Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Obama on 60th Anniversary of Israel

This is very disturbing. Obama is repeating verbatim the AIPAC party line regarding Israel and the US relationship with Israel. These are the same types of statements that got us into the Iraq War and they will get us into a War with Iran as well... because according to AIPAC it is in the security interests of Israel and therefore it is also in the security interests of the United States.

What is the difference in practice between Obama saying he will be "an unwavering ally" and Clinton saying she will "obliterate Iran" if they attack Israel. We should be disengaging militarily from the Middle East. When was the last time Israel was attacked by another country? Iraq fired some Scud missles during the first Iraq War. Palestinians and Hezbollah firing rockets does not constitute a credible threat to Israel. If Israel were willing to trade land for peace as many Isrealis favor, then she could live in peace with her neighbors. Just look at Egypt and Jordan. They have recognized Israel and have not had any conflict with Israel since Carter's Camp David Peace Agreement.

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(link to transcript)
BLITZER: I want to move on but on this 60th anniversary of Israel, what
does Israel mean to you?

OBAMA: Israel is not only our strongest ally in the region and one of
our strongest allies in the world but there is a special connection
between America and Israel, one that when I traveled to Israel was evident.

Not only do we share so much in terms of common culture, not only is it
the site of so much of our – my religious your faith and the site of so
much of our understanding of the world around us but what I love about
Israel is it is such a robust democracy and that they are committed to
principles like rule of law and civil rights and civil liberties and so
it is critical that we send a message around the world, we will stand
with Israel, we want them around not just for 60 years but for 600 years
and when I am president of the United States they will have an
unwavering ally in me.

Video: See Obama's response on CNN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AaL1Se38gg

Ralph Nader's earlier response to Obama's position on Israel-Palestine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz7EkulVyHo


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My comments:

MYTH: Israel is one of our strongest allies in the world.
- Israel has been caught on numerous occasions spying against America. The most recent involved AIPAC members spying on America.
- Israel has not supplied any troops or weapons in Iraq.

MYTH: There is a special connection between America and Israel
- There is also a special connection between America and many European countries, but that does not justify Israel receiving more foreign aid in multiple forms from the US than any other country.

MYTH: Israel is a robust democracy with civil rights and civil liberties
- Palestinians in the occupied territories have their rights trampled on every day.

MYTH: US should be an unwavering ally to Israel
- US should put its interests first in the relationship with any foreign country. That should apply to Israel just as it applies to every other country. If Israel takes some action that is contrary to US interests then the US should not feel obliged to support those actions and policies.

1 comment:

MakLijah said...

Thank you for the article.

I came across your blog while searching on Obama's policies and opinion on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

The transcript mentioned here is alarming.

Has me worried.

Did Americans vote for the right man?