Earlier today, an Israel Defense Force (IDF) official said that the Israeli plan to level and destroy Gaza and kill countless civilians — including children and babies — is meant for the “good” of the Palestinian people; that once Hamas is defeated, all will be well for Palestine (both the West Bank and Gaza). What will this “good” look like once Hamas is defeated and removed from power? A free Palestinian State? “Good” requires putting an end to Israel’s apartheid practices. “Good” requires turning the electricity and power back on and ensuring that Palestinians have sufficient food. “Good” requires access to medical care. “Good” requires rebuilding Gaza’s infrastructure and family dwellings. I have not read one word from Israel’s military and political leaders that suggests that they have any interest in “good.” Motivated by rage, vengeance, and retribution, Israel is poised to cause untold harm and carnage. Hamas will most certainly respond, adding to the blood of combatants and innocents flowing through the streets.
The idea that bombing and killing people because it is “good” for them is a common delusion of the powers that be in the West. The United States told the citizens of Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq that our invasions of their sovereign states were “good” for them; that clap-happy freedom and democracy awaited once their lands were bombed into oblivion and hundreds of thousands of civilians were wiped off the face of the earth. Fifty years later, a unified Vietnam has returned to some sense of normalcy, but Iraq, Afghanistan, and other countries that we have bombed with “good” munitions remain shadows of the countries they once were.
Americans wrongly assume that our “good” is what every nation needs. Who doesn’t want to be just like the good ‘ole United States of America, right? For those blinded by American exceptionalism, manifest destiny, and Christian nationalism, the only “good” they see is the continuance of the “American Way” — whatever the hell that is — and laissez-faire capitalism. No introspection, no repenting of our national sins. We’re #1! We’re #1! We’re #1! We never seem to stop for a moment to consider whether our quest for “rightness,” dominion, and power is “good.” If I asked one hundred residents of rural Northwest Ohio whether the United is “good,” all of them would unequivocally say YES! Ask one hundred residents from Europe, Africa, South America, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East the same question, and I suspect most of them would have a very different definition of “American Good.”
As long as we continue to use military force — either directly or through proxies as we are doing in Ukraine and the Middle East — to expand the American Empire, we should not expect the world at large to think we are “good.”
Bruce Gerencser, 66, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 45 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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I think of our country as the American Empire. And it is definitely declining. I can remember when my fellow citizens considered association with fascists to be unthinkable, and now it is totally acceptable to the Right.
It’s sickening to think that after all the terrible stuff our country has done by bombing so many others for geopolitical gain, it is just going to get worse. I fear for my children and their possible children.
Hear hear Bruce! The ‘bombing for peace’ philosophy has never worked.
I was oblivious and blinded by jingoism before, but in recent years I have been examining more and more of the issues that ISA currently has, and issues ISA has wrought on itself and the world. I feel much more humility when interacting with people from other countries. IS citizens often boldly traipse around the world loudly wreaking havoc and disrespect on others. Our government partners with other governments to exploit other countries, and sometimes they mess with the political structures of the countries they exploit. I feel it’s complicated to be an American.
And while Hamas has wreaked terror upon Israel, Israel has treated Palestinian people horribly. Both statements are true.
In the mornings, my husband and I tune into MSNBC and FOX News to see what each holds to be important. It’s basically impossible to stay on FOX for more than a couple of minutes. This morning one of the talking heads said we MUST support Israel, “Read your Bible if you don’t know why!”. Click. I couldn’t take it anymore, and I reiterated again to my husband who wasn’t really raised religious why the religious right has such an election for Israel.
Reminds me of the Christians who say all those evil people needed to die in the flood.
BJW–This country has had imperialistic ambitions almost from the beginning. (Think of Manifest Destiny.) I used to believe that the US began to be an empire after the War of 1898 (what we were taught as the “Spanish American War), but if what we did in taking land from Native/Indigenous people isn’t imperialism (and genocide), I don’t know what is.
Obstacle–In thinking of those times we did harm to do other people “good,” I think of those kids whose parents (or other authority figures) beat them because it’s “what’s good for them.”
About Israel–The right cloaks its ambitions with religion: By supporting “God’s chosen” people, they are helping to bring about the “Kingdom of God.” Of course, the more practical reason is that supporting Israel keeps a US foothold in the Middle East and its oil reserves.
A large part of the problem here is religion as stated in comments above. Each group, such as Hamas or extreme ultra-orthodox jews think only their religion is correct and they have the right to force that view on everyone else. The USA should try to help civilians on both sides of this conflict, and try to stay out of military conflict.
However, another problem is overpopulation of the area. Where are all these civilians on both sides going to go?
Right. Und verk makes free.
It’s all setting the stage for the return of Jesus Christ.
If and when he does eventually appear I hope he’s prosecuted with dereliction of duty.
Any student of church history knows that they’ve been screaming “THIS IS IT!” every time somebody farts in the middle east.
True that and I’m reminded of a prophesy that the end of the world will begin with events in the land of Israel. It doesn’t matter who prophesied that, being it’s all BS anyway but current events are ominous considering that the threat of nuclear war lurks in the shadows of every modern conflict.
Yeah, that’s what I’ve been thinking, how things may escalate because Iran says it won’t” be a spectator ” in this war. And then there’s the Netanyahu regime,they ignored the warnings of Hamas about to pull something- for 10 days,from other countries. They wanted a reason to attack Iran. And then there’s the news that China has six warships heading over to the Middle East. I doubt that it’s to back the West. What will happen when they arrive ??