Re: [Marxism] How to answer these questions?

["Yoshie Furuhashi" <critical.montages@xxxxxxxxx>]

On 7/31/06, Ian Pace <ian@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> I imagine the sort of responses you are hearing are of the 'the left
> criticise every single transgression of Israel, but are silent on much worse
> things committed by the Arab regimes. This shows how hypocritical and
> anti-semitic they are - this is just because they hate Jews' (the latter
> part from the more aggressive left-baiters)? Ways to respond to this include
> the following:
>
> (1) (most importantly) Israel receives large amounts of unconditional aid
> from the US. Thus in the West (I don't know where you are based) it is
> especially important that we protest against actions that our governments
> are indirectly funding. This is what makes Israel different to Syria, say.


As you all know from my previous remarks on the subject,
anti-New-Anti-Semitism-mongers have no evidence that there are lots of
anti-Semites on the Left.

But I do think that leftists have been strategically wrong to focus
mainly on Israel with regard to the Palestinian question.  Look at the
aid that Washington gives to Cairo, for instance:

<blockquote><http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0412/p07s01-wome.html>
from the April 12, 2004 edition

$50 billion later, taking stock of US aid to Egypt
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak meets with President Bush Sunday in
Crawford, Texas.
By Charles Levinson | Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor

CAIRO – Amid fresh fighting by US forces in Iraq, Sunday's meeting
between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and President Bush at his
Texas ranch serves as a reminder of America's deep involvement in this
other key Arab nation.

Aid is central to Washington's relationship with Cairo. The US has
provided Egypt with $1.3 billion a year in military aid since 1979,
and an average of $815 million a year in economic assistance. All
told, Egypt has received over $50 billion in US largesse since
1975.</blockquote>

It will clarify Middle East politics better and help the Palestinians
more effectively in the long term, if US leftists attacked US aid to
and military cover for Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia with equal
vigor that they do US aid to Israel.

As for actually-existing anti-Semitism among Arabs and Muslims (or
anyone else for that matter), do NOT try to "finesse" it with clever
answers.  Condemn it forthrightly, and not just when you are asked
about it.  Condemn it PREEMPTIVELY.
--
Yoshie
<http://montages.blogspot.com/>
<http://mrzine.org>
<http://monthlyreview.org/>

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