I'm sure some will shout 'anti-semitism' at this comment, and perhaps it is strongly worded, but there's some truth to it.

There are certainly powerful ruling class interests in the US that fund and support the Zionist project. I know it's contentious to call Israel a colony and that might not be correct - but it does act like something as a proxy or vassal state to the US in many ways.

The US is a modern empire and the US has interests that it funds and protects in Israel. This is a fact. The US provides immense amounts of money and military aid to Israel, and in exchange, Israel acts as a projection or extension of US influence in the region.

I question people's assertion that Israel is a true democracy, when there are strong aspects of an Apartheid occupation regime present, especially in places like Hebron, where Palestinians face discriminatory practices like being forced through various checkpoints, and are forbidden to walk on certain streets.

And before I'm accused of singling out Israel for criticism, I also regard the US up until around the 1970's as an apartheid state due to the way that discrimination against blacks was systematically encoded into law in the Jim Crow era. You can't call that true 'freedom' and there are strong parallels between apartheid measures in Israel, and Jim Crow in the US - or other countries with Apartheid like South Africa or Rhodesia.

I also agree that like the US, Israel has very fierce and powerful Nationalistic propaganda. I'm intrigued by the parallels I notice between over-the-top jingoist American 'patriotism' (the kind where people get agitated and smash a beer bottle over head if you bring up unflattering facts or criticisms about the state of the country) and what I see and hear coming out of Israel. Similar sort of jingoism/chauvinism, but just 2 different flags. I think there is a large degree of indoctrination inherent in Israeli society, just as there is in US society. I don't think it's outrage to point out that obvious fact.

"which doesn’t belong in the region" - now this is a spicy take... A bit too extreme for my liking. But there are valid criticisms about the way Israel was formed, like the Nakba.

Perhaps one reason America and Israel have such strong ties, is because both have contentious histories and troubled 'origin stories'. The "trail of tears" in the US was akin to America's Nakba. US had slavery and struggled with this 'equal rights' concept for a long time. I think Israel is grappling with these sorts of things to.

Does this mean that the people in the US or Israel have no right to exist? No. But... perhaps the political/military/social power structures need reforming. And perhaps it's time to acknowledge that both countries exist on land forcefully deprived from others who were already on it. I don't know what the answer to this is - reparations of some sort? But the very least you can do is acknowledge the tragedy of the Nakba and the Trail of Tears that were a dark chapter in these countries' formation.

As an American, I probably have little moral ground to stand on in regards to commenting on leaders who turn out to be "genocidal maniacs" (Andrew Jackson) and criminal "bands of thugs" (Trump, Nixon). I'm sure Israel has its share as well.