Let me begin with this: though I’ve followed politics and policy (both domestic and international) for years, my position on US foreign policy is about as settled as my eschatology! I don’t pretend to have many answers. Things get complicated and quite difficult in this field.

I just read an article in The National Review by Dennis Prager entitled “The Other Tsunami”. Read the article when you get a chance, it is short (less than one thousand words).

I am going to avoid doing a point by point summary; I want you to read the actual article instead—it is a good piece of rhetoric. I will offer one brief disclaimer: it is written by a Jew (I think). This doesn’t mean the article is wrong, but it is always good to be aware of biases.

This Is Not Standard Racism

Humans have a history of inter-racial violence and hatred. It is unfortunate, but it is fact.

I have heard my share of racist comments (usually frustrations with someone that are then attributed as a result of their race, etcetera). But there was one experience with racism that stands out in my mind much more clearly than any other I’ve ever known, and it was hatred of modern Jews.

I spent much of a week with a certain Palestinian. Let’s call her Aqsa for this story.

We spoke for many hours over several days. This was an awesome opportunity to get insights into the situation in the Middle East from someone who has grown up there and still has family there, and I wasn’t going to let it pass by without learning something. We spoke of the living situation; we spoke of her family; and we talked about music, religion, and food.

Finally, we got into conversation that really interested me. I proposed, “What if Israel backed off from the settlements, your people ruled their own state, and Jerusalem became a neutral UN governed city?” Aqsa replied, “No, we wouldn’t want that, I wouldn’t want that. I will only be happy if all Israelis are pushed into the Mediterranean and die.”

Wow. I’m not sure what I said then. We continued talking, but I tuned out a bit. It had hit me. I was speaking to someone who would only be happy if an entire people group was exterminated.

It’s easy to find fault with both parties (Israel and the Palestinians + neighboring Muslim states), but what ought Israel to do? The only thing their opponents will accept is complete genocide! I admit, following this experience I leaned much more towards the side of Israel.

This Is Kind of Unique

Sure, we’ve seen genocide in other cases. At one point in the article, Prager metions Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. And two things immediately came to mind:

• The Holocaust was genocide on a scale larger than most (5-6 million Jews were murdered), and its fallout (WWII) lead to 50-70 million lives lost around the world!
• Israelis today have millions (maybe hundreds of millions) of Muslims who hate them as passionately as the Nazis who carried out the Holocaust.

These are sobering realizations. Is there a solution? How do we change the minds of millions?

And if there is a climax to this hoped for genocide, last time the world death toll was ten times the death toll of the target of extermination. The current Israeli population is about seven and a half million…are the tens of thousands who have died over the past several years by the hand of Islamic terrorists the beginning of tens of millions?

Finally

My purpose isn’t to sow fear or worry, but to illuminate a potentially massive issue further complicates foreign policy decisions.

I would love any insights by experts and novices alike.

Is the author blowing things out of proportion? Is there a practical solution?

Hope for Believers

Lest you leave this blog more discouraged than when you came, let me remind you:

Our hope is not in world order or the “good” of humanity. Our hope is that—though we live in a broken world—Jesus has made a way, He is preparing His bride, and He is coming again!