A recent essay asserted that Prime Minister Netanyahu’s foreign policy has been much more successful than most Israelis realize, and that Bibi has guided Israel with a sure hand in tumultuous times. Allison, Don and Noah ask: Could the Israeli Left be wrong about Bibi?
This is a segment from The “The Triumphs of Benjamin Netanyahu” Edition
Wow! Being cautious is bad? The left is brain dead, I’m afraid. Not entirely new, I guess.
Actually, it’s time to pull the plug. How do I unsubscribe?
The podcast’s anti-Bibi case could be much more convincingly made if it was limited to moral arguments instead of trying to also grasp pragmatic/realpolitik arguments as well. Instead the podcasters come off like the stereotypical Israeli left always do – out of touch, strident and living in a fantasyland. At one point one of the participants on this podcast’s voice becomes rushed and harried – she sounds frantic in her rush to condemn Bibi and attribute all his successes to other actors (along with her exclusive access to prophetic prognostication). Here’s what intelligent grown-ups do: Admit that we don’t know, that our counter-factuals are superficial, and that we don’t know what the future will bring. Once you accept all that it is hard not to have at the very least begrudging respect for the path that Bibi has blazed. Sometimes caution is incredibly courageous in politics – everyone wants something to be done now and sometimes the best thing to do is wait.
As a casual observer, I like Netanyahu’s daring to challenge anyone or anything that might compromise Israel’s right to exist and thrive as a Jewish state. He is a brave leader of a brave nation but, as always there are those, even among his own people, who will oppose and denigrate him for reasons ranging from ignorance, envy or cowardice to follow his path for an independent, free and peaceful nation.