Progressive Except for Palestine: The Real Meaning

There comes a time when every movement needs to look within itself and face some ugly facets of it's being. Any ideology at some point creates problematic situations particularly as it grows in size and adherence. Look at the implementation of Communist ideology in Russia or China, look at what unbridled Capitalism brought to the United States in it's earlier "Robber Baron" era and what it's adherents are trying to do now.

Just as these two ideologies fail so does the ideology of "Progressivism" when it hits the ugly reality that is the Israeli / Palestinian conflict.

Yesterday on Daily Kos we got to see this first hand. In an article that rightfully criticized Israeli handling of an attack by settlers (some of whom were off duty police) on left wing activists, what I consider anti-Progressive elements moved into the article to claim the false equivalency of comparing the Israeli Government to the Nazi Regime of Germany from the thirties to the mid forties. In this story so called "progressives" (though they are hardly that) made or fully supported this analogy. Their only objection to this analogy was that it was "unhelpful" to the discussion and served as a distraction so that their message was muddied. However, they were more than happy to have someone who called the Israelis "Nazi's" continue to partake in their little discussion as long as this person didn't make the "unhelpful" comparison. Not only that but one of the leaders of this group made a Nazi analogy himself, he doubled down by supporting a comment saying that the current Israeli Government was equivalent to the German Government of WWII.

What was sad and disappointing here was that many so-called "progressives" and "human rights" activists not only turned a blind eye to this rhetoric but actively engaged in lying, and defamation to support their friends making those statements. Here are supposed progressives calling other progressives "Israel first trolls" and "pro-occupation users" all the while whistling in the air as one of the most offensive meme's imaginable passed by.

Only one person of these so-called "progressives" said anything about how wrong this was. Only one.

Now, aside from the obvious offensiveness of making comparisons between the genocidal Nazi regime and the Government of Israel, it takes an amazing leap of illogic to even make an allusion toward this. The Nazis brutally murderd millions of people (including 6 million Jews) in an attempt to eradicate the Jewish people from the planet. As I said yesterday in the article in question on Daily Kos:

Here is what the Nazi's did:

After systematically denying the humanity of entire ethnicities they took members of those ethnicities and tossed them into Concentration Camps (the lucky ones) were they were fed 850 calories per day and forced to do heavy slave labor. The unlucky people were shipped to DEATH CAMPS where they were systematically either worked to death, were starved to death or were gassed to death (or burned to death), where they then turned into lampshades, soap or other fine household items. Some were medically experimented on and then killed.

Both the "lucky" and "unlucky" victims of the Holocaust were shipped to these camps in Cattle Cars with little to no ventilation, no food, no water, no bathroom facilities and no place to sit for days on end....

Nothing, the Israeli government does resembles anything remotely even approaching this. Yet so-called "human rights activists" merely sat on their hands and allowed the demonization of Israel and it's supporters continue unabated.

Similarly "progressives" and "human rights" activists gladly will take assistance from the most vile anti-Semites (just take a look at the sewer that is mondoweiss.net to see what passes for progressive commentary) if they can help them in their cause. They happily suck up nonsense spewed by Paulbots (supporters of Texas Rep. Ron Paul (R) who is the farthest thing from Progressive there is but they love him and all is forgiven due to his favoring of  U.S. withdrawal from the Middle East) or known bigot and lunatic Lyndon LaRouche. That "progressive website" they so love features such luminaries as Holocaust denier Gilad Atzmom, and Holocaust Revisionist Jeffrey Blankfort (it was the Zionists fault), amongst the usual neo-Nazi and racist cranks that populate that site. What is disappointing is that the progressives trying to get in front of this issue blindly turn away or make excuses for this all in the name of "the cause".

But enough on that, but these so-called "progressives" put their support into a Palestinian Polity that has absolutely ZERO progressive credentials. They support some mythical One State solution where Palestinians will happily protect Jewish rights all while ruling in a perfect democracy. Of course, the fact that the Palestinian and Arab polity has never exhibited anything remotely resembling this is besides the point. These "human rights" activists don't care. They are happy to overlook that the people they want to turn over the government too, have a law on their books stating that anyone selling land to Jews will face the Death Penalty. They overlook or try to excuse the Palestinian Authority President who said that the Occupation of Palestinian land had to end and then stated that the Occupation was from the founding of Israel. They overlook a PLO Ambassador that stated that Jews and Palestinians could not live together and that any Jew living in Israel since the Occupation started would not be allowed to stay. Somehow that gets ignored.

Then these so-called "progressives" miss or make excuses for the other part of the Palestinian polity that is made up of religious quasi fascists that suppress their people with impunity and carry out acts of terror. But none of this matters. I constantly ask these so-called human rights activists what is it about the Palestinian Polity that is Progressive. Generally they cannot name anything. But they don't care because really being progressive is not on their agenda. They may talk about some mythical One State Solution that has the support of exactly...no one. Well no one outside of a small group of Utopians. Well, that or simply a Palestinian State where Israel ceases to exist.

So where is the Progressivism here?

Now on the Israeli side, true progressives speak up against the growing nationalistic sentiment that is changing the very democratic character of the State. True progressives speak up for Social and Economic justice in the Israeli polity. While the demands of the "tent protests" were not as coherent as they could be, they spoke to a frustration that the average Israeli feels (just look at the support levels throughout the country for the protests) with neo-conservative destructive economic policies of Prime Minister Netanyahu and his cronies.

As to social justice, not only does a true progressive ask for social justice for Israelis but also for Palestinians that live in Israel and in the Occupied Territories. This does not mean that one supports the Palestinian bid to end Israel and true progressives recognize the legitimacy of the Jewish people to self-governance. But it does mean that minorities within Israel need to be treated as full citizens with full civil rights.Whether or not the Arab/Palestinian side supports this doesn't matter, it is what we do for ourselves that does matter. It is how we define ourselves within the Zionist framework

For the Occupation.... a true progressive works for a Two State solution where both the Palestinian and Jewish people have safe and secure nations based on historical precedent and current realities. I believe a true progressive stands against increased settlements and the continued encroachment on land that really should be Palestinian Land or that realistically will be Palestinian land come any "reasonable" Two State Solution. I think a true progressive does not do this because it empowers Palestinians, only they can do that for themselves. I believe a true progressive does that because of a moral sense that promotes the legitimate self governance of the Palestinian people. It comes from a stance that we should ask for others what we ask for ourselves.

Again, however all of this has to be done in a way that fosters real progressive ideas such as gender equality, protection of LGBT people, freedom of religion, press, and speech . It can't just support some vague Utopian idea that will have no progressive outcomes whatsoever.

Anyway, that is what I am discovering about progressivism and P.E.P. which is very much in evidence though not in the way most people mean it. The real progressive supports both peoples legitimate rights to self governance and respects the full rights of all people involved. The real progressive does not turn away from the racism and hatefulness that pervades one side or the other just for political expediency.