He truly is the greatest leader since Moses!
What accounts for the most miraculous comeback since Ali whupped Foreman in Kinshasa? Why, nothing other than Netanyahu's increasingly racist appeals to the extreme right over the past week and continuing even while voting was in progress.
Yes, the filthy Arabs are voting in droves... they must be stopped! Vote Likud and the Lord will increase you more and more...
It worked.
Here's what it means going forward.
Increased settlement activity in West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Increased isolation of Israel on world stage.
Increased traction for BDS.
Increased tension with the only patron state that counts.
Increased likelihood of more wars on Gaza.
Increased popularity of Hamas.
Increased marginalization of moderate Palestinian leadership.
Increased alienation of Israeli Arab population...
My, what a glorious victory!
Showing posts with label Israel election 2015. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Israel election 2015. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Monday, March 16, 2015
Netanyahu drops the "two state" mask
This should not come as a surprise to even the casual Netanyahu observer. Bibi's commitment to the two state solution was never anything other than a sop to his diaspora supporters who were desperate to portray him as a man looking for peace... if only there were a partner on the other side to negotiate with!
If even the toadying Abbas was not a viable partner, then it was plain all along that a viable partner could not possibly exist. Abbas has essentially served the function of being head kapo of the occupied territories. The fiction that he is somehow the "leader" of the Palestinians has allowed pro-Israel countries like Canada to call their support of Palestinian security services "foreign aid" to the Palestinians, when in reality it is a subsidy to the occupation.
The bona fide leadership of the Palestinians, the democratically elected Hamas party, were promptly shuffled onto the terror lists of Israel's most ardent foreign supporters, thereby allowing the US and Canada and a few others to endorse Israel's repeated genocidal wars on Gaza as a noble battle in the war on terror.
In this last day of electioneering, Hamas is once again a useful foil as Netanyahu waves the threat of "Hamastan" at the electorate.
"Elect me, because I am the only leader who can deal with the terrorists... all the others are leftist Arab-lovers..."
That is the pathetic sum total of Netanyahu's election platform. It's always served him well before, but this time around it looks like it might be selling better in New York and Montreal than in Tel Aviv and Haifa, where people are seeing through Netanyahu's endless fear-mongering and are more interested in a job and an affordable apartment.
A resounding Likud loss tomorrow, and a functional coalition of "leftist Arab-lovers," and there will be a glimmer of hope in the Holy Land for the first time in a generation.
If even the toadying Abbas was not a viable partner, then it was plain all along that a viable partner could not possibly exist. Abbas has essentially served the function of being head kapo of the occupied territories. The fiction that he is somehow the "leader" of the Palestinians has allowed pro-Israel countries like Canada to call their support of Palestinian security services "foreign aid" to the Palestinians, when in reality it is a subsidy to the occupation.
The bona fide leadership of the Palestinians, the democratically elected Hamas party, were promptly shuffled onto the terror lists of Israel's most ardent foreign supporters, thereby allowing the US and Canada and a few others to endorse Israel's repeated genocidal wars on Gaza as a noble battle in the war on terror.
In this last day of electioneering, Hamas is once again a useful foil as Netanyahu waves the threat of "Hamastan" at the electorate.
"Elect me, because I am the only leader who can deal with the terrorists... all the others are leftist Arab-lovers..."
That is the pathetic sum total of Netanyahu's election platform. It's always served him well before, but this time around it looks like it might be selling better in New York and Montreal than in Tel Aviv and Haifa, where people are seeing through Netanyahu's endless fear-mongering and are more interested in a job and an affordable apartment.
A resounding Likud loss tomorrow, and a functional coalition of "leftist Arab-lovers," and there will be a glimmer of hope in the Holy Land for the first time in a generation.
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Netanyahu piles it higher
In Israel, even Netanyahu's allies readily acknowledge the man is a habitual liar.
Just in the past week, it has been revealed that, vis Iran's nuclear program, the Mossad claims he's full of shit.
As do almost 200 Israeli security bigs who signed a letter a couple of days ago claiming he's full of shit.
So what does Netanyahu do?
Shovels on more of the same old discredited shit like crazy!
And his acolytes in Congress lap it up!
Just in the past week, it has been revealed that, vis Iran's nuclear program, the Mossad claims he's full of shit.
As do almost 200 Israeli security bigs who signed a letter a couple of days ago claiming he's full of shit.
So what does Netanyahu do?
Shovels on more of the same old discredited shit like crazy!
And his acolytes in Congress lap it up!
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Greatest leader since Moses off to dazzle Goyim with greatest campaign speech of career!
Netanyahu is on his way to Washington, where he will captivate Congress, or at least the GOP reps, with his take on the existential threat that Iran poses to Israel. With the possible exception of some of the dimmer congressional bulbs, absolutely nobody is taking this foolishness at face value.
This junket isn't about Washington and it isn't about Iran; it's about the 17 March election. Word has it that Sarah Neumann (no relation), the Haifa pre-school teacher who furnished Bibi with his stunning teaching aids when he addressed the UN in 2012, has prepared some visuals that will be even more persuasive than the cartoon bomb that wowed the world on that occasion.
We can hardly wait!
This junket isn't about Washington and it isn't about Iran; it's about the 17 March election. Word has it that Sarah Neumann (no relation), the Haifa pre-school teacher who furnished Bibi with his stunning teaching aids when he addressed the UN in 2012, has prepared some visuals that will be even more persuasive than the cartoon bomb that wowed the world on that occasion.
We can hardly wait!
Monday, February 16, 2015
Bibi's crass marketing campaign
The blood of today's terror victims in Copenhagen had not yet congealed on the pave-stones before Israel PM Netanyahu was making campaign fodder of it.
Yes, now we have more proof that every European Jew belongs in Israel.
Let's have a reality check.
More Jews have died in traffic accidents in Israel in the past month than have perished in European terror attacks in the last twenty years.
Perspective can be a beautiful thing!
Yes, there are Jew-haters aplenty in Europe...
So move to the safety of Sderot.
It of course remains forbidden to mention why these blood-thirsty Arabs are such Jew-haters...
Could it, at the end of the day, have something to do with occupation and settlements and state-sponsored land theft?
Yes, now we have more proof that every European Jew belongs in Israel.
Let's have a reality check.
More Jews have died in traffic accidents in Israel in the past month than have perished in European terror attacks in the last twenty years.
Perspective can be a beautiful thing!
Yes, there are Jew-haters aplenty in Europe...
So move to the safety of Sderot.
It of course remains forbidden to mention why these blood-thirsty Arabs are such Jew-haters...
Could it, at the end of the day, have something to do with occupation and settlements and state-sponsored land theft?
Friday, January 30, 2015
Bibi feints right, goes left
Oh, he's a sly one, that Netanyahu!
When the IDF took out that Hezbollah convoy in Syria on 18 January, we thought, "here we go!" It's Netanyahu with his predictable pre-election escalation. It's the time-tested Netanyahu strategy of shaping the landscape in such a way that he makes himself look like the indispensable "strong hand."
Even Israelis who loathe Netanyahu fall for that one again and again.
But the wily fox seems to be taking a different tack. After the 100% predictable Hezbollah retaliation of the past week, we expected Southern Lebanon to be consumed in fire and brimstone. Instead, we get some vaguely conciliatory verbiage about how back-channel messages from Nasrallah indicate that Hezbollah is not wanting an escalation...
What the hell is that all about? Has the Greatest Leader Since Moses gone soft?
So aside from the immediate bombardment of a few Lebanese border villages, there has been no retaliation for the Hezbollah attack, and for the moment at least, it appears that the PM is treating this as a balanced ledger.
Not only that, but today we learn that Israel is cooperating in an investigation into the death of that Spanish peace-keeper who died in that initial retaliation.
Bibi cooperating in an international investigation of Israel?
There you have it! Bibi the "strong hand" is yesterday's man...
He has remade himself as a man of peace, moderation, and reconciliation, just in time for the election!
When the IDF took out that Hezbollah convoy in Syria on 18 January, we thought, "here we go!" It's Netanyahu with his predictable pre-election escalation. It's the time-tested Netanyahu strategy of shaping the landscape in such a way that he makes himself look like the indispensable "strong hand."
Even Israelis who loathe Netanyahu fall for that one again and again.
But the wily fox seems to be taking a different tack. After the 100% predictable Hezbollah retaliation of the past week, we expected Southern Lebanon to be consumed in fire and brimstone. Instead, we get some vaguely conciliatory verbiage about how back-channel messages from Nasrallah indicate that Hezbollah is not wanting an escalation...
What the hell is that all about? Has the Greatest Leader Since Moses gone soft?
So aside from the immediate bombardment of a few Lebanese border villages, there has been no retaliation for the Hezbollah attack, and for the moment at least, it appears that the PM is treating this as a balanced ledger.
Not only that, but today we learn that Israel is cooperating in an investigation into the death of that Spanish peace-keeper who died in that initial retaliation.
Bibi cooperating in an international investigation of Israel?
There you have it! Bibi the "strong hand" is yesterday's man...
He has remade himself as a man of peace, moderation, and reconciliation, just in time for the election!
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Bibi claims moral high ground in feud with der Schwartze
The Greatest Leader Since Moses today claimed the moral high ground in his controversial plans to take his election campaign before a joint session of Congress.
It's not crass grandstanding, rather, it is a "moral obligation!"
As is the norm at election time in Israel, the "existential threat" of the imaginary Iranian nukes gets moved from the back burner to the front page;
“As prime minister of Israel, I am obligated to make every effort to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weaponry that will be aimed at the state of Israel. This effort is global and I will go anywhere I am invited to make the state of Israel’s case and defend its future and existence."
This is of course the classic Netanyahu strategy of fear-mongering that has profited him so handsomely throughout his career. Whip up a little anti-Iranian hysteria, maybe provoke a border incident here and there, and then present yourself as the strong hand willing to face down those threats!
Works like a charm!
There are signs, however, that the charm is wearing thin. The New York Times has gone so far as to warn that Netanyahu's cynical grandstanding threatens to further strain Israel US relations.
However gratifying it may be for Netanyahu to show the Israeli voters that he has more support in Congress than Obama does, there's a creeping Bibi-skepticism taking root beyond the Beltway.
Israeli intransigence, personified to perfection in Netanyahu, is gradually eroding support among traditional allies. This seems for now to be more apparent to diaspora Jews than in Israel. It's safe to say that Netanyahu's popularity drops off precipitously outside of Congress, even among Jewish Americans.
Pretending that his trip to Washington is anything other than crass electioneering is of course part and parcel of the crass electioneering, but is it really wise to take this opportunity to poke Obama in the eye?
It's not crass grandstanding, rather, it is a "moral obligation!"
As is the norm at election time in Israel, the "existential threat" of the imaginary Iranian nukes gets moved from the back burner to the front page;
“As prime minister of Israel, I am obligated to make every effort to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weaponry that will be aimed at the state of Israel. This effort is global and I will go anywhere I am invited to make the state of Israel’s case and defend its future and existence."
This is of course the classic Netanyahu strategy of fear-mongering that has profited him so handsomely throughout his career. Whip up a little anti-Iranian hysteria, maybe provoke a border incident here and there, and then present yourself as the strong hand willing to face down those threats!
Works like a charm!
There are signs, however, that the charm is wearing thin. The New York Times has gone so far as to warn that Netanyahu's cynical grandstanding threatens to further strain Israel US relations.
However gratifying it may be for Netanyahu to show the Israeli voters that he has more support in Congress than Obama does, there's a creeping Bibi-skepticism taking root beyond the Beltway.
Israeli intransigence, personified to perfection in Netanyahu, is gradually eroding support among traditional allies. This seems for now to be more apparent to diaspora Jews than in Israel. It's safe to say that Netanyahu's popularity drops off precipitously outside of Congress, even among Jewish Americans.
Pretending that his trip to Washington is anything other than crass electioneering is of course part and parcel of the crass electioneering, but is it really wise to take this opportunity to poke Obama in the eye?
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Netanyahu takes election campaign to Washington
Ten days ago the Greatest Leader Since Moses wowed his people with a front-row front-page photo-op at that infamous rally for "free speech" in Paris.
He is about to one-up himself with a spot of political grand-standing in Washington!
And if that is in itself not enough of a coup, he has simultaneously managed an end-run around der Schwartze! The well-known antipathy between the White House and Netanyahu would not have helped Bibi had he arranged this trip via normal protocol. Instead, it would have opened him to accusations of appeasement.
Therefore, Netanyahu arranged an invitation through his acolytes in Congress, by-passing the White House entirely. On 11 February, a mere four weeks before the Israeli election, Netanyahu will be seen on every TV screen in Israel as the man who has the ear of the US Congress, at the invitation not of the President, but of John Boehner. Not only does this avoid the unpleasantness of having to appear deferential to Obama, it shows every voter in Israel that he has more schlep in Congress than the President himself!
An absolutely brilliant strategy!
He is about to one-up himself with a spot of political grand-standing in Washington!
And if that is in itself not enough of a coup, he has simultaneously managed an end-run around der Schwartze! The well-known antipathy between the White House and Netanyahu would not have helped Bibi had he arranged this trip via normal protocol. Instead, it would have opened him to accusations of appeasement.
Therefore, Netanyahu arranged an invitation through his acolytes in Congress, by-passing the White House entirely. On 11 February, a mere four weeks before the Israeli election, Netanyahu will be seen on every TV screen in Israel as the man who has the ear of the US Congress, at the invitation not of the President, but of John Boehner. Not only does this avoid the unpleasantness of having to appear deferential to Obama, it shows every voter in Israel that he has more schlep in Congress than the President himself!
An absolutely brilliant strategy!
Monday, January 19, 2015
With election less than two months away, Netanyau duly ramps up the provocations
It remains to be seen how Nasrallah will respond to yesterday's wholly unnecessary and manifestly illegal attack in Syria.
While serving no strategic purpose whatsoever, this cynical bit of electioneering allows Netanyahu to escalate tensions so that he can then pose as the "strong leader" just in time for the elections. Cynical beyond measure and dangerous beyond belief! What could go wrong?
While serving no strategic purpose whatsoever, this cynical bit of electioneering allows Netanyahu to escalate tensions so that he can then pose as the "strong leader" just in time for the elections. Cynical beyond measure and dangerous beyond belief! What could go wrong?
Thursday, December 25, 2014
Netanyahu reaches out to his Christian base
In a sly bit of electioneering, Israeli PM Netanyahu has reached out to his American Christian base with a feel-good Christmas message.
Netanyahu has always been more popular in the US than in Israel. They see him as one of them, which compared to someone like Lieberman he clearly is. His perfect east coast English and knowledge of American culture give him a veneer of innocuous familiarity in American eyes.
Netanyahu has used that to his advantage throughout his political career, which is based on endless fear-mongering at home combined with selling himself as the man most likely to keep America's unquestioning military support.
Alas, there have been signs that the schtick is growing tired. The ill-advised call for new elections with two years remaining on the meter, the courts trying to prevent him from running again, and the unexpected rise of a Labour party long ago left for dead, have all conspired together to create the perfect storm. The wily fox may have out-foxed even himself!
Count on Netanyahu to double down on the only strategy he's ever known. He will shamelessly ramp up the fear-mongering at home and boost his profile on America's TV screens between now and March.
Netanyahu has always been more popular in the US than in Israel. They see him as one of them, which compared to someone like Lieberman he clearly is. His perfect east coast English and knowledge of American culture give him a veneer of innocuous familiarity in American eyes.
Netanyahu has used that to his advantage throughout his political career, which is based on endless fear-mongering at home combined with selling himself as the man most likely to keep America's unquestioning military support.
Alas, there have been signs that the schtick is growing tired. The ill-advised call for new elections with two years remaining on the meter, the courts trying to prevent him from running again, and the unexpected rise of a Labour party long ago left for dead, have all conspired together to create the perfect storm. The wily fox may have out-foxed even himself!
Count on Netanyahu to double down on the only strategy he's ever known. He will shamelessly ramp up the fear-mongering at home and boost his profile on America's TV screens between now and March.
Santa leaves steaming heap 'o reindeer turds for Lieberman
The political ambitions of Israel's foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, have taken a hopefully fatal turn as police rounded up dozens of suspects close to his Yisrael Beitenu party in a major anti-corruption operation.
With less than three months to go before the election, this should put paid to any hopes that Lieberman harboured about succeeding Netanyahu as PM.
One can only hope that this gives the electorate pause to consider the integrity of the ruling clique. They have brought neither peace nor prosperity. Perhaps it's time for the country to consider another direction.
With less than three months to go before the election, this should put paid to any hopes that Lieberman harboured about succeeding Netanyahu as PM.
One can only hope that this gives the electorate pause to consider the integrity of the ruling clique. They have brought neither peace nor prosperity. Perhaps it's time for the country to consider another direction.
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