An open Letter to Ambassador M. Oren and Mr. Jeremy Ben Ami

An open Letter to Ambassador M. Oren and Mr. Jeremy Ben Ami

By Yoram Getzler

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I would like to add my voice to that of Jeremy Ben Ami director of J Street to Ambassador Oren., urging him to attend and speak eloquently as he is capable of, for Israel at the upcoming J Street conference in Washington DC.

For all my disagreements with Mr. Ben Ami and J Street at least one of his statements holds true and is worthwhile to internalize. The truly significant force of commonality that holds us together as Jews and individuals concerned with the future of our people and nation must be understood as stronger and more important than the inevitable forces that separate us.

However wrongheaded, blind counterproductive and stupid the policies J Street supports and advocates, they are not as destructive for our people as the growing and significant number of mostly young Jews who just do not give a care about our people and state. I think our true challenge is recognizing but not excluding even them, and we should be able to encourage and support those who care enough to take the time and effort to criticize what is inevitably a flawed human endeavor.

Mr. Ben Ami I am still unsure of your true understanding of the world we live in here. In a previous Jerusalem Post interview (May ’09) you define being “anti-Israel’ as “…rejecting the notion of the right of the Jewish people to a state…” I think this is also to be understood as accepting the idea of Israel as a Jewish state?

Surely you were and still are aware that every official of the Palestinian Arab community who has spoken publicly has completely rejected the very notion of accepting Israel as a Jewish state.

Do I understand correctly that you still call for the US government to use what ever force or influence to bear on Israel to make “peace” with neighbors who deny our basic rights and qualify, by your own definition as “anti-Israel”?

I, by-the-way, would go even further in expressly requiring a statement of understanding by those we hope to establish a long term positive relation ship with.

I believe they need to somehow come to the conclusion that; the Jewish people have a legitimate historical claim to any of the land between the River and the Sea.

Without such a realization there is absolutely no reason for them to accept our being here, ever. Without such an acceptance of our true motivation for choosing this place for our state, we are no more than foreigners, Crusaders in their minds who also came here from Europe and stole their land.

With thieves you do not make accommodations.

If the true intent is to promote reconciliation & peace how is it that neither J Street, or the other U.S. “Peace” organizations have any ideas about pressuring the Arabs/Palestinians to take some simple steps to promote trust, understanding, compromise and peace; moves that would show the Israeli people a political horizon.

Mr. Oren, you can say all this and more with far greater authenticity and effect. Please make the attempt.