The Informationist, a blog written by Bruce Abramson

Zionist and Proud

The State of Israel turned 65 last month.  Though I may have missed the moment, it remains a fine season to pronounce loudly and proudly that I am a Zionist. 

I am extraordinarily proud of the Jewish state.  I believe that in the years since the land emerged from the last of a long line of invaders and colonial powers, Israel has indeed become a light to the nations—the demonstrable near-universal preference for darkness notwithstanding.

Success under ideal conditions is a noteworthy achievement.  Israel has learned how to thrive under conditions as adverse as those facing any nation on the planet.  The country has opened its arms to countless immigrants; developed a world-class economy; demonstrated unrivaled excellence in innovation and education; established truly liberal governance and a genuinely independent judiciary; quelled brutal ethnic uprisings with unequaled restraint; enacted a generous social safety network; and never once deviated from the state’s liberal underpinnings.  It has achieved all of these goals under constant threat of annihilation, and amidst overwhelming opprobrium.  Indeed, the Jewish State has become the Jew of the States—proving that the unthinkable is doable, and meeting near-universal resentment for doing so.

On The Obama II Foreign Policy Team

President Obama added clarity to his foreign policy plans for his second term today.  He announced his plans to nominate John Brennan to head the CIA and Chuck Hagel to head the Pentagon--rounding out a team that started with his announcement of John Kerry as his Secretary of State.

I have three immediate thoughts about this team:

First, it represents American weakness at its best.  These folks will work together to the detriment of American interests and American allies around the world.  The damage that they do may be incalculable.

Second, this team is a fair and accurate reflection of President Obama's worldview.  He, like they, see America as a nation in decline, retreating from the world, and hoping only to do so in an orderly fashion.  He, like they, views Israel as an irritant, and nuclear powers like Iran and North Korea as manageable problems.  None of them put much stock in liberty or human rights outside our borders, reasoning (in grand tradition) that as long as other nations do not attack us overtly, their treatment of their own citizens is none of our business.

Third, this team continues the party realignment that I have been writing about for nearly a decade.  Yes, Hagel was a Republican.  In fact, he was precisely the sort of Republican who kept me from supporting the Republican Party.  Back when I was an active Democrat, nearly all of my Democratic friends viewed Chuck Hagel as among the worst of the worst.  I suppose that the message is that they made their peace with Hagel; I made my peace with a Republican Party that relegated Hagel to the sidelines.

All told, these appointments make a great deal of sense.  Over the past decade, large parts of the old Republican isolationist and "realist" establishment has made common cause with the old Democratic peace movement.  Today's Democratic Party provides a comfortable home for all who have viewed the U.S. as needlessly aggressive and insufficiently attentive to the needs of others.  

Let no one say that these appointments caught them by surprise.  President Obama has not been subtle in expressing his worldview.  Those of us who voted against him on foreign policy grounds find these appointments appalling.  I hope that those who voted for him on foreign policy grounds find these appointments exhilirating.  Because otherwise, shame on them!

Why Egypt is so Interesting

The situation in Egypt today is interesting precisely because Egypt was not interesting for so long.  It represents a rare teachable moment.  For those willing to take the time to consider it, events in Egypt may provide the single best lesson in world affairs that we have seen in a long, long time.

Bibi's Gift to Obama

Events in Gaza occur on multiple levels.  In the foreground, the IDF is fighting Hamas forces.  In the background, an important round of the U.S./Iran proxy war is unfolding.  Here is why:

In the front story, Hamas chose to use the days following the Obama reelection to escalate its persistent missile attacks on Israel.  Israel chose to respond to this escalation with a significant show of force.  But the real action may be in the back story.    

With this current action in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has given Obama an opportunity to achieve his goals vis-à-vis Iran.

Happy Birthday, Israel!

Happy Yom Ha’atzmaut!  Israel’s Independence Day.  On this date (on the Jewish calendar) in 1948, the world witnessed one of history’s greatest expressions of national renewal and self-determination.  Like many new nations, Israel was born under fire; it exists today only because its local militia was able to secure stability when the imperial power withdrew.  Israel’s accomplishments—all achieved under that same fire—have been remarkable.  Despite heavy odds and constant provocation, it has managed to thrive as a free, open, democratic, liberal state.  A decade ago, when I watched the IDF respond with humanity and humility to the most barbaric wave of terrorism that the developed world has seen since WWII, I swelled with pride.  Its actions allowed me to look deep into my own Jewish traditions and wonder what it was that gave us this strength.  Israel at 64 truly does stand as a light to the nations—far too many of whom are much happier in the dark.  Happy Birthday, Israel!

 

The Dead Villain Test: Separating Cause From Effect In The Islamic World

Cross-posted at breitbart.com's BigPeace

Osama bin Laden is dead, and the world is a better place for it.  Moammar Qaddafi may soon follow.  His departure, too, will leave the world a better place.  If all goes well, 2011 will also witness the demise of Bashar, heir to the Asad dynasty.  No one with a shred of decency will shed a tear.  The world will just keep getting better, one dead villain at a time.

These three men have brought untold misery, pain, suffering, and death to tens of millions of people—the overwhelming majority of them Muslims, though their Western victims number comfortably in the thousands.  With their dispatch, the Islamic world will exact its greatest measure of justice since (at least) the Iraqi execution of Saddam Hussein nearly five years ago.

Where Do The U.S., EU, And UN Encourage Restrictive Housing Covenants?

Cross-posted at breitbart.com's BigPeace

Quick.  Look at a map of the world and put an “X” through all the places that should be off-limits to Black residents.  Great.  Now put an “X” through all the places from which we should ban Muslims.  Then, just for good measure, “X” out all the places from which we should prohibit Chinese, Latinos, and gays.  Now look up.

Got any “Xs” on your map?  I hope not, because the exercise is hugely offensive.  Only a hard-core racist or homophobe would base housing restrictions on ethnic origin, religious affiliation, or sexual orientation.  The elimination of racial restrictions in housing was among the first, and most important, victories of the civil rights movement in the U.S., and few today would defend apartheid.  In fact, we have come so far from the days that racial covenants were standard clauses in real estate contracts that the mere suggestion of such an exercise should generate widespread revulsion.

But, let’s try one more, just for laughs.  Look back down at your map and put an “X” through all the places that should be off-limits to Jewish residents.  Got any “Xs” on your map now?

Nation Building and Negativity

Cross-posted at breitbart.com's BigPeace

Salman Taseer, the Punjabi governor known for his opposition to Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, was assassinated earlier th is year.  While his murderer has become something of a hero at home, the West lamented the death of this prominent Islamic moderate.  Yet in a WSJ column titled “Why My Father Hated India,” Taseer’s son Aatish explained that: “[t]o understand the Pakistani obsession with India…it is necessary to understand the rejection of India, its culture and past, that lies at the heart of the idea of Pakistan.”  Both the headline and that sentence are jarring.  How could this paragon of Islamic tolerance still seethe with such rejection and hatred?

The answer resonates far beyond Pakistan.  Negativity and rejection form the heart of national identity throughout the Islamic world.  Pakistan was born as the anti-India.  Most Arab states arose as expressions of anti-imperialism, anti-colonialism, and/or anti-Westernism, reaching an extreme with a Palestinian nation born of a “Nakba,” or catastrophe.  The Arab spring—rejecting status quo but lacking positive vision for the future—cannot succeed because negativity is no basis for nationhood.

Obama Is Losing Turkey

Cross-posted at breitbart.com's BigPeace

Battle lines are being drawn across the Middle East.

On one side sit the forces of stability, with Saudi Arabia at the helm. On the other sit the forces of revolution, with Iran prominent in leadership. The alliances they lead are well known: the Gulf Sheikhdoms and Jordan align with the Saudis; Syria, Hamas, and Hizbollah with Iran. While both sides are equally capable of espousing Islamism and of violating the most basic human rights, the difference between them is very real. The Saudi-led bloc is quite content with the existing global order and the petrodollars that it bestows. The Iranian-led bloc is committed to toppling that order.

The Arab Hot Spring and Cold War

Cross-posted at breitbart.com's BigPeace.  My first post as a Breitbart contributor.

With talk of the “Arab Spring” focused on whether it presages winter or summer, the whiff or metaphoric chlorophyll wafting through the desert misses a truly apt “spring” metaphor.  The demonstrations rocking the Arab world are a surface phenomenon, a hot spring bubbling up from fissures in the tectonic plates beneath the Middle East.  The post-Ottoman regional configuration is eroding, and the battle to influence its successor has begun.