It would be nice to have a pro-Israel third party in the sense that it would be nice to have a party that corresponds exactly to my political beliefs, but the Democrats are not becoming more anti-Semitic (or more anti-Israel, for that matter) and if they were considering political realities folks like the ones you mentioned would be slowly joining the GOP, not forming a third party which would crash and burn. (I notice that while you mention Lieberman and Koch, you didn't mention the many, many pro-Zionists that remain in the Democratic Party).
I don't know about the specific comments to which you are referring, so I can't comment directly on those. However - be careful with your analysis, while the staunch right wing Israeli party Likud and their crony lobbyists in Washington would have you believe otherwise - being anti-Israel/anti-Zionism DOES NOT inherently equate to anti-Jew.
I've had a similar conversation with FallenMorgan -- while I don't deny that
you're not anti-Semitic, and that anti-Zionism does not necessarily equal anti-Semitism, it's still important for you to understand that the two of them are inextricably linked, particularly in the Arab World where they go hand in hand, but also in the Western World where they are frequently linked, and that it's very difficult to actively support one of the two and not at least provide succor to the other.
Doesn't say much; ask Ettore Ovazza or Lucas Mangope (though obviously those are extreme examples). The vast majority of Jews support Israel (obviously).
Actually, one of the many reasons I'm against Zionism is because I believe it is very bad for the Jewish community, in terms of how the Zionist movement has created antagonisms between Muslims and Jews which didn't previously exist (during the inquisition, the Muslims were the only friends they had!).
Well, Zionism has given Jews a homeland where they actually constitute a majority; their alternative was remaining in areas where anti-Semitic sentiment ran high. I would also argue Arab nationalism is far more responsible than Zionism for creating antagonisms, but that's all history; it's over and finished with and the main characters are all sleeping in their graves...
I'm no holocaust denier, I hate fascism, neo-nazism, and any form of ethnocentrism or racism, I'm extremely concerned for the welfare of Jewish individuals, and am vehemently opposed and disgusted by antisemitism.
Good.
That being said, I just recognize that the existence of that state has created far more problems than solutions, and that the right wing government of Israel is guilty of crimes against humanity.
This, on the other hand, is debatable at best.
But if I go out in public and say I'm against the Israeli government, or particularly if I were a notable person, I'd get RAILED for hating Jews - when the OPPOSITE is true!
Because many (I want to say a majority, but I don't know where I'd find actual statistical evidence, so I won't) notable anti-Zionists are anti-Semites, obviously doing so would bring suspicion of anti-Semitism on you.
Likud has Washington in their back pocket
Wouldn't we have recognized East Jerusalem as being part of Israel (at the very least) if this were true?
