Israel must be held to the standard of a state
Manhattan: Although the Daily News gives more balanced reporting than many other outlets, it’s important to be clear about what antisemitism is. Israel has been looked at as a homeland for Jews only and a blessing from God after the Holocaust, but it can’t be because of the nature of any political entity. Israel can be praised or criticized as any country can be. Antisemitism is the view that Jews are inferior or bad simply because they are Jewish. It has no relation to Israel as a political state.
If Israel does something wrong or right, it should be judged as a state. If it leads in a field of medical research, is that praise of Jews or Judaism? No, of course not, although much that is praiseworthy can be said of the Jewish religion. Israel’s leaders and supporters have been guilty of claiming that any criticism of them is antisemitism, which is sheer nonsense, as much as any criticism of me could not have come from the fact that I am Protestant.
The current situation is seen by Israeli leaders as the chance to finish the job entirely — kill off or drive out the Palestinians, who they describe as animals and worse, and take the rest of their land. The Holocaust was unspeakable, and the attack by Hamas was horrifying, but none of this justifies the unconscionable and frightening behavior of Israeli leaders now. That is what the campus protests are about. The students know what they are doing, and from what I know of campus protests from the past, they are not driven by outside agitators. The non-students who join them are only there in solidarity with them. If I joined them as a 78-year-old NYC municipal retiree, no doubt I’d be arrested as an “outside agitator,” and I’m none of that. Carol F. Yost
Legitimate protest
North Bergen, N.J.: Accusations of antisemitism run rampant when it comes to condemning pro-Palestinian protesters, but it is an asinine ploy because Palestinians are also Semites. How about charges of terrorism? Well, when more than 34,000 of your people are killed by the state of Israel, it would take a really kind soul to refrain from mouthing off against such abuse of state power — never mind that few, if any, of the protesting students have engaged in or promoted terrorism. Now, to top it off, the protesters have to contend with the likes of House Speaker Mike Johnson, a man who apparently enjoys being on the wrong side of history and moronically promotes bringing in the National Guard. He must believe that Jews represent his ticket to increasing his political coffers, even if coffins would be required. Angel Jimenez
‘Tis the season
Huntington, L.I.: Did the sports editorial staff forget that the Rangers are in the Stanley Cup race? Nice stories two days in a row about Aaron Rodgers, but we can read about him in June. Cover the Rangers now. Leonard Stevenson
Unfair fee
Flushing: Mark Levine and Carmen De La Rosa are only too happy to propose siphoning more cash out of the pockets of NYC taxpayers and boosting city coffers by having us pay to park in front of our residences (“Residential parking permits for NYC,” op-ed, May 17). They seem to purposefully ignore the fact that we already pay for that right in the form of property taxes. As expected, the adoption of congestion pricing has led our money-hungry politicians to find other creative ways to squeeze a nickel out of car owners. Craig Louttit
New shade of red
Manhattan: The effect of one man, Donald Trump, on the destiny of Ukraine is disturbing. The delay in U.S. aid was orchestrated solely by him. He was essentially doing the bidding of the Kremlin just long enough until Russia was in a position to launch a new offensive. If Trump isn’t an agent of Russia, he’s an unwitting stooge — the best asset that Putin could hope for. It’s also a testament to the reach of Russian propaganda. The media assets of the Russian state sow chaos and spread lies from New York to Nottingham. Too many Americans are vulnerable to the noxious exhaust of the Russian agenda. And too many Republicans gleefully regurgitate Russian talking points. Ronald Reagan would be aghast that the GOP essentially favors Russia over the West. Forty-five years of fighting the Cold War gone to dust — compromised at the hands of a reality TV star. Daniel Dolgicer
Paying homage
Fort Worth, Texas: What a shock seeing members of Congress show up at Donald Trump’s hush money trial three days in a row, all dressed in dark suits and Trump’s signature red tie. It’s hard to understand how any member of Congress who has taken an oath to protect our Constitution could possibly support a man who has tried to overturn our democracy and has promised a bloodbath if not elected dictator on Day One. I expect that in the coming days, we’ll see many more Republicans showing up to kiss Trump’s ring and pledge their undying loyalty, asking to join his Red-Tie Brigade so they can march in lockstep with their Dear Leader as they give him a one-armed salute. Sharon Austry
Crime boss behavior
Boynton Beach, Fla.: Nice try, Voicer Joseph Abbondanzo, attempting to justify Donald J. Trump’s criminal activity by saying it was just a one-night stand and “who among us hasn’t done that?” I, for one, have not done that, and the thought of doing that while my wife had just given birth to our child is loathsome, to say the least. That said, Trump’s crime is not the one-night stand. His crime is, like his others, the actions of a crime family boss directing the criminal activity behind the scenes, in this case directing the election interference payment to Stormy Daniels, then directing the fraudulent accounting to cover up the crime. Michael Cohen admitted his complicity and paid the price by doing the time. Now the conductor of the criminal train must pay the price. William T. Bredin
Jailable offense
Bergenfield, N.J.: Didn’t Leona Helmsley go to jail for falsifying business records? Al Schwarzler
Compromised bench
Chester, N.J.: Clarence Thomas refuses to answer questions about repayment of the loan for his mobile home worth $300,000. How is this not a crisis? If this was paid for by somebody with cases before the Supreme Court, it implies that a justice on the highest court in the land can be bought and paid for. And let’s not even go to Thomas not recusing himself from the Jan. 6 cases while his spouse was clearly involved in the conspiracy to prevent the peaceful transfer of power. It is time for a congressional committee to investigate. Our courts were once the envy of the world. Now Thomas makes us a laughingstock. David J. Melvin
Flew his flag
Whiting, N.J.: The American flag flies upside down outside Justice Samuel Alito’s house for several days after Jan. 6 in a clear message of his household’s support of the “stop the steal” movement. Now that it has been brought to light, he blames his wife for the incident. Sure, Sam. The flag flew upside down for days and you never noticed. Because of his pro-Trump bias, Alito needs to recuse himself from any Trump-related cases brought before the court, including the total-immunity case that the court is deciding. Or better yet, resign. Bill McConnell
Constitutional right
Stoughton, Mass.: Re Dexter Taylor, the American arrested and prosecuted for making firearms: In “Federalist No. 49,” James Madison was quite clear that, for a constitutional republic at the common law, only those topics/subjects are allowed to be acted upon by a privilege to do so. Neither the New York nor the U.S. Constitutions grant any privilege to Congress or the states to act upon firearm possession by the sane and lawful, nor to enact laws for the safety of the people. Therefore, the arrest of Taylor, his prosecution and conviction are patently unconstitutional, as expressed by Madison and by many U.S. Supreme Court rulings on “safety” not to be provided by the government. If I am in error, please submit your facts to the Daily News. Don Schwarz
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