George Gilder's new book, The Israel Test, has just been published. David Pryce-Jones reviews it saying Gilder "can be relied on to say striking and original things." For sure.
Nobody but Gilder
could have written this book. Israel of course has its defenders, but
they use arguments based on nationalism, territory, ethnicity, defence
of minorities, rights, historicism, and so on. Gilder sees Jews since
their emancipation as the vanguard of human achievement. They may be
few in numbers, but their creativity has brought prosperity to
themselves and those around them, and that prosperity in turn has
brought freedom. Thus Jews spearhead capitalism and the democracy
indispensable to its proper functioning. Marxists, Nazis, and now
Muslims and their apologists envy Jews because they cannot emulate
them, and so set out to destroy the success that shows up their
failure. The attitude you take towards Israel and Jews decides whether
you love or hate freedom, and beyond that, mankind — that’s the test he
is proposing in the book’s title. And just in case the reader risks
failing this test by jumping to a false conclusion, Gilder has a
portrait of his very non-Jewish ancestry, saying, “We were classic
WASPS all.” Me: It seems Gilder is something of a Renaissance man. I recall his book on Wealth and Poverty and his book on marriage. I'm making note of this book to give it a browse next time I'm in a bookstore.