Standing with Joe Klein

Josh Marshall salutes Joe Klein for standing by his condemnation of the bellicose war policies favored by Jewish neocons towards Iran.

Like Klein (and, I believe, Marshall), I'm Jewish. And like most Jews, I completely agree with Klein -- it's an absolute farce that anyone would suggest that he is an antisemite for stating his views, and it's not just because he's Jewish.

The hot-button issue here is Klein's use of the phrase "Jewish neocons." Obviously, it's no more offensive than the term "Christian right," but Klein has nonetheless come under heavy attack, with some even saying he's antisemitic. The real issue isn't his choice of words, but rather the fact that he is speaking out against war with Iran.

As Klein says, there is a small group of Jewish neocons pushing for war with Iran. For better or for worse, I have known some of them over the years. Though they are a minority in the Jewish community, all too often they'd rather accuse people of antisemitism than defend their extremist views. In a lot of ways, it's easier to acquiesce to this form of bullying than to fight it, but such appeasement has an unacceptable downside.

First, these Jewish neocons end up sounding like they speak for all Jews, when that couldn't be further from the truth. Second (and more importantly), unless someone stands up to their war policies, there's a real risk they will get their way -- and that would be a disaster, not just for America, but for the world.

For Joe Klein to stand up to them takes guts and courage and I thank him for it.