Originally posted by Strangerous
This always strikes me when we discuss the ME - the majority of Americans seem to instinctively back Israel.
Firstly, this is not completely true. A majority of Americans do not “support” Israel. Americans support Israel to a point and this support has been shown to have discernable limits. And there should be a distinction made between sympathy and support as they are not the same.
The highest historical US polling numbers in support to Israel is centered on “sympathy” as a topic (rarely above 50%). Therefore, you may find higher number of Americans sympathetic to Israel “overall” and yet not support her actions, administration and policies. Basically “we understand your problems…however you may be going about a solution (if any) completely wrong”
The recent Gallup poll also contradicts the generalization of Americans seemingly supporting Israel and shows there is a line that gets crossed. Eg 32% want an immediate ceasefire and in the same poll question 43% want no involvement at all…not too ‘supportive’…although more to my point about the distinction:
Additionally, more than 8 in 10 Americans say that the Israeli military action is justified, even though the majority of that group believes that the Israelis have gone too far in terms of the extent of that action.(from the above source link)
I would say there is a greater number of sympathetic Americans rather than simply said as…‘supportive’.
mg


