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Sunday holiday briefs

Posted on 09/04/2011 by Meryl Yourish

In other news, water is wet: Really? Juan and Eva Peron, the political heads of post-war Argentina, gave Nazi war criminals asylum? And this comes as a surprise to anyone? Hello, Eichmann kidnapping, anyone?

I’ll believe it when I see it: The Egyptian military is supposedly closing Gaza smuggling tunnels. Of course, it may be because they’re now using the Sinai and don’t need to smuggle via the tunnels anymore. And of course, since this is the AP, and even though they have run articles about the smuggling tunnels, they have to use the weasel words:

Israel charges Gaza’s Hamas rulers get weapons, ammunition and rockets through the tunnels and smuggle militants out.

Yes, Israel “charges.” That’s why the Egyptian military is closing them down, because there’s no proof Hamas smuggles weapons and terrorists through them. Oh, wait. Later on in the article, there is proof.

Previous attempts to close the tunnels before have failed to curb illicit trade and people trafficking under the border, following the blockade imposed on the seaside territory in 2007, when Hamas seized control.

Don’t you love it when the AP contradicts itself in its own stories? Obviously, the anti-Israel editor was in charge when this article got filed.

Three days late: Now Netanyahu goes on record saying Israel won’t apologize to Turkey. Where was he on Friday when the story was hot in the news cycle?

The Lebanese are thrilled with Turkey: Yep, a former PM is happy that Turkey is moving away from Israel and into the Islamist orbit. Quel surprise.

Just wait for the arrest warrants: Erdogan’s opposition says the Islamist leader painted himself into a corner with the demand for an Israeli apology and that he shouldn’t have downgraded ties with Israel. Barry Rubin says that many Turks agree with him. And yet, Turkey is heading down the Islamist path.

Posted in Gaza, Israel, Lebanon, Media Bias, Middle East, Turkey | Comments Off

Lazy Saturday post

Posted on 09/03/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Ah, three-day weekends. Let’s see, I got up late, lazed around the house, my niece came over, we had a nice dinner, and decided to go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part Two–again.

Now she’s downstairs watching the latest Dr. Who, because the hurricane knocked out her internet and I DVRed last week’s and tonight’s episode.

Life is good.

Posted in Life | Comments Off

Turkey downgrades ties, Israeli PR nonexistent

Posted on 09/02/2011 by Meryl Yourish

The AP (which totally reads my blog; now they have a quote from a named Israeli source, just like I suggested) brings up the thought that Turkey’s action of downgrading ties with Israel may be followed by Egypt and possibly other nations.

Turkey’s move came before the anticipated publication Friday of a U.N. report about the Israeli raid, which killed nine activists. The breakdown in ties also raised concerns that other countries, including Egypt and Jordan, may follow suit by recalling ambassadors and increase Israel’s alienation in the region.
“If this ends with Turkey, it will be a miracle,” said Alon Liel, a former Israeli ambassador to Turkey. “There is a lot of internal pressure in Egypt, and Turkey could use its clout in the Arab and Muslim world to pressure other nations to follow suit.”

I can think of two billion reasons why that won’t happen, all in American aid to Egypt. There is also aid to Jordan, and America’s goodwill is an important piece of the glue that keeps the Husseins on the Hashemite throne. The Muslim Brotherhood is starting to eye Jordan as next in the revolution. It’s too bad that Jordan is one of the most democratic kingdoms in the Middle East; I doubt the people are in the mood to overthrow the kings just yet.

But to get back to the AP media spin on the downgrade: There is not a single Israeli government source or spokesperson willing to go on record, which is incredibly stupid on Netanyahu’s part. The Israeli media isn’t quoting anyone by name, either. It’s all “sources” and “senior cabinet minister” said this and that. Jewish and Israeli bloggers have been complaining for years that Israel has the worst PR in the world. Well, it isn’t much better than it’s been. When you don’t have a statement from your official spokesperson on the downgrading of ties with a nation that was a huge trading and military partner, you are behind the news cycle. That allows the wire services to quote the Turks ad naseum (and they do). The AP quotes the Turkish president. Nobody is quoting Netanyahu, because he’s not giving anyone any quotes Here’s the Israeli quote:

Addressing the Palmer Report on the IDF raid of a Turkish ship in May 2010, state officials clarified Friday that Israel regretted the loss of life but would not apologize for its soldiers’ acts of self-defense.
“Israel, like any other country, has the legitimate right to defend its citizens and soldiers,” they stressed. “The State of Israel hopes a way will be found to overcome the disagreements, and will continue to work to achieve this goal.”

And here’s the line that has been repeated in thousands of news articles, one that Netanyahu could spin into pure platinum, if his office would only try:

Asked to comment on the U.N. report’s suggestions, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said: “To be frank, the report is null and void for us.”

Why Bibi isn’t coming out with a quote saying that the United Nations has found that Israel was well within the bounds of international law in responding to the breaking of the blockade is beyond me. He could pounce on the “null and void” phrase and point out that Turkey is the country that is acting like it is above the law, refusing to acknowledge the law of the sea that all other nations go by. Your PR sucks, Bibi. Sure, you can fund-raise with the best of them. Yes, you can get Congress to give you more standing ovations than the president. But when it comes to helping Israel get past the anti-Israel media bias, your PR sucks eggs.

Fix it.

Maybe then, the AP will write a balanced piece on Turkey downgrading ties. However, I think dropping the following paragraphs to numbers eight and nine is yet another example of the anti-Israel bias. The fact that the report clears Israel of one of the biggest charges Turkey leveled—that of Israel violating international law—merits keeping in the lead. It utterly negates the Turkish claims of legitimacy, and shows that Turkey is ignoring protocal and international treaties. Not that I expect to read an analysis of that sort in the AP. It would be lovely, but I’m sure it would cause some editors’ heads to explode. So instead, we get this information, buried in the part of the article that will get cut by tomorrow’s print edition editors:

The U.N. report on the flotilla raid, obtained by The New York Times and posted on its website, said Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza is a “legitimate security measure.” But it also said Israel’s use of force against the flotilla was “excessive and unreasonable.”
An Israeli official said the report showed Israel’s naval blockade was in keeping with international law. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the report had yet to be officially released. He said Israel expected it to be made public by the U.N. later Friday.

I look forward to seeing the next update of this story. Then again, I’m going to the county fair tonight, so the AP just might get a bye.

Until tomorrow.

Posted in Israel, Media Bias, Turkey, United Nations | Tagged Free Gaza Flotilla, Gaza Flotilla | 2 Comments

Finally Friday briefs

Posted on 09/02/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Really? A dictator didn’t honor international protocoal? Shocked. I’m shocked, I tell you, to hear that Ghaddafi sent his thugs to trash three NATO embassies after his son was killed by a NATO airstrike.

Two states for two people? No. What the media does not report: Cliff May recaps, but the MEMRI translation is here. The Palesteinians have not intention of living in peace with Israel. They want all of Israel, as I have said many times before. The reason the AP and other media services don’t report this? It goes against The Narrative. And The Narrative states that if only Israel would cease the occupation and bring forward the fictional statelets of East and West Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza, the Palestinians would be content. MEMRI calls bullshit on that.

“[The French initiative] reshaped the issue of the ‘Jewish state’ into a formula that is also unacceptable to us – two states for two peoples. They can describe Israel itself as a state for two peoples, but we will be a state for one people. The story of ‘two states for two peoples’ means that there will be a Jewish people over there and a Palestinian people here. We will never accept this – not as part of the French initiative and not as part of the American initiative.
“We will not sacrifice the 1.5 million Palestinians with Israeli citizenship who live within the 1948 borders, and we will never agree to a clause preventing the Palestinian refugees from returning to their country. We will not accept this, whether the initiative is French, American, or Czechoslovakian.” […]

Turkey, the sore loser: So apparently, if a UN report condemns Israel, it’s legitimate, but if it says Israel acted within international laws, it’s null and void. Turkey is downgrading ties with Israel over the refusal to apologize for killing nine members of the IHH who attacked IDF soldiers on the Mavi Marmara. And oh, what a biased report the AP has filed today. More on that later. Say, AP writers/editors who read my blog, just one question: Seriously? You couldn’t find a single Israeli official to quote on the record to balance out your all-Turkey, all-the-time report?

Excusing a murderer: Administration after administration coddled a terrorist/murderer, even after there was evidence that Arafat was responsible for the murder of American ambassadors. The Ha’aretz writer seems to think that this is going to make it difficult for Americans to lay a wreath on Arafat’s grave in the future. He doesn’t know our politicians very well.

Posted in Gaza, Israel, Media Bias, palestinian politics, Turkey, United Nations | Comments Off

Israel is Sorry – An Apology to Turkey

Posted on 09/01/2011 by Rabbi Kaufman

Shalom, Salaam, blessings be upon our friends the Turkish people.

We in Israel are sorry for what occurred in regard to the episode of the Free Gaza Flotilla.

We are sorry that lives were lost because militants on board attacked the Israeli soldiers whom they knew would board and whom they meticulously planned to attack.

We are sorry that soldiers were forced to defend their comrades who were being attacked by supposed peace activists and that some people died.

We are sorry that militants bent on violence were allowed by the Turkish government to board ships which the Turkish government knew aimed to violate Israel’s legal blockade of Gaza, endangering the lives of the hundreds of innocents on board the vessels as well as the soldiers who boarded the vessels legally and expected to meet little resistance from peace activists.

We are sorry that the Turkish government in an act of brinkmanship based in machismo has decided to jeopardize the future security and prosperity of the Turkish people, whose concerns are not well represented by this government, by refusing to admit any fault on the part of the participants in the flotilla, nor of the Turkish government for allowing it to sail, nor of the Turkish government from supporting aggressive action against its long-time ally Israel.

We are sorry that the honorable and freedom loving Turkish people are being manipulated into believing that Israelis–who have long worked in cooperation with Turks in defense of freedom and would love to do so going forward–as opposed to radical Islamists who seek to take their freedom away are the enemies of the Turkish people.

We are sorry that the Turkish government has decided to jeopardize not only its relationship with Israel, but its relationship with NATO, America specifically, and the West in general in support of opening supply routes to Hamas and other terrorist organizations located in Gaza for use against the civilian population in Israel and potentially against the Palestinian Authority.

We are indeed sorry to have to make this apology; these events should never have been allowed to happen.

Posted in Israel Derangement Syndrome, Middle East, Turkey | Tagged Free Gaza Flotilla, Gaza, Israeli Apology, Mavi Marmara, Turkey | 2 Comments

Israeli vindicated on four out of five charges; NY Times doesn’t care

Posted on 09/01/2011 by Meryl Yourish

The New York Times got the UN report, due out tomorrow, and has already determined the real villain. Note the headline and lead.

Report Finds Naval Blockade by Israel Legal but Faults Raid
A United Nations review has found that Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza is legal and appropriate but that the way its forces boarded a Turkish-based flotilla trying to break that blockade 15 months ago, killing nine passengers, was excessive and unreasonable.
The report, expected to be released on Friday, also found that when Israeli commandos boarded the main ship they faced “organized and violent resistance from a group of passengers” and were therefore required to use force for their own protection. But the report called the force “excessive and unreasonable,” saying the loss of life was unacceptable and the Israeli military’s later treatment of passengers was abusive.

“Excessive and unreasonable” is used twice in two paragraphs. The angle the Times chooses to focus the article is that the IDF soldiers, who were surrounded, captured, and fired upon by dozens of IHH would-be “martyrs,” used excessive force to protect themselves. This is in spite of the fact that Israel was cleared in four out of five charges.

The Times also doesn’t like the fact that the UN investigators found the blockade of Gaza to be legal.

The United Nations investigation into the events on the Turkish-flagged ship known as the Mavi Marmara, the largest of six vessels that were commandeered by Israeli commandos on May 31, 2010, was headed by Sir Geoffrey Palmer, former prime minister of New Zealand, aided by Álvaro Uribe, former president of Colombia, along with a representative each from Israel and Turkey.
It takes a broadly sympathetic view of Israel’s sea blockade of Gaza.
“Israel faces a real threat to its security from militant groups in Gaza,” the report says in its opening paragraphs. “The naval blockade was imposed as a legitimate security measure in order to prevent weapons from entering Gaza by sea and its implementation complied with the requirements of international law.”

Look at the difference in the way the Times treats reports that take the stand that Israel has the right to act in self-defense. Note how the writer uses the phrasing of Israel’s enemies and critics in the first paragraph, and makes sure that the defense of Israel is the very last thing in the article.

Those critical of Israeli actions toward Gaza have viewed the naval blockade that began officially in January 2009 as part and parcel of a siege imposed by Israel on the coastal strip shortly after Hamas took full control there in 2007. That siege, which has eased considerably in the past year, prevented the movement of most goods and people.
But the Palmer committee said while it had concerns about that policy and urged that it be loosened further, it saw the naval blockade as a purely security-oriented tool that had been imposed to stop weapons arriving to Gaza by sea. It also expressed strong concern for the thousands of rockets and mortars fired into Israel from Gaza in recent years. It said that because Gaza’s port cannot handle large ships, a naval blockade has little impact on the supply of civilian goods.

Did I expect the Times to be fair to Israel? Of course not. Let’s see how the AP does on this.

Posted in Gaza, Israel, Media Bias, Turkey | Tagged Gaza Flotilla | Comments Off

Arab hypocrisy, er, democracy news

Posted on 09/01/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Libyan Arabs are rounding up black Africans in Libya and putting them in detention centers.

Rebel forces and armed civilians are rounding up thousands of black Libyans and migrants from sub-Sahara Africa, acccusing them of fighting for ousted strongman Moammar Gadhafi and holding them in makeshift jails across the capital.
Virtually all of the detainees say they are innocent migrant workers, and in most cases there is no evidence that they are lying. But that is not stopping the rebels from placing the men in facilities like the Gate of the Sea sports club, where about 200 detainees – all black – clustered on a soccer field this week, bunching against a high wall to avoid the scorching sun.

Charming. I await the outraged statements from the EU, the UN, and various human rights organizations. Any minute now.

The rebels’ National Transitional Council has called on fighters not to abuse prisoners and says those accused of crimes will receive fair trials.There have been little credible evidence of rebels killing or systematically abusing captives during the six-month conflict. Still, the African Union and Amnesty International have protested the treatment of blacks inside Libya, saying there is a potential for serious abuse.
Aladdin Mabrouk, a spokesman for Tripoli’s military council, said no one knows how many people have been detained in the city, but he guessed more than 5,000. While no central registry exists, he said neighborhood councils he knows have between 200 and 300 prisoners each. The city of 1.8 million has dozens of such groups.
Justice Minister Mohammed al-Alagi told reporters this week that he’d visited several detention centers and found conditions “up to international standards.”
“We are building a Libya of tolerance and freedom, not of revenge,” he said.

Sure. Tolerance. Freedom. Not revenge. Because a tolerant, freedom-loving nation totally rounds up people just because of their skin color and puts them into detention camps. For no reason other than their skin color. Look how tolerant the Arab Libyans are to their darker-skinned Muslim brethren:

In the Khallat al-Firjan neighborhood in south Tripoli, Associated Press reporters saw rebel forces punching a dozen black men before determining they were innocent migrant workers and releasing them.
The Gate of the Sea club near Tripoli’s fishing port became a lockup Monday night, when residents rounded up people in the surrounding area.
Guards at the club said they looked for unfamiliar faces, then asked for IDs. Those without papers or whose legal residences were distant cities were marched to the club.
This week, an armed guard stood by a short hallway that led through two metal gates onto a soccer field surrounded by high walls. There was no roof, so the detainees clustered against the wall to get out of the heat.

Totally up to international standards, holding detainees without charge and making them stand in a soccer field in the desert sun. And look at how perfectly logical the charges are:

In an office nearby where sports trophies still lined the shelves, Ibrahim al-Rais, a 60-year-old fisherman, acted as prison director. A bag held wallets and IDs taken from the captives. Another was stuffed with cell phones, which occasionally rang.
He acknowledged that many of the detainees were likely innocent migrant workers stranded in the country but he insisted that a “big percentage” were mercenaries.
“These people were fighting against our people,” he said.

Substitute Palestinians and Israelis for black Africans and Libyans, and imagine the world’s outrage. Israeli Double Standard Time is in effect. But don’t worry! It only occurs on days that end with a “y.”

Posted in Israeli Double Standard Time, Middle East | 1 Comment

Turkey to Israel: Apologize before sundown, or else

Posted on 09/01/2011 by Meryl Yourish

I’m quite sure that Bibi is shaking in his boots over this latest demand.

Turkey declared Thursday that it would not tolerate further delay in the release of a United Nations report concerning Israel’s deadly raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla in 2010, and warned of consequences including sanctions should Israel continue to refuse to apologize for the incident.

Let us recap the issue: The UN report on the Mavi Marmara incident, which has been postponed three times, is going to show that Turkey is at fault.

According to Israeli officials, the 102-page report comes to the following conclusions:
Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza was legal, as was the interception of vessels trying to break the blockade.
The IHH activists behind the flotilla were looking for a violent provocation.
Turkey had a role with the IHH in the flotilla setting sail.
The IDF soldiers defended themselves after coming up against premeditated violence by those on the ship.
The IDF soldiers used excessive force.
The publication of the report has been delayed for months in the hopes that Israel and Turkey could reach an amicable agreement that would obviate the need for its publication. The concern is that once the report is released – a report that calls on Israel to express “regret” for the incident, but not apologize – it will be more difficult for Israel and Turkey to reach any type of reconciliation.
Israel has already expressed regret for the loss of life in the incident.

So, even though Israel has already bent over as far as possible towards Turkey’s position, Erdogan is going for broke and trying to get Netanyahu to apologize for having his soldiers attacked by terrorists. Yeah, I’m thinking not. So what are the consequences of a non-apology going to be?

In another reference to the possible consequences that would occur in the eventuality that Israel continued to avoid a public apology for the raid, the Turkish FM said that Turkey intended to ” impose sanctions which both Israel and other international parties are aware of.”

Really? Sanctions? Turkey has already lost more than 90% of its tourism from Israel, which is a huge hit to its tourism industry. Trade between Israel and Turkey? ~~I’m thinking there was almost none.~~ Turkey won’t sell Israel arms? Turkey doesn’t sell Israel arms. The only kind of sanctions Turkey can issue that will harm Israel is support of Israel’s enemies. And the IHH (to name only one Turkish organization) already does that.

Empty threats, and yet, watch the world media leap on them as if they mean something.

Update: When I’m wrong, I’m REALLY wrong. Israeli exports to Turkey total nearly one billion dollars. The question is, will Erdogan stop the trade? It will hurt Turkey, too.

Posted in Gaza, Israel, Terrorism, Turkey | Tagged Gaza Flotilla | Comments Off

Wednesday briefs

Posted on 08/31/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Where’s your peace with Israel now, Sandmonkey? I never believed the Egyptian Sandmonkey when he said that Egyptians didn’t hate Israelis. Turns out I wasn’t wrong. They hate Israelis. Big time.

YES! I can keep my Five Faves: The government is saying no to an AT&T-T-Mobile merger. That’s great, because I don’t want AT&T service.

You know what? I don’t care: The AP profiles Gaddafi’s daughter, who (shed a tear now) had to give birth somewhere in the Sahara Desert. Honestly, I don’t give a shit if all the Gaddafis are thrown to the crows. And this is why I don’t care:

Aisha Gadhafi is a lawyer in her mid-30s who helped in the defense of toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in the trial that led to his hanging. She is reported to already have three children, making Tuesday’s birth her fourth.
She had cultivated an image of caring about ordinary Libyans, but neighbors said she had razed a local clinic to make room for her luxurious home.

You reap what you sow, sweetie. You sowed death and destruction, or stood by while your family did. Screw you.

Because you can always count on condemning Israel: Just for kicks and giggles, I went to the Human Rights Watch Israel page to see how busy they are condemning Israel, compared with, say, condemning Syria. Here’s what you get for news on the Middle East/North Africa:

Iraqi Kurdistan: Prominent Kurdish Journalist Assaulted
Libya: Evidence Suggests Khamis Brigade Killed 45 Detainees
Libya: Gaddafi Forces Suspected Of Executing Detainees
Libya: Ensure Transition Respects Human Rights
Syria: UN Team Should Insist on Protection of Protesters
Morocco: Allow Political Exile to Return Home
Gaza: Stop Harassing Activists
Libya: All Sides Obligated to Protect Civilians
Organization of Islamic Cooperation: Act Swiftly to Rein in Syria
Israel: Attacks in South Unlawfully Target Civilians

Damn, they’re so tough on Syria, which is murdering civilians every single day. Why, they’re just as tough on Syria as they ever were on Israel. Oh. Wait. Never mind. Update: Oops, they’re actually condemning the terrorists in that last release on Israel. HRW seems to have managed to shift its focus to the actual human rights abusers in the Middle East for a change.

Posted in Gaza, Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time, Middle East, Syria | 1 Comment

Tuesday HulkMS briefs

Posted on 08/30/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Thanks, and don’t let the door hit you in the ass: Now that Western nations have helped get rid of Nutcase Gaddafi, they want us out yesterday. You’re welcome.

Now this is a brilliant idea: The IDF is training “settler” security forces on crowd-control methods in anticipation of thousands of Palestinians storming Israeli towns in the West Bank come their September faux push for statehood.

Why I call it the faux push for statehood: Abbas doesn’t really want a state. He wants Israel demonized, isolated, and eventually, defeated.

The Sinai terror threat remains: Israel has sent two warships to its border with Egypt, and the AP publishes an almost-balanced news article about it. They forgot to name Israel’s home front minister. Here, AP, let me help you: His name is Matan Vilnai, and when you start naming your Israeli sources as often as you name Palestinian sources, I’ll declare the AP a balanced news organization. And not until.

Hamas puts new restrictions on Gazans; world yawns in response: Yeah, yeah, yeah, NGOs are reacting in “horror,” and yet, they’re not going to do anything at all. Hamas is creating an Islamist-based police state in Gaza, but the world is going to go through the motions of declaring the fictional statelet of East Palestine in a few weeks, even as they ignore the 1.5 million Palestinians in the fictional statelet of West Palestine, no matter what new restrictions Hamas dreams up. Just watch. They’ll put out statements, but do nothing. If the NGOs really wanted to stop Hamas, they’d withdraw all funding, immediately, and watch the Palestinians finally rise up against their terror masters.

Posted in Gaza, Hamas, Israel, Media Bias, Middle East, Terrorism | Comments Off

Calling the U.S. Handicapper General

Posted on 08/29/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Every so often, you have to wonder if these people, who have supposedly been educated so extensively and are well-read, intelligent persons, have ever read a short story by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., entitled “Harrison Bergeron.” An excerpt:

The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of the United States Handicapper General.

And the reason I note this? Because of this op-ed in the Sunday Times (via):

Beauty is as much an issue for men as for women. While extensive research shows that women’s looks have bigger impacts in the market for mates, another large group of studies demonstrates that men’s looks have bigger impacts on the job.
Why this disparate treatment of looks in so many areas of life? It’s a matter of simple prejudice. Most of us, regardless of our professed attitudes, prefer as customers to buy from better-looking salespeople, as jurors to listen to better-looking attorneys, as voters to be led by better-looking politicians, as students to learn from better-looking professors. This is not a matter of evil employers’ refusing to hire the ugly: in our roles as workers, customers and potential lovers we are all responsible for these effects.
How could we remedy this injustice? With all the gains to being good-looking, you would think that more people would get plastic surgery or makeovers to improve their looks. Many of us do all those things, but as studies have shown, such refinements make only small differences in our beauty. All that spending may make us feel better, but it doesn’t help us much in getting a better job or a more desirable mate.
A more radical solution may be needed: why not offer legal protections to the ugly, as we do with racial, ethnic and religious minorities, women and handicapped individuals?
We actually already do offer such protections in a few places, including in some jurisdictions in California, and in the District of Columbia, where discriminatory treatment based on looks in hiring, promotions, housing and other areas is prohibited. Ugliness could be protected generally in the United States by small extensions of the Americans With Disabilities Act. Ugly people could be allowed to seek help from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and other agencies in overcoming the effects of discrimination. We could even have affirmative-action programs for the ugly.

Kurt Vonnegut: Prophet. Identity politics for the less attractive now? What an outstanding new source of income for personal injury attorneys. And the author of this story? A professor of economics. He thinks it’s unfair that pretty people make more money. Hell, I think a lot of things in life are unfair. The thing is, I learned a lesson a very, very long time ago: Life is unfair. In fact, I banned the phrase “That’s not fair” from my fourth grade when I taught Hebrew school for six years. I told the children that they had one day to get over using that phrase. I explained to them that life was not fair, and that I attempted to treat them as fairly as possible, but I wasn’t perfect. Of course, the real reason I banned the phrase is because nine-year-olds use it when you tell them to do something they don’t want to do. But the lesson sank in. When something truly unfair came along, and they had a legitimate complaint, I asked them, “And what have I told you about life?” “It’s not fair,” they would sullenly chant.

They got the message. Too bad this idiot didn’t.

Posted in American Scene | Comments Off

Monday post-Irene briefs

Posted on 08/29/2011 by Meryl Yourish

Yet another Palestinian terror attack: Yeah, the Palestinians want peace. But they spell it “piece,” and they mean “pieces of Israelis.” This bastard deliberately tried to murder children. What stopped him from killing? The border police checkpoint set up for the end of Ramadan. Wonderful people. They celebrate the end of their holiest time with a murder spree. Say, Larry Derfner, still think that his attacks are justified because Israel is oppressing the Palestinians?

Amending the peace treaty that Egypt wants to ignore: Israel is allowing 1500 Egyptian troops into the Sinai in an attempt to stop the lawlessness since Mubarak’s regime ended. Their stated purpose is to stop the terror attacks on Israel. We shall see if that’s what happens.

The AP continues its objectivity streak: Well, mostly. This last paragraph is a laff-riot, what with its mention of Palestinian security forces trying to stop Palestinian terrorists.

Such attacks inside Israel, once common, have fallen off in recent years as Israeli and Palestinian forces have restored security in the adjacent Palestinian territory of the West Bank. But some violence has continued, with one Israeli killed in a similar attack with a vehicle in Tel Aviv in May.

By the way, Syria is still murdering civilians by the dozen: Not that the world is concerned overmuch. Oh, there is the head-shaking and the threat of UN condemnation, but the reason Assad keeps doing it is because he isn’t seeing any NATO planes heading his way. Mind you, I’m not recommending that we get into yet another Middle East war. But the hypocrisy of the world when it comes to the deaths of Arabs by Arabs, compared to the death of Arabs by Israelis, is stunning. Utterly unbelievable, really.

Posted in Israel, Syria, Terrorism | Comments Off

On the booming apology business

Posted on 08/28/2011 by SnoopyTheGoon

You would probably agree that to apologize for a misdeed is not a sign of weakness, rather the opposite: it shows your strength of character, your moral fiber and whatnot. Besides, when a timely apology helps to avert a long and bloody feud, it is practically a mandatory step.

I wouldn’t go into the endless story of the Famous Turkey Apology. Suffice to say, that the endlessly delayed report of UN investigation of the Mavi Marmara incident isn’t going to be very complimentary to Turkey and its role in the whole sorry business. And Turkey wants this apology as some sort of a compensation for its lost face. Bibi, on the other hand, instead of assuming a firm stance on the issue, zigged and zagged for almost a year before finally coming to rest at what (today) seems to be his final (?) position. No apology to Turkey, then. Fine.

But then a need for another apology arises. Terrorist attacks on the Egyptian border near Eilat kill eight and wound scores of Israelis, mostly civilians, that with a background of helpless and, frankly, unwilling passivity of Egyptian police and army. Six Egyptian security officers, however, died in ensuing firefight in unclear circumstances. In a few hours, unclear circumstances notwithstanding, a rumor about IDF killing all six spread all over Egypt. And the Rage Boy took to the streets.
Continue reading →

Posted in Israel Derangement Syndrome, Middle East | Comments Off

Late Friday snark briefs

Posted on 08/28/2011 by Meryl Yourish

(Forgot to publish this on Friday, so you’re getting it now.)

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Egypt’s “Million-Man March” against Israel numbered—wait for it—in the hundreds.

While organizers expected a large turnout for the “million-man” protest, only a few hundred gathered on the last Friday of the Ramadan holiday in front of the Israeli Embassy in Cairo.

Guess they had better things to do than spend their holiday cursing the Jewish state. Perhaps they’ll learn a lesson from this. (No, I really don’t think they will.)

Yeah, this may not end very well: Israel is allowing Egypt to re-militarize the Sinai. It’s a tough choice: Not enough soldiers and terrorists get through into Israel. Too many soldiers and, well—the Egyptian army is on Israel’s border. Where have we seen that before? 1973, 1967, 1956, 1948… etc.

What cease-fire? Go ahead. Google that phrase on my site, and you’ll see how often I’ve written that in the past nine years. Because rockets fall during the so-called cease-fire. All the time.

Yeah, eff you too, Gorilla Boy: Here he is again, Mad Mahmoud, talking about the end of Israel. Let’s hear Juan Cole explain this one away. Note that the Daily Star of Lebanon has no trouble at all interpreting Mahmoud’s words as a call for the annihilation of Israel.

Posted in Iran, Israel, Middle East | Comments Off