Prominent tech entrepreneur calls himself a ‘radical Zionist,’ defends Israel’s right to exist

Palmier Luckey dismissed the ‘slippery slope’ argument that validating Israel’s existence could lead to a surge in the formation of ethno-states for other groups, calling such hypothetical scenarios ‘absurd’ reasons to oppose the Jewish state.

By Corey Walker, The Algemeiner

Prominent tech entrepreneur Palmer Luckey referred to himself as a “radical Zionist” while vigorously defending Israel’s right to existence during a new interview on the podcast the “Shawn Ryan Show.”

During the sit-down, Luckey reminisced about his 2017 firing from Facebook, allegedly over his support for US President Donald Trump.

Luckey, founder of the defense tech company Anduril Industries, rejected the “lockstep narrative” presented by the media that he is “racist” or “sexist,” pointing toward his strong support for Israel as an example of his support for minority groups.

“I’m actually a radical Zionist,” Luckey said.

When asked by Ryan to elaborate on what he meant, Luckey explained that Jews have the right to maintain a state for their own self-defense. He argued that the Holocaust proved the need for a Jewish state, and without it Jews are at risk of facing violence.

“I strongly believe in the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state. People are like, That’s so problematic, though. It’s so ethnostate adjacent.’ I said, ‘I don’t care,’” Luckey said.

“After what happened to them in World War II, they deserve a place where they can do their own thing and protect their own people without getting wrecked by everybody else who hates them.”

Luckey also dismissed the “slippery slope” argument that validating Israel’s existence could lead to a surge in the formation of ethno-states for other groups, calling such hypothetical scenarios “absurd” reasons to oppose the Jewish state.

He argued that it is “very reasonable for the Jews to have their own state” and that the potential formation of a Palestinian state should be treated as “a separate political issue.”

All minority groups in Israel, including the Arabs who comprise about 20 percent of the Israeli population, enjoy the full and equal rights of the country’s democratic system, including the ability to serve in parliament and the judiciary.

Meanwhile, Jews and other minority groups, including Christians among others, have faced intense discrimination in other parts of the Middle East. In the Palestinian-governed Judea and Samaria, for example, Palestinians are prohibited from selling land directly to Jewish Israelis.

Luckey has stated his support for Israel several times. Following the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’s invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the tech entrepreneur lambasted prominent American individuals and institutions for not standing behind the Jewish state.

“Israel has my [and our] unqualified support,” Luckey said at the Wall Street Journal‘s Tech Live Conference in October of 2023.

“What’s happening in Israel is just another instance of the same type of evil that’s been going on for a very long time,” he added.

“And I think it reflects very poorly on our billionaire class that you’re not seeing a whole-of-country effort to become involved and to speak up about these issues, hedging on condemnation of Hamas for fear of saying the wrong thing, either in the court of public opinion or because it hurts their business interests.”