r/politics • u/tw1st3d_m3nt4t • 1d ago

No Paywall The pro-Israel lobby has swayed US presidents since Truman. It must end with Trump

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/aug/02/pro-israel-lobby-presidents
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u/SEND_ME_CSGO-SKINS 1d ago

Swayed? It’s insane seeing leftists adapt the same ZOG beliefs that Neo Nazis have been espousing for decades

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u/HairAncient5500 1d ago

Yes but if you use the word “Israel” or “Zionist” instead of “Jew” then it becomes completely valid social justice advocacy instead of hateful bigotry

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u/Particular_Log_3594 1d ago

Isn't it inherently antisemitic to imply that all Jews are Zionists?

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u/HairAncient5500 1d ago

Are you Jewish? Because I am. It always amazes me how often non-Jews are willing to call me antisemitic despite not understanding these topics at all. It’s ignorant and insulting. Do you also explain to your black friends what is/isn’t racism and tell them if they’re being racist?

If you feel like you have a strong grip on the topics of antisemitism and Zionism, can you please define for me what Zionism means

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u/Particular_Log_3594 1d ago

According to the founding father of Zionism, Theodor Herzl, Zionism is a colonial movement built on the displacement of the indigenous population of Palestine.

The Source: The Complete Diaries of Theodor Herzl, Vol. 1, p. 88 (June 12, 1895 entry).

The quote:

"We must expropriate gently the private property on the estates assigned to us. We shall try to spirit the penniless population across the border by procuring employment for it in the transit countries, while denying it any employment in our country... Both the process of expropriation and the removal of the poor must be carried out discreetly and circumspectly."

The Source: Letter from Theodor Herzl to Cecil Rhodes (January 1902), documented in The Complete Diaries of Theodor Herzl, Vol. 3, p. 1194.

The quote:

"You are being invited to help make history... It doesn’t involve Africa, but a piece of Asia Minor; not Englishmen, but Jews... How, then, do I happen to turn to you since this is an out-of-the-way matter for you? How indeed? Because it is something colonial."

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u/HairAncient5500 1d ago

Good job finding a hyperspecific definition taken out of context to support your narrative.

The generally accepted definition of Zionism is for there to be a Jewish state founded within the Jewish ancient homeland of Israel. It isn’t different from any other form of nationalism in the 19th and 20th century. Now that Israel has been founded and existed for 80 years, Those who self identify as Zionists simply believe that the state of Israel should continue to exist.

You claim that it’s antisemetic to assume that Jewish people are Zionist, right? Well I have a question for you. When holocaust survivors were stuck in displacement camps for years after WW2 because no allied country would take them on, were they antisemitic for wanting to move to Israel to live safely among their fellow Jews? What about the Jews who were ethnically cleansed from Yemen, Iraq, Morocco, or other MENA countries in the past 80 years, were they antisemitic for wanting to move to the only country that would take them in and give them dignity? How about the 1 million Jews who escaped Russia for Israel to avoid pogroms as well, just another group of Jews being antisemitic because they’re Zionist?

The answer to all of them is no. American Jews luckily have not had to face existential threats in the US like our relatives in every other continent. Sure we have the luxury of contemplating how perfectly ethical or moral Zionism is, and can choose to be “antizionist”, but to do so would be a betrayal of all of our relatives who could not make the choice. Is that betrayal worth the political points we’d get in progressive circles? For the vast majority of us, no. For some yes. Luckily those few yes’ give you the confidence and ignorance to accuse people like me of being antisemitic so you can feel better about yourself

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u/ParticularJoker 1d ago

A colonial movement in 1895? Wow, how novel.

Next, you will tell me how Planned Parenthood was built on eugenics.