WhatsappRepresentative Torres is not a Jew. He is not a Republican. He is a progressive Democrat, and listen to this – he supports Israel! This would not be newsworthy 10, 20, or 30 years ago. But to be a Democrat, a progressive Democrat, who will stand up in Congress and support Israel today, has gone out of style. The new-age Democrats are now under many more influences that view the story in Israel from the false progressive prism of “oppressed vs oppressor”, “occupation”, “colonialization” and as a conflict about human rights.
#Israel embodies the resilience & ingenuity of humanity at its best. The story of Israel’s renaissance takes on special meaning in the present moment: Israel reminds us that it is possible to overcome & emerge stronger than ever & build back better. #YomHaatzmaut pic.twitter.com/OHykqE4N6z
— Rep. Ritchie Torres (@RepRitchie) April 16, 2021
The Jewish state of Israel is not an occupier, because one can not be an occupier in one’s own homeland. Hence, we are not colonizers, we are decolonizing, since we are resettling our ancestral homeland. And finally, we are not oppressing anybody. In truth, we have made an amazing life for the Arab Muslims who live with us in Israel. It is the Palestinian Authority and Hamas that are oppressing their own people under their authority in Judea, Samaria and Gaza. Yet, many, if not most, of the Democratic progressives today ignore all these facts and instead have turned on Israel.
And regarding human rights, Israel’s record is better than any other country in the entire Middle East on this – no matter what the distorted lies thrown by anti-Israel propagandists. But the heart of the conflict in the Middle East is not at all about human rights. Ask any ten Arabs in Israel what they care about most and human rights won’t make it to the top of the list. If human rights, such as medical care, freedom of movement, and freedom of religion are what matter to an Arab living in Israel, they will probably fall within the growing minority of pro-Israeli Arabs.
The conflict between Jews and Arabs in the Middle East is not about land either. Actually, the conflicts in the Middle East are not even about Jews and Arabs necessarily. Most of the conflicts, bloodshed, and wars are between different groups of Arabs. In Syria alone, over the last decade, more than ten times as many Arabs have been killed in an on-going Civil War than anywhere else in the entire region.
The Middle East is a region that is filled with religious tension. The Arabs who fight against each other are often Sunni-Shiite battles. The Arabs who oppose Israel’s existence and are willing to fight against it are driven by religious passions. Israel is the beacon of light in the sea of religious fundamentalism. Israel’s Army is called the Israel Defense Forces, as that is what it does. Israel never starts wars, but defends itself against aggression. It even occasionally helps it’s neighboring Arab countries against aggression by other countries.
But more than any other proof, the economically based peace agreements over the last year that Israel signed with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain proved what Israel has argued for decades – peace must be predicated on peace – not on an exchange of Land. The big change has begun. In the coming years, things may very well improve, unless the United States and Europe free up Iran to bully around all of it’s neighbors with nuclear blackmail.
