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| Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. & Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.in St. Paul, Minnesota. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) |
A big THANK YOU shout out to Bibi and Feckless Leader for delivering to Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib the very best summer vacation extravaganza they could never have imagined in their wildest dreams. Never in the course of history have so few handed so much to a couple of frosh congressclowns with delusions of revolutionary grandeur. Those two short-sighted buffoons didn't stop anything; they gave Ilhan and Rashida the bullhorn, the spotlight, a platform, and the riveted attention of the world.
Mom used to say ( a lot) you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. If Israel has nothing to hide, why not let the Venom Sisters see Israel in real time? Sure, they get to go visit Grandma on the West Bank, but make them drive by the prosperous shopping malls and luxury apartment parts. They want to go to Gaza? Sure thing, but don't forget to show them S'derot where bombs are lobbed at children daily and the remains of bomb balloons still litter the ground. Show them Jerusalem and let them go pray on the Al Aksa and the Mosque of Omar, ...but not before they get a glimpse of that wall that has been there a thousand years longer than Islam was invented. Schedule time with Arab Knesset MPs to learn about how they view their roles and the reality on the ground for Arab Israelis. And make sure they meet with Arab/Palestinian members of the LGBT community to learn about their exciting existence in Gaza and the West Bank. There is plenty Tlaib and Omar could've been shown that would given them a more rounded overview of Israel in real life.
But no. Feckless and Bibi put paid to that opportunity. Maybe they're working together to buy Greenland and maybe Yalta or Malta or the Falklands. Who knows? They are both so seriously deranged it's hard to even hazard a guess what those two fascimo-wannabes are thinking. What they weren't thinking was that their actions would turn this into a political, partisan issue. What they weren't thinking was that barring Tlaib and Omar would give them the boost they needed to keep themselves in the limelight.
How stupid do you have to be not to figure out that's what's gonna happen?
In the end, the only thing Bibi did was weaken the State of Israel and undermine what's left of its reputation on the world stage. Instead of letting even more sunlight into the day-to-day operation of the STATE of Israel, he made sure everyone on the planet now believes Israel has something to hide. Israel is the only democracy in the ME; now, it looks like more sham and illusion than political reality. I don't think that's a real good look for Israel.
Nor is this a good look for the US.
An attorney friend of mine, not long retired from the UN and a dedicated ACLU supporter, recently wrote:
On my 30s meter, we are now at 1937I would've said 1938, but let's not split hairs.
Not that the US was ever the perfect moral center of the world. Not even close. We have dozens of heinous skeletons in the closet. We've come close to walking down this road before. There have been concentration camps, [not death camps] here during the 40s. George Takei often serves as our collective memory on this topic, but this did not stop with Manzanar. McCarthyism of the 50s was next, rife with witch hunts and baseless accusations. Followed by Watergate and an impeachment based on a blow job.
Fine. Whatever. Go put in an offer for Greenland. Offer them a golf course with greens and sod instead of ice sheets. They'll never go for it, but you need a diversion. We need you to have a diversion.
Pay no attention to the environment behind the curtain.
The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week
I need a diversion. State Fair starts Thurday.
Cannot wait to smell like a Tom Thumb mini donut.
You are entitled to your own opinion but not your own set of facts:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/This-is-what-Ilhan-Omars-and-Rashida-Tlaibs-trip-would-have-looked-like-598866
"In broad strokes, the itinerary — titled 'Delegation to Palestine' — took Tlaib and Omar through major Palestinian population centers in Jerusalem and the West Bank, and to a string of meetings with Palestinian nonprofits and activists, as well as international human rights groups.
It featured no meetings with Israeli officials of any political persuasion, including Arab lawmakers. The plan also did not feature any extended time spent within Israel’s internationally recognized borders."
The anti-semitic duo had no interest in or plans to see a rounded overview of Israel in real life.
So Rep. Omar lied in her press conference just like she lied at the candidate forum at Beth El before her election when she said she did not support BDS. Just like when she lied when she married her brother.
I never mentioned any "facts" as you ascribed. I said they must control the narrative. If you read what I wrote, you'd have seen I laid out sites the Israeli government agencies would made sure they saw, even if their own itinerary excluded them. As guests of the government, the government gets to impact the tour and add events to the list. That's how governments work.
DeleteI do not doubt that Omar lied to her constituency, but if you want the voters to know, then you have to demonstrate in real time how she did exactly that. Publish their itinerary, present the revised itinerary, making sure it includes most of what they want but presenting interfaces with reality. IF after that they CHOOSE not to go, that's their problem, not Israel's.
Control the narrative. That's what they should've done and I stand by that statement.
After being denied her initial request, Rep Tlaib was granted a humanitarian request to visit her grandmother. To suggest, as you do, that she might go if the leaders of Israel determined her itinerary is fantasy. She would not even go to visit her grandmother. The trip was pure propaganda and the antisemitic duo failed.
DeleteI saw that...and her bullshit statement that followed. That helped define what she really is. But it would've been better if Israel had controlled the narrative... from inside Israel.
DeleteThank you for your insights and please eat loads of unhealthy fried foods next week!
ReplyDeleteMy frustration over this issue is twofold: when you, like so many others, 1) always paint Israel as “the victim,” with no mention of Israel’s dominance over and oppression of Palestinians, and 2) that the American “skeletons” all hide in closets related to World War II. I refer all here to the NYT Magazine 1619 Project, published in the August 24, 2019 issue. Personally, I can’t wade through the swamp of hate far enough to even be able to evaluate an objective opinion on Omar’s and Tlaib’s actions and intent. I keep expecting more from you, but ...
ReplyDeleteIt's exhausting to keep having to writa about this over and over, knowing it doesn't matter a whit to the haters...on both sides...and know that as Jews, we are caught in a dangerous middle. I thought I made it pretty clear I don't think Israel is a victim in this case, that the current government is revoltingly harmful to the very existence of Israel as an independent nation, and that much of the damage is self-inflicted.
DeleteAt the same time, we in the Diaspora are increasingly targeted because we are Jews. Are we victims? We are tying not to be, but neither are we sticking out heads in the sand.
Omar and Tlaib are ignorant about the facts on the ground. They don't know the history of the region and they don't care. They have an agenda. Seeing it up close and personal is very different. There's stuff that horrendous, but there's also stuff that is incredibly good happening there. They will never know because they only want validation of their view.
Perception. It's all about perception.
Daniel Gordis wrote this for the Times of Israel Blog. You might find it an interesting read. I happen to think he is spot on:
Deletehttps://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israel-is-neither-bibi-nor-the-united-states/