Much has been said and written about Israel’s latest war with Hamas. The atrocities of the October 7th massacre are beyond imagination. The evil unleashed by Hamas resulted in the deaths of more Jews than any single day since the Holocaust.
The terrorists of Hamas rejoiced in the bloodshed. They recorded their crimes so the whole world could see exactly who they are. The Israel Defense Forces released a phone call of an exuberant jihadi to his parents bragging, “Your son killed Jews! I killed ten with my own hands. Mom, your son is a hero!”
It’s hard to imagine there are lessons to be learned from the carnage in Gaza, but there are lessons WE MUST LEARN.
First, “Never Again” must mean Never Again. Israel, the only Jewish state in the world, has every right to defend itself against this evil. We must stand with Israel now.
Second, there is no negotiating with Hamas. They are not interested in peace with Israel or even a piece of Israel. Israel tried “land for peace.” It gave up Gaza in 2005, and, in exchange, the Palestinian people promptly voted for Hamas. Israel never got peace.
Third, border security is national security. The October 7th slaughter happened because Hamas exploited weaknesses in the Gaza border and 1,400 Israelis died.
Meanwhile, because of Joe Biden’s insane policies, our borders are wide open. Millions of illegal aliens, including record numbers of criminals and terrorist suspects, are entering our country every year. Nearly 110,000 Americans died last year from overdose deaths, much of it driven by the deadly fentanyl coming across the southern border.
Fourth, culture wars matter. What we’re witnessing in Israel today is undeniably a culture war – a clash of civilizations, a battle between good and evil. Israel is the tip of the spear, the frontline of defense of Western Civilization (Judeo-Christian civilization) against radical Islamic supremacy.
Sadly, there is a sickness in the heart of Islam. While hundreds of millions of Muslims want to lead peaceful lives, there are many who want to kill for Allah. The whole world saw that on September 11, 2001, and on October 7, 2023.
Anti-Semitism is pervasive throughout Islamic culture. Just look at the anti-Israel, pro-Hamas demonstrations that erupted on our college campuses and in our major cities since October 7th.
How is it possible that thousands of people in the United States are taking to the streets cheering the slaughter of Israelis and chanting calls for the genocide of Jews?
There are two reasons: One is immigration.
For decades now, we have literally imported hate into our country. We’ve made no attempt to screen the people coming into America to find out if they are bringing with them the anti-Semitic, anti-Christian hatred that permeates so much of the Muslim world. As a result, we now have mosques preaching hate all over America.
A second major factor is the radical ideology that dominates our college campuses and is spreading throughout academia into high schools and elementary schools. It preaches its own form of hatred – a hatred for America and Western Civilization based on neo-Marxism.
Many refugees from communist countries are trying to warn us against Marxist ideologies like critical race theory and “diversity, equity and inclusion.” They are anti-American, anti-capitalist and anti-Semitic.
Not only are we importing hate from around the world, we’re also teaching our own children to hate America. We’re teaching them that America was founded not in freedom in 1776, but in slavery and genocide in 1619.
One of the mantras of the left is “Diversity is our strength.” It’s repeated over and over again as its own form of indoctrination so we don’t question insane immigration policies and open borders.
But diversity by itself is no guarantee of strength. “Balkanization” and tribalism often lead to disputes and wars.
What makes societies and nations strong are shared values. That’s why throughout much of our history during previous waves of mass immigration we insisted on assimilation. Immigrants learned to speak English and they adopted American culture and values.
But the neo-Marxist left, determined to “fundamentally transform America,” abandoned assimilation for “multiculturalism.” We abandoned unity, E Pluribus Unum or Out Of Many One, to celebrate “diversity.” Because of the radical left, which is constantly attacking our values, even our flag and national anthem became polarizing and divisive issues.
Joe Biden is learning this lesson the hard way. The diverse progressive base of the Democrat Party is increasingly anti-Semitic. It is made up of young college-age voters, highly-educated voters and immigrants. The first two have been heavily indoctrinated and many immigrants have brought with them prejudices from the Islamic world.
Not surprisingly, the latest Gallup poll finds that Biden’s approval rating has fallen 11 points since October 7th – just among Democrats – because of his support for Israel. It seems diversity may not be the Democrats’ strength after all.
So, yes, culture wars do matter. And the politicians who refuse to fight them, preferring to focus on things like marginal tax rates and free trade, bear much responsibility for the state of our chaotic union today.
Disturbing and challenging days remain ahead. As men and women of faith, we must never give in to fear. “Be Not Afraid.” We must stand with Israel. We must fight anti-Semitism. And we must remember God’s command in Genesis 12:3:
“I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Gary L. Bauer, former chief domestic policy adviser to President Reagan and a Trump-appointee to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, serves as president of American Values, chairman of Campaign for Working Families PAC, and senior vice president of public policy for the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute.
