The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy: John J. Mearsheimer

It is so tiresome that any reasonable critique of Israel is automatically flagged as anti-semitism and racism. They are a country like any other. Their leaders are open to criticism. Their foreign policy is too. I've only recently discovered John Mearshimer and I really appreciate his level headed analysis.

It's pretty bad when you have to start the talk with a disclaimer proclaiming your allegiance and love for Israel.

It takes immense courage to stand there and talk about this subject.

Stating the obvious. Americans should put America interests first. Why should that be controversial?

if you want to know who rules over you, ask you who you are not allowed to criticize- Voltaire

US giving $10,000,000+ a day to Israel as a welfare state is crazy. National infrastructure and internal issues should take precedence.

Criticizing Israel's policy is too often labeled anti semitic. I'm Christian, liberal, and I m American but grew up and lived all over the world, so I'm cosmopolitan and anything but xenophobic. Criticism of Israel to me is like criticism of the US, it is offered in good faith and it's much needed. So this talk is welcome.

I was a teacher at a NYC university where people could and did criticize President Obama (and other presidents), but one world leader was NOT discussed freely: PM Netanyahu, because of intimidation and a general condemnation of anything remotely critical of Israel. This chilling effect will continue to keep Jewish Americans somewhat suspect in the eyes of those of us who want the USA to be fair and even-handed in the Middle East, and NOT a cheerleader for one side no matter how unjust and un- -American. I see the Israel Lobby as detrimental to American foreign policy as was the McCarthy era of the Fifties.

It is easier and safer to dismiss all questions and critiques as conspiracy theories, rather than to objectively study their individual points.

America doesn't need to be going to war because it is in the interest of some other nation. We are not attack dogs, and our citizens value their lives too!

Talking bad about Israel , is not anti Semitic it’s , anti Zionism.

"Israel lobby has chilling effect on dissenting views". gets deplatformed kinda proves his point, doesn't it?

Amazing all the rhetorical precautions these guys take...tells a lot.

I applaud the authors for having to courage to write this book.

Excellent lecture, and kudos to the University of Chicago for hosting it

I think these two professors are being too polite for the truth.

I'm 71 years old and grew up thinking Israel could do no wrong. I had Jewish neighbors and knew we were very much the same sort of people and had very much the same attitudes about life or at least we shared the same neighborhoods and could easily understand each other, A Jewish identity was something Jewish people had to remind me of, not something I tended to notice or even care much about. And even as a kid the schools reminded us of the abuses of the Nazi regime but it became an almost exclusively Jewish holocaust over the years and the nearly equal number of other people the Nazi's didn't want around were never really mentioned. The death camps were multifunctioning. . But in college I started to hear about the Palestinians and realized the story was not so one sided. If I did hear about it, the media made it always a case that the Palestinians were usually radicals and dangerous and the Israelis were brave defenders against persecution. Nearly 20 years later, The internet gave access to information like UN history and resolutions I had never really heard much about regarding the torturous history of Israeli-Palestinian relations that was not easy to see without it. That blew the roof off the subject and I no longer believe Israel can do no wrong. BTW - I was not interested in politics, hardly ever read newspapers and listened to TV and radio news like it was musak or semi informative wallpaper.. I know one has to tread carefully when discussing Israel and it is guaranteed aggravating and frustrating to even think about it. But I am kind of disgusted with the idea of Zionism for the simple reason one couldn't found anything like that philosophy in this country or under our constitution. European countries, and many others, may have de facto ethnic or religious identities but I don't think any of them make that identity a part of their own constitutions. The Middle East still clings to its religious and ethnic identities by law and perhaps that's the only place that Zionism can really exist? They all tend to think the same way and that's such a pity and as far I as I'm concerned and not to be admired. I feel no obligation to believe in the rightness or justice of the idea of a Jewish homeland. It may have been a source of great joy and comfort following WWII but it sure doesn't look so splendid or right today. The whole region is looking more and more like an outlier. I was born in a country where religious and ethnic identity did not guarantee one a "Homeland" with "one's kind" and I find it very hard to support others who think that is necessary. Ethnic neighborhoods have their charm but they are not really something it is very admirable to fight or die for and they probably wouldn't be at all charming if they did. We moved around a lot when I was younger and I never seemed to acquire a taste for that kind of exclusivity. It can tend to make bigotry and narrow mindedness some kind of virtue.

America is a nation that has willingly given foxes free reign in the hen house

Israel was once offered US statehood, to which Israel replied, “oh, that’s very nice of you, but would mean we’d only have 2 senators.”

Thank you University of Chicago for allowing these wonderful gentlemen to speak. Those who try to stop ( the Israel lobbyists) them speaking largely show their hand that the Israel is now a state akin to South Africa up until it ended apartheid. I am not an Arab nor have any connections to the middle east. But I can see the grave injustice being perpetrated upon Palestinians.