Similarly, I don’t understand is how expressing the personal view that all of the people living in the territory of Israel — Jews and non-Jews alike — would be better off living in a secular state, is somehow akin to anti-semitism.
Come on mate, thats possibly the most asinine and distasteful argument I have seen on this site.
> Japan isn't an officially Shinto state
You are just misquoting the comment
The parent was suggesting that there is a jewish religion and a jewish race and that the race is the qualifier not the religion.
Dubious to argue, but if thats the argument then bringing religion back in w.r.t. Japan is wrong and he knew it.
I focused on religion because it's how eligibility for Aliyah is defined. you're Jewish if your mom was Jewish, either because her mom was Jewish or because she converted. there are Ashkenazi, Sephardic, Mizrahi and Ethiopian Jews. those are all different races/ethnicities. specifically, Mizrahi Jews are ethnically Arab. so I disagree that race is the qualifier.
I also think that many (most?) people would object to France, Ireland, or Japan favoring people who were ethnically or religiously French/Irish/Japanese.
* Edit: I think that people are also objecting to the fact that many Palestinians don't have a place where they can be prosperous and debatably had their land stolen.