A False Premise, Ctd

A reader writes:

I agree that neocons err in seeing America as Israel. But those Americans who are extremely critical of Israel (or at least favor a tilt to the Israeli left) err just as much as the neocons, albeit in the other direction.

To (over) simplify: Neocons believe that because Israel is in permanent war with the Arabs, America has to be in permanent war as well. But Israel-critics and doves believe that just because America can stop fighting the Arabs, Israel can do so as well.

Both sides make the mistake of confusing America with Israel; the Left because it assumes that Israeli's enemies are as easily placated as America's - the Right because they believe America's enemies are as irreconcilable as Israel's.

But what if Israel makes even more explicit that its wars - in Gaza or Iran - are inextricable from America's wars? And what if those wars make Muslim and Arab refusal to recognize Israel even more implacable - and increasingly fueled with religious fervor? One danger in letting this conflict drift into greater and greater extremity and polarization is that the distinction between America and Israel becomes moot. That's what Netanyahu wants. And he will press his claims to the end-point regardless of the consequences for the broader West.