Eric Weinstein@ericweinstein
To my Israeli friends:
READ THE ROOM. As we all know the true situation in the Middle East is beyond complicated and well beyond the interests of the American electorate.
Israel has completed failed to explain how it sees the situation. Completely.
Assume for the moment that you the disatisfied Israelis are right about everything substantive (which you are not…but let’s assume).
You’re right about Iran being a danger to Europe. Assume you are right about Gaza. Assume you are right about Lebanon. Even assume you are right about targeted killings. Assume you are right about the diaspora being weak moralizing pussies. Assume you are right about the PA and Tunnels and Arabs using Hospitals, Press Credentials, Churches, the UN, children and Mosques as military cover. Etc. We all know the issues. Yes?
Assume you are right about everything else except one thing: YOU NEVER MADE THAT CASE WORK!!
Yes Trump is signing a bad deal. But why??
Brace yourselves: Because we Jews failed to make a case. I may have tried but I have failed. I personally failed. Me. I own it.
But with you, you didn’t know you were failing.
I came back to Israel to Jaffa, Jerusalem, TA and Israeli podcasts to yell and scream about this.
But you didn’t listen. You are failing to make both the true arguments that are in your favor and your weak arguments as well. You don’t have the people in government or the press or the army you need to win the arguments you must win. Your market allocated almost all of the A-Team to your tech sector. YOU/WE CANNOT AFFORD THIS.
I’m extremely upset about this situation as an American. Israel is far more accurate in her thinking about Iran than is the U.S. This deal is bad for me as an ordinary American having nothing to do with you.
This is just a bad deal. But we’re here because we Jews (Israel + the Diaspora) screwed up holding an unbelievable hand which we misplayed. And while I’m willing to say I failed, you are not. And over that I am livid. Because I screwed up a fraction of what you screwed up.
When we diaspora Jews with an audience stood up, you often undercut us where we live while we were making legitimate points that benefited. Europe, Israel, ordinary Persians and the U.S. Why? We don’t know.
My feeling is that you endangered the United States and the Diaspora and you don’t even know it.
Start by accepting that there is a price for failing to make your case. Even when you are 100% right.
So…This is now the deal. Because we failed to make even the simplest of correct points. Let’s eat the loss.
It’s time for a new PM. And to thank President Trump. Say the words: Thank you Mr Trump. And if those words burn in your or my mouth or cut like broken glass, so be it.
————
Thank you Mr President. For listening. For trying. I hate this deal and I have often been a detractor. That said:
Thank you nevertheless for trying to make the world a safer place by confronting what no one else could dare face. 🙏