A new human low can only be stopped by brute force

The whole idea of the post-WW I League of Nations and the post-WW II United Nations was, war is such a terrible thing, it should be avoided by negotiations. The underlying belief seems to be: of course, many countries would like to increase their powers, if needed by violent means but in fact, all nations are basically decent and we would all gain from arranging or rearranging things through peaceful means.

WW II happened 70 years ago but many still think within the old frameworks to understand politics. However, a new evil has arisen decades ago and those who don’t recognize it can’t fight it.

● Murder and genocide are no longer just side-effects of anger and nationalism gone berserk or the works of some lone “madmen” but might now be seen by some as holy endeavors in themselves.
● War no longer is merely a byproduct of lack of reason but rather is now sometimes interpreted as holy and good in itself.
● Destruction is no longer only an unfortunate spin-off of human irrationality but by some could be perceived as an objective in itself.

Half a century ago, no one could have predicted that some day, political powers would arise that have different rationales. Their goal would not be to increase in power but to destruct.

Not so long ago, a leading Orthodox-Jewish scientist taught that all civilizations basically believe in the same values. No culture values falsehood over truth, theft over honesty, murder over peace, etc.

But we can’t say this anymore. And that has consequences.

No reasonable negotiations are possible to find a compromise with people whose goal is to kill. Who learned that hate and ruin in themselves are good. Only some postponement can be won, but their zeal to maim and murder cannot be stopped by reason.

Not the voice of reason but only a voice of might can stop murderous regimes.

I’m not talking about countries like Russia or China. They’re only trying to get to world-domination – the old stuff. Or North-Korea, which would like to get more powerful. With such nations, negotiations are possible.

But preachers of hatred, like Iranian and Arab-Palestinian leaders, can only be stopped by brute force.

Another new situation is that in modern times, Jews never had a state and antisemitism therefore was not expected to bias bodies for world-peace. It was unforeseen that a majority of states could by default vote against a Jewish State, and it shows – with some token reservations.

We’ll Mess it up and Then G-d Will Make Peace

Another outdated but still widely used model is the Marxist idea that the masses first must be destitute enough before they’ll revolt. Don’t miss that right-wingers widely use this “logic.” Trying to appease murderous masses with some wealth to prevent a revolution.

It’s been pointed out before that many suicide-bombers came from well-to-do families, were successful university students.

Another doomsday way of thinking we often see among fundamentalist Christians. They actually long for “the final battle” of Agamemnon, having been taught that there evil itself will be defeated.

They don’t understand that such thinking itself is evil and that we’re challenged to find a peaceful, un-bloody way to bring Paradise on earth. (G-d doesn’t need our help to bring Redemption. Rather, He gives us a chance to do it instead of Him, so that we will be meritorious.)

Masses hellbent (pun intended) on killing Jews (including many Muslims in the Middle East), especially those who never met a Jew in their lives, were often brain-washed into seeing genocide on Jews are an ideal. This is not connected to revenge or anger. Hate is what they were raised on.

Another problem is that mass murder plans are no longer the “prerogative” of states. Terrorist groups like Chezbollah, Chamas and ISIS are proud to plan war crimes but can’t be prosecuted because they aren’t countries.

Preachers of hate, like masses set on committing genocide (of Armenians, Jews, Hutus), can only be stopped by brute force.

Summary

So, “new” to be considered is that some cultures and states are destructive, not from anger but because they regard it as holy. And some non-state groups and states strife for mass murder and genocide, not from anger but because they regard it as saintly.
Jews need special protection in international organizations.
Some groups try to get away with war crimes because they’re not states.
Stop being blind to political reality from thinking in old concepts only.

About the Author

MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. * As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. * This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. * Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. * Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. * Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. * He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. * He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. * He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. * His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. * To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. * His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1