Israel's anti-Semite card

Alright, let's take a quick look at what's happened with this Israeli flotilla attack. I'm going to be honest with you all, here and admit something a lot of opinion bloggers aren't admitting. I don't know what happened. I mean, I read enough articles to know what's being said. I even found a first hand account. So I can't really talk about the actual event, but I think there's an important lesson to be learned in the media/blogger response to the articles.

Of course, everyone picked the familiar sides, the right believes Israel can do no wrong ever in any situation, even in light of an American's death. The left, on the other hand, fully accept reports that the ship in question was on a completely humanitarian mission and that the big bully of Israel just decided that they needed to stir up trouble.

Here's what I know. Some of those people defending Israel are saying that any opposition is anti-Semitic. I wish I could find you a link, but you're just gonna have to trust that I'm 'pretty sure' I heard Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu say that people on board the ship were 'chanting anti-Semitic slogans.'

And of course, in the opposite corner, there are those saying that Muslims in Gaza are in a constant state of persecution and that that is what is, in fact, behind all this.

And this calls into question what it means to make an anti-Semitic statement. It's easy to look at neo-nazi's or '5 Jew banker' conspiracy theorists and say 'anti-Semitism,' but it's a little more difficult to make the argument that a statement like 'Israel is an illegitimate nation," is anti-Semitic. To call Israel illegitimate or a threat or dangerous is definitely not support, but it's not really hostile toward Jewish people. It's not an attack on the heritage or the religion. But, there, we have the issue. Israel, as a religious state, is easily able to conflate all actions by the government or the military with religious issues. So if Jews are going to claim part of their religion is that the nation of Israel exists and we all have to respect their religion, we therefore all have to respect their country — no matter what. So, while all countries have their detractors and all governments have their protesters, only a government wrapped up in a religion can make any dissenting views seem like a religious attack, thereby rallying support from those who may not agree with the military action or the political action.

Can you see the thought-termination here? People's anger over what's being called anti-Semitic is distracting them from reaching a political conclusion.

Alternatively, if it's the case that the flotilla was secretly involved in some attempt to attack Israel the Muslim persecution card will always rally those who support who choose to side with the afflicted.

I'm not saying that if there were no religions that conflicts like this wouldn't occur, of course they would. But imagine how much more honest and productive the world's response would be if there weren't religious outrage fueling the flames.

And imagine how much worse off America would be if we did consider it a nation for one particular religion?

There's the harm right there.