Anti-Israel?

I have said that I did not think that Binyamin Netanyahu was serious about pursuing an equitable peace, and there have been some people who were unhappy with that remark. Someone even said that because I criticized Netanyahu, that I was anti-Israel, which is a baseless accusation.

I read a quote from the book ‘Justice: What’s the Right Thing To Do’ by Michael J. Sandel. “You can't really take pride in your country and its past if you're unwilling to acknowledge any responsibility for... discharging the moral burdens that come with it.”

What are the ‘moral burdens that come with it’, and how do you discharge them? I am reminded of the quote by Senator Carl Schurtz in 1872 in a speech in the US Senate, “My country right or wrong; when right, to keep her right; when wrong, to put her right.”

Discharging your moral burdens means not just loving your country, right or wrong, but also speaking out and acting, when you believe it may be on the wrong track. I love Israel, but I also have expectations of Israel. I expect Israel and its government to act better than its neighbors. I hold them to a higher standard, and I expect them to treat everyone in accordance with the highest principles of Jewish law.

At the least, I expect them to behave as Hillel said, “What is hateful to yourself, do not do to another.” And if I think they have fallen short, I can and will speak out.