If one is looking for a series of well-sourced reasons for Israel's current existence as an ethnically Jewish state, Havardi's book leaves little untouched. Israel, by most modern metrics, is a successful, cohesive, well-organized, economically and scientifically advanced state in an area of the world currently reverberated by radical terrorism, failed states and tribalism. Any individual who has concern for minority freedoms, sexual liberty, freedom of speech, intellectual diversity and pluralism should be glad to defend Israel against the authoritarian tendencies of its neighbors. Havardi does a good job of highlighting several benefits from an alliance with a nation that shares similar values to the US (in contrast with our deals with states like Qatar and Saudi Arabia)
But Havardi leaves a little to be desired in his defense of Israel as a strategic military partner in an unstable part of the world. In the sections of the book defending increased military aid to Israel for its defense, we're given a review of neoconservative foreign policy doctrine: increased militarism, preemptive strikes, extrajudicial killings, avoidance of any sort of "appeasement" and (ultimately) advocacy for regime change of surrounding states in the region. The use of military responses gets far greater detail as a means of conflict-resolution than diplomatic or economic pressure, broadened education and enhanced journalistic coverage of the conflict. This is despite the fact that recent US military involvement has caused greater instability in the area (through the destruction of Syria, Libya and Iraq from which Islamic groups like ISIL have originated) in addition to the fact that recent diplomatic initiatives have helped resolve potential areas of instability (like the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran, contrary to what many critics simply refuse to acknowledge). While Havardi is correct in his assessment of the backwardness and brutality of Arab tyrannies in the Middle East, his hawkish prescriptions for change threaten to result in more unraveling rather than reconciliation.
One may also wish for more discussion of Israel's historic justifications for existence in such an inhospitable part of the world. While the Jewish people are certainly entitled to a sovereign nation in which to preserve their historically ostracized religion, culture and heritage, the choice of the Middle East as a destination for this project should be further examined. While Havardi did provide a moral justification for the concept of a Jewish state as a sanctuary for world Jewry, he did not explore the crucial question of whether the founders of Zionism had or even sought out other areas of the world for their cause. Havardi's dismissal of any narrative of "asymmetric power relations" or Arabic subjugation to Western colonialism in the 18th-20th centuries being a crucial part to the conflict as an "appeal to victimhood" also reveals his neoconservative bias.
But any proponent of Israel's existence will benefit from the information stored in this book. While Havardi doesn't seem to be focused on convincing skeptics more than he is making a passionate case for the superiority of Western culture and ideals as embodied by Israel, his sources and arguments could be put to effective use by more diplomatically minded readers to convince fence-sitters.
On a final note, this book is greatly in need of an editor. There are typos, multiple repetitious passages that could be deleted and densely packed sections of Havardi's examples and sources that feel redundant or messily presented. Revisiting certain portions and changing the language to give it a more lyrical (rather than listical) flow can elevate the work as an impassioned defense rather than just a reference book.
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