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Thursday, August 19, 2004

Israpundit's Joseph Alexander Norland points (his previous posts are here and here) to something called The Israel Referendum Campaign. Here's a description from their site:

It is time to unite the Religious Right and Fight! It is time to pray with our mouths and with our feet. It is time to show fundamental Isalm and the unbelieving masses that there is a G-d in the heavens that fights for His Name, for His Word, and for His Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob for the Land of Israel.

Now through the beginning of October of this year, a new kind of referendum is taking place in the United States. It involves you, the Bible Believing American Citizen. It necessitates your stand with our President against terrorism and your stand with G-d and His Covenant for the Land of Israel.

A "NO" vote can alter American Middle East policy and deny fundamental Islam a victory over G-d's promise to the Jewish people for their homeland, Israel.

"No issue in American policy could be more pressing than one that determines G-d's blessings and protection upon our Nation. Israel is the plumbline that will determine America's future blessings and safety."

Here is the language on the ballot:

The U.S. government, together with Russia, Europe, and the United Nations, is pursuing a policy that will form a Palestinian state within the Israeli territories of Gaza, Judea and Samaria. This policy will require the expulsion of thousands of Jews from their homes. This referendum seeks to assess your support for (Yes) or opposition to (No ) a Palestinian state in the Land of Israel.

"Do you support the creation of a PLO state in the Land of Israel?" yes/no

Finally, Joseph:

The emphasis on US Christians, the core constituency of President Bush, is more than obvious. Since the Referendum's inception, however, several non-Christian individuals and groups, both in the US and throughout the world, have demanded that they too be included, so the Israel Referendum is now open to all, even though the emphasis on US Christians remains in place.

It's an interesting effort, and I encourage readers to take a look and decide for themselves whether they wish to sign on. In the interest of full disclosure, I have to admit that I, personally, will not be signing.

Why? I am certainly a strong supporter of Israel. A couple of reasons: Keeping a long story short, I think a Palestinian Arab State is an inevitability, and my philosophy tends more toward giving support and backing for what the Israelis decide to do, rather than dictating what their conclusions should be - they're the ones who will pay in blood for any decisions - whether of the hawk or dove genus.

I can understand how a million Americans telling the President that they don't want a PLO State could, at the very least, be an effective political statement that sends a major signal to the Palestinians that they have work to do themselves to prove their worthy of a state, and gives the President the kind of moral backing he may need to support the Israelis in whatever they should decide. The trouble is, I just can't feel behind the idea of opposing a Palestinian Arab State full-stop. (Unlike, say, Chomsky, who signs the Israel Boycott but admits he considers such things immoral - only signing his support as a tactic).

As you can tell, my feelings are mixed, and I could be wrong, so again, I commend the effort to the reader to check out for themselves. In his latest post, Joseph addresses some of the potential concerns. This one, I think, is a particularly interesting point:

Q: "What's a nice atheist like you doing in bed with 'these people'? The Referendum is completely clad in religious phraseology."

A: Supporting a specific cause, such as Israeli sovereignty over the former Palestine, involves coalition-building. It just so happens that a majority of the supporters of the Referendum seem to be religious people. I see myself supporting an ad hoc coalition regarding the Referendum issue and, in this context, I don't ask for people's creed or credentials. Former NY mayor Ed Koch said it all in the article he wrote in support of Bush: this is the time for one-issue vision. Nothing counts but the question of the war on Islamist terrorists and supporting Israel (which is part of that war).

Uh oh, am I talking myself into it?

Take a look: The Israel Referendum Campaign

2 Comments

Thank you, Sol, for posting this well-balanced piece. I am eager to read the pros and cons from your readers.

Joseph

I don;t think either has a divine right to all the land. I'm glad Bush is a man not swayed by polls.

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