A Rare Israel Dissenter Pushed from Intelligence Appointment by Schumer, AIPAC Supporters
Business as usual instead of change you can believe in - and believe me, there are few foreign policy issues more pressing than dealing with the fact that America's unquestioning support of Israel and its policies has been a detriment to us around the world. Thanks, Senator Schumer!
WASHINGTON — When Dennis C. Blair, the director of national intelligence, announced that he would install Charles W. Freeman Jr. in a top intelligence post, the decision surprised some in the White House who worried that the selection could be controversial and an unnecessary distraction, according to administration officials.
Just how controversial the choice would be became clear on Tuesday, when Mr. Freeman, a former ambassador to Saudi Arabia under the first President Bush, angrily withdrew his name from consideration and charged that he had been the victim of a concerted campaign by what he called “the Israel lobby.”
Mr. Freeman had long been critical of Israel, with a bluntness that American officials rarely voice in public about a staunch American ally. In 2006, he warned that, “left to its own devices, the Israeli establishment will make decisions that harm Israelis, threaten all associated with them and enrage those who are not.”
So far, I'm just not having a problem with this guy.
He did not soften his tone even on Wednesday, saying in an interview that “Israel is driving itself toward a cliff, and it is irresponsible not to question Israeli policy and to decide what is best for the American people.”
The critics who led the effort to derail Mr. Freeman argued that such views reflected a bias that could not be tolerated in someone who, as chairman of the National Intelligence Council, would have overseen the production of what are supposed to be policy-neutral intelligence assessments destined for the president’s desk.
Oh yeah, I remember just how concerned AIPAC was during the Bush administration about intelligence being policy-neutral! Or was that some alternate universe I saw in a dream?
Some of Mr. Freeman’s defenders say his views on Israel are extreme only when seen through the lens of American political life, and they asked whether it was possible to question American support for Israel without being either muzzled or marginalized.
Uh, no. This has been another edition of "Simple Answers to Simple Questions."
“The reality of Washington is that our political landscape finds it difficult to assimilate any criticism of any segment of the Israeli leadership,” said Robert W. Jordan, who was ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 2001 to 2003.
The lobbying campaign against Mr. Freeman included telephone calls to the White House from prominent lawmakers, including Senator Charles E. Schumer, the New York Democrat. It appears to have been kicked off three weeks ago in a blog post by Steven J. Rosen, a former top official of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group.
See, now, I find that a little odd that the Times didn't mention that Steven J. "Policy Neutral" Rosen is under federal indictment and awaiting trial for violations of the Espionage Act on behalf of Israel. Maybe it's just me, but it seems somewhat relevant.
Unless, of course, the country's most important newspaper understands that some things just aren't news, and lacks the courage to push for an actual debate on the sensitive topic of America's Israel policies and whether they're good for our country.
"You're an anti semite!!!"
"Someday somebody related to some of these sufferers, these victims, these collaterally damaged souls, may try to kill you. And I have to tell you, I think you’ll have it coming." - Christopher Cooper
In a nutshell.
far left loon >.<
Ms. Mandrak, that was an exquisite article and I commend you, and support you in the firestorm to follow.
Trantorian has opened with the usual old, used, antiquated phrase to be expected anytime you think you want to actually take the Israli issue out in PUBLIC and air it OUT!! I AM ANTIZIONIST, Trantorian, not anti-semetic. I'm catagorically against the current FACISM hiding behind the skirts of an old, respected religion, Judaism! Judaism is a religion, not a pugalistic, pugnacious, preditory, land grabbing, Apartide, ZIONIST fake 'nation' that exports FACISM/TERRORISM.
I think that was a snark.
Trantorian is stating what usually happens if you try to talk about Israel, in less than glowing terms, in public. (That's how I took it. I may be wrong.)
far left loon >.<
Maybe I should have added, 'Me, too!' (joke)
Why are so many people scared of the Israeli Gov't and its Lobby? If Israel tries to compare them to the NAZI's, one need only point to Israel (government) treatment of the Palestinians.
It doesn't help that Israel and AIPAC are financed by American money.
Check out what a British zionist and anti-arab neo-con and her flying mokeys think:
http://www.spectator.co.uk/melaniephillips/34...
and
http://www.spectator.co.uk/melaniephillips/34...
A choice quote from the lady who's still upset that a house fell on her sister:
"These people, though, however repellent, are small beer. The real alarm should be over the man who appointed Freeman to such a post – the Director of National Intelligence, Dennis Blair (pictured). What does this debacle say about his own judgment and priorities? And what does it say about the judgment and priorities of the man who appointed Blair, Barack Obama?"
That should read "flying monkeys". Should proof read first.
It's available for all of your own comments and works great.
[Until someone replies to the comment you wish to edit. Site Monitor]
Remember when that idiot O'Reilly boycotted anything French because they wouldn't join the neocon framing of Iraq? I myself will not buy anything that carries a Jewish name on it. Ralph Lauren(real name Lipshcitz), Cole, Karen, etc.
My thinking is that all of the wealthy Jews support the murderous policies of the American Israeli Political Action organization and the starving of women and children in Gaza. I hope that in months to come investors will boycott Israeli companies doing business on the stock market.
This is the same policy that AIPAC and others are trying to do to Iran...starve them of investment.
New Yorkers should resist voting for Schumer in the next election.
don smith
If we cannot look at this Israel situation with real, honest & pragmatic eyes, we will never be at peace.
Criticizing Israel = Denying the Holocaust Ever Happened.
Criticizing Israel = Denying the Holocaust Ever Happened + You're an anti semite
When we all know the Jewish religion is not the issue but ZIONISM and the "Greater Israel" Agenda of some right (and Center) wingers here and in Israel
The Israel Lobby
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N294FMDok98&eu...
- in a jar at AIPAC HQ.
It's called the American Dream because you have to be asleep to believe it.
-George Carlin
some one could research Andrew Kilgore, former ambassador to Qater, who is also villified by AIPAC for his critism of Irael policies. I tried to find out more about him with little success. Is there someone out there with more research experience out there that could find more information other than "He's anti Israel?"
QATAR?
________________
common sense matters as much as truth
Another thread that gives the chance for the Israel bashers to get their hate on. After all, Hamas is such a wonderful and peace-loving organization.
I wonder if someone will post a link to the Blood Libel this time...
Hamas was created and supported by Israel.
FRONT ORGANIZATION.
I really learned a lot from the part that says:
I mean, man, who'd have known?
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
"In the past, Israel supported Hamas against Fatah. Indeed, in the 1970s and 80s, Israel played a not insignificant role in encouraging Hamas’s emergence in the belief that such an Islamist group might help rupture support for the mass nationalist movement of Fatah. Twenty years later, Israel has switched sides, hoping that it can encourage Fatah to see off Hamas. It wants “moderate” Palestinians to take on the “extremist” Palestinians it helped create."
Or
You can watch Ron Paul say it on the House floor.
;o}
I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United States of America, and to the republic which it established, one nation from many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all
Have you got a link that ties today's Hamas to Israel?
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
I imagine that those links are kept in the same file as the documents tying the US to Al Qaeda, don't you?
semi/snark
I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United States of America, and to the republic which it established, one nation from many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all
And I'll make no other comment on that particular subject. :D
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Historically, Al Qaeda is a product of the CIA from the 80's when we were buddies with OBL and the Taliban.
"The US has an army of 90,000 soldiers in Afghanistan and is spending $100bn a year, but has still been unable to defeat 20,000-25,000 Taliban who receive no pay at all." - Patrick Cockburn
If I was Hamas I'd file a complaint with the labor department. Their employer has been using unacceptable disciplinary techniques. And their pay stubs keep coming up short.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
it was funded while it was a social org, providing assistance to palestinians, in an attempt to derail the more secular plo
is what is happening now, blowback?
yup
so israel makes mistakes just like america....who knew?
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtm...
as an american we are free to criticize and condemn american policies and actions. yet, as an american, questioning israeli actions, or our unflinchiing support of the far rightwing israeli govt, is strictly forbidden. and now we can see american politicians, like the punk ass schumer, punishing americans for daring to speak out.
the hypocrisy is kneedeep, and the strawmen have been rolled out.
Trantorian wasn't far off with his first post.
Samson
Intelligently and persuasively well stated. One rarely if ever sees any criticism of AIPAC and/or the Israeli government on television with the exception of Democracy Now!, which should put to rest the lie that the show Hardball actually asks the hardball questions.
Certainly, the debacle can be discussed, can it not? It certainly does seem to be an important issue! Why don't you just sit back and take it all in instead of crying "wolf"?
@Kai Surprise, surprise, I'll America bash. Why the f#ck don't American politicians listen the words of their own constituents? Anything NOT PRO AIPAC, and you're branded a traitor. One subject Americans are not allowed to discuss. Not very democratic, is it?
far left loon >.<
Edwin
Intelligently and perceptively well stated.
I don't think Mukasey would have survived Senate confirmation had it not been for Schumer flacking for him. I, for one, am just as sick as I can be about the United States' foreign policy being dictated by Israel and a few ex Cubam Americans down in Florida.
Barack Obama: Change we can only imagine
Who exactly held a gun to him?
Was it Blair?
Obama?
The legal status of AIPAC should have been changed a long time ago! They are agents of far right spectrum of foreign government. So they should be registred as a foreign agent - Simple as that! How many espionage scandals will it take for american public to take action against this effing Likudniks with dual citizenship and dual loyalty?
Have you seen this amazing piece by Max Blumenthal on NY jewish demonstration in support of slaughter in Gaza? Couple of democrats can be seen there - they should be ashamed of themselves!
http://maxblumenthal.com/2009/01/547/
Declare anyone whose opinion you disagree with an agent of a foreign power and then deprive them of their civil rights. Heck maybe you could even set up some sort of camp offshore where you could keep them. I wonder why no one ever thought of that before.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
"ZOMG teh Jews are all Israelis first and Americans/Germans/whatever second."
No, sweetheart that's not what I am claiming. I am specially talking about Likudniks (see people like Douglas Feith), there are tons of american jews who are honest, who are ameican citizens first. But the truth is that there are/or were (during Bushes neoconservative years) people in top governmental positions whose loyalty should have been taken into question.
a religious test for suitability for government office. That cure is worse than the disease.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
http://www.ifamericansknew.org/about_us/movie...
AIPAC has long since given up any pretense of helping American interests. AIPAC has become an arm of the rightwing religious fanatics who now control the Israeli government.
30 years ago, one might believe that the Israeli government was a breath of freedom in that region. Well, no longer.
The Israeli government is now controlled by rightwing religious zealots who do not have any desire for peace. From the attempted assasination of the Israeli prime minister, to tearing down Arab houses, to war crimes in both Gaza and Lebanon, the current Israeli government has demonstrated its true agenda.
Rather then being an honest broker, the American government has been led around by the nose by AIPAC and the Israeli war mongers. There will be no true peace in the Middle East as long as the US fails to treat both sides fairly, as long as the US government is under the thrall of the religous fanatics who currently control the government of Israel.
Schumer, Liebermann etal do no service to the US when they kowtow to the religious zealots in the current Israeli government. Similarly, Schumer and Liebermann do no service to the peoples of Israel and Palestine by failing to recognize the crimes committed by both sides in that conflict.
It is well past the time for AIPAC to be considered an agent of a foreign government. It is well past time for the Israeli people to throw out the current government and return a secular government dedicated to a peaceful solution.
You mean, all this time, you thought AIPAC was an agent of the American government? Wow! How embarrassing for you.
An unnecessary distraction for who and for what? A question that will need an answer before we can sort out the position that is fueling some much terrorist hatred at the US.
They can run roughshod over us
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJuNgBkloFE
Floridot
Extremely well done link which displays how Americans seem to be almost proud of their ignorance if not outright stupidity. Every one is a gem. One of my favorites is the woman who, when asked who won the Vietnam War, replied "we did." If it were not so tragic this segment from YouTube could be seen as being hilarious. As Gore Vidal wisely noted, this is the United States of Amnesia with very few Americans displaying any remorse for their lack of history and world affairs.
The present course Israel's zealots and expansionists are on will not have a happy ending. Israel's political maniacs however seem quite blind about the cliff edge they are skirting.
Killing Palestinians,trying to subvert Palestinian political growth or maturation,the land and resource grabs,illegal settlements and the brutal daily occupation methods and impositions will exact a terrible price on Israel.Without American support this all would have already met a well deserved demise. Americans ultimately are doing Israel no favors with this unbalanced support of Israeli WestBank and Gaza illegal occupation and war criminal conduct.
Charles Freeman may have been pushed out by the Israel First stooges that infest WashingtonDC but there is a growing resentment of this thinly veiled viral anti-American subversion.
Chucky Schumer and that likely spy Rosen and the "flying monkeys" they run with may think they are winning. Mirages have that effect.
Heres hoping Barack will draw some lines for Rahm too. The infestation reaches deep indeed.
Question for Rahm? Are you for United States first? Or Israel?
Don't take too long to answer either Rahm.
US citizen, Tristan Anderson, has been critically wounded at a West Bank protest.
" Peace activists with the International Solidarity Movement said Tristan Anderson, of the Oakland, Calif. area, was struck in the head with a tear gas canister fired by Israeli troops. The military and the Tel Aviv hospital where Anderson was taken had no details on how he was hurt.
Protesters who were at the scene said that Anderson was standing by the side of the road when soldiers fired at him, and not near the hub of the clash. They added that there was no one in his vicinity that could have been perceived as a threat to the soldiers."
I pledge allegiance to the Constitution of the United States of America, and to the republic which it established, one nation from many peoples, promising liberty and justice for all
Those soldiers are victims! Peace activists are a threat to everyone and must be fired upon by the victims before they're allowed to become even more "victimy".
She was another brave American peace activist who was murdered by the Israeli military.
They bulldozed her down when she was trying to stop them from tearing down a Palestinian home.
"The US has an army of 90,000 soldiers in Afghanistan and is spending $100bn a year, but has still been unable to defeat 20,000-25,000 Taliban who receive no pay at all." - Patrick Cockburn
[Deleted. Leave it. I removed entire swaths of commentary from this thread. Both sides. Sometimes, life is not fair-Sitemonitor]
Mr Freeman isn't the first nominee for any post in the Obama administration to withdraw his name from consideration. He probably is the first to blame his withdrawal on the "Israel lobby". A laughable claim accepted without a shred of evidence. Didn't employ any off-the-book household staff? Paid all his taxes on time? We know this to be true how? You'll have to find something a little more substantial on which to hang this rumor. The Obama administration is being so selective that they're having trouble filling any number of posts.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
Glenn Greenwald has an excellent post at Salon.com.
In Charles Freeman fails the loyalty test, Greeenwald describes the witch hunt conducted on Charles Freeman by the likes of Sen. Joe Leiberman, Sen. Chuck Schumer, and The New Republic lead by lynch mob leader Jonathan Chait.
Greenwald writes,
Isn't it rather obvious that at some point, there will be a substantial and understandable backlash as Americans watch people like Chuck Schumer openly boast that anyone who makes "statements against Israel" that he deems "over the top" will be disqualified from serving in our Government, despite a long and distinguished record of public service and unchallenged expertise?
As Progressives we should stand for fairness in our foreign policy and be lead by the values of democracy and pragmatism, and not be sucked into propaganda and bigotry like these Neo-Con Lites.
It's time to use the Jewish concept of Tikkun, and as Americans, open our eyes to the damage done.
I can't go there because I personally despise Joan Walsh! Too bad Glenn can't get a better gig than Salon.com.
If I'm not mistaken, Salon is Greenwald's blog.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/profil...
far left loon >.<
He doesn't own it.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Thanks for this recomendation I will check that article out. I like Greenwald's writing a lot.
they live. That is a problem if they happen to subscribe to that ideology and are also in positions of power in the US government.
It's also a problem for blogs when Israel hires people to scan them and then defend its actions and policies as if they are legitimate participants.
And to think during the 60's it was huge concern whether JFK's allegiance would be to the US or the Vatican, and yet that issue never arises for people like Schumer and Emmanuel, hrm.
Should a person's religious affiliation bar them from office?
Hasa Diga Eebowai
No, but their actual political affiliations should trigger some serious questions, at which time it might be concluded that the person is not suited for government service.
thats the only political affiliation that he has
propose to decide which affiliations political or religious should be used to bar citizens from holding office?
Hasa Diga Eebowai
foreign government or religion above that which you have to the US? If so, then you should spend your time honoring your first love. Is that a bad thing?
you and the wingnuts have much in common
Israel needs to choose what direction they want to go, 1. Keep up the George Bush dipshit approach or 2. Resume their place as the only democracy in the region who will in fact be backed up by the U.S. Our support should not be held hostage by the few right-wing Israelis who want to burn Arabs.
Just a note about this "The only democracy in the region" talking point. Israel is not a democracy it's ethnocracy.
more on the subject, its why you find a greater range of opinions in Israel than you'll find here. Israel is a democracy in every sense and that's why they have the ability to change their policies.
I agree with the notion that Israeli media's are more opened to discussion and to various views on these issues then media in USA. But that doesnt make a democratic nation out of them. They are ethnocracy because there are various requirements from the government of Israel on ethnicity of their citizens - including stuff like home ownership, marriage etc.
someone care about this country first!
________________
common sense matters as much as truth
Is a pariah to the United States and to the rest of the world.
Regardless of what we do diplomatically, with, say Iran; Israel has already announced that it intends to deal with Iran on its OWN terms. Probably a pre-emptive military strike that could throw the world into a nuclear conflagration.
If anyone on this thread thinks Israel is this wonderful, innocent "State" in the Middle East, think again.
Watch what Israel did to the USS Liberty in 1963. Just go to Youtube and search, "Dead in the Water". It's a special done by the BBC with interviews of the survivors of that assault on the U.S. by the Israeli military...and up until now they've gotten away with it.
The Orthodox/Zionist Jewish community is out of favor with most of the world. But it's too late. They are so heavily entrenched in the United States that they have actually surrounded our capital and most of our major cities with Eruv's!! They've even managed to put an Eruv around the Supreme Court!
Israel has us by the throat, politically speaking. We managed, with the help of Great Britain to literally STEAL the Palestinian lands so the Jews could have their own "Homeland", I believe in order to have a huge military presence in the Middle East. (BTW, the Jews already HAD a "Homeland" in Russia...Google it).
Which is why Israel has over 300 nuclear weapons and no one says a peep.
Why isn't El Baradei demanding to go into Israel to check THEIR nuclear weapons??! Inquiring minds would love to know!!
And one more thing. I'd like to ask Mr. Freeman, the former Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, what he thinks of THIS:
http://beltwayblips.dailyradar.com/story/saud...
I say, a pox on both (Israel and Saudi Arabia) their houses.
"The US has an army of 90,000 soldiers in Afghanistan and is spending $100bn a year, but has still been unable to defeat 20,000-25,000 Taliban who receive no pay at all." - Patrick Cockburn
http://web.israelinsider.com/bin/en.jsp?enLas...
A dosage of radiation 35000 times that needed to do a x-ray of a skull would almost certainly be lethal to the recipient in the very short term and in cases where it was not immediately lethal would cause other extensive brain damage. Funny how no parent noticed their kid's hair falling out.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
the Orthodox/Zionist community may be rather accustomed to being out of favor with the rest of the world. Nothing new there. No doubt they learned that in their Russian homeland. (Can you spell pogrom?) Doesn't seem like they are a pariah to the US just yet either. Individual opinions may vary. As a non-signatory of the NPT Israel is under no obligation to even speak to the esteemed Mr. El Baradei.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
come from russia...right?
roughly 40% of the population were Ashkenazi (Central and Eastern European) Jews, 40% wer Sephardic (roots in the Iberian Peninsula, but migrated to the Ottoman Empire during the Inquisition) and Mizrahi(Arab and Northern Africa) Jews. The remaining 20% of the citizenry are Arabs.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
I was merely pointing out the Jewish homeland provided by Russia was not so much a homeland as a prison. Not unlike modern Gaza. Beyond the Pale.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
That's not what you were saying to me when the Gaza debacle started, before Christmas.
far left loon >.<
didn't read my posts very carefully. I have no problem with Israel responding to military assaults. Their economic policies vis-a-vis Gaza are doomed to failure. I also disagree strongly with their settlement policies. They are not going to get rid of Hamas by punishing the whole Gazan population.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
Yes, that's it. Me and my simple brain were not able to comprehend your posts.
far left loon >.<
nutshell apparently.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
First, and I'll accept it as a typo, the attack on the USS Liberty occurred in '67, in the midst of the Six Day War. Read up on where the majority of the US Mediterranean fleet was during that conflict (that would be the western Mediterranean), then read about the Russian naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean.
Second:
Well, Great Britain took it from the Ottoman Empire. Before that, the area named after the ancient Philistines had been controlled by the Mamaluks of Egypt, the Seljuks of Anatolia, Normans from Europe, Safavids from Persia, Arabs from Baghdad(and the Arabian Peninsula earlier), Roman Greeks form Constantinople, Romans from Rome, Jews, Greeks...but never directly by the Arabs who migrated in there. And there were always Jews in and around Israel after the diaspora.
The Pale? Read about the pogroms under the later Romanov dynasty. The Soviets weren't really kind, either, persecuting practicing Jews.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
you know, the one that states that all ashkenazi jews are really converts and have no claim to really being jews
right up there with the protocols
Nothing personal, Abby, but that's one of the big lies that's taken as truth.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
invariably draw the Jew haters in. In the last one some Nazi even posted a link to the Blood Libel.
its amazine that americans cant put two and two together the uss liberty was set up by johnson and the zionests for destruction by the mossads air and sea opperations dept, and they dam near pulled the deception off, it like 911 was desighned to draw america into the mid east for israels defence , that it was plain to anyone that the liberty was an american naval vessel by its markings , and the fact it was pictured in the bible for ships identification in [janes fighting ships] and it identified itself by radio , that ship was reconed by regular isralie aircraft for most of an hour , later crewmen identified unmarked isralie mirage fighters commenced fireing and bombing the liberty , later torpedoe boats unmarked allso joined in the murder of american seaman , the liberty was unarmed and had no defence and fired not one shot at the filty bastards who were bent on murder , the admiral in charge of the american fleet was asked for by the libertys skipper for help , the admiral sent aircraft but they were called back when lbj personally got the rescue recended , it was said lbj said i want that ship at the bottom of the ocean , treason plain and simple!
toss your computer out the window, cuz that pariah state made it possible for you to make your idiotic post
Who are one of the most dependable sources on the subject, Israel's nuclear weapons number between 100 and 200 hundred, and other sources have even lower estimates.
http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/Israel...
Also, most of their weapons are kept with their airborne armed forces. Not so many missiles or tactical weapons.
Not that I condone Israel's ethnic cleansing of Gazans, I jsut figured I'd give you a correct number there.
in case you want to read more about AIPAC's stranglehold on American foreign policy in the ME, read Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer's The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy. Very illuminating!
http://www.amazon.com/Israel-Lobby-U-S-Foreig...
Regarding the Apartheid state Israel has developed with the Palestinians.
Which is why I believe Barack Obama relegated Jimmy Carter to a far back seat during the Democratic Convention.
Carter is perceived to be too "fair handed" in the Israeli-Palestinian situation.
"The US has an army of 90,000 soldiers in Afghanistan and is spending $100bn a year, but has still been unable to defeat 20,000-25,000 Taliban who receive no pay at all." - Patrick Cockburn
whose policies have led the middle east down the path of extremism
he should go back to doing what it is he does best....building homes for poor people
n/t
what i cant deal with is that everytime a post is made in regards to israel, lies in regards to jews and israel are allowed to be posted here and on other blogs
jimmy carter is not a centrist when it comes to the israel/palestine question
to say that he is, is an outright and baldfaced lie
to deny that his foreign policy decisions led countries like iran to become more radicalized is also a lie
.
far left loon >.<
[Deleted. This is not fight club-Sitemonitor]
even the devil doesnt want to be associated with him
no...bush gets limbo
For Peace:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zwj19e2hV1U&fe...
You stayed:
"he should go back to doing what it is he does best....building homes for poor people"
While settlers in Israel steal the land of Palestinians to build homes..:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yp3hQRQYZ4Q&fe...
We are manipulated by israel and the aggressive and ruthless government that is terrorizing the Middle East today.
shumer is just one cog in this mighty wheel, and we, the people of the United States, are supplying and supporting these zionist Nazi's with whatever means they feel necessary to keep the Arabs at bay.
I say....cut them off, and maybe they will learn to get along....maybe not. But at least WE won't have to go to hell in a hand basket with them.
No you (USA) are not the puppet. Because you forget on one thing - and that is who are those puppet masters - and in the answer to that you have to include american evangelicals. I personally think that they have more influence on the way USA are handling middle east and its relationship with Israel, then those dual citizens.
too....right?
Egypt? You mean that dictator Mubarak who is paid and held in that office by USA to much regret of ordinary egyptians?
http://www.irmep.org/ila/fta/
AIPAC, Espionage and the US-Israel Free Trade Agreement
Since the US Free Trade Agreement signed with Israel was signed in 1985, US trade with Israel swung from surplus to a $71 billion cumulative deficit in 2008—an anomaly among all other US bilateral agreements.
Don't be good merely to be better than others.
criticizing arab or palestinian policies or actions?
guess not
You, on the other hand...
Nope.
You know, like Abe Foxman...
“Sen. Mitchell is fair. He’s been meticulously even-handed,” said Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League. “But the fact is, American policy in the Middle East hasn’t been ‘even handed’ — it has been supportive of Israel when it felt Israel needed critical U.S. support.”
“So I’m concerned,” Foxman continued. “I’m not sure the situation requires that kind of approach in the Middle East.”
Abe Foxman peddles lies and propaganda for the very misnamed "Anti-Defamation League."
Anything Abe Foxman says needs to be thought of in terms of lies and more lies. Foxman is an awful person.
If Freeman's name was in fact withdrawn because he believes the Israeli government should be dealt with less leniently than it has been recently, I'll be pissed.
I support Israel's right to exist. That doesn't mean I agree with the policies of Isrtael's recent right-wing governments. I think they engaged in overkill in Gaza.
Doesn't mean I support Hamas either, though. I don't understand why progressives are so willing to give a fundamentalist religious party a pass. We sure wouldn't do that here.
Maybe I don't see this as a "black and white" issue. There's a solution there, somewhere in the gray areas.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
Mr Freeman asserts that it was the Israeli lobby that compelled him to withdraw his nomination. If he was the man of principle he claims to be he would have defended any public statements he might have made and clarified or justified them.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/...
"The libels on me and their easily traceable email trails show conclusively that there is a powerful lobby determined to prevent any view other than its own from being aired, still less to factor in American understanding of trends and events in the Middle East. The tactics of the Israel Lobby plumb the depths of dishonor and indecency and include character assassination, selective misquotation, the willful distortion of the record, the fabrication of falsehoods, and an utter disregard for the truth. The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom of its views, the substitution of political correctness for analysis, and the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our government other than those that it favors.
"There is a special irony in having been accused of improper regard for the opinions of foreign governments and societies by a group so clearly intent on enforcing adherence to the policies of a foreign government – in this case, the government of Israel. I believe that the inability of the American public to discuss, or the government to consider, any option for US policies in the Middle East opposed by the ruling faction in Israeli politics has allowed that faction to adopt and sustain policies that ultimately threaten the existence of the state of Israel. It is not permitted for anyone in the United States to say so. This is not just a tragedy for Israelis and their neighbors in the Middle East; it is doing widening damage to the national security of the United States.
"The outrageous agitation that followed the leak of my pending appointment will be seen by many to raise serious questions about whether the Obama administration will be able to make its own decisions about the Middle East and related issues. I regret that my willingness to serve the new administration has ended by casting doubt on its ability to consider, let alone decide what policies might best serve the interests of the United States rather than those of a Lobby intent on enforcing the will and interests of a foreign government.
"In the court of public opinion, unlike a court of law, one is guilty until proven innocent. The speeches from which quotations have been lifted from their context are available for anyone interested in the truth to read. The injustice of the accusations made against me has been obvious to those with open minds. Those who have sought to impugn my character are uninterested in any rebuttal that I or anyone else might make.
"Still, for the record: I have never sought to be paid or accepted payment from any foreign government, including Saudi Arabia or China, for any service, nor have I ever spoken on behalf of a foreign government, its interests, or its policies. I have never lobbied any branch of our government for any cause, foreign or domestic. I am my own man, no one else’s, and with my return to private life, I will once again – to my pleasure – serve no master other than myself. I will continue to speak out as I choose on issues of concern to me and other Americans.
"I retain my respect and confidence in President Obama and DNI Blair. Our country now faces terrible challenges abroad as well as at home. Like all patriotic Americans, I continue to pray that our president can successfully lead us in surmounting them."
A former award-winning journalist and lifelong class warrior, keeping a jaundiced eye on the Washington elite.
until we demand the truth regarding the worst attack on american soil in her history; the day that shall go unmentioned.
it is the central lie of the neocon agenda. prove it's a lie, and everything else will be unraveled.
I'm sure that Peter G. is working on his apology.
Or maybe not...
As near as I can make out this is nothing more than an unsubstantiated accusation. I'd like to see some of these easily traceable e-mails. Somebody disagreed with his views of what foreign policy should be? Horrors! Has there ever been a person nominated to fill any post who was unanimously approved of of by everyone? I think not. So the man writes a letter accusing some nebulous cabal of being opposed to his nomination. This letter sounds like it has more than a touch of paranoia to me. Clearly the Obama administration has been making significant changes with regard to Middle East policy. The overtures to Syria and the invitation to Iran to attend a conference of mutual interest to the US are cases in point. I might also point out that recent comments by HRC on Israeli domestic policy also indicate a subtle and not unwelcome change in US policy. That alone would indicate to me that the government of the US is in fact considering the very options MR Freeman suggests cannot be discussed. He should have manned up and taken the job or let those who oppose his views question him publicly about the matter. Sulking did not help him in my view.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
If only the news were more widely reported, perhaps these guys would have a little less control over American purse strings
http://www.imemc.org/article/59283
Palestinian sources reported on Wednesday that a group of extremist Jewish settlers attacked dozens of Palestinian homes and stores in East Jerusalem.
The Israeli police did not attempt to intervene, and allowed the settlers to continue their march, which encouraged them to attack Palestinian property, local sources reported.
I wonder how the French get things done:
http://irish4palestine.blogspot.com/2009/03/n...
In an attempt to rid it's country from the contol of Zionist Lobby Groups and organizations, France has launched it's new Anti Zionist Political Party called "Parti Anti Sioniste."
http://www.partiantisioniste.com/
Don't be good merely to be better than others.
The attacks were not against bomb-throwing, rocket-firing, HAMAS supporters in Gaza, but against family homes and businesses in Israel proper.
Don't be good merely to be better than others.
Yeah those settlers are notorious for their behaviour - quarter with probably the wors rep is Tel Rumeida in Hebron - you can check out youtube (type in Tel Rumeida) and you will see those daily attacks and harrassment from these extremist settlers. (There is organisation called Btselem monitoring all of that)
most of those settlers were already moved out
In Hebron there are still many settlers - something about 500 of them. Tel Rumeida is worst part - scum people like Kach members are living there.
funny
Last video from that area is from 08
http://www.btselem.org/english/Video/
DudefromPrague
Bingo!
[@Mr. McCarthy] "yet, no vids since 06 -- funny"
So!
That means, as the Holcaust was 60 years ago, let's just forget about it? Is that what you're saying?
far left loon >.<
cuz that is what i saw in the 08 vid
the other vids show much of the same
but that is what you people do
compare apples to oranges
when palestinian kids throw rocks, they are the resistance
when israeli kids throw rocks, they are evil occupiers
you people are truly idiots
Oh well, if they're 2 or 3 years old, just forget it ever happened, eh??
Please wtach these and others.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_CRzdlA5To&fe...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kem1ajIKv1k
What do you think about them???
far left loon >.<
you can do better than that
Just as I thought-- you didn't watch them. Tell me what you thought of video 1. I didn't see any rocks. There was a lot of blood. You can't seriously watch a selection of those videos and dismiss them as kids with rocks.
Wait a minute-- yes YOU can.
far left loon >.<
Israel is no different.
First, though, the Israeli State will work to consolidate all the internal territories.
Then it will again attack Lebanon, for control of the water resources in the Jordan River valley...
israel does not wish to go back into lebanon
and the picture has nothing to do with the story
have any other sources?
if true, its a terrible thing
but i question the veracity of the story
who has an obsessive admiration for a wall and can understand Chuck's commitment to people for whom he has much in common, logistically speaking and all... Just cause he's Dem, I wouldn't give him a free pass, of course the same goes for Joe L.
I hope some day we'll work for fairness instead of interests.
Study the symptoms not the virus...
Everyone's got interests. BTW I don't get the wall thing either.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
has had the United States squarely by the balls since birth of their state. Yes, America is their bitch. One of these days the Elite Zionist Government of Israel is going to get this country into a bigger world of hurt than they already have. Our Government continues to hand them cash and military aid like business as usual. They received their usual $30 Billion in military aid...again. As much I trust Obama, apparently our economy still isn't bad enough to start cutting these guys off. Maybe it will take China to get it's nose bent out of shape at Israel? After all they are the ones who totes most of our notes these days. Gee, that makes America China's bitch also doesn't it? Oh how America has fallen. We no longer lead, we're just everybody's bitch.
Government + the Federal Reserve = organized crime
President Obama is also another elected "bitch" working on behalf of the Israeli Government. Obama did what he had to do to pass his AIPAC Tests when he declared Jerusalem as Israel's capitol. Obama has also made the decision to keep sanctions on Iran. Like Bush before him, Obama refuses to recognize Hamas as the winners of the last elections in Palestine, which the USA supported and promoted.
Some change from Bush to Obama, huh?
Obama will be keeping 50,000 troops in Iraq after 2011 as well. Obama said as much as Jeremy Scahill reported during the presidential campaign.
Obama is a b.s. artist and liar. I am so glad I joined the Green Party. Obama started to equivocate before he won president and he has gotten progressively worse.
I suggest if you want honest commentary on Obama that you go to:
http://www.blackagendareport.com/
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/
http://www.counterpunch.org/
http://www.antiwar.com/
These sites are honest and take a real critical look and bring about thoughtful and real analysis of Mr. Obama and no free passes like many other liberal and left-leaning sites whom seem to give Obama a free pass where he does not deserve it.
These sites at the same time do not criticize Obama in the same manner the dimwits on the right do, but do offer some critical analysis unlike the right wing jerks like Hannity, Beck, O'Reilly and Rushbo Limbaugh.
EastCoastLefty62
You are absolutely correct, I believe. Those links that you cite do indeed offer trenchant and insightful analysis of how Obama is just as militant and as anti-progressive as Bush and McCain. Unfortunately the Obamaniacs will not allow themselves to see Obama without taking off their rose-colored glasses.
When it comes to AIPAC, the Democrats are as bad as the GOP as well as the previous Bush administration. Chuck Schumer is also another blight on democracy.
The Democrats will do nothing as more and more Palestinians are killed and cleansed from their land. The Democrats and Obama have already shown a propensity for confrontation against Iran as well.
I am so glad I joined the Green Party. When it comes to Middle East Policy, Obama will be more of the same and not "change" and in this regard will continue the status quo and policies the Bush administration left.
I will not say what I really think here though, about the Democrat's phony promises and their complicity in the slaughter of inneocent human life around the world. And by the way, Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton are no better than Cheney or Rice when it comes to Middle East Policy. And Obama will cave in to AIPAC over and over again just as Bush did before him.
Check out the Scott Horton interview with Ray McGovern at:
http://antiwar.com/radio/2009/03/12/ray-mcgov...
In this interview, "Ray McGovern, former senior analyst at the CIA, discusses the ebb and flow of neoconservative influence in the White House, how the scuttled Charles Freeman appointment weakens U.S. leverage with Israel, the incredible influence still exerted by Steven J. Rosen despite his indictment under the Espionage Act, the shortcomings of the mainstream media and how the 2007 National Intelligence Estimate on Iran prevented a disastrous war."
When it comes to the interests of AIPAC, there is total Bi-Partisan support amongst the Democrats and Republicans. Both parties whore themselves as a matter of fact to those at AIPAC!!!!
The State of Israel not expected to survive for more than 20 years:
http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=88491&s...
"The US has an army of 90,000 soldiers in Afghanistan and is spending $100bn a year, but has still been unable to defeat 20,000-25,000 Taliban who receive no pay at all." - Patrick Cockburn
A secret limited distribution CIA report gets handed around the newsroom? Somehow I doubt it.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
Unfortunately, for Israel, at any rate.
There is only one way to preserve the State of Israel.
And that is the so-called two-state solution: to recognize a Palestinian State.
But they can't because then they'd have to start discussing how to redistribute all the resources the Israeli State has appropriated from indigenous Arabs.
But they can't have a single state, either. To retain the identity of a "Jewish" state, they'd have to continue and enlarge the apartheid. Or recognize the rights of all indigenous Arabs to full civil rights. Which would spell the end of the "Jewish" state of Israel...
we agree on something. A two state solution may be the best obtainable solution although a single secular state would be better. I'm not holding my breath on that one.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
possible outcome.
But I cannot, somehow, see the Israelis--Herr Lieberman foremost, but Herr Netenyahu either--accepting such a thing, can you?
There isn't much give on the other side either.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
it sher looks like the indigenous Arabs have "given" (or, less chariyably, "lost") pretty much everything they had to give/lose...
It seems some won't be happy unless they give their blood too. That's about all they have left.
far left loon >.<
[Deleted. Do you not understand that if a post disappears -- twice -- it's very unwise to repost it. No more-Sitemonitor]
[The other guy thinks I'm favoring you. So I can't win. I have removed nearly 100 off topic and flamebait posts. If anyone owes anyone else an apology, it's not us owing you-Sitemonitor]
But apparantly the rest of us are just putzes.
[Deleted. Off topic. Just walk away. The topic of this thread is "A Rare Israel Dissenter Pushed from Intelligence Appointment by Schumer, AIPAC Supporters," not what you and a few others have been brawling over for the last several hours-Sitemonitor]
.
Otherwise, as Stewart said appropriately to the similarly dishonest folks at CNBC ... FUCK YOU!!!!!
[You do not call the shots around here. The comments closed to you, now, Joe. All of them are-Sitemonitor]
Dear Sitemonitors,
Sorry for making your job such a headache today. It seems there is little middle ground on some topics.
far left loon >.<
There is a federal law against boycotting Israel or their products and services.
"Commerce Official Urges Compliance with U.S. Regulations Opposing Boycott of Israel" ~ http://www.bis.doc.gov/news/2002/umustcomply1...
"The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) administers U.S. antiboycott regulations, which prohibit U.S. persons from taking actions in support of unsanctioned foreign government boycotts, including the Arab League boycott of Israel. BIS has a long record of aggressive enforcement of the antiboycott regulations, with over $26 million in civil penalties imposed and denials of export privileges where violations have been found."
If you don't do business with Israel, it's illegal.
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