Thursday, July 26, 2012

J Street Takes on the One-State Caucus

When J Street attacked Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) for his one-stateism, I said that the ad was exactly what I wanted to see in theory, but noted a few problems in the execution. Basically, I didn't think it was aggressive enough in hammering home that one-state = anti-Israel.

This is more like it.



The ad still isn't perfect on execution. At a full minute it runs a little long, and takes some time to get its wheels spinning. I think the beginning can be trimmed considerably, and I think the Adelson reference can be cut (not because Adelson isn't being a putz about this, but I'm not sure why his involvement makes things worse). I also think adding quotes from other Jewish organizations saying "one state = anti-Israel" would pack some punch.

But nitpicking aside, the message is loud and clear: The one-state solution stands in opposition to Israel's Jewish, democratic character. It is an obstacle to a true peace that respects the rights and security of Israelis and Palestinians alike. Ergo, anything less than support of a two-state solution isn't pro-Israel. J Street is saying nothing more than what every other mainstream Jewish organization has been saying for years but now seems too cowardly to stand up for. So I'm glad that at least one pro-Israel group has the balls to take on the rising one-state tide head on.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great post about the new offensive J Street campaign against the "One-State caucus." The campaign is starting off slow because it is untested ground as far as the politics of attacking the right-wing as anti-Israel, but it may well go as far as you think it should if it turns out that it works.

Anonymous said...

Great post about the new offensive J Street campaign against the "One-State caucus." The campaign is starting off slow because it is untested ground as far as the politics of attacking the right-wing as anti-Israel, but it may well go as far as you think it should if it turns out that it works.