The Argument.

The presidents of Israel and France are arguing about the creation of the modern state of Israel.  Macron believes that the United Nations created it and Netanyahu insists that it was created through the efforts of the Jewish people.  I suggest that both are correct and that it is a significant part of the reason that the Middle East is in such a mess today.  I am not a scholar steeped in the intricacies of Arab/Jewish history, but I have thought about it for.a long time.  It is a difficult subject for me, because I honestly believe that the creation of the modern state of Israel was designed to make up for European and American tardiness in addressing Nazi Germany’s purge of Jews in Europe, and rather than redressing historic wrongs, reinvigorated the conflict that has embroiled the region since.  I am not here saying that it was a mistake, only that it gave Arabs a modern, very visceral, rationale for the renewal of the age-old conflict between Arab and Jew.  Jews removed Arabs from land that they had occupied for a very long time, arguing that it was their historic homeland.  Arabs responded with a campaign to destroy the modern state of Israel.

When required to take sides, I take the Jewish side, in part because my cultural heritage is closer to Judaism than it is Islam.  I actually believe that Christianity grew out of Judaism and the culture that emerged in this country over the centuries makes our entire way of life closer to Judaism than to Islam.  The issue is further complicated by a profound split in the modern Arab world, with Shia Arabs pursuing the argument with Israel even more vigorously than their Sunni brethren.  And on top of all of that, we now have the issue being warped into the struggle for world leadership between Washington, Moscow and Beijing.  Were I able to do so, I would resolve the issue by guaranteeing the continued existence of Israel and dramatically improving the quality of life for all residents of the region to include the plethora of religious and ethnic splinter groups that exist throughout the region.  A task complicated by too many people living in too small a space.  We are not able to do that, so we are involved in what could very easily develop into a nuclear exchange that will benefit no one.

The Arab-Jew argument has been going on long enough that both sides are able to firmly believe that they are in the right and the other is the malefactor that must be crushed.  I characterize the problem as being too many grandfathers having killed too many grandfathers.  I don’t believe that there is anything that can be done that will eliminate the profound historic disagreements that exist between Arab and Jew.  Conflict is close to inevitable and must be dealt with realistically.  In my assessment of the situation, one of the principal threats to the United States is found in the current Iranian leadership.  Developing a strategy that deals with that leadership is the critical challenge facing us today and I do not believe that the current Administration is dealing with it effectively.  I also believe that the issue is time sensitive.  If we procrastinate long enough, apocalyptic leadership  in Teheran will possess nuclear weapons and that will almost certainly guarantee their use, because Israel will act if we do not.  We may well already be at that point in time and it makes not one iota of difference who is right and who wrong about the origins of the Israeli state.  American cities are at risk.  Teheran explicitly tells us on a daily basis that Israel is the Little Satin and America is the Big Satin.  I believe them and reject the wishful thinking that undergirds the Obama/Biden/Harris approach to the issue.  Were I in a position to do so, I would explain to Teheran that if they continue with their attack on Israel, they risk being blown off the face of the earth.  Not because they are right or wrong about Palestine, but because they pose a threat to our continued existence.