Friday, February 18, 2005
Meryl to Israel's Critics: "Put Up Or Shut Up"
Meryl Yourish is usually a good source for late-breaking commentary on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (and prominent bias vis-a-vis same). But her post today is so good that I feel obliged to quote it in full:
Amen.Let's take a look at events in Israel in the last few weeks.
- The disengagement from Gaza and several West Bank towns is still on.
- Palestinian prisoners are scheduled to be released.
- The IDF will stop demolishing the houses of terrorists.
- The route of the security fence is being modified by Israeli courts
- Israel is allowing palestinian terrorists who were deported to return, including the terrorists who were responsible for the siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.
So what's the Presbyterian Church (USA) doing about disinvestment now that the moves they requested are actually starting to come to fruition?
However, more Protestant churches are discussing disinvestment. It's good to know that Israel's moves are being greeted by positive steps by her critics.
I believe we've gone past anti-Zionism here and are treading dangerously close to anti-Semitism. But then, I'm just one of those people who yells "anti-Semitism" when the world criticizes Israel, right?
Yeah. Right.
Put up or shut up, Israel critics. Ariel Sharon is risking his political career, and frankly, his life, to do exactly what the world has demanded he do. Now it's time to see positive moves from Israel's loud-mouthed critics.
Or was the point really just to criticize Israel, after all?
All I can add is: I doubt very much if Sharon is doing anything at the behest of American Presbyterian churches; I imagine Sharon couldn't care less. These steps (some of which I agree with, others I do not) have many reasons for them; pleasing anxious American church-goers and whiny Somerville yuppies are, I'm sure, not on the list.
On the other hand, from their perspective, it shouldn't matter what Sharon's motivations are; he's doing what they've said they wanted, as Meryl points out.
So. Do they have the courage of their convictions? Or do they merely see Israel-bashing as a popular sport, and want to get with the in-crowd before Noam Chomsky shakes his finger at them?
UPDATE: Israpundit features an interview, on the subject of the WCC and its divestment considerations, with Prof. Paul Charles Merkley, an historian and an expert on Christian-Israeli relations. Don't miss it.
