All We Are Saying, Is Give Peace AND War a Chance

Swift military action causes less death, not more. But a more long-term, Abraham Accords-inspired, culture-shifting approach could be ultimately more effective for Israel and the Jewish people.

Click here to check out the first 30 Installments - Volume I - in this series on Antisemitism and Culture. Among the top 5 most important pieces from this first wave:

1. What It Means When the Leader of the Republican Party Dines With THREE Antisemites

2. What Causes Someone to Be an Antisemite?

3. How the Bible Reveals the 3 Types of Antisemites

4. 7 Reasons This Christian Hippie Became a Zealot Against Jew Hatred

5. What Zionism Means to Me Today

This is the thirteenth installment in Volume II, intended as another 30 pieces exploring the many manifestations of Jew Hatred and the issues surrounding it in America and globally. See the previous articles in this new collection below.

1. Martin Luther King, Jr: An American Hero and Courageous Zionist Voice

2. Talking to These Students Gave Me Hope in this Dark, Dark World of War and Hate

3. Why I Don't Expect the Palestinians Will *Ever* Make Peace with Israel and Thus Gain Statehood

4. The Antisemitism of Ron Paul's Far Right Anarcho-Capitalist Ideological Cult

5. When Holocaust Trivialization Manifests in the Wrestling World

6. 2 Numbers Which Reveal the Overwhelming Level of Human Devastation Wrought by the Holocaust

7. The Deep Depths of Ideological Depravity: Comparing the Holocaust to the Covid-19 Vaccine

8. Unfortunately, Christian Nationalism Is the Normal, Much More Longstanding Version of Christianity

9. Scratch a Supporter of Ron Paul, Donald Trump, & Vladimir Putin? Find a Pathetic, Frightened Antisemite

10. 7 Great Counterculture Authors Who Inspire My Writing and Zionist Activism

11. Why Twitter & Social Media Are Such a Poison Brew of Antisemitism, Hate, Death, and Lies

12. The Antisemitism of Noam Chomsky's Far Left Anarcho-Syndicalist Ideological Cult

These writings are part of my ongoing effort to overcome my PTSD by forcing myself to try to write and publish something every day commenting on and analyzing current cultural affairs and their impacts on politics, faith, and, well, everything. “Politics is downstream from culture,” the late Andrew Breitbart popularized among conservative bloggers while he was alive. I’d go a step further: Everything is downstream from culture. The cultures you embrace determine who you are and who you become. You become what you worship.

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While I’ve made abundantly clear how much both my fiancee

Sally Shideler

and myself identify with the 1960s counterculture and very much live a Neo-hippie lifestyle out in our Mojave Desert hideaway — see Sally’s new Substack

Goddess of the Desert Books

for her particular take on many of these themes — one area where I distinctly differ from this movement is in my position on war.

John Lennon remains a historical figure and musician who I appreciate a great deal still - I used to be told that I even looked like him in high school. But “Give Peace a Chance” has never been one of my favorites of his songs. When it comes to iconic ‘60s tracks Sally and I both adore the Byrds’ “Turn! Turn! Turn!,” which quoting Ecclesiastes, proclaims clearly:

A time to kill, a time to heal

A time to buid up, a time to break down

A time of love, a time of hate

A time of war, a time of peace

I don’t blame the hippies who I seek to emulate in many ways for being so peacenik. While I regard the Vietnam war as a morally justified conflict for the United States to have engaged in, its management was very much a disaster on so many levels. Also its use of the draft to fuel it further morally complicated the war effort. If a war can’t be fought properly and won swiftly by soldiers who want to fight it then it shouldn’t be fought.

For years now I’ve aligned myself with the “hawkish” wing of the Right and its accompanying anti-communist conservative historical roots. I’ve contributed for years specifically to the Counter-Islamist movement as an activist, researcher, and journalist. I’ve argued with these Muslim Brotherhood operatives face-to-face on the street and infiltrated the conventions where their leaders spoke to inspire their followers.

I’ve regarded John Bolton as the most highest level political figure with views and ideology comparable to my own and very much hope he runs for president this cycle as he declared last month he may:

Former White House national security adviser John Bolton reiterated Friday that he may run for president in 2024 — adding that he can beat his old boss, former President Donald Trump, to the Republican nomination because of the “terminal decline” in the 45th president’s support.

“I wouldn’t run as a vanity candidate. If I didn’t think I could run seriously then I wouldn’t get in the race,” the 74-year-old Bolton told ITV’s “Good Morning Britain.”

“I would get in to win the nomination and I would do it primarily on the basis that we need a much stronger foreign policy,” added Bolton, who has served in the previous four Republican presidential administrations.

…

“I think to be a presidential candidate you can’t just say, ‘I support the Constitution.’ You have to say, ‘I would oppose people who would undercut it.’”

…

Now, Bolton believes his tough-guy stance on foreign policy is what will give him the upper hand in a possible presidential race.

“I think it’s important that it’s understood not just in Moscow, but it’s understood in places like Beijing, that unprovoked aggression against your neighbors is not something the United States and its allies will tolerate,” he said.

I have a two word response: hell, yeah! If we want global prosperity we must provide a firm deterant against totalitarian regimes, rogue states, and terrorist groups which seek to disrupt peace. I still firmly believe in a hawkish approach to foreign policy, primarily because my study of history informs me that the best way to prevent large-scale conflicts is to prevent them from happening with fast, effective, early military action, and to scare the potential violent actors.

Even more important to maintaining peace also is effective espionage efforts. Sabotage the enemy before they can attack you. Identify and counter foreign disinformation and cultural subversion efforts. Infiltrate their governments to know what malevolent moves they intend to make before they can do them. Fight wars through competing spy agencies rather than overt military actions on the battlefields.

I love reading about the history of espionage and learning more about it today.

Asha Rangappa

and her

The Freedom Academy with Asha Rangappa

Substack are are good place to start. The

TOP SECRET UMBRA

Substack by John Schindler is also a favorite. I’m sure I’ll come across many more new writers and Substacks on these subjects as I explore more. Expect more recommendations in the future.

So, of course, these philosophical and tactical positions very much apply to my Zionism as well. I support Israel taking firm action against the terrorist governments and violent organizations which regularly wage war against them. I don’t worry as much about Iran and its aspiring nuclear program these days, because the more I’ve learned about Israel’s legendary espionage agency the Mossad and how it operates the more confident I’ve become that through its myriad of clandestine abilities it can prevent the Islamic Regime from ever succeeding.

Further, outside of Israel, I very much support Jews in the diaspora taking a similar attitude toward defense. Synagogues need to invest well in security. Political advocacy for increasing punishment for hate crimes should grow. Countering antisemitic propaganda aggressively and loudly should be a high priority. And all Jews should be prepared to defend themselves at a personal level - whether that be through training themselves in martial arts like Krav Maga or, if they’re comfortable doing so, taking full advantage of their second amendment rights.

Thus, I was very sympathetic to this piece by

The Hebrew - העברי

at his

The Public Pashkevil

Substack and hope he writes a whole lot more:

What is to be done?

Also follow him on Twitter here where he’s regularly offering excellent perspectives.

Read the whole post for all the proposed solutions he suggests, but I’ll emphasize a particular point here:

However, to take these steps for a safer and more secure Israel, we must stop thinking about what other nations want from us and rather, what is the best thing for us to do as a nation. Other nations, such as the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany, etc. do not think about what other coutries will think of them when discussing matters concerning the wellbeing of their citizens. Neither should Israel. It is this constant trepidation of what others might say that has largely held Israel back in implementing necessary measures for its security. But, I have a hard time understanding why. The UN in its resolutions, as well as the Western powers routinely call Israel out for perceived abuses, real or imaginary. Will some of these measures gain more criticism from the West? Very possibly, but we should not be overly concerned that this will somehow cause the Western powers to break off their relationship with Israel. It’s been a reliable ally in a largely hostile region. The West has as much to lose as Israel does. Moreover, if Israel is going to get criticized anyway, we shouldn’t really let that get in the way of what’s in the public good.

I agree with that so much. Israel needs to not allow other states, the UN, and especially not the global mass media, to dictate what it needs to do to defend itself. This is such a huge problem I’ve observed over my years watching the Middle East.

On February 1, I left a comment on the post praising it:

You are entirely correct in your well-written analysis. Before the situation can get any better in Israel it is going to need to get much worse in the West Bank and Gaza. And “the West” really isn’t going to like it but at some point Israel is just going to have to stop caring about what naive, morally confused Western politicians and UN bureaucrats think.

However, as I thought more about the post’s analysis and prescriptions for Israel’s greater security as I planned what to say in this essay, I started to have some second thoughts.

While I very much agreed with it at a moral level and in its advocacy for a hawkish approach against Palestinian terrorist regimes, I began to wonder if at a tactical level it would produce the target goals of reducing violence against Jews both in Israel and at a global level. After all, one thing that’s clear is that when violence goes up between Israel and the Palestinians, that inspires more hate crimes against Jews in the diaspora as well as fuels antisemitic campus activism to intimidate and bully Jewish students.

I started to think more about this one of

The Hebrew - העברי

's idea specifically and the degree to which it would work in practice:

Why are we letting these two groups control the Palestinian territories? It has been shown that this was a huge mistake on the part of Israel. Giving extremists immense power and political influence is ALWAYS a mistake. Not to mention the fact that it poses a massive threat to Israel’s continued existence. What then shall we do about it? If Israel wants to get serious about protecting its citizens and its borders, the failed project of Palestinian self rule must come to an end. Israel must dissolve their governements and take back direct control of the territory. We must also use our resources to combat terror actively, on the ground and root it out, hopefully, before it can take place.

While I think it is certainly morally justified for Israel to obliterate the Palestinian Authority and Hamas - these are evil regimes inflicting violence on Israelis and oppression against their own people - I began to wonder: would dissolving these governments and Israel taking control of the territory actually accomplish the goal of reducing violence against the Jewish people?

I’m not entirely sure that they would. A reasonable case can certainly be made for it, but lessons from history should perhaps be considered too. I started this essay referencing the Vietnam war and its failings not just as an excuse to embed a video of one of my favorite ‘60s songs, but to make a broader point: a war may be entirely justified, and seemingly necessary to defeat a totalitarian enemy, and still be a failure. All that needs to happen is politicians doing what they do best: screw things up because they’re usually cowardly fools who don’t know what they’re doing beyond trying to get reelected.

Who’s to say that if an Israeli government followed

The Hebrew - העברי

's prescription they'd be successful at implementing it and then ruling over a population of 5.4 million people, of which 93% are antisemitic? Who’s to say that such an action might not inspire less terrorism, but more of it? Who’s to say how the broader Arab world might respond? Might they not increase the flow of weapons and money into the region? And most importantly: who’s to say that a future Israeli government that is more dovish - or generally incompetent - might not come into power and just make everything worse? Or give up altogether if the effort has grown unpopular with the broader Israeli public? In democracies like the United States and Israel politicians are constrained by what the public will tolerate.

And further, what potentially negative impact might such an action have in Israel’s efforts to keep Iran in check? The Mossad is an amazing spy agency but having to spread out its resources to help with further disrupting potentially increased West Bank terrorism might impede the more important goal of keeping Iran from going nuclear. As my mentor the late Barry Rubin taught me over a decade ago: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a side-show in the Middle East, the conflict with Iran is the primary problem to peace in the region. So it was then, and so it remains today.

What then can Israel do to more effectively wage war to reduce Palestinian terrorism? In his conclusion

The Hebrew - העברי

quotes a key maxim of one of my favorite writers - who it just so happens I’ll be discussing on tomorrow’s podcast - and acknowledges the limitations of his proposed solutions:

Are these perfect solutions? No. Not by any stretch of the imagination. But, to quote Thomas Sowell “There are no solutions, only trade-offs.” It is worth asking whether such trade-offs will be a net good or net negative. I maintain the former. I will let you decide the answer for yourself.

While there is much wisdom in Sowell’s point, I’m not entirely sure it applies when it comes to warfare and foreign policy. He was more referring to domestic public policy there, especially big government efforts to “solve” cultural problems. There are solutions to winning wars and achieving peace and we’ve seen them throughout history. There were solutions to defeating the Axis powers in World War II and for winning the Cold War against the Soviet Union. And it is perhaps from this latter enemy in which we can be inspired in part on what the solution might look like tactically for Israel.

Here’s another YouTube video I’ve been looking for an excuse to embed and talk about more in depth, appreciations to

Asha Rangappa

for reminding me of it in her post here:

Class 5. The Active Measures Long Game

Here's a KGB-defector discussing the Soviet Union's longterm efforts for defeating Western societies through engaging in subversion and cultural warfare:

I’ve previously written in this series about these disinformation themes via what I learned from the late Lt. Gen. Ion Mihai Pacepa, highest ranking Soviet bloc defector, whose blog posts and essays I used to edit:

The JFK Conspiracy Theory Which Makes the Most Sense & Why It Matters Today

How might the Soviet Union’s warfare tactics of attempting to shift an enemy nation’s culture in their favor apply to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? The answer is pretty simple but long-term and challenging in application: expanding the Abraham Accords and thus making peace with the broader Arab and Muslim worlds. These two stories I wrote last month for Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) about 40 Zionist students visiting Israel and the UAE recently really inspired me, and reminded me that growing peace between the Jewish state and its Muslim neighbors is entirely possible.

This recent op-ed at JNS by Sarah N. Stern, published on my birthday, even argued that Saudi Arabia’s new ruler Mohammed bin-Salman likely wants to join the Abraham Accords and will someday, regardless of what the Palestinians want or do: Will Saudi Arabia join the circle of peace?:

Nonetheless, certain interests could move Saudi Arabia towards the Abraham Accords. The kingdom is deeply threatened by Iran, particularly the Islamic republic’s quest for a nuclear bomb and support for regional terrorism, including against the Saudis themselves.

…

The Saudis, however, have made several demands in return for joining the Abraham Accords. Foremost among them is the creation of a Palestinian state. When interviewed in Davos on Jan. 19, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan stated, “We have said consistently that we believe normalization with Israel is something that is very much in the interest of the region. However, true normalization and true stability will only come through giving the Palestinians hope, through giving the Palestinians dignity. And that requires giving the Palestinians a state.”

Palestinian statehood may well be important to MBS. It is fairly clear, however, that he reads the neighborhood quite well. He knows how destabilizing a Palestinian state would be to his ally Jordan. This instability would cause a ripple effect across the region. MBS is also aware of the fact that the various Palestinian factions are pitted against one another in a lethal rivalry, and that the Palestinian Authority has little grassroots support. According to a recent Palestinian poll, 79% of respondents said they would take up arms against the P.A. in favor of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad or the newly formed Lion’s Den factions. MBS knows there is no one to talk to who speaks for all Palestinians.

…

Yes, there will probably be a peace accord between Israel and Saudi Arabia at some point, but it may well have to wait until Biden is out of office.

For Israel and Jews globally to attain greater security and peace, militarily defeating the Palestinians’ terrorist governments simply isn’t enough. They need to defeat and transform the Palestinian culture of genocidal antisemitism to gain true security. (“Politics is downstream from culture” is of course one of the mantras of this series and guiding principles of my life.) But Israel can’t shift Palestinian culture on its own at all. For the Palestinians to give up their addiction to hatred they need to be led out of it by their fellow Muslims and Arabs.

And that can potentially happen. The Abraham Accords is proof that it can. It’s just going to take much more time. In the video above Yuri Bezmenov describes the Soviet subversion tactics as taking at least 15-20 years to work. Why? Because that’s how long it takes a new generation to arise. I think a similar timeline could be considered for the Palestinians. The current generations are totally lost and likely cannot be persuaded to push their leaders to embrace peace, for the reasons I explained here:

Why I Don't Expect the Palestinians Will *Ever* Make Peace with Israel and Thus Gain Statehood

But we cannot predict what the next generation of Palestinians not yet born, who could grow up in a world in which Saudi Arabia has made peace with Israel and then leads other Muslim nations to do the same, would think and do. If the Palestinians do not have the cultural and financial backing of the rest of the Muslim world, if antisemitism begins to diminish in Arab nations, how and why could their war against Israel continue to be sustained?

To everything turn, turn, turn
There is a season turn, turn, turn
And a time to every purpose under Heaven

A time to gain, a time to lose
A time to rain, a time of sow
A time for love, a time for hate
A time for peace, I swear it's not too late