John Chuckman
COMMENT POSTED TO AN ARTICLE IN THE INDEPENDENT
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Response to a comment which said [in reference to Israel],”No two states. No financial support”:
Of course, that's reasonable, but nothing reasonable applies to Israel in the United States. Nothing. Ever.
Were there any political will in Washington, the whole business between Israel and the Palestinians could have been settled decades ago.
The United States, at least in theory, has that power. After all, Israel literally floats on a sea of American subsidies, and I don’t just mean the annual American government hand-out of about $500 per Israeli citizen.
There are huge public and private subsidies flowing to Israel, and a set of immense privileges in place – everything from free trade and favorable treatment in gaining large American government contracts to extraordinary access to American decision-makers – privileges worth their weight in gold.
But there is no political will in Washington to use that leverage.
There were even some very powerful past opportunities that were completely ignored, as when Israel attacked the USS Liberty viciously in the Six Day War.
America did nothing. Demanded nothing. Just shut the whole matter down.
Another strong psychological opportunity came in the wake of American-Israeli Baruch Goldstein slaughtering 29 Palestinians at prayer in 1994. Another 125 were wounded by that madman with a machine-gun.
Perfect time to apply pressure. Nothing was done.
Or how about the Six Day War itself, totally planned by an Israel confident it could win in order to seize the lands for a future “Greater Israel,” lands still occupied today. Millions held against their will. New parcels of land – the homes and farms of those held - stolen openly under the harmless-sounding euphemism of “settlements.”
Not a word. No effort. And remember when it comes to matters of property and ownership, likely no people on earth are more ready to shoot first and ask questions after.
In part, it’s the work of the very powerful Israel Lobby. No American politician wants to offend them. And no American politician wants to miss out on the campaign contributions and favorable mainline press handed out for loyal service.
But I believe the situation also reflects the fact that Israel really is a de facto colony of the US, a rather unusual and privileged one, serving many of Washington's purposes in the Mideast.
Ever hear of a colonial power being fair in its colonies or showing the least sense of justice in colonial arrangements?
As for "the natives" anywhere, how did Britain treat them in its imperial heyday?
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https://chuckmanwordsincomments.wordpress.com/2019/07/26/john-chuckman-comment-democracy-and-the-tyranny-of-a-majority-israel-and-the-palestinians-using-ugly-name-calling-to-silence-legitimate-criticism-of-unfairness/
https://chuckmanwordsincomments.wordpress.com/2019/04/05/john-chuckman-comment-exactly-why-peace-cannot-come-from-israel-there-is-no-engine-for-doing-it-and-structural-realities-dictate-virtually-endless-hostility-as-far-as-peace-dictated-from-outside/
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