Israel, reconsidered

Israel is a country that receives 2.5 billion dollars in US aid per year--most of it military.  That's $2,500,000,000 dollars every year, almost seven million dollars a day, almost $300,000 per hour, straight from our pockets to theirs.  It receives the unqualified support of the US for any and all actions that it takes, including egregious human rights violations, to the detriment of US interests--both geopolitical interests in the region, and moral interests.  We have souls, after all.

In addition to firebombing densely inhabited regions in 'retaliation' for attacks, in addition to violating agreements and usurping land through settlements, in addition to an apartheid system rivaling South Africa, they also use the military aid that we give them to attack an aid convoy flying the flag of US allies in international waters, killing citizens of that country AND an American citizen in the process.

What is the proper response?  All aid should immediately be cut, that much is clear, but attacking US allies--carrying humanitarian aid no less--and killing American citizens in international waters demands a special sort of response.  Instead, paralyzed by the Israel lobby, we do nothing.  Our allies were attacked and a fellow-citizen was killed on the orders of a government which receives nearly five thousand dollars per minute straight from my pocket and yours, and our government does nothing.  This is not acceptable.

I want to support Israel.  They are a democracy in an area of the world where such things are rare.  But the high-handedness of their actions, their contempt for the rights of others, and above all else their state-sanctioned killing of at least one American have simply made that impossible.  It is precisely our unconditional support--military, financial, and diplomatic--which has allowed these abuses to occur unchecked, and it should be withdrawn.  Immediately.

Conservatives, of course, remain generally unmoved by the plight of the Palestinians, attacks on our allies, our regional interests, the safety of our soldiers, and the rights or even deaths of fellow-citizens provided they be brown, and to them I make this appeal:

Israel is a Cadillac-driving welfare queen.  Our irresponsible 'charity' has fostered a culture of dependence and entitlement in which a whole country refuses to do a honest day's work for a honest day's pay, and instead think that they have a 'right' for the government to support them.  Time to pull the plug so that honest, hard-working, white Americans will no longer have to foot the bill for those who choose to live irresponsibly.