The only democracy in the Middle East goes to the polls today. What a wonderful example to its neighbours in the region, democracy in action. Perhaps, perhaps not?
Today I went to the polling station to cast my vote. I was pleasantly surprised to see a line of people waiting to fulfill their civic responsibility and vote for the party of their choice, for the people they want to represent them and make the tough decisions on their behalf. As I joined the queue, the conversations where more or less the same. "Have you decided yet"? "Nope I suppose I will decide once I get into the booth". And herein lies the problem. After three weeks of campaigning, thank god for the war otherwise it would have been six weeks; the overriding feeling in the country is that there is noone to vote for, that there is no party which offers a real alternative to the status quo. The options before the country as far as Priminister is concerned; are lets just say, less than inspiring. Bibi was a terrible Priminister, Barak was no better and Tzipi, well for most of us the question is, who the hell is Tzipi. This campaign has been run purely on personality and to hell with the issues. For most people there is little to separate the three main candidates and their parties and therefore, the question is why vote at all.
One alternative however has emerged and for me at least it is a very scary one. Avigdor Lieberman and his Yisrael Beteinu part is the real success of this election. The slogan, roughly translated as "No allegiance, No citizenship" has resonated with the public. This slogan is aimed mainly at the Arab minority in the country, however he has also recently used it to attack the ultra religious, something which also scores high marks with the secular population. For sure the Israeli public has been pushed farther to the right, particularly post disengagement form Gaza, but that is another story. However could it be that neo fascism is entering the mainstream of Israel politics. Does Israel now have its very own Jorge Heider? Are all the critics of Israel right when they call us a racist state?
I would like to think that Lieberman's rise is more of a desperate reaction to the lack of leadership in this country over the past few years, to the Palestinian's failure to create a civil society in Gaza after Israel left the strip in 2005, that at the end of it all the appeal of a strong charismatic character is no more than a fleeting glitch in Israel's political history. Only time will tell and Lieberman is expected to do extremely well in these elections and is most likely to play the role of "king...or queen maker" in the coalition. His rise to prominence should act as a wake up call to all decent people who understand that in order for Israel to function as Jewish democratic state it must be a democracy for all its people, especially its minorities. For one can judge the strength of a democracy by the manner in which it treats its minorities and those in the country who stand against the very nature of the state.
Avigdor Lieberman is doing the country a huge favour. He is providing a very clear view of the future, that is a the future that can emerge if the vast majority of Israelis who do not share his racist and frankly abhorrent views, do not make the conscious decision to reject apathy, insist on a higher quality of representation and work to ensure that it comes about. Thugs like Lieberman can only rise to power in a vacuum. If nothing else this election has shown that the vacuum exists and that it is up to us, the citizens of Israel to fill that vacuum for the better, else Lieberman and his storm troopers get there first. It is not too late!
Go out and vote, even if it means holding your nose while doing so.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
Shut the fuck up! please (on Gilad Shalit)
Is it just me or are our politicians and our media behaving in an extraordinarily irresponsible manner when it comes to the issue of Gilad Shalit?
Apparently a deal is imminent. Apparently the deal is stuck on four prisoners the Israeli government is not willing to release. Apparently, if we had not given Hamas such a hiding in operation Cast Lead they would not be negotiating on the issue of Gilad. Apparently Operation Cast lead is what has brought Hamas to discuss the release of Gilad. Apparently it has nothing to do with Israel, rather the internal struggles between Hamas in Gaza and Hamas in Syria is what is holding up the release. Apparently, apparently apparently, yata yata yata.........shut the fuck up! for god sake or rather for Gilad's sake.
Gilad Shalit has now been in captivity for 960 days. One cannot possible imagine what the poor kid has gone through. Nor can one help but admire the strength and character shown by his family as they have struggled with the impossible in order to bring their son home. Please god or the universe, this will happen in the near future...however!
The negotiations are no doubt complex and difficult. Hamas are keenly aware of the importance of one Israeli soldier to the country, so much so that feel perfectly comfortable equating one Israeli life to one thousand or so Palestinians. I might suggest that if Israel dared to make such an equation the world would soon have something to say about it. However that is the reality in which we operate.
The annoying thing, to me anyway; is that it would appear that out politicians, with the elections tomorrow, see that they may be able to make some political capital out of this situation. God they make me sick. Ehud Barak claims that it is Operation cast lead which has made it possible to negotiate Gilad's release. I wonder who he thinks should take credit for that then? David Ben Eliezer, suggests that it is the severe beating Hamas received at the hands of the IDF that has brought this about. Tzipi, Bibi, Barak, all of them, "do not wish to negotiate in public" however they all have their own way in which they want to take some credit for the possibility of Gilad's release. Let's not forget Mr Olmert who really wants to take credit for a release before he ends his political career and goes off to defend himself in the courts. Who knows, perhaps it will help him with the judge.
And then we have the Israeli media who follow role out their experts who pontificate on the negotiations, what is going on, what they want, what we want, how it will work and how it could go wrong. All in the interests of ratings, not Gilad, not the country, not the interests of the public, but for ratings.
Do none of these self interested self obsessed morons recognise the potential harm to the current negotiations. Every time a minister or politician in this country speaks out on the issue, he/she weakens our bargaining position. Every time a news caster roles out another expert to hypothesise on the negotiations, it has the potential to weaken out bargaining position.
When Gilad is finally home, (inshallah) then speak all you want and fight for the credit for his release. We the public will wait to hear and will gladly postpone our right to information if that can bring Gilad home sooner. The only ones who currently have the right to know what is going on is Gilad's family. You can tell us all about it once they have their child in their arms.
Bottom line, until it is done, shut the fuck up!!!!!!!!!!
Apparently a deal is imminent. Apparently the deal is stuck on four prisoners the Israeli government is not willing to release. Apparently, if we had not given Hamas such a hiding in operation Cast Lead they would not be negotiating on the issue of Gilad. Apparently Operation Cast lead is what has brought Hamas to discuss the release of Gilad. Apparently it has nothing to do with Israel, rather the internal struggles between Hamas in Gaza and Hamas in Syria is what is holding up the release. Apparently, apparently apparently, yata yata yata.........shut the fuck up! for god sake or rather for Gilad's sake.
Gilad Shalit has now been in captivity for 960 days. One cannot possible imagine what the poor kid has gone through. Nor can one help but admire the strength and character shown by his family as they have struggled with the impossible in order to bring their son home. Please god or the universe, this will happen in the near future...however!
The negotiations are no doubt complex and difficult. Hamas are keenly aware of the importance of one Israeli soldier to the country, so much so that feel perfectly comfortable equating one Israeli life to one thousand or so Palestinians. I might suggest that if Israel dared to make such an equation the world would soon have something to say about it. However that is the reality in which we operate.
The annoying thing, to me anyway; is that it would appear that out politicians, with the elections tomorrow, see that they may be able to make some political capital out of this situation. God they make me sick. Ehud Barak claims that it is Operation cast lead which has made it possible to negotiate Gilad's release. I wonder who he thinks should take credit for that then? David Ben Eliezer, suggests that it is the severe beating Hamas received at the hands of the IDF that has brought this about. Tzipi, Bibi, Barak, all of them, "do not wish to negotiate in public" however they all have their own way in which they want to take some credit for the possibility of Gilad's release. Let's not forget Mr Olmert who really wants to take credit for a release before he ends his political career and goes off to defend himself in the courts. Who knows, perhaps it will help him with the judge.
And then we have the Israeli media who follow role out their experts who pontificate on the negotiations, what is going on, what they want, what we want, how it will work and how it could go wrong. All in the interests of ratings, not Gilad, not the country, not the interests of the public, but for ratings.
Do none of these self interested self obsessed morons recognise the potential harm to the current negotiations. Every time a minister or politician in this country speaks out on the issue, he/she weakens our bargaining position. Every time a news caster roles out another expert to hypothesise on the negotiations, it has the potential to weaken out bargaining position.
When Gilad is finally home, (inshallah) then speak all you want and fight for the credit for his release. We the public will wait to hear and will gladly postpone our right to information if that can bring Gilad home sooner. The only ones who currently have the right to know what is going on is Gilad's family. You can tell us all about it once they have their child in their arms.
Bottom line, until it is done, shut the fuck up!!!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Its a crime!
Hamas are, in UK colloquial language, "taking the piss", and the world is allowing, even encouraging them to do so. A grad rocket fired from Gaza which hit Ashkelon today is just one more in the series of breaches of the current cease fire. It would appear that indiscriminate firing of rockets on a civilian population does not necessarily offend the world community, at least not if they happen to be fired at Israeli civilians.
The Irish now think that Europe's view of Hamas needs to be revised. Tony Blair thinks they need to involved in the current peace process. Could it be that terror works? That's a whole different conversation, however it wold appear that it does for now. A cruel and cynical regime which usurped power in a violent coup in Gaza, which uses its civilian population as a human shield, which goes around executing its political rivals at will and which ultimately promotes an Islamic Jihadist agenda against the interests of its people and their national aspirations; still manges to find sympathy and legitimacy from Europe and the wider world. How can this be?
There are surely smart people in Europe and around the world who have the capacity to understand the Hamas doctrine and its political goals, who understand that it has minimal interest in the national aspirations of the Palestinians and is far more interested in the Islamic agenda. There are surely enough human rights activists and "liberals" who stand against victimisation of women, honour killings, Sharia law involving stoning, beheading and amputation, who are against the killing of homosexuals, who believe in freedom of speech, of thought and of religion. There are must be a great many "liberals" who support the establishment of a Democratic Palestinian state?
Yet in the face of overwhelming evidence that Hamas believe in none of these things, these so called "liberals" choose to ignore the inconvenient truth about Hamas, its agenda and its murderous practices against its own people, let alone the "Zionist entity". Hamas leaders now stride around claiming victory in the recent conflict n Gaza, surely a ridiculous notion. Although if you look at the manner in which Hamas is now looking to dictate terms of any cease fire, at how they are continuing to fire rockets into Israel, and at how the world appears to be reacting, then perhaps Hamas will indeed clutch victory from the jaws of defeat. Make no mistake, Hamas was seriously beaten and damaged in Israeli operation Cast Lead. It will be a true crime if the wider world then helps Hamas to present a case where they are able to present gains from the conflict. As the legitimate President of the Palestinian people, Mahmoud Abbas says, Hamas has gambled and is gambling with the lives of Palestinians in a wholy irresponsible manner. For the world to encourage them to do so strikes me as rank stupidity and a serious crime against the Palestinian people.
Get a grip, help the Palestinians, not Hamas?
The Irish now think that Europe's view of Hamas needs to be revised. Tony Blair thinks they need to involved in the current peace process. Could it be that terror works? That's a whole different conversation, however it wold appear that it does for now. A cruel and cynical regime which usurped power in a violent coup in Gaza, which uses its civilian population as a human shield, which goes around executing its political rivals at will and which ultimately promotes an Islamic Jihadist agenda against the interests of its people and their national aspirations; still manges to find sympathy and legitimacy from Europe and the wider world. How can this be?
There are surely smart people in Europe and around the world who have the capacity to understand the Hamas doctrine and its political goals, who understand that it has minimal interest in the national aspirations of the Palestinians and is far more interested in the Islamic agenda. There are surely enough human rights activists and "liberals" who stand against victimisation of women, honour killings, Sharia law involving stoning, beheading and amputation, who are against the killing of homosexuals, who believe in freedom of speech, of thought and of religion. There are must be a great many "liberals" who support the establishment of a Democratic Palestinian state?
Yet in the face of overwhelming evidence that Hamas believe in none of these things, these so called "liberals" choose to ignore the inconvenient truth about Hamas, its agenda and its murderous practices against its own people, let alone the "Zionist entity". Hamas leaders now stride around claiming victory in the recent conflict n Gaza, surely a ridiculous notion. Although if you look at the manner in which Hamas is now looking to dictate terms of any cease fire, at how they are continuing to fire rockets into Israel, and at how the world appears to be reacting, then perhaps Hamas will indeed clutch victory from the jaws of defeat. Make no mistake, Hamas was seriously beaten and damaged in Israeli operation Cast Lead. It will be a true crime if the wider world then helps Hamas to present a case where they are able to present gains from the conflict. As the legitimate President of the Palestinian people, Mahmoud Abbas says, Hamas has gambled and is gambling with the lives of Palestinians in a wholy irresponsible manner. For the world to encourage them to do so strikes me as rank stupidity and a serious crime against the Palestinian people.
Get a grip, help the Palestinians, not Hamas?
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