The latest American Jewish Committee survey on Jewish opinion said that Jews are good liberals: overwhelmingly against the Iraq war, and mostly for a Palestinian state. Yes but by nearly 2-to-1 against the division of Jerusalem! I’ve already noted James Petras’s sharp analysis that liberal Jews are empowering neocons to be their representatives. Richard Silverstein says this is a meanspirited analysis; he says that Jews are basically liberal but
when it comes to Israel, some atavistic Jewish impulse kicks in which
closes down any possibility of understanding the Arab perspective on
the conflict or what are Israel’s true long-term interests.
While Eric Alterman, to his great credit, has written in the Nation that liberal Jews "allow belligerent
right-wingers and neocons who frequently demonize, distort and denounce
their values to speak for them in the US political arena." Alterman seems to blame the media for allowing neocon voices to prevail. Gosh, but there are just too many liberal Jews in the media for this to make sense. Myself, I blame liberal Jews. I think, ala Silverstein/Petras, that the body of liberal American Jewry is licensing the neocons as members of our family to go out and beat up the Arabs. They’re the tough brother-in-law who keeps the neighborhood safe. Oh, &-$#@!, he shot someone! Oh well! you lament. But you don’t do anything to restrain him; you’re complicit. No wonder American Jews are for Hillary Clinton, according to the AJC survey…
I’m repeating myself, sorry. I just got around to reading the AJC survey last night and I’m surprised by something else. What is the AJC asking Jews about? 5 categories. International and domestic politics, yes, then Israel, anti-semitism, and Jewish identity. There is not a word about
the occupied territories in there, not a word about settlements. There is an overwhelming sense in the antisemitism section that antisemitism is a big issue. 87 percent of Jews think it is something of a problem or a serious problem in the United States. 98 percent think it is a problem in the Muslim world (I agree).
I blame the messenger. I feel as if the AJC is trying to wash its hands of the neocons for public relations purposes. It is incurious about other important trends. There is nothing in the survey at all about this amazing moment in American Jewish history. Nothing about Jewish wealth, success, power, or responsibility. Nothing about intermarriage. Nothing about neocons. The whole survey feels like 1971 to me. It has the feel of an outsider minority worrying about itself. Antisemitism, antisemitism, antisemitism. Look at the amazing opportunities Jews have in America! Jewry will not come into the new age of American power/responsibility until the AJC comes to grips with the real landscape that young Jews live in…
