I thoroughly agree with Menachem Rosensaft’s notion that we must “give Netanyahu a little time to prove himself” (Opinions, April 10) — but for entirely different reasons.
Mr. Rosensaft presumes that being “pragmatic ” is preferable to adhering to an ideology, which means that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should “emulate Rabin or Begin” and not “turn out to be the intransigent Yitzhak Shamir’s ideological heir.”
However, to me, for Netanyahu to be pragmatic means that he should not repeat the grave mistakes of previous right-wing prime ministers who endangered Israel by backing down under U.S. pressure.
Netanyahu is a pragmatist, and as such I hope he will be more capable than his predecessors of correctly surmising the current world situation, realizing that the period of U.S. support of Israel is drawing to an end. Ever since the founding of Israel, America has supported Israel against a bloc of nations that has conducted an onslaught of wars and economic boycotts against it.
America, in good conscience, chose to support Israel rather than choosing the more rational policy — when viewed dispassionately — of siding with the more numerous states comprising the Islamic world. (Sadly, some people mistakenly attribute America’s pro-Israel policy to the influence of the “Israel lobby” rather than simple, decent morality.)
The Jewish community, which has ardently supported President Barack Obama, will eventually realize that they have made a tragic mistake. The “change” that Obama promised is in actuality a policy of appeasement reflecting the downward spiral in influence and power of the United States. In simple terms, America’s new policy of “cooperation” with the entire world will inevitably bring about Israel’s demise unless Netanyahu leads Israel away from almost total economic and military dependence upon the United States.
For the sake of Israel’s continued existence, Iran’s nuclear facilities must be destroyed, either by the U.S. or by Israel. It is to be hoped that Obama will undertake that task because it’s the wisest thing to do — for the sake of America and for the entire world.
But if not, Israel will be compelled to accomplish that task alone.
Inevitably, this will lead to a wider war because the Israeli military first will be compelled to undertake a pre-emptive strike against Gaza and southern Lebanon to forestall a veritable deluge of rockets from Hezbollah in the north and from Hamas in the south. Israel’s leaders realize that that, this time, if the bombardment from their surrounding enemies is not forestalled, it will result in a large proportion of the Jewish population abandoning Israel for safer environs, thus leading to the collapse of Israel as a nation.
If Israel invades Gaza and southern Lebanon, Obama will insist that Israel must abandon those areas immediately.
Of course, he will assure Israel that, should any rockets be launched against Israel following its withdrawal, the United States would come to its aid. But the assurances will be to no avail because, if Israel abandons those areas, most rational Jews will emigrate. Why would any reasonable person who loves his family and who wishes to live a peaceful life wait for the inevitable deluge of rockets to rain down on them?
Why would Obama, in his policy of appeasement, not actively support Israel against the inevitable condemnation from the entire world? I believe the answer is that Obama’s perspective lacks a certain crucial historical aspect. There is a long history of a symbiotic relationship between the Jews and the European peoples. It is not necessary to elaborate this point; it is common knowledge. After World War II, this symbiotic relationship led to the re-establishment of Israel as a nation.
Although there is a chance that he may prove to be someone who understands the significance of this profound historical symbiosis, there is an equally strong likelihood that he will identify more with the plight of the Palestinians than with that of the Jews, and will be unwilling to place America into unnecessary jeopardy.
On the other hand, if President Obama adheres more strongly to his European-influenced Judeo-Christian perspective, he will take this historical symbiosis into account and thus be more likely to call upon Americans to make sacrifices on behalf of Israel — not only because Israel is a democracy, but because of the historically profound and possibly even metaphysical meaning its continued existence has for Western civilization.
Aaron Blumenfeld is a composer of music, including two Holocaust memorial symphonic works, two Yiddish operas and 301 nigunim (Hebrew songs). He lives in Richmond.