Netanyahu has been on and off power in Israel over the past three decades.
Looking at Smotrich, Ben Gvir and the like, the even more fascist right is not going to be any better. Meanwhile what considers itself the “left” in Israel is still very much genocidal and imperialist.
Just like Trump, Netanyahu isn’t the root cause, just an aggravating symptom of the issues in the society.
Meanwhile what considers itself the “left” in Israel is still very much genocidal and imperialist.
Until recently I would have agreed with you (other than the actual hard-left which consists of Hadash, Ta’al and Balad, two of them being explicitly Palestinian parties), but recently, and also a few times in the past, the leader of the Israeli Democrats (a new party with a terrible name) said some really based stuff which is a step in the right direction if nothing else. And now they’re trying to take away his military credentials, which just shows that he’s right. But even he can’t abandon liberal Zionism, and a bit of militarism, if he wants anyone to listen to him.
It’s more that the left is small and insignificant, because it has many of the same problems as the left in other right-wing countries: it advertises to a progressive middle class, and completely ignores the lower classes who would most benefit from its policies.
Left-wing policies in Israel will certainly help disadvantaged people, but left-wing (Zionist) parties talk about abstract ideals like “democracy”, instead of material conditions. And citizens who struggle under the cost of living, almost or actually in poverty, don’t care about the type of government they have: they care about surviving to the next day, and left-wing parties have just given up on trying to get their vote.
Essentially my point here is that Israeli society is not fundamentally incompatible with left-wing ideas or policies (leading eventually, hopefully, to anti-Zionism), but left-wing parties have consistently ignored those who need them most, leading them to the right and to distrust the left, effectively digging their own grave.
You are confirming my point imo. The parties and people that consider themselves left are still Zionist. They do not oppose genocide against Palestinians because it is wrong to mass murder people. They oppose it because they see the long term consequences for Israel. They are not willing to stop the settlement expansion, leave alone remove the settlements and end the illegal occupation.
The “based” statements you refer to come now, as the genocidal rhetoric has become completely unhinged and Israel is unable to maintain the narratives even in allied countries. This is not done out of ethical conviction, but to present themselves as “reasonable” alternative to Netanyahu and an option to get back to the status quo. The status quo of ethnic cleansing and imperial expansion slow enough for Israels allies to be able to look the other way.
Anti-zionist and therefore anti-fascists are a fringe minority in the Israel society.
Netanyahu has been on and off power in Israel over the past three decades.
Looking at Smotrich, Ben Gvir and the like, the even more fascist right is not going to be any better. Meanwhile what considers itself the “left” in Israel is still very much genocidal and imperialist.
Just like Trump, Netanyahu isn’t the root cause, just an aggravating symptom of the issues in the society.
Yeah this “blame Netanyahu” line is a liberal Zionist rearguard to salvage the colony’s tattered reputation. This isn’t one bad apple.
Until recently I would have agreed with you (other than the actual hard-left which consists of Hadash, Ta’al and Balad, two of them being explicitly Palestinian parties), but recently, and also a few times in the past, the leader of the Israeli Democrats (a new party with a terrible name) said some really based stuff which is a step in the right direction if nothing else. And now they’re trying to take away his military credentials, which just shows that he’s right. But even he can’t abandon liberal Zionism, and a bit of militarism, if he wants anyone to listen to him.
It’s more that the left is small and insignificant, because it has many of the same problems as the left in other right-wing countries: it advertises to a progressive middle class, and completely ignores the lower classes who would most benefit from its policies.
Left-wing policies in Israel will certainly help disadvantaged people, but left-wing (Zionist) parties talk about abstract ideals like “democracy”, instead of material conditions. And citizens who struggle under the cost of living, almost or actually in poverty, don’t care about the type of government they have: they care about surviving to the next day, and left-wing parties have just given up on trying to get their vote.
Essentially my point here is that Israeli society is not fundamentally incompatible with left-wing ideas or policies (leading eventually, hopefully, to anti-Zionism), but left-wing parties have consistently ignored those who need them most, leading them to the right and to distrust the left, effectively digging their own grave.
You are confirming my point imo. The parties and people that consider themselves left are still Zionist. They do not oppose genocide against Palestinians because it is wrong to mass murder people. They oppose it because they see the long term consequences for Israel. They are not willing to stop the settlement expansion, leave alone remove the settlements and end the illegal occupation.
The “based” statements you refer to come now, as the genocidal rhetoric has become completely unhinged and Israel is unable to maintain the narratives even in allied countries. This is not done out of ethical conviction, but to present themselves as “reasonable” alternative to Netanyahu and an option to get back to the status quo. The status quo of ethnic cleansing and imperial expansion slow enough for Israels allies to be able to look the other way.
Anti-zionist and therefore anti-fascists are a fringe minority in the Israel society.