They have captured the dilemma openly and honestly, humbly and eloquently, while affirming their unwavering commitment to the state of Israel and its right to exist as a Jewish homeland. They are equally firm and clear about the rights of the Palestinian people to have their own state. I hope, as they do, and as I believe the vast majority of American Jews do, that peace is still possible in Israel and throughout the Mideast.<\/p>\n
Get The Gavel<\/p>\n
A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr.<\/p>\n
Gene Wintner<\/p>\n
Newburyport<\/p>\n
\u2018I cannot criticize Israel\u2019s military actions\u2019<\/p>\n
I read the op-ed by Steve Grossman and Alan Solomont with interest. I agree entirely with their love for Israel. Like them, if I lived in Israel, I would not vote for Benjamin Netanyahu, and I abhor the conduct of the settlers who attack and denigrate the indigenous population in the territories. <\/p>\n
However, I do not live in Israel, and friends who live in Haifa, who also do not support Netanyahu, remind me that my life is not threatened as theirs is daily. <\/p>\n
Where I disagree with the authors is over what they assert is the responsibility of American\/diaspora Jews. I have lived my entire life in the freedom and relative safety of the diaspora in America. I believe deeply that thousands of Israeli soldiers and civilians have died for me. I, therefore, cannot and will not criticize Israel\u2019s military actions. <\/p>\n
I also believe that if Israel had existed in the 1930s, it would have provided a safe haven for many, but not all, European Jews. The Holocaust would have occurred but fewer Jews would have died.<\/p>\n
A Palestinian state in the near term is a fantasy. Hamas has been in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon because Israel withdrew, and both entities wish to destroy Israel and Jews. A Palestinian state would want to do the same.<\/p>\n
I was a J Street member, and now I am an AIPAC supporter. I switched after the massacre in Pittsburgh at the Tree of Life Synagogue. Antisemitism is growing rapidly, and Israel must exist.<\/p>\n
I conclude with a quote from a speech by Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver in 1939: \u201cAnd now I see the night descend again, and into the dark and the storm my people are wandering forth again. Shall I leave them now? Can I leave them now? Shall I part company with this immortal band? They have become too dear and precious to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
A. Eric Rosen<\/p>\n
Brighton<\/p>\n
Are Palestinians included in those \u2018shared values and aspirations\u2019?<\/p>\n
What exactly do Steve Grossman and Alan Solomont mean about \u201ca viable Palestinian state\u201d when an estimated 750,000 Israeli settlers<\/a> now live in East Jerusalem and the West Bank and when Israel is in the process of cutting the West Bank in two with its E1 settlement plan? <\/a><\/p>\n What happens to the largely obliterated Gaza Strip where, despite President Trump\u2019s so-called cease-fire, 2.1 million Palestinians<\/a> continue to be bombarded and relentlessly pushed toward the sea?<\/p>\n Grossman and Solomont call for a return to \u201cshared values and shared aspirations\u201d that include \u201ca future in which Israel, America, and the Jewish people are once again united by a shared commitment to democracy, security, equality, and peace.\u201d <\/p>\n