Re: Walt Mearsheimer response

terrific ... congragulations

--- "Alan M. Dershowitz" dersh@law.harvard.edu
wrote:

The Kennedy School has agreed to post my detailed
response to the working
paper on the Israel lobby by its Academic Dean and
Professor Stephen Walt
and University of Chicago Professor John
Mearsheimer. I believe that my
response devastates their paper by proving that it
is a recycling of
discredited trash that appears daily on neo-Nazi and
radical Islamic hate
sites. I demonstrate that quotes are deliberately
wrenched out of context
to make the writers appear to be saying exactly the
opposite of what they
actually said; important facts are misstated,
distorted and omitted, all
against Israel and the American Jewish community;
embarrassingly weak logic
is used in an effort to demonstrate a conspiratorial
view of history in
which a small number of American Jews and their
compliant Christian dupes
act against the interests of their own country and
in the interests of
Israel. In one of their most bizarre allegations,
Walt and Mearsheimer
claim that supporters of Israel do “not want an open
debate on issues
involving Israel”. Yet it is they who refuse to
debate these issues.
Mearsheimer cancelled a scheduled debate with me on
the BBC and has
repeatedly refused other invitations to debate his
demonstrably false
contentions. To date Walt has also not been willing
to accept my challenge
to debate him at the Kennedy School.

In light of the numerous and obvious errors in their
paper, and in light of
their concession that “none of the evidence
represents original
documentation or is derived from independent
interviews,” I ask the
question of why these prominent professors would
have chosen to publish a
paper that does not meet their usual scholarly
standards. This is an
especially important question given the obvious risk
that recycling these
discredited but explosive charges under the
imprimatur of prominent authors
and their universities would be seized on by bigots
to promote their
anti-Semitic agendas. As so-called “realists” these
professors must have
understood that their false and discredited charges
would be featured, as
they have been, on neo-Nazi and extremist websites
and even by terrorist
organizations.

As an advocate of free speech and an opponent of
censorship based on
political correctness, I welcome a serious,
balanced, objective study of
the influences of lobbies ­ including Israeli
lobbies ­ on American foreign
policy. I also welcome reasoned, contextual and
comparative criticism of
Israeli policies and actions. Let the marketplace of
ideas remain open to
all. But, as I show, this study is so filled with
distortions, so empty of
originality or new evidence, so tendentious in its
tone, so lacking in
nuance and balance, so unscholarly in its approach,
so riddled with obvious
factual errors that could easily have been checked
(but obviously were
not), and so dependent on biased, extremist and
anti-American sources, as
to raise the question of motive: what would motivate
two well recognized
academics to depart so grossly from their usual
standards of academic
writing and research in order to produce a “study
paper” that contributes
so little to the existing scholarship while being so
susceptible to misuse?

I renew my challenge to debate these issues and will
make myself available
for debate or discussion of the Mearsheimer-Walt
paper and my response.

My response is available on the Kennedy School of
Government site at

http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/research/working_papers/facultyresponses.htmhttp://www.ksg.harvard.edu/research/working_papers/facultyresponses.htm

I can be reached through my office at 617-496-2187
or
mailto:dersh@law.harvard.edudersh@law.harvard.edu.

Sincerely,

Alan Dershowitz

Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com

yes I've started

--- "Alan M. Dershowitz" dersh@law.harvard.edu
wrote:

Jeffrey, were you going to distribute this for
Alan?? If I should forward
this to someone in your office, pls let me know.
Thanks,
Jane

At 04:36 PM 4/5/2006, you wrote:

terrific ... congragulations

--- "Alan M. Dershowitz" dersh@law.harvard.edu
wrote:

The Kennedy School has agreed to post my
detailed

response to the working
paper on the Israel lobby by its Academic Dean
and

Professor Stephen Walt
and University of Chicago Professor John
Mearsheimer. I believe that my
response devastates their paper by proving that
it

is a recycling of
discredited trash that appears daily on neo-Nazi
and

radical Islamic hate
sites. I demonstrate that quotes are
deliberately

wrenched out of context
to make the writers appear to be saying exactly
the

opposite of what they
actually said; important facts are misstated,
distorted and omitted, all
against Israel and the American Jewish
community;

embarrassingly weak logic
is used in an effort to demonstrate a
conspiratorial

view of history in
which a small number of American Jews and their
compliant Christian dupes
act against the interests of their own country
and

in the interests of
Israel. In one of their most bizarre
allegations,

Walt and Mearsheimer
claim that supporters of Israel do “not want an
open

debate on issues
involving Israel”. Yet it is they who refuse to
debate these issues.
Mearsheimer cancelled a scheduled debate with me
on

the BBC and has
repeatedly refused other invitations to debate
his

demonstrably false
contentions. To date Walt has also not been
willing

to accept my challenge
to debate him at the Kennedy School.

In light of the numerous and obvious errors in
their

paper, and in light of
their concession that “none of the evidence
represents original
documentation or is derived from independent
interviews,” I ask the
question of why these prominent professors would
have chosen to publish a
paper that does not meet their usual scholarly
standards. This is an
especially important question given the obvious
risk

that recycling these
discredited but explosive charges under the
imprimatur of prominent authors
and their universities would be seized on by
bigots

to promote their
anti-Semitic agendas. As so-called “realists”
these

professors must have
understood that their false and discredited
charges

would be featured, as
they have been, on neo-Nazi and extremist
websites

and even by terrorist
organizations.

As an advocate of free speech and an opponent of
censorship based on
political correctness, I welcome a serious,
balanced, objective study of
the influences of lobbies ­ including Israeli
lobbies ­ on American foreign
policy. I also welcome reasoned, contextual and
comparative criticism of
Israeli policies and actions. Let the
marketplace of

ideas remain open to
all. But, as I show, this study is so filled
with

distortions, so empty of
originality or new evidence, so tendentious in
its

tone, so lacking in
nuance and balance, so unscholarly in its
approach,

so riddled with obvious
factual errors that could easily have been
checked

(but obviously were
not), and so dependent on biased, extremist and
anti-American sources, as
to raise the question of motive: what would
motivate

two well recognized
academics to depart so grossly from their usual
standards of academic
writing and research in order to produce a
“study

paper” that contributes
so little to the existing scholarship while
being so

susceptible to misuse?

I renew my challenge to debate these issues and
will

make myself available
for debate or discussion of the Mearsheimer-Walt
paper and my response.

My response is available on the Kennedy School
of

Government site at

http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/research/working_papers/facultyresponses.htmhttp://www.ksg.harvard.edu/research/working_papers/facultyresponses.htm

I can be reached through my office at
617-496-2187

or

mailto:dersh@law.harvard.edudersh@law.harvard.edu.

Sincerely,

Alan Dershowitz

---

Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam
protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com

Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com