The title is somewhat tongue in cheek because I really don’t see myself as being a radical, but in order to keep the interest of those on the far left who may see me that way, I chose to acknowledge what is very possibly going to be their claim. The purpose of this piece is to explain how I, David Groen got from Liberal Clinton Democrat who voted for Obama twice, to writing articles and letters that seem to align me far more with the Republican right. By the time you finish reading, whether you a Conservative or a Liberal I suspect I will surprise you, and very possibly disappoint you.
If it sounds like I am confused let me be clear. I am more certain of where I stand on most issues than I have been my entire life. I have not changed my views on some of the most polarizing issues of the day. As soon as I state my stances on abortion and gay marriage I am certain to get some ire from a large portion of the Conservatives reading this. When I state my views on Israel and Foreign Affairs I am certain to get the same from many of the Liberals. If this article seems like it is designed to make everyone angry at me, rest assured it is not. I’m merely someone comfortable expressing his political views and since I try not to be a hypocrite, I see no reason to hide my politics. In the end it is up to the reader to decide if he or she cares about my views, not me.
Most of the issues I intend to glance over quickly, while those dealing with Israel and Foreign Affairs in particular I will go into more detail. Here are some of the main issues that tend to define today’s Liberal and Conservative, not necessarily in the order stated. My order is based on how much I intend to say about the subject in this particular piece.
1-Abortion 2-Gay Marriage 3-Gun Control
4-Foreign Affairs 5-Israel; (specifically for Jews, but often for non-Jews as well).
1-Abortion: I am pro-choice. I believe a woman has the right to decide what to do with her own body.
2-Gay Marriage: I really don’t care who people sleep with and since I believe one of the reasons America is a great country is the separation of Church and State, and since the only reason to ban this is a religious one, I believe it’s not the government’s business. If a religious institution chooses not to marry gay people they have every right to make that choice.
3-Gun Control: I used to be so anti-gun that I would say that Americans had lost the right to bare arms based on our overall behavior with guns. I believe strict and enforced regulations are important, but in today’s worldwide political climate I see how the need exists for individuals to carry a gun, and since that may even mean me, it would be hypocritical of me to hold the same views I once held.
Before I go on I will take a moment to explain my voting history back to the first Clinton presidency. Actually the first part is easy. For right or for wrong back then I didn’t feel the need to analyze it too deeply. I voted for who I liked the most. I can say I voted Democrat across the board, and that would be true in local elections, but I also voted for Ronald Reagan(at least I think I did. I may have missed an election).
I liked Bill Clinton. The Monica Lewinsky issue aside, I still do. When Al Gore was running I found myself truly getting excited about politics. I thought he was going to be a tremendous president. Whether or not I was right or wrong we will never know because Florida and hanging chads happened and George W. Bush became president instead. With the devastation I felt when Gore did not become president and my 3 straight presidential elections voting Democrat, no one would ever have thought I would ever vote for W. That however, is exactly what happened in the next election. Since I greatly approved of his reaction and handling of 9/11, I voted for him when he ran for a second term. Besides, I wasn’t particularly impressed with John Kerry anyway. At least that is something that hasn’t changed.
When Barack Obama first hit the scene I was not a supporter. But not so much because I had a problem with him, but because I was big time for Hilary. When he defeated her in the primaries I was uncertain of my vote. I liked John McCain’s toughness and patriotism but I put a lot of stock in who a candidate chooses for Vice President. So when McCain picked Sara Palin it became a much easier decision for me. I voted for Obama. When Obama came up for reelection I once again looked at the opponent. I didn’t like Mitt Romney at all. I didn’t believe a word he said. Not because I believed he was necessarily so much less honest than everyone else, but because it always seemed that whatever he said was only designed to win the election. I never felt like he was true to anything. I also held out hope and wanted to believe that Obama did actually like Israel and that the things that looked bad were just part of his strategy to bring peace in the Middle East. His actions still may be designed with that purpose in mind, but since it looks more and more like he is selling Israel out in whatever this process of his is, I’m subsequently not too happy about that vote.
I can’t tell this history without admitting that in retrospect I made some mistakes, but everyone’s truth is what it is, and this is mine. Who knows? Maybe this piece will make some people admit votes they otherwise would have kept private. With that said I go back to my list.
4-Foreign Affairs: On no issue have I “radicalized” more. We all know the phrase history repeats itself. I believe that history is not as likely to repeat itself as it is to mimic itself. The difference may seem subtle but it is extremely significant and very important. As a son of Holocaust survivors, the history of the Jews in Europe has always been doubly personal. Both as a Jew and as the son of Dutch Jews. The Nazis rose to power under the unsuspecting noses of a hopeful Europe and somewhat detached America. By the time it was too late, Hitler had put together a juggernaut of evil and terror that ran over the continent and caused a war that saw the death of tens of millions of people, including 6 millions Jews killed in genocidal manner. The enemy was devastatingly powerful and ruthless. The tactics of the Nazis were as evil as anything the world has ever seen. They were organized, cohesive and powerful. But the allies had one advantage in attacking them. They were based in one country. Yes there was a 5th column, the “ordinary people” placed in other countries to do a form of reconnaissance, but for the most part Nazi Germany was based out of Germany. Although today’s evil uses some tactics very similar to the Nazis, and similarly their 2 main enemies are Americans and Jews, Muslim extremists are spread out in so many parts of the world, able to attack in so many different locations at any time, that the rising threat may have similarities to 1930s Europe, but nothing is a better example of history mimicking itself instead of repeating itself as the threats we face today.
That being said, the similarities are significant enough that I have formed the belief that negotiation and trust are just not a reasonable option. It hurts me to say that this is a fight I believe can only be won by force, but what do we see to tell us otherwise? If we are only looking for history to repeat itself, we can make the argument that this is nothing like 1930s Europe and the rise of Nazism. But the language is similar, the lack of morality which justifies killing is similar, and the growth is even faster. I don’t want to see innocent people get hurt, but innocent people needed to get hurt in Germany to stop the Nazis, and had that not happened millions of more innocent people would ultimately have gotten slaughtered. To me and to all civilized people that is something that should be unacceptable.
5-Israel: I have made a very clear statement that I have no intention of wavering from. My next vote for president will be for whichever candidate I believe is most pro-Israel and toughest in foreign affairs. I have been very vocal in my support of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The other day I decided to listen to a J Street video regarding the need for a two-state Solution. I think J Street is divisive and disingenuous, but in many ways I don’t believe a desire for a two-state solution is a bad thing necessarily. Much of the statements in the video carried a lot of merit. The status quo will not be good for Israel. It does create an even more dangerous future. The prices that have been paid by so many are very high, and yes, it is a lot easier to speak this way from the United States than it is from Israel. All that being said, it is not that I am opposed to a two-state solution per se, it is that under the current conditions a two-state solution is not a road to peace, it is a road to another Final Solution, not that different from the one attempted, and carried out to a large extent in devastating fashion by the Nazis against the Jews.
To make peace you either need more than one willing party or for one party to be significantly stronger. Those who criticize Israel the loudest do so because Israel, at the moment at least is stuck with the second choice. Being a more powerful nation Israel is still able to win their wars. With the lack of a willing peace partner Israel has 2 choices. Keep the enemy down or die. Forgive us “radicals” if we find the 2nd choice unacceptable. No reasonable caring person is blind to the price Israel has to pay. I can say with utmost confidence that the overwhelming majority of Israelis and Jews worldwide would gladly accept a two-state solution if it was with a party that truly wanted peace with the Jewish people. If I felt Jewish lives would be saved I would support it. But I believe, as do many like me, that more Jewish lives would be lost as a result of a two-state solution under the current conditions. And it’s just plain anti-Israel cynicism to believe it falls solely on Israel to change these conditions.
I can not and will not be moderate if I feel that a moderate viewpoint puts my people in danger.
People who truly know Israelis and truly know the Jewish people as a whole, know that we are a people who desire to live in peace. My lack of moderation is not based on some irrational hatred of Arabs and Muslims, my lack of moderation is based on those in power who talk about wanting to annihilate Israel and murder Jews while declaring a desire for peace for political or public relations expediency. It’s baffling to me that anyone would believe the intentions of those calling for the murder of innocents were good at all, and to be quite honest it baffles me that the view opposing Israel somehow became one more often affiliated with a liberal status. Maybe these people need to listen a little more to Alan Dershowitz.
So there you have my evolution to “radical”. Make no mistake though. This is one radical that hopes and prays that one day people will wake up and no longer allow their leaders to be preachers of death and destruction. When that happens I suspect I will no longer be seen as a radical, for I will be excited and supportive of what would then be a genuine peace process.
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