Stuff to Read

Israel and the psychology of ‘never again‘” by Sandy Tolan describes the wrong turn Israel has been making for several years.

Why does Israel continue to act against its own interests?

Over the years, and especially since 2006, the Jewish state’s deadly, over-the-top military actions in response to provocations from Hamas and Hezbollah — and now from a flotilla ferrying humanitarian aid to Gaza — have backfired. And in each case, the Jewish state has grown less secure by increasing its international isolation and fueling fury much closer to home.

From here Tolan lists the many hand-handed attempts Israel has made over the years to wipe out its enemies through military force, but which makes its enemies stronger. Tolan then gives an explanation —

None of this is in Israel’s interest, of course. So why does Israel persist in such behavior?

One answer: The country is stuck in the political psychology of “never again.” The Jewish state appears so trapped by the wounds of its own terrible history that it keeps repeating its past mistakes of excessive force, even though it knows these will only isolate it and therefore weaken it further. In this way, the politics of trauma drive the nation ever further from the safe harbor that ordinary Israelis have so long craved and never enjoyed.

I’ve believed this for some time. It’s the only rational explanation for Israel’s irrational policies. See also “Chosen, but Not Special,” by Michael Chabon.

More: Mark Halperin, “How Obama’s Enemies May Help Give Him a Boost.”

13 thoughts on “Stuff to Read

  1. A good friend of mine (a death camp survivor) said to me years ago that survivors and their descendants generally split into two groups: first, those who said that the holocaust would never happen to THEM again, and the second group that were determined that it would never happen to ANYONE again. He was also the one who convinced me not to be blindly supportive of Israel, and ultimately to support Palestinian rights. I’ve always thought that was ironic, considering that a Jew would make a lapsed Catholic a fellow anti-Zionist.

    • I’ve always thought that was ironic, considering that a Jew would make a lapsed Catholic a fellow anti-Zionist.

      That’s a great story. Thank you.

  2. I recently read, and I wish I could remember where, about US and Israeli “Exceptionalism.”
    We’ve talked about US exceptionalism at this site before. I find the thought of Israeli excpetionalism and interesting theory to explain recent behaviour.
    In the US, conservatives (though not exclusively a conservative theory in the beginning) have a strong faith in American exceptionalism, from “Manifest Destiny,” into today with the “Bush Doctrine (which is wholly owned by conservatives). Basically, as you all know it might be summarized by, “What is a crime for thee, is not for me.” It’s kind of Nietche’s “Superman” on a national scale.
    Well, Israel seems to be behaving in the same way. It is currently being run by a very conservative government, and Bibi reminds me of Cheney in a lot of ways. What’s interesting to me, is that through the years, both conservative and ‘liberal’ Israeli leaders have tried, with various degrees of effort and success, to deal with the Palestinian issue, or they at least looked like they were trying. I don’t see any effort here at all. The ‘settlements’ in Gaza can be looked upon as either “Lebensraum,” as I mentioned before, or as “Manifest Destiny.”
    I suggest that Israel now has a “Bibi Doctrine,” where they channel the worst of US exceptionalism from Bush and Cheney.
    I’d spent more time explaining, but I’ve got to run. Maybe later I’ll bore you all with some historical analogies. But I think you’ve got an idea of what I’m talking about. I wonder what your thoughts are.

  3. You are right cundgulag, its as simple as you say. the Isralies are being governed by a right wing conservative party. get rid of them and the problem is solved.

  4. I recall that about two days after being voted into office Sharon, accompanied by maybe ten thousand armed Israeli soldiers, marched on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, the third most sacred place in Islam. Muscle flexing for sure. Provocative, of course. It wasn’t long after that show of bravado that Palestinians put down their rocks and pebbles and picked up rockets.

    cundgulag is right and the question remains why Bibi was voted into office. Election monitors in Israel contend that the last three Israeli elections have been decided by the 20% or so of Israeli/Russian Jews who can be described as carbon copies of the conservative, exceptionalist, hawks of today’s American Right.

    And, by the way, Russian Jews are generally disliked by the rest of the Israeli population but apparently their 20% is enough to swing elections in their favor?

  5. The problem isn’t as simple as getting rid of the rightwing government of Israel, unfortunately; the majority of Israelis support Netanyahu wholeheartedly, the ultra-right religious parties are increasing in influence, and now permeate the officer corps of the Israeli army. What remains of the left and the centrist parties (represented by Kadima, which used to be the right–that’s how far the spectrum has shifted), are demoralized and without influence. Even if by some miracle a resurgent center-left coalition could win an election, though, they would likely have a military mutiny on their hands if they tried to dismantle any settlements. I don’t see much prospect of a political breaththrough occurring in Israel itself until the monopoly of AIPAC on official policy towards Israel is ended here in the United States, and the majority opinion of Americans (including American Jews) is reflected in the congress. As long as democracy continues to be subverted here by AIPAC, allowing Israel to do whatever it wants with absolute impunity, I’m afraid there will be no progress there.

  6. Reading Michael Chabon’s article reminded me of my ‘introduction’ into Arab (also Semites) thinking. My Yemeni driver and I were at the once-a-week local souk. I wanted to buy a bracelet from a vendor but before I could do so my driver pulled me aside telling me that I was not to “pay his price.”

    I explained that the price was already beyond low, I’d never seen the vendor before so he probably wasn’t a ‘regular’ and I really wanted the bracelet. My driver would have none of it and spent at least twenty minutes haggling with the vendor over the price.

    The vendor wouldn’t budge on the price. Abdul and I left the souk, sans bracelet. On returning the following week, no vendor. I said something like, “see Abdul he’s not back and I don’t have the bracelet.” Abdul gave me an incredulous look saying that “we had won.” I asked how he figured that since I didn’t have the bracelet to which Abdul replied, “We didn’t pay his price.”

    I cite this little anecdote as an example of how we see things determines how we behave. Those Jews who ‘see’ things through the veiled vision of the Holocaust. do not and maybe cannot ‘see’ things as most others do.

  7. The Halperin article was great. A lot of big rivers start with a few drops up in a mountain somewhere. Even with the support of big media it’s likely that people will tire of the incessant indignation at the drop of a hat and like the last drunks to leave the party, maybe they’ll turn around and realize that they’re the only ones left.

    One has to keep believing that this will happen and helping it along as much as possible by engaging others on facts relating to legitimate issues. The attempt to brand a position on every single issue as GOP or Dem is tiresome, ludicrous and an obtuse, entirely artificial construction.

  8. The right wing conservative approach to governance reminds me of an old jujitsu parable: The oak stands firm and rigidly resists the wind; the willow bends with the wind, and in so doing changes its course. High winds will fell the oak; whereas the willow gains the power of the wind.

    All I’m saying is, Israel’s present oak-ish leadership may not serve that country well should the winds of international opinion continue to increase in strength and opposition to its policies.

  9. felicity – great story. “We had won” is all that matters to right wingers everywhere.

  10. One answer: The country is stuck in the political psychology of “[9-11… Never Forget.]” The [United States] appears so trapped by the wounds of its own terrible history that it keeps repeating its past mistakes of excessive force, even though it knows these will only isolate it and therefore weaken it further. In this way, the politics of trauma drive the nation ever further from the safe harbor that ordinary [Americans] have so long craved…..

    Perpetual victimhood seems to suit us both.

  11. Every now and then I’m blown away by the intellect of the host and commentors at this site!

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