PurpleSerf.com
6/1/11
Vs.
Last week Rush Limbaugh received a call from a libertarian lovingly referred to as Malcontent Caller #2. After lauding Mr. Limbaugh over his tax and economic views Greg from Louisville lambasted US foreign policy in so far as it came to funding two middle eastern powerhouses Egypt and Israel. According to Greg:
"I think we need to stop borrowing money from China to give handouts to Israel. They don't do anything for us. It's a pretty one-sided deal. For the last 30 years, we give them $4 billion a year or so. Plus almost the same amount to Egypt to bribe them not to fight each other. Frankly, I don't see why we need to prop up Israel. They're the biggest welfare queen in history."
Rush Limbaugh obliquely responded by claiming that Netanyahu's speech earlier that day rebuked the idea of sending US troops to aid Israel. It was is an intentional obfuscation which Greg summarily executed by quipping "no send em money" and "we borrow from China to 'em money" catching Limbaugh relatively speechless.
Limbaugh deflected by saying "We do a lot more for other countries" while obviously ignoring the implicit question - should we. Failing to address this fundamental question Limbaugh retreats into the classic Wilsonian dogma and disagrees with the caller that our support of Israel yields us nothing tangible. Limbaugh asserts benightedly that "we have a cultural alignment that is worth a lot, they're the lone democratic outpost in that region." Greg adds "socialist" to Limbaugh's characterization of Israel as merely democratic adding another questionable dimension to our foreign aid.
How do we measure the value of that cultural alignment Mr. Limbaugh? Since when is democracy sufficient enough to warrant foreign aid? Aren't there a myriad of other values to take into consideration? Are we not supporting democratic-socialism not American capitalism of which you claim you champion?
Limbaugh gives his answer: "They do a lot, or have done a lot of dirty work in that region that we won't do, can't do, and much of it we'll never hear about because it would divulge their involvement."
Wow. Limbaugh wouldn't be talking about rendition activities, torture, assassinations, violating international law, provocateur black operations, etc. etc. What a wonderful world we could possibly be funding it is too bad we'll never get to look behind the curtain. I am sure none of those activities lend credibility to Islamic nations claiming an unholy alliance between the US and Israel.
Greg succinctly slams Limbaugh's rationalization: "They're a socialist economy. We don't like socialism over here, but we love it over there."
Utterly failing to establish any logical continuity Rush Limbaugh falls back and fires from a well fortified position of pure emotion. In a classic example of an "appeal to the people" preying upon emotion instead of working out the fine points of his argument reasonably Limbaugh asks Greg the libertarian "Do you want to see Israel wiped off the map?"
Is that the ultimate reason we fund Israel to ensure their safety? Where do you find that in the Constitution let alone any law in the Federal Register?
Joseph Sobran's controversial words have never rang as true as they do when you bear witness to a dialogue such as this. Our country for some reason "has a more or less official national obsession with [this] tiny, far away, socialist ethnocracy" and so called conservatives grovel before the opportunity to perpetuate the phenomena! Why do we support a country which is, for all intents and purposes, a racist polity? A country that time and time again refuses to allow people to return to their ancestral homes on the grounds it must remain a "Jewish state." Is there no right of return for Palestinians? Is it too idealistic to ask those living in this tumultuous region to grow up and forge the ties necessary to establish a viable civilization?
America was founded on principles of pluralism and rule of law. We sow none of those seeds by supporting Israel.
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