PM Netanyahu's foreign policy speech- Peace without justice or equality

Here is a link to the full text of Israeli PM Netanyahu's speech delivered yesterday on the subject of peace and the future of the region.

If you know who Netanyahu is and follow his political history at all, you won't be surprised by what he says. He begins his speech by stating that no one in Israel wants to live in a state of conflict and that everyone wants peace. Then, as one would expect, he blames the current situation of perpetuated occupation and conflict entirely on the Palestinian people and violence. This is followed by calling for the total demilitarization of the future Palestinian state, Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the Jewish state, and no right of return of the Palestinian refugees. Essentially, all the issues that need to be compromised on by both parties in order to achieve peace, Netanyahu slammed the door on instead.

The comparison that first popped into my head after reading this speech might be a little dramatic, but I'm writing it anyway. I couldn't help but think of the hospitals for the poor, disabled, and mentally handicapped that were established in the American southeast in the early 1900s. I learned about in my high school US history class and never forgot about them. Apparently, they were the first instance of eugenics used on humans. Yes, the Nazis got the idea from us. People would either send their family members there, or the state would put them in these hospitals/homes, and when/if they were released, they would be completely sterile. If you were a lower class woman who the government just didn't want to deal with and saw your kind as big downer on the country, then your right to procreate was taken from you.

Maybe it's a loose comparison, but this is what I first thought of when I read of Netanyahu's desire to have "two free peoples living side by side in this small land, with good neighborly relations and mutual respect..." but with an entirely demilitarized Palestinian state. He wants peace and equality, but only if the Palestinian people are freed as something less than what they ought to be.

As my boss also reminded me, a definition of a state in modern political theory is an organization that has "a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory." If Palestinians have no force, then they can't have a state. Sure, it's scary to think of Palestine as a "Hamastan" as Netanyahu put it, but that's part of being a modern, sovereign state, and it's frankly the only chance the people here have at acheiving true and lasting peace. He just has to learn to be a good diplomat, learn how to compromise, and how to treat your neighbors with respect. Then, the chances are are good that they won't want to blow him up :)

Feeling the hate in Jerusalem- a video

I'm embarrassed by this video, both for my country and it's frighteningly obnoxious, narrow-minded, and not to mention vulgar young people. Shudder.

My personal favorite is "I'm a political science major!" "So you know you're sh*t, right!?" "Yeah, I know my sh*t!!" "Do you know who Benjamin Netanyahu is?" "No..." Oh noooooo! It hurts, it really does.

I spend so little time interacting with the young American Zionists of this world, so it end up being truly shocking when I get glimpses of this kind of mentality. When I go back to the US, I hope to try and play some kind of part in educating the Jewish and general community on the realities of this conflict. But if THIS is what I'm going to be up against, I can't help but want to run screaming in the opposite direction!
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I'm editing this post and adding another video because I think it is related to the all of the extreme, senseless talk from the first video:



If a Fox newscaster is calling this kind of criticism "wrong, ridiculous, preposterous," then I think that says it all.

Is it just me, or is it disturbing that the same rhetoric is being used by both the crazies that write into Fox news and these kids studying abroad in Jerusalem??

Ni'lin and Bi'lin- The Wild West of the West Bank

This video is made by a film maker that I know here, it's great and I think really captures how insane, lawless, and chaotic this place can be.

Occupation of Ni'lin, Palestine - May 22, 2009 from Sheryle C on Vimeo.

Notice how the Israeli soldiers at one point are dodging the fire coming from their own troop. Or how that little baby's eyes were red from tear gas. This town place is lawless. The soldiers are allowed to/told to fire without discretion, and that's exactly what they do. No one holds them accountable, no one tells them to do otherwise. It's terrifying.

What everyone's saying

Good piece in the NYTimes that covers a lot of the Israeli media reactions to the speech

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/05/weekend-opinionator-obama-in-cairo-as-seen-from-tel-aviv/?scp=9&sq=obama%20cairo&st=cse

Obama in Cairo

"So long as our relationship is defined by our differences, we will empower those who sow hatred rather than peace, those who promote conflict rather than the cooperation..."

Yes, tears did well up.

Needless to say, I think this speech was great. It was as important for the Western world to hear Obama's ode to Muslim history and it's connection with American values as it was for the Muslim world to hear it.

I'm hoping that instead of being scared that Obama has abandoned Israeli interests by giving this speech, Jewish Israelis can see hope and lasting peace by supporting his efforts.

Jewish Israeli extremists using racist propaganda to defend their own racism

(Picture from Haaretz)


Yesterday there was a demonstration outside the US consulate in Jerusalem at which Israeli Jewish extremists rallied against Obama, calling him an antisemite and a Jew-hater. To make their point, they were using some of the most racist arguments I've heard in a while.

From the Haaretz article, "Nadia Matar, the Belgian-born co-chair of Women in Green, which organized the event, made a point of repeatedly mentioning Obama' middle name, Hussein, because "we have to remind ourselves that he received an Islamic education in Indonesia." "

This reminds me of a conversation I had here on the US election day. I ran into this American Jewish girl I had met the week before, who was here to study Torah for a year. She was nice, and we had sort of clicked, so I carelessly and overexcitedly entered into the conversation with, "Aren't you so excited!? I can't wait! I know he's going to win." Or something along those lines. The look on her face let me know that I should have tested the water before jumping into this pool, and she said, "But his dad is a Muslim...how will he ever defend Israel?" Need I really say more?

The group who helping to run the rally at the consulate, Hazit, is an ultra-extremist-settler organization that carries out some of the more offensive rallies and actions in this countries. Baruch Marzel is a big figure in Hazit, which you can easily tell by his enormous dedication page on the site. Marzel is originally from the states and was the right-hand-man for the leader of Kach, a Jewish extremist group considered to be a terrorist organization by the US, Canada, the EU, and Israel. There is no compromise with this organization. They want all of Israel, end of story.

I don't really have any commentary, because this article and the accompanying image speaks for itself.

Read the article here.