Pure ice-cold antisemitism is guiding a lot of what you're reading and seeing in the last week. It's a crude hatred of Jews for being Jews, and it is as old as the hills.
Thank you, Tom. Thank you for writing the most meaningful piece I’ve read since the horror happened. This horrific - there’s really no adjective strong enough to describe it - terrorist attack followed by the blaming of Israel, the antisemitism, the excuses and reasonings, the hurtful takes that those I once respected and trusted have shared has had a more deeply painful effect on me and my friends than I could’ve ever imagined. I’m heartbroken, gutted, scared. Thank you for your words.
Outstanding, Tom. You were born for long-form writing. This is more liberating for you than blogging, for sure.
I hesitate to leave a detailed comment because my understanding of what's unfolding is something between the extremes. I'm a veteran of the civil rights movement and someone whose closest friends include Jews (both observant and otherwise) and was drafted as a conscientious objector, thanks partly to having discovered Dorothy Day about 1964.
I sent you a couple of links via X but that's as much as I care to do these days. As someone becoming an octogenarian I'm just tired.
SVann, I specifically condemned Hamas for their atrocities, which are unforgivable. I have noticed that every point that I am making in these exchanges is being made more eloquently by exoert commentators on MSNBC, the Times, the Post, the Atlantic and elsewhere. Calling for restraint is not restraint. Next month when you sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, please take a moment to reflect how concerns and warnings were voiced about the collective punishment levied upon thousands of Palestinian children, and whether killing so many innocent people was really the most practical and just way of responding to the murder of our own.
It is absolutely true that Hamas's atrocities and the steady rise in antisemitism are unacceptable. It is also true that the US and Israel have done terrible things to the Palestinians and are on the cusp of mass murder as collective punishment that will give rise to even more antisemitism. Never again also means no more imperialist land stealing and repression. No more murder of innocents by land stealing imperialists like Israel and Russia. No more lies from American leaders about promoting restraint, Palestinian self-determination, and a two-stare solution when the decades long Occupation and the slaughter of civilians just as innocent as the murdered Israeli festival goers were are plain to see. That is not leadership. That is not peace. I also think that you and Michelle are misrepresenting "the left." None of the Hamas cheerleaders wield power, while the major leftist parry has little room for pro-Palestinian voices, and the other party is riddled with insurrectionist fascists, many antisemitic. Let's speak plainly.and truthfully. Biden is enabling mass murder. The Democratic Party is as anti-Palestinian as Lilkud. The Israelis are embarked on a horrific homicidal crusade that will make everything for everybody much worse.
You sound as though you are in denial, Tom. Surely you know that the killing of innocents (on a much higher scale) to redress the killing of other innocents doesn't add up to anything just or constructive. It's not like I'm an outlier. Half the commentators on TV and in the responsible press are addressing these concerns much more eloquently than I am.
You are excusing Hamas atrocities by blaming the US and Israel for the slaughter last week. Additionally, Hamas is now using its own ppl as shields. There is no comparison between the disgustingly malicious, indiscriminate murders by Hamas and Israel’s actions and reactions. And yes, I do believe that Israel’s encroachments were wrong.
SVann, I specifically condemned Hamas for their atrocities, which are unforgivable. I have noticed that every point that I am making in these exchanges is being made more eloquently by expert commentators on MSNBC, the Times, the Post, the Atlantic and elsewhere. Calling for restraint is not restraint. Next month when you sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, please take a moment to reflect how concerns and warnings were voiced about the collective punishment levied upon thousands of Palestinian children, and whether killing so many innocent people was really the most practical and just way of responding to the murder of our own.
Thank you, Tom. Thank you for writing the most meaningful piece I’ve read since the horror happened. This horrific - there’s really no adjective strong enough to describe it - terrorist attack followed by the blaming of Israel, the antisemitism, the excuses and reasonings, the hurtful takes that those I once respected and trusted have shared has had a more deeply painful effect on me and my friends than I could’ve ever imagined. I’m heartbroken, gutted, scared. Thank you for your words.
You are more than welcome. This is what I think and what I feel.
Outstanding, Tom. You were born for long-form writing. This is more liberating for you than blogging, for sure.
I hesitate to leave a detailed comment because my understanding of what's unfolding is something between the extremes. I'm a veteran of the civil rights movement and someone whose closest friends include Jews (both observant and otherwise) and was drafted as a conscientious objector, thanks partly to having discovered Dorothy Day about 1964.
I sent you a couple of links via X but that's as much as I care to do these days. As someone becoming an octogenarian I'm just tired.
Keep up the good work. I will be keeping up.
Thanks hoots!
Very well written Tom. I agree 100% with everything you have written.
SVann, I specifically condemned Hamas for their atrocities, which are unforgivable. I have noticed that every point that I am making in these exchanges is being made more eloquently by exoert commentators on MSNBC, the Times, the Post, the Atlantic and elsewhere. Calling for restraint is not restraint. Next month when you sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, please take a moment to reflect how concerns and warnings were voiced about the collective punishment levied upon thousands of Palestinian children, and whether killing so many innocent people was really the most practical and just way of responding to the murder of our own.
It is absolutely true that Hamas's atrocities and the steady rise in antisemitism are unacceptable. It is also true that the US and Israel have done terrible things to the Palestinians and are on the cusp of mass murder as collective punishment that will give rise to even more antisemitism. Never again also means no more imperialist land stealing and repression. No more murder of innocents by land stealing imperialists like Israel and Russia. No more lies from American leaders about promoting restraint, Palestinian self-determination, and a two-stare solution when the decades long Occupation and the slaughter of civilians just as innocent as the murdered Israeli festival goers were are plain to see. That is not leadership. That is not peace. I also think that you and Michelle are misrepresenting "the left." None of the Hamas cheerleaders wield power, while the major leftist parry has little room for pro-Palestinian voices, and the other party is riddled with insurrectionist fascists, many antisemitic. Let's speak plainly.and truthfully. Biden is enabling mass murder. The Democratic Party is as anti-Palestinian as Lilkud. The Israelis are embarked on a horrific homicidal crusade that will make everything for everybody much worse.
There's no "cusp of mass murder." A week ago there WAS mass murder. We fundamentally disagree. This essay stands for me.
You sound as though you are in denial, Tom. Surely you know that the killing of innocents (on a much higher scale) to redress the killing of other innocents doesn't add up to anything just or constructive. It's not like I'm an outlier. Half the commentators on TV and in the responsible press are addressing these concerns much more eloquently than I am.
You are excusing Hamas atrocities by blaming the US and Israel for the slaughter last week. Additionally, Hamas is now using its own ppl as shields. There is no comparison between the disgustingly malicious, indiscriminate murders by Hamas and Israel’s actions and reactions. And yes, I do believe that Israel’s encroachments were wrong.
SVann, I specifically condemned Hamas for their atrocities, which are unforgivable. I have noticed that every point that I am making in these exchanges is being made more eloquently by expert commentators on MSNBC, the Times, the Post, the Atlantic and elsewhere. Calling for restraint is not restraint. Next month when you sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, please take a moment to reflect how concerns and warnings were voiced about the collective punishment levied upon thousands of Palestinian children, and whether killing so many innocent people was really the most practical and just way of responding to the murder of our own.