Yesterday World Public Opinion presented a poll at the Brookings Institution showing that people in 18 countries, including the U.S., don’t want their governments to take sides in the Israel/Palestine struggle by 58 to 27 on average. But of those 27 percent who do want their governments to take sides, the components are: 20 percent for the Palestinians, 7 percent for the Israelis. There’s more bad news for Israel in opinion on whether the Israelis and the Palestinians are or aren’t doing their part to resolve the problem. 47 percent of the citizens said the Palestinians weren’t doing well, 54 percent said the Israelis weren’t. On the positive side, Israel scored 22 percent of people saying they were doing their part. The Palestinians bested them here, at 28 percent.
The U.S. public was more pro-Israel. Israel is doing its part well: 30 percent. Palestinians doing well: 15 percent. We should be on Israel’s side: 21 percent. Palestinians’ side: 3 percent. Evenhanded: 71 percent. Still, I read that as OK news for the Israel lobby… By 7 to 1 those who want us to take a side favor Israel. In the world, it’s 3 to 1 against Israel.
And as to world opinion, big majorities were in favor of UN Peacekeeping forces to make a peace in Israel/Palestine, and good numbers for preserving Israel’s security against Arab attacks, and vice versa.
Another poll suggests that the world’s sour opinion of Israel’s performance is leaking into the U.S. Today’s Daily kos has the headline “The Video the Jewish Lobby Didn’t Want You to See,” with a link to the Dutch documentary on Walt & Mearsheimer and the Iraq war. The accompanying Kos piece is further evidence that leftwing/realist/pro-Arab views are leaking into the Democratic progressives’ base. Says its author, FLS:
I’m not arguing that AIPAC was the only reason Bush invaded Iraq that
would not be true, but the Israel lobby had been very influential push
into this debacle. More recently you can hear the voices again of the
Israel lobby pushing for military action in Iran. The question is when
will the US citizenry wake up….No I am not an anti semite. Although AIPAC and it’s supporters would define that as anything critical of Israeli policy.
There’s a Kos poll underneath, with a question about the U.S.-Israel policy as it stands: 1, Just right, 2, All wrong, 3, Needs some fine-tuning, 4, Hopeless. An amazing 52 percent said, “All wrong.” Huh.
