Tel-Chai Nation

Thousands went to the District of Columbia yesterday to protest Ehud Olmert. But not all Jewish organizations in the US were willing to lend their support, as the following news report tells:

With PM Olmert set to meet with U.S. Pres. Bush Tuesday, an unknown number of thousands of people are headed for Washington to protest the withdrawal/expulsion plan the two will be discussing.

Buses from several cities along the eastern coast have been chartered to take protestors to Washington today. The participants will demand that Bush not agree to Olmert's request for billions of dollars to aid the unilateral withdrawal. They say such a plan would follow the pattern of Ariel Sharon's Disengagement in strengthening Hamas, emboldening terrorists all over the Middle East, and displacing tens of thousands of Israeli citizens from their homes in the Jewish homeland.

Not all public Jewish organizations have endorsed the protest, however. The leaders of the Orthodox Union (OU), for instance, announced that they "believe it is inappropriate at this time to hold a rally in Washington, DC to express differences with the democratically elected Prime Minister of Israel." The OU noted that Olmert is "making his first official visit to the United States, where he will meet with the President of the Jewish state’s strongest ally, and has been accorded the rare honor of addressing a joint meeting of Congress."

The American Jewish Congress, too, sees nothing to protest about. "We believe it is in the interest of the United States and Israel to try to resolve some of the dilemmas that occur in the area by giving greater certainty to Israel's borders and making it easier for Israel to defend itself," said AJC Executive Director Neil Goldstein.

Some of this is angeringly reminicient of how would-be Jewish leaders acted in the early 20th century - they said that "this is not the time for a Jewish state." In other words, they weren't interested in coming to live here, because they felt sooo content where they were, and then, WW2 erupted, and disaster took place. And what the above say shows that they're as bad, and feel as part of the establishment, as they come. The OU and the AJC are not worth supporting, and this can point out that they're as bad as the women's right groups who refuse to condemn the Muslim rape epidemic that's running rampant in Europe.

Dubya's been unclear on his actual support of what Olmert wants. (And this report says that they're distant.) But that doesn't mean that we should let down our guard. Everyone should continue to watch them closely.

Update: here's also a photo essay of the rally.

Labels: Europe, United States