Arlene Kushner
And then stand strong and bring her home again.
In reading Barry Rubin's most recent column, "F for failure," I recognized concerns that have gripped me of late. And so, while I hadn't intended to post today, I knew I wanted to share this.
Many of you on this list will understand what he's saying, but across the board I believe his points are more obvious from here in Israel. A great many Americans are still not seeing the forest for the trees. And too many cling to that last bit of residual hope in Obama, and won't yet grapple with the enormity of the failures of his government.
Writes Rubin:
"We must now face an extremely unpleasant truth: Even giving the Obama administration every possible break regarding its Iran policy, it is now clear that the US government isn't going to take strong action on the nuclear weapons issue. Note that I didn't even say "effective" action, I'm saying that it isn't even going to make a god show of trying seriously to do anything.
"From its behavior, it still seems to expect, incredibly, that some kind of deal is possible with Teheran despite everything that has happened...And it is too fixated on short-term games about seeking consensus among other powers; two of them -- China and Russia -- are clearly not going to agree to anything serious. This fact was clear many months ago, but the administration still doesn't recognize it...
"Not only is the Obama administration failing the test but it is doing so in a way that seems to maximize the loss of US credibility in the region and the world. A lot of this comes from the administration's philosophy of unprecedented concepts of guilt, apology, defeatism and refusal to take leadership never seen before among past liberal Democratic governments from Franklin Roosevelt to Bill Clinton.
"Yet the British, French and Germans are ready to get tough on Iran, yearning for leadership and not getting it. (Emphasis added)
"...After these. six failures [documented in the full article], the US is now -- in effect -- resting. And that is the seventh failure. There are no signs that anything is changing in Washington.
"To believe that the administration has learned anything, we would have to see the following: An angry US government [that] feels that Iran's regime made it look foolish; a calculating administration that believes the American people want it to get tough and [hopes to] gain politically from being seen as decisive; a great power strategy that would make an example of Iran to show what happens to a bunch of repressive dictators who defy the US and spit on its friends and interests; and a diplomatically astute government that understands the uses of threats and pressures to force its opponent into a compromise.
"There is not the slightest indication that the Obama administration holds any of these views. On the contrary, without any apparent realization of the absurdity of the situation, high-ranking officials keep repeating in January 2010 as in January 2009 that, some day, the US might do something to put pressure on Iran. Perhaps those in the administration who do understand what's wrong don't have the influence to affect the policy being set in the White House.
"This is going to be a case study of how failing to deal with a problem sooner, even if that requires some diplomatic confrontations, will lead to a much bigger and costlier conflict later involving military confrontation." (emphasis added)
Directly implied, but not explicitly spelled out here, is the effect of Obama's non-policy on Israel.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1263147967882&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
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While I'm at it, I want to also share a January 16th NY Post piece by Ralph Peters -- "Hood massacre report gutless and shameful" -- that echoes similar themes. (And thanks to Dave A. for calling this to my attention.)
Wrote Peters:
"There are two basic problems with the grotesque non-report on the Islamist- terror massacre at Fort Hood (released by the Defense Department [January 15]):
" [] It's not about what happened at Fort Hood.
" [] It avoids entirely the issue of why it happened.
"Rarely in the course of human events has a report issued by any government agency been so cowardly and delusional. It's so inept, it doesn't even rise to cover-up level.
"'Protecting the Force: Lessons From Fort Hood' never mentions Islamist terror. Its 86 mind-numbing pages treat 'the alleged perpetrator,' Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, as just another workplace shooter...
"...Murderous political correctness is pervasive in our military...
"...This report's spinelessness is itself an indictment of our military's failed moral and ethical leadership...
"We agonize over civilian casualties in a war zone but rush to whitewash the slaughter of our own troops on our own soil. Conduct unbecoming."
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/hood_massacre_report_gutless_and_yaUphSPCoMs8ux4lQdtyGM#ixzz0dehDKzxG
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America is too great -- in its courage and its principles -- to go down this way. Her come-back (for which I sincerely pray) will depend on the legion of good Americans who do understand what is going on and will, finally, refuse to let it happen.
I hope this makes you spittin' mad, and that you share what is written here broadly.
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see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info
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