Doc's Talk: "Unreal!"

Sunday, October 06, 2013

"Unreal!"

A peaceful Shabbat and I was not expecting to post again until after Prime Minister Netanyahu speaks tomorrow night. But I logged on to my computer tonight and took a look at the news -- which is what motivated me to do this posting, which I hope will be brief.

"Unreal!" is a term used metaphorically to ask "How can this be??" That's what I'm asking. But the rub is that what I'm reading is not fiction, it's real -- no matter how incredible it may seem.

Decide for yourselves if you can reconcile these various news items, or if they seem "unreal!" to you, as well, even as they are happening:

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Netanyahu gave an NBC an interview on Wednesday, in which he said that:

"Iran is developing intercontinental ballistic missiles that could reach the U.S., whose 'purpose is to arm them with a nuclear payload.' "Netanyahu stressed that Iran is not governed by Rouhani, but by its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. During the interview he said Khamenei head[ed] a 'messianic, apocalyptic, radical regime' and therefore cannot be trusted.'"
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.550303
Good deal, and nothing "unreal" here. (See more on Khamenei below.)
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But wait. In his first statement on the subject since Netanyahu spoke at the UN, on Thursday, Secretary of State Kerry, speaking in Tokyo, said it would be "diplomatic malpractice" not to test Iran's sincerity with regard to negotiations on its nuclear development. (same source cited above)
But what happens if - while Kerry is "testing" Iran's sincerity so as to avoid "diplomatic malpractice" - Iran develops the bomb?
There is the possibility that the real "diplomatic malpractice" here was appointing Kerry to his current position, but never mind...

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, left, meets with Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu

Credit: AP

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Then we have President Obama -- who's as "unreal" as you can get. He gave an interview to AP, released today, in which he indicated that:

"Our assessment [about the length of time until Iran can build a bomb] continues to be a year or more away. And in fact, actually, our estimate is probably more conservative than the estimates of Israeli intelligence services."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4436807,00.html

There's no "probably" about it, my friends, and the president undoubtedly knows it. This is what Netanyahu said in his UN speech (emphasis added):

"Last year when I spoke here at the UN I drew a red line. Now, Iran has been very careful not to cross that line but Iran is positioning itself to race across that line in the future at a time of its choosing. Iran wants to be in a position to rush forward to build nuclear bombs before the international community can detect it and much less prevent it."

http://www.timesofisrael.com/full-text-netanyahus-2013-speech-to-the-un-general-assembly/
There has been a running disagreement between the US and Israel regarding whether it would be possible to determine when Iran was actually constructing a bomb, with Israel maintaining that it would not, and that Iran had to be stopped prior to that point.
Yet Obama would have us believe that he can sail on for another year or more without putting the world at risk in this matter.
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But we're not done yet. YNet tonight cited an unnamed diplomat involved in the negotiations with Iran, who said:

"Israel will not be in the room if and when a deal is done. We take Israeli concerns very seriously. But I have a feeling that Netanyahu is slightly out of step with other nations at the moment."
Israel didn't have "veto" power, he indicated. And were Israel in the room when negotiations were done, it would be unlikely to get everything Netanyahu was demanding.
While Gary Samore - until recently the top nuclear proliferation expert on Obama's national security staff - explained to YNet that (emphasis added):
"Negotiating means there will have to be some give on both sides.
"I think it's unlikely that we are in a position to dictate to the Iranians that they have to meet all of our demands."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4436755,00.html
I've used many adjectives as I've written these posts,describing this situation: deplorable, despicable, dangerous. None suffice here. This statement so totally, willfully misses the point Netanyahu was making that it's impossible not to read malice of intent - that is, ultimately a gleeful willingness to allow Iran to go nuclear.
We all knew it, that Obama's "the military option has not been taken off the table" was not sincere. After the Syrian fiasco it was a farce. But this statement boldly puts the lie to it.
The whole point of having a military option on the table is so that Iran CAN be dictated to. This is not a question of two equal parties sitting down to give a little and take a little.
You sit across from the representatives of the state that is the biggest promoter of terrorism in the world today, and which has a history of deception and which has said it wants to take Israel off the face of the earth, and which terrifies Saudis and other Sunni Arab states, and which is aiming to send nuclear missiles to the eastern coast of the US, and you say, "Look guys, either do what we say, or we're going to hit you so hard that your heads will spin off of your necks. We don't advise you to test us on this."
Say it diplomatically, if you will, but say it.
The world has not learned...
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Keep communicating to your elected representatives in Congress the need for a tough stance on Iran. They get it and Congress is looking to increase sanctions.

But the State Department is saying it would be "helpful" if the Senate held off on this:

On Thursday, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, "We will be looking for specific steps by Iran that address core issues.... "The Iranians in return will doubtless be seeking some relief from comprehensive international sanctions that are now in place."
http://freebeacon.com/state-dept-to-congress-dont-sanction-iran/

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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said today that 'some" aspects of President Hassan Rouhani’s trip to the United Nations General Assembly in New York last month were “not proper." It was believed he was referring to Rouhani's phone conversation with Obama.

"We are pessimistic towards the Americans and do not put any trust in them. The American government is untrustworthy, supercilious and unreasonable, and breaks its promises."

http://www.timesofisrael.com/khamenei-some-of-rouhanis-un-trip-inappropriate/

Will Obama work overtime now to show the Iranians how much they can trust him? The answer is self-evident.

~~~~~~~~~~

I end with an exceedingly real by statement by Avigdor Lieberman, head of Yisrael Beitenu, and chair of the Knesset Foreign Relations and Defense Committee (emphasis added):

There is not even "a quarter" of a sign that Iran is slowing its nuclear development, he said. "All international intelligence agencies are aware that nothing has changed.

"Israel is prepared to deal with the Iranian problem. Even if we stand alone. It’s better to be alone and stay alive rather than toe the line and go up in flames."

http://www.timesofisrael.com/liberman-on-iran-better-to-be-alone-and-stay-alive/

Amen on this!

Lieberman recalled the world opposition to our bombing the Iraqi reactor in 1981. Now, he said, the world recognizes that "we were right… The whole world would have paid the price" if Israel had not intervened.

Credit: theguardian

~~~~~~~~~~

An October 2 Israel Hayom-New Wave Research poll shows that 65.6% Israeli Jews would support a unilateral Israeli strike even without international support, with only 21.8% opposed.

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=12347

We get it.

~~~~~~~~~~

If it is reproduced and emphasis is added, the fact that it has been added must be noted.

See my website at www.arlenefromisrael.info Contact Arlene at akushner18@gmail.com

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

Doc's Talk

Sunday, October 06, 2013

"Unreal!"

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Lost Historical Moments

WHAT Golda Meir actually said...

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

About Me

God Bless the USA- Lee Greenwood remembers 9-11