What is it that monsters er, I mean, totalitarians do when they take power? Why they use their power to get more power and to effectively suppress their dissidents. Just take a good hard long look at the Arab world and the movement that is miss-named the Arab Spring, which is morphing while we watch dumbfounded into the Arab Winter, and its going to be a very long cold winter, and may very well end up being a nuclear winter by the time things are over with.
In most of the Sunni dominated countries, the ICHWAN MUSLIMI - better known as the Muslim Brotherhood, created by Hassan al Banna, in March 1928 as an Islamist religious, political, and social movement, and which has spread to most other Muslim countries, is the largest, most well organized, most disciplined, well armed, political force to be reckoned with across the entire Arab world. In Syria, the uprising in the town of Hama, by the brotherhood, is responsible for the deaths of upward of 40,000 people by Hafez-al-Assad when he sent his younger brother to raze the city with chemical WMD's. In Egypt, they murdered Sadat for the crime of making peace with Israel. This list is far from complete, it barely scratches the surface. It is a world wide organization that welds its influence both covertly as well as overtly.
Anyone that dismisses them as "moderate" Islamists is a fool who is being willfully blind, and is going to be equally responsible for the deaths of millions if innocents because they don't have the internal fortitude or guts to face up to this worldwide threat.
The Ichwan represents a threat more dangerous than Nazism, because it is infused with the same fascist dogma and combined with Islamist fundamentalist fervor, that teaches that God-Allah, and his messenger, Mohhammed- PBUH, has proscribed the death and/or subjugation of all infidels, especially the Jews!!!
First, power will be gathered by holding so called
"democratic" elections, then the opposition will be either jailed, or murdered, then the institutions consisting of the government, army, media, courts, education, religion, and the constitution will be taken over, co-opted, and changed.
Those that don't go along to get along, will be pushed aside and disappear into history.
For a really accurate read on this, please click the link below and read Barry Rubin's insightful article on this, you shouldn't miss it!! Knowledge is power, ignorance isn't bliss, its death!!
http://pjmedia.com/barryrubin/2011/11/25/what-do-totalitarians-do-when-they-gain-power-democratically/http://pjmedia.com/barryrubin/2011/11/25/what-do-totalitarians-do-when-they-gain-power-democratically/
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Barry Rubin strikes again!!
In his latest post on "How to tell who is a Moderate Islamist" Barry hits the nail square on the head once again. Brilliantly written, the scene is set at the rally at one of Egypt's leading Mosques, where in true blood thirsty fashion, the barbaric hoards scream, "One day we shall kill all Jews.” It is a chilling piece that is a combination of quotes from both Islamist leaders as well as the completely ignorant reactions of our own incompetent leaders who continue to espouse opinions divorced from reality, such as "... the Muslim Brotherhood is a very heterogeneous group, largely secular, which has eschewed violence." and what is the person that said that doing now? Answer: Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and he’s still director of national intelligence."
How can anyone misunderstand the comments we hear, such as slaughter the Jews ( ITBACH AL YAHUD ), or Death to America, or Death to Israel.
I know when I hear such ignorant lunacy in denying the vitriolic hatred that our enemies speak, I can only remark incredulously, NO WAY!!
How can anybody that has studied history, that has access to the internet, that grew up with the benefit of living in freedom, be so blind about one of the most vicious, antisemitic, most powerful, organized, ruthless and well armed, Islamist groups on this planet? NO WAY!!
To understand this, you have to read this article!!
At the end of the article, there is an extra credit question that begs a response; for my answer, I like to use Michael Savage's often heard phrase, which provides the most cogent answer I can think of,
" Liberalism is a Mental Disorder"
to view the entire article:
http://pjmedia.com/barryrubin/2011/11/26/how-to-tell-who-is-a-%E2%80%9Cmoderate-islamist%E2%80%9D-an-exam/
How can anyone misunderstand the comments we hear, such as slaughter the Jews ( ITBACH AL YAHUD ), or Death to America, or Death to Israel.
I know when I hear such ignorant lunacy in denying the vitriolic hatred that our enemies speak, I can only remark incredulously, NO WAY!!
How can anybody that has studied history, that has access to the internet, that grew up with the benefit of living in freedom, be so blind about one of the most vicious, antisemitic, most powerful, organized, ruthless and well armed, Islamist groups on this planet? NO WAY!!
To understand this, you have to read this article!!
At the end of the article, there is an extra credit question that begs a response; for my answer, I like to use Michael Savage's often heard phrase, which provides the most cogent answer I can think of,
" Liberalism is a Mental Disorder"
to view the entire article:
http://pjmedia.com/barryrubin/2011/11/26/how-to-tell-who-is-a-%E2%80%9Cmoderate-islamist%E2%80%9D-an-exam/
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Behind the Headlines: The Israeli humanitarian lifeline to Gaza
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Humanitarian aid despite Hamas attacksDespite attacks by Hamas, Israel maintains an ongoing humanitarian corridor for the transfer of perishable and staple food items to Gaza. This conduit is used by internationally recognized organizations including the United Nations and the Red Cross.Well over a million tons of humanitarian supplies entered Gaza from Israel over the last 18 months equaling nearly a ton of aid for every man, woman and child in Gaza. Millions of dollars worth of international food aid continually flows through the Israeli humanitarian apparatus, ensuring that there is no food shortage in Gaza. Since the end of the IDF operation in Gaza (18 Jan 2009) until 5 June 2010, 1,025,686 tons of aid, 49,610 tons of cooking gas and 136,097,330 liters of fuel have been delivered to the Gaza Strip. Food and supplies are shipped from Israel to Gaza six days a week. These items were channeled through aid organizations or via Gaza's private sector.  IDF coordinates the transfer of truckloads of humanitarian aid on a daily basis. Archive Photo: IDF Spokesperson Large quantities of essential food items like baby formula, wheat, meat, dairy products and other perishables are transferred daily and weekly to Gaza. Fertilizers that cannot be used to make explosives are shipped into the Strip regularly, as are potato seeds, eggs for reproduction, bees, and equipment for the flower industry. In 2009 alone, more than 738,000 tons of food and supplies entered Gaza. Pictures in local newspapers show local markets aplenty with fruit, vegetables, cheese, spices, bread and meat to feed 1.4 million Gazans. In the first quarter of 2010 (January-March), 94,500 tons of supplies were transferred in 3,676 trucks to the Strip: 48,000 tons of food products; 40,000 tons of wheat; 2,760 tons of rice; 1,987 tons of clothes and footwear; 553 tons of milk powder and baby food. In a typical week the IDF coordinates the transfer of hundreds of trucks containing about 15,000 tons of supplies. During the week of May 18, 2010 there were more than 100 truckloads of animal food, 65 trucks of fruit and vegetables; 22 truckloads of sugar, some 27 truckloads of meat, poultry and fish; and 40 trucks of dairy products. At holiday times, Israel increases transfers. During the Muslim holy days of Ramadhan and Eid al-Adha, Israel shipped some 11,000 heads of cattle into the Strip.
The medical corridor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
more facebook posts
I think its more that secular liberals do 2 things; 1 is that they lump ALL religion into one. 2 is that they can't see that there is one religion that is wreaking havoc across the globe. they are stuck on Christianity and the crusades in the middle ages. then they look at Israel and believe the lies that Israel is an apartheid state. and the believe the lie that you know what is THE religion of peace...
Friday, November 25, 2011
excerpts from a thread on facebook
why the animosity toward Moshe Feiglin? He is a Jew that loves Israel, loves the people of Israel, and only wants what he feels is best for our people. He certainly doesn't agree with giving the land away to the murderers of our people, or to assist Arafat and his minyins ( yamach shmo) from accomplishing their dream of destroying Israel and murdering every Jew, through a phased plan bit by bit, known as the "two state" solution to our death. I mean- COME ON!!
As to whether or not Moshe Feiglin is qualified or not to lead the nation, we are going to have to agree to respectfully disagree on this one point. The reason I have fe...lt he would be a decent choice, from what I have heard from him on the internet, as I live across the pond, for me, is that he will not be relinquishing our God given hard earned land. In addition, I believe, and I could be mistaken, but I believe that the Arabs respect him more than those that try to coddle them or buy their commitment away, Moshe seems to speak from a position of strength which they respect. After listening to his friend Shmuel Sackett talk about having Jewish leadership, Jewish education, and a Jewish state, not just a state for Jews, I'm not worried about Israel turning into a fundamentalist country run by a Jewish taliban, to quote Shmuel.
In this I agree that he is very mistaken about Glenn Beck, who has an unwavering commitment to Israel and the Jewish people. I am not afraid of Christians who support us, especially when they aren't proselytizing and trying to convert us,... which also doesn't scare me as much as it does to my fellow tribesman, they haven't been able to succeed in 2000 years and they won't be able to succeed in the future either. Another point on Christians, especially those that feel the need to proselytize, they have no issues with faith, and inevitably, when they are shown real Torah from Sinai, they become nice Jewish boys and girls, as they are yearning for a closer relationship to Hashem.
My dad used to have a dream of being a journalist, and I actually would like to get into that field, though I don't have a degree in it, I have been under the impression that it is a prerequi...site needed to enter into that profession, perhaps I should be more active on my blog, though doing so usually doesn't earn money., Politics I haven't thought of either, but you sure gave me an idea :-) that might be sort of cool. At 55, I am hoping to start a second career in IT, but if that doesn't work out, perhaps I should give that some more serious thought. Bibi, though he can be a great spokesperson,and surely schooled owe-bummer in what Israel is and is not going to do, he also has been, for me, a disappointment. I might be mistaken, but I also seem to remember that it was Bibi that was instrumental in giving up Hevron to the nazi PA, which I regard as a huge mistake, as was uprooting Gush Katif.
The only solution that I see that will stop the murder emanating from Aza is for that hornet's nest to be utterly destroyed. I know that even suggesting such a thing is an extremist, bordering on insane opinion, and I apologize for offending anyone with such an extremist statement, but it has come down to, "its us or them", our children's lives or theirs.
The Arabs of Aza overwhelmingly voted for the hamas, and they are only too eager to provide them with both logistical as well as moral support, therefore, they are not innocent bystanders, that have no choice.
America and the rest of the world, didn't have such bleeding hearts when it came to fire bombing Dresdin during WW2, or nuking Nagasaki/ Hiroshima; Certainly Israel goes way out of her way to preserve the lives of non combatants, with phone calls and air dropping flyer's warning the population to evacuate, prior to operation cast lead, not to mention putting our children through needless door to door clearing of boobie-trapped houses, instead of just razing the city, as any other country has and would do. I think I may have just crossed a red line by suggesting such a thing, but as I said, the Arabs aren't going to suddenly change their minds, its either us and our children or them. My choice is long life for the Jewish people and swift death to our enemies.
oh boy this thread is getting hot: there is one thing that I would like to mention that has a lot to do with settlers homes being razed and that are the left wing nut judges, one of them in particular, Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisc...h has ruled, not for the first time, that any area in Judea and Samaria that has not been declared state land is considered private Arab land by default and all buildings in such areas must be demolished. In addition, there are examples where building permits have been issued by the current gov't, only to be reversed by ehud barak. here is the link to the article about Dorit Beinisch:
http://
not only do I want to make aliyah, but I have to fight both the Israeli gov't and the Arabs at the same time!! This is an example of what concerns me:
http://
As to whether or not Moshe Feiglin is qualified or not to lead the nation, we are going to have to agree to respectfully disagree on this one point. The reason I have fe...lt he would be a decent choice, from what I have heard from him on the internet, as I live across the pond, for me, is that he will not be relinquishing our God given hard earned land. In addition, I believe, and I could be mistaken, but I believe that the Arabs respect him more than those that try to coddle them or buy their commitment away, Moshe seems to speak from a position of strength which they respect. After listening to his friend Shmuel Sackett talk about having Jewish leadership, Jewish education, and a Jewish state, not just a state for Jews, I'm not worried about Israel turning into a fundamentalist country run by a Jewish taliban, to quote Shmuel.
In this I agree that he is very mistaken about Glenn Beck, who has an unwavering commitment to Israel and the Jewish people. I am not afraid of Christians who support us, especially when they aren't proselytizing and trying to convert us,... which also doesn't scare me as much as it does to my fellow tribesman, they haven't been able to succeed in 2000 years and they won't be able to succeed in the future either. Another point on Christians, especially those that feel the need to proselytize, they have no issues with faith, and inevitably, when they are shown real Torah from Sinai, they become nice Jewish boys and girls, as they are yearning for a closer relationship to Hashem.
My dad used to have a dream of being a journalist, and I actually would like to get into that field, though I don't have a degree in it, I have been under the impression that it is a prerequi...site needed to enter into that profession, perhaps I should be more active on my blog, though doing so usually doesn't earn money., Politics I haven't thought of either, but you sure gave me an idea :-) that might be sort of cool. At 55, I am hoping to start a second career in IT, but if that doesn't work out, perhaps I should give that some more serious thought. Bibi, though he can be a great spokesperson,and surely schooled owe-bummer in what Israel is and is not going to do, he also has been, for me, a disappointment. I might be mistaken, but I also seem to remember that it was Bibi that was instrumental in giving up Hevron to the nazi PA, which I regard as a huge mistake, as was uprooting Gush Katif.
The only solution that I see that will stop the murder emanating from Aza is for that hornet's nest to be utterly destroyed. I know that even suggesting such a thing is an extremist, bordering on insane opinion, and I apologize for offending anyone with such an extremist statement, but it has come down to, "its us or them", our children's lives or theirs.
The Arabs of Aza overwhelmingly voted for the hamas, and they are only too eager to provide them with both logistical as well as moral support, therefore, they are not innocent bystanders, that have no choice.
America and the rest of the world, didn't have such bleeding hearts when it came to fire bombing Dresdin during WW2, or nuking Nagasaki/ Hiroshima; Certainly Israel goes way out of her way to preserve the lives of non combatants, with phone calls and air dropping flyer's warning the population to evacuate, prior to operation cast lead, not to mention putting our children through needless door to door clearing of boobie-trapped houses, instead of just razing the city, as any other country has and would do. I think I may have just crossed a red line by suggesting such a thing, but as I said, the Arabs aren't going to suddenly change their minds, its either us and our children or them. My choice is long life for the Jewish people and swift death to our enemies.
oh boy this thread is getting hot: there is one thing that I would like to mention that has a lot to do with settlers homes being razed and that are the left wing nut judges, one of them in particular, Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisc...h has ruled, not for the first time, that any area in Judea and Samaria that has not been declared state land is considered private Arab land by default and all buildings in such areas must be demolished. In addition, there are examples where building permits have been issued by the current gov't, only to be reversed by ehud barak. here is the link to the article about Dorit Beinisch:
http://
not only do I want to make aliyah, but I have to fight both the Israeli gov't and the Arabs at the same time!! This is an example of what concerns me:
http://
and yes I must be insane to want to leave the safety of America, my country that I took an oath to protect and defend its constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.
But I have a deep yearning, for some strange reason I can't ...put in words. I'm not a socialist "zionist" nor am I the most religious jew, yet I have strong feelings about how important it is for Jews to reclaim and settle the land. That there are mitvot that can't be fulfilled not living in the land, that the land itself only has yielded its produce when the Jews returned. That we as a people and a nation are at a precipitous crossroads in history, that the world political scene and economies are coming to a head, and I want to be in Israel when this crash occurs.
But I have a deep yearning, for some strange reason I can't ...put in words. I'm not a socialist "zionist" nor am I the most religious jew, yet I have strong feelings about how important it is for Jews to reclaim and settle the land. That there are mitvot that can't be fulfilled not living in the land, that the land itself only has yielded its produce when the Jews returned. That we as a people and a nation are at a precipitous crossroads in history, that the world political scene and economies are coming to a head, and I want to be in Israel when this crash occurs.
the gloves come off when it comes to Livni, Ehud Barak, and Peres. I happen to like Dennis Prager, I'm disappointed to hear that he said that, but perhaps he has changed his tune since ...then, especially considering the last several videos that he has produced. I feel that Israel needs to institute the death penalty for Islamists that murder our people. I am also all for considering population transfer, a large portion of the Arabs that live in the Shomron and Yahuda want to leave, we should be able to encourage them with financial assistance. In addition, I want to see a massive increase in building new townships and cities from the Salt Sea to the Mediterranean, for Jewish population, coupled with a massive effort by the Gov't on worldwide immigration. In addition, something has to be done about the left wing nut Judges, in how they are appointed, to how law is created, to how they can be REMOVED. Without these steps, immigration from America and the rest of the diaspora will be only a trickle, Israel will not be able to attract Jews without it, even though anti antisemitism is at a world wide high, and getting worse daily. As I said before, I must be insane to want to come to Israel given that they keep destroying communities like what are mentioned in the articles that I posted, and keep in mind, those communities aren't hilltop shacks thrown up overnight. I keep being told that the only way to fight these wrongs is for me and other Jews to make aliyah, that way there will be the demographic's to cement in place Yahuda and Shomron and the Galil, as well as the Negev and the Golan. I have to respond, that without the reforms that I mentioned, Israel is simply not going to attract the number of Jews needed to do this. keep in mind, we are barely 13 million worldwide, with 6 million in Israel now, we need at least another 4-5 million to make aliyah, how can this happen, when housing is not available, when we release murderers, when we don't fight wars to WIN, and when we have all the other problems that both of us outlined.... maybe the only answer ( I hate to say this) is that the moshiach really needs to come. I don't know, but I do know that this situation isn't going to last long. War is coming my friend, Hamas and Hezbollah are going to be launching their stock piles and Iran along with Egypt will attack. scary stuff on the horizon.
are the communities of Givat Assaf, Migron, Ulpena Neighborhood in Beit El, Amona – all slated for destruction in next 4 months as outlined in this article:
http://
http://
slicah!! please excuse, I would like to interject for one moment.
1. criticizing the Gov't of Israel is not Israel bashing, the same is true for America.
2. While it is true that there is creeping Islamisation in our school system, the...re are plenty of us that are fighting it "tooth and nail", and this current administration is very likely to change come 2012.
3. Similar criticism can be said toward Israel for "allowing" the PA to incite in their school systems, their mosques and their media, and I don't happen to see the equivalent of Al-Jizeera in a pro-Israel media outlet doing all that it can to combat the Jew hatred of the past 60 years, but I would like to be informed if there is, so I can start following that also.
4. The gov't of Israel, is not above harsh criticism. Bibi is no different than most other politicians, who have promised a lot and then not delivered. I am very happy that Gilad was returned alive, and while I understand that the 1000 fatahnicks that were released were picked by Israel, and many were set to be released in a year of so anyway, and that the most vicious one not released, the fact remains that not only are many going to gleefully return to murdering us, but the pattern of releasing these rodafe's has been continued, and will continue to be used by the Arabs in the future; which is why I am all for the death penalty for those Arabs that murder Jews.
5. Israel also has its share of self hating jews like the peace now movement. America isn't alone in the world in this regard. There are plenty of our brethren worldwide that lack education of history, and aren't connected to their roots. I'm not advocating that Israel change into the equivalent of a Jewish taliban, but having a more solid Torah education throughout Israeli society would do wonders in terms of alleviating the condition that is rampant where there are Israeli's that now buy into the lie that Israel is an occupying colonial force that removed Arabs that were in the land since "time immemorial" - and I am using that term to reference the excellent work of Joan Peters, which I'd love to see required reading by all Jews worldwide.
6. I referenced two articles that list the communities of Givat Assaf, Migron, Ulpena Neighborhood in Beit El, Amona – all slated for destruction in next 4 months; this is just another example that scares me and other Jews that not only do care about Israel, and that do dream of making aliyah, but see this being done on a continued basis, for successive generations of administrations while at the same time we see nothing in the news of any Arab villages being torn down, that were build without permits, without permission, in their effort to land grab in their continued war to destroy us. A Jew can't erect so much as a shed without excessive permits and paperwork, without the bulldozers showing up in the middle of the night.
As I have said previously and in other posts, I am considering making aliyah next year- why I want to do this I can't explain, especially given that circumstances aren't going to change very much, there are Judges that make law from the bench that bend over backwards to literally give away the land to the Arabs, and can't be removed from power, and the Gov't continues to destroy the lives of its citizens by destroying their homes; the list goes on, I can't name even a smidgen of injustices that are being perpetrated against the citizens of Israel.
I'd rather fight hand to hand, OG, the giant, than have to suffer at he hands of the Israeli gov't the incessant wrongs it commits against the Jewish people.
shabbat shalom
1. criticizing the Gov't of Israel is not Israel bashing, the same is true for America.
2. While it is true that there is creeping Islamisation in our school system, the...re are plenty of us that are fighting it "tooth and nail", and this current administration is very likely to change come 2012.
3. Similar criticism can be said toward Israel for "allowing" the PA to incite in their school systems, their mosques and their media, and I don't happen to see the equivalent of Al-Jizeera in a pro-Israel media outlet doing all that it can to combat the Jew hatred of the past 60 years, but I would like to be informed if there is, so I can start following that also.
4. The gov't of Israel, is not above harsh criticism. Bibi is no different than most other politicians, who have promised a lot and then not delivered. I am very happy that Gilad was returned alive, and while I understand that the 1000 fatahnicks that were released were picked by Israel, and many were set to be released in a year of so anyway, and that the most vicious one not released, the fact remains that not only are many going to gleefully return to murdering us, but the pattern of releasing these rodafe's has been continued, and will continue to be used by the Arabs in the future; which is why I am all for the death penalty for those Arabs that murder Jews.
5. Israel also has its share of self hating jews like the peace now movement. America isn't alone in the world in this regard. There are plenty of our brethren worldwide that lack education of history, and aren't connected to their roots. I'm not advocating that Israel change into the equivalent of a Jewish taliban, but having a more solid Torah education throughout Israeli society would do wonders in terms of alleviating the condition that is rampant where there are Israeli's that now buy into the lie that Israel is an occupying colonial force that removed Arabs that were in the land since "time immemorial" - and I am using that term to reference the excellent work of Joan Peters, which I'd love to see required reading by all Jews worldwide.
6. I referenced two articles that list the communities of Givat Assaf, Migron, Ulpena Neighborhood in Beit El, Amona – all slated for destruction in next 4 months; this is just another example that scares me and other Jews that not only do care about Israel, and that do dream of making aliyah, but see this being done on a continued basis, for successive generations of administrations while at the same time we see nothing in the news of any Arab villages being torn down, that were build without permits, without permission, in their effort to land grab in their continued war to destroy us. A Jew can't erect so much as a shed without excessive permits and paperwork, without the bulldozers showing up in the middle of the night.
As I have said previously and in other posts, I am considering making aliyah next year- why I want to do this I can't explain, especially given that circumstances aren't going to change very much, there are Judges that make law from the bench that bend over backwards to literally give away the land to the Arabs, and can't be removed from power, and the Gov't continues to destroy the lives of its citizens by destroying their homes; the list goes on, I can't name even a smidgen of injustices that are being perpetrated against the citizens of Israel.
I'd rather fight hand to hand, OG, the giant, than have to suffer at he hands of the Israeli gov't the incessant wrongs it commits against the Jewish people.
shabbat shalom
Into the Fray: A nation betrayed? Martin Sherman - The Jerusalem Post, November 18th, 2011
http://www.israelunitycoalition.org/news/?p=7464#.TtAido-Qavc.printfriendly
This is the first war in history that on the morrow the victors sued for peace and the vanquished called for unconditional surrender.
– Abba Eban on the Six Day War
The preceding citation, from arguably Israel’s most consummate diplomat, encapsulates the glaring irrationality and the inverted logic that has become the accepted hallmark of the politics of the Arab-Israeli conflict, both at the level of theoretical analysis and of practical policy-making.
The abandonment of any coherent, reasonable criteria has not been confined to the attitude of the Arabs towards Israel, but sadly has become a characteristic of Israeli policy towards the Arabs – and of a host of domestic issues that impinge directly and indirectly on that policy.
The absurd becomes routine
Consider the situation, which defies rational explanation, that is emerging today before our eyes, without evoking any significant expression of public incredulity — much less outrage — that such an astonishing development should warrant.
The ruling party of the day, the Likud, is, in effect, imploring the Palestinians to enter into negotiations over a resolution of the conflict on the basis of a principle — the Oslo two-state concept — that it itself rejected vehemently only a few years ago.
Mind you, this bizarre situation has not come about because this previously rejected principle has proved to be a stunning success. Quite the contrary, it has been shown to be an abject failure. After all, the endeavor to implement it has precipitated all the dangers its opponents warned of, and none of the benefits its proponents promised. Indeed, it has wrought death and destruction on Jew and Arab alike on a horrific scale.
Failures don’t come more abject or clear than that.
Yet almost inconceivably, just when it became undeniable that the opponents of territorial concessions and political appeasement were completely vindicated, they began to embrace the very policy they had previously repudiated.
These circumstances mirror almost exactly the inexplicable absurdity expressed in the Abba Eban citation above. Instead of the anti- Oslo victors in the ideological-political clash with their pro-Oslo advocates routing their vanquished adversaries, they set about surrendering to them.
Unwarranted intellectual surrender
This faint-hearted and feeble-minded conduct on the part of what is inappropriately dubbed — usually pejoratively — Israel’s political “Right,” constitutes unacceptable, unwarranted and irresponsible intellectual capitulation.
After all, the political doctrine of what is inappropriately dubbed — usually approvingly — Israel’s political “Left,” should have been consigned to utter and enduring disrepute. Every notion to which the Left has attempted to tether its political credo has come adrift. Every policy-relevant concept, every politically relevant personality on which it pinned its hopes has produced nothing but disaster and disappointment.
Indeed, the manifest folly of the Israeli Left and its preposterous brain-child, the Oslowian “peace process,” should have made it an object of enduring public ridicule. The manifest mendacity of its endeavor to promote it should have made it the object of ubiquitous public distrust.
Sadly however, the Israeli Right has done little to produce such an outcome. In fact it has done much to prevent it. For despite the fact the Left has little to justify its perennial claim to either the moral or the intellectual high ground, the Right has shown little stomach to challenge it.
A catalogue of blindness and blunder
This right-wing reticence is difficult to comprehend. After all, the list of the Left’s blunders is depressingly lengthy. It has been hopelessly wrong about… well, everything.
• It was wrong in embracing the homicidal Nobel peace laureate Yasser Arafat as a credible peace partner who could “deliver the goods.”
• It was wrong in pinning its hopes on Mahmoud Abbas, whose tailored suits and coiffured hair served as deceptively comforting contrasts to Arafat's belligerent keffiyeh and military fatigues.
• It was wrong in believing it could reach a lasting accord with the Palestinians by decoupling Fatah from Hamas and dealing only with the former while ignoring the latter — as both the expulsion of Fatah from Gaza and the recent unification moves prove.
• It was were wrong in portraying Salam Fayyad as a pivotal centerpiece for a durable peace accord — since recent developments demonstrated how precarious his position is.
• It was wrong in ignoring how imprudent it is to attempt to pursue an agreement based on a person-specific configuration of the Palestinian leadership which could be swiftly removed from power — by ballot or bullet — by a more inimical and radical successor – as in Gaza.
• It was wrong in heralding Bashar Assad as young Western-oriented, Internet-adept doctor whose accession to power would usher in an era of peace and progress that would allow Israel to relinquish the Golan.
• It was wrong in urging Israel to avail itself of the “good services” of the Islamist government of Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan as an “honest broker” to promote a deal with Damascus.
• It was wrong in insisting that an Israeli withdrawal to the internationally recognized borders would mollify Hezbollah and bring about peace with Lebanon.
• It was wrong in claiming that Israel could not attain economic prosperity without political peace with the Palestinians… as its current prosperity, even in an increasingly unprosperous world, clearly shows.
Yet in spite of this record of massive misjudgment, the leadership of the political Right persists in curiously misplaced deference to its ideological adversaries on the Left.
Perverting democracy
This deference was painfully evident in the Knesset this week, where issues that impinge on the nation’s ability to act assertively with regard to the Palestinians were raised.
The negative reaction of senior Likud ministers and MKs to the legislative initiatives aimed at addressing the problems of ideological bias in the nation’s judiciary and of foreign funding of inherently anti-Israel NGOs operating under the guise of “human rights,” are a disturbing reflection of the Right’s manifest sense of inferiority generated by the aggressive moralistic posturing of the Left.
While it might be possible to argue that the existing legislative proposals lack a measure of polish and refinement, it cannot be disputed that they raise issues of significance and urgency which must be confronted in the spirit — if not perhaps in the precise detail — set out in these bills.
Protection of the rights of minorities is one thing. Promotion of the ability of minorities to subvert the democratic process is quite another. There is nothing vaguely democratic about facilitating the imposition of minority views on the majority via extra-parliamentary action funded by foreign governments.
There is nothing vaguely undemocratic in a sovereign state instituting measures to limit — or at least monitor — attempts by alien sovereignties to empower fringe elements in the country, with negligible domestic support for their ideas, to subvert the policy of the government elected by universal suffrage.
Indeed, to abstain from doing so would be a dereliction of democratic duty. To advocate such abstention is to pervert, not preserve, democracy.
Judicial legitimacy and independence
The same is true with regard to the initiatives regarding the judiciary. While the independence of judiciary is indeed a matter of vital importance, it will be worth little if the public has no faith in the justice it dispenses. Indeed, the confidence the public has in the courts is no less — perhaps even more – important than their independence. For in the absence of such trust, justice will be sought elsewhere and by other means.
The plummeting degree of confidence the public has in the legal system is a clear warning that the status quo is unsustainable. According to one long-term study by the University of Haifa, barely one-third of the general public has faith in the system. According to Prof. Arye Rattner, who conducted the study, this ongoing 10-year decline in public faith in the courts “constitutes a grave blow to one of the most important foundations of the legal system in a democratic society – legitimacy.”
These words of warning echo precisely those of Prof. Ran Hirschl in his book Towards Juristocracy, which I cited in a recent column, “A real reason for revolution.”
In it Hirschl cautions: “Over the past decade, the public image of the SCI [Supreme Court of Israel] as an… impartial arbiter has been increasingly eroded… the court and its judges are increasingly viewed by a considerable portion of the Israeli public as pushing forward their own political agenda.”
It is thus a shame — or perhaps more precisely, shameful — that senior members of the coalition chose to abandon their parliamentary colleagues and endorsed the unfounded censure of them and their initiatives. A far better and more constructive course would be to join them in addressing any defects in their commendable proposals.
Israel has put its trust in leaders who have led it into great peril — and into those who so far have failed to lead it out of it. It has been placed in great danger by the injudicious action of the Left and the impotent inaction of the Right. The Left has imposed a fatally flawed paradigm on the nation; the Right has failed to formulate a persuasive alternative.
This situation cannot be allowed to continue. There is a potential for great tragedy brewing. Unless this pressing challenge is addressed rapidly and resolutely, all that might remain for future generations to do will be to assign blame for the fulfillment of that tragedy.
This is the first war in history that on the morrow the victors sued for peace and the vanquished called for unconditional surrender.
– Abba Eban on the Six Day War
The preceding citation, from arguably Israel’s most consummate diplomat, encapsulates the glaring irrationality and the inverted logic that has become the accepted hallmark of the politics of the Arab-Israeli conflict, both at the level of theoretical analysis and of practical policy-making.
The abandonment of any coherent, reasonable criteria has not been confined to the attitude of the Arabs towards Israel, but sadly has become a characteristic of Israeli policy towards the Arabs – and of a host of domestic issues that impinge directly and indirectly on that policy.
The absurd becomes routine
Consider the situation, which defies rational explanation, that is emerging today before our eyes, without evoking any significant expression of public incredulity — much less outrage — that such an astonishing development should warrant.
The ruling party of the day, the Likud, is, in effect, imploring the Palestinians to enter into negotiations over a resolution of the conflict on the basis of a principle — the Oslo two-state concept — that it itself rejected vehemently only a few years ago.
Mind you, this bizarre situation has not come about because this previously rejected principle has proved to be a stunning success. Quite the contrary, it has been shown to be an abject failure. After all, the endeavor to implement it has precipitated all the dangers its opponents warned of, and none of the benefits its proponents promised. Indeed, it has wrought death and destruction on Jew and Arab alike on a horrific scale.
Failures don’t come more abject or clear than that.
Yet almost inconceivably, just when it became undeniable that the opponents of territorial concessions and political appeasement were completely vindicated, they began to embrace the very policy they had previously repudiated.
These circumstances mirror almost exactly the inexplicable absurdity expressed in the Abba Eban citation above. Instead of the anti- Oslo victors in the ideological-political clash with their pro-Oslo advocates routing their vanquished adversaries, they set about surrendering to them.
Unwarranted intellectual surrender
This faint-hearted and feeble-minded conduct on the part of what is inappropriately dubbed — usually pejoratively — Israel’s political “Right,” constitutes unacceptable, unwarranted and irresponsible intellectual capitulation.
After all, the political doctrine of what is inappropriately dubbed — usually approvingly — Israel’s political “Left,” should have been consigned to utter and enduring disrepute. Every notion to which the Left has attempted to tether its political credo has come adrift. Every policy-relevant concept, every politically relevant personality on which it pinned its hopes has produced nothing but disaster and disappointment.
Indeed, the manifest folly of the Israeli Left and its preposterous brain-child, the Oslowian “peace process,” should have made it an object of enduring public ridicule. The manifest mendacity of its endeavor to promote it should have made it the object of ubiquitous public distrust.
Sadly however, the Israeli Right has done little to produce such an outcome. In fact it has done much to prevent it. For despite the fact the Left has little to justify its perennial claim to either the moral or the intellectual high ground, the Right has shown little stomach to challenge it.
A catalogue of blindness and blunder
This right-wing reticence is difficult to comprehend. After all, the list of the Left’s blunders is depressingly lengthy. It has been hopelessly wrong about… well, everything.
• It was wrong in embracing the homicidal Nobel peace laureate Yasser Arafat as a credible peace partner who could “deliver the goods.”
• It was wrong in pinning its hopes on Mahmoud Abbas, whose tailored suits and coiffured hair served as deceptively comforting contrasts to Arafat's belligerent keffiyeh and military fatigues.
• It was wrong in believing it could reach a lasting accord with the Palestinians by decoupling Fatah from Hamas and dealing only with the former while ignoring the latter — as both the expulsion of Fatah from Gaza and the recent unification moves prove.
• It was were wrong in portraying Salam Fayyad as a pivotal centerpiece for a durable peace accord — since recent developments demonstrated how precarious his position is.
• It was wrong in ignoring how imprudent it is to attempt to pursue an agreement based on a person-specific configuration of the Palestinian leadership which could be swiftly removed from power — by ballot or bullet — by a more inimical and radical successor – as in Gaza.
• It was wrong in heralding Bashar Assad as young Western-oriented, Internet-adept doctor whose accession to power would usher in an era of peace and progress that would allow Israel to relinquish the Golan.
• It was wrong in urging Israel to avail itself of the “good services” of the Islamist government of Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan as an “honest broker” to promote a deal with Damascus.
• It was wrong in insisting that an Israeli withdrawal to the internationally recognized borders would mollify Hezbollah and bring about peace with Lebanon.
• It was wrong in claiming that Israel could not attain economic prosperity without political peace with the Palestinians… as its current prosperity, even in an increasingly unprosperous world, clearly shows.
Yet in spite of this record of massive misjudgment, the leadership of the political Right persists in curiously misplaced deference to its ideological adversaries on the Left.
Perverting democracy
This deference was painfully evident in the Knesset this week, where issues that impinge on the nation’s ability to act assertively with regard to the Palestinians were raised.
The negative reaction of senior Likud ministers and MKs to the legislative initiatives aimed at addressing the problems of ideological bias in the nation’s judiciary and of foreign funding of inherently anti-Israel NGOs operating under the guise of “human rights,” are a disturbing reflection of the Right’s manifest sense of inferiority generated by the aggressive moralistic posturing of the Left.
While it might be possible to argue that the existing legislative proposals lack a measure of polish and refinement, it cannot be disputed that they raise issues of significance and urgency which must be confronted in the spirit — if not perhaps in the precise detail — set out in these bills.
Protection of the rights of minorities is one thing. Promotion of the ability of minorities to subvert the democratic process is quite another. There is nothing vaguely democratic about facilitating the imposition of minority views on the majority via extra-parliamentary action funded by foreign governments.
There is nothing vaguely undemocratic in a sovereign state instituting measures to limit — or at least monitor — attempts by alien sovereignties to empower fringe elements in the country, with negligible domestic support for their ideas, to subvert the policy of the government elected by universal suffrage.
Indeed, to abstain from doing so would be a dereliction of democratic duty. To advocate such abstention is to pervert, not preserve, democracy.
Judicial legitimacy and independence
The same is true with regard to the initiatives regarding the judiciary. While the independence of judiciary is indeed a matter of vital importance, it will be worth little if the public has no faith in the justice it dispenses. Indeed, the confidence the public has in the courts is no less — perhaps even more – important than their independence. For in the absence of such trust, justice will be sought elsewhere and by other means.
The plummeting degree of confidence the public has in the legal system is a clear warning that the status quo is unsustainable. According to one long-term study by the University of Haifa, barely one-third of the general public has faith in the system. According to Prof. Arye Rattner, who conducted the study, this ongoing 10-year decline in public faith in the courts “constitutes a grave blow to one of the most important foundations of the legal system in a democratic society – legitimacy.”
These words of warning echo precisely those of Prof. Ran Hirschl in his book Towards Juristocracy, which I cited in a recent column, “A real reason for revolution.”
In it Hirschl cautions: “Over the past decade, the public image of the SCI [Supreme Court of Israel] as an… impartial arbiter has been increasingly eroded… the court and its judges are increasingly viewed by a considerable portion of the Israeli public as pushing forward their own political agenda.”
It is thus a shame — or perhaps more precisely, shameful — that senior members of the coalition chose to abandon their parliamentary colleagues and endorsed the unfounded censure of them and their initiatives. A far better and more constructive course would be to join them in addressing any defects in their commendable proposals.
Israel has put its trust in leaders who have led it into great peril — and into those who so far have failed to lead it out of it. It has been placed in great danger by the injudicious action of the Left and the impotent inaction of the Right. The Left has imposed a fatally flawed paradigm on the nation; the Right has failed to formulate a persuasive alternative.
This situation cannot be allowed to continue. There is a potential for great tragedy brewing. Unless this pressing challenge is addressed rapidly and resolutely, all that might remain for future generations to do will be to assign blame for the fulfillment of that tragedy.
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