Zionism as a philosophy and as a practice I (speaking personally) find acceptable in some forms but not in others. A Zionism that relies on the oppression of others, such as the nationalist-Zionism practiced by much of the power-elite in the state of Israel, I find unacceptable and morally reprehensible.
We're talking about solutions that might
work, surely?
I think one problem is, as highlighted by your post above (which I agree with btw) is that Zionism means different things to different people. To most Israelis (and Jews?) it simply means the establishment of a Jewish nation (anywhere), and therefore, Israel = Zionism. To the Palestinian supporters of the left, Zionism means the occupation and oppression of a foreign land. So when people argue over whether Zionism should be opposed or accepted, it makes the arguments very confusing, especially when their arguments are based on different definitions of Zionism.
For example, an Israeli might take exception to someone saying Zionism should be opposed (because of Israeli expansion in Palestine) because they might think they actually mean Israel should cease to exist. Likewise, a left-wing pro-Palestinian supporter might think that when an Israeli says they support Zionism they actually support the oppression of Palestinians, rather than supporting the continued existence of Israel.
The problem when it comes to Iran is that people use their own definitions of what Zionism means to either exonerate or vilify Ahmadinejad. If Zionism merely means the existence of Israel, then Ahmadinejad becomes the bad guy for suggesting Israel should be annihilated. But if Zionism means the oppression of Palestinians, then Ahmadinejad becomes some kind of righteous figurehead of a campaign for justice.
So what do I think Ahmadinejad means? Well in all honesty, I would say that when he refers to Zionism he actually means Israel. Do I think his threats are genuine or mere sabre rattling? I'd say most certainly the latter, but it gives ammunition to those who oppose Iran and those who support action against Iran. I think the comments he makes are just daft, as I don't think he has any intentions of carrying out any attack on Israel, but Israel probably has a right to feel threatened.
However, I certainly don't think that anybody in their right mind should actually
support or desire Iran to attack Israel (as was inferred by London_Calling)
