Many people more articulate than I am have denounced Sen Joe Lieberman's proposed law to preemptively strip Americans accused of terrorist affiliations of their citizenship.
There's an aspect of this that I haven't seen discussed, though, which I make the subject of this diary: the notion of revoking citizenship of people you don't like. The notion of a state in which holding a dissenting belief, or having a different ethnic or religious background, becomes a basis for expropriation and expulsion.
This is an idea that is gaining traction on the right in Israel. Holy Joe is bringing it home.
As everyone knows, Israel faces a huge demographic problem if it continues to occupy and progressively annex the West Bank. There are just too many arabs there, making babies too fast. There are alot of Israeli arabs too - and they can and do vote - which is a source of fury on the Israeli right. The notion of a tolerant, inclusive society was always just a fig leaf, they say. Israel is for Jews.
My own Israeli friends view the future of Israel with more apathy and pessimism than I have ever seen. The notion of "the wall" - that great barrier of cement, barbed wire, motion sensors - seems to have become if not the hope, at least an idea of survival in an impossible situation.
Israelis obviously have legitimate fears about their security, and there is a long track record of arab violence and extremism. But pessimism about the peace process has opened the door to a vicious ideology on the right: all arabs are insane, all arabs are violent, force is the only language arabs understand.
But what of arabs with Israeli citizenship? The next logical step is survelliance, loyalty tests, and expulsion. These are repugnant ideas that are being introduced under the banner of "fighting terrorism" - accompanied by savage escalations in military force, such as the use of white phosphorus munitions in Gaza in 2008.
Lieberman is no fool - he knows his bill won't become law. He may be positioning himself for an "I told you so" posture, hoping to ride a wave of paranoia after a future terrorist attack on the US.
But I believe that Leiberman's second agenda is to shore up support for racist, punitive, and antidemocratic policies in Israel, by building a base of support in the US.
I believe in Isreal's right to exist, and its responsibility to defend (all) its citizens. But IMO the greatest "existential" threat to Isreali security is from anti-democratic fanaticism on the right - remember that many of these are the same people who celebrate the murder of Yitzak Rabin, and lionize his murderer.
This fanatic movement is a threat to our liberties here at home too - and holy Joe is one of the carriers of the virus.