America must stand with Israel against the darkness

OPINION:

I began writing this column on Dec. 7, a date that, as President Franklin Roosevelt said, “will live in infamy.” 

On that day in 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack killed more than 2,400 sailors and soldiers, sunk or damaged 20 naval vessels, destroyed 300 aircraft and dragged the United States into World War II.

Although there was a peace movement at the time, there were no mobs on college campuses calling for a quick cease-fire.

This contrasts with the antisemitic outpouring that followed Israel’s military response to the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack from Gaza.

Pro-Hamas demonstrations in U.S. and European streets and on many campuses echo Nazi Germany’s singular view of Jewish people: Wipe them out.

“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” is not a call for two Middle Eastern nations to live side by side; it is a call to annihilate the Jewish homeland.

So far, the United States has been backing Israel’s right to defend itself.

Hamas terrorists killed at least 1,200 Israelis, took at least 200 hostages and committed unspeakable atrocities against girls, women, entire families and even infants. It was the worst attack on Jews since Hitler’s “Final Solution,” otherwise known as the Holocaust.

From 1938 to 1945, Germany’s Third Reich systematically rounded up and murdered 6 million European Jews, as well as others the Nazis considered less than human. It smacks of woeful ignorance or “wokeism” to be offended when Jewish people say “Never again” — and mean it.

This past week, some elite educators at a congressional hearing were exposed as immoral invertebrates. 

“Does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Harvard’s rules on bullying and harassment?” asked Rep. Elise Stefanik, New York Republican.

“Calling for the genocide of Jews is antisemitic,” Harvard President Claudine Gay matter-of-factly responded. “And that is antisemitic speech. And, as I have said, when speech crosses into conduct, we take action.”

“So, is that a yes?” Ms. Stefanik pressed her.

“When speech crosses into conduct, we take action,” Ms. Gay repeated.

In other words, when someone yells at a Jewish student, “Gas the Jews,” it’s not a rule-breaker at Harvard.

The presidents of the University of Pennsylvania and MIT also failed at the hearing to label the calls for Jewish genocide as intolerable.

Imagine if, on the other hand, what would happen to a student who merely announced on campus that there are only two sexes.

Anyway, the university presidents’ nefarious performance hit the fan, with some major donors pulling back, spurring some ineffective “clarifying” comments the next day.

The academics’ shocking callousness is only the tip of the iceberg. 

A group of 40 White House interns wrote an anonymous letter to President Biden demanding that he seek a cease-fire in Israel’s war against Hamas. Progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and two dozen other Democratic lawmakers have also called for a cease-fire.

The boycott, divestment and sanctions movement has been thriving for the past few years. The goal is to isolate Israel from the world financial community. 

This movement won’t succeed for two reasons.

First, Israel has been chosen by God, and the Bible says that God will never abandon it. Jews lived in the land for 2,100 years before the terms “Palestine” or “Palestinian” were coined.

In Genesis 15:18, God made a covenant with Israel, “from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates.” Although Israel now constitutes a fraction of that land, Jews lived in the area for 2,600 years before Islam was founded.

Second, modern Israel is one of the most vibrant and innovative economies in the world. It has the highest concentration of engineers and the most scientists and technicians per capita than any other developed country. Israel produces more scientific papers per capita than any other nation.

Israel is home to over 2,500 U.S. companies employing some 72,000 Israelis, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Thousands more jobs are supported indirectly.

As of 2023, U.S. corporations account for nearly two-thirds of the more than 300 research and development centers established by multinational companies in Israel.

The U.S.-Israeli two-way trade in goods and services reached $51.8 billion in 2022.

All this is to say that, yes, Israel is something special, particularly in a region not known for commitment to human rights and innovation of any kind. It is also doing a fine job managing the Holy Land, fountainhead of three major faiths, including Christianity.

America has devoted billions in aid to Israel annually. But the United States has gotten a lot back from the tiny nation. Military intelligence, technology and scientific breakthroughs in agriculture and medicine are just a few of the perks.

All of this is nice, but the most important reason for supporting Israel and calling out the rising antisemitism in America is because it’s the right thing to do. 

Hanukkah began on Thursday.

If you have Jewish friends, wish them a holiday greeting and let them know you stand with them against the darkness and will not abandon them to the “woke” mobs on campus or anywhere else.

• Robert Knight is a columnist for The Washington Times. His website is roberthknight.com.