Remember: America Supports Itself First, Then Israel

Should we believe President Bush's statement, as discussed in the previous post, that the U.S. will defend Israel against Iran? His words seem very straightforward, but certain pundits nevertheless see reason to doubt.

I feel that the President is fully sincere, although unfortunately his words aren't quite as pro-Israel as they may seem. How can that be? Let's re-examine his key point, as quoted in the previous post:

"The threat from Iran is, of course, their stated objective to destroy our strong ally Israel. That's a threat, a serious threat. It's a threat to world peace."

This statement is certainly true, but just as notable is what's left out. Iran isn't after only Israel; it has directly threatened America as well. As president of the United States, Bush's responsibility is first and foremost to his own nation, and although he mentions defending Israel, his warning's real impetus is to advance America's interests, and not necessarily those of Israel (or anyone else). Protecting America comes first.

This is, of course, no surprise; the leader of any nation will defend his own land before that of others. But Bush's words are actually troubling in a deeper sense. He presents America as doing Israel a favor, one which presumably must be repaid in the future. This could prove harmful if Israel's interests fail to align with America's in such manner, and in any case, Israel shouldn't owe the U.S. for really protecting its own neck. Furthermore, Bush's words unintentionally give fodder to those who outrageously believe that Israel controls America; here is more "evidence," such bigots and crackpots would say, that Israel's interests dictate U.S. foreign policy.

America's plans to support Israel against Iran are wonderful, but we must remember that like all nations, the U.S. places its own goals first. America sat idly during World War II until its own shores were attacked, and it hardly counteracted international terrorism until the 9/11 tragedy. America is highly pro-Israel, but above all it is simply pro-America. Israel should certainly welcome U.S. assistance, but would be wise to always remember this point.


In other news:

Israel may have little of the black gold, but blue gold is another story: Jewish state poised to be a water technology superpower.

While Harvard's faculty may lean leftist, the student body, thank goodness, does not. WorldNetDaily's Hans Zeiger reports on the Ivy League generation gap.

Amazingly, the Basque terrorist group in Spain, ETA, has agreed to a permanent cease-fire. The group's motive, most suspect, is that Al Qaeda has so turned the world against terror that the tactic has lost its effectiveness for everyone else. I'm not so sure, however. In general, terrorist groups can never be trusted, and ETA has broken numerous cease-fires in the past. News of this latest truce is certainly welcome, but I would view it with a healthy dose of skepticism.

CAMERA has provided yet another rebuttal to the disgraceful Harvard study on the Israel lobby.