ATHENS-It took Kate Casa all of a few days to offer a predictable full-throated diatribe blaming Israel for the war in Iran while ignoring the tyrannical regime in control that has terrorized America, the world, its own people, and yes, Israel, for nearly five decades.
Given Casa’s openly hostile stance against the Jewish state, the fact she blames suffering of ordinary Iranian civilians on Israel surprised exactly no one.
But I do commend her ability to pack a remarkable number of distortions into a single letter, especially the Nazi-era antisemitic trope that Jews, or in modern rhetorical disguise, Israel, are pulling the puppet strings of world power. Classy.
Casa’s assessment is unmistakable. American policy is supposedly controlled by Israeli influence, campaign donations, and shadowy political pressure. This narrative has circulated for generations to stigmatize Jewish communities and portray them as conspiratorial forces behind world events, despite the inconvenient truth that Jews represent only 0.2% of the global population. Never mind the fact Israel doesn’t even make the list for top foreign lobbying activity in America.
Recycling that libel in a Vermont newspaper in 2026 should alarm anyone who cares about responsible public discourse. How exactly did this pass editorial review?
Casa has long been known locally as one of the most obnoxious anti-Israel activists, and true to form, her column follows a familiar pattern: Every crisis becomes another opportunity to condemn Israel while ignoring the actions of regimes that openly threaten the United States and its allies.
Hundreds of American soldiers killed in Iraq by Iranian-backed militias, 241 service members murdered in Beirut at the hands of Iranian proxy Hezbollah, targeting of U.S. forces in Syria with rockets and drones, attacks on global shipping lanes, and assassination plots against our elected officials all seem to have escaped Casa’s concern.
Not to mention the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) squashed protests this past January by murdering more than 30,000 of their own people in a matter of days.
“Genocide,” anyone?
It is entirely legitimate to debate U.S. foreign policy, military aid, or diplomatic strategy in the Middle East. But it is illegitimate for both author and publisher to promote conspiratorial narratives that suggest U.S. policy exists merely as an extension of Israeli manipulation while ignoring the very real threats posed by the Iranian regime.
If Casa wants to argue against U.S. involvement in the Middle East, she should do so honestly, acknowledge Iran’s actions, recognize American leaders make their own assessments, and avoid rhetoric that echoes some of the oldest and most harmful antisemitic stereotypes.
Anything less is a page taken straight out of Iran’s propaganda playbook.
Vermont Friends of Israel
Athens
Mark Treinkman
This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons.
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