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| Photo credit: Yoav Ari Dudkevitch |
Netanyahu, who has been trying hard to walk the tightope in the Center of Israeli political opinion must have had thought that he pleased both camps.
By claiming strict adherence to law and justice as his excuse the homes must be destroyed, but to defend his Zionist beliefs he pledged to build many more.
"The State of Israel is a law-abiding democracy; I am committed to enforcing the law and am I committed to safeguarding the settlement enterprise," says Netanyahu after bill to legalize disputed Beit El homes is defeated • PM touts decision to build 851 new housing units in Judea and Samaria.
Instead of making both sides happy, Bibi is now even more on the outs with both of them.
And the Israeli Left, along with "the world" are absolutely furious that PM Netanyahu has promised to build homes for Jews in Judea and Samaria. No matter how few, it's too many according to their agenda. The agenda of the Left, both Israeli and international is to create an apartheid state in the Land of Israel. They want to clean the Land of Jews and give Arabs sovereignty.
15 comments:
To address this I believe we need to just split one of your statements. "Netanyahu, who has been trying hard to walk the tightope in the Center of Israeli political opinion must have had thought that he pleased both camps." I would say he is clearly trying hard to walk in the center of Israeli political opinion, but not necessarily expecting to please the camps that sit both to the left and right of the center, and with no illusions about those who sit completely outside the mainstream. In any case we will see where this takes us.
Worse than showing that Bibi's trying to "walk a tightrope in the center," this demonstrates once again that he is utterly spineless and amoral; he has NO values or conscience which he will vote. His ONLY consideration is how to try pleasing enough people to stay in power. Some might consider this "good" political skill, but more thoughtful analysts realize this means he'd "throw his own mother under the bus" if it's politically expedient to do so.
Also, while "centrists" might claim that it's good that Bibi follows their agenda, it should be noted that he is the head of, and was elected for being in, the Likud (right,) NOT Kadima ("center.") In other countries it is considered unethical for a politician to be elected on one platform and then adhere to the ideological position of a different one.
Yosef, good point.
Eliyahu, I don't see much Center in Israeli politics except for NRP, yes, seriously. Most political parties are Left.
Batya, I put quotes around the word "center" deliberately. I agree with you, but the Leftist supporters of Kadima like to pretend that they are Center, just as the local Arabs like to pretend that they are "Palestinian," or the greatest cause of terror activities in Israel's history is called a "peace" process.
We live in a Land of Lies during an Age of Lies. Even the Emperor lies about his credentials as a Roman (hameivin yavin.)
Our problem isn't with the arabs, it's with the Jews who like to pretend there will be peace if we just try "one more time."
Actually, I know Leftist who admit that following their plans WON'T bring peace, but insist that it is our duty as Jews to do this ANYWAY, because "it's the right thing to do," and the Torah COMMANDS us to do so. (They use various tortuous pilpulim to "prove" their case.) Believe it or not....
Isn't amazing how "religious" some people get over things that aren't actually in the Torah?
I believe you cannot show me a country wherein the "body politic" and the discoursers thereupon, say and agree that they have a mellow, gentle, peaceful political situation. Everyone imagines that they are the most argumentative, conflictive country on earth. No non-State-operated newspaper anywhere in the free world, ever lost money by printing stories of unbearable conflict within the country. Even state-controlled organs in (what most people would call) exceptionally mild, peaceful countries (say for example _Singapore Straits Times_) go for the soap-opera version, whenever permitted.
Israeli politics is about average. Really. You're mostly just a bunch of sakhim (סחים) who can't (when there's no tourists around) find anything more exciting to talk about than the degree of opacity of a bridal veil.
Alan, friends from Canada brag about the calm there. Whether it's true or not, I can't say.
Besides Canada, I'd also mention Switzerland. Note that in the article http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/swiss_news/Swiss_workers_call_for_higher,_fairer_salaries_.html?cid=32598082 (just the first Swiss news politics article that I Googled,) it even mentions arrests during a protest, but the tone of the article is that this is just a "difference of opinion" among the Swiss. No hysterics or histrionics, despite arrests being made.
As well, we probably have a higher ratio of deaths per capita attributed to "politics" than any other Western nation, and probably within the top five worldwide. When's the last time you had mass murders described as "political" events in the U.S.? Our political discourse IS objectively more "conflicted" than other places. Even taking into account a world media basis (as well as a UN bias) to focus excessively on anything and everything that happens here, it's still pretty rancorous.
And why not show us any other country in which members of parliament routinely call for the dissolution, not of the government or the opposition party, but of the state itself?
>> Alan, friends from Canada brag about...
that's funny; I was ==just== about to mention this nice grandmother who brags about what a wonderful place Shiloh is to live and raise kids (which I believe to be factually correct). Wait a second, I can't remember her name....
But instead, i'll invite you to read - every day, for six months - at
www.theglobeandmail.com
THEN tell me how "calm and conflict-free" you think Canada might be?
> I'd also mention Switzerland
> www.swissinfo.ch
nice try.... but no cigar. It's not a newspaper written BY Swiss people IN Switzerland FOR Swiss people. Referring me to that URL vice referring to a newspaper that actual Swiss people read when they're putting their feet up after a hard day's work as a gnome in a Zurich bank, is like the difference between referring me to a Taglit-Birthright website and referring me to a coffee klatsch of retired senior citizens at the mall in Afula.
Thai guys are working off the books as farmhands not far from our blogowner. At the risk of getting manhandled by the Immigration cops and brusquely deported. At this very moment. What does that tell us about how dangerous and conflicted real life is in the Land of Israel? Or does it also testify about how calm Israeli moshavnikkim are about looking the other way when these (reliable hard working) farmhands ==accidently== cook the farmer's daughter's cat to celebrate the birthday of the King of Siam?
They say there's maybe half a million Yordim (real ones, the sabra's) in the USA. Show me three who will go back to their Israeli salary/living costs =today=, IF ONLY the speeches in Knesset would become more calm?
Old people bitch and moan. It's what they do. Everywhere in the world. Ask Heshy Fried.
Shalom!
Would residents of southern California maintain a relative sense of calm under a barrage of missiles from Mexico the way the residents of the Negev do under the barrage of missiles from Gaza? Egypt is no friend of Israel either. How would the residents of the states bordering Canada fare under an ever present threat of violence from the north comparable to the threat from Syria and Lebanon? 9/11 was a horrific terror attack, but Jews in Israeli cities have suffered many more attacks, and more serious attacks relative to the size of the population, over decades in major cities and life goes on as usual. Communities such as Shiloh and my Elon Moreh are great places to live and raise kids, but just outside the gate lie hotbeds of terror. I have a clear view of the outskirts of Shechem from my dining room window and it's no secret what kind of Arabs live there.
I guess the ability of the Israelis to maintain a sense of calm in the face of a constant threat from the Arab countries bordering on all sides, except for the sea, into which they've expressed a wish to push us, plus the terror from Gaza and the chance of a missile attack from Iran, has fooled Alan into minimizing the conflict.
Ten years ago a Thai farmworker in Israel earned four times as much as a doctor did in Thailand and I doubt that the situation has changed much. After 5-7 years of working in Israel, generally under good working conditions, a man can go back to Thailand with his savings and achieve a very high standard of living and be his own boss. Granted the work is hard, but the rewards are great. Twice the Thai ambassador to Israel came to Gush Katif in an attempt to convince the Thai workers to return home. They refused. They said they felt safe, even though a few workers had been murdered by Arab terrorists. It WAS difficult to understand them until the tsunami killed 10,000 of their brethren.
We're calm in Canada. Our problems are truly "first-world" problems... price of monopolized internet, poor ass-plungers... oops I mean Gays not getting enough "rights" for loving their holes, rich not being taxed enough when we spend so much money on foreign aid and still have practically cradle-to-grave care... And yet when it comes time to vote, the ultra-Liberals too young to know anything speak (shout) the loudest while everyone else is too apethetic to say anything at all! (Or vote/act against it!) It's practically utopia compared to the real, *true* problems Israel faces!
Hadassa, good points.
a, interesting, I know that Canadian raised friends say that Israeli mentality is so different.
Eliyahu S, Alan, re: the Swiss, I'm no expert.
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