Comments on: Thomas L. Friedman reader – chapter one

By: Michael Lonie

Michael Lonie — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 01:00:58 +0000

Israel will survive if US aid is cut off. The Palestinian Arabs, on the other hand, would not survive for long if international welfare was cut off, the welfare payments that prop up the PA and Hamas thugocracies and trickle down to put a few pennies in the hands of the ordinary Palis.

You want peace between the Palis and the Israelis? Cut off the former from all international doles. No more money from the UN, the US, patsy Euros, or from Israel. Perhaps their “Arab brothers” or their “Iranian Muslim brothers” will pick up the slack, but I rather doubt it. They are pretty chintzy with their money and they despise the Palis. Their “Arab brothers” treat the Palestinian Arabs like dogs, worse than the Israelis do. They have killed more of them than the Israelis have. Some Arab coutnries won’t even let Palestinian Arabs work there, as for example Lebanon, let alone allow them to become citizens (the naturalization law of the Wahhabist Entity explicitly prohibits Palestinian Arabs from becoming subjects of His Wahhabist Majesty).

Cut the Arabs off. Let them work or starve. If they have to work for a living they won’t have time, energy, or extra money for terrorism, as they now have on welfare. At any rate that is what I hope from this strategy. Right now they have neither inclination nor need for peace. As long as that is the case the Palis will never negotiate in good faith and make a peace agreement with Israel. If it doesn’t work we would be no worse off than we are today. Alternatives to cutting off the welfare will require much more bloodshed.

By: SnoopyTheGoon

SnoopyTheGoon — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 15:40:33 +0000

Well, you have created a vacuum people are trying (in vain) to fill, you know.

And thanks for that quote and link. Worth repeating at another opportunity.

By: soccer dad

soccer dad — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 15:08:35 +0000

A great dis of Friedman: The latest â€” and thus, by definition, worst â€” Thomas Friedman column is a real beaut. What is this? I stop blogging and everyone has to get in on the fun?

By: SnoopyTheGoon

SnoopyTheGoon — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 14:12:06 +0000

Moral equivalence is a much abused tool for NYT in general and Friedman in particular, true. And re quotes from obscure academics: no, I haven’t paid particular attention, but it strengthens my point of TLF’s godlike omnipotence and infinite wisdom/knowledge.

By: Joel

Joel — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 13:56:14 +0000

Moral equivalence at its best (actually worst) between Israelis and Palestinians. Friedman would have done the same between the Czechs and Germans in 1938 claiming that both were “unreasonable” even as he would spend most of the time lambasting the Czechs. Also have you ever noticed that Friedman loves to dredge up Israelis (usually obscure left-wing academics) that nobody ever heard of to buttress his spurious claims and straw man arguments?