Ah - we resurrect GHW Bush's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia - change!

I thought I was voting for a Democrat.

Sophia,

When you choose somebody or something you should go on substance and not just the postcard picture.

It seems now, with the help of the media, he played a lot of Americans for suckers.

Oy.

Beyond the election itself and the possible consequences lies this unhappy fact: Israel's enemies are vast and numerous and they are on both sides of the political spectrum, although I think the old "left" and "right" divides really don't make much sense anymore.

There's an alarming trend obviously on what's left of the Left to support repressive far right wing regimes "just because" (because WHY????? because it's edgy? Or what??????) and many people on the Right are scholarly, intellectual and make a lot of sense so to dismiss what they say out of hand is stupid.

That said I think there are some things we need to face.

a. 'Orientalism' includes a romantic view of the East, perfectly captured by the film "Lawrence of Arabia", which has probably been part of European culture since the Crusades.

b. Simultaneously people are taught that Jews are evil, manipulative and racially inferior.

c. There's a heck of a lot of oil in the Middle East and people in the industrialised world want it. This has a huge influence on state and private businesses and it's bound eventually to affect how people see inconvenient little Israel. Look at Nixon's behavior during the Yom Kippur War - the situation was totally desperate - or the way the Brits have treated the Yishuv and then Israel - it's appalling actually.

Now we have to listen to Carter et.al., from the other side:(

d. People have been squabbling over the strategic land bridges and sea ports of the M.E. for millenia.

e. OY.

f. Finally there is religious prejudice. The "holy land" isn't really seen as a home for actual Jews, it's become a symbol and that's a problem for the real people who live in Israel, the P.A. etc.

g. See point "e".

I'm worried. And I'm upset about this appointment, time to start writing letters I guess. The Jew's weapon of last resort - letters.

Big deal right? Well it's all we've got in the end isn't it - appeals to decency - our so-called "political capital" being approximately zilch - regardless of how we try to defend human rights - of course I don't believe there's a quid pro quo for doing the right thing. But it smarts nevertheless.

Durban was a shame and the treatment of Israel by the UN is a shame and the incitement of the Palestinians is a shame and now we're seeing open antisemitism become respectable again. Meanwhile people try to wriggle by saying they are just "criticizing Israel".

Right.

I think of my cousin working so hard on her own time to defend Muslims unjustly accused of terrorism - or people who are otherwise discriminated against - immigrants for example -all she gets are antisemitic rants -

:(