An open letter to Ian Buruma, By Bret Stephens

[Gimel]

Dear Mr. Buruma:
Are you a Jew?

For reasons somewhat obscure to me, this was the first question that sprang to mind while reading your article in last week's New York Times magazine, "How to Talk About Israel." Buruma is not an obviously Jewish name (neither is Stephens, for that matter), and what little I knew about you is that you'd written a great deal about Asia. I did remember a piece you wrote in The Guardian some time ago, when Tom Paulin accused you of having "Zionist credentials" and your answer was somewhat coy. Rightly so, I suppose. Paulin is an anti-Semite and he was accusing you, in effect, of "thinking like a Jew." Your answer, as I recall, was: Whether or not I'm a Jew, what possible difference does it make?

Still, I want to know:
More

This is an Israeli journalist's response to the article that Cassandra posted last week. It is a Jerusalem Post article, so some of you may not be willing to register in order to read the entire article.

[rini]

1. NYT article

I read the original article and thought it condensating. Maybe because I am so tired of lies, more lies, and fairy tales being taken seriously. As an American and as a Jew I was deeply offended by the "need" to defend the loyalty of Jews. I did like Stephens response from an Israeli viewpoint.