https://blue.feedland.org/?river=http://data.feedland.org/blue/feeds/jeremyslevin@gmail.com.xml It's just a feed for now Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:16:16 GMT feedland v0.5.59 https://cyber.harvard.edu/rss/rss.html Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:16:15 GMT jeremyslevin@gmail.com Mon, October 16, 2023 3:16 PM EDT <p>Some thoughts on the latest round of violence- Since the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been central to two simultaneous and contradictory projects: the state of Israel and international institutions/bodies of law that can ensure the Holocaust never happens again.</p> <p>One vision seeks safety in ethnonationalism—a state built on Judaism with other peoples (especially native Palestinians) subjugated. The other seeks safety in pluralism and the rule of law.</p> <p>The contradiction of course is that Israel’s policies run counter to many of these laws and the government has openly flouted international treaties and law for decades.</p> <p>The US has sat at the center of these contradictions, as a multiracial democracy (at least on paper), one of the driving forces behind the post-war body of international law AND as the primary benefactor of Israel.</p> <p>Over time, the contradictions have only heightened. Israel’s government has moved further right, abandoning most pretenses of human rights or self-determination for Palestinians.</p> <p>It’s also part of the schism in the US—with the US right increasingly embracing white Christian (sometimes “Judeo-Christian”) ethnonationalism often explicitly modeled on Israel.</p> <p>At the same time, with rightwing authoritarianism on the rise, US liberalism has leaned further into rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law to contrast itself with Trumpism at home and Russia/China et al abroad (the war in Ukraine being the latest example).</p> <p>The result is an ever growing gap between US rhetoric and reality, an ever-more glaring hypocrisy that undermines US credibility on human rights.</p> <p>For Jews, who tend to be liberal, this creates a cognitive dissonance.</p> <p>You often hear variations of the phrase “No Jew is safe without Israel” from US politicians.</p> <p>The irony, as this week so painfully proved, is that Jews are not safe IN Israel.</p> <p>Ethnonationalism will never guarantee safety. Building a society based on the supremacy of one group over another is a recipe for hatred and resentment.</p> <p>It requires force and violence against unfavored groups to maintain itself.</p> <p>It is actually the model of pluralism and equality under the law, (imperfectly) embodied in the US, where Jews have found the most security.</p> <p>Our goal should be safety for ourselves and everyone else. To achieve that we can’t continue to wall ourselves off, and deny others rights.</p> Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:16:16 GMT https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156621 https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156621 Some thoughts on the latest round of violence- Since the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been central to two simultaneous and contradictory projects: the state of Israel and international institutions/bodies of law that can ensure the Holocaust never happens again. One vision seeks safety in ethnonationalism—a state built on Judaism with other peoples (especially native Palestinians) subjugated. The other seeks safety in pluralism and the rule of law. The contradiction of course is that Israel’s policies run counter to many of these laws and the government has openly flouted international treaties and law for decades. The US has sat at the center of these contradictions, as a multiracial democracy (at least on paper), one of the driving forces behind the post-war body of international law AND as the primary benefactor of Israel. Over time, the contradictions have only heightened. Israel’s government has moved further right, abandoning most pretenses of human rights or self-determination for Palestinians. It’s also part of the schism in the US—with the US right increasingly embracing white Christian (sometimes “Judeo-Christian”) ethnonationalism often explicitly modeled on Israel. At the same time, with rightwing authoritarianism on the rise, US liberalism has leaned further into rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law to contrast itself with Trumpism at home and Russia/China et al abroad (the war in Ukraine being the latest example). The result is an ever growing gap between US rhetoric and reality, an ever-more glaring hypocrisy that undermines US credibility on human rights. For Jews, who tend to be liberal, this creates a cognitive dissonance. You often hear variations of the phrase “No Jew is safe without Israel” from US politicians. The irony, as this week so painfully proved, is that Jews are not safe IN Israel. Ethnonationalism will never guarantee safety. Building a society based on the supremacy of one group over another is a recipe for hatred and resentment. It requires force and violence against unfavored groups to maintain itself. It is actually the model of pluralism and equality under the law, (imperfectly) embodied in the US, where Jews have found the most security. Our goal should be safety for ourselves and everyone else. To achieve that we can’t continue to wall ourselves off, and deny others rights. <p>Some thoughts on the latest round of violence-</p> <p>Since the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been central to two simultaneous and contradictory projects: the founding, expansion and defense of the state of Israel and the creation of international institutions/bodies of law that can ensure the Holocaust never happens again.</p> <p>One vision seeks safety in ethnonationalism—a state built on Judaism with other peoples (especially native Palestinians) subjugated. The other seeks safety in pluralism and the rule of law.</p> <p>The contradiction of course is that Israel’s policies run counter to many of these laws and the government has openly flouted international treaties and law for decades.</p> <p>The US has sat at the center of these contradictions, as a multiracial democracy (at least on paper), one of the driving forces behind the post-war body of international law AND as the primary benefactor of Israel.</p> <p>Over time, the contradictions have only heightened. Israel’s government has moved further right, abandoning most pretenses of human rights or self-determination for Palestinians.</p> <p>It’s also part of the schism in the US—with the US right increasingly embracing white Christian (sometimes “Judeo-Christian”) ethnonationalism often explicitly modeled on Israel.</p> <p>At the same time, with rightwing authoritarianism on the rise, US liberalism has leaned further into rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law to contrast itself with Trumpism at home and Russia/China et al abroad (the war in Ukraine being the latest example).</p> <p>The result is an ever growing gap between US rhetoric and reality, an ever-more glaring hypocrisy that undermines US credibility on human rights.</p> <p>For Jews, who tend to be liberal, this creates a cognitive dissonance.</p> <p>You often hear variations of the phrase “No Jew is safe without Israel” from US politicians.</p> <p>The irony, as this week so painfully proved, is that Jews are not safe IN Israel.</p> <p>Ethnonationalism will never guarantee safety. Building a society based on the supremacy of one group over another is a recipe for hatred and resentment.</p> <p>It requires force and violence against unfavored groups to maintain itself.</p> <p>It is actually the model of pluralism and equality under the law, (imperfectly) embodied in the US, where Jews have found the most security.</p> <p>Our goal should be safety for ourselves and everyone else. To achieve that we can’t continue to wall ourselves off, and deny others rights.</p> Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:15:19 GMT https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156620 https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156620 Some thoughts on the latest round of violence- Since the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been central to two simultaneous and contradictory projects: the founding, expansion and defense of the state of Israel and the creation of international institutions/bodies of law that can ensure the Holocaust never happens again. One vision seeks safety in ethnonationalism—a state built on Judaism with other peoples (especially native Palestinians) subjugated. The other seeks safety in pluralism and the rule of law. The contradiction of course is that Israel’s policies run counter to many of these laws and the government has openly flouted international treaties and law for decades. The US has sat at the center of these contradictions, as a multiracial democracy (at least on paper), one of the driving forces behind the post-war body of international law AND as the primary benefactor of Israel. Over time, the contradictions have only heightened. Israel’s government has moved further right, abandoning most pretenses of human rights or self-determination for Palestinians. It’s also part of the schism in the US—with the US right increasingly embracing white Christian (sometimes “Judeo-Christian”) ethnonationalism often explicitly modeled on Israel. At the same time, with rightwing authoritarianism on the rise, US liberalism has leaned further into rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law to contrast itself with Trumpism at home and Russia/China et al abroad (the war in Ukraine being the latest example). The result is an ever growing gap between US rhetoric and reality, an ever-more glaring hypocrisy that undermines US credibility on human rights. For Jews, who tend to be liberal, this creates a cognitive dissonance. You often hear variations of the phrase “No Jew is safe without Israel” from US politicians. The irony, as this week so painfully proved, is that Jews are not safe IN Israel. Ethnonationalism will never guarantee safety. Building a society based on the supremacy of one group over another is a recipe for hatred and resentment. It requires force and violence against unfavored groups to maintain itself. It is actually the model of pluralism and equality under the law, (imperfectly) embodied in the US, where Jews have found the most security. Our goal should be safety for ourselves and everyone else. To achieve that we can’t continue to wall ourselves off, and deny others rights. <p>Some thoughts on the latest round of violence-</p> <p>Since the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been central to two simultaneous and contradictory projects: the founding, expansion and defense of the state of Israel and the creation of international institutions/bodies of law that can ensure the Holocaust never happens again.</p> <p>One vision seeks safety in ethnonationalism—a state built on Judaism with other peoples (especially native Palestinians) subjugated. The other seeks safety in pluralism and the rule of law.</p> <p>The contradiction of course is that Israel’s policies run counter to many of these laws and the government has openly flouted international treaties and law for decades.</p> <p>The US has sat at the center of these contradictions, as a multiracial democracy (at least on paper), one of the driving forces behind the post-war body of international law AND as the primary benefactor of Israel.</p> <p>Over time, the contradictions have only heightened. Israel’s government has moved further right, abandoning most pretenses of human rights or self-determination for Palestinians.</p> <p>It’s also part of the schism in the US—with the US right increasingly embracing white Christian (sometimes “Judeo-Christian”) ethnonationalism often explicitly modeled on Israel.</p> <p>At the same time, with rightwing authoritarianism on the rise, US liberalism has leaned further into rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law to contrast itself with Trumpism at home and Russia/China et al abroad (the war in Ukraine being the latest example).</p> <p>The result is an ever growing gap between US rhetoric and reality, an ever-more glaring hypocrisy that undermines US credibility on human rights.</p> <p>For Jews, who tend to be liberal, this creates a cognitive dissonance.</p> <p>You often hear variations of the phrase “No Jew is safe without Israel” from US politicians.</p> <p>The irony, as this week so painfully proved, is that Jews are not safe IN Israel.</p> <p>Ethnonationalism will never guarantee safety. Building a society based on the supremacy of one group over another is a recipe for hatred and resentment.</p> <p>It requires force and violence against unfavored groups to maintain itself.</p> <p>It is actually the model of pluralism and equality under the law, (imperfectly) embodied in the US, where Jews have found the most security.</p> <p>Our goal should be safety for ourselves and everyone else. To achieve that we can’t continue to wall ourselves off, and deny others rights.</p> Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:14:20 GMT https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156619 https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156619 Some thoughts on the latest round of violence- Since the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been central to two simultaneous and contradictory projects: the founding, expansion and defense of the state of Israel and the creation of international institutions/bodies of law that can ensure the Holocaust never happens again. One vision seeks safety in ethnonationalism—a state built on Judaism with other peoples (especially native Palestinians) subjugated. The other seeks safety in pluralism and the rule of law. The contradiction of course is that Israel’s policies run counter to many of these laws and the government has openly flouted international treaties and law for decades. The US has sat at the center of these contradictions, as a multiracial democracy (at least on paper), one of the driving forces behind the post-war body of international law AND as the primary benefactor of Israel. Over time, the contradictions have only heightened. Israel’s government has moved further right, abandoning most pretenses of human rights or self-determination for Palestinians. It’s also part of the schism in the US—with the US right increasingly embracing white Christian (sometimes “Judeo-Christian”) ethnonationalism often explicitly modeled on Israel. At the same time, with rightwing authoritarianism on the rise, US liberalism has leaned further into rhetoric about human rights and the rule of law to contrast itself with Trumpism at home and Russia/China et al abroad (the war in Ukraine being the latest example). The result is an ever growing gap between US rhetoric and reality, an ever-more glaring hypocrisy that undermines US credibility on human rights. For Jews, who tend to be liberal, this creates a cognitive dissonance. You often hear variations of the phrase “No Jew is safe without Israel” from US politicians. The irony, as this week so painfully proved, is that Jews are not safe IN Israel. Ethnonationalism will never guarantee safety. Building a society based on the supremacy of one group over another is a recipe for hatred and resentment. It requires force and violence against unfavored groups to maintain itself. It is actually the model of pluralism and equality under the law, (imperfectly) embodied in the US, where Jews have found the most security. Our goal should be safety for ourselves and everyone else. To achieve that we can’t continue to wall ourselves off, and deny others rights. Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:14:03 GMT https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156617 https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156617 Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:14:03 GMT https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156618 https://blue.feedland.org/?item=156618