"Truth, Justice and The American Way," Not Obama For Sure

Those of my generation grew up hearing the phrase:

"Truth, Justice and The American Way"

It was a pledge to lead the world in morality and justice for all.

No doubt; if Obama had been there, the P.A.'s Abbas wouldn't have had been the only one with a big grin plastered on his face.

Even the expats, like myself, rather disenchanted in today's America certainly expected to see the American President among the world leaders at the anti-terrorism rally in France. With Obama's above average physical height, he would have certainly ended up in the center, so the photos would look well-balanced. But not only didn't Obama bother showing up, he didn't even send any important figure from his administration, not his Vice President, nor his Secretary of State or even his wife.

Superman

The 21st Century United States of America isn't the country I once knew. It seems like all the old value systems have gone kaput.  There was a time, not all that long ago, when the American President would drop all plans and rush to show his horror at such brutal terrorism. Even if the only real reason he'd be going would to show that America condemns terrorism and cares about freedom and justice more than any other country.

It's clear that the United States is no longer a world leader fighting for truth and justice. The American way is back to the pre-World War Two isolationism.

Israel or The USA, Which is the True World Power?

I'm really getting a kick out of the fact that the USA is so nervous about Israel policing Syria.  The link is from an article that topped the NY Times "Afternoon Update," which I get by email.

American and Israeli political analysts agree that Israel has little motive to intervene in Syria’s civil war, but that it is deeply concerned about the transfer of advanced weapons, as well as the danger that Mr. Assad’s stockpiles of chemical weapons could be used against it.

Take a look at a map and see how important it is to Israel that Syria remember that they will pay dearly for attacking us.

As you can see from the map, Israel's Golan Heights is full of small agricultural communities, lots of civilians.   The Golan Heights were liberated by Israel in the 1967 Six Days War.  Prior to that, the Syrians used the vantage to attack Israel's northern communities.

The Golan Heights and Syria are presently separated by "UNDOF Zone."  As we've seen many times in the past, the various United Nations peacekeeping sic forces  do not actively police between the countries. 

When there is an aggressor, however, when one side seeks to keep the peace and the other is devoted to its violation, as is now the case on the Golan Heights, the peacekeepers are asked to fill a role that they are, perhaps ironically, ill equipped to handle — actually keeping the peace.

On the Golan Heights, several experts say, the worsening situation is likely to lead to one of three options.

The first would see the retreat of the Golan peacekeepers, known as the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, or UNDOF, and the collapse of what has been a very successful peacekeeping program.

The second would see a shift in the force’s mandate, equipping it with more firepower and more authority, along the lines of the bolstered United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL.

The third would see a weakened force – much like UNIFIL before the Second Lebanon War of 2006 – that turns a blind eye to low-profile terror activity on one side of the border while vigorously documenting the violations by the IDF which are sure to follow.

They don't risk their lives fighting aggressors when one country invades or seriously threatens the other.  They leave.  That's what happened in the Suez Canal, when Egypt threatened to destroy Israel in 1967.  The UN made no effort to protect Israel against the three countries, Egypt, Jordan and Syria which announced to the world that their aim was to drive Israel into the sea.

And don't forget that the United States has never been quick to help an ally. 

That's right, not even when the German Nazis were invading Europe. The isolationists were ruling the State Department until America had no choice other than to join in the fight.  The same happened on the Pacific front.

The US was sucked further towards the conflict when its navy and air force began to ‘escort’ British convoys which transported Lend-Lease material across the Atlantic, protecting them from German submarines. Roosevelt’s announcement of a ‘shoot on sight’ policy in September 1941 following an attack on the USS Greer enraged isolationist senators; they alleged that Roosevelt was deliberately provoking skirmishes with the Germans. Meanwhile, Churchill repeatedly attempted to convince Roosevelt to enter the war. At the August 1941 Atlantic Conference, the two leaders composed a charter for the post-war world; Roosevelt tackled the thorny issue of the British Empire, promoting the recognition of “the right of all peoples to choose the government under which they will live.”
Churchill did not have to wait long. After the bombing of the US Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor in December 1941, only one congressman opposed the declaration of war; the vote in the senate was unanimous. Hitler’s declaration of war on the US, which came four days later, was actually a blessing in disguise for Roosevelt; it enabled him to legitimately pursue a ‘Germany first’ strategy. In November 1942, Operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa, became the first US military offensive of the war in the West. Allied troops slowly cornered German forces in North Africa, who surrendered in Tunisia in May 1943. The joint British-US victory, costly and hard fought as it was, was invaluable in mobilising US public opinion behind the war effort.

Considering that the Untied States hasn't been in danger of invasion since its earliest history, it hasn't a clue as to Israel's dangers from.  We can't expect any real assistance from any other country or international alliance.

Words, platitudes and threats won't keep us safe.  We're a tiny country surrounded by enemies.  When in danger we must shoot first.

Fiddling on the Roof, While Iran Develops Its Nuclear Arsenal

It has been clear to me for a long time that the United States is just posturing and not a real world power.  It has no do or die principles and its recent military successes were a long time ago or not worth bragging about.

American military success, Dry Bones

Most worrisome is the fact that instead of eliminating the Iranian nuclear industry American officials at best  just mumble about letting Israel, one of the smallest countries in the world, "take care of it" if Israel really feels in danger.  Duh!  Iran is anti-American even more than anti-Israel.  For Americans to rationalize that and lie to themselves that Iran would only use weapons against Israel is totally unrealistic and very dangerous.  In Israel Hayom, David Weinberg wrote of how the Americans are hoping to ignore the dangers of Iran to world peace.

Now, Pickering is back at the head of a panel of former senior U.S. officials and outside experts called "The Iran Project," urging U.S. President Barack Obama to drop sanctions and covert action against Iran, and instead negotiate more intensively with Tehran.

"I fundamentally believe that the balance between sanctions and diplomacy has been misaligned," says Pickering. He and his colleagues (who at the time included Chuck Hagel, now defense secretary) write that the sanctions policy seems to be backfiring and has "contributed to an increase in repression and corruption within Iran." They worry that sanctions "may be sowing the seeds of long-term alienation between the Iranian people and the United States."

In an interview with The New York Times, Pickering also contends that Obama should review the covert program against Iran -- which reportedly has included computer sabotage of its nuclear facilities -- to "stop anything that is peripheral, that is not buying us much time" in slowing Iran's progress.

The United States is back in its pre-World War Two isolationist mode for sure.  The United States had hoped that it wouldn't be "dragged into" war with Hitler.  It tried being accommodating, and there were many prominent Americans who didn't find Hitler problematic.  They certainly didn't mind his anti-Semitism.

Photo: Marc Israel Sellem/The Jerusalem Post

At the Jerusalem Post's NY Conference, Former Mossad Chief Meir Dagan stated that:

“To threaten an immediate attack on Iran is not beneficial to Israel,” Dagan said. “It transferred the Iranian issue from a worldwide issue to an Israeli issue. I would have been happier had [US President Barack] Obama made his announcement that he would not let Iran get nuclear weapons in Riyadh and not in Jerusalem.”

I must admit that I don't agree with much else that Dagan stated.  He's total unrealistic when it comes to the chance of "peace" with Arab terrorists.

When you look at the big picture, it's clear that the Arab terrorism that targets Israelis is also related to the Arab and Islamic terrorism that can be found even in the United States, such as the Boston Marathon bombing.

It's a very dangerous mistake that Israel is accepting foreign advice/instructions/ideology to do everything it can to make peace with the Arab Terrorists.  It is totally impossible to make peace with terrorists.  Consider it against their religion!

The bottom line is that the world is in big trouble!