Outside the Jewish community, but with a close eye on events in Israel

by Johanna Ginsberg
NJJN Staff Writer

Chris Tierney of Somerset is spending an “above average” amount of time following the escalating violence between Israel and Lebanon.

“Typically I don’t follow the news, but I have a little bit more of an interest in this,” he said, standing outside Atlanta Bread in Morris Plains. “I think it’s an issue that is going to be very long-lasting.”

He watches CNN, especially at the gym. His main concern is that the United States military will get involved, something he strongly opposes. “Policy is one thing. Troops is another,” he said.

If lunchtime interviews at the popular Route 10 sandwich and salad spot are any indication, many non-Jews who rarely make Israel the stuff of water-cooler talk are nonetheless following closely the clashes between Israel and Hizbullah in Lebanon. Interviewed on July 20, many were urging an immediate ceasefire, although all view Israel’s action as arising initially, and justifiably, out of self-defense.

Tim Caughey of Florida, visiting a daughter in Morristown, compared his level of interest to his attention on the war in Iraq. In the case of both conflicts, he said, “I’m following fairly closely.” He was one of the few interviewed who felt the United States ought to get involved in diplomatic efforts. “I think the United States has been slow to react. More energy ought to be devoted to this issue.”

Kristi Baugh of Lyndhurst said she is not discussing the conflict with other people, but she is following the news on television and the Internet. She expressed particular concern about the civilians killed on both sides.

“It’s a sad situation,” she said. “A lot of civilians are getting caught in the middle of it. It’s something you don’t want to see.” While she supports Israel’s right to defend itself, like others interviewed, she’s eager to see an end to the fighting. But, she said, she has no solution. “Any country has a right to defend itself, but trying to come to an understanding is not that easy,” she said. “It’s just not black and white.”

Similarly, Shabi Rizvi of Edison, originally from Pakistan, and Rodney Simmons of West Orange, both on a lunch break from their jobs at DRS Technologies in Parsippany, said they follow the news on television and the Internet because the conflict is being covered so heavily. While they support the United Nations’ push for an immediate cease-fire, both said they “rarely” speak about the issue with friends and neighbors. “There’s nothing we can do to change” the situation, “so it gets on the back burner.”

The few who said they do regularly discuss the issue with family and friends tend to have international backgrounds, like Nikki Adedeji and Krupa Chhatbar, auditors at Deloitte & Touche. They regularly discuss international politics, even among coworkers. Chhatbar, who lives in Jersey City, attributed the high level of interest to the diversity of the people on her team. “When you work with people from all different countries, you always talk about each other’s countries,” she said. “Most Americans are focused on what concerns them and don’t see this as their issue.”

Adedeji, an Irvington resident originally from Nigeria, added that her interest in global affairs comes from having a dual identity. “When you come from any kind of culture or religious background, you do think it’s important to know about what’s going on in the world,” Abedeji said. “If all you’ve ever known is America and you don’t have another culture, you can be a little more absent-minded.”

But if they’re talking about the conflict, they’re finding they aren’t always in agreement with others they discuss it with. Adedeji, like Chhatbar, said she feels an immediate ceasefire offers the best solution, but added that she and her father have significantly different views on the issue. Her father supports the Israeli action. “He’s a bit old-fashioned. He says if a neighbor comes into my house and takes something, I’ll take something from him.”

But, she said, “that doesn’t work. Do I then have a right to shoot the entire neighborhood? Come on.” Chhatbar added, “It’s true that the Lebanese went in and kidnapped Israeli soldiers. But Israel is destroying the whole country.”

Similarly, Claudio Duran, originally from the Dominican Republic, said he often discusses the situation with his father (although not with colleagues at work). But he cited the global impact of the situation rather than cultural identity as the factor driving his interest. “In the Dominican Republic, all you talk about is U.S. international politics because it affects trade and commerce.”

Most people pointed to television news broadcasts, especially CNN’s, and the Internet as the main sources for their information; Duran and Caughey were among the few who cited newspapers, in particular The Wall Street Journal, The Star-Ledger, and The New York Times.

For Caughey, there is a personal perspective to the global repercussions. “I have two daughters, 30 and 28. I speak with them about this a fair amount. They’re planning a trip to Europe in October, and I have a real concern about them traveling.”

Two people interviewed said they were not following the news in Israel and Lebanon. “I know a little but I’m not following this issue. I read the news daily, but I don’t understand the problems there,” said Mira of Bridgewater, who asked that her last name not be used, before slipping inside the restaurant to order her lunch.

As for Chris Tierney, he hasn’t shared his views with too many people, but if the United States should somehow been drawn into the conflict militarily, he said, he would be willing to express his opinion in public at a rally, something he said he has never done before. This is “one of the few antiwar things I’m willing to do. This is one dispute I don’t want to have anything to do with,” he said. “I feel strongly enough to take time out of the day to go do something. While I disagree with what Lebanon is doing, I don’t believe it’s our position that we need to be involved. At this point, we’ve overexerted ourselves in issues not directly related to United States safety.”