Here's what J Street is up against. This Sunday there's going to be a "In support of Israel and its operation in Gaza" rally in New York. There's not a word in the rally promotion about the hundreds of Palestinians slaughtered, no, this is all about the civilians in Israel. Everyone's supposed to wear red to show the "red alert" Israelis are under.
Anyway, what's interesting is the consort. It's one thing to see the ADL there. AIPAC. Or such neocon outfits as ZOA, Stand With Us, and the David Project. But there are also a ton of liberals. The Reform Jews. The 92d Street Y. Jerrold Nadler. Christine Quinn, the gay City Council President. Gov. David Paterson. And it just goes to show, when there's any kind of crunch in Jewish life, people close rank and forget differences over, say, colonization of the West Bank. The Reform Jews and Nadler are going to ally with the settlers movement and groups that smear Arabs, like the David Project.
The upside is that J Street, Brit Tzedek, Americans for Peace Now, and Israel Policy Forum aren't at the rally. Now you see the intense kind of community pressure they're under.
Wearing red? To symbolize all the blood that Israel has spilled? How fitting.
This is nothing new for the Union for Reform Judaism.
In 2002 when all the world's major religions were speaking out against the neocon campaign to preemptively attack Iraq, the allegedly "liberal" Reform Union kept silent. All the Jewish denominations joined with the Souther Baptists in being the only religious voices who refused to speak out.
Now you see the intense kind of community pressure they're under.
Of course, they are under no obligations to continue advocating Zionism instead of something equitable and workable for the future of Israel/Palestine. Then they might draw on a larger community. Slightly less affluent, I'll give you that.
It's just that for the "marginalized" (meaning 90% of the world population), political capital is so scarce to begin with. One sees that word — Security — on the J Street webpage, and well it feels a lot like a euphemism for MORE MILITARISM.
And then the most they can muster on the 13th day of Arab slaying is to be for a cease-fire — with tunnel bombings?
I don't know if J Street's gonna save anyone, Phil.