by Stephen Lendman

What do you call a country that persecutes occupied people and one-fifth of its own population for not being Jewish? An illegal occupier for over 44 years, suffocating over 1.6 million Gazans under siege! A nation practicing torture, persecution, and racism as official policies! A modern day Sparta, glorifying wars and violence!

A country spurning rule of law principles! An unparalleled regional state terrorist! A nuclear armed global threat! A society of extreme social inequality! A nation with no legitimacy for all of the above reasons, besides having stolen another people's nation violently!

It's called Eretz Yisrael - Israel, a nation where thousands of fed up Jews vote with their feet and leave regularly. Like America, Israel isn't fit to live in. One day perhaps that will be its epitaph.

Many Jews and analysts believe Zionism is destroying Judaism. In his book "Overcoming Zionism," Joel Kovel explained how it fosters "imperialist expansion and militarism (with) signs of the fascist malignancy," adding that it turned Israel "into a machine for the manufacture of human rights abuses."

Author Alan Hart calls Zionism "the real enemy of the Jews," an ideology contemptuous of moral and ethical principles. Others call it corrosive, destructive, racist, extremist, undemocratic and hateful, espousing violence, not peaceful coexistence.

Nations living by the sword in the end die by it. Israel and America aren't exceptions. They've, in fact, partnered on a self-destructive mission, perhaps taking planet earth with them before they're through.

Daily snapshots make the case. Multiple US wars rage, spending trillions of badly needed dollars waging them, besides diverting billions more annually to support Israel's out-of-control militarism. They endanger every other nation and their own, at the same time sacrificing homeland needs.

Lawless, corrupt and dysfunctional barely describe what some call a blight on humanity, threatening it by its presence with its Washington paymaster/partner.

In mid-August, one of its prominent rabbis, Yosef Elitzur, co-author of the controversial book "The King's Torah," was denied UK entry for advocating discrimination against gentiles and killing them. The book states:

"Anywhere where the presence of a gentile poses a threat to Israel, it is permissible to kill him, even if it a righteous gentile who is not responsible for the threatening situation."

In January 2010, co-author Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira, head of a prominent yeshiva in the West Bank Yitzhar settlement, was arrested for torching a Palestinian Yasuf village mosque. Later, however, he was released uncharged.

In August 2010, Elitzur was also arrested for his advocacy of violence, though he, too, was released and charges against him quietly dropped.

However, their extremism isn't unique. On August 19, 2010, Ynet News said "(d)ozens of rabbis, educators, public figures and right-wing activists attended" a rally for Rabbis Dov Lior and Yaakov Yosef "who refused to report for police questioning over their endorsement of" Elitzur and Shapira's book.

Senior rabbis support them, believing it's OK to kill non-Jews, a shocking indictment of what too many in Israel believe, including top officials.

It plays out daily in real time, including on August 16 when Israeli soldiers shot and killed a mentally disabled child, 400 meters inside the border separating Israel from Gaza, east of Deir al-Balah. In fact, 10 bullets struck his head and chest. He never had a chance.

Israeli radio merely said soldiers observed someone approaching the security fence, opened fire and shot him.

The same day, other shelling and shooting incidents occurred, killing one man and seriously wounding two others in Gaza City. In addition, another man and a child were wounded in Khan Yunis and Rafah in southern Gaza.

The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) called these incidents "part of a series of war crimes (regularly) committed by" Israeli forces in Occupied Palestine, reflecting the "total disregard for the lives of Palestinian civilians."

When state-sponsored violence is institutionalized, is it surprising that perhaps many prominent Israelis (including influential rabbis) endorse racism and killing non-Jews!

What better example of a sick society, deserving universal condemnation, especially by righteously indignant Jews wanting no part of what's so lawlessly repugnant. In fact, growing numbers of Jews and others understand what's happening and reject it.

Numerous daily examples highlight the problem. On August 18, Haaretz covered several, including Netanyahu again refusing to apologize to Turkey for murdering nine of its citizens during the infamous May 2010 Mavi Marmara attack in international waters.

At the time, universal outrage condemned it. In contrast, Israeli officials, like their Washington counterparts, believe they never have to say they're sorry, even when caught red-handed and denounced.

A second Haaretz article quoted Netanyahu's outgoing director general, Eyal Gabai, saying "(t)he current government will not deliver Israelis a welfare state," despite weeks of mass protests across Israel demanding it, wanting years of social injustice reversed.

Combined, neoliberalism and Zionism are suffocating Israel, a topic an August 18 Gideon Levy commentary addressed titled, "Israel's swinish Zionism ought to be stopped," saying:

As an MK, Shimon Peres coined the term "swinish capitalism," referring to then finance minister Netanyahu. "It's worth remembering that there is also swinish Zionism," Levy added.

"Swine are insatiable....gorg(ing) themselves until they die." Capitalism and Zionism are no different. What began as a national movement to establish a Jewish homeland ended up "caus(ing) grave injustice to the previous inhabitants of the land...." And for years, it's neoliberal version has been harming Jews.

Perhaps if Zionism "stop(ped)....reined in its lust and greed, atoned for the original injustices in 1948 and changed direction, it would have become an admired movement." Because it didn't, "Israel is only beginning to pay the price."

Many of Israel's wealthy "also started out well....But here too," their appetite proved insatiable. The time of reckoning has arrived. People want redress. "The word 'tycoon' has become a curse and 'wealthy' has nearly become despicable."

Today a new awakening is emerging. Israel's wealthy are "beginning to pay the price." Zionism so far escaped. Calling it swinish is heretical.

"But when the time for the reckoning comes we'll ask: Why didn't we stop (it) in time," especially its reliance on violence, occupation, racism, social injustice, and lawlessness.

Policies that extreme can't go on forever, and won't! Not in Israel, America or anywhere!

A Final Comment

On August 18, Maan News reported two shooting attacks on buses near Eilat, Israel, killing at least seven and injuring dozens more. Israel's Channel 10 said three militants armed with Kalashnikovs opened fire on one bus from a car.

A second incident occurred near Netafim, Israel, injuring others. In addition, an explosive device wounded more.

"Assailants also attacked a second bus and a car soon after," according to Al-Arabiya, killing five.

"In a third incident, mortars were reportedly fired at Israeli forces near the southern border causing injuries, although initial reports were ambiguous about" their origin.

Israel's knee-jerk reaction came as expected, Defense Minister Ehud Barak blaming Hamas, saying "(w)e will exhaust all measures against the terrorists."

Senior Hamas official Salah Bardawil rejected Barak's accusation, saying Israel, ahead of another Gaza attack, blamed Hamas and other Gaza groups to deflect attention from its own internal problems.

Since mid-July, unprecedented numbers of Israelis have rallied for social justice so far denied. It thus begs the question whether these attacks may have been a false flag diversions, to focus attention on "terrorist" threats, not economic hardship.

So far, the identity of attackers is unknown. Nonetheless, Haaretz said "Israeli Defense Forces struck targets in (Gaza) Thursday evening, hours after the earlier incidents."

Reports indicate at least six killed, others injured. Giving no details, Israel confirmed the strikes, saying operations were underway in southern Gaza.

Explaining nothing about daily atrocities US forces commit against innocent civilians in multiple wars, Hillary Clinton "condemn(ed) today's attacks in southern Israel and all acts of terrorism in the strongest terms," calling them "brutal" and "cowardly."

As expected, she added that America "stand(s) by Israel as our friend, partner, and ally - now and always," omitting mention of their state-sponsored terrorism against victims unable to fight back.

What better description of two global bullies, rogue state sponsors of intimidation, terror and torment as standard operations. Calling them democracies is ludicrous and offensive.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

Also visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network Thursdays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

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