tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5737639979248917027.post5907428123593465234..comments2024-03-28T09:40:50.705-07:00Comments on SNIPPITS AND SNAPPITS: AIPAC'S HIDDEN PERSUADERSNoor al Haqiqahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08324677503909144567noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5737639979248917027.post-2804428579107104452009-06-01T15:25:38.458-07:002009-06-01T15:25:38.458-07:00We Americans seem terribly captivated by our own p...We Americans seem terribly captivated by our own prejudices, although perhaps a bit less so than before Obama arrived. One can say the word "socialism" in polite company now and one can even question the judgment of the Israeli right wing. But we remain intellectual prisoners, none-the-less. It remains almost impossible to get most Americans to examine basic questions about Israel and Iran and Palestine and Lebanon with open minds.<br /><br />To judge such issues, rather than starting from thoughtless assumptions about mad mullahs, Zionist conspiracies, or opponents who are 10 feet tall, one should take the following default position: all societies share certain concerns. Regimes--sometimes being composed of fairly small, regimented groups—may well vary considerably more than the societies they lead. Nevertheless, start with the assumption that regimes share the concerns of their societies. Then, and only then, look for unique features to explain behavior that cannot be explained on the basis of the default assumptions.<br /><br />Sorry for preaching! It does sound like I'm preaching, doesn't it? I'm not sure how to get around that. Politicians and the media and general intellectual laziness have piled the muck so deep we are all drowning in it. But the threat of nuclear war in the Mideast (with clouds of fallout covering the whole earth, even here) is real: Netanyahu is not kidding. Even if he were, a third party (e.g., al Qua'ida) could so easily strike the necessary spark in the current conditions of thoughtless tension.<br /><br />We really all do need to wake up. Your blog helps. Don't give up.William deB. Millshttp://shadowedforest.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.com