1. After Norm Finkelstein exposed this guy as the complete fraud he is, who would waste their time with this junk?
   Rating: 1 / 5

2. A very skilful writer, Alan Dershowitz has again managed to mangle much of the truth, which he liberally mixes with sheer falsehoods and reasoning so poor that one wonders why he occupies a lofty position at Harvard. Perhaps the dog has indeed caught its own tail. We have been saturated with pro-Israel biased reporting and there is incessant whinging about the Holocaust – we have, up to recently had a knee-jerk response -“Israel is good and above criticism – the Palestinians are totally bad and corrupt”
   
   Fortunately there is now sufficient well-reasoned material around so that we can get away from the gross propaganda such as the stuff delt out here. We can and will criticize anyone we want including Israel’s actions. That is not anti-Semitism. So much that finds its way into the American press is just lies, defamming the Palestinians. Dershowitz’s book is, at its core, racist. Holocaust survivors’ families want the return of the properties that the Nazies stole from them. Understandibly. However, that right does not extend to the Palestinians – it is a uniquely a Jewish right. Steal land – do not compensate; stick illegal settlements into Palestine and steal the water – why should these stay in place? Dershowitz cannot have it both ways – If the Survivors want compensation and the return of their property (as best as is possible) the same must apply to the Palestinians. The latter has been replaced by a series of Big Lies, which Dershowitz repeats. Shame! This book is a rehash of Big Lies and is Nazi in content because of its racism and inherent classificaton of Palestinians as Untermensch. Dershowitz reiterates and promulgates a fascist, racist, position.
   Rating: 1 / 5

3. The arguments are simplistic, biased towards the Israelis (surprise, surprise!) ….same old diatribes about why israel should exist…
   Rating: 1 / 5

4. Dershowitz does not even mention UN RES 194(III) concerning the refugees right of return or compensation. Dershowitz would refuse compensation to the children of the original refugees – (It is the children , of course, who are alive now and who are protesting and blowing themselves up). He would put a 50 year statute of limitations (not 60 years!) on claim of refugees status-and he thinks that would be accepted! He thinks the right of return should not be a personal right of the origanal owner but a collective right so it could be negotiated away by Isreli politicians. He seems to say that the Palestinian refugees and Jewish refugees from Arab countries should both be denied compensation. The Jewish settlors should receive compensation! I wonder who he thinks he can convince of all this? Surely not the Palestinians. I suppose I could go on and on. Well – Good Luck, Alan.
   Rating: 1 / 5

5. This book contains 203 pages of text including 6 full pages of maps. There is plenty of blank space for ends of chapters and large chapter titles. Additionally provided: table of contents – 2 pages, acknowledgments – half page, end notes – 35 pages,and index – 8 pages.

   By describing anti-Israel influences, the author inadvertently guides me to them and gives me encouragement that there may be a meaningful opposition in the world to Zionism. For years I have noted a decided favoritism toward Israel in this country, particularly in our news and entertainment industry and in the actions of our politicians. I have feared that I might be part a small minority that questions this favoritism.

   The author’s arguments are unconvincing. He suggests that “realities on the ground” require that Israel retain settlement territories that have been heavily developed by Israelis. The true reality is that these territories were stolen by Israel. Indeed the very founding of Israel was enabled by stealing land from the native Arab population and running off a sufficient number of Arabs to give Israel a large Jewish majority. That is hardly democracy in action, and the author fails to present any argument to justify it. He presents as a basic axiom the requirement to maintain this large Jewish majority. It is Zionism at it’s essence, that somehow the world owes the Jews their own country regardless of how it is obtained.

   Surprisingly, the author speaks of the asymmetry of criticism against Israel and Palestinians, saying that it is the intellectuals and elites that are critical of Israel, while critics of the Palestinians come from lower ranks. To me, this says that the people who are educated and think with any depth are the ones critical of Israel.

   The author complains bitterly that Israel is being singled out for criticism while atrocities by other nations are being ignored. This is weak. First, atrocities by other nations are certainly under criticism, and the offenses of other nations do not diminish the offenses by Israel. Second, Israel’s actions in the Middle East are of critical importance to the world energy supply and peace. If there is any singling out of Israel, it is the pro-Israel influence in the U.S. where the news media gives endless coverage to Israel, where we are frequently bombarded with Holocaust images, and where our government provides Israel with more foreign aid than to any other country.

   There are other illogical arguments made by the author, but addressing all of them goes well beyond this relatively brief book review. On the whole, I was impressed with the manipulative presentation offered by the author. It is amazing to what extent people will go to justify their illogical proposals.
   Rating: 2 / 5

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.