those in favor of continuing the beheadings) are operating under a belief that non-believers like us should be killed or converted. THOSE are the guys who want us dead.

There are probably some others fighting Israel too, who are somewhat less psychotic.

But in all honesty I don't believe for a minute that if every Jewish person in the middle east were removed from the area and given the state of Arizona as their own...and the US picked up and completely left with the Jews so that the Palestinians could have it to do what they want with...that suddenly there would be peace and we would be left alone forever more.

With ISIS, they don't even accept all muslims, look what they're doing to the Shia and the Kurds.


As a side note, Turkey's conduct in support of Hamas along with recent events in Iraq may finally give the Kurds their own country. The other irony from the Israel v Hamas fight is that everyone now feels better about Egypt which looked like an epic disaster two years ago.

[Blueintheface]

I learned long ago that I doesn't never criticize SU about his opinions on the Middle East.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I guess I should ask if you're Islamic first...maybe they DON'T want you dead.

Unless you are saying that the reason the ISIS folks want to kill folks like the Kurds has something to do with the Kurds being displaced US citizens. As I see it - groups like ISIS/al Qaeda/etc. have made it clear that if you aren't Muslim, there is only one thing left for you.

Yes - I get that I'm oversimplifying things here. I did that because I didn't want to type out an entire essay - remember?

The psychotic muslims (I'm not talking about all of them, just those in favor of continuing the beheadings) are operating under a belief that non-believers like us should be killed or converted. THOSE are the guys who want us dead.

There are probably some others fighting Israel too, who are somewhat less psychotic.

But in all honesty I don't believe for a minute that if every Jewish person in the middle east were removed from the area and given the state of Arizona as their own...and the US picked up and completely left with the Jews so that the Palestinians could have it to do what they want with...that suddenly there would be peace and we would be left alone forever more.

Psychotic muslims. Gotcha.

We didn't have any enemies in the Middle East prior to 1948. I wonder what happened.

[Maximus]

I guess I should ask if you're Islamic first...maybe they DON'T want you dead.

Unless you are saying that the reason the ISIS folks want to kill folks like the Kurds has something to do with the Kurds being displaced US citizens. As I see it - groups like ISIS/al Qaeda/etc. have made it clear that if you aren't Muslim, there is only one thing left for you.

Yes - I get that I'm oversimplifying things here. I did that because I didn't want to type out an entire essay - remember?

The psychotic muslims (I'm not talking about all of them, just those in favor of continuing the beheadings) are operating under a belief that non-believers like us should be killed or converted. THOSE are the guys who want us dead.

There are probably some others fighting Israel too, who are somewhat less psychotic.

But in all honesty I don't believe for a minute that if every Jewish person in the middle east were removed from the area and given the state of Arizona as their own...and the US picked up and completely left with the Jews so that the Palestinians could have it to do what they want with...that suddenly there would be peace and we would be left alone forever more.

Enemies of Israel /= Islamics. Islamics do = enemies of Israel however.

[Eddie]

Psychotic muslims. Gotcha.

We didn't have any enemies in the Middle East prior to 1948. I wonder what happened.

Do you want the essay answer or the non-essay answer?

BTW - I don't disagree with you. But we are well beyond that now. I am curious as to whether or not there would still be the same terrorist elements focused towards non-muslims (or the wrong kind of muslims) if all of that hadn't happened. I'll admit that I haven't done a whole lot of study on this (I'm sure you're surprised) but it kind of seems at times like there would still be discord among the lower socioeconomic status people when you look at the disparity of wealth in the area - or at least parts of it due to oil. Maybe I'm misinterpreted things, but it sure seems at times that the wealthy use their religion to control the masses.

A lot has happened since 1948. While that is a starting place, I don't think you can definitively state how different things would be if that one thing you are alluding to hadn't happened. I tend to believe it's a little more complex than that.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Do you want the essay answer or the non-essay answer?

BTW - I don't disagree with you. But we are well beyond that now. I am curious as to whether or not there would still be the same terrorist elements focused towards non-muslims (or the wrong kind of muslims) if all of that hadn't happened. I'll admit that I haven't done a whole lot of study on this (I'm sure you're surprised) but it kind of seems at times like there would still be discord among the lower socioeconomic status people when you look at the disparity of wealth in the area - or at least parts of it due to oil. Maybe I'm misinterpreted things, but it sure seems at times that the wealthy use their religion to control the masses.

A lot has happened since 1948. While that is a starting place, I don't think you can definitively state how different things would be if that one thing you are alluding to hadn't happened. I tend to believe it's a little more complex than that.

Yes indeed. And it is a helluva lot more complicated than "If we didn't support Israel, their enemies would just be spending their time trying to kill us."