Several days ago I emailed my Senators, Clinton and Schumer, begging them to put some pressure on the White House to lean on Israel to stop bombing Lebanon. Yesterday I received, from Senator Clinton, the following heart-sinking reply.
Thank you for sharing with me your concerns regarding the current situation between Israel and Lebanon . The unprovoked attacks on innocent Israelis and the killing and abduction of Israeli soldiers by the terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah are dramatic escalations of violence against Israel . The United States must stand by Israel as she defends herself. No government can stand idly by when its citizens and soldiers are attacked and abducted and when terrorist groups make incursions into its territory. Recent events demonstrate that Hamas's ascent to power in the Palestinian Authority, and Hezbollah's participation in the Lebanese government, are dangerous for the stability, not only of Israel , but of the entire region. Hamas and Hezbollah must return the Israeli soldiers they abducted and cease their attacks against Israel .
Israel 's right to exist, and exist in safety, must never be put in question. We must also continue to send a very clear message to Syria , Iran and others to join in condemning these attacks and to exercise their influence over Hamas and Hezbollah.
To which I instantly and angrily replied:
What an unfeeling load of crap you just e-mailed me. Not one iota of concern for the Lebanese people whose lives and country are being destroyed by a criminal military assault that has been three years in the planning (see Juan Cole's weblog). I can't distinguish your outlook on this from that of Condoleeza Rice and her warmonger boss. What's happening to Joe Lieberman can happen to you too. I like Joe Lieberman and I've voted for you in the past, but this blind, reflexive support of war crimes is something I and a lot of other voters will no longer accept.
Of course I'm just a mosquito whining at an armored train, and of course I don't dispute Israel's indisputable right to exist and to defend herself. No sane person does. And of course, by some twisted maneuvering of jurisprudence, the criminality of an assault that kills hundreds of civiians and children is open to dispute. I guess my anger derived from disappointment and disillusionment. I had maintained the quaint and naive tendency to think of Hillary as a person, even a champion of people, rather than as the portfolio of political calculations she has evidently become.
Her letter was indistinguishable in tone and spirit from the knee-jerk, doltish replies I used to get from arch-reactionary Al D'Amato back in the 80's when Central America was one huge snuff lab, and I would write begging him to exert some influence to reign in the death squads. That hundreds of thousands of innocent people were being brutally murdered with our blessing and support -- that was a trifle. All that mattered was stopping the spread of "Communism" (i.e. people seeking economic justice.)
What is it with these people? Are they forced to be so focused on big strategic considerations that something as paltry as human life can no longer fit into the equation? Murder isn't murder and war crimes aren't war crimes when they are supported by such all-validating principles as self-defense, opposing communism or spreading "democracy". How has this kind of thinking taken hold of our collective will? I expect (and can to some extent accept) this kind of reasoning from Colonel "You Can't Handle The Truth" Jessep, but I expect my Senators and Representatives to be more thoughtful and balanced in their assessment of complex situations.
There seems to be some mystique about Israel that since, like America, it was established amid such high ideals it can do no wrong and its actions are therefore never to be questioned. America and Israel alone in the world wear the badge and white hat that magically transform their crimes into wise and heroic deeds of visionary beneficence.
When The Nation last year declared that it would withhold its support from any candidate who did not come out against the ongoing occupation of Iraq a part of me thought "Bravo!" while another, more cautious part of me thought "Hmm. I don't know. Is this like the Green Party in 2000 cutting off its nose to spite its face?" Today I think "What's the point of putting `liberal' Democrats in office if they are only going to perpetuate the same lunacy as the Republicans?"
Meanwhile we're drifting towards another World War and no one with the means has the will to stop it. As regards the reflexive, unthinking support for escalating state-sponsored criminal violence I'm beginning to believe these people haven't been drinking Kool-Aid; they've been drinking blood from a human skull.