This. What @NZedAUS said.
It’s important to recognize — and please take a moment to let this sink in — that if the hostages all return home and the war ends, that is a •disaster• for Netanyahu.
The hostages and the war are the only thing keeping him afloat right now. Without them, he’s sunk. His back is to the wall. He •needs• this ongoing disaster to survive. And he’s willing to sacrifice anyone and anything — except himself — to prolong it. https://mastodon.nz/@NZedAUS/113065656738049256
This is why — and I’m going to catch some hate in the replies for this, but so be it — this is why it really rankles me when people feel the need to center •US• politicians in every single damned post about Netanyahu’s ongoing campaign of genocide.
Yes, yes, the Biden admin have up to this point grossly underutilized what leverage they have. I just think you all grossly overestimate how much leverage that really is.
These massive demonstrations in Israel right now give me hope. •That• is what can end this genocide.
For all the imperialist power of the US, for all the idealism of the UN, for all that every one of us worldwide aches for justice, this genocide ultimately ends in one place and one place only: internal Israeli politics.
More power to the protests. Long may they last.
@inthehands Ultimately you're right, and it is heartening to see.
I hope the sentiment shown in Israeli polls and surveys I saw a few months after 10/7 changes.
WRT to your 2nd toot, one of the levers of power we are able to pull is to apply pressure to Biden and his administration to do obvious things like stop weapons shipments.
We have no lever in Israel.
That's why many of us are focused here.
I have no way to influence things in Israel.
I hope you won't see this as hate.
@distractal
No, not seen as hate, and understood. But that’s blended into somehow imagining that the whole war is the Biden admin’s fault, which is a direct route to choices that are extremely harmful.
@distractal
Re the specific strategy of stopping weapons shipments: I wish the US would, but (1) that wouldn’t stop the war, it’s a fantasy to imagine it could, and (2) it would very likely throw the US election to a fascist who would remove any and all pressure against Netanyahu. Call for it anyway, yes, because it’s the right thing to do — but don’t lose sight of the sad political reality here, and for heaven’s sake don’t make that the electoral red line that ends US democracy.
@inthehands @distractal
You are right, it wouldn't stop the war. It would potentially make a maniac (Netanyahu) with nukes desperate. You hit on domestic politics too, and you are right stopping support for Israel would tip the election to trump who would emboldened Netanyahu. It just isn't simple. This is probably what tanked Biden's chances of re-election - he doesn't want this. If he had a solution it would have been implemented.