"Holding Pattern"

Arlene Kushner

Today, thank Heaven, it is raining. We've needed this so badly, and need much more than is coming down right now.

But the cloud cover makes visibility poor and makes any major action from the sky over Gaza unlikely at the moment in any event.

Arutz Sheva reports today that Barak said, after the Security Cabinet meeting yesterday, that he has given the IDF authorization to plan but not to execute a major operation. bewilders me, because the IDF has been planning and for some time now has had in place a number of attack alternatives, pending political approval. Chief of Staff Ashkenazi has said this on several occasions: The IDF is prepared, we're waiting for a go-ahead.

Arutz Sheva is indicating there will be a slow escalation of attacks (which, I add, might include "pinpoint" ground strikes with soldiers going in and out quickly). But who knows.

~~~~~~~~~~

I'd like to share a piece of particular thoughtfulness, written by Brigadier General (ret.) Dr. Yossi Ben Ari, former intelligence chief of the IDF’s Central Command. Says he:

"Securing tactical quiet is no longer the objective: Israel would never be able to view Hamas, [in] its current ideological form, as a viable dialogue partner that we can reach even minimal agreements with. Today it is already clear that Israel must view the confrontation with Hamas as a 'zero-sum game.' Yes, it’s either 'them or us.'"

Ben Ari is disturbed that we are seeing no "progress in the required intellectual shift from the disgraceful strategic status of permanent respondent, to the proper status required for our existence – initiators and leaders." We are not setting the terms, Hamas is.

"However, it’s not too late yet," he assures us. "We do not have to keep following the path dictated by Hamas. Instead, we can make the Hamastan government scamper as if it had been poisoned."

He recommends taking the initiative not by re-taking the full Gaza Strip, but by doing the following simultaneously:

-- Retaking the Philadelphi Corridor and a kilometer-wide strip around it, to dry up Hamas's capacity to continue to arm.

-- Resuming targeted killings, of both Hamas military and political leaders.

-- Doing comprehensive and continuous air assaults on terror infrastructure.

-- Treating this as a war. Doing everything possible to prevent Hamas from operating from civilian areas.

"Adopting a wide offensive initiative could make the difference: It will certainly affect the way we view ourselves in the future, and no less importantly, the way our image is shaped in the eyes of our enemies and allies."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3643967,00.html

~~~~~~~~~~

Tzipi Livni has met with officials in Cairo, and it seems to me that what transpired is pretty much of a joke.
Mubarak reportedly demanded that Israel use restraint in responding to Hamas rockets. Demanded?

He demanded that Hamas stop launching those rockets, as well. Hamas has been very angry at Egypt of late. Egypt's main leverage over Hamas, such as it exists, involves Egyptian readiness to open the Rafah crossing.

~~~~~~~~~~

My information from a reliable source is that Egypt, which indeed fears Hamas (an off-shoot of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood), does not want to be rid of Hamas but simply to control it. They do not want a major Israeli operation in Gaza, their preference being for "cooling it."

I had reported some months ago about the fact that in spite of strong tensions between Sunni Egypt and Shi'ite Iran, Egypt was willing to tolerate Hamas as an Iranian proxy at its border because this was troublesome for Israel. Yesterday, I reported on a possible reduction in those tensions as the Egyptian Amr Mousa speaks of dialogue with Iran. It all comes together when we see Egypt's attitude towards Hamas.

~~~~~~~~~~

My source also confirmed what I had suspected: That Abbas's total turn-around with regard to sanctioning an Israeli operation in Gaza was the result of Egyptian pressure. Mubarak told him simply not to give his approval to this, and that, literally, is what Abbas said. It was after Abbas's meeting with Mubarak that Abbas also started speaking again about the need for a unity government.

~~~~~~~~~~

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Aboul Gheit said at a press conference after the meeting today that "Hamas is not receiving its weapons through Egypt, and Israel had better not blame Egypt for this....I don’t know how these weapons reached the Gaza Strip."

I am stunned at his audacity here and most vociferously disagree. It is and has been common knowledge for some time that Hamas smuggles weapons from the Sinai into Gaza via tunnels. At this point in time, Hamas controls those tunnels and Egypt in the main has turned a blind eye.

If you doubt this, take a look at a site called Weapon Survey and see the series of reports by the Shin Bet and others regarding the amounts and kinds of equipment that are being smuggled under the Philadelphi Corridor between Egypt and Gaza.

"The openings of smuggling tunnels are often located within private Egyptian houses in close proximity to the border. In addition, smoke from detonated smuggling tunnels (indicating a tunnel opening) has been observed rising from Egyptian army and border guard bases.

"In August 2004, Israel Radio military correspondent Carmela Menashe reported that, 'Egypt knows exactly what weapons are being smuggled...Egypt uses the weapons smuggling as a measure against Israel.'

"In September 2004, Yuval Steinitz, Chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee emphasized it was 'crystal clear...Egypt supports terrorism against Israel by enabling Hamas and others to transform Sinai into their logistical rear...'"

"Since August 2007, the defense establishment has recorded five major incidents of arms smuggling through Egypt, during which 13 tons of explosives and 150 RPG launchers were imported.

"In October 2007, Yuval Diskin stated that approximately 1,650 RPG rockets and some 6,000 bombs have been smuggled into Gaza since January 2007. In addition, an estimated 73 tons of explosives have been smuggled into Gaza through tunnels since June. Millions of bullets for light weapons and tons of potassium, used to manufacture bombs, have also crossed the Gaza-Sinai border."

http://www.weaponsurvey.com/kbase/egyptandsmuggling.htm

~~~~~~~~~~

A different take on the tunnels is provided by a report that a VIP tunnel has been constructed that is high enough to allow people to walk in and is equipped with electricity. It is being used by wealthy people in Gaza (gasp! there are wealthy people in Gaza?) who are paying to go out to Egypt. As Hamas controls the tunnels, they collect a "tax" when individuals use them.

~~~~~~~~~~

Livni told Mubarak that Israel will not turn a blind eye to the rocket launchings.

Egypt, with whom we have a peace treaty, remains an enemy, not to be trusted. And it is Egypt, playing a balancing act, that has been negotiating Shalit's release for us.

~~~~~~~~~~

Just how crazy are we? Last week a senior Prison Services official made a call in Maariv for tougher conditions for terrorists in our prisons.

"I could not hold back any longer... I see Gilad Shalit rotting in captivity, crouched in some darkened cellar with no visits, no reasonable living conditions, without seeing the light of day, while in contrast, in our prisons its one big summer camp. Some of [the terrorists] are lowly murderers who express no regret. They eat, drink, study, enjoy excellent conditions. It's shocking.”

Terrorists can move about for three hours a day, during which time games such as ping pong, basketball and backgammon are available to them. They are fed meat and fish on holidays and permitted to spend up to 1,200 shekels a month on food and cigarettes. Inmates all have TVs in their cells, which include Arabic programming that may be anti-Israel. And they can pursue academic degrees.

Public Security Minister Avi Dichter responded to this, saying that we were adhering to international agreements. The official maintains that we could provide these prisoners with much less and still fall within international regulations.

The ultimate irony, perhaps, is that the world never perceives us as good guys in spite of all of this. And I suspect that the terrorists laugh at us.

~~~~~~~~~~

I just raised questions about the utility of polls, I know. But I'd like to cite this: According to a Ma'agar Mohot poll, 58% of Israelis don't believe we should agree to full withdrawal from the Golan, even for comprehensive peace, while 46% believes we shouldn't relinquish any part of the Golan under any circumstances.

~~~~~~~~~~

On top of this, there is a Druze for Israel Forum, that supports Israeli retention of the Golan. (There are Druze, who were originally under Syrian control, who live on the Golan now under Israeli control.) Mandi Safdie, leader of the Forum and a candidate on the Hatikvah list, has asked Druze residents of the Golan to vote only for parties that oppose giving the Golan to Syria.

~~~~~~~~~~

Another poll, done by the Panels Institute after the expulsion of residents of Beit HaShalom in Hevron, shows that 73% of Jewish Israelis feel "an emotional connection" to Hevron. This includes 61% of the secular population. Surprising. And reassuring.

~~~~~~~~~~

Peace Now (Shalom Achshav) -- an organization that has no legal identity but conducts itself as if it did -- has been penalized by a Jerusalem Magistrates Court for misrepresentation. Peace Now, along with activists Hagit Ofran and Dror Atkis, was held responsible for publishing a false report about the Samaria town of Revava. Two years ago, Peace Now published a report that claimed that most Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria were built on land stolen from Arabs. In particular the report noted that 71.5% Revava was built on Arab land.

The Fund for Redeeming the Land, which legally owns 100% of the land on which Revava is built, demanded a retraction. When neither Peace Now nor the two report authors agreed, the Fund took them to court. Now Judge Yechezkel Barclay has ruled that they have to publicly apologize to the town of Revava -- placing the apology in major Hebrew press -- and must pay the Fund 20,000 shekels.

The time has come to end the serial lies issued by various leftist groups,” said the Fund's attorney, Nir Tzvi. “The public should doubt any report they write.”

Indeed. Lies come from several left-wing anti-Zionist organizations, and, regrettably, are often believed.

~~~~~~~~~~

Earlier this week, archeologists found 254 gold coins that date back 1,400 years in the parking lot adjacent to Ir David (David's City, the original Jerusalem, sitting outside the Old City walls). They were found in the remnants of a building from the Byzantine period and bear the likeness of a Byzantine emperor.

Archaeologists found a hoard of gold coins from the 7th century in Jerusalem on Sunday.

This is not the first time there have been stunning archeological finds in this area that had become a place for parking cars. Scratch the earth in this incredible land, and history is exposed.

~~~~~~~~~~

see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info

Hamas Parliament votes for Sharia in Gaza

"Such punishments include whipping, severing hands, crucifixion and hanging." Can full dhimmitude for the Christians there be far behind?

"Hamas pushes for Sharia punishments," from the Jerusalem Post, December 24 (thanks to all who sent this in):t. The Hamas parliament in the Gaza Strip voted in favor of a law allowing courts to mete out sentences in the spirit of Islam, the London-based Arab daily Al Hayat reported Wednesday.

According to the bill, approved in its second reading and awaiting the signature of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as the Palestinian constitution demands, courts will be able to condemn offenders to a plethora of violent punitive measures.

Such punishments include whipping, severing hands, crucifixion and hanging. The bill reserves death sentences to persons who negotiate with a foreign government "against the Palestinian interest" and engage in any activity that can "hurt Palestinian morale."

According to the report, any Palestinian caught drinking or selling wine would suffer 40 lashes at the whipping post if the bill passes. Thieves caught red-handed would lose their right hand.

In accord with Qur'an 5:38.

Thanks Dhimmi Watch

Use NPR’s Budget Squeeze to Amplify Calls for Reform

National Public Radio’s budget crisis presents CAMERA members and all others dedicated to reforming the network’s chronically anti-Israel news coverage with an opportunity to be heard. A Washington Post headline on December 11 announced "NPR to Cut 64 Jobs and Two Shows; Company-Wide Layoffs Seek To Close $23 Million Shortfall". The lead sentences in Post staff writer Paul Farhi’s article read:

Faced with a sharp decline in revenue, National Public Radio said ... it will pare back its programming and institute its first organization-wide layoffs in 25 years. Washington-based NPR said it would lay off about 7 percent of its workforce and eliminate two daily programs [‘Day to Day’ and ‘News & Notes’] ....

Now, more reliant on goodwill and financial support of listeners than ever, the network and its local affiliate stations should hear a clear message from potential donors, new or previous.
ACTION ITEMS to / Top / In Brief / Action Item

1.

Please contact Interim NPR President and Chief Executive Dennis Haarsager

E-Mail: haarsager@npr.org or Haarsagerd@npr.org
Telephone: 202 513-2000
2.
Contact the station manager of your local NPR affiliate. Let the manager know you’re aware of budget cuts and that before donating, NPR’s coverage must end its chronic anti-Israel slant and meet the legal requirement for objectivity and balance. To locate the affiliate in your area, go to www.npr.org and click on "Station" and then enter your zipcode.
3.

Send blind copies (bcc) to letters@camera.org

IN DETAIL to / Top / In Brief / Action Item

*NPR’s veteran Israel correspondent, Linda Gradstein, also substituting for The Washington Post’s Jerusalem bureau chief, explained to a December 22 synagogue audience in Rockville, Md., why she avoids using the word "terrorist." "I prefer the term ‘gunman,’" she said, responding to a CAMERA member’s question. "It’s a more neutral term than terrorist. After all, many people feel that one person’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter."

Her answer summarizes much of what’s wrong with NPR’s Arab-Israeli reporting, journalistically and morally. A journalist’s job is not to be "neutral" — it’s to be accurate. The gunman-for-terrorist substitution is anything but accurate. And equating terrorists with freedom fighters is a lie, morally and historically.

Terrorism, the U.S. State Department notes, is premeditated, political violence aimed at noncombatants. That includes Palestinian rocket attacks on Israeli civilians in Sderot or the shooting of yeshiva students in Jerusalem, not to mention November's terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. There, terrorist gunmen murdered more than 170 people. But for Gradstein and NPR when terrorists murder Israelis it's just gunmen killing people. Neutral. But not accurate, not objective. Not the truth. And that untruthfulness renders it immoral as well.

The false equivalence that "one person's terrorist is another's freedom fighter" sanitizes terrorists while staining freedom fighters. Greek freedom fighters fought Ottoman oppression during the 19th century; bands of freedom fighters resisted Nazi oppression from forest hide-outs during World War II; Hungarian freedom fighters opposed Soviet domination in 1956. Freedom fighters don't commit premeditated murder of civilians. But Arab terrorists from the PLO, Hamas and other groups intentionally have murdered Israeli noncombatants for decades in an attempt to destroy the Jewish state and drive the Jewish people from its homeland. Gradstein and NPR's "neutrality" in describing terrorist crimes — terrorism violates international law — falsifies the truth on which both moral judgment and journalistic description rest.

*NPR's December 8 "Talk of the Nation" program featured an interview with Avrum Burg, former Israeli Knesset speaker and author of a book titled The Holocaust Is Over; We Must Rise From Its Ashes. (Hebrew title Defeating Hitler) that caused an uproar when it appeared. Burg, who has left Israel and taken French citizenship, compares Israel to Germany on the eve of the rise of Nazism. He urges Israel to cease being a Jewish state. In a notable interview with Ari Shavit in Ha'aretz (June 8, 2007), the journalist challenged Burg repeatedly about the extreme "loathing" of Israel he expresses.

Few voices on the Israeli scene are more extreme and out of the mainstream – indeed literally out of the country itself – than Avrum Burg's.

For "balance," host Neal Conan brought in Omar Bartov, professor of European history at Brown University. Bartov is no Burg in his verbal assaults on Israel but to the extent that Burg and Bartov debated, it was whether what Burg called "the Holocaust industry" kept Israelis and Diaspora Jews mired in past horrors or what Bartov claimed was misuse of Jewish memories of Holocaust-era powerlessness to keep Palestinian Arabs under occupation.

Burg holds that "a nation of refugees [displaced European Jews] created another nation of refugees," the Palestinian Arabs. In reality, the reason Arabs became refugees was that the Arab states and Palestinian Arab leadership rejected the 1947 U.N. partition plan. It would have given them a second Arab state in what had been Mandatory Palestine — Jordan being the first — and after rejecting partition they went to war, unsuccessfully, to prevent a single Jewish state. Arab aggression caused Arab refugees.

Any interview involving an extreme figure like Avrum Burg clearly warrants a speaker to counter the inflammatory charges he makes about Israel and the Holocaust. NPR's failure to balance far-left attacks on Israel, such as those espoused by Burg, has been a chronic feature of its coverage for many years.
Remember

The opportunity presented by the network's financial difficulties to be heard regarding reform of NPR's Arab-Israeli coverage should not be missed.

CAMERA's Web site (www.camera.org), details scores of examples of pro-Arab, anti-Israeli bias in NPR reporting going back to 1992 (click on NPR at bottom of home page).

The Public Telecommunications Act of 1992 requires, among other things, "strict adherence to objectivity and balance in all programs or series of programs of a controversial nature." NPR does not hold itself to the standard, despite claims to the contrary.

"Forgotten Refugees" Premiers

Hillel Fendel

A movie documenting the destruction of ancient Jewish communities in the Middle East will be screened Monday night in Tel Aviv, followed by a Question-and-Answer session with the producers and participants.

How is it that the Jewish population in Arab countries dwindled from 1,000,000 people in 1945 to only a few thousand today? The movie tries to answer this question, featuring scholarly analyses, personal testimonies, film clips and pictures of rescue operations and re-settlement, and more. Jewish refugees from Egypt, Yemen, Morocco, Libya and Iraq tell their stories, interspersed with chapters on the rich contribution of Jews to Middle Eastern politics, business and music.

“The Forgotten Refugees” chronicles the impact of the Arab Muslim conquest, the development of Judeo-Arab culture, and the modern rise of Arab nationalism that drove out hundreds of thousands of Jews from their homes and communities. The movie attempts to present a unique educational approach regarding an important but little-known aspect of Middle Eastern history.

More Jewish Refugees, Less Aid

International economist Sidney Zabludoff published research several months ago showing that the Jewish refugees of the late 1940’s suffered more and have been helped less than their Arab counterparts. He said that many more Jews were forcibly displaced or expelled from their homes around the world than Arabs, that they lost significantly more property, and were helped over the years to a much smaller extent.



The Shas Party recently declared that it would demand restitution for the hundreds of thousands of Jews forced to flee Arab and Muslim states. There can be no peace with Arab countries without compensation for Jews' lost property, said Shas Cabinet Minister Yitzchak Cohen.

Movie Receives International Acclaim

The 50-minute film, directed by Michael Grynszpan and produced by Ralph Avi Goldwasser, was recently shown in the United Nations and in the U.S. Congress. It won the Best Documentary award at last year’s Marbella Film Festival in Marbella, Spain.

Poll: No Confidence in Barak

Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu Poll: No Confidence in Barak

The public does not trust government leaders to defend the State of Israel without being influenced by politics, according to a new Geocartographia poll. Most respondents also expressed no confidence in Defense Minister Ehud Barak.

The survey, broadcast Tuesday night on Channel One television, reveals that 68 percent of Israelis view politics as a decisive factor in how to deal with rocket and mortar attacks on Israel. Only 21 percent disagreed. Defense Minister Barak, who also is chairman of the Labor party, has the confidence of only 24 percent of the respondents, who have not been convinced by his recent statements criticizing "babbling politicians" who "do not know what war is" and that "we know when and how to retaliate."

Barak is a former IDF Chief of Staff and was Prime Minister for 18 months, during which time he ordered a hasty withdrawal of IDF troops from a southern Lebanon security zone that was designed to deter Hizbullah from attacking northern Israel.

The poll showed only a slight change in the peoples' choices for the next Knesset. The Likud lost three mandates since a similar poll the previous month, but the nationalist Jewish Home party picked up two seats and now is projected to win six places in the next Knesset. Kadima gained one and Israel Is Our Home (Yisrael Beiteinu) gained two.

On the losing side, Shas and United Torah Judaism (UTJ) each dropped two.

The results leave the potential coalitions with the same strength. A Likud-led government, including Shas, Israel Beiteinu, Jewish Home and United Torah Judaism (UTJ), would have 64-65 mandates, according to the latest Geocartographia survey, three less than in last month's poll.

Kadima, under the leadership of Tzipi Livni, would have 46-47 members, not including 10 Knesset Members projected for four Arab parties. A coalition needs a minimum of an absolute majority of 61 MKs in order to form a government.



A Channel Two television poll places Kadima one mandate ahead of the Likud and puts Yisrael Beiteinu in third place with 11 seats.

Hamas passes bill allowing executions

Where are the human rights groups? Hamas has recently passed a radical Islamic bill ushering whipping, dismembering and execution as standard punitive action into the Gaza penal code, the London-based Arabic-language newspaper al-Hayat reported Wednesday.. to the report, the bill passed its second reading in the Gaza Parliament, by unanimous majority of three – the only three members of parliament who were present at the meeting.



Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is unlikely to sanction the bill, as required by the Palestinian law , but Hamas would have little problem implementing it in Gaza – which is under its complete control.



The bill is made up of 214 subsections. Section 59 states that "any Palestinian found guilty of raising a weapon against Palestine in favor of the enemy; countering Palestine's interests in a negotiation with a foreign government; and placing Palestine's existence in danger by committing an act of aggression against a foreign country... will be sentenced to death."



A similar fate awaits anyone found guilty of the following: "Joining a foreign army fighting Palestine or facilitating such action; demoralizing the Palestinian people to any of its resistance movements; spying on Palestine or engaging in espionage during wartime."



Section 84 stipulates that anyone found guilty of "drinking to making wine will be subjected to 40 lashes… drinking and harassing the public will be punishable by 40 lashes and three months in jail."



The whip will be used on anyone "engaging in games of chance, offending religious beliefs and defaming others' character," as well.



The bill also calls for dismembering – mostly of the hands – of anyone convicted of theft.

Comment: You have to ask where are the Western media? Did not even report this horrendous story and the so-called rights organizations that blast Israel daily are no where to be seen or heard. For me, this once and for all invalidates these organizations!

Obama's Plan to Rejoin the World Community

Phyllis Schlafly
Tuesday, December 23, 2008

When Candidate Barack Obama declared himself a "citizen of the world" before thousands of cheering German socialists, and later pledged to "rejoin the World Community," those weren't just his usual platitudes about "change." Those words sounded the trumpet for his specific and far-reaching globalist agenda. Obama plans to use his presidential power to get the Democratic-majority Senate to ratify a series of treaties that would take us a long way toward global rule over our money, our laws, our military, our courts, our customs, our trade and even our use of energy. Here are the treaties he says he wants.

The U.N. Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST), which Ronald Reagan rejected in 1982, is high on Obama's list. LOST has already created the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in Jamaica and given it total regulatory jurisdiction over all the world's oceans and all the riches on the ocean floor.

Corrupt foreign dictators dominate LOST's global bureaucracy, and the United States would have the same vote as Cuba. Likewise for LOST's International Tribunal in Hamburg, Germany, which has the power to decide all disputes.

Even worse, LOST gives the ISA the power to levy international taxes. The real purpose of the taxing power is to compel the United States to spend billions of private-enterprise dollars to mine the ocean floor and then let ISA bureaucrats transfer our wealth to socialist, anti-American nations.

Next on Obama's list is the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which was signed by Bill Clinton but rejected by the Senate in 1999. It would prohibit all nuclear explosive testing and thereby allow our nuclear arsenal to deteriorate until the American people are defenseless against rogue regimes such as Iran and North Korea.

A new Global Warming Treaty is starting to be written at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Poland in order to replace the Kyoto Agreement, which George W. Bush and our Senate refused to ratify. The new treaty would force dramatic reductions in our use of energy -- i.e., our standard of living -- and impose the "strong international norms" that Obama seeks.

Obama is toadying to his feminist friends by pushing ratification of the U.N. Treaty on Women, known as CEDAW. It was signed by Jimmy Carter in 1980 and persistently promoted by Hillary Clinton, but the Senate has so far had the good judgment to refuse to ratify it.

This treaty would require us "to modify the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women," to follow U.N. dictates about "family education," to revise our textbooks to conform to feminist ideology in order to ensure "the elimination of any stereotyped concept of the roles of men and women" and to set up a federal "network of child-care facilities."

Article 16 would require us to allow women "to decide number and spacing of their children." Everyone recognizes this as feminist jargon for a U.N. obligation to allow abortion on demand.

Like all U.N. treaties, the U.N. Treaty on Women creates a monitoring commission of so-called "experts" to ensure compliance. The monitors of the Treaty on Women have already singled out Mother's Day as a stereotype that must be eliminated.

Another U.N. Treaty on the list is the U.N. Treaty on the Rights of the Child, which was signed in 1995 by Bill Clinton but wisely never ratified by our Senate. This is a pet project of the people who believe that the "village" (i.e., the government or U.N. "experts") should raise children rather than their parents.

This treaty would give children rights against their parents and society to express their own views "freely in all matters," to receive information of all kinds through "media of the child's choice," to use their "own language," and to have the right to "rest and leisure." This treaty even orders our schools to teach respect for "the Charter of the United Nations."

These Obama-endorsed treaties, every one of which would be a dramatic encroachment on U.S. sovereignty, would be supplemented by trade agreements negotiated by Obama's trade representative, Ron Kirk. He is an enthusiastic supporter of the "global economic community" (which means open borders for "free" trade), of NAFTA and even of the NAFTA Super Highway, which he calls the "true river of trade between our communities."

Kirk's work to lock us into the global economy will be bolstered by Obama's secretary of commerce, Bill Richardson, another aggressive promoter of "free" trade.

Every U.N. treaty would interfere with self-government over some aspect of our lives and would transfer significant power to foreign bureaucrats, many of whom hate and envy America. Obama's U.N. treaties are the enemy of U.S. political and social independence, and Kirk's global economic community is the enemy of good middle-class American jobs.

Copyright © 2008 Salem Web Network. All Rights Reserved.

Iran-backed Palestinian Groups Continue Attacking Israel

www.theisraelproject.org

In the three days since Israel’s ceasefire with Iran-backed Hamas formally ended Friday (Dec. 19) Palestinian terrorists have fired 45 rockets and mortars at Israeli civilians, wounding a foreign worker who was hit by shrapnel. Hamas and other Iran-backed terrorist groups claimed responsibility for the attacks, which also hit a home and struck near an elementary school.[1] During the past year, Iran-backed terrorist groups in Gaza have fired more than 3,000 rockets and mortars at Israeli civilians in the southern Negev region, killing four people and wounding more than 270.[2]

Since Israel gave up all of Gaza in 2005 – relinquishing homes, farms, places of business and worship – terrorists have launched more than 6,300 rockets and mortars into Israel from Gaza. The attacks have killed 10 civilians, wounded more than 780 and traumatized thousands of others.[3] The only remaining Israeli in Gaza is Staff Sgt. Gilad Shalit who was abducted from Israel on June 25, 2006 by Hamas in a bloody cross-border raid in which the terrorists killed two IDF soldiers and wounded four others.[4]

During a visit five months ago to the southern Israeli city of Sderot, then-candidate and now President-elect Barack Obama defended Israel’s right to protect itself from such attacks: "If somebody was sending rockets into my house where my two daughters sleep at night, I would do everything to stop that, and would expect Israel to do the same thing."[5]

Speaking about the Iranian nuclear threat, Obama also said during the visit, "A nuclear Iran would pose a grave threat and the world must prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon."[6]

In addition to firing missiles at Israeli civilians, the terrorist groups have conducted a sustained campaign of attacks against the border crossings from Gaza into Israel. In 2008 alone, there have been more than 17 attacks or attempted attacks on the crossings.

Among the worst were the shooting deaths of two civilian workers at the Nahal Oz fuel terminal into Gaza; two simultaneous vehicle bombings of the Kerem Shalom goods crossing which wounded 13 soldiers manning the crossing and shut it down for more than two months while repairs were carried out; and an attempted truck bombing of the Erez pedestrian crossing through which Palestinian patients seeking medical treatment in Israel are transported.[7] Also in 2008, more than 13,000 Palestinian patients and their escorts have crossed into Israel for medical treatment.[8]

In addition to firing rockets and mortars, terrorists have smuggled vast amounts of war materiel into Gaza. Israeli Minister for Public Security Avi Dichter said that in July 2008 alone, more than four tons of explosives were smuggled into Gaza via tunnels dug by terrorists under the Egypt-Gaza border. There are 400-600 smuggling tunnels running along Gaza’s Philadelphi Corridor, the strip of land spanning the border between Egypt and Gaza.[9]

Iran, one of the chief sponsors of Palestinian terrorism, provides approximately $20 million to $30 million to Hamas annually and also trains Hamas operatives in Iran and Syria.[10] Approximately 950 Hamas terrorists have been trained in building rockets and bombs, tactical warfare, weapons operation and sniper tactics by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, a special division of Iran’s armed forces.[11]

On Nov. 28, 2008, an Iranian-manufactured standard 120mm mortar was fired by a terrorist group in Gaza and hit an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) base inside Israel, wounding eight soldiers, one of whom had his leg amputated as a result. The use of Iranian-made munitions by Palestinian terrorists is an increasingly common phenomenon in the conflict.[12]

Internecine Palestinian fighting during the past two years also has dealt a harsh blow to future prospects for peace, with 616 Palestinians killed in factional fighting from the time that Hamas won Palestinian elections in January 2006 through May 2007. [13] In June 2007, when Hamas seized control of Gaza in a bloody coup against Palestinian Authority President’s Fatah faction, 161 Palestinians were killed and at least 700 wounded.[14]

Iran, the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, gives Hamas $20 million a year,[15] and provided an additional $50 million after Hamas beat Fatah in the 2006 elections.[16] Iran also provided Hamas members with intensive military training in the weeks and months leading up to the group's takeover of the Gaza Strip.[17]

In September, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said, “Iran considered supporting the Palestinians its religious and national duty and would stay beside the Palestinian nation 'until the big victory feast which is the collapse of the Zionist regime (Israel).” [18]

Iran’s top leaders continue to threaten the West – particularly the United States.

In addition to Iran-backed Hamas’ terrorist activities, the group also conducts extensive media operations. It runs the Al-Aqsa TV station which has promoted terrorist activity and incites hatred of Jews and Israelis. On a children’s program called Tomorrow’s Pioneers which has featured numerous life-size costumed animals, the character called Assoud – a rabbit, stated, “I, Assoud, will finish off the Jews and eat them, Allah willing.” The show is but one example of the incitement to hatred and violence promoted by the TV channel. [19]

Experts for Comment in Israel

Professor Ephraim Inbar
Field: Arab-Israeli conflict, strategic developments in the Middle-East
Affiliation: Director of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University
Cell: 972-54-660-3409
Tel.: 972-3-535-9198
E-mail: inbare@mail.biu.ac.il

Professor Barry Rubin
Field: Syrian foreign and domestic affairs, relations with Iran and Hezbollah, Arab-Israeli conflict, Islamic Fundamentalism in Egypt, Inter Arab Affairs, Israeli Foreign and Security Policy
Affiliation: Research Director of the Herzliya Inter Disciplinary Center’s Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy, and Strategy; editor of the journal Turkish Studies; member of the editorial board of Middle East Quarterly; Senior fellow at the Interdisciplinary Center's International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism.
Tel.: 972-3-531-8959
E-mail: profbarryrubin@yahoo.com

Dr. Jonathan Spyer
Field: Middle East Affairs, Israel-Palestinian Affairs, International Relations
Affiliation: Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center at the Inter-Disciplinary Center in Herzliya.
Cell: 972-52-878-3591
E-mail: jspyer@idc.ac.il

Professor Joshua Teitelbaum
Field: U.S. - Israel relations, history and politics of the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia and the Palestinians.
Affiliation: Senior research fellow at the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, Senior Lecturer in the Middle Eastern History at Tel Aviv University, visiting associate professor of political science at Stanford University.
Cell: 972-54-431-2980

Graph: Rockets and Mortars Fired From Gaza June – December 2008





Footnotes:

[1] “Gaza-Hamas Fact Sheet,” Embassy of Israel, Dec. 22, 2008

[2] Data relayed to The Israel Project by IDF Spokesman’s Division, Dec 18, 2008

[3] Data relayed to The Israel Project by IDF Spokesman’s Division, Dec 18, 2008; Berger, Ronny and Gelkopf, Marc, “The Impact of the Ongoing Traumatic Stress Conditions on Sderot,” Natal, The Israel Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War in cooperation with Dr. Mina Tzemach, Director, Dachaf Public Opinion Research Institute, Oct. 2007

[4] Harel, Amos; Issacharoff, Avi; Haaretz Service and Reuters, "Two soldiers killed, one missing in raid on IDF post," Haaretz, June 25, 2006, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/730994.html

[5] Ravid, Barak, "Obama in Sderot: Nuclear Iran would be game-changing," Haaretz, July 23, 2008, http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1004747.html

[6] "Obama says nuclear Iran a "grave threat," Reuters, July 23, 2008, http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSL2376765320080723

[7] “Main terrorist attacks carried out at Gaza Strip crossings,” Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, June 4, 2008, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Terror+Groups/Main+terrorist+attacks+carried+out+at+Gaza+Strip+crossings+16-Jan-2005.htm

[8] Data relayed to The Israel Project by the IDF’s Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories, Dec. 10, 2008

[9] “News of the Israeli-Palestinian Confrontation July 22-29, 2008,” Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/jul_e001.htm; “Hamas has lately regulated the flourishing tunnel industry in the Gaza Strip,” Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, Oct. 28, 2008, http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/ct_e009.pdf

[10] Hamas," Council on Foreign Relations Web site, http://www.cfr.org/publication/8968/, retrieved July 7, 2008

[11] “Senior Hamas operative figure tells London Sunday Times’ Gaza Strip correspondent about Iranian and Syria military aid, detailing the training received by hundreds of Hamas terrorist operatives and describing the transmission to Hamas of Iranian technical know-how for the manufacture of rockets and IED,” The Terrorist and Intelligence Information Center at the Israel Intelligence Heritage and Commemoration Center, March 17, 2008, retrieved July 7, 2008, http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/hamas_160308e.htm; Colvin, Marie, “Hamas wages Iran’s proxy war on Israel,” The Times, March 9, 2008, http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article3512014.ece

[12] “Violation of calm: Rockets strike Sderot, Ashkelon, western Negev,” Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dec. 17, 2008, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Hamas+war+against+Israel/Rockets_strike_Sderot_Ashkelon_western_Negev_
16-Nov-2008.htm; Harel, Amos, “Gaza mortar shells injure eight soldiers, one loses leg,” Haaretz, Nov. 29, 2008, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1042007.html

[13] “Over 600 Palestinians killed in internal clashes since 2006,” YnetNews, June 6, 2007, http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3409548,00.html

[14] “Black Pages in the Absence of Justice: Report on Bloody Fighting in the Gaza Strip from 7 to 14 June 2007,” Palestine Centre for Human Rights, October 2007, http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/Reports/English/pdf_spec/Gaza%20Conflict%20-%20Eng%209%20october..pdf

[15] Hamas," Council on Foreign Relations Web site, http://www.cfr.org/publication/8968/, accessed July 2, 2007

[16] Iran pledges $50m Palestinian aid," BBC News, April 16, 2006, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4914334.stm

[17] Rabinovich, Abraham, "Hamas digs in for war in Gaza," The Australian, March 16, 2007

[18] “Ahmadinejad: Iran will support Hamas until collapse of Israel,” Haaretz, Sept. 13, 2008, http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1020630.html

[19] Kalman, Mathew, “Hamas launches TV Bugs Bunny-lookalike who declares 'I will eat the Jews',” The Daily Mail, Feb. 12, 2008, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-513925/Hamas-launches-TV-Bugs-Bunny-lookalike-declares-I-eat-Jews.html; “Al Aqsa TV,” ADL.org, http://www.adl.org/terrorism/profiles/al_aqsa_tv.asp. Accessed on Dec. 22, 2008
The Israel Project is an international non-profit, nonpartisan organization devoted to educating the press and the public about Israel while promoting security, freedom and peace. The Israel Project provides journalists, leaders and opinion-makers accurate information about Israel. The Israel Project is not related to any government or government agency and does not rate or endorse candidates. .

"Who Knows?"

Arlene Kushner

...what's going to happen with regard to military action in Gaza. The situation shifts almost hourly, and the politicians are posturing. And so, I will make this review of the situation as concise as possible:

That we are, or were, on the edge of a major action is to my mind fairly irrefutable. In fact, I had information on Friday that a ground operation was due to start the following evening after Shabbat -- an operation that was, apparently, then cancelled.. It is also, to my mind, clear that it is Barak who is blocking this action, at this point letting the nation know -- with an eye to the election -- that he is the "wiser, more careful" statesman for acting this way. Don't believe it for even a second. It was Barak in 2000 who, as prime minister, precipitously pulled our troops from the security zone in Lebanon, thereby setting the scene for Hezbollah to move in. No one wants our boys to be at risk -- my heart wrenches with the possibility of causalities. But an army must defend a nation.

~~~~~~~~~~

Head of the Shin Bet gave a briefing to the Cabinet yesterday in which he said that Hamas has rockets now that are capable of reaching to the edge of Beersheva and into Kiryat Gat and Ashdod (farther than ever before) and we should anticipate a strong retaliation if we do go in and prepare for it.

~~~~~~~~~~

Reports have been released saying that Olmert and Barak (or in another version, also Livni) have met and decided on a major operation.

Olmert, from Turkey, is saying we must respond to the rockets. Livni, campaigning, is saying that if she's prime minister, she'll take out the Hamas leadership. But I notice that she says she would do so by a combination of methods, military and diplomatic. This is nonsense: she's not going to undo Hamas diplomatically, and I haven't forgotten that she's the one responsible for the horrific "diplomatic" resolution to the Lebanese war that ended up permitting Hezbollah to rearm.

Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi has now also made a statement about the impossibility of the current situation.

In preparation for this presumed military operation that has been decided upon, Livni, as foreign minister, is preparing a Hasbara (PR) blitz to present Israel's side to the world. Israeli ambassadors worldwide will be taking our position to various governments and international ambassadors here are to be taken to see Sderot.

~~~~~~~~~~

Hamas is said to be divided between the military wing, which is eager to confront us without limitations now, and the political wing, which would like a new "lull," but under their terms, which include opening of crossings and extension of the "lull" to Judea and Samaria. Even this government won't agree to that. It is our IDF operations in Judea and Samaria that prevent suicide bombings and the like; to agree to stop going after these guys would be a disaster.

A good percentage of the rockets and mortars that have hit in recent days have come from Islamic Jihad and the Palestinian Front, rather than from Hamas itself -- but what is clear is that Hamas, which controls the situation, is allowing these groups to operate as proxies.

~~~~~~~~~~

Egypt is sending mixed messages. Egypt has been angry with Hamas since it boycotted a recent Egyptian effort to bring Hamas and Fatah together for a Cairo meeting. And it is reported that the Egyptians are furious with Hamas now for refusing to continue the "ceasefire" -- they know full well that at some point Israel will have to respond to the rockets from Gaza. And yet, Egypt, playing both ends, has "warned" Israel regarding the ill-advised nature of a military operation.

Right now Egypt is attempting to negotiate a new "lull," and asked Hamas to hold the rocket fire for 24 hours. Three rockets were fired today and gunmen shot at soldiers near the Sufa crossing. In an unusual move, Mubarak invited Livni to meet with him to discuss the "deteriorating situation." It was said that she would be presenting our position. Unless Mubarak has a new offer from the Hamas side, he is unlikely to achieve his goal. But Hamas is disenchanted with Egypt as a mediator (even where Shalit negotiations are concerned, Hamas wants a mediator other than Egypt) and is not likely to be influenced by Mubarak.

~~~~~~~~~~

The talk now is about the possibility of achieving a period of quiet again. But this avoids the essential issue, which is that Hamas continues to strengthen during such periods, retaining the ability to hit us at their option. The fact that they are stronger now than they were six months ago is evidence enough that another such "lull" is ultimately a poor and exceedingly short-sighted option for us.

I thank Aaron Lerner of IMRA for pointing out that a letter submitted to the UN secretary-general by Israeli ambassador to the UN Gabriele Shalev protesting the firing of rockets by Hamas does not also protest the weapons smuggling, manufacture and stockpiling. As if all is well as long as Hamas is not using its weapons at a given moment. This is Livni's "diplomatic" approach?

~~~~~~~~~~

Who knows? Maybe tomorrow -- a day in which clear skies are predicted -- there will be the beginning of a serious operation. But, maybe not.

~~~~~~~~~~

How low can this man sink? The man? Jimmy Carter. And apparently there are no limits to how far down he can go. On his website, for the Carter Center, he reports about his recent trip, which included a stop in Damascus:

"In the afternoon...I met with Khaled Mashaal and his fellow Hamas politburo members, all of whom are scientists, medical doctors, or engineers – none trained in religion. [Implication: they're good guys and not Islamic radicals at all.] It was the anniversary of Hamas' founding, and they were watching Prime Minister Haniyeh's speech in Gaza to an enormous crowd. We discussed items on my agenda that included ...formulas for prisoner exchange to obtain the release of Corporal Shalit..."

Incredible. A former US president giving advice to terrorist Mashaal regarding how much to demand for Shalit. We must remember that the Carter Center takes huge donations from Arab nations. Can he be impeached retroactively?

~~~~~~~~~~

There have been conflicting reports about a situation of serious dimensions: The possible sale to Iran by Russia of state-of-the-art S-300 anti-missile missiles that would seriously retard Israeli efforts to hit Iran.

Iranian sources had said that delivery of the missiles would be starting soon. But Russia has since denied this. Israeli remains convinced that Russia was standing by its agreement with Olmert, who visited in October, that it would not provide Iran with equipment that would "tip the strategic balance."

Let's hope the Israeli perception is correct. Amos Gilad, head of the Ministry of Defense military-diplomatic bureau, was in Moscow last week.

~~~~~~~~~~

Ending again with good news: Scientists at Hebrew University in Jerusalem have discovered a gene mechanism in stem cells that could lead to significant treatment options. Embryonic stem cells are undifferentiated and extraordinary in their ability to develop into various sorts of tissue, Different sets of genes in the cells control the process of differentiation into specific types of tissues. One set of genes makes muscles cells, another makes liver cells, and so forth. What tissue a particular stem cell becomes depends on which genes were activated and which turned off. The discovery concerns the central process involved and may in time lead to generation of tissue for repairing cells damaged by a variety of diseases: heart tissue for those with heart disease, pancreatic tissue for those with diabetes, brain cells for those with Parkinson's disease, etc.

~~~~~~~~~~
see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info

Israeli official warns of longer Gaza rocket range

MARK LAVIE

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's top security official warned Sunday that Gaza militants can hit more Israeli cities with longer-range rockets, on a day when rockets exploded in border towns and a coastal city after an Israel-Hamas truce expired.. Only one Israeli was lightly wounded in the barrage of 19 rockets and three mortars by nightfall. But after a weekend of heavy rocket attacks — and two Israeli airstrikes in response — Israel's government threatened to strike back hard.

One rocket exploded in Ashkelon, a city of about 120,000 on the Mediterranean coast 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Gaza. In the past, Israel has responded harshly to attacks on Ashkelon.

Yuval Diskin, the head of the Shin Bet security service, warned Israel's Cabinet that Gaza's Hamas rulers now have rockets that can reach the larger city of Ashdod farther north on the Mediterranean coast and even the outskirts of Beersheba, 30 miles (50 kilometers) to the east. Such attacks would increase the likelihood of an Israeli invasion of Gaza.

"The scenarios are clear, the plans are clear, the determination is clear, and so are the ramifications of each of the steps," Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said at his Cabinet's weekly meeting. "A responsible government is not happy to go to war, but does not evade it."

The government has been under heavy pressure to react to the rocket fire, but the military has so far been wary of doing so for fear of casualties. In the past, large operations have not succeeded in stopping the rockets.

A truce between Israel and Hamas expired on Friday after six months. The truce had frayed since early November, and rocket fire at Israeli towns has been increasing steadily in recent days.

"The Hamas government in Gaza must be toppled, the means to do this must be military, economic and diplomatic," said Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who is in the running to become prime minister in elections Feb. 10. "Whenever they shoot at Israel, Israel must respond."

Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned the Cabinet that broad military action is increasingly likely. "In order to return to a calm like six months ago, we will probably need a wide-scale operation," he said, according to a meeting participant who spoke on condition of anonymity under government guidelines.

Israeli officials said diplomats are already trying to build international support for an offensive in Gaza. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are not public, said the goal was to avert hostile declarations and U.N. resolutions if Israel invades Gaza. No further details, including which countries have been contacted, were immediately available.

Hamas spokesman Ismail Radwan blamed Israel for the collapse of the truce and said Palestinian factions would "respond to any aggression against our people."

Israel has largely kept the crossings into Gaza closed in response to the rocket fire, a move that has caused shortages of fuel and basic goods in the territory of 1.4 million Palestinians.

On Sunday, one rocket scored a direct hit on a house in the town of Sderot, scattering rubble and furniture inside. "Everyone is traumatized," the house's owner, Maya Aviar, told AP Television News.

No one was injured in that attack, but the Israeli military said a worker at a farming community near Gaza was lightly wounded in a separate rocket hit.

The Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad took responsibility for Sunday's rocket fire. Abu Ahmad, a spokesman for the group, said Israeli citizens would "not sleep peacefully as long as Gaza children are not enjoying water, electricity, medicine and peace."

Israel carried out two airstrikes Sunday aimed at rocket launchers in Gaza, the military and Palestinian officials said. No one was hurt. Militants typically prepare rockets for launch and then fire them from cover a safe distance away. .

Demophrenia

Paul Eidelberg


If you want an in-depth analysis of what ails Israel ’s political and intellectual and some of its military elites, consult Chapter 5 of my book Demophrenia: Israel and the Malaise of Democracy . Here is an abstract:


From its inception in 1948, the government of Israel , regardless of which party or coalition was at the helm, has been afflicted by “demophrenia . ” Demophrenia is a deeply rooted malady of national and even of world-historical significance . Demophrenia involves an illogical and compulsive application of the democratic principles of freedom and equality to moral problems and ideological conflicts which are impervious to, and even exacerbated by, those principles . This disorder is most advanced in Israel , for its government is animated by a democratic mentality in conflict with Zionism, and ineffectual against the anti-democratic mentality of Israel 's Arab enemies . To show that demophrenia is indeed a widespread but hitherto unrecognized mental disorder, I shall first review some of the literature on schizophrenia .


Schizophrenia is regarded as the core concept of modern psychiatry . Various researchers distinguish between positive- and negative-symptom schizophrenia . The former includes hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorder; the latter includes escapism, apathy, depersonalization, stereotypic behaviors, flattened emotional or affective reactions, impairment of volition, and lack of self-esteem . Obviously, these negative symptoms exist on a continuum with normal behavior .


In any event, it should be borne in mind that schizophrenia is not necessarily an all-encompassing illness which sets the patient apart from his fellow man . A World Health Organization (WHO) study concludes that “schizophrenics, for all their vulnerabilities, are in the full sense responsive social beings like the rest of us” .


Still, those “vulnerabilities” can and do result in bizarre behavior . The renowned clinical psychologist Dr . David Shakow distinguishes four types of schizophrenic responses to diverse stimuli which, to my initial surprise, accurately describe the reactions of countless democrats to the characteristically bellicose behavior of Arab-Islamic leaders on the one hand, and to the occasionally pacific utterances of those leaders on the other:


(1) The central, directly meaningful stimulus is avoided, apparently because it is disturbing; instead the peripheral is endowed with meaning . (2) A casual attitude appears in which [only] part of the field is accepted as the stimulus . (3) The subject has a 'fixed' idea and resorts to it without regard for the [central and contradictory] stimulus . (4) The peripheral is . . . selectively attended to, captures attention, and is adhered to .


Moreover, to his false perception a schizophrenic's response may be appropriate or inappropriate to that perception . Alternatively, his perception may be veridical but his response will be inappropriate . The consequence, of course, is maladapted responses to reality .


Although WHO studies have shown that the prognosis of schizophrenia is worse in the urbanized and industrialized West than in the Third World , no systematic attempt has been made to determine whether the moral relativism engendered by democracy contributes to schizophrenia . This lacuna may be attributed to the relativism that modulates the disciplines of psychology and psychiatry, as well as to the tendency of the medical profession to trace schizophrenia to biophysical causes .


The absence of research on the possible adverse effects of moral relativism on mental health is all the more curious when one considers that psychologists include “alienation,” “anxiety,” and “loss of identity” among the symptoms of schizophrenia . These symptoms are conspicuous in secular, egalitarian societies where moral relativism thrives . Surely a loss of belief in objective moral standards has emotional and behavioral consequences, some of which may be deleterious . Indeed, many psychotherapists maintain that “belief-modification” can mitigate various schizophrenic symptoms . But if relativism or moral egalitarianism has adverse effects on the mental health of individuals, it may also impair, imperceptibly, the rationality of their government in matters of vital public concern .


This ends the abstract from my book Demophrenia . The chapter continues with a more refined analysis of schizophrenia by the psychiatrist Professor Ignazio Matte Blanco . His analysis, which I apply to documented behavior and statements of Israel ’s political leaders, clearly reveals that they are suffering from “demophrenia,” which, I show is a democratic manifestation of schizophrenia .


This pathology explains why Israeli prime ministers repeatedly commit the same errors regarding the PLO-Palestinians: be it counterproductive ceasefires, suicidal release of terrorists, self-destructive negotiations with terrorist leaders, self-restraint vis-à-vis these terrorists—and yes, commitment to a Palestinian state . (Case studies, included in Chapter 6, verify this analysis . )



_______________________________________________
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"Chanukah"

Tonight we light the first candle of our eight-day festival of Chanukah. And so the spirit of Chanukah will infuse today's posting.

It is said that because miracles were "common" on Chanukah, this time, within all the year, is the time to pray for miracles. And so, as I wish each of you a Happy Chanukah, I ask please that if you are lighting candles you pray for miracles for Israel with those candles. "Common" miracles -- what is possible if we are strong and believe. We are on the edge of a major ground operation in Gaza, but the political leadership (read, Barak) is holding back. There is great anger in the country about this, including among many in the Knesset and the government. At today's Cabinet meeting the issue was discussed, but without resolution.

It is reported that Barak asked Olmert to calm things down, and indeed that is what he tried to do. Said he, "...a responsible government is never eager to battle, but nor does it shy away from it. We will take all necessary measures."

With words of great profundity, he observed that, "Obviously, the ceasefire can only exist while it exists, not while there's nonstop fire.

"It is no secret that we were hesitant to accept the ceasefire. Naturally, we wanted the terror and the weapons smuggling to stop completely, and based on that we decided to embark on the lull."

Indeed, our intention with the "lull" may have been to get Hamas to stop smuggling, but it was evident quite quickly that smuggling continued. It was then our business, immediately, to declare that terms were not being honored and go after them.

Finally, said Olmert, "I've discussed the situation with the defense and foreign ministers, the scenarios are clear and the government will know which move to take and when."

This is a hedge that tells us nothing. And I would say that we were going to get nothing but words, except that I know that the pressure to do something is great, and plans are very real and very much in place. The IDF is superbly prepared for this. At the Cabinet meeting, Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog said that a strike in Gaza is impending.

~~~~~~~~~~

It's shameful for this man, Barak -- who was once brave and much decorated -- that he has turned into a self-serving political wimp in his position now. But it is not what he has done to himself, but rather the damage he does to the nation that is significant. For us to fail to act in a significant manner while we are being bombarded with Kassams and mortars weakens us and makes us foolish. The pressure of international community cannot hold sway here: It's time we did what is right for Israel. And today is the time to draw on the model of the ancient Maccabees.

~~~~~~~~~~

A barrage of some 10 Kassams had been launched by noon today (and they will undoubtedly keep coming). One person (a foreign worker in a greenhouse near Ashkelon) has been hurt and a home in Sderot has been demolished. Mortars exploded near the home of MK Shai Hermesh (Kadima) in Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

Hermesh has said: “From the moment the ‘ceasefire’ began on June 19, Defense Minister Ehud Barak in effect surrendered to Gaza terrorists. The State of Israel has surrendered its sovereignty over the Gaza Belt area due to electoral considerations.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Yesterday and today there were IDF strikes against launching sites in northern Gaza. One terrorist, associated with Fatah's Al Aksa Brigades, was killed. Good, but not nearly, nearly enough. They go to new sites and pull out new rockets and draw on new personnel.

~~~~~~~~~~

If, finally, a major operation does go ahead, it cannot be fought the way we fought in Lebanon. It must be fought with full force, so that the enemy Hamas (and all those watching) know with whom they are dealing. I fear for half-way measures -- leaving Hamas leadership intact and suddenly calling a new "lull." That will leave Hamas mocking us and make us, still, appear weak in enemy eyes. We are facing too many enemies to permit that to happen.

~~~~~~~~~~

In honor of Chanukah I turn now to good news about Israel -- to items that show strength of another kind. We are, whether the world wishes to know it or not, a gift to mankind, a blessing to the world:

~~~~~~~~~~

Scientists at Ben Gurion University in Beersheva, working with researchers at US universities, have discovered a technique that promises the possibility of neutralizing Diabetes type I.

What they have done is to transplant healthy insulin-producing tissue onto a diabetic pancreas. This is not a new process, but had limited value until now because the healthy tissue was ultimately rejected. But now they have discovered a drug that prevents rejection; they believe, it will allow the healthy tissue to function indefinitely. Tests on animals have been most encouraging and clinical trials are to begin soon.

As there are over 180 million people worldwide with Diabetes, this promises a development of considerable magnitude.

~~~~~~~~~~

An Israeli company, Bio Mark, has developed an inexpensive screening test for colon cancer that catches this disease in its early -- or even pre-cancerous -- stages. The test, which can be run as part of a routine blood screening, can successfully identify colon polyps, which are overwhelming the source of colon cancer. Expected to be available in about a year, this test will be a life saver.

~~~~~~~~~~

Rcadia Medical Imaging, in Haifa, has developed a software technology for the automated analysis of coronary CT angiography, which enables doctors to quickly identify and diagnose patients who need further evaluation for severe coronary artery disease.

~~~~~~~~~~

The Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Research Center has developed a new solar cell that can produce over one thousand times more electric power than a conventional photovoltaic or PV.

Explains developer Professor David Faiman, "The achievement is that we separate out the collection function of a photovoltaic cell to the light conversion to electricity function. When we collect the light, instead of using a huge area of solar cells, we use an equal area of cheap glass mirrors and they are curved in such a way as to concentrate the light onto a very small solar cell, the size of just one cell, and in this way you concentrate the light a thousand times and you can get a thousand times more power out of a small cell."

This has enormous implications; it will be put to use in the US, and, in time, in many other places.

~~~~~~~~~~

A grassroots organization called Fugee Fridays is gleaning surplus produce from the Carmel Friday food market in Tel Aviv and distributing it to African refugees who fled here on foot.

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see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info

Int'l Pressure for New Ceasefire

Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu

The United Nations, Egypt and France are putting pressure on Hamas and Israel to declare a new ceasefire following more than three dozen mortar and rocket attacks on the western Negev Friday and on the Sabbath, causing damage but no serious injuries.
Gaza Belt residents, the Opposition and members of the coalition government have accused the Olmert administration of total irresponsibility by abiding by the June 19 truce while Hamas and other terrorists groups continually attacked Israel.

The Cabinet on Sunday will discuss the situation in Gaza on Sunday for the second straight week. Last week, leaders on all sides said that action must be taken, but the outcome of the Cabinet meeting was a continuation of the current policy of not retaliating except for targeting rocket-launching cells that the IDF posts catches in the act of trying to attack.

Kadima ministers Shaul Mofaz, Meir Sheetrit and Chain Ramon have taken positions opposite outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Ramon and Shas chairman Eli Yishai called for an urgent discussion Sunday to propose retaliation before a rocket or mortar shell claims lives, as they have done in the past.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he is "extremely concerned" over the escalation. "The 'calm' should be respected and extended, rocket attacks against Israel must be immediately halted and all acts of violence must cease," his office said.

Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas, who visited United States President George W. Bush on Thursday, also called for renewal of the June 19 ceasefire, which was punctuated for the first five months by more than 40 attacks on Israel.

The agreement crumbled altogether in early November, when the IDF discovered a plan by terrorists to use tunnels to kidnap IDF soldiers. The IDF attacked the cell, and Hamas responded with a daily barrage on the western Negev.



On Saturday, Egypt called for Hamas and Israel to hold fire, and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner stated, "Dozens and dozens of rockets are raining down on Israeli territory. At the same time the Gaza Strip is blocked: water, electricity, medicine, essential goods are lacking."


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Reeling from Madoff losses, Hadassah determined to recover

Longstanding Jewish philanthropic organization lost staggering $90 million when it fell victim to Bernard Madoff scam. In rare emotional plea, Hadassah president issues call to arms for immediate donations: ‘We've had to tighten our belt so much it hurts. But everything we do to meet the challenge is aimed at protecting our core mission of strengthening Israel and the Jewish people’ WASHINGTON – ‘Hadassah’ President Nancy Falchuk issued an urgent call for donations on Friday to America’s oldest Zionist philanthropic organization in the wake of the Bernard Madoff scandal. Hadassah announced earlier this week the organization’s losses stand at $90 million. Falchuk warned that the organization’s plight was “critical,” and called on both regular donors and non-members to help Hadassh pull through.




Numerous Jewish charity groups are among former NASDAQ Chairman Madoff’s victims.




In an impassioned online video campaign under the banner ‘Times Are Tough – But We’re Tougher,’ Falchuk calls on Hadassah supporters to help the group weather the difficult epoch.




“We've had to tighten our belt so much it hurts. But everything we do to meet the challenge is aimed at protecting our core mission of strengthening Israel and the Jewish people,” Falchuk says in the video.




“Protecting our mission and our values takes more than planning. That's why we need every member of Hadassah, and generous non-members as well, to be involved. This a critical moment in which your financial support is so urgent.”




Noting that Hadassah has been hit twice in recent times, with the global economic crisis already having taken its toll on the organization’s finances long before the Madoff scandal broke, Falchuk remains confident.




Recalling that the organization, founded in 1912, has triumphed over numerous difficult events in its history, Falchuk says: “Despite the substantial loss, I want to assure you of Hadassah's strength, sustainability and commitment,” Falchuk says. “We will get through this crisis because of the wisdom that is our inheritance, because of the fortitude of our leaders and members, and because our life-enhancing and life-saving programs demand it of us.”




Hadassah has already said the loss would not affect the building of a new multi-story complex at the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem. The new medical center, to be named after Sarah Davidson, will cost $210 million - $75 million of which were donated by William Davidson, owner of the Detroit Pistons.




“I appeal to you directly, simply, humbly,” says Falchuk to supporters. “We need your IMMEDIATE support to continue our projects in Israel. To save lives every day. To educate the next generation that will lead Israel in the years and decades to come.




“Jews have endured for millennia. Hadassah has endured for almost 100 years. With your help, we will continue because times are tough, but we're tougher

US Postal Service won't send "any matter containing religious materials contrary to Islamic faith" to overseas military post offices

Want to send your brother-in-law in Iraq a Bible? An ikon? A kippah? Some joss sticks? Forget it. All that is "contrary to Islamic faith." Qur'ans and other Islamic articles only, please. Sharia Alert from...the United States Postal Service: "Overseas Military Mail," from the U.S. Postal Service (thanks to Pamela):

Mail addressed to military post offices overseas is subject to certain conditions or restrictions of mailing regarding content, preparation, and handling. The APO/FPO table below outlines these conditions by APO/FPO ZIP Codes through the use of footnoted mailing restrictions codes (see the Restrictions page following the table). [...]
RESTRICTIONS

[...]

C. Cigarettes and other tobacco products are prohibited.

C1. Obscene articles, prints, paintings, cards, films, videotapes, etc., and horror comics and matrices are prohibited.

D. Coffee is prohibited.

E1. Medicines or vaccines not conforming to French laws are prohibited.

E2. Any matter containing religious materials contrary to Islamic faith or depicting nude or seminude persons, pornographic or sexual items, or nonauthorized political materials is prohibited. [...]

Comment: Of course they reciprocate-!!

IDF faces stronger Hamas

Lull had benefits, but it also allowed Hamas to build up its military strength
Alex Fishman

Part 2 of analysis

The Gaza Strip lull also served as a platform for tightening the ties between Israel and Egypt. The Gaza crisis did not trickle into Egypt, and the Egyptians did not cave in to Hamas on the issues important to Israel, such as the opening of the Rafah Crossing or the release of Hamas detainees held by Cairo. The lull also allowed for the advancement of the Saudi peace initiative and the maintenance of polite relations with the moderate Arab world. It was no coincidence that Jordan's King Abdullah invited Prime Minister Olmert and Defense Minister Barak to meet with him about two months ago. The possibility of ending the lull jeopardized, and still jeopardizes, the Jordanian regime's stability.


Part 1
The post-lull era / Alex Fishman
Alex Fishman offers insights into Gaza Strip truce and what we can expect the ‘day after’
Full Story
Thanks to the lull, we also got less airtime on television screens in Europe and the United States. This enabled the International Quartet to cling to a policy of boycotting Hamas and provided the US Administration with some quiet, so it could focus on affairs in Iraq and Afghanistan.


The lull also enabled the IDF to prepare, formulate plans, and equip itself. However, the same cannot be said of Gaza-region residents. The time was not used efficiently for completing fortifications and preparing for the possibility of more communities coming under the rocket threat.


Army officials also believe that a clash on the Gaza front may prompt a second front in the north, so the lull spared us another violent round on two fronts, simultaneously and at an inconvenient timing.


Hamas doubled its rocket arsenal
The defense establishment, including the defense minister and army chief, see more benefits than drawbacks to the lull. However, the advantages are counterbalanced by the deepening Hamas hold on the Strip and the build up of the group's military capabilities.


At this time, Hamas possess a rocket arsenal that is double the size and range of what it had six months ago. Hamas has 8,000 to 10,000 rockets of various types. Six months ago, its rockets had a 20-kilometer (roughly 12 miles) range. Today, the group may be able to hit Beersheba.


Meanwhile, Gaza's defense system has been completed. It includes eight divisions and 16,000 armed personnel, as well as anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons. The quality of the defenses against Israel's armored forces has improved, and underground tunnels are much more secure. Toady, Gaza is home to tunnels extending for about 50 kilometers (roughly 30 miles,) improved bunkers, and better intelligence means.


Israeli officials expected that the lull would serve to advance negotiations on the release of Gilad Shalit. Yet this did not happen.


In summary, what the IDF could have done six months ago is much more complicated today. Therefore, there is no rush now. Or as the defense minister put it: The war won't run away.

Gaza Terrorists End Ceasefire

Hana Levi Julian Gaza Terrorists End Ceasefire

Gaza terrorists began the first official day after the end of the so-called "temporary ceasefire" early Friday morning with the usual barrage of Kassam rockets aimed at the western Negev. The attacks began at the usual hour, approximately 7:30 a.m., when Jewish children are walking to school and their parents and other adults are on their way to work, thus maximizing the chances of the missiles hitting civilian targets.



Two Kassam rockets exploded in the Eshkol region, fired by the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization.



A second attack soon followed, with the terrorist group also responsible for a Kassam rocket striking the Sha'ar HaNegev district.



No one was injured and no damage was reported in any of the incidents.



By 8:30 a.m., however, the attacks had escalated to include sniper fire, thus indicating the official end to the tahadiyeh, or temporary truce.



Gaza terrorists fired at farmers working near Kibbutz Nir Oz, east of the Hamas-controlled region. The targeted Jews were rescued by an IDF armored corps unit. Although a vehicle was damaged, no one was injured in the attack.



Eshkol Regional Council Chairman Chaim Yellin commented that sniper fire made it clear that Hamas had no intention of continuing the ceasefire, according to Voice of Israel government radio.



"The firing at farmers in the field is the final piece of evidence on the end of the 'calm'," Yellin said. "We have gone back to the situation of half a year ago."

What Bertelsmann Wants from Obama

John Rosenthal
Pajamas Media

Whereas President-elect Obama’s disclosure deal with Bill and Hillary Clinton has received close attention from the traditional news media, the president-elect’s own disclosure issues — notably, as concerns his financial relationship with Germany’s Bertelsmann Corporation — continue to be ignored. It is undoubtedly true that the books published by the Bertelsmann subsidiary Random House under Barack Obama’s name have sold extremely well. It is, however, equally undoubtedly true that Bertelsmann/Random House invested considerable marketing resources to assure that they would. The German corporation is thus not merely a passive beneficiary of the phenomenon that has come to be known as “Obamamania”; Bertelsmann/Random House substantially contributed to creating the phenomenon.In any case, Senate ethics rules expressly require members to reveal the financial details of book deals. In a 2006 column on “[1] Barack Obama and the Book Business,” Peter Osnos notes that Obama avoided having to comply with these rules by signing his Bertelsmann/Random House deal in the brief window between his election to the Senate and his swearing in.

As suggested in my earlier article on [2] Bertelsmann’s “Man in the White House,” the issue of Obama’s financial relationship to Bertelsmann is particularly troubling, since following the November 4 presidential election the Bertelsmann Foundation wasted no time in announcing that it had prepared a series of policy recommendations for the incoming president. Bertelsmann is no ordinary German corporation. Via the foundation and the foundation’s yearly budget of some €70 million, it is a major player in German politics and European politics more generally. The “synergies” between Bertelsmann and various agencies of the German government are numerous and obvious: so much so that Bertelsmann has taken on the trappings of a veritable state within the state. Consider only that [3] Bertelsmann’s “10th International Forum” in 2006 was held at the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Participants included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, then French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin, and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso.

Bertelsmann’s “Trans-Atlantic Briefing Book” is available [4] here. Bertelsmann also refers to it as a [5] “European Briefing Book for Barack Obama”. The document sets out a “roadmap” for transatlantic cooperation during Obama’s first six months in office. In typical Bertelsmann style, the authors do not hesitate to speak on behalf of all of Europe and all Europeans. The tone of the document more closely resembles that of a Diktat laid down by a victorious power to a defeated adversary than that of a policy papers published by a customary think-tank. Although providing what are merely styled “recommendations,” the authors’ preferred register is in fact bluntly imperative. Thus the very first sentence reads: “Engaging with Europe is not an option” (i.e., not merely an option). The “Briefing Book,” we are told shortly thereafter, will identify “items that must specifically be addressed” (my emphasis) in the “short window” following the inauguration (p. 5).

The incoming president is given remarkably detailed instructions to be carried out within precise time-frames. For example: “Prior to entering office, the next U.S. president should call for a suspension and review of the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)” (p. 57) or “The new U.S. administration … should begin a climate initiative by the end of President Obama’s first six months in office. They need to get started before the summer.” (p. 60). Also on “climate change,” the incoming president is advised to use his inaugural address or the State of the Union address to provide “commitments to an international regime with binding emissions targets” (p. 62). It will be interesting to see if he does.

The Bertelsmann “Briefing Book” devotes separate sections to seven “key issues”: Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Russia, Economic Challenges, Climate Change, and the Middle East Peace Process. Perhaps more notable than those issues that made the cut is one that did not: terrorism. Indeed, terrorism is almost only ever mentioned in passing in the “Briefing Book” and when it does come up, it typically does so as someone else’s concern: that of the UK or Russia or, of course, of the United States. In the section on Afghanistan, for example, combating terrorism is mentioned as just one possible motivation for the international military presence in the country and one, moreover, that the authors persistently insinuate is regarded as dubious by “real” Europeans (i.e., everyone but the British). “European public opinion was never enthusiastic about joining a US-led anti-terror combat mission,” we are told (p. 16) — as if the very origins of the war in Afghanistan had faded into obscurity or somehow did not matter.

Only in the very last substantive sub-section of the “Briefing Book” do the authors get around to telling us that “Europe has taken on the counter-terrorism agenda” (p. 76). This wooden — and, in light of all the foregoing, unconvincing — assurance appears in a seemingly tacked-on “Special Note on The Long-Term Agenda.” Terrorism is there included in a list of “long-term foreign policy challenges,” which, however, are not deemed to be as “urgent” as the “key issues.”

This is to say that for Bertelsmann the purely hypothetical and obviously long-term “threat” of sustained global temperature increase is more urgent than the threat posed by the Islamic terror networks whose attacks have taken tens of thousands of lives from 9/11 to Mumbai’s 11/26. (Marc Sheppard has [6] noted at American Thinker that at a recent meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative, Bill Clinton similarly downplayed the importance of terrorism as compared to global warming. That Bill Clinton would thus echo the Bertelsmann priorities is hardly surprising. After all, as documented in my [7] “Bill Clinton’s German Paymasters”, the former president’s personal wealth is largely a product of his collaboration with Bertelsmann.) Revealingly, the first time the “Briefing Book” mentions “longer-term challenges” (p. 6), terrorism is not even included in the list. “Outreach to the Muslim world,” however, is. With Iran reported to be on the verge of obtaining enough enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon, nuclear proliferation is likewise relegated by the Bertelsmann Foundation to the ranks of the second-tier, “not-so-urgent” issues.

The Bertelsmann “Briefing Book” hardly makes for scintillating reading. Predictably, given the source, the background assumptions on the state of transatlantic relations are derived from the “grand narrative” of American misdeeds under the Bush administration that Bertelsmann’s own media have played a major role in propagating. (On Bertelsmann’s flagship German weekly Stern, for instance, see [8] here.) In lieu of facts and documentation, the “Briefing Book” makes due with the mind-numbing repetition of clichés. Thus, for example, we are told that “America’s image in the world has plummeted over the last eight year. … Policies affiliated with the Bush administration have grown into a spreading anti-Americanism…” (p. 6). It is as if the Bertelsmann authors could not think of any evidence that anti-Americanism might perhaps have been a problem already before the Bush administration. For example: the 9/11 attacks, the planning for which is thought to have begun in 1999 — and, as so happens, to have begun precisely in Hamburg, a mere three hours drive from Bertelsmann’s corporate headquarters in Gütersloh. The virtually total absence of the 9/11 attacks from the authors’ considerations is indeed striking. It is as if they simply never occurred. There is only one allusion to 9/11 in the entire document and, revealingly, this one allusion is to be found in a reference to a disposition of 9/11 Commission follow-up legislation that the EU would like to see canceled (p. 57).

To the degree that the authors make the pretense of offering any actual analysis, this mostly consists of pseudo-wonkish gibberish, with the tedious drone of meaningless phrases occasionally being broken up by some fantastically mixed metaphors. Thus, for example, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is said to have “found his footing in Washington” during the financial crisis and to have the opportunity in 2009 “to use this footing and cement his international reputation while it shines” (p. 11). Parts of the text appear, moreover, to have been composed by the legendary “Captain Obvious”: countries engaged in Afghanistan are, for instance, advised “to bolster what is working on the ground and fix what is not working” (p. 20).

But the real interest of the “Briefing Book” lies in the demands — or seemingly indeed commands — that are addressed to the incoming president. Given the status of the Iraq War as the cardinal sin of the Bush administration in the grand narrative, the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq is, needless to say, a high priority: the authors dub it “Americans’ top national-security priority” (p. 35). At the same time, however, they call into question the sustainability of the security advances achieved in Iraq and warn that “violence remains only a step away” (p. 39). Just how, then, it could be a “top national-security priority” to leave — and risk Iraq descending into chaos - is anyone’s guess. One is left with the impression that the point of a rapid withdrawal from Iraq must not in fact be national security, after all. It is rather to punish America for the Bush administration’s hubris in having invaded Iraq in the first place: notably, against German objections. If Iraqis must suffer so that America can get its proper comeuppance — then so be it…

The section devoted to “Economic Challenges” is particularly illuminating. It is clear that Bertelsmann wants the EU states to exploit the current crisis to impose a new regime of international financial regulation upon the United States. The U.S. is clearly designated as the culprit for the problems in international financial markets. These are said to have been “contaminated” by the U.S., which ought then to adopt European “best practices” in order to “guarantee that it does not re-occur” (p. 54). The vehicle chosen for achieving a new regulatory regime is the recently created Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC). “Leaders on both sides of the Atlantic must use the TEC as a forum to begin aligning economic regulatory practices quickly,” the authors declare (p. 55). “The next president should remember that the TEC was designed and developed under the leadership of the German chancellor during the country’s EU-Presidency in 2007,” they add in a not-so-subtle hint, “By giving the TEC a central coordinating role in trans-Atlantic economic cooperation, the next president will establish a reservoir of German goodwill.”

Bertelsmann-controlled media have, incidentally, been dutifully stoking the anti-market hysteria that has enveloped Germany in recent months. See, for instance, the Stern cover discussed [9] here, which bears the headline “Greed and Megalomania: How the Wall Street Bosses Squandered Billions and led our Financial System to the Edge of the Abyss.” Bertelsmann itself, as so happens, is privately owned. Given that the owners, the Mohn family, have jealously avoided exposing their business to the kind of public scrutiny and oversight that comes with a stock market listing, one may wonder if Bertelsmann’s crusade against financial markets is entirely disinterested. In 2006, the Mohn family bought back 25% of Bertelsmann shares from the holding company Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, in order to prevent the shares from going public. The move cost the family some €4.5 billion.

Americans would be well-advised to read Bertelsmann’s “Trans-Atlantic Briefing Book” carefully and then to consider how closely the actions of the incoming president follow the Bertelsmann playbook. In the end, one can be thankful that Bertelsmann saw fit to publish its demands.

Bertelsmann has provided Obama with the perfect opportunity to show Americans that he is his own man and that American interests are more important to him than the wishes of his German corporate sponsor.

Article printed from Pajamas Media: http://pajamasmedia.com

URL to article: http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/what-bertelsmann-wants-from-obama/

URLs in this post:
[1] Barack Obama and the Book Business: http://www.tcf.org/list.asp?type=NC&pubid=1425
[2] Bertelsmann’s “Man in the White House,”: http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/german-publishings-man-in-the-white-house/
[3] Bertelsmann’s “10th International Forum”: http://www.cap-lmu.de/aktuell/events/2006/ibf.php
[4] here: http://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/bst/en/media/xcms_bst_dms_26669_26670_2.pdf
[5] “European Briefing Book for Barack Obama”: http://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/cps/rde/xchg/SID-0A000F0A-ADEAA558/bst_engl/hs.xsl/nachrichten_91
306.htm

[6] noted at American Thinker: http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2008/12/bill_clinton_puts_global_warmi.html
[7] “Bill Clinton’s German Paymasters”: http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/bill-clinton%E2%80%99s-german-paymasters/
[8] here: http://medienkritik.typepad.com/blog/2005/10/johns_hopkins_a.html
[9] here: http://medienkritik.typepad.com/blog/2008/10/spiegel-gets-ca.html

Assault on Free Speech Update

An announcement from the UK Independence Party (thanks to Paul Belien):

SHOWING OF THE FILM FITNA BANNED BY ORDER OF THE CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS

It is with great regret that I have to announce the cancellation of the showing of the film Fitna at the meeting with Mr Geert Wilders MP today at 2pm.

I was informed of this decision today.

Nevertheless a press conference will take place at 2pm in room R 3.1 with Mr Wilders and myself.

The banning of this film is a direct attack on free speech. A parliament that constantly talks of freedom, democracy and tolerance has shown once again that these are empty words when it does not agree with what is being said. On the same day that the European Parliament awards the Sakharov Prize to the Chinese freedom campaigner Hu Jia the Conference of Presidents deny free speech to one of its own members.

The press conference is open to MEPs and their assistants as well as accredited members of the press.

Anyone who wishes to view Fitna before the meeting can do so by going to www.liveleak.com/view?i=216_1207467783

Yours sincerely,

Gerard Batten MEP
UK Independence Party

Some comments: This past week there was a one day conference in Jerusalem on FACING JIHAD, with several expert speakers. Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch was the m.c. The conference was sponsored by Prof.Dr. Arieh Eldad, Member of the Knesset. At present, head of the Hatikvah party. The Ariel Center for Policy Research cosponsored the event. Simon Deng, a former Sudanese slave was a surprise speaker.

During the session we saw FITNA, a film made by a courageous man from the Netherlands, Geert Wilders, a Dutch parliamentarian. I wonder just how much publicity this conference and the film have received in the States. Wilders' life has been threatened because of the film and he has bodyguards. His appearance at the Jerusalem Conference was astounding and he commented briefly on his life and about what compelled him to produce the movie - seeing what has happened in his own country with mass Muslim immigration.
The same has occurred in other European countries and will extend even further to the West including the U.S. Anyone who doubts this should learn the lessons that are being given us daily.

FITNA in Arabic means 'ordeal'. It shows - through direct quotations from the Koran that appear on the screen - how acts of terror, anti-Semitism, violence against women and gays, and Islamic universalism emanate from these teachings. The danger is to the whole free world - not only to Jews although it starts with us.

Enormous pressure is being applied to stifle any criticism of those who would impose their way of life on the free world. Banning the showing of FITNA is just one way of keeping us ignorant of what is in store for Western civilization. Those whose countries have already been caught in this web may be fearful of speaking out. Geert Wilders lives with this daily and stands tall (yes, he is also physically tall) in his efforts to warn those who still have a chance to prevent the spread of this totalitarian way of life.

Since the original email contained the name of the person who forwarded the article to me and I want to protect her privacy I am not sure that the links will work. LiveLeak put out the internet video or else one may go into Jihad Watch to look for the film. You many 'cut and past' the link just below. I urge everyone to see it and pass it on. Unfortunately, the EU Parliament is playing along with the demands that it not be shown. There must be a good reason - no? It may be proof that Europe has already been too impacted by the perpetrators of the 'world takeover'.

Some may think that 'it can never happen here' (wherever one is fortunate to still live in freedom) or that information like this is 'hate mail'. My advice -from working with such material with experts- is to take this all seriously now rather than regret the results later. It is based on fact - what is announced openly each day.
Please pass this on; I believe in 'united we stand' and with resolve we can - we must - prevent a global catastrophe.

(Note: The Comments section is provided in the interests of free speech only. It is mostly unmoderated, but comments that are off-topic, offensive, slanderous, or otherwise annoying stand a chance of being deleted. The fact that any comment remains on the site IN NO WAY constitutes an endorsement by Jihad Watch or Dhimmi Watch, or by Robert Spencer or any other Jihad Watch or Dhimmi Watch writer, of any view expressed, fact alleged, or link provided in that comment.)

Unreal. Now we wait for something similar to happen in the United States, for the Federal or state governments, in some capacity, to ban the film from showing in public venues--under some overriding pretext that trumps the First Amendment, they'll say.
Posted by: John C http://profile.typekey.com/johncbarile at December 17, 2008 10:27 AM

Chickens. Yellow-bellied chickens.
Posted by: tanstaafl http://profile.typekey.com/jlhatchett at December 17, 2008 10:45 AM

Maybe they just plan on having a multi-European country SHOE THROWING bash. Muslims throwing shoes at infidels perhaps?
I hear it's now in the book for the New Century Independent EU Approved Actions" for a peaceful and islamic tomorrow.

Chickens? yep, and traitors.
Posted by: sh007r http://profile.typekey.com/sh007r at December 17, 2008 10:50 AM

No film portraying Christianity in a bad light would have ever been banned by the EU Parliament. This is pandering to Islam and Muslims pure and simple. How stupid. How cowardly. How transparent. Perhaps, though, this will invite even more contempt for the EU, a contempt which appears to be growing with each passing year among the ordinary folk of one European country after another.