Thoughts on Israel.

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Coleen Rowley posted a link in FB to petition Suzanne Vega to not play in “Apartheid Israel.” And that phrase made me think. It’s pretty eloquent branding of Israel:Yes, in simple ways, the label fits.

When we crossed “the wall” for a little tour of Bet’lehem, I was astounded, along with the entire van full of western tourists, at the guards’ behavior. It was so casually rude and so devoid of “customer service” as befitting someone with the uniform (the young woman in the booth) or a gun (the foot soldier on duty with her.) If there was any point at which “oppressor” was driven home, it was right there.

It’s also a good use of a meme: “apartheid” conjurs up seperate-with-no-pretense-of-equal, and along “racial” lines. (I’m in the “race is a linguistic fiction” category, but it’ll be 1000 years before this becomes widespread.) But is it right to call Israel “apartheid”? Does Israel have a right to exist, in some degree of separation? Have they used up their historic position?

I’m not sure about the first. I’ll bet you could easily line up a few historians literate on South Africa and get some great answers. I think I’m bristling at this meme-assignment because it’s so strong and memes are pretty specific. Israel does have a right to exist, and perhaps, in some separation. But they should have to pay for this to the world religious community.

Israel is needed because Judaism reveals its members. A respectfully practicing Jew can be identified from a distance by a reasonable observer. Therefore, persecution is possible. A safe home is a human right, it should be possible to have that right carried out with others of like mind. Therefore, a land to live in and practice freely is worth our trouble.

The price of this is to cede Jerusalem to a sovereign city-state, like the Vatican, run by some suitable 3rd party, probably the UN. There should be zero fixed population—everyone rents—and especially in the old city, no move beyond preservation of the site as it was on the day of hand-over. The Germans moved/built their seat of government twice (Berlin to Bonn, and back again.) So we know that can be done, besides, Tel Aviv is probably 70% of the way towards being the seat of gov’t anyway. To avoid eternal court battles, resettlement of the citizens should probably just be a trade or something with precedent elsewhere.  But I digress: the city of Jerusalem should be a safe place for all the major religions that call it central to their beliefs.

Has Israel used up its historic capital? No, but it is getting low in the tank. The life-cycle cost of a building is graphed like this: a HUGE spike at construction, a long, low line for operation, and another low spike at demolition. What shocks people is how that innocent, low line accounts for 90% of the total cost/energy of a building. Israel is doing the same thing. There was a huge spike of negative perception in 1948 at the country’s creation, then we settled into this long, low, simmering fire. And that’s Israel’s (and our) problem: we’ve accepted a low-level conflict which has resulted in far greater losses and damage than we suspect. I think the Israelis figure they will “wear them down” and they just don’t realize that the tool is as eroded as the work. (They may be thinking “steel vs. wood” and I think it’s more “stone vs. water”: Please refer to the Grand Canyon for scale.)

There are 2 general ways of making something permanent: 1) You can invest heavily at the outset, making the thing very, very hard. (Think: Sculpting in stone). 2) You invest in something much more transient, but you constantly renew it. (Think: living critters, or the water in a fountain).

Israel is inadvertently doing the 2nd, constantly creating new generations of enemies, spending more and more in “defense” when in fact what they’re investing in is “offense creation.” It doesn’t take too many pictures of a Palestinian kid throwing rocks at a 4th generation tank to make EVERYONE start to resent the guys in the tank. So asking Suzanne Vega to boycott apartheid Israel? Great idea to get people talking. But is it the right thing to do? Not beyond that discourse. Israel needs to be, needs to feel safe, and needs to be stopped all at the same time. I don’t know what beyond trying to get people thinking that I can do. But I myself will keep thinking.

2025 Thoughts: Israel’s deliberate destruction of Gaza and every Palestinian’s home that benefits settlers, is an atrocity. I believe that every religion deserves a safe place to gather. Doubly true for one who’s followers can be readily identified. But they’ve blown through every ounce of good will. And, of course, the US has been aiding, abetting, and profiting mightily from the entire process.