OT: Sadly Insane

What's even more astonishing is that there have been no responses to my post. I guess we're heading into WWIII with another attempt to annihilate all the Jews :-( ...Jim Thompson

-- | James E.Thompson | mens | | Analog Innovations | et | | Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus | | San Tan Valley, AZ 85142 Skype: skypeanalog | | | Voice:(480)460-2350 Fax: Available upon request | Brass Rat | | E-mail Icon at

| 1962 | I love to cook with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food.

Your link here shows one of the big problems about Israel - the confusion between Israel the state (the military, the politics, the military support from the USA, the total disregard for international law and the UN) and Judaism (the religion, the people, the culture, the history).

Most people in the western world are fans of religious and cultural freedom. We don't care what gods you want to believe in, what churches or temples you go to, what food you will or will not eat. That's a personal matter, and as long as you follow the laws of the land, basic humane morality with respect for others, and are not too obtrusive about your beliefs, then you can have whatever faith yuo like. We /do/ care what states and other large groups do, such as invading other countries, abusing their own people, etc. - without any regard to the religions involved.

There is always a section of the population which is angry and irrational, and uses "Monty Python" logic (the bomb was set off by a Muslim, the corner shop is owned by a Muslim, therefore the shopkeeper is responsible for the bomb). But most of us try to keep issues as separate as possible. The problems in Gaza have an extremely complex background with many countries and people to blame, but the blame lies with the states, not the religions. Thus I can condemn the Israeli state as being abhorrent, and more reminiscent of South Africa in the

80's or Germany in the 30's than of the democratic western country it claims to be - while having absolutely nothing against Jews.

However, Israel's spokespeople (politicians, diplomats, etc.), as well as much of the media and many public figures in the west, seem determined to confuse Israel and Judaism. This is used as an excuse literally to allow the state of Israel to get away with murder. Any condemnation or complaint against the actions of Israel are countered by accusations of anti-Semitism, which in turn is trumped up as the greatest evil imaginable. In the case of Israel, therefore, many people are much more mixed up about state and religion than in most cases of international conflict.

If we can properly separate the Jewish religion and Israel's state at a political level (especially in the USA), then people could see more clearly what is actually going on over there - and maybe progress could be made towards resolution. And it would also avoid the mindless attacks on innocents in other countries just because they happen to be Jewish.