One of the greatest dangers to the crew of a ship that has lost its bearings is also one of the most tempting: the water all around them. As the stores of freshwater run out, and the thirst sets in, the ocean and its contents look ever more inviting. But that way leads to death. A gulp of saltwater may relieve a parched throat for a moment, but it makes the thirst stronger and the body weaker. The only cure is the pure water that sustains life.
As with sailors, so with societies. A people that loses its sense of purpose and direction risks losing the great hearts and sharp eyes needed to regain its bearings. A society awash in Jew-hatred is headed for ruin, and Wednesday’s terrorist attack in Washington reminds us that the United States is such a society.
Wednesday night, a group of four left a reception for young diplomats hosted by the American Jewish Committee at the Capital Jewish Museum. A man affiliated with a variety of left-wing organizations shot at them, turned himself in to the police, and yelled, “Free Palestine.” Two Israeli embassy staffers, Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky, died in the attack. Yaron was days away from proposing to Sarah.
The murderer clearly targeted Jews that night, but his bigotry extends beyond them. Previously, he had denounced Amazon’s “whitening of Seattle” as “structurally racist and a direct danger to all workers who live in that city.” He feared the United States was becoming “a nation of cities dominated and occupied by massive corporations where only the rich and white can live.” The Network Contagion Research Institute reports that his network has troubling ties to the Chinese Communist Party and Iran, too. Anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism walk arm in arm again.
This coward is part of a trend of left-wing murderous terrorism, often but not exclusively aimed at Jews. In 2017, a leftist shot at members of the Republican congressional baseball team. Shortly after October 7, an anti-Israel protester killed a Jewish man voicing his support for Israel. The individual arrested for murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has become a minor celebrity on the socialist left. Wednesday’s alleged murderer is reportedly a big fan.
If they have their way, these people will lead this country to ruin.
Societies that mistreat Jews rarely prosper. The England that expelled its Jews in 1290 was a fractious, violent backwater just off the coast of Europe; the England that welcomed them back in 1656 was developing the culture and habits that made it a global superpower. The Nazis staged many of their great rallies in Nuremberg, but in 1946 10 of their leaders swung from ropes there.
Philosemites tend to do much better. Chalk it up to God’s special favor for the Jewish people, the providence that George Washington relied on, or the fact that free and tolerant people tend to handle challenges admirably. Countries that treat Jews well tend to beat all comers, particularly when their love for Jews is an outgrowth of their love for liberty.
Healthy societies tend to repel self-defeating bigotries; it’s the sick ones that drink the saltwater. The high points of Jew-hatred in American history usually come at the nation’s lowest point. For example, the depraved ravings of “social justice” activists like Father Coughlin found their biggest audience during the Great Depression. America’s economic indicators are not nearly that bad today, but the explosion of suicides, drug overdoses, and alcohol-related deaths tells a much grimmer story. And when the American dream seems out of reach, people often blame the Jews.
In troubled times, a country’s leaders must seek out sources of vitality and strength. In a society as boisterous, complex, and constantly changing as ours, this is a daunting task. America’s institutional leaders are clearly not up to it. They have lost their minds and championed socialist economics, wild social experiments, and poisonous identity politics. Many of these lunatics excuse or even cheer on the Jew-hating mobs that emerged on Oct. 7.
Some of their critics are no better. Many of the people who most loudly condemn the left’s follies and villainies in the next breath excuse their allies who embody the same kinds of Jew-hatred and bigotry.
This civilization is in peril, but it still has the intellectual and spiritual resources to prevail. Out of Nuremberg recently came a young man, a Christian who embraced the Jewish people and represented Israel here in Washington. He met a young Jewish woman from Kansas, and they planned out their lives together. They stood for their people, and died for it.
We need more Yaron Lischinskys and Sarah Milgrims.
