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    J Cook really is a great journalist. Archived Message

    Posted by Raskolnikov on April 23, 2019, 6:28 am, in reply to "J Cook: As the Israel lobby in the US weakens, its UK counterpart grows more fearsome "

    Of course it's easier when I agree with what he is saying but I always find myself deeply impressed with any article I read by him. Scrupulous, logical, clear and coherent and always fearless and not afraid to say things that he knows will attract the flak machine.

    This section in particular shows how he cuts through the bullshit:

    The thrust of the lobby’s argument is that almost all Jews identify with Israel, which means that attacks on Israel are also attacks on Jewish identity. That, they claim, is a modern form of anti-Semitism.

    This argument, if it were true, has an obvious retort: if Jews really do identify with Israel to the extent that they are prepared to ignore its systematic abuse of Palestinians, then that would make most British Jews anti-Arab racists.

    Further, if Jewish identity really is deeply enmeshed in the state of Israel, that would place a moral obligation on Jews to denounce any behavior by Israel towards Palestinians that violates human rights and international law.

    And yet the very Jewish leaders claiming that Israel is at the core of their identity are also the ones who demand that Jews not be expected to take responsibility for Israel’s actions – and that to demand as much is anti-Semitic.

    Could there be a clearer example of having your cake and eating it?

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