Book Review: Winning a Debate with an Israel-Hater
Professor Ilan Rotstein reviews book by Dr. Michael Harris
Winning a Debate with an Israel-Hater: How to Effectively Challenge Anti-Israel Extremists in Your Neighborhood, written by Dr. Michael Harris, is thoughtful and eye-opening and addresses an issue of critical importance. Dr. Harris is a dedicated activist whose passion and creativity are evident throughout the pages of this book.
The guide is an invaluable handbook for those who want to counter the pernicious lies promoted by anti-Israel activists. It not only debunks their arguments, but also provides techniques you can use to make your points most effectively. Whether you’re fighting against an Israel boycott effort in your community or an Israel divestment resolution on campus, “Winning a Debate with an Israel-Hater can help you significantly,” says Roz Rothstein.
Besides laying out a strategy for winning the debate, the book covers the Palestinian lexicon, the UN’s bias against Israel, the one-state versus two-state debate, anti-Zionism, antisemitism, the BDS movement, and more.
Here are few quotes from the book, to give you a taste:
Imagine some of the key points from Alan Dershowitz’s authoritative volume, The Case For Israel—as it might be delivered by Bill Maher. All the information you need in this street fight of words, but delivered in a light and accessible way, with satirical humor.
When it comes to Israel, the UN has the tenacity of a small terrier working its favorite chew toy. The reason for this has been well established: the automatic majority of states that because of oil, Islam, or “stick it to The Man” anti-Americanism will vote yes on almost any anti-Israel resolution.
Holocaust inversion leads to obscenities such as posters of Anne Frank in a keffiyeh, or a photo of concentration camp survivors holding signs saying “Free Palestine.” The comparison sometimes takes the form of “You, of all people, should know better than to act in this way.”
When I told an antisemitic colleague that Jews were indigenous to Israel, he said, no, "indigenous" means who was there when Westerners arrived. I asked whether Romans counted as Westerners. This professor in the "human sciences" had no idea about the history of the Middle East. Knowledge of the region helps to counter critics, but also a level of patience and humor that, I am sorry to say, I did not have.
Bought it. Thanks for the tip.