Amoz Oz asks in his commentary in Times online "Why won't the Israelis give peace a chance?". His conclusion is, that Israel is doing America´s bidding in contrast to her own security needs.
Amoz Oz is the same Israeli intellectual, who inspite of being considered by some "the Israeli peace camp incorporated" fully supported the last Israeli war against Lebanon.
Only when it was clear that Israel was loosing, did he start to oppose it.
But Amos Oz is not much different from Uri Avnery, who opposed the war from the start, in his opinion that Israel is only doing the bidding of the United States and not the other way around.
My guess is, that both Oz and Avnery, and Noam Chomsky for that matter, sincerely believe this.
To accept that the Israeli government, not the US government, is deliberatly sacrificing the safety of their the Israeli Jewish population, would end their last remnant of trust in Zionism.
But historic documents, like the diarys of earlier Israeli presidents, prove that the real powers within Israel never were interested in a negotiated peace with their neighbours. They also prove, that those leaders deliberately provoked violence from Palestinians and other Arab neighbours against their own population to keep the Israeli society a militaristic one.
The real reason, why most Israelis and Diaspora Jews close their eyes befor these facts, might be the traditional unconditional loyality Jewish people show towards their community and their leaders.
Christians and Muslims, as members of universalist religions, have been taught that loyality must be formost towards God and righteous (divine) principles, loyality must be earned, it should never be given blindly no matter what.
Jews as members of a tribal religion have been taught that loyality towards ones own community transcends any principles. While criticism inside - of leaders and members of the community - is allowed, every one of them must be defended against the outside world, no matter what. And while community members might make "mistakes", they are still of more value than any outsiders.
And when the "mistakes" become so big that they become undeniable and must be admitted towards the outside world, then those admissions must be coupled with blaming outside forces.
And in spite of loosing the religious justification, secular Zionist Jews still cling to this loyality tradition, not realizing that this blind loyality might be in part to blame for historic anti-Jewish persecution.
If one doesn´t distance oneself from thugs one is identified with them.
Some Jewish communities and individuals in the tradition of Moses Mendelsson, (a German-Jewish reformer, a friend of the German playright and philosopher Lessing and the model for Lessings "Nathan, the Wise") strive to embody universal principles in their religious believes.
Those Jews oppose Zionism and support fully the rights of the Palestinians and the neighbouring countries.
But as for now, those reformers are still a minority
