The Deadliest Lies: The Israel Lobby and the Myth of Jewish Control

by Abraham H. Foxman

Book Overview

The representative of the Jewish community and staunch defender of human rights, Foxman delivers a powerful blow to such ideas as "The Israel Lobby." He shows how old stereotypes associated with the most virulent forms of bigotry have been resurfacing and taking subtle new forms. From Carter to Mearsheimer, he addresses the public figures who make these beliefs appear credible. He also reveals a disturbing parallel trend: the decline of global Jewish...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1403984921
• ISBN13: 9781403984920
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Palgrave MacMillan
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Refutes the lies

An excellent and much-needed book. Refutes the lies and exposes the (latent or not) anti-semitism of many of Israel's detractors. Although it doesn't address every allegation (and couldn't, if meant to be a reasonable length), it does a thoroughy credible job of debunking many of the lies about and demonization of an entire people. In my opinion, what is going on is a set-up for another genocide. Unfortunately, the one-star raters here are full of the same anti-semitism and hate that caused the need for this book in the first place.

A Balanced View....

This book will make you think about factual misrepresentations (which are easily verifiable) in the media and other books that rail against the Israel-US lobby. AIPAC is a lobby for the Israel/United States relationship. There are many other lobbies for countries, professions, trades, corporations, etc. Lobbies are part of our democracy.

Yes, what is going on here?

Another reviewer asked me the question, "What is going on here?" It's a good question. This book is pretty well written and is politically moderate. Folks such as Dennis Ross and Elie Wiesel recommend it. Why does it have, so far, three times as many one-star reviews as 5-star reviews? Just what point are the one-star reviewers making? Well, in terms of facts and logic, they are not making any points at all. In terms of sheer numbers, they are simply proving that a few extremists who ignore things such as facts, logic, and rational discussion can drown out more serious individuals. And they are casting doubt on the value of their reviews of a bunch of other books. As for the book itself, it's useful in pointing out the problems with Walt and Mearsheimer's wild explanation of America's tolerance of and support for human rights for Levantine Jews. As Foxman points out, some of the things in Walt and Mearsheimer's book are truly silly, such as the stuff about the Israeli lobby seeking to enforce ideological conformity on U.S. college campuses. As anyone can see, pro-Israeli voices are not particularly strong on American college campuses: screams of outrage at the existence of human rights for Israeli Jews tend to be louder, and some university departments are notorious for abandoning academic standards in order to side with these screamers. In addition, Foxman asks why, if America were following Israel's wishes, did we attack Iraq when Israel regarded Iran as more dangerous? Sure, Israel regarded Iraq as dangerous as well, but had we followed Israel's wishes rather than our own, we would not have attacked Iraq as we did. I would add that many Israelis were probably concerned about the possibility that in order to get support for attacking Iraq, the United States might also agree to decrease its support for Israel. Is mere criticism of Israel legitimate? Of course, and Foxman says so. But he adds that "criticism that condemns Israel simply for existing" is not legitimate. Criticism singling out Israel is not legitimate, in Foxman's opinion. I can imagine some circumstances in which it might be proper to single out some nation or other, but there are plenty of others where there's no excuse for it. Finally, Foxman says that criticism that "concludes that only bad faith or evil motives can explain any failure or error on Israel's part" isn't legitimate. The author then points out some of the many problems with Jimmy Carter's atrocious book, "Peace not Apartheid." As Foxman says, "it's terribly sad - and potentially tragic - that a former U.S. president should be doing so much to perpetuate myths that themselves constitute roadblocks to peace." Maybe this is a good time for those of us who value reason and discussion to calm down and talk about issues. Let the extremists on this forum generate noise with their taunts. Ignore them. If you want to make yourself heard, try to make sense rather than use words as weapons in

The new liberal Pharao knows not Joseph

Antisemitism has constantly shifted shape down the centuries. The church accused the Jewish people of deicide and later invented the creed of Replacement Theology, an attempt to usurp the Jewish heritage. A further mutation of theological Antisemitism was the racial version which culminated in the Holocaust. Now it has mutated again, appearing as Anti-Zionism which is the desire to annihilate the Jewish State. Two excellent studies on the new Antisemitism are available in The Resurgence of Anti-Semitism: Jews, Israel, and Liberal Opinion by Bernard Harrison and The New Anti-Semitism by Phyllis Chesler. In this work, Foxman sets out to refute Jimmy Carter's slanderous accusations against Israel and the distortions of Walt and Mearsheimer who aim to portray the Israel lobby as a powerful sinister force manipulating US foreign policy against America's interests. Not only does Foxman effectively point out the flaws in the arguments of Walt & Mearsheimer, he also demonstrates the sinister sub-text in their book. He reveals how their work makes use of the same outright falsehoods, half-truths and distortions that have been characteristic of Antisemitic libels for many centuries. Bernard Harrison in his aforementioned book also observes how the "new" Antisemitism resembles the old; how the same assumptions, imagery and concepts are employed. Being tactful, Foxman does not call Walt, Mearsheimer or Jimmy Carter Antisemites. In this he is very kind, as both books under discussion contain some really glaring innuendo. He does explore the anti-Israel propaganda in the Arab world, of which further evidence is available in the book Peace: The Arabian Caricature of Anti-Semitic Imagery by Arieh Stav. This kind of thing is of course completely ignored by Carter, Mearsheimer and Walt. The latter two even try to euphemize the threat of the Iranian president to "wipe Israel off the map." The author devotes some pages to making a distinction between legitimate criticism of Israeli actions and demonization of Israel - when Anti-Zionism becomes Antisemitism. A chapter is devoted to Fox's dispute with the critic of Israel Tony Judt. He observes that there is a link between the books under discussion and the Judt episode. The books complain that the Israel lobby stifles debate while Judt employed that accusation in the dispute. The foreword by former secretary of state George Schultz is a concise and illuminating argument in its own right. He argues that US support for Israel is in America's own best interest. The lobby system is part of how government functions and the Israel lobby has as much right as the petrodollar lobby to exert its influence. Finally, the US government alone is responsible for the policies it adopts and the actions it takes. America has been a good friend to Israel but has sometimes acted against Israel's interests. In both the 1967 and 1973 wars it was because of American pressure that Israel's victorious advances were halted. Fair enou

Excellent insights into today's tragic wave of Israel bashing

It is a scary thing indeed that a book like this needs to be written at all. Sadly, recent events and publications which smack of the anti-Jewish rants of Henry Ford, Father Coughlin, David Duke, and others are making their way into prestigious and scholarly publications and institutions. They carry the seeming credibility of legitimate political discourse, but are only carefully disguised tirades that bring up the paranoia of a "Jewish conspiracy" that even the most cursory rational research reveals never existed in the first place. Foxman concisely and eloquently reveals the weak arguments and sheer lack of evidence that support the vicious ideological attacks against Israel and worldwide Jewry. Does the Israel lobby exist? Yes, of course it does. Does it have influence in US policy? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. (This can be said of any lobby.) Is it any more powerful or sinister than any other lobby? Absolutely not, and Foxman makes a good case to this end. Why, then, is Israel singled out for such vitriolic criticism not only by self-avowed anti-Semites, but by highly-regarded academics and others who really should know better? No one can definitely know the motivation of these people, but it certainly adds nothing positive to public debate when facts are skewed, omitted, or manufactured to create a shoddy argument that simply encourages paranoia and hatred, and makes a reasonable solution to the real problems that much more unreachable. Foxman points out that Israel, like any country, is not perfect. The Israel lobby is like any other lobby. If you put any credence into the "sinister, all-powerful Israel Lobby" thesis, read this book and then think about your views. I think you'll be surprised that your notions about Israel and Jews will change. For the sake of our country and the world, I hope Foxman's book and others like it will help pave the way for rational discourse and peaceful solutions. Scapegoating should never be taken seriously.