Saul Singer is Editorial Page Editor and author of the weekly column “Interesting Times” for the Jerusalem Post. He is the author of Confronting Jihad: Israel's Struggle and the World After 9/11. Before moving to Israel from the Washington area in 1994, Mr. Singer served for ten years as an advisor on the personal and committee staffs of the United States Congress, including the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Senate Banking Committee, and Senator Connie Mack.
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Saul Singer
Jerusalem, Israel
Saul Singer is Editorial Page Editor and author of the weekly column “Interesting Times” for the Jerusalem Post.
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Why does the US continue to give the Israelis billions of dollars in foreign aid each year, even though we can’t afford it and have to borrow the money from the Chinese (plus interest)?
I don’t know either unless it’s because AIPAC owns our congress, senate and executive branches of government.
By Jeffrey Heller
Reuters
Monday, November 19, 2007; 8:29 AM
“JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert sought wide Arab support on Monday for a U.S.-led peace conference by agreeing to release 441 Palestinian prisoners and reaffirming a pledge not to build new Jewish settlements....
Olmert did not say in earlier remarks to his cabinet if he would freeze construction within existing settlements in the occupied West Bank, as sought by the Palestinians and the United States. A senior Palestinian negotiator, latching on to the uncertainty, called Olmert's comments "nonsense."...
In addition, settlers have set up several dozen hilltop outposts without government approval.
Olmert repeated at the cabinet session a long-standing promise to remove the outposts, but again set no date.
In a gesture to Abbas, he also won cabinet approval to release 441 Palestinian prisoners, a government official said.
All were members of Abbas's Fatah faction "without blood on their hands" and could go free as early as Friday after a review of a release list by a ministerial committee, the official said. Abbas had wanted 2,000 freed...
SAUDI PARTICIPATION
Saudi Arabia, which has not said whether it would attend the November 26-27 conference, had demanded a "freeze of settlements" before the meeting. It was unclear whether Olmert's remarks would go far enough to persuade Riyadh to participate.
"What Olmert announced today is nonsense," senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said. "Olmert has to understand he either declares a full settlement freeze in all occupied areas including East Jerusalem, or it's nothing."
The road map calls for a freeze to "all settlement activity," including "natural growth," a reference to building in existing settlements to accommodate growing families.
"If Olmert does not halt 'natural growth' then nothing has changed," said Nabil Abu Rdainah, an Abbas aide.
About 270,000 Jewish settlers live among 2.5 million West Bank Palestinians. The World Court has branded all settlements on land captured by Israel in a 1967 war as illegal.
Abbas's chief negotiator said Israeli and Palestinian teams had failed to make progress on a pre-conference joint document that would address in general terms core issues such as borders and the future of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.
In a surprise announcement, Olmert's office said the prime minister planned to go to Egypt on Tuesday for talks with President Hosni Mubarak.
His trip appeared to be part of efforts to ensure broad Arab participation in the Annapolis meeting, a launching pad for formal talks on Palestinian statehood. Arab League foreign ministers meet in Cairo on Friday to decide whether to attend...
I just googled this and this is what the last sentence in Wikipedia said:
:''In a January 2006 interview, the Brotherhood's leader, Ali Bayanouni, "said the Muslim Brotherhood wants a peaceful change of government in Damascus and the establishment of a 'civil, democratic state', not an Islamic republic."[14]"
Now let's look at Israel's year 2006 and compare shall we!
Of course The Lobby isn't powerful enough. It will be powerful enough only when the national anthem of the US is Israel Uber Alles. Only then will The Lobby be satiated.
We all know the song:
Israel, Israel uber alles
Kill some Pals and steal their land
Crush their houses
Shoot their children
Bomb their cities
Kill them all!
In one sense that is true. Israel means "he who contends with God". If you take "contend" in the sense of competing then "Israel" is doomed. How can we compete with the Almighty? If you take "contend" in the sense of struggling or wrestling, then perhaps not. But, now, I am fodder for those who would content with frothing mouth that religion has been injected in the conversation. We can't have that, now can we?
In a more secular sense, say on the world stage, consider this: The economic center of the world has, over the last few centuries, shifted from Amsterdam to London to New York - from East to West. It would seem that if we take that paradigm to heart and also note the unrelenting rise of China, the next likely shift would be to Hong Kong or Shanghai. After all, America is doomed, isn't it? But, I would contend that China is out given the nature of many of the comments on this blog. The next economic center of the world should be Tel Aviv! Well, in someone's world that makes perfect sense. "Tel" means hill as in a mound of accumulated ruins and "aviv" meaning spring as in the season of renewal. So, the accumulated financial ruin of the world "springs" alive, fresh and renewed in Tel Aviv. And, what scenario could more perfectly fit the prefabricated image of Jews as the money-grubbing kings of the world! There you have it. The most perfect prognostication possible about the future of the world.
But, we are not seers, and that bit of Alice in Wonderland makes at least as much sense as anything that I've I read recently, if you catch my drift.
stenographer: someone skilled in the transcription of speech (especially dictation)
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
Amanuensis is a Latin word adopted in various languages, including English, for certain persons performing a function by hand, either writing down the words of another or performing manual labour. The term is derived from a Latin expression which may be literally translated as "manual labourer".
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanuensis
You are very smart William, but unfortunately you are temporarily fertummult.
“Anti-Jew, anti-Semitic, anti-Israeli or anti-Zionist or whatever - they are distinctions without a difference. They all either directly are or facilitate Jew hatred for people with an absolute right to live in their ancient homeland and defend the right to do so”
Sorry William, the Jews were kicked out of Palestine almost two millennia ago. The land has been occupied by Muslims since that time, tending their flocks and orchards and farming the land to support their families. No one has a right to take it from them after abandoning it for such a long time.
“The fact that such a tiny group of people could engender such irrational scrutiny most perfectly makes the point that Jew hatred is a definable mental disorder worthy of the DSM.”
“The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is an American handbook for mental health professionals that lists different categories of mental disorder and the criteria for diagnosing them, according to the publishing organization the American Psychiatric Association. It is used worldwide by clinicians and researchers as well as insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies and policy makers. It has attracted controversy and criticism as well as praise.”
No, I think it is my duty as a citizen to challenge those actions of my government which I do not agree with. We must focus on the heinous crimes that our government is perpetrating on the innocent and defenseless people of the Middle East in our lust for oil. This is the riveting issue of our age. It would be insane not to give it our utmost attention.
Israel is doomed. We cannot and should not continue to support her illegal existence forever. The ancient civilizations of the neighborhood will simply wait her out.
The Palestinians do not have the resources to defeat Israel, let alone the U.S., but the Arab League of Nations most certainly does. With the price of oil at $100 per barrel and rising, and our national debt at $10 Trillion and rising (much of it owed to China), we will not remain a super power for long. It is a shame that we squander our wealth and young peoples lives foolishly in ill advised and unnecessary wars in the region, when this same effort would have given us energy independence from Middle East oil by now. That is just a fact of life, but it won’t last for long. How long will it last, 10, 50, 100 years – who knows; but Israel’s days are numbered.
Anti-Jew, anti-Semitic, anti-Israeli or anti-Zionist or whatever - they are distinctions without a difference. They all either directly are or facilitate Jew hatred for people with an absolute right to live in their ancient homeland and defend the right to do so. The fact that so many would contest this point makes my point. The fact that such a tiny group of people could engender such irrational scrutiny most perfectly makes the point that Jew hatred is a definable mental disorder worthy of the DSM. The fact that a country the size of a Texas county could attract such diseased discontent is even more worthy of exposure. The Jews are certainly not perfect, but the level and volume of the hateful rhetoric spewed at them from Bali to Baltimore is in no way commensurate with principle or reason. It is unfounded and senseless and every time that I see or hear this non-sense, I will name it for what it is.
Supposedly, we were all jews, then Christ came and there were Christians then Mohammed came and there were muslims.....so.........let's all revert to judaism and all of us will be God's chosen. Then we can decide who gets what.
“Ver derharget! - Get killed! Drop dead! (Also "ver geharget)”
And William:
You are fercockt!
Just kidding, I love you baby.
And I'm no anti-Semite. I am anti-Zionist, and don't tell me that there is no difference. One means Jew hater; the other means hater of land grabbing genocidal maniacs.
“A case can be made for Moses having created the Golden Calf, rather than Aaron:
1. When Moses scorned the gold which the other Hebrews were collecting as reparations from the Egyptians (thus giving the Egyptians a chance to do tchuva), he was not giving the Satan its due...
The main sin of visiting mourners is diverting a person from his or her pain.
If you can’t feel pain, you’re like a barren woman. Rachel and Sarah began teaching tchuva from their barrenness...
The main source of Moses’s pain is his inability to communicate. In his incarnation as Noach, he convinced not a single person to do tchuva. Moses’s disability was that he was too good. He was teaching the people how to be compulsive, not how to be free...
Our greatest gift is our deficit. The purpose of the world is to do tchuva. Tchuva is returning a lost spark to G*d. It made Esther’s face shine. The other candidates for the coveted position of wife to the drunken wife-killer had to use oils and makeup, but Esther was radiant without using any cosmetics.
Unify pain and simcha to do tchuva.”
“Ver derharget! - Get killed! Drop dead! (Also "ver geharget)”
"Of course the Neocons and Israeli Lobbyists were prime instigators of our disastrous invasion of Iraq." Translation: The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world since the beginning of time - a typical anti-Semitic rant.
My solution for the Islamo-fascist problem is to solve it the good, old-fashioned American way: Kick their jihadi tuches until they all do tchuva or ver derharget then give the rest of them distressed Levi's with side-pockets large enough for their entire complementary Elvis CD collection.
“The surprising truth, however, is that from the point of view of both the peace process and even more fundamental American interests, the U.S. should be more "pro-Israel," not less. The basic reason for this is that the Arab war to destroy Israel is a subset of Islamo-fascist jihad against the West. It makes little sense for the U.S. to be neutral in such a struggle, just as the U.S. could not be neutral as Nazi Germany proceeded to gobble up Europe.”
Get real! The only fascists are the US/Israeli invaders/occupiers who have used the world’s most powerful war machine to keep the Palestinians under the Israeli Jackboot living in squalor, to control their food, water and energy supplies, and to allocate to each Israeli the same amount of water as four Palestinians.
This is the root cause, along with our illegal preemptive invasion and occupation of Iraq, for any Muslim retaliation against the West. Of course the Neocons and Israeli Lobbyists were prime instigators of our disastrous invasion of Iraq.
Mr. Singer argues that we should be even more pro-Israel to expedite the submission of the Palestinians and Islamic Jihadists in general.
Nonsense! The Muslim world will simply wait for the U.S. Empire to founder on its inability to get its dependency on Middle East oil under control, and be bankrupted by the oil producing nations.
My solution to the Palestinian/Israeli conflict:
1. Declare a no fly zone over the region.
2. Demand that Israel destroy all planes, tanks and nuclear weapons. If they refuse, we do it for them.
3. Stand back and say: “O.K. boys and girls, have at it.
Most of the posts on this topic are either just plain silly, incoherent or the product of willing ignorance. That’s unfortunate for WaPo and all those who take a moment to add serious comments. Some, however, cross the line and Daniel Brown’s fall in that category.
His claims about the Jewish prayer, the Kol Nidrei, are examples of classic, text book anti-Semitism. A brief account of the history of this libel can be found on Wikipedia at:
“…this prayer has often been employed out of context by antisemites [sic] to support their claims that Jews cannot be trusted.”
And more completely:
Use by anti-Semites
Kol Nidrei has been used by antisemites to cast suspicion on the trustworthiness of an oath taken by a Jew.[3] This charge was leveled so much that many non-Jewish legislators considered it necessary to have a special form of oath administered to Jews ("Oath More Judaico"), and many judges refused to allow them to take a supplementary oath, basing their objections chiefly on this prayer. As early as 1240 in the Disputation of Paris, Yechiel of Paris was obliged to defend Kol Nidrei against these charges.
Counterpoint
Rabbis have always pointed out that the dispensation from vows in Kol Nidrei refers only to those which an individual voluntarily assumes for himself alone and in which no other persons or their interests are involved. The formula is restricted to those vows which are between man and God alone; they have no effect on vows made between one man and another. No vow, promise, or oath which concerns another person, a court of justice, or a community is implied in Kol Nidrei. According to Jewish doctrine, the sole purpose of this prayer is to give protection from divine punishment in case of violation of the vow.
Five geonim (rabbinic leaders of medieval Babylonian Jewry) were against while only one was in favor of reciting the prayer. Even so early an authority as Saadia wished to restrict it to those vows which were extorted from the congregation in the synagogue in times of persecution ("Kol Bo"), and he declared explicitly that the "Kol Nidre" gave no absolution from oaths which an individual had taken during the year.
What Mr. Brown is doing is to repeat lies propagated in the 13th century.
Also Linda Kramer made a point. How can you be "God's Chosen People" when the Kol Nidre allows you to break any personal vows you made to god? I mean if you can break any vow you have made to god how can I expect you to keep your word to me? Lies and deceit.
I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. Revelation 2:9
You say some very confusing things. Amerikkka is very Pro-Israel. People in the Amerikkan government have been in Israel more then they have been to New Orleans. Amerikkka needs to be more Anti Israel. I do not feel that the Jewish people even deserve the state of Israel. Also I feel that the Jewish community has taken to long to realize the national rights of the Palestinian people. I can give you an example how Amerikkka is Pro Israel enough. Amerikkkan health care system is flawed, our police, teachers, fire fighters, and also doctors need more money in certain areas of Amerikkka. That fact that Amerikkka can find it to give Israel another 30billion dollars shows they are to much Pro-Israel. http://www.wrmea.com/html/us_aid_to_israel.htm http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/17/world/middleeast/17israel.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
I know it may sound harsh but Amerikkka needs to pull away from Israel. It makes no sense to help Israel anymore. They have done horrible things. And whatever has befallen them they asked for on their own.
The US recently agreed to a 25 percent increase in its military and defense aid to Israel, to 30 billion dollars in the next 10 years. I believe that it's not nearly enough. Since 9/11 Americans have experienced firsthand the real costs of the Muslim war on civilization - something Israelis have had to live with on a daily basis since 1948.
The terrorist attack of September 11 alone cost New York about 95 billion. The price tag for the "war on terror" since 9/11 has been about 843 billion. I used quotation marks purposely to denote the euphemism "war on terror". What the term really implies is the war against the never ending Jihad - the Islamic murder campaign begun in 622 AD. Whatever the cost may be to protect us from these exploding barbarians, it will be paid.
"There is an intrinsic sense of goodness and fair play in most Americans that will always bind us to the Jewish people."
... as long as we are kept ignorant of Israel's policy of slow ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from the West Bank, and as long as we are kept ignorant of the fact that we give $4-6 billion per year to Israel, making a country the size of a large city our biggest recipient of foreign aid in the world, while in the meantime we offer almost nothing to areas in the world, far more impoverished than Israel, that could use aid to fight problems that, unlike Israel's, are actually tractable, such as combating tropical diseases. Yes, as long as we are kept ignorant, as the profoundly dishonest William from San Antonio intends that we be kept, we will always be bound to Israel, or at least to the facade that has been presented to us as being Israel.
After reading all 105 posts, I found only 4 that were coherent: Peter Varden, Benjamin, Sam and Daniel. The remainder I found devoid of rationality or morality or both. To those four I would say please don't be distressed, the bulk of the comments are not representative of the vast majority of the American people. There is an intrinsic sense of goodness and fair play in most Americans that will always bind us to the Jewish people.
Okay, so Singer starts off by saying that the whole issue is anti-Semitic and that any academic discussion of the Israeli influence on US foreign policy must be racist.
AND THEN he goes on to pile on a bunch of racist comments against Arabs as a way to convince us of the righteousness of Israel in a war against all these violent Arabs, whom he compares to the Nazis!
He even throws in the new "islamo-fascist" term all the right-wingers have started using.
I, too, live in Israel, and understand the issue of "security" but I am against the occupation, and I'm against the idea that violence will somehow bring about a solution. Let's take the example of Gaza. It is a tiny, isolated spot, and Israel still can't manage to stop the rocket attacks from militant groups there. The IDF has killed hundreds of people in Gaza all along insisting that the purpose of their missions is to stop the rockets. They've imposed a harsh economic blockade that is hurting the most vulnerable people. And now they want to cut off the electricity supply to Gaza. All of this is collective punishment, destroying lives, and only making people angrier. If you declare a people your "Enemy Entity" they will become your enemy. And guess what - the rockets haven't stopped, nor have the Israelis gotten Gilad Shalit back, another of their stated purposes. All this for nothing.
So. I think the US should stop funding these actions, stop writing the blank checks, stop standing next to Tzipi Livni at press conferences, etc. We don't need blood on our hands as well, we have enough places to devastate on our own.
Are you aware of a not so top secret Israeli Military Intelligence report that says the following:
Immediately following the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Al Quaida will launch a series of attacks on the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait that in the next instant will paralyze the US economy.
Mr Signer as many Israelis want Americans to assume that our interests are always aligned and to mutual benefit. The threat to Israel is not to its existence but to its hold on the West Bank and the settlements there. There is no benefit to American citizens for our governments support of this occupation. It is detrimental to the US strategically and economically, and that is why the influence of the Israel lobby is an issue, and one that America needs to re-evaluate. What's in it for America?
“A passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation facilitates the illusion of an imaginary common interest in cases where no real common interest exists, infuses into one the enmities of the other, and betrays the former into participation in the quarrels and wars of the latter without adequate inducement or justification.”
(George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796)
__________________________________________________
I was always under the impression that the term "Semite" referred not only to Jews, but also to Arabs and other ancient "tribes" from Southwest Asia. Am I wrong? How does being sick to death of the current Israeli lobby and those treasonous Neocons who got us into the current quagmire translate into being antisemitic? I actually have some Jewish relatives and I even like some of them. That doesn't mean, however, that I think Israel ought to have such influence over our foreign policy. What have they done for us lately? And that "God's chosen people"? Give me a break. How does anyone expect to win an argument with that sort of logic? Do people actually believe that garbage? But then, I'm a Buddhist. What do I know?
Daniel writes: "In Israel, on military operations, there are more journalists then soldiers! Each one dissecting, judging, and condemning".
BS! Two such Israeli "Journalists" passed away lately. Uri Dan, of Maariv and Yeshayahu Ben Porat of Yediot. The obituaries told that both were MOSSAD AGENTS, not real journalists.
What is the truth then? - That Israeli public opinion is manipulated by AIPAC-type "Journalists". Thus the Zionist press, Zionist politicians support Israel's invasion of Lebanon, and sowing 4.000.000 U.S. made cluster bombs in an area of some 40 X 10 miles. When the ISAF, equipped with F-16s destroyed residential areas in Dahiya/Beirut, they were mainly applauded by Israeli "Jews".
The change -in public opinion - occurred when it became clear that Israel has lost the war, and only then! Just as the change in American public opinion occurred when Cheney & Bush got stuck in the Iraqi QUAGMIRE.
Daniel must realize that Jews and Israelis who seek a change, write many of the negative comments to Singer’s piece. Do not accuse us of Anti-Semitism; we love Semites - Arabs and Jews - and WE LOVE PEACE most of all. GIVE PEACE A CHANCE!
It is ridiculously obvious that Mr. Singer is writing to those people who either have never visited Israel-Palestine or whose visits were carefully controlled so that they neither saw evidence of the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands nor the immense illegal settlement blocks gouging gigantic chunks of Palestinian land from the West Bank--including Arab East Jerusalem. To readers who have experienced the wider context, his adroitly-crafted phrase "Israel's desperate desire to help create a peaceful Palestinian state" contradicts virtually every aspect of the reality there.
As to his contentions regarding "the Arab war to destroy Israel," let him encourage the nation of Israel to withdraw completely, including all those people whom they have settled on confiscated Palestinian land, to the 1949 Armistice Line [the Green Line]. The world would then see just how quickly such a move would lead to full acceptance of the nation of Israel by the Arab world. Even though such a move would leave Palestinians with a mere 22% of Historic Palestine, they would willingly settle for that for a truly independent state. Such steps would accomplish far, far more toward Israel becoming a full partner in the Middle East than will all the guns, planes, walls/fences, and roadblocks that American dollars can buy.
It is highly unlikely that"the Arab desire to destroy Israel is a subset of the Islamic Jihad against the West" since that desire ante-dates the jihad by over a hundred years. The Arabs have been resisting the theft of their land by the Zionists since that process started in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Everybody, not just the Arabs, should refuse to accept as normal an ethno-confessional state(i.e. a state based on ethnicity and religion, with the rights of non-members of the ruling group severely curtailed, both formally and informally). Further it is a state which exists in its current form because it was a gift to the Jews from the European powers who had stood by and allowed the Holocaust to happen;the Arabs paid for the sins of the Europeans It doesn't take a lot of chin-stroking and windy discourse on the old anti-semitism bromides to explain Arab hostility.On this basis it is hard not to conclude that we are far too biased towards Israel and that the moral as well as the strategically sound thing to do would be to move towards at least a strictly neutral position in the Israeli-Arab struggle.
Hmmm....Israel has an interesting way of showing it's "desperate desire to help create a peaceful Palestinian state". I would have thought that ignoring the UN by continuing to build illegal settlements on Palestinian land, confiscating land illegally, destroying Palestinian farmland for "security" walls, and unilaterally cutting up what land the Palestinians have with settler-only roads would be perfect methods for preventing the establishment of a peaceful Palestinian state. And this is not to excuse any Palestinian outrages, but it's laughable to say that Israel is desperately pursuing peace with the Palestinians.
I lived and ran my business in a Jewish neighborhood for almost twenty years. I have lots of Jewish friends, and Jews have always been numbered among the best of my business associates, both suppliers and customers. I haven't got an ounce of antisemitism in me, but I am definitely NOT pro Zionism.
Over the course of many years, I heard Jewish friends talk about the pressures they are under to fork up $$$ for the various Zionist organizations. Many of these are linked directly to lobbying groups in Washington. Many Jewish business people are all but held hostage to donate to organizations that they really can't afford to give to, let alone agree with.
One can't go into detail when making a comment in this venue, but I can assure you that many in the Jewish-American community wish they had never heard of Israel. The strong Zionists in the community bully everyone around them with threats against one's business and of course, social position.
I believe that the congress of the U.S. has proven, once again, that many Jews are great business people and know how to grease the wheel. Of course this isn't to suggest that non-Jewish special interest groups aren't adept at buying our representatives. Our government has dishonored itself over and over again, taking lobbyists' money and doing their bidding.
Democracy is a wonderful political concept, but I'm afraid that we're really bending.
And of course, Guiliani promised AIPAC war with Iran if elected--to boisterous cheers in the room. One could argue that such thinking is putting the intersts of others ahead of those of the US.
Right, right, Mearsheimer and Walt are racists and conspiracy theorists. And never mind the fact that you prove them right by saying so.
Life is too short to argue about things like this. The Israel lobby is too entrenched and too powerful. So I, like so many others, am forced to live in quiet, sneering resignation while my tax dollars are wasted in support of a country that is not a real democracy (see Arab citizens of Israel, treated much like black people were treated in this country in 1955) and that is of no particular strategic usefulness to the US.
One thing, though. You say that the US has never openly endorsed a two-state solution, and that this is evidence of how the Israel Lobby is in fact "not powerful enough." Mearsheimer and Walt state that when Hillary Clinton expressed her support for the idea, then-President Bill Clinton openly disagreed and stated that her comment did not reflect the policy of his administration. Why? Because he was pressured to do so by the Israel Lobby.
Let's keep a sense of proportion here. Israel's economy dwarfs that of its neighbors. Its military likewise outclasses the militaries (even combined) of surrounding states. It has nuclear weapons and missile submarines. It is in no danger of being destroyed.
It does seem legitimate to question Israel's seriousness in pursuing peace when they are creating facts on the ground in the West Bank that will make the land for peace formula unworkable. Yes, anger over Israel in the Arab world is driven by much more than the actual facts of the conflict. Much greater harm has been inflicted on Arabs by their own governments than by the Israelis. Morocco has occupied the Western Sahara against the will of its inhabitants since 1973 and who ever hears about that? Hama, Halabja etc. But the fact remains that the conflict is a focal point of Arab anger, we in the United States have become associated with Israel and are paying a price for it. Yet it seems clear that the Israelis are content to go on building settlements and pretend that they can have their cake and eat it too. I don's see why we should go along for the ride. It is not as if Israel was founded on a remote Antarctic peninsula and then discovered by the Arabs who decided gratuitously to hate and make war on it. It was founded through the confiscation of land and the expulsion of 700,000 Palestinians in 1948. There is legitimate ground for grievance on the part of the Palestinians. Far too many Palestinians seem unwilling to compromise and of course they should not and will not be allowed to reconquor the land they lost. But Israel seems to be undermining the possibility of the compromise solution that is on the table: (contiguous) land for peace.
Finally, I get a bit tired of the comparison between Islamofacism and the Axis of the Second World War. Germany and Japan were advanced industrial and technological powers who posed a serious challenge to the rest of the civilized world. The Arab/Islamic countries, simply stated, are not. The Islamofacists are bent of world conquest. This is plain from their writings. But they are not capable of it. This is an important difference. So let's back away from the doomsday rhetoric.
To prove that the Israeli lobby wields too much power, I think it's instructive to point out that several groups have tried to lobby on capitol hill for the palestinian side, only to be asked to leave before the meeting was even underway. In fact, it is virtually impossible for a pro-palestinian group to even be granted a meeting with a congressman when the topic to be discussed is israel/palestine.
And the issue is never that they are being disruptive or unprofessional. In each case to my knowledge, the lobbying group was entirely professional. In fact, in one example that comes to mind, the meeting was going well until the discussion turned towards the conflict at which point the gentlemen were asked to leave.
To me that proves that congress doesn't even want to be seen with the opposition, let alone be seen discussing or debating their position. If that is not proof enough of the fact that the israeli lobby yields more power than we should all find acceptable, then I don't know what is.
Great post, the subject is rarely visited. The subject is alway met with an attitude of how dare you. The truth of the matter any politician can end his career if he does not support Israel and Israeli policies in America.
Does the Israel lobby have too much influence over U.S. decisions?
These comments are so depressing. Using the blog as a gauge, it would seem the entire Washington Post readership is venomously anti-Israel. Most of the comments are emotional, with no base in fact – of history or current events. Most people seem to question Israel's right to exist.
You people have little idea what are the facts on the ground. You have never visited Israel, or the Arab world, and yet you demonize Israel from the belt-way armed with the Washington Post and the New York Times.
When these same Islamic fundamentalists attack America, you have no qualms about carpet-bombing villages (i.e. Afghanistan) or sending in hired guns to shoot up towns. Interesting now that many of you blame Israel (ie. Jews) for pushing these wars. If Israel acted this way, it would be front-page news for weeks on end. In Israel, on military operations, there are more journalists then soldiers! Each one dissecting, judging, and condemning.
The reason anti-Semitism comes up – just look around this blog. Why would any Jew not feel fear – look around at this mob. Ranting that is so fundamentally disconnected from reality. I could deconstruct so much of the factually incorrect information being spread around this blog but the true issue is between the lines.
Many of these comments flat out say that “Islamo-fascists” exist because of Israel! I love that people complain about using the “anti-Semitism card” yet then go on to rant about power, control, manipulation, conspiracy, etc. More conspiracy theories about Jewish power. In this day and age, anti-Semitism often uses anti-Israel as a cover. It just replaces “Jew” with “Israeli.”
The simple truth is that legally and morally, peoples forced to leave their homes because of wars of aggression or for that matter even defensive wars have the right to return to their homes when the hostilities end! Israel has instead claimed their need for defense overrules decency, international law, and any gratitude for being given lands that belonged to other peoples!
Look at any ME map and you will see the changes these wars have made and their simply is no basis for the Jews to be given any of the lands they have conquered by war! The Germans, the USSR, and the colonial powers were all stripped of lands by conquest; why are the Jews being treated as if they are special and have no obligations under international law??
I might accept the occupation of the original lands provided by the UN in 1948; but there is no justification for condoning the lands taken by war. That means the 1967 borders are no more legitimate than the occupation of the rest of the Palestinian lands; they must give back all occupied lands to become a "good" citizen of the world, let the arabs forced from their lands by the initial occupation of the lands "given" to the Jews to share return; and stop their state sponsored terroism...period! Anything less is not acceptable.
Well they are impostor and always will be, and the only thing that keep them there is the almighty USA. All the original Israelites are already here in the US (slavery) I know nobody want to hear this but it history and it hasn't been the same since the Romans came in conquered some 2000 years ago. True historians do not even want to touch this issue because it ugly and to many people will be shamed. So instead of telling the truth well keep them right there and Israel. What to gain from this I don't know there no oil in the country no resource that USA might gain maybe strategic balance perhaps and a future war that sure to come from all these lies.
After world war 2 USA would have been in a better position if they would have given them the state of Washington in called it The new Zion. This is a religion crisis that has no ending IN PEACE as long as we play (GOD)
Instead of giving them all these weapons lets them give them resources that they can share with there surrounding foes like Build new school, hospitals, access to better water and waste water facilities, shelter and housing
the president had just signed a bill to give Israel at least 400-500 billion and defence funds to avoid a conflict with Iran were just fueling the fire for something to pop off. That money can help allot of surrounding hostiles to become a little more tolerant for now. but that is not the final answer, there is none, but it beats all that money going directly to US defence contractors. It is better to take a lamb to a sword fight than a sword.
This may not get posted because the truth may not always be heard
The fact that the Washington Post/Newsweek referred to Jerusalem as a part of Israel, when in fact it is disputed territory, shows the subtle influences of the Israeli lobby in the United States.
The majority of comments that have been posted at the time that I am writing this recognize that the "pro-Israeli lobby" works against the interests of America. Are all those people anti-semites? Of course not! They are American citizens whose first loyalty is to AMERICA.
Sorry Mr. Singer you have the cart before the donkey. When Israel no longer had unlimited support for taking Palestinian lands, making a proposed Palestinian State into it private manual labor pool, etc then there will be a time for Peace. Think about projects that Israel could to NOW that would help the Palestinians think of the Israelis as sincere to obtaining peace with them. As of now, the only government projects are to wall them off, deny compensation and allow illegal settlement to continue.
Don't you worry; however, the population demographics will eventually settle the outcome. Pity Israel will be a single state, probably non-Jewish, when it had a chance to secure a meaningful peace as a Jewish state.
Let's ask a fundamental question ... What are the roots of Islamo-facism? I'd argue a primary one is Israels expulsion of Palestinians in 1948, its discrimination against the Palestinians who managed to remain inside the Green Line, its territorial expansionism after 1967 and the seeming unending state-sponsored crimes against Palestinians. These are things the United States should never stand for. No, the Israeli lobby is far too powerful, it has corrupted our core values.
The incestuous relationship between the U.S. and Israel is not only obscene but it is very dangerous for America. The Untied States should have long ago normalized relations with Israel, treated them as any other state, and insisted that if they wanted money they would have to work quid-pro-quo in America’s best interests - like anybody else has to do. Which in this case means the settlement of its issues in the region. It will take decades to wash off the stain of association with Israel’s duplicity and moral failure, and decades for our duplicity and moral failure to wash away, as well.
The fact that a First World, technological country with a nuclear arsenal and the strongest military in the MidEast, populated with a scant 6 some-odd million, should receive over $3 billion a year in tax-payer ‘Aid’ and grants - far more than anybody else in the entire world gets - should be ample evidence of the perverted nature of this relationship, and the extraordinary power of the Lobby. Of course they attack anybody who suggest such a thing even exists! Wouldn’t you, if you were them?
On Singer’s text, it is nothing but tired, stale, and endlessly repeated justifications. More interesting to me is that underneath the words, and in-between the specious logic and glaring omissions, reside the staggering power of ego, bias, and illusion, and it is quite humorous to read in those words the insistence of these attributes demanding their due; surreptitiously, of course. Bias, illusion, and ego are clamoring for recognition to such an extent, in fact, that for any perspicacious reader they totally sabotage Singer’s position, playing the quiet hurricane to the matchstick house of Israeli excuses and faux reasonableness. Great stuff; do what all hilarious buffoons do and call Leno immediately.
It has been a great sadness in my life to have been forced to watch my beloved United States government continually take sides with enemies of democracy in the defense of democracy. I start with Iran, where we overthrew a legitimate government to install our puppet. In the defense of democracy. Was it Argentina where we overthrew a legitimate government, or was that Chile? Remember Reagan's refusal to wash our hands of apartied? Now, we prop up an emerging facist in Pakistan. All in the defense of democracy.
Now comes Mr. Singer who suggests that Palestinian refugees should forgive the violent takeover of their homes by Zionist settlers several generations ago and agree to just walk away. If someone showed up at Mr. Singer's doorstep and forced his family his house at gunpoint, I don't think that he'd be so eager to forgive. Isn't that the whole point of Zionism? Never forgive those who take your homeland?
So, who should we support in the mideast? Which side has the moral high ground? Israel, who claimed their land by force and removed its native population at the point of a gun? Palestinians, who kill children and other innocents at random? Which side is the more democratic? Neither side is clean, and neither is without pity. I think the US should take no sides and, instead, should bring its considerable influence to bear on all sides. Would Isreal have more incentive to accept peace if the US withdrew its support without it?
The very words cause many people to grin at what appears to be simply a play on words. No one reads about such people in european authored history books and there are only a few references to "Ethiopian Jews" in white Jewish sources. Yet Black Hebrews have existed since biblical times. In fact, they are the original or proto-typical Hebrews.
Their story begins with the Patriarch Abraham (2117-1942 B.C.), a native of the Sumerian city of Ur in ancient Mesopotamia. Archaeological discoveries have proven that the earliest inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia were members of the "Brown Race," i.e., the Negroid branch of humanity.
It has been confirmed that the ancient Sumerians were akin to the modern Black Dravidians of India. The Sumerians also had an affinity with a people known as the Elamites, the very first Semitic group mentioned in the Bible (Gen. 10:22). The Elamites were a black-skinned and woolly-haired people as the colorful glazed artwork on the royal palace walls of the ancient Persian city of Susa clearly show.Thus Abraham, the native of Sumerian and the founding father of the Israelite nation, was a black man. The black racial origins of the Patriarchs is not based on mere conjecture, it is in complete agreement with the picture one gets from examining the identity of the earliest inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia.
This truth is grossly neglected, suppressed, and distorted in most European and American historical texts which are flavored with race prejudice. Fortunately, however, there are enough well authored and highly researched works by Black historians that challenge the Eurocentric revisions of history and correct the various erroneous views regarding the ethnic identity of the Hebrews.
Biblical history relates that the descendants of Abraham, namely Jacob (Israel) and his twelve sons and their wives, 70 in all, migrated from Canaan to Egypt around the year 1827 B.C. During their sojourn in Egypt the Children of Israel multiplied from being a family of 70 souls to a nation of over 3 million people at the time of the Exodus which took place in 1612 B.C.
This astounding number of people in so short a time can only be adequately explained by intermarriage between the family of
All Comments (118)
Question for the group:
Why does the US continue to give the Israelis billions of dollars in foreign aid each year, even though we can’t afford it and have to borrow the money from the Chinese (plus interest)?
I don’t know either unless it’s because AIPAC owns our congress, senate and executive branches of government.
November 26, 2007 1:26 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 26, 2007 13:26
From today’s WP:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/19/AR2007111900213_pf.html
Olmert acts to bolster Abbas before meeting
By Jeffrey Heller
Reuters
Monday, November 19, 2007; 8:29 AM
“JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert sought wide Arab support on Monday for a U.S.-led peace conference by agreeing to release 441 Palestinian prisoners and reaffirming a pledge not to build new Jewish settlements....
Olmert did not say in earlier remarks to his cabinet if he would freeze construction within existing settlements in the occupied West Bank, as sought by the Palestinians and the United States. A senior Palestinian negotiator, latching on to the uncertainty, called Olmert's comments "nonsense."...
In addition, settlers have set up several dozen hilltop outposts without government approval.
Olmert repeated at the cabinet session a long-standing promise to remove the outposts, but again set no date.
In a gesture to Abbas, he also won cabinet approval to release 441 Palestinian prisoners, a government official said.
All were members of Abbas's Fatah faction "without blood on their hands" and could go free as early as Friday after a review of a release list by a ministerial committee, the official said. Abbas had wanted 2,000 freed...
SAUDI PARTICIPATION
Saudi Arabia, which has not said whether it would attend the November 26-27 conference, had demanded a "freeze of settlements" before the meeting. It was unclear whether Olmert's remarks would go far enough to persuade Riyadh to participate.
"What Olmert announced today is nonsense," senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said. "Olmert has to understand he either declares a full settlement freeze in all occupied areas including East Jerusalem, or it's nothing."
The road map calls for a freeze to "all settlement activity," including "natural growth," a reference to building in existing settlements to accommodate growing families.
"If Olmert does not halt 'natural growth' then nothing has changed," said Nabil Abu Rdainah, an Abbas aide.
About 270,000 Jewish settlers live among 2.5 million West Bank Palestinians. The World Court has branded all settlements on land captured by Israel in a 1967 war as illegal.
Abbas's chief negotiator said Israeli and Palestinian teams had failed to make progress on a pre-conference joint document that would address in general terms core issues such as borders and the future of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees.
In a surprise announcement, Olmert's office said the prime minister planned to go to Egypt on Tuesday for talks with President Hosni Mubarak.
His trip appeared to be part of efforts to ensure broad Arab participation in the Annapolis meeting, a launching pad for formal talks on Palestinian statehood. Arab League foreign ministers meet in Cairo on Friday to decide whether to attend...
November 19, 2007 10:42 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 19, 2007 10:42
I just googled this and this is what the last sentence in Wikipedia said:
:''In a January 2006 interview, the Brotherhood's leader, Ali Bayanouni, "said the Muslim Brotherhood wants a peaceful change of government in Damascus and the establishment of a 'civil, democratic state', not an Islamic republic."[14]"
Now let's look at Israel's year 2006 and compare shall we!
November 19, 2007 7:53 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 19, 2007 07:53
@Garak
Very good! If you or anyone else is interested in understanding how militant Arabs can be dealt with compassionately, simply Google:
Assad Hama Muslim Brotherhood
November 18, 2007 11:22 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 18, 2007 11:22
Of course The Lobby isn't powerful enough. It will be powerful enough only when the national anthem of the US is Israel Uber Alles. Only then will The Lobby be satiated.
We all know the song:
Israel, Israel uber alles
Kill some Pals and steal their land
Crush their houses
Shoot their children
Bomb their cities
Kill them all!
Israel, Israel uber alles
America must bow to us!
November 18, 2007 10:31 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 18, 2007 10:31
Yeah, but the sun will burn out in a few more billion years.
November 17, 2007 8:18 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 20:18
@Rick
In the most serious tone possible: You are most welcome.
...but, I just got a new Dell, have beaucoup bandwidth and am not going away until everyone agrees with me.
November 17, 2007 7:23 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 19:23
Yep, I get it. Israel may be doomed, or it may be the future financial capital of the world. Who knows - point well taken?
Thanks for the friendly discussion.
November 17, 2007 7:09 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 19:09
@Rick
"Israel is doomed"
In one sense that is true. Israel means "he who contends with God". If you take "contend" in the sense of competing then "Israel" is doomed. How can we compete with the Almighty? If you take "contend" in the sense of struggling or wrestling, then perhaps not. But, now, I am fodder for those who would content with frothing mouth that religion has been injected in the conversation. We can't have that, now can we?
In a more secular sense, say on the world stage, consider this: The economic center of the world has, over the last few centuries, shifted from Amsterdam to London to New York - from East to West. It would seem that if we take that paradigm to heart and also note the unrelenting rise of China, the next likely shift would be to Hong Kong or Shanghai. After all, America is doomed, isn't it? But, I would contend that China is out given the nature of many of the comments on this blog. The next economic center of the world should be Tel Aviv! Well, in someone's world that makes perfect sense. "Tel" means hill as in a mound of accumulated ruins and "aviv" meaning spring as in the season of renewal. So, the accumulated financial ruin of the world "springs" alive, fresh and renewed in Tel Aviv. And, what scenario could more perfectly fit the prefabricated image of Jews as the money-grubbing kings of the world! There you have it. The most perfect prognostication possible about the future of the world.
But, we are not seers, and that bit of Alice in Wonderland makes at least as much sense as anything that I've I read recently, if you catch my drift.
November 17, 2007 6:17 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 18:17
Definitions of amanuensis on the Web:
stenographer: someone skilled in the transcription of speech (especially dictation)
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
Amanuensis is a Latin word adopted in various languages, including English, for certain persons performing a function by hand, either writing down the words of another or performing manual labour. The term is derived from a Latin expression which may be literally translated as "manual labourer".
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanuensis
You are very smart William, but unfortunately you are temporarily fertummult.
November 17, 2007 4:59 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 16:59
“Anti-Jew, anti-Semitic, anti-Israeli or anti-Zionist or whatever - they are distinctions without a difference. They all either directly are or facilitate Jew hatred for people with an absolute right to live in their ancient homeland and defend the right to do so”
Sorry William, the Jews were kicked out of Palestine almost two millennia ago. The land has been occupied by Muslims since that time, tending their flocks and orchards and farming the land to support their families. No one has a right to take it from them after abandoning it for such a long time.
“The fact that such a tiny group of people could engender such irrational scrutiny most perfectly makes the point that Jew hatred is a definable mental disorder worthy of the DSM.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diagnostic_and_Statistical_Manual_of_Mental_Disorders
“The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is an American handbook for mental health professionals that lists different categories of mental disorder and the criteria for diagnosing them, according to the publishing organization the American Psychiatric Association. It is used worldwide by clinicians and researchers as well as insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies and policy makers. It has attracted controversy and criticism as well as praise.”
No, I think it is my duty as a citizen to challenge those actions of my government which I do not agree with. We must focus on the heinous crimes that our government is perpetrating on the innocent and defenseless people of the Middle East in our lust for oil. This is the riveting issue of our age. It would be insane not to give it our utmost attention.
Israel is doomed. We cannot and should not continue to support her illegal existence forever. The ancient civilizations of the neighborhood will simply wait her out.
The Palestinians do not have the resources to defeat Israel, let alone the U.S., but the Arab League of Nations most certainly does. With the price of oil at $100 per barrel and rising, and our national debt at $10 Trillion and rising (much of it owed to China), we will not remain a super power for long. It is a shame that we squander our wealth and young peoples lives foolishly in ill advised and unnecessary wars in the region, when this same effort would have given us energy independence from Middle East oil by now. That is just a fact of life, but it won’t last for long. How long will it last, 10, 50, 100 years – who knows; but Israel’s days are numbered.
November 17, 2007 4:46 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 16:46
I apologize for the typographical errors in my posts. My amanuensis is on maternity leave.
November 17, 2007 3:05 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 15:05
@Rick
Anti-Jew, anti-Semitic, anti-Israeli or anti-Zionist or whatever - they are distinctions without a difference. They all either directly are or facilitate Jew hatred for people with an absolute right to live in their ancient homeland and defend the right to do so. The fact that so many would contest this point makes my point. The fact that such a tiny group of people could engender such irrational scrutiny most perfectly makes the point that Jew hatred is a definable mental disorder worthy of the DSM. The fact that a country the size of a Texas county could attract such diseased discontent is even more worthy of exposure. The Jews are certainly not perfect, but the level and volume of the hateful rhetoric spewed at them from Bali to Baltimore is in no way commensurate with principle or reason. It is unfounded and senseless and every time that I see or hear this non-sense, I will name it for what it is.
November 17, 2007 2:33 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 14:33
Supposedly, we were all jews, then Christ came and there were Christians then Mohammed came and there were muslims.....so.........let's all revert to judaism and all of us will be God's chosen. Then we can decide who gets what.
November 17, 2007 1:54 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 17, 2007 13:54
BTW, the link sensor nailed me on the last post for too many links. That last reference was:
http://www.pass.to/glossary/gloz4.htm
“Ver derharget! - Get killed! Drop dead! (Also "ver geharget)”
And William:
You are fercockt!
Just kidding, I love you baby.
And I'm no anti-Semite. I am anti-Zionist, and don't tell me that there is no difference. One means Jew hater; the other means hater of land grabbing genocidal maniacs.
November 16, 2007 3:50 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 16, 2007 15:50
Hello William,
Thanks for the post. It’s amazing what one can learn on these sites. I take it that:
“...Kick their jihadi tuches until they all do tchuva or ver derharget...” means:
Kick their Jihadi arses until they repent or drop dead.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.sbjf.org/sbjco/schmaltz/yiddish_phrases.htm
“TUCHES: Backside, arse, "tuches lecker" means arse kisser, one who shamelessly curries favor with superiors.”
http://kohelet.org/go/web/to/kohelet/rhoffman/10Mishpatim.htm
“A case can be made for Moses having created the Golden Calf, rather than Aaron:
1. When Moses scorned the gold which the other Hebrews were collecting as reparations from the Egyptians (thus giving the Egyptians a chance to do tchuva), he was not giving the Satan its due...
The main sin of visiting mourners is diverting a person from his or her pain.
If you can’t feel pain, you’re like a barren woman. Rachel and Sarah began teaching tchuva from their barrenness...
The main source of Moses’s pain is his inability to communicate. In his incarnation as Noach, he convinced not a single person to do tchuva. Moses’s disability was that he was too good. He was teaching the people how to be compulsive, not how to be free...
Our greatest gift is our deficit. The purpose of the world is to do tchuva. Tchuva is returning a lost spark to G*d. It made Esther’s face shine. The other candidates for the coveted position of wife to the drunken wife-killer had to use oils and makeup, but Esther was radiant without using any cosmetics.
Unify pain and simcha to do tchuva.”
“Ver derharget! - Get killed! Drop dead! (Also "ver geharget)”
November 16, 2007 3:40 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 16, 2007 15:40
@Rick
"Of course the Neocons and Israeli Lobbyists were prime instigators of our disastrous invasion of Iraq." Translation: The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world since the beginning of time - a typical anti-Semitic rant.
My solution for the Islamo-fascist problem is to solve it the good, old-fashioned American way: Kick their jihadi tuches until they all do tchuva or ver derharget then give the rest of them distressed Levi's with side-pockets large enough for their entire complementary Elvis CD collection.
November 16, 2007 2:49 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 16, 2007 14:49
Saul Singer:
“The surprising truth, however, is that from the point of view of both the peace process and even more fundamental American interests, the U.S. should be more "pro-Israel," not less. The basic reason for this is that the Arab war to destroy Israel is a subset of Islamo-fascist jihad against the West. It makes little sense for the U.S. to be neutral in such a struggle, just as the U.S. could not be neutral as Nazi Germany proceeded to gobble up Europe.”
Get real! The only fascists are the US/Israeli invaders/occupiers who have used the world’s most powerful war machine to keep the Palestinians under the Israeli Jackboot living in squalor, to control their food, water and energy supplies, and to allocate to each Israeli the same amount of water as four Palestinians.
This is the root cause, along with our illegal preemptive invasion and occupation of Iraq, for any Muslim retaliation against the West. Of course the Neocons and Israeli Lobbyists were prime instigators of our disastrous invasion of Iraq.
Mr. Singer argues that we should be even more pro-Israel to expedite the submission of the Palestinians and Islamic Jihadists in general.
Nonsense! The Muslim world will simply wait for the U.S. Empire to founder on its inability to get its dependency on Middle East oil under control, and be bankrupted by the oil producing nations.
My solution to the Palestinian/Israeli conflict:
1. Declare a no fly zone over the region.
2. Demand that Israel destroy all planes, tanks and nuclear weapons. If they refuse, we do it for them.
3. Stand back and say: “O.K. boys and girls, have at it.
November 16, 2007 12:51 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 16, 2007 12:51
Most of the posts on this topic are either just plain silly, incoherent or the product of willing ignorance. That’s unfortunate for WaPo and all those who take a moment to add serious comments. Some, however, cross the line and Daniel Brown’s fall in that category.
His claims about the Jewish prayer, the Kol Nidrei, are examples of classic, text book anti-Semitism. A brief account of the history of this libel can be found on Wikipedia at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kol_Nidre
Excerpts from this article include:
“…this prayer has often been employed out of context by antisemites [sic] to support their claims that Jews cannot be trusted.”
And more completely:
Use by anti-Semites
Kol Nidrei has been used by antisemites to cast suspicion on the trustworthiness of an oath taken by a Jew.[3] This charge was leveled so much that many non-Jewish legislators considered it necessary to have a special form of oath administered to Jews ("Oath More Judaico"), and many judges refused to allow them to take a supplementary oath, basing their objections chiefly on this prayer. As early as 1240 in the Disputation of Paris, Yechiel of Paris was obliged to defend Kol Nidrei against these charges.
Counterpoint
Rabbis have always pointed out that the dispensation from vows in Kol Nidrei refers only to those which an individual voluntarily assumes for himself alone and in which no other persons or their interests are involved. The formula is restricted to those vows which are between man and God alone; they have no effect on vows made between one man and another. No vow, promise, or oath which concerns another person, a court of justice, or a community is implied in Kol Nidrei. According to Jewish doctrine, the sole purpose of this prayer is to give protection from divine punishment in case of violation of the vow.
Five geonim (rabbinic leaders of medieval Babylonian Jewry) were against while only one was in favor of reciting the prayer. Even so early an authority as Saadia wished to restrict it to those vows which were extorted from the congregation in the synagogue in times of persecution ("Kol Bo"), and he declared explicitly that the "Kol Nidre" gave no absolution from oaths which an individual had taken during the year.
What Mr. Brown is doing is to repeat lies propagated in the 13th century.
November 15, 2007 2:15 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 15, 2007 14:15
Also Linda Kramer made a point. How can you be "God's Chosen People" when the Kol Nidre allows you to break any personal vows you made to god? I mean if you can break any vow you have made to god how can I expect you to keep your word to me? Lies and deceit.
I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. Revelation 2:9
Thats in the bible is that true also?
November 15, 2007 1:25 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 15, 2007 13:25
You say some very confusing things. Amerikkka is very Pro-Israel. People in the Amerikkan government have been in Israel more then they have been to New Orleans. Amerikkka needs to be more Anti Israel. I do not feel that the Jewish people even deserve the state of Israel. Also I feel that the Jewish community has taken to long to realize the national rights of the Palestinian people. I can give you an example how Amerikkka is Pro Israel enough. Amerikkkan health care system is flawed, our police, teachers, fire fighters, and also doctors need more money in certain areas of Amerikkka. That fact that Amerikkka can find it to give Israel another 30billion dollars shows they are to much Pro-Israel.
http://www.wrmea.com/html/us_aid_to_israel.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/17/world/middleeast/17israel.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
I know it may sound harsh but Amerikkka needs to pull away from Israel. It makes no sense to help Israel anymore. They have done horrible things. And whatever has befallen them they asked for on their own.
November 15, 2007 1:15 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 15, 2007 13:15
The US recently agreed to a 25 percent increase in its military and defense aid to Israel, to 30 billion dollars in the next 10 years. I believe that it's not nearly enough. Since 9/11 Americans have experienced firsthand the real costs of the Muslim war on civilization - something Israelis have had to live with on a daily basis since 1948.
The terrorist attack of September 11 alone cost New York about 95 billion. The price tag for the "war on terror" since 9/11 has been about 843 billion. I used quotation marks purposely to denote the euphemism "war on terror". What the term really implies is the war against the never ending Jihad - the Islamic murder campaign begun in 622 AD. Whatever the cost may be to protect us from these exploding barbarians, it will be paid.
November 15, 2007 12:55 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 15, 2007 12:55
"There is an intrinsic sense of goodness and fair play in most Americans that will always bind us to the Jewish people."
... as long as we are kept ignorant of Israel's policy of slow ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from the West Bank, and as long as we are kept ignorant of the fact that we give $4-6 billion per year to Israel, making a country the size of a large city our biggest recipient of foreign aid in the world, while in the meantime we offer almost nothing to areas in the world, far more impoverished than Israel, that could use aid to fight problems that, unlike Israel's, are actually tractable, such as combating tropical diseases. Yes, as long as we are kept ignorant, as the profoundly dishonest William from San Antonio intends that we be kept, we will always be bound to Israel, or at least to the facade that has been presented to us as being Israel.
November 15, 2007 11:00 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 15, 2007 11:00
After reading all 105 posts, I found only 4 that were coherent: Peter Varden, Benjamin, Sam and Daniel. The remainder I found devoid of rationality or morality or both. To those four I would say please don't be distressed, the bulk of the comments are not representative of the vast majority of the American people. There is an intrinsic sense of goodness and fair play in most Americans that will always bind us to the Jewish people.
November 15, 2007 4:54 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 15, 2007 04:54
Okay, so Singer starts off by saying that the whole issue is anti-Semitic and that any academic discussion of the Israeli influence on US foreign policy must be racist.
AND THEN he goes on to pile on a bunch of racist comments against Arabs as a way to convince us of the righteousness of Israel in a war against all these violent Arabs, whom he compares to the Nazis!
He even throws in the new "islamo-fascist" term all the right-wingers have started using.
I, too, live in Israel, and understand the issue of "security" but I am against the occupation, and I'm against the idea that violence will somehow bring about a solution. Let's take the example of Gaza. It is a tiny, isolated spot, and Israel still can't manage to stop the rocket attacks from militant groups there. The IDF has killed hundreds of people in Gaza all along insisting that the purpose of their missions is to stop the rockets. They've imposed a harsh economic blockade that is hurting the most vulnerable people. And now they want to cut off the electricity supply to Gaza. All of this is collective punishment, destroying lives, and only making people angrier. If you declare a people your "Enemy Entity" they will become your enemy. And guess what - the rockets haven't stopped, nor have the Israelis gotten Gilad Shalit back, another of their stated purposes. All this for nothing.
So. I think the US should stop funding these actions, stop writing the blank checks, stop standing next to Tzipi Livni at press conferences, etc. We don't need blood on our hands as well, we have enough places to devastate on our own.
November 14, 2007 12:21 AM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 14, 2007 00:21
Are you aware of a not so top secret Israeli Military Intelligence report that says the following:
Immediately following the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, Al Quaida will launch a series of attacks on the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait that in the next instant will paralyze the US economy.
Gevisser@sbcglobal.net
November 13, 2007 10:13 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 22:13
Mr Signer as many Israelis want Americans to assume that our interests are always aligned and to mutual benefit. The threat to Israel is not to its existence but to its hold on the West Bank and the settlements there. There is no benefit to American citizens for our governments support of this occupation. It is detrimental to the US strategically and economically, and that is why the influence of the Israel lobby is an issue, and one that America needs to re-evaluate. What's in it for America?
November 13, 2007 9:16 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 21:16
Mr. Singer, it's an interesting fairy tale you tell. I hope you have the sense not to believe it yourself.
November 13, 2007 8:46 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 20:46
“A passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation facilitates the illusion of an imaginary common interest in cases where no real common interest exists, infuses into one the enmities of the other, and betrays the former into participation in the quarrels and wars of the latter without adequate inducement or justification.”
(George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796)
__________________________________________________
November 13, 2007 8:18 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 20:18
I was always under the impression that the term "Semite" referred not only to Jews, but also to Arabs and other ancient "tribes" from Southwest Asia. Am I wrong? How does being sick to death of the current Israeli lobby and those treasonous Neocons who got us into the current quagmire translate into being antisemitic? I actually have some Jewish relatives and I even like some of them. That doesn't mean, however, that I think Israel ought to have such influence over our foreign policy. What have they done for us lately? And that "God's chosen people"? Give me a break. How does anyone expect to win an argument with that sort of logic? Do people actually believe that garbage? But then, I'm a Buddhist. What do I know?
November 13, 2007 7:52 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 19:52
"DANIEL" writes out of ignorance of Israel.
Daniel writes: "In Israel, on military operations, there are more journalists then soldiers! Each one dissecting, judging, and condemning".
BS! Two such Israeli "Journalists" passed away lately. Uri Dan, of Maariv and Yeshayahu Ben Porat of Yediot. The obituaries told that both were MOSSAD AGENTS, not real journalists.
What is the truth then? - That Israeli public opinion is manipulated by AIPAC-type "Journalists". Thus the Zionist press, Zionist politicians support Israel's invasion of Lebanon, and sowing 4.000.000 U.S. made cluster bombs in an area of some 40 X 10 miles. When the ISAF, equipped with F-16s destroyed residential areas in Dahiya/Beirut, they were mainly applauded by Israeli "Jews".
The change -in public opinion - occurred when it became clear that Israel has lost the war, and only then! Just as the change in American public opinion occurred when Cheney & Bush got stuck in the Iraqi QUAGMIRE.
Daniel must realize that Jews and Israelis who seek a change, write many of the negative comments to Singer’s piece. Do not accuse us of Anti-Semitism; we love Semites - Arabs and Jews - and WE LOVE PEACE most of all. GIVE PEACE A CHANCE!
November 13, 2007 7:28 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 19:28
It is ridiculously obvious that Mr. Singer is writing to those people who either have never visited Israel-Palestine or whose visits were carefully controlled so that they neither saw evidence of the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands nor the immense illegal settlement blocks gouging gigantic chunks of Palestinian land from the West Bank--including Arab East Jerusalem. To readers who have experienced the wider context, his adroitly-crafted phrase "Israel's desperate desire to help create a peaceful Palestinian state" contradicts virtually every aspect of the reality there.
As to his contentions regarding "the Arab war to destroy Israel," let him encourage the nation of Israel to withdraw completely, including all those people whom they have settled on confiscated Palestinian land, to the 1949 Armistice Line [the Green Line]. The world would then see just how quickly such a move would lead to full acceptance of the nation of Israel by the Arab world. Even though such a move would leave Palestinians with a mere 22% of Historic Palestine, they would willingly settle for that for a truly independent state. Such steps would accomplish far, far more toward Israel becoming a full partner in the Middle East than will all the guns, planes, walls/fences, and roadblocks that American dollars can buy.
November 13, 2007 6:01 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 18:01
It is highly unlikely that"the Arab desire to destroy Israel is a subset of the Islamic Jihad against the West" since that desire ante-dates the jihad by over a hundred years. The Arabs have been resisting the theft of their land by the Zionists since that process started in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Everybody, not just the Arabs, should refuse to accept as normal an ethno-confessional state(i.e. a state based on ethnicity and religion, with the rights of non-members of the ruling group severely curtailed, both formally and informally). Further it is a state which exists in its current form because it was a gift to the Jews from the European powers who had stood by and allowed the Holocaust to happen;the Arabs paid for the sins of the Europeans It doesn't take a lot of chin-stroking and windy discourse on the old anti-semitism bromides to explain Arab hostility.On this basis it is hard not to conclude that we are far too biased towards Israel and that the moral as well as the strategically sound thing to do would be to move towards at least a strictly neutral position in the Israeli-Arab struggle.
November 13, 2007 5:56 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 17:56
Eric Wemmelman said:
"The Jews are God's chosen people, therefore they have every right to occupy the land known as Israel"
I say:
I am god's chosen man, therefore I have every right to occupy Eric Wemmelman's house which is known as mine
(I may just have to write some web pages to prove it !)
November 13, 2007 5:46 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 17:46
Hmmm....Israel has an interesting way of showing it's "desperate desire to help create a peaceful Palestinian state". I would have thought that ignoring the UN by continuing to build illegal settlements on Palestinian land, confiscating land illegally, destroying Palestinian farmland for "security" walls, and unilaterally cutting up what land the Palestinians have with settler-only roads would be perfect methods for preventing the establishment of a peaceful Palestinian state. And this is not to excuse any Palestinian outrages, but it's laughable to say that Israel is desperately pursuing peace with the Palestinians.
November 13, 2007 5:45 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 17:45
I lived and ran my business in a Jewish neighborhood for almost twenty years. I have lots of Jewish friends, and Jews have always been numbered among the best of my business associates, both suppliers and customers. I haven't got an ounce of antisemitism in me, but I am definitely NOT pro Zionism.
Over the course of many years, I heard Jewish friends talk about the pressures they are under to fork up $$$ for the various Zionist organizations. Many of these are linked directly to lobbying groups in Washington. Many Jewish business people are all but held hostage to donate to organizations that they really can't afford to give to, let alone agree with.
One can't go into detail when making a comment in this venue, but I can assure you that many in the Jewish-American community wish they had never heard of Israel. The strong Zionists in the community bully everyone around them with threats against one's business and of course, social position.
I believe that the congress of the U.S. has proven, once again, that many Jews are great business people and know how to grease the wheel. Of course this isn't to suggest that non-Jewish special interest groups aren't adept at buying our representatives. Our government has dishonored itself over and over again, taking lobbyists' money and doing their bidding.
Democracy is a wonderful political concept, but I'm afraid that we're really bending.
November 13, 2007 4:41 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 16:41
And of course, Guiliani promised AIPAC war with Iran if elected--to boisterous cheers in the room. One could argue that such thinking is putting the intersts of others ahead of those of the US.
November 13, 2007 4:33 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 16:33
Right, right, Mearsheimer and Walt are racists and conspiracy theorists. And never mind the fact that you prove them right by saying so.
Life is too short to argue about things like this. The Israel lobby is too entrenched and too powerful. So I, like so many others, am forced to live in quiet, sneering resignation while my tax dollars are wasted in support of a country that is not a real democracy (see Arab citizens of Israel, treated much like black people were treated in this country in 1955) and that is of no particular strategic usefulness to the US.
One thing, though. You say that the US has never openly endorsed a two-state solution, and that this is evidence of how the Israel Lobby is in fact "not powerful enough." Mearsheimer and Walt state that when Hillary Clinton expressed her support for the idea, then-President Bill Clinton openly disagreed and stated that her comment did not reflect the policy of his administration. Why? Because he was pressured to do so by the Israel Lobby.
November 13, 2007 4:23 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 16:23
Let's keep a sense of proportion here. Israel's economy dwarfs that of its neighbors. Its military likewise outclasses the militaries (even combined) of surrounding states. It has nuclear weapons and missile submarines. It is in no danger of being destroyed.
It does seem legitimate to question Israel's seriousness in pursuing peace when they are creating facts on the ground in the West Bank that will make the land for peace formula unworkable. Yes, anger over Israel in the Arab world is driven by much more than the actual facts of the conflict. Much greater harm has been inflicted on Arabs by their own governments than by the Israelis. Morocco has occupied the Western Sahara against the will of its inhabitants since 1973 and who ever hears about that? Hama, Halabja etc. But the fact remains that the conflict is a focal point of Arab anger, we in the United States have become associated with Israel and are paying a price for it. Yet it seems clear that the Israelis are content to go on building settlements and pretend that they can have their cake and eat it too. I don's see why we should go along for the ride. It is not as if Israel was founded on a remote Antarctic peninsula and then discovered by the Arabs who decided gratuitously to hate and make war on it. It was founded through the confiscation of land and the expulsion of 700,000 Palestinians in 1948. There is legitimate ground for grievance on the part of the Palestinians. Far too many Palestinians seem unwilling to compromise and of course they should not and will not be allowed to reconquor the land they lost. But Israel seems to be undermining the possibility of the compromise solution that is on the table: (contiguous) land for peace.
Finally, I get a bit tired of the comparison between Islamofacism and the Axis of the Second World War. Germany and Japan were advanced industrial and technological powers who posed a serious challenge to the rest of the civilized world. The Arab/Islamic countries, simply stated, are not. The Islamofacists are bent of world conquest. This is plain from their writings. But they are not capable of it. This is an important difference. So let's back away from the doomsday rhetoric.
November 13, 2007 4:20 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 16:20
To prove that the Israeli lobby wields too much power, I think it's instructive to point out that several groups have tried to lobby on capitol hill for the palestinian side, only to be asked to leave before the meeting was even underway. In fact, it is virtually impossible for a pro-palestinian group to even be granted a meeting with a congressman when the topic to be discussed is israel/palestine.
And the issue is never that they are being disruptive or unprofessional. In each case to my knowledge, the lobbying group was entirely professional. In fact, in one example that comes to mind, the meeting was going well until the discussion turned towards the conflict at which point the gentlemen were asked to leave.
To me that proves that congress doesn't even want to be seen with the opposition, let alone be seen discussing or debating their position. If that is not proof enough of the fact that the israeli lobby yields more power than we should all find acceptable, then I don't know what is.
November 13, 2007 4:09 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 16:09
Great post, the subject is rarely visited. The subject is alway met with an attitude of how dare you. The truth of the matter any politician can end his career if he does not support Israel and Israeli policies in America.
Does the Israel lobby have too much influence over U.S. decisions?
------> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=966
.
November 13, 2007 4:09 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 16:09
These comments are so depressing. Using the blog as a gauge, it would seem the entire Washington Post readership is venomously anti-Israel. Most of the comments are emotional, with no base in fact – of history or current events. Most people seem to question Israel's right to exist.
You people have little idea what are the facts on the ground. You have never visited Israel, or the Arab world, and yet you demonize Israel from the belt-way armed with the Washington Post and the New York Times.
When these same Islamic fundamentalists attack America, you have no qualms about carpet-bombing villages (i.e. Afghanistan) or sending in hired guns to shoot up towns. Interesting now that many of you blame Israel (ie. Jews) for pushing these wars. If Israel acted this way, it would be front-page news for weeks on end. In Israel, on military operations, there are more journalists then soldiers! Each one dissecting, judging, and condemning.
The reason anti-Semitism comes up – just look around this blog. Why would any Jew not feel fear – look around at this mob. Ranting that is so fundamentally disconnected from reality. I could deconstruct so much of the factually incorrect information being spread around this blog but the true issue is between the lines.
Many of these comments flat out say that “Islamo-fascists” exist because of Israel! I love that people complain about using the “anti-Semitism card” yet then go on to rant about power, control, manipulation, conspiracy, etc. More conspiracy theories about Jewish power. In this day and age, anti-Semitism often uses anti-Israel as a cover. It just replaces “Jew” with “Israeli.”
November 13, 2007 3:54 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:54
The simple truth is that legally and morally, peoples forced to leave their homes because of wars of aggression or for that matter even defensive wars have the right to return to their homes when the hostilities end! Israel has instead claimed their need for defense overrules decency, international law, and any gratitude for being given lands that belonged to other peoples!
Look at any ME map and you will see the changes these wars have made and their simply is no basis for the Jews to be given any of the lands they have conquered by war! The Germans, the USSR, and the colonial powers were all stripped of lands by conquest; why are the Jews being treated as if they are special and have no obligations under international law??
I might accept the occupation of the original lands provided by the UN in 1948; but there is no justification for condoning the lands taken by war. That means the 1967 borders are no more legitimate than the occupation of the rest of the Palestinian lands; they must give back all occupied lands to become a "good" citizen of the world, let the arabs forced from their lands by the initial occupation of the lands "given" to the Jews to share return; and stop their state sponsored terroism...period! Anything less is not acceptable.
November 13, 2007 3:46 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:46
Well they are impostor and always will be, and the only thing that keep them there is the almighty USA. All the original Israelites are already here in the US (slavery) I know nobody want to hear this but it history and it hasn't been the same since the Romans came in conquered some 2000 years ago. True historians do not even want to touch this issue because it ugly and to many people will be shamed. So instead of telling the truth well keep them right there and Israel. What to gain from this I don't know there no oil in the country no resource that USA might gain maybe strategic balance perhaps and a future war that sure to come from all these lies.
After world war 2 USA would have been in a better position if they would have given them the state of Washington in called it The new Zion. This is a religion crisis that has no ending IN PEACE as long as we play (GOD)
Instead of giving them all these weapons lets them give them resources that they can share with there surrounding foes like Build new school, hospitals, access to better water and waste water facilities, shelter and housing
the president had just signed a bill to give Israel at least 400-500 billion and defence funds to avoid a conflict with Iran were just fueling the fire for something to pop off. That money can help allot of surrounding hostiles to become a little more tolerant for now. but that is not the final answer, there is none, but it beats all that money going directly to US defence contractors. It is better to take a lamb to a sword fight than a sword.
This may not get posted because the truth may not always be heard
November 13, 2007 3:41 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:41
The fact that the Washington Post/Newsweek referred to Jerusalem as a part of Israel, when in fact it is disputed territory, shows the subtle influences of the Israeli lobby in the United States.
November 13, 2007 3:32 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:32
The majority of comments that have been posted at the time that I am writing this recognize that the "pro-Israeli lobby" works against the interests of America. Are all those people anti-semites? Of course not! They are American citizens whose first loyalty is to AMERICA.
November 13, 2007 3:30 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:30
Sorry Mr. Singer you have the cart before the donkey. When Israel no longer had unlimited support for taking Palestinian lands, making a proposed Palestinian State into it private manual labor pool, etc then there will be a time for Peace. Think about projects that Israel could to NOW that would help the Palestinians think of the Israelis as sincere to obtaining peace with them. As of now, the only government projects are to wall them off, deny compensation and allow illegal settlement to continue.
Don't you worry; however, the population demographics will eventually settle the outcome. Pity Israel will be a single state, probably non-Jewish, when it had a chance to secure a meaningful peace as a Jewish state.
Sincerely
Rodney M. Stine
November 13, 2007 3:15 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:15
Let's ask a fundamental question ... What are the roots of Islamo-facism? I'd argue a primary one is Israels expulsion of Palestinians in 1948, its discrimination against the Palestinians who managed to remain inside the Green Line, its territorial expansionism after 1967 and the seeming unending state-sponsored crimes against Palestinians. These are things the United States should never stand for. No, the Israeli lobby is far too powerful, it has corrupted our core values.
November 13, 2007 3:10 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:10
The incestuous relationship between the U.S. and Israel is not only obscene but it is very dangerous for America. The Untied States should have long ago normalized relations with Israel, treated them as any other state, and insisted that if they wanted money they would have to work quid-pro-quo in America’s best interests - like anybody else has to do. Which in this case means the settlement of its issues in the region. It will take decades to wash off the stain of association with Israel’s duplicity and moral failure, and decades for our duplicity and moral failure to wash away, as well.
The fact that a First World, technological country with a nuclear arsenal and the strongest military in the MidEast, populated with a scant 6 some-odd million, should receive over $3 billion a year in tax-payer ‘Aid’ and grants - far more than anybody else in the entire world gets - should be ample evidence of the perverted nature of this relationship, and the extraordinary power of the Lobby. Of course they attack anybody who suggest such a thing even exists! Wouldn’t you, if you were them?
On Singer’s text, it is nothing but tired, stale, and endlessly repeated justifications. More interesting to me is that underneath the words, and in-between the specious logic and glaring omissions, reside the staggering power of ego, bias, and illusion, and it is quite humorous to read in those words the insistence of these attributes demanding their due; surreptitiously, of course. Bias, illusion, and ego are clamoring for recognition to such an extent, in fact, that for any perspicacious reader they totally sabotage Singer’s position, playing the quiet hurricane to the matchstick house of Israeli excuses and faux reasonableness. Great stuff; do what all hilarious buffoons do and call Leno immediately.
November 13, 2007 3:07 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:07
Hey! Arm the Palestinians too with planes and tanks and missiles and we'll have peace overnight in the mid-east.
Aah! Now to go solve world-hunger...so much to do, so little time...
November 13, 2007 3:01 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 15:01
It has been a great sadness in my life to have been forced to watch my beloved United States government continually take sides with enemies of democracy in the defense of democracy. I start with Iran, where we overthrew a legitimate government to install our puppet. In the defense of democracy. Was it Argentina where we overthrew a legitimate government, or was that Chile? Remember Reagan's refusal to wash our hands of apartied? Now, we prop up an emerging facist in Pakistan. All in the defense of democracy.
Now comes Mr. Singer who suggests that Palestinian refugees should forgive the violent takeover of their homes by Zionist settlers several generations ago and agree to just walk away. If someone showed up at Mr. Singer's doorstep and forced his family his house at gunpoint, I don't think that he'd be so eager to forgive. Isn't that the whole point of Zionism? Never forgive those who take your homeland?
So, who should we support in the mideast? Which side has the moral high ground? Israel, who claimed their land by force and removed its native population at the point of a gun? Palestinians, who kill children and other innocents at random? Which side is the more democratic? Neither side is clean, and neither is without pity. I think the US should take no sides and, instead, should bring its considerable influence to bear on all sides. Would Isreal have more incentive to accept peace if the US withdrew its support without it?
November 13, 2007 2:59 PM | Report Offensive Comments
Posted on November 13, 2007 14:59
The very words cause many people to grin at what appears to be simply a play on words. No one reads about such people in european authored history books and there are only a few references to "Ethiopian Jews" in white Jewish sources. Yet Black Hebrews have existed since biblical times. In fact, they are the original or proto-typical Hebrews.
Their story begins with the Patriarch Abraham (2117-1942 B.C.), a native of the Sumerian city of Ur in ancient Mesopotamia. Archaeological discoveries have proven that the earliest inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia were members of the "Brown Race," i.e., the Negroid branch of humanity.
It has been confirmed that the ancient Sumerians were akin to the modern Black Dravidians of India. The Sumerians also had an affinity with a people known as the Elamites, the very first Semitic group mentioned in the Bible (Gen. 10:22). The Elamites were a black-skinned and woolly-haired people as the colorful glazed artwork on the royal palace walls of the ancient Persian city of Susa clearly show.Thus Abraham, the native of Sumerian and the founding father of the Israelite nation, was a black man. The black racial origins of the Patriarchs is not based on mere conjecture, it is in complete agreement with the picture one gets from examining the identity of the earliest inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia.
This truth is grossly neglected, suppressed, and distorted in most European and American historical texts which are flavored with race prejudice. Fortunately, however, there are enough well authored and highly researched works by Black historians that challenge the Eurocentric revisions of history and correct the various erroneous views regarding the ethnic identity of the Hebrews.
Biblical history relates that the descendants of Abraham, namely Jacob (Israel) and his twelve sons and their wives, 70 in all, migrated from Canaan to Egypt around the year 1827 B.C. During their sojourn in Egypt the Children of Israel multiplied from being a family of 70 souls to a nation of over 3 million people at the time of the Exodus which took place in 1612 B.C.
This astounding number of people in so short a time can only be adequately explained by intermarriage between the family of