More doors close in Israel’s face
Bookworm on Mar 17 2009 at 9:46 am | Filed under: Israel
A friend sent me an email entitled “I thought this might interest you,” along with a link to this article:
Last year, Israeli Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi had no problem setting up meetings with top officials in the U.S. government.
On his current trip to Washington, Ashkenazi sought to meet the administration of President Barack Obama, but most officials were unavailable.
Diplomatic sources said Ashkenazi failed to obtain access to any Cabinet member, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates. The Israeli military chief, who sought to discuss the Iranian nuclear threat, won’t even meet his counterpart, Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“The administration is sending a very clear message to Israel, and this is we want to talk about Palestine and not Iran,” a diplomat who has been following U.S.-Israel relations said.
On March 12, Ashkenazi left for a five-day visit to the United States meant to lobby the Obama administration to abandon the planned U.S. dialogue with Iran. Ashkenazi, scheduled to meet with the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, was expected to have brought new Israeli intelligence on Iran’s nuclear weapons and missile programs.
But the diplomatic sources said the administration made it clear that nobody in a policy-making position was available to sit with Ashkenazi. This included the president, Vice President Joseph Biden, Gates, National Intelligence director Dennis Blair or Mullen.
You can read the rest of the article here.
As I said in my reply email to my friend, I still haven’t recovered from the vast number of American Jews who cast their votes for Obama. There is a running debate in the conservative community about whether American Jews no longer care about Israel or whether they’re simply such reflexive Democratic voters they were incapable of recognizing the danger Obama posed for Israel. Articles like this depress but but he was right about one thing — I am interested.
Related posts:
- Proportionate response *UPDATED*
- The UN is a blight upon the face of the world’s body politic
- How to define proportionality in the face of evil
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29 Responses to “More doors close in Israel’s face”
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This report indicates that meetings were eventually held…not that it appears that the news is any better…!
http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/03/in-usa-idfs-cos-says-israel-preparing.html
So, in the first 50 days of the OBAMA administration, the campaign to throw Britain, Columbia, Brazil and Israel under the bus is well underway.
Next, maybe in the next 50 days, I predict Pakistan (or did that begin with Liberal/Lefties helping to force out Musharraf?), Taiwan, S. Korea, Ukraine and Georgia.
Eventually, Afghanistan, Iraq (can’t let the Republicans chalk that one up as a “win”) and NATO (symbol of Western Oppression that it is).
As Kissinger observed after the American Left sold out Cambodia and South Vietnam to the genocidaires of the Left…”being America’s friend can be lethal”.
If you are a mass murderer and oppressive tyrant, however, have no fear: you are obviously a victim and Obama’s America will be your friend.
Makes us proud, doesn’t it?
If Obama is true to form, he’ll be working like a beaver to make these nations subservient to him by making them slaves to his power.
What better way to do that than to wreck their security, destabilize them, and then come in as the ultimate solution of hope and change? If it worked for him in the campaign, certainly he has to believe it is at least worth trying on the international front.
A simple analogy would suffice. Obama gives money to ACORN and Hamas because those will be the means by which he will enforce his edicts upon the rest of us, our allies the Polish, the Georgians, the Uktrainians, entrepreneurs, small businessmen, and so forth.
From bad to worse, imo.
http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/03/obama-wont-let-bibis-national-security.html
This is a direct result of the 78% of the Jewish Community who voted for Obama.
An ill wind was all ready blowin’ (see attached)
Jews vote like Puerto Ricans…..
Nov. 1, 2004
http://web.israelinsider.com/Views/4325.htm
Obama has a fleet of buses!
Given the American genius for doing the most horrible things with great style (such as killing 50 million would-be citizens by making such killings a “right”), I don’t think we need fear the type of violent out-and-out anti-Semitism that the Europeans, Arabs and Latin Americans adore.
Consider this:
—The above-cited statistic that 78% of U.S. Jews voted for a Jew hater. Such obliviousness is more to be manipulated than persecuted. Remember the schmoos in Li’l Abner, the bratwurst-shaped self-sacrificial critters that would jump into boiling water if you asked them to?
—The fact that most U.S. Jews are deracinated or agnostic. My wife, a Reform Jew who never attends temple, believes in some pretty horrendous things, such as “choice” and socialism, which she reconciles with her Judaism by pointedly ignoring it.
—The large number of self-hating Jews. I remember flying to Washington, DC in 2004 to talk to a futurist about ghostwriting a book on the next 10,000 years. He was an atheist and one of his closest friends, also an atheist, was a brilliant Jewish scholar from a major university. At dinner one night the friend bemoaned Jews’ detestable assertion that they were special. The problem, he said, was that the assertion kept leading to all sorts of unpleasant situations (such as pogroms, holocausts and resentment against Jewish exceptionalism).
I was a stranger and a guest, so I refrained from telling him that self-hatred was a putrid way to hope that a hostile world would get off Jews’ backs, and that it was people like him who make life easier for Muslims, socialists and other anti-Semites.
I realized this guy was already where Obama and Ayers want him to be. If your victim hates himself and is willing to concede the superiority of your godless ideology, why be overtly hostile toward him?
Besides, so many of the Jews that voted for Obama are alte kockers who will soon be dead. If you really want to make them die sooner rather than later, get them to line up behind nationalized healthcare. Once you’ve hooked everybody into the system, just declare that you’re no longer treating a host of conditions. That way, even as you’re disposing of many burdensome gentile elders, you can use rationed healthcare as a cover for getting rid of pesky Jews.
>>At dinner one night the friend bemoaned Jews’ detestable assertion that they were special.>>
Now that’s interesting. Do the Jews assert that they are special? If so, on what basis? If it’s based on the Torah, how can they be atheists? If they’re atheists, what makes them think they’re special?
Are they special because _they_ say so, or because _others_ say so?
Do only _some_ Jews say they’re special, so all of them are “stuck” with it?
“He was an atheist and one of his closest friends, also an atheist, was a brilliant Jewish scholar from a major university.
My wife, a Reform Jew who never attends temple, believes in some pretty horrendous things, such as “choice” and socialism, which she reconciles with her Judaism by pointedly ignoring it.”
Both examples are a % of the Jewish Community who are no longer Jewish, but identify themselves as such or are identified as such by others.
I have no idea what percentage of this separate group is part of the 78%, if at all.
The alte kockers and the atheists will be in the same line waiting for help that will never come.
>>Both examples are a % of the Jewish Community who are no longer Jewish, but identify themselves as such or are identified as such by others.>>
That’s what puzzles me. Why rail against the “special” designation but still cling to the group that the designation is attached to? Why not change your name to Smith or Jones and walk away from it all??
Because one of the ways that some Jews have chosen to ingratiate themselves with the gentile world is to stand, point back and say, “See, even though I’m one of them I’m not like them!” It’s a way to be a good Jew, which means somebody who won’t act in an embarrassing, off-putting “Jewish” manner. All the better to be accepted.
Yes, it’s Torah-based. Israel is God’s chosen people and “a light unto the nations.” The Jews’ covenantal relationship with God is the model for how all of humanity will eventually live under God’s law.
For atheistic Jews (yes, that an oxymoron to me, too), Jewishness is an ethnicity or a hip little culture that schools you in Yiddishisms, wry shrugs of the shoulder and other charming, but non-offensive, shtick. That’s why it’s so easy for atheistic or lukewarm Jews to accept idols like Marxism or let’s-just-all-get-alongism. Since there is no God (or He’s a pathetic handwringer at best), let’s just all Tikkun Olam our way to paradise on earth.
Yes, it’s Torah-based. Israel is God’s chosen people and “a light unto the nations.” The Jews’ covenantal relationship with God is the model for how all of humanity will eventually live under God’s law.
Alas, the word is ‘chosen’ not special. Special is the word some non-Jews use to flip the conversation to an awkward moment to put one one the defensive.
“Because one of the ways that some Jews have chosen to ingratiate themselves with the gentile world is to stand, point back and say, “See, even though I’m one of them I’m not like them!” It’s a way to be a good Jew, which means somebody who won’t act in an embarrassing, off-putting “Jewish” manner. All the better to be accepted.”
This was the hue and cry of generations way back, blend in blend in, don’t draw attention to yourself. This was the result of trying to stay alive in Europe or the Marrano Jews of Spain, who were Catholic on the outside and Jewish in their homes. The schizophrenia remains with many Jews. Kosher on the inside, but can’t wait to get to ‘all you get eat shrimp’ platters on the outside. It’s all part and parcel of trying to live in a multicultural country being a minority. A bizarre version of Fiddler on the Roof plays itself out in voting booths, conversations, dinner tables and my all time favorite, Holiday Jews. They are the ones that show up in synagogue twice a year (Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur) just in case.
suek: some walk away, some run away, but many as they near the end you can hear them whisper She’ma Yisrael.
This reminds me of the divide between Americans. Some define America to be distributive of wealth, socialistic, and materialistic.
Of course, even though the Marine Corps and Hollywood both call their members “Americans”, there is an obvious and distinct difference. The same with Jews.
In light of the rather intense threads of late, I’ll share one of my more pleasant sites.
NASA and the photo of the day. If you go to the site, there is an actual thorough description of each photo. Mind you, without a degree in astrophysics…just enjoy the photos.
http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/308004main_image_1270_428-321.jpg
SADIE:
As an old amateur astronomer, lover of the Hubble telescope and believer in space exploration, thank you for that wonderful break from the dreary things we’ve been discussing.
I told my wife on March 3 that that date marked 50 years to the day since I, a 10-year-old boy, wrote “Martel Lunar Observatory” on a manila envelope, thus founding (in my mind at least) the newest earthly facility to explore the moon. My observatory was armed with the mighty 20-power cardboard refractor telescope that my parents had given me on Christmas Day, 1958.
The people around me indulged me—imagine a child’s toy adding to the sum of human knowledge about the moon! But my 11-year-old friend Don Thompson, who headed “Thompson Laboratories,” thought that I was on the right track. And we both agreed that when Galileo, Kepler and Copernicus visited us in our dreams, perhaps we weren’t so deluded after all.
Ever since then I’ve shaken my head in awe and gratitude at what the fine scientists at NASA and elsewhere have done to make us see this grand universe a little better. Again, SADIE, thanks for reminding me of that.
Charles…by far one of the most endearing thank you notes I have received, made all the more endearing knowing that the Hubble of your memories took you back 50 years with a smile still on your face.
Quite an amazing site.
The anti-zionist elephant…
Ethan Bronner reports in After Gaza, Israel Grapples With Crisis of Isolation. But in the weeks since its Gaza war, and as it prepares to inaugurate a hawkish right-wing government, it is facing its worst diplomatic crisis in two decades. Examples abou…
>>Alas, the word is ‘chosen’ not special.>>
Yes. But “special” was the word Charles or Charles’ friend used. And there _is_ a correlation, I think. But you’re correct.
>> Special is the word some non-Jews use to flip the conversation to an awkward moment to put one one the defensive.>>
I don’t understand this part of your statement… How does it put someone on the defensive?
In view of history, the “blend in” part is very understandable.
Chosen not special.
I have never used the word ‘special’ in the context of this conversation or any other, but have heard, what makes ‘them’ so special or something close to what makes them ‘think’ they are special.
It is the accusatory tone when hearing the word ‘special’. It’s implications are that the Jewish people think, believe or behave as if they are better than ….as outlined in Post #6 by Charles (although in his example they were indeed, self-hating Jews).
>>It’s implications are that the Jewish people think, believe or behave as if they are better than …>>
Heh. I can see that. Sort of.
In the sense of “you’re _special_! You…and you alone…have been chosen as the one to be sacrificed to the gods”.
It’s a funny thing – that “chosen” appellation. It’s a blessing and it’s a curse. Depends on the day and the time, I think. But another aspect is that the Jews don’t really have a single religious leader as Catholics do. That means that there isn’t really a unity to the “chosen” designation other than ethnicity. Each and every Jew has to decide whether s/he belongs to that chosen group and whether s/he will act accordingly, it seems to me. Different from the concept of sin in the Catholic Church – which is very individual. It _is_ a group designation, but it requires the individual to do something to belong to the group, I think, as well as observing the moral strictures.
Probably others have thought this out – I just never have. As usual… lots to think about.
Your comment, “Jews don’t really have a single religious leader” is quite right. Over time the choice of affiliation whether with the Conservative, Reform or Orthodox forms of Judaism created differing views in much the same way that the Reformation in Europe did with Christianity. Coptic Christians, Armenian Christians, Greek Christians, Protestants, Catholics, Baptists, the list is endless.
The glue that binds the Jewish Community is sharing a common language (Hebrew) which is used for prayers (excluding Israel, which of course, where it is the spoken language) and all that is expressed, contained and shared and handed down either by the Torah or in the ‘telling’ as in the HaGaddah, which is used during Passover, which literally translated means, The Telling of the story of Exodus. Added to this mix, is the belief in G-d as one entity.
“but it requires the individual to do something to belong to the group”
It certainly does, but these somethings are clear to those that observe the faith.
The requirement of asking for forgiveness is clear during the days between the New Year and Yom Kippur, one asks for forgiveness from those we have offended and ask G-d for forgiveness for the sins we have committed against him. The sins are listed and read aloud in the congregation and in unity are repeated.
Your comments reminded me of the Dalai Lama who was wondering how he could hold the Tibetan people together in exile. I recommend reading Jew in the Lotus.
http://www.itvs.org/jewinthelotus/
I read a Pearl Buck years and years ago, and although I have totally forgotten the name and virtually everything else about it, two things stick in my mind. First, the Jews in the story ate pork. When asked about it, they said that there had been no persecution or prejudice against Jews in China, and as a result Jews had completely assimilated and no longer observed Jewish dietary restrictions. The comment was also made that it took persecution to cement the Jewish identity and practices.
The second thing was that when a woman reached menopause, it was her duty to find a new (second) wife for her husband. I could live with that.
I am not surprised that the Jews in China no longer observed dietary laws..when in Rome ….
The one and only book I read on the topic was called – The Jews of Kai Feng, discovered by Christian Missionaries. After looking at some of the photos of obviously very assimilated looking Jews…I found myself muttering what I’ve heard (cringing) You don’t look Jewish. Of course, many years after and while I was living in Israel, I came across complete families of Chinese Jews, who like myself were trying to find a common language. For all my inborn American ways, ears and visuals..I can’t begin to tell you what it was like to hear a mix of Hebrew, Chinese and a smattering of English thrown into one sentence. My younger son, had come to visit me at one point and I took him to the restaurant (yes, of course, a Chinese Kosher one) for lunch to introduce him to my ‘new’ friend. Poor thing, he left the restaurant with me and half way down the block, looked at me and said, Please, don’t ever do this to me again, my brain is exploding – we had quite a good giggle together.
Many moons ago, I used to teach idiomatic English to visiting post doctoral students (the Cultural Revolution had prevented them from continuing their studies). Anyway, the more interesting part of the story is that when we shared stories and once they knew I was Jewish, they were quite excited and started going on about how this friend or that cousin was also Jewish – a badge of courage and pride, so to speak. I was quite astounded to be honest and had I not read about the community in Kai Feng, I would have been just plain ol’ shocked.
Menopause, hmmm, they literally took it to mean men-on-pause.
That’s a new one for me. Maybe it was a local custom combined with something I know nothing about, except the menopause.
I don’t know how actually factual the details were – it was a novel after all. I believe Pearl Buck did spend a lot of time the Orient, but I really don’t know how knowledgeable she was…
Now I do.. Checked her biography on Wikipedia. Very interesting. Her knowledge about China should be reliable, based on her having lived most of her life there, and having a good educational base from which to view the lives of people during very tumultuous times. Her life there was missionary centered, so it’s probable that she would have been very aware of the fact that some westerners were Jewish, and what that entailed.
Very long list of books that she authored. I tried to get a feel of which book I read, but none rang a bell. My guess is that it was a book my mother bought to read, and I just picked it up in a moment of boredom. If that’s the case, I probably didn’t even pay attention to the title. I remember that it was a good enjoyable book, but not much else.
>>The sins are listed and read aloud in the congregation and in unity are repeated.>>
As in “here is the list of Sadie’s sins” or as in a list of sins submitted in anonymity and compiled?
>>Maybe it was a local custom combined with something I know nothing about, except the menopause.>>
It _was_ interesting – guess that’s why it stuck in my mind. As I recall, she took the obligation very seriously – making a list of candidates, then interviewing each one, all with the needs of her husband as the primary concern, although she also wanted a second wife that she could get along with as well. I don’t remember how it went from there…I don’t think it was a matter of presenting him with his second wife though…more like she then arranged invitations in such a way that they would meet, and eventually, he announced to her that he was taking her choice as his second wife. Part of the novelty of it was the initiation of action by the first wife in a culture that typically gives no power to the wife.
Guess I should take some books out of the library and delve into them again. Think politics will go on hold for a while????
The site looks interesting, by the way, although they don’t give any clue as to what the Jews were able to offer in the way of advice. If persecution is the only answer, I can’t say I’d recommend it!
Sins and submissions:
Nah…the sins are in the prayer book called a siddur (pages and pages of them). These sins are read aloud and covers every conceivable trespass against G-d. They are read aloud in the plural ..Forgive us (fill in the blank here) It’s a very collective prayer.
Those other sins, the personal ones between one human and another are handled in a more personal way.
Example and prior to Yom Kippur:
I would ask for your forgiveness for any and all hurt, pain, offenses I have committed against you. This can also be done in a written note and hung in a common door, let’s say in an office, so that all who work there and pass through that door will be able to read it. The note thing, I have only observed in an ultra-Orthodox office.
Nothing we would ever see in D.C. (not enough door space).
I can’t remember what the Dalai Lama took away from his meetings with the spectrum of Jewish people. I think each one offered something different. He met with them looking to find a way to keep them as ‘one’ even in exile. I’d have to go back reread the book. I did check and saw it on Amazon (used) for $6.00. Link below:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=jew+in+the+lotu&x=0&y=0
I’ll have to do a little fishing to find out about wife #2. If I find anything, I’ll post it here.
Finished fishing for the moment and I found this….
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/judaism/FAQ/04-Observance/section-55.html
..which begs the questions 1) exactly how did the Chinese Jews identify themselves and 2) did they just take a little from here and little from there.
Jewish Dim Sum?
Oooo….I didn’t mean that a _Jewess_ did that – it was a Chinese woman of Chinese extraction in a traditional Chinese marriage.
Jewish Dim Sum??
Jewish cooks are no end original. I have no doubt they can do it. Somehow.
Ohhhhhhhh, in that case – in a word, click below and have a good giggle.