America on the Brink
America is on the brink. Of what, exactly, is uncertain. But I don’t think it’s good.
On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be addressing Congress, making his appeal to them to keep Iran from procuring nuclear weapons. Netanyahu sees an Iranian nuke as a direct threat to Israel’s existence and has stated “I will go anywhere I am invited in order to enunciate the State of Israel’s position and in order to defend its future and existence.” Some see this as a political stunt by Netanyahu, who faces a close election in the upcoming weeks, or by Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner, who issued the invitation. But Netanyahu has made it quite clear where he stands: “As prime minister of Israel, I am obligated to make every effort to prevent Iran from achieving nuclear weapons that would be aimed at the State of Israel.” I applaud a leader who does what may be controversial or unpopular in an effort to protect his country and its people. Unfortunately, the Obama Administration and many liberals are opposed to Netanyahu’s visit. And I have to ask the question: Why?
Since 1948, when Israel achieved statehood, our two countries have been allies. Now, it appears that we are close to breaking that alliance. President Obama is intent on continuing peace talks with Iran as opposed to instituting sanctions against that nation. In theory, peace talks sound like a good idea, but only if we can trust the other side to keep the peace (Do you trust Iran for anything more than nice rugs?) and if those talks don’t buy them time to acquire nuclear weapons while the sanctions are lifted. The Obama administration has been critical of Israel for quite some time now (see my post last July) while bending over backwards not to offend those who wish to exterminate Israel and are openly hostile to the West. Recently, multiple reports have surfaced that back in 2014, Obama threatened to shoot down Israeli jets if they flew over American-controlled Iraqi airspace on runs to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities. According to reports, Israel canceled their attack. Had they not, and had Obama followed through with his threat, that would have been tantamount to an act of war. If this is how we treat our allies, it begs another question: What good is our allegiance?
Israel and Iran clearly stand in hostility toward one another, and it appears that those representing the American people have sided with Iran over Israel. Which brings us to that brink I mentioned. We’re on the verge of throwing one of our dearest allies to the wolves, forever tainting our international reputation as a friend, as a supporter, as an ally. If we turn our backs on Israel now, what will that say to the rest of our allies now and in the future? If they can’t trust us, can we any longer trust them?
As Iran gets closer and closer to “having the bomb” it also brings us to the brink of disaster. For decades now, mutually assured destruction has prohibited superpowers from using nuclear weapons. Fear of a worldwide nuclear holocaust has caused cooler and saner heads to prevail. Tell me, do you often use “cool head,” “sane,” and “Iran” in the same sentence? Do you want those fingers on the trigger?
Lastly, I think we might be teetering over a more dangerous precipice. Make a list of nations and groups that have opposed Israel or the Israeli people, from the Biblical book of Exodus through the latter pages of the Old Testament, from Hitler’s Nazis before and during World War II to the plethora of Arab nations in the Six-Day War in 1967. How have things turned out for those who opposed Israel? They were plowed under, by everything from the U.S. military to the Red Sea. I’m not claiming that God has directed every single bullet and bomb to Israel’s advantage, but I also can’t deny His promise to her and the facts before me. Israel, against all odds, has survived. The Philistines, the Hittites, and the Nazis . . . not so much. Do we really want to set ourselves up against Israel? I can’t speak for you, but I know I don’t want to stand on the crumbling edge of that cliff.
I know the politics are complicated. They always are. But the basic, underlying principles on which those politics are based are quite simple. #IStandWithIsrael, our long-time ally. I hope that our President, and thus ultimately, the United States of America, will too.
On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be addressing Congress, making his appeal to them to keep Iran from procuring nuclear weapons. Netanyahu sees an Iranian nuke as a direct threat to Israel’s existence and has stated “I will go anywhere I am invited in order to enunciate the State of Israel’s position and in order to defend its future and existence.” Some see this as a political stunt by Netanyahu, who faces a close election in the upcoming weeks, or by Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner, who issued the invitation. But Netanyahu has made it quite clear where he stands: “As prime minister of Israel, I am obligated to make every effort to prevent Iran from achieving nuclear weapons that would be aimed at the State of Israel.” I applaud a leader who does what may be controversial or unpopular in an effort to protect his country and its people. Unfortunately, the Obama Administration and many liberals are opposed to Netanyahu’s visit. And I have to ask the question: Why?
Since 1948, when Israel achieved statehood, our two countries have been allies. Now, it appears that we are close to breaking that alliance. President Obama is intent on continuing peace talks with Iran as opposed to instituting sanctions against that nation. In theory, peace talks sound like a good idea, but only if we can trust the other side to keep the peace (Do you trust Iran for anything more than nice rugs?) and if those talks don’t buy them time to acquire nuclear weapons while the sanctions are lifted. The Obama administration has been critical of Israel for quite some time now (see my post last July) while bending over backwards not to offend those who wish to exterminate Israel and are openly hostile to the West. Recently, multiple reports have surfaced that back in 2014, Obama threatened to shoot down Israeli jets if they flew over American-controlled Iraqi airspace on runs to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities. According to reports, Israel canceled their attack. Had they not, and had Obama followed through with his threat, that would have been tantamount to an act of war. If this is how we treat our allies, it begs another question: What good is our allegiance?
Israel and Iran clearly stand in hostility toward one another, and it appears that those representing the American people have sided with Iran over Israel. Which brings us to that brink I mentioned. We’re on the verge of throwing one of our dearest allies to the wolves, forever tainting our international reputation as a friend, as a supporter, as an ally. If we turn our backs on Israel now, what will that say to the rest of our allies now and in the future? If they can’t trust us, can we any longer trust them?
As Iran gets closer and closer to “having the bomb” it also brings us to the brink of disaster. For decades now, mutually assured destruction has prohibited superpowers from using nuclear weapons. Fear of a worldwide nuclear holocaust has caused cooler and saner heads to prevail. Tell me, do you often use “cool head,” “sane,” and “Iran” in the same sentence? Do you want those fingers on the trigger?
Lastly, I think we might be teetering over a more dangerous precipice. Make a list of nations and groups that have opposed Israel or the Israeli people, from the Biblical book of Exodus through the latter pages of the Old Testament, from Hitler’s Nazis before and during World War II to the plethora of Arab nations in the Six-Day War in 1967. How have things turned out for those who opposed Israel? They were plowed under, by everything from the U.S. military to the Red Sea. I’m not claiming that God has directed every single bullet and bomb to Israel’s advantage, but I also can’t deny His promise to her and the facts before me. Israel, against all odds, has survived. The Philistines, the Hittites, and the Nazis . . . not so much. Do we really want to set ourselves up against Israel? I can’t speak for you, but I know I don’t want to stand on the crumbling edge of that cliff.
I know the politics are complicated. They always are. But the basic, underlying principles on which those politics are based are quite simple. #IStandWithIsrael, our long-time ally. I hope that our President, and thus ultimately, the United States of America, will too.
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