Friday, July 25, 2008

Bid to be saltier than salt itself

July 25, 2008

Bid to be saltier than salt itself


AMERICAN politicians will never stop us wondering whether there is any limit to which they would go in order to please the Jewish lobby and voters by playing the Israeli card, which is a trump indeed in the game to win the White House.
The latest in that is a declaration by Republican presidential candidate John McCain that Israel faced the greatest threat in its history because of Iran while his Democratic rival Barack Obama described the Jewish state as a "miracle that has blossomed" since it was created in Palestine 60 years ago.
It was as if humility was finding new depths when Obama stated:
"I'm here on this trip to reaffirm the special relationship between Israel and the United States, my abiding commitment to its security, and my hope that I can serve as an effective partner, whether as a ... senator or as a president, in bringing about a more lasting peace in the region."
If that was not enough, Obama, on a visit to Israel and the occupied West Bank, unequivocally stated that Jerusalem should be the capital of Israel.
It was all non-committal diplomacy when Obama said it was up to Israel and the Palestinians to negotiate and decide whether the Holy City should should be all under Israeli control or divided with Palestinians and that it's not up to the United States to determine. Well, if that is indeed the case, let the US stop meddling with the Israeli-Palestinian peace process (if there is a realistic one indeed) and remain strictly neutral and allow international legitimacy and conventions be the parameter for negotiations for peace in the Middle East.
And, not to be outdone by McCain in the Iranian context, Obama declared that "the world must prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons" and that "America must always stand up for Israel's right to defend itself against those who threaten its people."
It was as if we were listening to the incumbent US president, George W Bush, when Obama warned pointedly that no options are "off the table" in confronting a nuclear threat from Iran. The only difference was that Obama suggested that Iran should be offered "big carrots" — something that Bush never mentioned — as well as "big sticks" and affirmed that he remained open to engaging the Iranian in dialogue, but it is an idea that we all know exists only in words.
We know that Bush is reckless enough to be ready to order military strikes against Iran in order to allay Israel's self-professed fears about Iranian intentions towards it and that McCain is right on toe behind Bush. Now, we are being repeatedly told
that Obama also favours the approach.
Indeed, Obama should but be aware that while he leads McCain in national polls back home, opinion surveys show that he may not be able to count on as wide a majority of Jewish supporters as is typical for Democrats. Polls also indicate that Israelis favour McCain over Obama on issues of Israel's "security." That should explain his anxiety to declare his eternal commitment to upholding Israel's interests and — not in so many words though — even at the expense of American interests.
The Israelis should be laughing their head off at the sight of the US presidential candidates bending backward and forward trying to be more Jewish and more Israeli than Jews and Israelis. They are confident that they would be able to make any US presidential candidate and, more importantly, whoever wins the race jump through any loops.
And here we hope as every US presidential election comes along that the new occupant of the White House would be honest to himself and his country and realise that there is something seriously wrong in continuing to provide almost unlimited political, military, financial and diplomatic support to Israel despite its refusal to abide by international law and unbridled use of military force in order to have its way.