De Blasio’s Support for Israel

NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio doesn’t appeal to me because he is too far to the Left for my taste. I didn’t like the way he handled the charter schools issue, and his “tale of two cities” rhetoric is somewhat divisive and fosters an “us versus them” mentality. He pretty much marches in lockstep with the Progressive agenda.

But I read recently that the Mayor is not in complete lockstep with Progressive doctrine. He is very much pro-Israel, which runs contrary to mainstream liberal doctrine. As a matter of fact, de Blasio has taken a lot of heat from his fellow progressives on that subject. A lot of ugly things were said about him by his fellow lefties, even though he’s about as far left as you can get. So my opinion of the Mayor has changed somewhat, and I applaud him for acting on his conscience rather than towing the line of his fellow liberals on this important topic.

The harsh criticism of de Blasio by the Left has demonstrated once again what a harsh taskmaster political correctness is. There is little room for matters of conscience or individual thinking in the PC world. We see this oppression on university campuses, which are supposed to be bastions of free speech and exchange of ideas. The fact that the Left is so doctrinaire tells me that the terms Liberal and Progressive are misnomers. Moreover, the key virtue of the Left, Tolerance, is nowhere to be seen. Even within their own, there is very little tolerance of ideas or beliefs that run contrary in every aspect to mainstream political correctness.

I wanted to point out this contradiction so that you don’t get sucked in to political correctness, although it is very hard to avoid these days. I still believe in acting on your conscience and not being told what to think or do. Sometimes I get the feeling we are living the novels “Brave New World” and “1984” with the PC mavens acting as the thought police. In the meantime, let’s give the mayor credit for supporting Israel.

By the way, that doesn’t mean anybody who is pro-Israel agrees with all of the policies of that government. It simply means that we believe Israel has a right to exist. I believe I’ve written one or more posts on Israel in the past, but I think I will write another one soon. Most people are woefully ignorant of the recent history of that nation. Once you know a little something of its 20th century history, you’ll change your attitude towards that tiny nation.

Lest you think I’m picking on just the Left, see a future post for my criticism of the Right.