fbpx

An AIPAC ‘stranglehold’ on US foreign policy? Huh?

Fascinating, isn\'t it, to watch professors Stephen Walt (Harvard University) and John Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) attain near rock star status by resurrecting the tired and discredited canard that U.S. foreign policy is dictated by a devious, dangerous and disloyal cabal known as the pro-Israel lobby -- sort of a Protocols of the Middle-Agers of Zion. Of course, the good professors are convinced that any policies advocated by the cabal are anathema to the interests of this country.
[additional-authors]
November 22, 2006

Fascinating, isn’t it, to watch professors Stephen Walt (Harvard University) and John Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) attain near rock star status by resurrecting the tired and
discredited canard that U.S. foreign policy is dictated by a devious, dangerous and disloyal cabal known as the pro-Israel lobby — sort of a Protocols of the Middle-Agers of Zion. Of course, the good professors are convinced that any policies advocated by the cabal are anathema to the interests of this country.

Moreover, it seems that bashing Israel and its U.S. supporters is good business, as the W&M boys are on the lecture circuit and have landed a lucrative book deal with a well-known publisher. Frankly, I’m surprised they didn’t appear in “Borat,” along with all the other anti-Semitic characters Sacha Baron Cohen has so masterfully exposed.

As the former executive director of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) — the professors main target — I’ve had more than a passing interest in what these characters have to say and how their arguments have been received and, in some quarters, blindly accepted.

The most detailed and devastating analysis of the Walt and Mearsheimer thesis comes from Alan Dershowitz, who documents countless examples of flagrant facts and twisted logic, which cannot be written off as oversights or even mere sloppiness; it is must reading for anyone who is even thinking about taking these guys seriously. It can be found at:

A Popular Skewer Recipe

There is a benefit of roasting food on skewers, à la shish kebab. By cutting meat and vegetables into smaller uniform pieces, the marinade coats more and the food cooks evenly.

Rosner’s Domain: Weeks of Known Unknowns

So here we are, stuck with just a few bad options to consider. And that’s just the political superposition of undetermined future – alongside it there’s also the possible – probable? – war with Iran.

After the Last Out, Collect a Different Kind of Card

At a time when Jewish education is competing for attention in a world dominated by screens, sports, short-form videos and endless streams of content, these easily collectable cards offer a different kind of engagement.

6 Jewish Takeaways from the Midterm Elections

There is little chance that the combination of a weakened Trump and an emboldened Democratic Congress produces similar levels of support for aggressive action against Iran and its proxies, and other policies that a wide spectrum of Israelis see as crucial to their security.

Israel Drives Them Crazy

In the diaspora and in Israel, we cannot turn back the clock and undo the harm that was done to us. But we can shape our own future. Israel is strong and resolute. So must we be.

Torah Portion: Chayei Sarah

The Torah offers a comforting view of a life beyond this life. We aren’t told what it will be exactly — yes, it’s abstract and vague — but we are told it’s waiting for us as it was for Abraham.

Hatred Opened the Door. A Missed Victory Held It Open.

For me, the disaster isn’t that Democrats won or Republicans lost. It’s that politicians who demonize Israel, deny Jewish self-determination and explain away antisemitism are finding an increasingly receptive electorate in the world’s most important democracy.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.