Pieces of the “Peace” Process

The New York Times, that bastion of liberal guilt that makes even Jews hate themselves has published yet another scream against Israel. In the famous words of Gomer Pyle, USMC … “Surprise, surprise, surprise!” 

Read it all here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/27/opinion/27fri1.html?_r=2&ref=opinion

This writing though is going to be focused “like a laser beam” on taking this nonsense apart – paragraph by paragraph -- and exposing liberalisms naked bias against Israel with clarity and intellectual honesty so that even those with only the mildest interest in the Middle East will be able to identify it. 

According to the NY Times Editorial requires the following in order for Israel to be considered “A Partner for Peace”

1.       Negotiate with the Palestinian Authority for Peace

a.      Israelhas been negotiating with the Palestinian Authority and Fatah under the auspices of The United States State Department for years. They continued to concede their rightful and sovereign territory even to the detriment of their own people and national security not to mention national interests. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demanded that Israel buy into the “Two State Solution” and “The Road Map to Peace” even though there was no commitment to peace from the Palestinian Authority or Fatah.    For more information on the history of the “Two State Solution” read the following excellent article by Victor Sharpe In The American Thinker. http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/03/the_two_state_solution_is_87_y.html

b.      In fact, Fatah is as much a militant terrorist organization as Hamas is the only difference is that the Fatah terrorists show up at United Nations meetings in suits and ties; this makes them “acceptable” even though they are just as vehemently committed to the destruction not only of Israel as a country but the Jewish people as a whole as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Muslim Brotherhood, Al Qaeda et al. 

What liberals fail to admit is that Islam is the foundation of this virulent hatred of Israel and the Jews, and they are 100% committed to the annihilation of both; in order for there to be a “partnership for peace” there has to be more than one party at the negotiating table. I would like one person to show me concrete evidence of even one commitment to peace that the Palestinians have kept. You cannot because it simply does not exist. The Palestinians are committed to one thing and one thing only and that is maintaining their global status as victims because it works for them. Liberals love to make the Jews and Israel look bad because it works for them even though there is absolutely no basis in reality for their position.

2.      Freezing further settlement construction and expansion in the West Bank

a.      By this logic the best way to eliminate the squalor the Palestinians choose to live in is to destroy the towns that the Jews are building in their own sovereign territory.   The Palestinians choose to live in their “refugee” camps because then the liberal human rights activists will spotlight the nasty, mean and cruel Israelis. The Palestinians have a country all their own and it is not within the borders of sovereign Israel. The Palestinian people belong to Egypt and Jordan. Neither country wants them, why you may ask? Put very simply it is because by and large the Palestinians are trouble makers, thugs and criminals that threaten the peace and security of those nations. In their mind it is easier and ultimately more beneficial to their cause to prop up a war with Israel than to demand that the Palestinians assimilate into their society and play by the rules of civilization rather than tribal terrorism. 

b.      The Jews have every right to this land and the Palestinians are nothing more than “squatters” on the land. The Jews have obtained all the permits required by not only Israeli but International Law in order to build communities and yet they are vilified. They live in fear that even after obtaining these permits to build that the IDF will be sent in by the liberal Defense Minister Ehud Barak to destroy their homes and communities.

3.      He should lift roadblocks between Palestinian cities and towns that are not needed for security.

a.      Exactly which roadblocks are not needed for security? Each time Israel has lifted roadblocks security checkpoints into Israel terrorist attacks have increased. I am sensitive to how inconvenient it is for the Palestinians who benefit from working in Israel to be held up in long lines, but I would remind all the readers here that it is pretty damn inconvenient to be blown up when you walk into a mall, a restaurant, a hotel, a school or get on a bus too. When the Palestinians call for and succeed in ending their proclivity for terrorism and suicide/homicide bombings then we can talk about lifting roadblocks and eliminating security checkpoints. I assure you the Jews aren’t excited about living in a country that requires them to be scanned every time they want to go into the grocery store. Here in America, we complain about being scanned and having to take off our shoes in the airport, can you even imagine living in a country that has experienced so many terrorist attacks against them that you would have to go through these same security measures to pick up a gallon of milk? Would you stand for such measures unless you were committed to peace? Of course not, you would initiate whatever it takes to curtail the problem.

4.      In East Jerusalem, he should stop the humiliating eviction of Palestinians.

a.      Stop the humiliating eviction of Palestinians? My God, can we please just visit reality for a moment? These Palestinians are building illegally without permits in East Jerusalem. They are squatters! This is no different than if your neighbor foreclosed on their home and a homeless person moved in; why is it humiliating to evict a criminal? Why are we supposed to feel sorry for those who break the law?

5.      In Gaza, he must expand exceptions to the blockade to allow the import of cement and reconstruction materials.

a.      Do you know what the Palestinians in Gaza are building with the building materials and cement allowed to come through? They aren’t rebuilding schools, grocery stores, or even homes; no they are using these materials to rebuild the tunnels used to smuggle weapons used for attacks against Israel in terrorist attacks against civilians. To suggest that Israel allow materials that will be used in their annihilation is not only stupid it is obscene.

6.      He will not get in the way of the militant group Hamas entering a Palestinian unity government with the rival Fatah faction--as long as that government is committed to preventing terrorism and accepts past agreements between Israel and the Palestinians.

a.      The day Hamas, Hezbollah, Fatah, The Muslim Brotherhood, Al Queda et al will commit to prevent terrorism and accept past agreements with Israel and the Palestinians is the day we all sit down and eat a pulled pork sandwich – it isn’t gonna happen folks – these are terrorist organizations to even suggest they would give up and prevent further terrorist attacks is just silly utopian fantasy born of sparking up a dooby in some Chelsea basement coffee shop.

7.      He will recognize that the United States has its own interests in diplomacy with Syria, Iran and the Palestinians — and allow the Obama administration the freedom to pursue them.

a.      The United States has no national interests in diplomacy with states that sponsor and import terrorism. 

b.      The United States certainly has sphere of influence in the Middle East. Politically, however, it has become trendy to attempt to broker a peace agreement there, regardless of how fragile or how it betrayed our one true ally in the region because it would make us look good in front of the UN and the “International Community”. Every administration since Carter has tried to broker a ‘midnight deal’ all of which have been an unmitigated disaster not because of Israel’s failure to play but because the Palestinians have no intention of ever being serious about peace. 

8.      He also will not start a preventive war with Iran.

a.      In the early 80’s Israel destroyed the nuclear reactor built by Saddam Hussein; is there any sane person today who is not eternally grateful for that ‘preemptive’ attack? Of course not; at the time though Israel was vilified. Iran and their insane leader will lie, cheat and steal their way to a nuclear weapon. We know they have no intention of utilizing this technology for infrastructure. The leading international intelligence agencies know that Iran, just like North Korea, is interested only in one thing being the country with the nuclear weapon who can take out Israel and then the United States.  “First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people” is their mantra and even if they choose not to use it themselves they will sell it to the highest bidding terrorist organization. We should be begging Israel to take out Iran, since we don’t have the guts to do it ourselves.

Since when does standing up for your national security, national interests and national sovereignty make you the evil empire? Since when is it smart to allow those committed to your annihilation free reign within your borders? How come, if you are a liberal, the only litmus for being serious about peace is surrendering to your enemy, giving up all national sovereignty and becoming a vassal state to a "culture" that has not only made overtures but has out right said that it would annihilate not only the country but your entire people?

How is it that the only proof of a commitment to peace is national suicide?  When will the other side be held to this same standard?  When all the Palestinians give up EVERYTHING  and KILL THEMSELVES then I will know THEY are serious about peace -- see how ridiculous this sounds when you turn the tables -- the NY Times would NEVER suggest such an asinine thing and yet they have no reservation in suggesting the Netanyahu go before his people and say -- "I am serious about peace with the Arab world; therefore since it is Passover, except this time instead of leaving Egypt, we are going to leave Israel and head south -- when we get to the Reed Sea, instead of asking

G-d to split it so we can cross on dry land we are all just going to drown ourselves because this will show all the liberals in the international community how serious we are about peace." 

This anti-Zionist attitude is used to cover up the naked anti-Semitism within liberalism. That so many American Jews buy into this sort of self-hatred is just disgusting.

Observations from Half a World Away

Kimberly Phillips     Salt Lake City, Utah USA

As I sit here half a world away from my friends in Israel, my heart goes out to those who have been living under the constant threat of terrorist attacks, in spite of and sometimes because of political brokering. Today, we live in a world that extols the values of political correctness and moral relativism/equivalency.   It is stylish and vogue to be spiritual but not religious and to say that every religion, creed and belief has equal value; that there is no black and white just shades of gray and that good and evil are terms of a bygone era; an era where racism and prejudice ruled and when people were ‘just plain mean’.  These are the lofty ideals of the globalist liberals within the "international community" these are the ideals which have forced Israel into making concession after concession to a people who have absolutely no interest in real and lasting peace. 

For decades Yasser Arafat imported his hatred. The PLO gave birth to the terror infrastructure of today. For reasons that escape me every president in recent memory has made it part of their legacy to broker a peace agreement in the Middle East. The terrorists have no better friend that President Carter who extols their virtues. The Camp David Accords were a raw deal for Israel but gained President Carter Nobel Peace prize. Reagan refused to abandon his Middle East Plan although Prime Minister Begin described it as ‘the saddest day in history’ that Israel alone was left out of the negotiations. President George H.W. Bush continued on Reagan’s path. Then on the heels of the Bush 41 administration came the second intifada. President Clinton helped to polish his foreign policy image with the UN by pushing through the Oslo Accords to the utter detriment Israel.   George W. Bush revised the Oslo Accords and started with his Road Map to Peace and the Annapolis Convention both of which forced Israel to make even more concessions and gain absolutely nothing from the Palestinian side.

 Once the Palestinian people elected Hamas as the governing power in Gaza it should have been obvious to the world what their intention was. The only peace that the Palestinian people are interested in is a peace that destroys the Jewish nation both physically and spiritually. Certainly there have been "lulls" in the violence or "times of quiet" so to speak, but for anyone who is truly paying attention to the situation these are periods of time used by terrorists to import and stock up arms and recruit for their cause. 

Since the formation of the modern state of Israel, the world has forced Israel into idiotic "land for peace" deals. The people of Israel continue to provide infrastructure (power, water, sewage treatment and first class medical care) to people sworn to their annihilation. The people of Israel have been forced into freeing known terrorists they have captured and are holding in prisons; people who the moment they were freed have gone back to planning attacks not on military installations but targeting schools, busses, synagogues, shopping centers, restaurants and hotels; places where they can inflict the most civilian casualties. The terrorists prey on the worst fears of people forcing them to wonder if the next time they get on a bus to go shopping or dropping a child at school if they will ever see them again – surely this is the definition of a living hell. 

The Jews are a hearty people. They are made of stronger stuff than the terrorists. They are living in the land promised to them for 5000+ years. They are resilient and will overcome the enemy within and the enemy from without. The enemy within are the liberals who consistently protest "the settlers" and call for concession after concession all in the name of an elusive peace; but it is the peace of pipe dreams. They have deluded themselves into believing if they side with the enemy that they will be protected. This, of course, is a lie. Terrorists don't care if you are on their side or not; you are an infidel and unless you submit by the sword to Islam you must be killed. The existential enemies on the outside are those who insist that Israel’s response to violence and terrorism is measured, restrained and proportional. They are the hypocrites who call for Israel’s citizens to put up with circumstances that which they never ask their own to endure.

I have many friends who watch media outlets such as CNN, MSNBC, BBC and other networks for their news on the Middle East. The feeds that are broadcast by these media outlets are leftist and Anti-Semitic. The vitriol against Israel for protecting their citizens and sovereign territory is nothing short of shocking. I often have to explain the unilateral disengagement from Gaza to them. Prior to the disengagement the Gaza Strip was the home to greater than 70% of the produce grown in Israel.  The people of Gush Katif had found methods to make the desert bloom literally and figuratively.

The Jews of Gush Katif were forcefully and violently ejected from the homes and jobs that they had built up for over 30 years; all in the name of peace. Those of us who have been paying attention knew that in only a matter of months what had been a hub of production and community building would now be destroyed and turned into a launching ground and training camp for terrorist activity and we were right. To this day, there are people from Gush Katif continuing to live in trailers and who are unemployed even though they were promised permanent homes and jobs by their government.

In 2006, terrorists operating under the Iranian and Syrian backed Hezbollah movement kidnapped Israeli soldiers and attacked Israel from the country of Lebanon. The world cried for restraint. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice again brokered deals through the UN that essentially tied the hands of Israel.    People of northern Israel were living in bomb shelters and yet where was the cry for humanitarian aid for them? There was a deafening silence from the "international community" for their suffering. Yet the Lebanese people got 24/7 coverage and in some cases, for political expediency, news agencies even doctored photos to make it appear that Israel targeted civilian centers so that charges of war crimes would be levied against Israel yet again. Tunnels used to smuggle weapons from Egypt into Gaza were never shut down. In fact, the only people who have followed the UN resolution are the Israelis. The terrorists laugh at the toothless resolutions of the UN. The UNIFIL peacekeeping troops are little more than mercenaries on the payroll of Hezbollah hence the terrorists are as well or perhaps even better armed than they were prior to 2006.

Finally, after years of bombardment by rockets and missiles from Gaza into Sedrot and Ashkelon, the Israeli government has taken decisive action. Diplomacy, negotiation and patience brought only more attacks.  It was decided that a military operation against the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza was the ONLY option left to Israel and the air strikes began yesterday. The headlines scream of more than 200 people killed in strikes. They also make sure to tell you that civilians were killed in the strikes and some of them children. While it is true that some civilians will undoubtedly be among casualties of ANY war, what the media FAILS to mention is that these civilians are living within the proximity of Hamas controlled terrorist compounds and are more than likely willing "human shields" for the jihad against Israel. There is a twisted mindset within jihad that somehow justifies the use of civilians including children – a mindset that praises martyrdom over life.

Regardless of how targeted any attacks are by Israel they will be castigated by the "international community". It is a given. There will be calls for sanctions against Israel for human rights violations because of idiotic things such as closing crossings into Israel and enforced curfews.

I would ask any who rail against border crossings being closed if they would build a house without any doors on it. I would ask those who cry about long lines and the inconveniences of profiling induced car and body searches if they would allow people with bombs to drive through their neighborhood. It's pretty darn inconvenient to be killed; and it's pretty darn inconvenient to end up an orphan because your parents were shot by terrorist snipers on the highway. 

When you have Arab members of Knesset (Israeli Parliament) inciting those they represent into the killing of Jewish civilians I would say 'game on' to whatever the Jewish people have to do to protect their own. It is about time the Israeli Arabs decide where their loyalties lie – they seem to want all the perks of being an Israeli citizen – the safety of police and military protection, homes, jobs and infrastructure all the while plotting against the very people who give it to them. They have a representative voice in the government and yet they choose to openly use this voice not to create a peaceful and productive environment where both people can live in harmony but to incite and whip into frenzy those who sympathize with the jihad. 

There are those misguided 'peace activists' who call for a Palestinian state within Israel. I call to your attention that if the Jewish settlers are evicted from Judea and Samaria (aka 'the west bank’)as the Road Map to Peace calls for that Israel will have exactly 10 miles between Gaza and the proposed Palestinian state. This creates indefensible borders for Israel between hostile parties. This is tantamount to suicide. There are 50+ Islamic majority countries in the world and 1 Jewish nation, a nation that is approximately the size of New Jersey. This is land that has had a Jewish presence since the literal beginning of time. The Jews were forcibly evicted from every Muslim nation regardless of how long their families had been on the land; where is the cry for their 'right of return'? There is a land dedicated for the Palestinians, it is a country known as Jordan. Jordan and for that matter no Muslim nation, want to accept the Palestinian people because they whip up trouble wherever they settle. Ultimately, it is easier to support a war between the Palestinians and the Israelis than to accept responsibility for their own. 

There is one nation from the border of Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea – Israel – and long may she live. I pray for peace in our time. I fear though that until Israel becomes a not only a state but a Jewish State this will not happen. So long as they allow those committed to their annihilation to live within their borders there will be terror. As long as the secular Israelis in fight against the Religious Nationalists and evict settlers from their land brokering false peace against their own there will be bloodshed.

As an American and a Christian I stand with the Jewish Nation of Israel. I stand with the settlers of Judea and Samaria. I stand with the Jews fighting for the right to live in Hebron; I stand against terrorism. I stand with my friends fighting the war on terror wherever that front is … from the IDF fighting in Gaza to the US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan; and from the fronts that have yet to be named such as Darfur and India – whoever stands against the Islamic Jihad has a friend in me. 

As I finally close I recall the words of a favorite song in my hymnal:

Redeemer of Israel

1. Redeemer of Israel,

Our only delight,

On whom for a blessing we call,

Our shadow by day

And our pillar by night,

Our King, our Deliv'rer, our all!

2. We know he is coming

To gather his sheep

And lead them to Zion in love,

For why in the valley

Of death should they weep

Or in the lone wilderness rove?

3. How long we have wandered

As strangers in sin

And cried in the desert for thee!

Our foes have rejoiced

When our sorrows they've seen,

But Israel will shortly be free.

4. As children of Zion,

Good tidings for us.

The tokens already appear.

Fear not, and be just,

For the kingdom is ours.

The hour of redemption is near.

Text: William W. Phelps, 1792–1872; adapted from Joseph Swain, 1761–1796. Included in the first LDS hymnbook, 1835. Music: Freeman Lewis, 1780–1859 Exodus 13:21–22

To those who speak against Israel I pity you. It is written in Genesis 12 that those who bless Israel will be blessed and those who curse Israel will be cursed. G-d is patient, but his patience for those who persecute his people is wearing thin. To the governments who force Israel into concessions I would warn you that you are bringing untold hardships upon your people; that will rest squarely upon your shoulders should you persist in these actions.

To those who call for mercy upon the terrorists I remind you of the Talmudic injunction:                        

"He who is merciful to the evil, in turn does evil to the merciful".

We must vindicate every life torn asunder by terrorism. Justice must be served. Justice isn't fairness. Justice is a swift and strong response. Terrorist actions must be met with a ferocity that has been hidden until now.   There is no room for a "proportional" response. The message must be clear …. For every rocket there will be air strikes, for every sniper shooting, car bomb, suicide attack will be met with death and destruction.  We will no longer tolerate strikes against us. Your ideology is not welcome in our country or the civilized world; we will strike you wherever you are and wherever it rears its ugly head we will strike with a death blow. A line has been drawn in the sand; you are with  G-d or with the world. The world calls for moral equivalency while G-d calls for intellectual honesty and moral clarity. Make no mistake about it; the last days before the Messiah are upon us. Ask yourself what your motives are.   Ask yourself whose side are you on?