The mob mentality that has turned free speech into a free-for-all at Columbia University and other colleges is telegraphing a message far beyond any single campus and well beyond the United States.
It is telling America's enemies that we have lost the ability to distinguish between good and evil—and this is a message that threatens the safety of every Western democracy.
Terror groups are watching scores of young Americans willingly serve as their useful idiots. The students setting up "Liberation Zones" and "Gaza Solidarity Encampments" are not only showing their disdain for America's war on terror; they are teaching our enemies how to win the narrative war.
Thanks to these students, terrorists need only utter the words "resistance" or "fighting oppression" to justify mass murder and sexual assault. By putting their atrocities in "context," they can win the support of protesters, university administrators, and even members of Congress.
There is a lot to disagree with when it comes to Israel. One can dislike the individuals in Israel's government, despise the failure to bring an end to the conflict, and denounce the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
But any intellectually honest person must also acknowledge some truths.
First, Israel has a democratically elected government, while the Palestinian people have not had the luxury of an election in well over a decade and are denied many other basic freedoms.
Second, Israel has repeatedly offered the Palestinians a state of their own, but Palestinian leaders have rejected every offer. Hamas's leadership has made clear that their goal is the total annihilation of Israel.
Third, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is primarily a consequence of terror groups using the civilian population as human shields to wage jihadi war against a far stronger military.
These facts are dismissed by the masses rallying on campus who repeat rote chants to "Free Gaza by all means necessary." These activists have internalized the falsehood that Jews are white oppressors and that the Jewish state is, by extension, a colonialist enterprise.
They have made the demand to "end civilian suffering," a political, cultural, and moral litmus test around the world while placing the burden of that demand exclusively on Israel. In the face of this pressure, the nations that offered "unwavering" support to Israel in the days after the Oct. 7 massacre are now wavering.
So long as Hamas leaders believe Israel is growing more isolated, they will dig in their heels. We saw that in the days after the Iran attack when the terror group rejected yet another proposal to release hostages in exchange for a temporary ceasefire.
The leaders of Iran, Russia, and China are taking note. Russia continues its war of aggression against Ukraine. China has its eyes set on Taiwan. And for Iran, Israel is just the appetizer: the "Little Satan" to devour on the way to the "Great Satan" of the United States.
Iran has tested American resolve and found it wanting. It has gotten away with directing terror groups throughout the Middle East to expand its influence across the Levant, with disrupting international commerce in the Red Sea, and even with killing three American soldiers in Jordan earlier this year.
It's no wonder Iran thought it could also get away with firing more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel two weeks ago. Thankfully, Israel, the United States, and their allies were able to repel the missile attack.
Instead of saying enough is enough, President Joe Biden advised Israel to "take the win" and made clear the U.S. would not participate in any retaliatory strikes on Iran.
But In the Middle East, reluctance to engage is seen as weakness and serves only to embolden radical Islamists. It's worth remembering that Israel was only able to make peace with Jordan and Egypt a generation ago after defeating those nations in war.
Israel understands that it must sometimes set aside the concerns of its allies to preserve its security. And so it launched a targeted retaliation to send a message that Iran should think twice before considering another attack.
It is a message that Israel should not be alone in sending. So long as the forces of tyranny believe that there are no real consequences to their aggression, they will continue their onward march.
For now, they can sit back and watch their supporters take over campuses.
Aviva Klompas is the former director of speechwriting at the Israeli Mission to the United Nations and co-founder of Boundless Israel, a nonprofit organization that partners with community leaders in the U.S. to support Israel education and combat hatred of Jews.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
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