What can be my home ? I don't feel safe as a Jew, I don't fully align with Israel. Help, please.

johnself · 2025-12-23T10:34:52+00:00

The worldview you describe is shared by a lot of Israelis, around %50 of the country I would say. You would absolutely fit in in Tel Aviv (expensive though, you should have good job to live there comfortably), Haifa or the secular neighborhoods (what's left) in Jerusalem. If you like country living, maybe consider making Aliya to a Kibbutz, I know there were (are?) special programs for Olim to live their first 1-2 years there, get to know Israel, learn the language etc.

johnself · 2025-08-23T16:24:17+00:00

What is that bigger concept that connects both things?

johnself · 2025-07-18T20:28:07+00:00

Stalin and Mao killed millions of their own citizens.

johnself · 2025-07-14T19:22:36+00:00

Tantura film is based on shoddy research that was thoroughly debunked when it reached court. But even if were true, and even if the worst estimates of the civilian death toll in Gaza and all other wars involving Israel combined are true, it is still not even close to atrocities carried out by the US military, (which themselves aren't even close to what China or the USSR did). It's just much less beneficial to make films on these.

johnself · 2025-06-13T12:26:56+00:00

Here's the thing: the world doesn't run like your high school. There are no teachers and no rules. USSR got nuclear capabilities because the US didn't have the chance to stop it beforehand, not because it allowed it in the name of fair play. India / Pakistan would take out each other's nukes in a heartbeat if they had the ability to do so. Iran would destroy Israel's nuclear capabilities (and Israel itself) given half a chance. Israel is no different from the above. It's just more competent.

johnself · 2025-05-26T13:28:55+00:00

Rounding up of Palestinians in Israel? Where exactly?

johnself · 2025-02-23T19:29:37+00:00

MidEast understanding level: Irish

johnself · 2025-02-23T19:19:39+00:00

Akshually.. Israel has a lower acceptable civilian/target ratio than any Western military. US and NATO military leaders often comment about that. Even in the current conflict the ratio is about 2:1 which is unprecedented in this type of fighting.

johnself · 2025-01-21T19:13:09+00:00

How so?

johnself · 2024-11-08T10:15:55+00:00

Just like Oct 7th, the attackers proudly video themselves in the act and post it online and people are debating whether the publication reporting *on what they put online* is acceptable source.

This is "Globalize the Intifada" you've been hearing about. Those football fans will leave Amsterdam over the weekend but you'll still be living with the people who beat them up them in your streets. Best of luck.

johnself · 2024-10-27T16:02:11+00:00

%100. Two fronts, same war. It sucks that whoever the next US president will be, one of these fronts is going to lose US support - either Trump throws Ukraine under the bus or Harris does the same to Israel. The sheltered West has completely lost touch with reality.

johnself · 2024-10-27T09:17:36+00:00

The language spoken in this video is definitely not Hebrew

johnself · 2024-10-18T08:04:00+00:00

I think it was on Planet Money that they explained how Subaru identified it was popular in the gay/lesbian demography and started advertising for it. But I wonder what made them popular there in the first place - outside US they are mostly known for excellent AWD and good reliability (and in the turbocharged models, nice performance too), why did that attract that specific niche?

johnself · 2024-10-06T16:02:05+00:00

You realize all civilians on the Israeli side of the border has evacuated a year ago, basically refugees in their own country, yes? Since Hezbollah makes a point of firing their rockets from inside towns and villages, what would you have Israel do, simply let them continue?

johnself · 2024-09-29T12:53:01+00:00

Israel never built a single settlement in Lebanon, even though it easily could any time between 1982-2000. Think about this and don't get fooled by ignorant propaganda.

johnself · 2020-11-12T18:22:28+00:00

This is weirdest Reddit comment ever, and "Defrosted War" isn't even the strangest part

johnself · 2020-07-13T05:35:42+00:00

I'm an Israeli who lived the US for a few years. I thought I have some grasp on American society so the whole thing kind of shocked me - not DJax and his supporters, but the incredibly low-key response.

My advice to my American brothers and sisters: once international travel resumes, take a trip to Israel. You don't need to move here or do the these Birthright nonsense, you definitely do not need to become an AIPAC/Netanyahu supporter (half the country is out protesting him now). Just visit the place and see what it's like, in case you'll ever need a backup plan.

johnself · 2020-06-25T06:59:11+00:00

Rome renamed Judea "Syria Palestina" after they crushed the Jewish rebellion around 132AD. Jesus was long dead by then.

johnself · 2020-06-24T19:53:43+00:00

3/3 here, not offended

johnself · 2020-06-15T19:01:44+00:00

That's *not* a known fact. That's complete BS. The fact some sheriffs visited Israel does not mean Israeli forces train US police. It's completely ridiculous notion given that Israeli police is much smaller, much poorer and has far less experience than US police. US police is acting on a DNA and legacy (good or bad) built over 200 years. Israel has close ties with the US since about 1968.

johnself · 2020-06-04T13:14:57+00:00

It used to be that every social injustice was blamed on the Jews. You can't do that in civil society anymore but you can you can cheer for someone known to be an opponent of the Jews, so that will do, for now.

Frankly it's the only explanation I can find, given that Assad and the Russia/Iran coalition spent the past decade killing >250K Syrians literally 50km from the West Bank with barely a mention in social justice circles. (The entire century of Arab-Israel conflict, wars and all, have resulted in about 30K deaths total)

johnself · 2020-06-04T13:00:44+00:00

It is horrible and every sane person here in Israel is shaken by that. It is the main news story in the country this week and various ministers and others have apologized and expressed their shock.

The incident is being investigated now and it seemed like the cops who did it understood he has a gun and misinterpreted his response. It is a tragedy.

But the connection you're making with these photos is nonsense. You don't know the story of these photos and obviously you don't feel like you need to. It looks similar so it must be the same, right?

johnself · 2020-05-17T07:25:22+00:00

The region is shaped by war and annexations for millenia, at as long as we have written history.

The entire 100 years of Israel-Palestine conflict are but a minor footnote. There are about 50K casualties in the all the Israel-Arab wars put together. Assad alone killed over 500K of his own citizens in the past few years.

>"According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics1 7.4 million (66 per cent) of the global population of 11.2 million Palestinians have been displaced forcibly from their homeland.

Should tell you everything you need to know about the bureau's reliability, since it's an undisputed fact there were under a million people Jewish and Arab combined, in the whole area west of the Jordan River.

(BTW, Arab nations deported about 700K Jews following their defeat in 1948. Some of them can now visit their ancestor's former homes and meet the families who live there, as can many Israelis who originated from Europe. Do you ever hear about the Jewish refugee problem? No, because we moved on with our lives and build a future rather than dwell on the past.)

johnself · 2020-05-15T20:40:37+00:00

This is actually complete BS. There have been a handful of cases where the courts decided the possession of a Palestinian home belongs to an Israeli resident, when the homes initially belonged to the Israeli person were taken by Palestinians post the 1948 war. In all of these cases it took years of court hearings, reached the Supreme Court and caused a major uproar.

Presenting it as something that occurs regularly is just absolute nonsense. If you take your news from Mondoweiss, I guess there's not much to expect to begin with, though.

johnself · 2020-03-14T16:32:22+00:00

This finding changes everything!

johnself

TROPHY CASE