|
February 25, 2024
Key Takeaways:
- It's been 142 days since Hamas murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped 240 people in Israel on October 7. The 134 hostages still in Gaza must be immediately released. Any ceasefire that secures their release is fine; any ceasefire that does not must be rejected, which is why the Biden administration vetoed a UN Security Council Resolution calling for a ceasefire for the third time since October 7.
- The humanitarian crisis in Gaza includes the 134 hostages. Hamas has denied them medicine and visits from the Red Cross. If Israel agrees to a ceasefire that does not secure their return, they will never be seen again.
- A two-state solution is essential and now is the time to move forward. If we wanted to reward Hamas for terrorism we would reject any moves toward a two-state solution. Hamas will not accept anything less than one state from the river to the sea that is Judenrein. Hamas cannot be a partner for peace and a two-state solution will not be with Hamas governing the Palestinian state.
- Seventeen Jewish groups wrote a misleading letter supporting a flawed definition of antisemitism, representing a retreat from President Biden's National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism. The IHRA definition of antisemitism, standing on its own, is not an effective tool for defining, let alone combatting, antisemitism--which is why we should oppose the Antisemitism
unAwareness Act.
Read to the end for corrections, what you may have missed last week, fun stuff, and our upcoming event with Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA).
You're welcome to read for free, but if you want to chip in to help defray the cost of the newsletter, click here to pay by credit card or PayPal. Just fill in the amount of your choice. If you see something that says "Save your info and create a PayPal account," click the button to the right and it will go away. You don't need a PayPal account. Or you can Venmo @Steven-Sheffey (last four phone digits are 9479). You can send a check too.
Hi Steve,
Between anti-Israel groups lobbying municipalities for one-sided ceasefire resolutions and misguided pro-Israel groups lobbying municipalities to endorse a flawed definition of antisemitism, where do city councils find time to ensure the garbage is collected and the potholes are fixed? Since they are doing the UN’s job, do they think the UN is doing their job?
The UN is doing its job, but poorly. For the third time since October 7, the Biden administration vetoed a biased UN Security Council resolution. On February 20, the U.S. vetoed a resolution introduced by Algeria, that beacon of human rights and freedom, because "demanding an immediate, unconditional ceasefire without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages will not bring about a durable peace. Instead, it could extend the fighting between Hamas and Israel, extend the hostages’ time in captivity an experience described by former hostages as 'hell,' and extend the dire humanitarian crisis Palestinians are facing in Gaza."
Instead, the Biden administration proposed a resolution that would be the first UN Security Council resolution "to condemn Hamas for the abhorrent attacks of October 7, including the sexual violence documented that day" and would make "clear that Hamas has no place in future governance of Gaza, nor does Hamas represent the dignity or self-determination of the Palestinian people." It would also support efforts to investigate UNRWA.
If municipalities insist on adopting resolutions beyond their areas of expertise or job descriptions, they should rely on Amb. Linda Thomas-Greenfield's statement for guidance and moral clarity. This February 22 letter from 13 Jewish Democratic members of Congress calling for a "mutual, temporary ceasefire" emphasized the urgent necessity of immediately returning all 134 hostages and is also a good template.
A new report found that Hamas's sexual violence on October 7 was an "operational strategy," not sporadic or isolated instances of gang rape, mutilation, and murder. If you don't have time to read the full report, at least read the table of contents and then read as much as you can. Then ask yourself if any country in the world, including yours, would allow Hamas to remain a viable threat on its border.
A two-state solution is essential and now is the time to move forward. If we wanted to reward Hamas for terrorism we would reject any moves toward a two-state solution. Hamas will not accept anything less than one state from the river to the sea that is Judenrein.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel and U.S. Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations Martin Indyk writes that the current mutual distrust between Israelis and Palestinians does not alter the reality that "there are only a few possible alternatives to the two-state solution. There is Hamas’s solution, which is the destruction of Israel. There is the Israeli ultra-right’s
solution, which is the Israeli annexation of the West Bank, the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority (PA), and the deportation of Palestinians to other countries.
"There is the 'conflict management' approach pursued for the last decade or so by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which aimed to maintain the status quo indefinitely—and the world has seen how that worked out. And there is the idea of a binational state in which Jews would become a minority, thus ending Israel’s status as a Jewish state. None of those alternatives would resolve the conflict—at least not without causing even greater calamities. And so if the conflict is to be resolved peacefully, the two-state solution is the only idea left standing."
Indyk's article is long but his logic is irrefutable--if you don't support a two-state solution, you owe it to yourself to read it.
Seventeen Jewish groups wrote a misleading letter supporting a flawed definition of antisemitism. The letter, on JFNA letterhead, recycles debunked talking points in favor of the IHRA definition of antisemitism that I covered in this post. The letter's longest paragraph is classic argumentum ad populum, a fallacious argument based on claiming a truth or affirming something is good because many people think so: like arguing that since 13 of the 15 UN Security Council members supported a resolution biased against Israel they must know something, so Biden was wrong to veto it last week.
The Nexus Guide to Identifying Antisemitism in Debates About Israel and the Nexus Document have not been officially adopted because Nexus is not pushing for codification. No definition should be codified, just as no definition is codified to define other forms of hate, and for the same reasons.
The letter falsely claims that Nexus is advocating for its definition to replace the IHRA definition. The truth is that Nexus is advocating for its definition to supplement the IHRA definition and provide clarity. Under the IHRA definition, everything depends on context. Thus, David Schraub wrote that the IHRA definition is “vague to the point of incoherency, and riddled with so much imprecision and hedging that it could justify labeling anything or nothing anti-Semitic.”
That's where Nexus comes in. Jonathan Jacoby, who directs the Nexus group, said that “the big mistake people are making about IHRA is that it’s the final word and there are many words and perspectives. You can think of IHRA as the Mishnah and [the Nexus definition] as the Gemara.”
In its response to the letter, the Nexus Leadership Project drew the line between criticism of Israel and antisemitism: "First, while there are differing views on the best path forward for Israelis and Palestinians, there is never a justification for vilifying Jews as part of that debate. Second, when hostility toward Israel or Zionism crosses over into hostility, harassment or the marginalization and exclusion of Jews, that is antisemitism."
President Biden's National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism recognizes the value of the IHRA definition, the Nexus Document, and other tools. We should support the administration's efforts to fight antisemitism and if we want unity, let's rally around the National Strategy instead of undercutting the National Strategy by insisting on the sole use of what, by its terms, is a "non-legally binding working definition" never intended for codification or enforcement. For more, read my post.
These problems with using the IHRA definition as the sole definition of antisemitism are why we should oppose the Antisemitism unAwareness Act.
Corrections. I'm entitled to my own opinions but not to my own facts, so I appreciate it when readers bring errors to my attention. No one brought any mistakes to my attention last week, so it looks like last week's newsletter was perfect.
In Case You Missed It:
- You didn't miss anything on the emergency aid for Israel and Ukraine that President Biden requested on October 20 because House Speaker Mike Johnson sent the House on a two-week vacation until February 28 without passing it.
- A new survey of scholars placed Donald Trump last in its ranking of all U.S. presidents (President Biden was ranked #14). The professors who organized the survey wrote that Trump’s position at the bottom of our rankings "puts him behind not only Buchanan and [Andrew] Johnson but also such lowlights as Franklin Pierce, Warren Harding and William Henry Harrison, who died a mere 31 days after taking office." Trump will soon be the GOP nominee for president for the third time.
- On February 20, the ADL reported that "all the extremist-related murders in 2023 were committed by right-wing extremists of various kinds, with 15 of the 17 killings involving perpetrators or accomplices with white supremacist connections. This is the second year in a row that right-wing extremists have been connected to all identified extremist-related killings."
- In an interview with Andrew Silow-Carroll, Nimrod Novik of Commanders for Israel's Security addresses security concerns about a two-state solution, concluding that "the bottom line is we don’t do it [pursue a two-state solution] because we trust them. We do it because it serves our vision of Israel."
- On January 30, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) selected a Guest Chaplain whose record includes notoriety as a Christian Nationalist, involvement in the January 6th insurrection, and long history of spewing hateful vitriol toward Jews, Muslims, LGBTQ+ individuals, and anyone inconsistent with his “biblical worldview.” I wouldn't expect Johnson to have a problem with any of that. But we should have a problem with all of it.
- The Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos in test tubes should be considered children. The Chief Justice wrote that “human life cannot be wrongfully destroyed without incurring the wrath of a holy God" and that “even before birth, all human beings have the image of God, and their lives cannot be destroyed without effacing his glory.” This ruling was possible thanks to the Republican Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Only a Democratic Congress and a Democratic president will codify Roe v. Wade. Nikki Haley said that she agrees that frozen embryos created through in-vitro fertilization are “babies.” Haley did not say whether she thinks the embryos can vote when they've been frozen for 18 years. Maybe if they show ID.
- The flimsy case against Hunter Biden collapsed after the main source was charged with providing false information and reports that the informant was working with Russia. That won't stop House Republicans from continuing to "investigate" Biden since truth was never their objective. The only way to focus the House on working for the American people is to elect a Democratic majority in November. The GOP is lost cause.
Tweets of the Week. Asha Rangappa, Ben Wexler, and Mass Ave Curmudgeon.
Twitter Thread of the Week. Kalvan Shroff: Biden supporters aren't in denial about his age; everyone else is.
Video Clip of the Week. One of the best comedy scenes of all time from one of the best movies of all time.
Upcoming Event. Please join Dana Gordon, Steve Sheffey, Jill Zipin, and
Democratic Jewish Outreach PA PAC for a Zoom fundraiser for Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 4:30 PM ET. RSVP here to get the Zoom link. This will be a close race. Holding this seat is key to holding the Democratic Senate majority.
For those new to this newsletter. This is the newsletter even Republicans have to read and the original home of the viral and beloved 2022 and 2023 Top Ten Signs You're At a Republican Seder. If someone forwarded this to you, why not subscribe and get it in your inbox every Sunday? Just click here--it's free.
I periodically update my posts on why Democrats are better than Republicans on Israel and antisemitism and on the IHRA definition of antisemitism. My definition of "pro-Israel" is here (it's a work in progress, as am I).
I hope you enjoyed today's newsletter. Donations are welcome (this takes time to write and costs money to send). If you'd like to chip in, click here and fill in the amount of your choice. If you see something that says "Save your info and create a PayPal account," click the button to the right and it will go away. You don't need a PayPal account. Or you can Venmo @Steven-Sheffey (last four phone digits are 9479). You can send a check too.
| 
