A Racist Jewish State:

Knesset Deprives Arabs of Right to Purchase State Land An Israeli Arab brought a case to the Israeli Supreme Court claiming he had been refused the right to buy Israeli land owned by the Jewish National Fund. The high court found in favor of the plaintiff and ruled that the State must change its policy and allow any citizen, whether Jewish or not, to buy such land. The attorney general subsequently approved such changes. The bill voted on yesterday is an attempt to do an “end around” the court ruling. It would enshrine in law the racist notion that only Jews should be able to purchase JNF land, while other Israeli citizens should not.Remember the paeans to Israeli democracy you hear from the lips of the hoch-Zionists: “the only democracy in the Middle East,” etc., etc. You can can that now. An ethnocracy maybe, but not a democracy–especially not if this piece of crap passes on its final reading (yesterday’s vote was the first reading). Haaretz’s editorial today pretty much says it all: A Racist Jewish State:

This bill reflects an abasement of the Zionist enterprise to lows never imagined in the Declaration of Independence. Even though the Jewish National Fund purchased the lands for the Jewish people in the Diaspora, the State of Israel has already been established and these lands must now serve all its citizens.

For those living for tomorrow and not the past, the aim is to create in Israel a healthy, progressive state where the needs of the two peoples should concern the leaders and legislators. The Jewish National Fund’s land policy counters the interests of the state and cannot discriminate by law against the minority living in Israel.

What is most pathetic about the vote is that a mere 10 Jewish MKs could muster enough outrage to vote against this travesty of justice. Even Ami Ayalon, the supposed Labor Party paragon of Israeli-Palestinian understanding voted Aye. The final vote was 64-16. I know in the history of the world’s greatest legislative folly this is but one example. But for Israel it’s truly a golden one.

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Today I am grieving – and it’s not even the 9th of Av yet…This is so against Torah, so against anything Judaism stands for, Secular or Religious. It is not tzedakah and it’s not tikkun olam. How did it come about?

Two things – Arrogance and Ignorance.

A deep disregard for Torah, which safeguards the Stranger’s right along with the home born, and teaches us that we should have one and the same law for both.

A profound ignorance about how the Land is bound to Torah – and how “Jewish” is intricately connected to Torah – if there’s not Torah, there is literally no “Jewish”.

The Bill doesn’t reflect the vision of Zionism as David Ben-Gurion saw it – let’s not forget what was said in the Declaration of Independence:

WE APPEAL – in the very midst of the onslaught launched against us now for months – to the Arab inhabitants of the State of Israel to preserve peace and participate in the upbuilding of the State on the basis of full and equal citizenship and due representation in all its provisional and permanent institutions.

WE EXTEND our hand to all neighboring states and their peoples in an offer of peace and good neighborliness, and appeal to them to establish bonds of cooperation and mutual help with the sovereign Jewish people settled in its own land. The State of Israel is prepared to do its share in a common effort for the advancement of the entire Middle East.

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A child can see the injustice of a legislation that denies any Israeli citizens to purchase land inside Israel. This bill is not what the 37 signatories of the Declaration had in mind, nor what they aimed at when they first set out to create a secure Homeland for the Jews.

The bill that denies the non-Jewish Israeli the right and possibility to purchase land there is chilul Hashem. Yes, G-d gave the land to the decedents of Avraham, Yitzhak and Ya’akov, but that gift came with a provision – that one and the same Law should be for the Israelite as well as the Stranger living with him.

Oh, I know that the Sages have stated that “stranger” means “convert” – but Written Torah has made no such statement – to Written Torah a stranger is any non-Jew sojourning with the People, that includes Israeli Arabs. Honestly – if it’s not present in Written Torah – how can it be present in Oral Torah, where would the Sages have derived it from? For more on the matter of the Stranger: On the Matter Of the Righteous Gentile. Injustice and distortion of Torah has never led to anything but heartbreak and disaster for Israel.

While it can be argued that Israel had the “moral high ground” in 1948, this cannot be argued in the face of violation of simple Torah.

If you are not religious, let’s argue this from another angle: That of Human Rights and simple common decency – another corner stone of modern Judaism, that is even argued and protected by atheist, humanist Jews – the UDHR:

Article 2.
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration.

Article 7.
All are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection of the law.

Article 17.
Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others, and no one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

Article 30.
Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

So, the bill passed that denies non-Jewish citizens of Israel the right to purchase land within Israeli borders are simply illegal. It should go “poof” on itself, because it cannot exist side by side with the UDHR – and it certainly cannot exist along side any kind of Judaism that aims at being Jewish.

To have legislation that discriminates one group within a society, under any pre-text is immoral, and when it targets or excludes groups based on ethnicity/culture, it’s called Racism.

Jewish Nationalism is good – Jewish Racism is shaming G-d to the World, and is one step from blasphemy.

Shalom Shabbat!

Another link:

The Magnes Zionist

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