From the Second Intifada to October 7th (with Daniel Gordis)

[@diandenmark]

The direct line is what Haviv Rettig Gur explained: The Palestinian cause is wrongly considered an anti-colonial war with the goal of escalation that makes the cost of staying unbearably high.... Jewish Israelis have no other place to go. It took me at least 25 years of trying before I understood it. . And Hitchens never did... maybe he never really tried. It is horrifying to be forced to live in a kill-or-be killed world, but, yes, it must be done... and it must be done while keeping the soul pure...which IS possible. The end game is to make the Palestinians and their allies understand that Jewish Israel is not going to disappear. Period. As to the future... remember the lesson that Judah was the only prominent leader in the Bible who openly took responsibility for his errors and made amends. Twice. Israeli leaders have to do this too. Absolutely brilliant: The second war of Israeli independence. And new types of relationship with the diasporas.

[@cinnaminson0653]

How about back to New York?

[@walterbenjamin1386]

Mr Gordis’s book Israel is superb. I’ve read it twice

[@rajanikantmohan840]

Daniel and Ross do a great job enlightening us on the state of mind of the Israel population. Awesome podcast. We can feel the pain. Great admiration for the people of Israel.

[@diandenmark]

And finally: Not every country in the West is committed to liberal democracy (think Hungary) ... while some non Western states (like Israel and India and Japan) are deeply invested in it. So this partcular war is between adherents of liberal democracy and the most vicious promoters of autocracy, currently defined as the axis of Iran, Qatar, Russia, China, and North Korea. Maybe Turkey, too, and the South American client states of Iran. Liberal democracies have to fight much "smarter" to avoid tearing themselves up from within... they need constant vigilance about very subtle, complex phenomena...

[@willosee]

Tremendous!

[@dorotheewigginton2211]

It's important to communicate to Western audiences that Arab Israelis are not treated as second-class citizens in Israel, despite common misconceptions and possibly misinformation in the UK.

[@TJ_USA]

On two videos I've seen you mentioned there are two million Arab Israelis who live within Israel. But nowhere do you specify their citizenship status? I'm presuming they are Israeli citizens, right?

[@helenezonana]

Yes they are. Arab israelíes with full Citizenship

[@gstv6256]

great show!!!

[@Fsgs233]

Rationalizing land theft knows no bounds

[@MichaelPetek]

If American Jews are afraid to send their children to college, there's good news. The Catholic University of Steubenville has put in place an accelerated transfer arrangement by which Jewish students can transfer from other universities to Steubenville, where they are assured of a safe environment where there faith will be respected.

[@JoeShmo8868]

48:11

[@DanHowardMtl]

An election is 2008? It's 2023! Where are the other elections there?

[@Stardust475]

Tom Nash has videos on post Gaza scenarios. His analysis is better than any other media for geopolitics Dan Schueftan is brilliant, too. No NATO or UN, it would be a disaster. Push through Abraham Accords, disband UNRWA, generational deradicalistion is necessary. Breaking up Gaza into cantons run by clans with their own police is a better idea. Family planning is an emergency there too!

[@minimalistic_banhaus]

It's pretty telling Russ is leaving out any Palestinian perspective in this series. No questioning of fundamental assumptions, and omissions made in telling the Israeli perspective.

[@econtalkwithruss]

Russ has asked a few Palestinians to come on the program, but has not heard back from them. (As of recording the latest episode.)

[@jwithy]

@@econtalkwithruss thanks for the update!

[@diandenmark]

Why does Russ call Mizrachi Jews Arabs? Their roots are not only in Arab countries, but also Iran, Turkey, and North Africa. as far as I know, Israeli Arabs are non-Jews stemming from the Levant, mostly Palestine (the area so known).

[@mistymoor7114]

Show us the old videos of Gaza please when Israel pulled out !

[@SP-nx8qx]

I don't know if there was ever any other realistic alternatives to Palaistine for the Jews to go to, but that choice of place was fkn suicidal (or genocidal if we assume somebody else made that decision for them). I've always had sincere admiration for the Jewish people for the history, the resilience and the contributions to civilisation, but on this topic I'm gonna have to side with Hitchens: The zionist plan was a waste of Judaism. And now they're stuck having to do things that they're gonna have to fight to explain to themselves for the rest of their lives.

[@helenezonana]

Do you see any other alternatives? Have you seen the rise in antisemitism all over the world? That was the idea, that the land of Israel would protect them from world persecution.

[@kofaraba8350]

@LopekJJJ. That is an extraordinarily ignorant post. You know nothing about Daniel Gordis (he is anything but a left-winger) and you clearly did not listen to a word he said

[@talathaque2904]

It's an existential fight for the Palestinians more than for Israel. You cannot see the irony of your arguments to justify what you do. I have always admired Jewish intelligence, but maybe when you operate out of fear one's intelligence is clouded. There is a complete lack of understanding of the Palestinian position and it's all about "me, me, me ......" Talk less and learn to listen more.

[@patricksullivan4329]

The safest, freest place for an Arab to live in Palestine is within the borders of Israel.

[@minimalistic_banhaus]

@@patricksullivan4329 Right, Israel isn't bombing itself. Of course they're safer there!

[@DrumsBah]

​​@@patricksullivan4329I'm sure it's very comforting for the Gazans whose homes and families have been blown up to hear this. Parroting this statement has no substance until Israel is willing to take in the Palestian refugees it has created. Unsurprisingly, I don't see any Israelis advocating for that.

[@sandytatham3592]

@@DrumsBah: I have heard an Israeli suggest offering them "residence status". That way they get equal civil rights but not national voting rights, something like the East Jerusalem Arabs have.

[@helenezonana]

You don’t understand the Middle East, at all.

[@patricksullivan4329]

To me, Netanyahu's position is almost the perfect illustration of the biblical statement: “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.”

[@LOPEKJJJ]

Why do you keep having these left wingers. Please interview a right winger. They’ve been warning about Gaza for years. Let’s hear their perspective on the conflict and solutions. Preferably someone from the national-religious camp that has a uniquely Jewish perspective. Enough with all these westernized guests.

[@alrosano5786]

Ostriches!

[@FlamingBasketballClub]

49:00-50:00 If Iran is considered a external threat, then why does America have so much military bases in the Middle East Russ?