Ben-Gvir’s Words Seem Suspect
I read with interest the op-ed piece by Itamar Ben-Gvir (“My Brethren on the Left, Give Me a Chance,” Nov. 10) proclaiming his moderation and asking his “brethren” to give him a “chance.”
Interestingly, the piece was published on the same day that Ben-Gvir praised the late Rabbi Meir Kahane at a memorial service — praise that led State Department spokesman Ned Price to call Ben-Gvir’s actions “abhorrent.” I hope the Exponent follows up on the story.
Maynard Seider, Philadelphia
Afraid for the Future
When I read the columns from Jonathan Tobin (“US Panic Surrounding Israel’s Next Government Is About Politics, Not Values,” Nov. 10) and Itamar Ben Gvir (“My Brethren on the Left, Give Me a Chance,” Nov. 10), as well as the accompanying editorial about the Israeli election (A Clear Victory for Israel’s Right,” Nov. 10), all I could think was that this is exactly what I am afraid of from the next Israeli government.
Tobin’s column and the editorial in particular were a complete dismissal of any Jew who does not buy into the Netanyahu coalition’s vision of what a true Jew is. Surprisingly, the most honest column was from Itamar Ben-Gvir himself, even though his long history of violent rhetoric speaks for itself. However, he will most likely be a minister of the government soon, so to hear from him directly had some value. That said, his vision of a Judaism based in supremacy over others is still pretty awful.
Len Zangwill, Glenside
I must have read a different article than Mr. Zangwill. At no time in that article did I detect any desire, by Mr. Ben Gvir, for supremacy over others. The general theme of it was a plea to fellow Jews to give him and his fellow officials in the Netanyahu government a chance before constantly attacking them. Obviously Mr. Zangwill found that to be too onerous a condition to act on. The reason why there is such animosity between American and Israeli Jews is on view here, When an American Jew is so rigid, fearful and misinformed about others simply because they disagree with him, the problem is his, not the other. Tobin never dismisses any Jew for any reason but I suspect Mr. Zangwill is guilty of the psychological defect of projection. Its time to drop the anger and give others a fair chance to act on their views.