The dangers of not knowing

A video went viral recently of a woman who ripped down a bunch of blue and white flags from a restaurant in support of Palestine, only to be told they were Greek flags - not Israeli flags.

And all she could say when her error was pointed out to her was, "Oh, my bad." THIS, supporters of Palestine, is your representation. I happen to be a supporter of Israel, and let me show you how support of such a complicated, multi-layered issue should be done. You are welcome.

To begin, while my Ancestry DNA analysis shows only 28% of Jewish genes, in Jewish tradition, I am as Jewish as they come - I can trace my female line five generations. Despite being genetically mostly Slavic (Russian, Ukrainian, and Polish), growing up I looked more Jewish than the kids of our Jewish friends. I stood up like a sore thumb against the crowd of my more Slavic-looking classmates and got routinely beat up for that. The septum in my Jewish nose is permanently shifted and I snore because of all the beating I took.

Not only that, but my mother and my grandmother both were routinely berated and discriminated against in their workplaces for being Jewish. My Jewish great-grandfather worked in the Ministry of Finance under Stalin and was executed as the enemy of the people, without trial in 1937. My maternal grandmother and her brother were the only survivors from their family - the rest were executed by the Germans during WWII.

My father's (Russian-Ukrainian-Polish) side of the family looked down on my mother's side because of this. My own paternal grandmother casually called me "Jewish spawn", "little k*ke", and told me not to stare at people "with those eyes, or they might think you are trying to give them the Jewish evil eye."

After I won a scholarship to come study in the States, my best friend, someone who knew me for years, spread a rumor that I was aided by Jewish organizations, and then that I became a member of a Zionist sect and people should be careful what they say around me because I might report them to my overseers.

So, to me, antisemitism is not something abstract that happens to someone somewhere. It's a part of my life.

Now, to the issue at hand. Do I think it was a big mistake to put a state of Israel where it is? Yes. At the time... very likely... the powers that be may not have realized how radicalized the region would eventually become. Maybe after WWII, there was a hope that people would become wary of radical ideas and decide against exterminating entire groups of people. Who knows.... I wasn't there. In retrospect, it would have been better if European states found an island that held no historic or religious significance to anyone and put the state of Israel there. But... what happened happened.... And Israel ended up smack dab what would become a radical Islamist region, filled with people, whose religious texts literally say that one of their purposes is elimination of Jews and the state of Israel.

Here is the source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/egyptian-minister-quotes-koran-verse-on-killing-jews/

Not that the Old Testament is any better in this respect. There are proud depictions of Israelis destroying cities and wiping out their populations. So much for the religious texts...

The difference is, in the Middle East, the Koran's calls for elimination of Jews and other infidels are taken very literally... and acted upon. That latter bit - about other infidels - is something Americans and Europeans are very familiar with: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_terrorism

Nor is political violence specifically in Palestine anything new - before, during, and after the creation of state of Israel. Did no one ever wonder why countries that seem to support Palestine do not help bring in humanitarian aid or take in Palestinian refugees? Here is why: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestinian_political_violence

When I was in Poland, I saw a group of Palestinians who posted slogans and Palestinian flags on the fence of a Catholic cathedral. Now, I have zero love for the Catholic Church. ZIP. However, even I understand the degree of disrespect involved in doing something like that. According to those who live in Poland, Palestinian refugees refuse to integrate, do not bother learning the language, make demands, and stage violent incidents, protests, and acts of vandalism. The same applies to Palestinian refugees in other European countries - France, Germany, etc.

The same countries have no problem with any of this, just as long as Palestinian militants are busy with Israel - then it's ok (and pay attention - this is BEFORE 1967, the list is so long that it had to be split up by time period): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_attacks_against_Israeli_civilians_before_1967

I know what defenders of Palestine are going to say. "But what about the settlements?" "What about targeting children?" "What about abusive security measures?" Ok... let's talk about that. How many people know that houses, hospitals, businesses, etc. in Palestinian settlements were actually built by Israel? Not all of them, but many? Remember that hospital Israeli allegedly targeted (turned out to be a fake)? That hospital was initially built by Israel and some of the staff was from Israel, until they were forced to leave. The big basement was built initially for medical supplies, only to be appropriated by HAMAS to store weapons. It's not discussed because it contradicts to popular narrative https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alleged_military_use_of_al-Shifa_hospital

Recently, Israel had dealt a massive blow to another terrorist organization Hezbollah through the use of explosives in pagers and walky-talkies used by the members to communicate when planning and carrying out terrorist attacks. The attack has taken out many members of that organization, including its leaders. How long did it take us to get Bin Laden? https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-planted-explosives-hezbollahs-taiwan-made-pagers-say-sources-2024-09-18/

The reason I bring this up is - the logistics of this attack (and I do suggest reading about it - it's pretty brilliant) demonstrates that, given an opportunity and time, Israel is perfectly capable of retaliating against its enemies with great precision , without much collateral damage. So, why can't they do that with Palestine? If HAMAS is the problem, why not target HAMAS like they targeted Hezbollah? Because there is neither time, nor opportunity.

HAMAS has become so interwoven with the Palestinian people, it has become impossible to target them with the same precision.
https://www.npr.org/2024/07/26/g-s1-12949/khalil-shikaki-palestinian-polling-israel-gaza-hamas

I trust there is no argument that we all should fight terrorism and, if there is a chance to take out a terrorist organization hell-bent on un-aliving us all, we should take it. Good... we are agreed.... But what do you do if the terrorist organization digs in behind the very people it claims to protect? Unlike Bin Laden and Al-Queada, these guys are not hiding. They are RIGHT THERE - in plain sight. And that is the problem. And they know it. They know any and all action against them will inevitably lead to extensive casualties among innocent bystanders thus, damaging Israel's reputation. And it's working.

The worst of it is - we actually don't really know what's going on in Palestine, and we don't really know how many civilians were killed and wounded. The number 30,000 - 37,000 casualties cited by virtually every major news source came from HAMAS leadership. Most of the materials - photos, videos, eyewitness accounts - also came from the same source. There is confusion as to what the heck is going on with the UN representatives in the area - who is actually a representative and who is a HAMAS operative. Only a handful were investigated and sacked but, under the circumstances, there are likely more, and no further action will be taken, since the existing investigation was meant to pacify anyone asking such questions. https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/08/1152841

The instances of HAMAS beating away Palestinian civilians and stealing humanitarian aid are documented but not discussed. Again, it contradicts the popular narrative, it's much easier to insist that Israel is at fault. https://www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/humanitarian-aid-gaza-failure-and-success-year

https://www.aipac.org/resources/hamas-abuse-of-humanitarian-aid-hurts-gazans-xly2w-3pzjg-xld3h

Let's add to that the problems with radical Islamic state, which Palestine definitely is. If the woman who tore down the Greek flags, thinking they were Israel flags, went to Palestine to protest for the rights of the Palestinians - especially dressed as she was in a tank top and jeans - she would have been stopped, possibly r*ped, and stoned for indecent exposure. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_Palestine#:~:text=Issues%20reported%20facing%20women%20in,of%20sexual%20exploitation%20and%20abuse.

Similarly, I have told gays supporting Palestine - support all you want, but have the good sense NOT to go there. You will be captured, tortured, and murdered - possibly stoned, beheaded, or dismembered. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_the_State_of_Palestine

Of course, all this creates a problem. When you realize that you truly don't know what goes on in Palestine, with HAMAS-controlled information, the history of terrorism, and violent abuse of its own citizens. Consider other countries with similar traits - Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan. The last time I checked, they were all considered US enemies. So, why, when it's stated that those nations have dictators, are controlled by radical terrorist organizations, and torture and kill their own citizens, we believe it - but not with Palestine?

Do I think putting Israel where it ended up was a dumb idea? Yes. Do I support Netanyahu? No. Can't stand the guy. Anyone with half a brain understands that 1) he had destroyed all the hard, tedious work done by his predecessors to bring peace to the region; 2) he is trying to push hard-core policy to project strength, because he is a corrupt man and, like someone else we know, is trying to stay out of prison after his shenanigans with judicial "reforms". Do I agree that the situation in the settlements is unbearable? Yup. It's horrid. Do I think Israel is 100% to blame for it? No.

On a very basic, human level, I want this insanity to stop - although I don't know how. I have family and friends in Israel. One of my classmates lost her daughter-in-law at the youth music festival a year ago. Again, the October 7th attacks are not something that happened out there somewhere - it's real to me. People I personally know were affected. And the worst of it is - a lot of people don't remember this anymore. They don't remember babies beheaded in their cribs, they don't remember the hostages. Because remembering would introduce doubt, and that doesn't go with the popular narrative.

So yes, I am conflicted. I don't have all the answers. I am afraid to speak up because I have been berated for my origins and my views all my life - and it gets OLD. I don't believe the two-state solution is possible anymore - considering the level of violence, to which the conflict had escalated. I am sure there are people much smarter than me and far better versed in global politics working on this question right now. If you want to support Palestine - fine. But at least bother to find out what you are supporting. Don't run around flinging dumb slogans, whose meaning you don't understand, based on information fed to you by a terrorist organization. Or else, you might be the next one in a viral video, going "My bad" after attacking someone because of what you don't know.