Alternative Insight

A Fanatic Comes to Congress
Iraq Redux


"My friend, thou art not my friend, but how shall I make thee understand? My path is not thy path, yet together we walk, hand in hand." Kahlil Gibran, The Madman

Examining Benjamin Netanyahu's address to the United States Congress reveals an interesting and exciting story, an excursion into the mind of a troubled leader from a troubled nation. Those who analyzed the address as a speech of political significance have fooled themselves. This was a work of fiction, featuring twists and turns of a "page turner" novel, whose climax was the drawing of the United States into attacking the Islamic Republic, not because of Iran's nuclear developments, but to protect Israel against a threat to its expansion in the Levant and to all of Jerusalem -- Iraq redux.

Being recited by a Prime Minister, the patronizing soliloquy to a robotic U.S. Congress contained the sentiments of a major portion of Israel's population, indicting Netanyahu and Israel as self-centered and paranoid, lacking gratitude, betraying trust, without knowledge of history, and devoid of reality. Chew over some of the absurdities that Netanyahu related.

The PM came to his benefactors and did not start by telling them how they are in mutual danger and how he can help; his self-importance and paranoia concentrated only on his nation: "Iran wants to annihilate the one and only Jewish state." "Iran is a threat to the existence of my country." He continued with, "It's a bad deal and we (meaning Israelis) are better off without it." Netanyahu believes the intensive negotiations with Iran are only about Israel.

His departing statement, the end of the fiction, was not a question but an assertion. "No matter what side of the aisle you stand, you stand with Israel." United States citizens understand that both sides of the aisle stand together for only one purpose, for American interests and not for those of any foreign nation, including Israel.

Netanyahu's pandering story contained a remark, "We share a common destiny," that should have made the cadre of supplicants ask themselves, "What has Israel ever done for our United States?"

Israel has made no contributions to the United States' battle in Afghanistan.
Israel, whose front men, known as the Neocons, pushed the United States into a disastrous war against Iraq while disguising the real purpose -- to destroy the Arab nation that had potential to be the military and economic power of the Middle East and most able to threaten Israel's expansion.
Israel has made no contribution to halting ISIS.
Israel provided no direct assistance to the U.S. during the Cold War against the Soviet Union.
Israel was a great friend of Nicolae Ceausescu, the despised and deposed leader of communist Romania.
Israel has not supported the United States' policy toward Russia. On the contrary, Israel has continued to maintain excellent relations with Putin.

The audience should have then pondered, "If we share a common destiny, why has Israel harmed America's destiny?"

Israel allied with the U.S. sanctioned South Africa apartheid regime.
Israel sold advanced technology weapons to China for decades.
http://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/13/world/israel-sells-arms-to-china-us-says.html

Israel competes with the United States in selling weapons to other nations.
http://www.bits.de/public/briefingnote/bn02-3.htm#3

Israel killed 34 and wounded 171 crew members of The USS Liberty during the six day war. On June 8, 1967, Israeli planes attacked the USS Liberty in international waters, and later claimed the attack was a mistake.
Israel has insulted U.S. leaders by expanding the settlements at the same time the U.S. has asked for a halt in settlements.
Israel's policies have jeopardized U.S. relations with Middle East nations.
Israel's alliance with the U.S. has created a bad image for the U.S. with the Arab street and with populations in other parts of the world.

U.S. aid enabled Israel to gain military supremacy, while Israel diminished U.S. credibility and morality. The "common destiny" has been one way, destined the United States to assist Israel in its domination of all Palestine and destruction of the Palestinian people.

Paranoids tend to focus on a single itch. For Netanyahu it is Iran, Iran and Iran, "the threat to the existence of my country."

"Iran persecutes Christians while Christianity is growing in Israel."
There is more to this story. Iran's Christians, traditionally ethnic Armenians and Assyrians, are able to practice their religion freely as long as they do not proselytize. The western evangelist religions are new to Iran and, because their principal purpose is to proselytize, they run afoul with authorities -- Sharia law forbids conversion from Islam and the Ayatollahs, having read history, know that Christian missionaries preceded colonial adventures in Latin America and Africa.

A more relevant issue to Americans is how Israel treats its Christians.

Verifiable information indicates that in 1947 there were 153,000 Christians in Palestine.
There are now 151,000 in Israel and about 50,000 in the West Bank. Subtract the 40,000 Russian Orthodox who immigrated with their Jewish wives, and a few thousand collaborative Maronites who were allowed entry after Israel vacated southern Lebanon, and we have about 110,000 descendants from the original Palestinian Christians in Israel. Add the 50,000 in the West Bank, and we have a total that is only slighter higher than that of 1947. At a compounded growth rate of 1.9 %, the present Christian population should be about 3.5 times that of 1947 or about 535,500 worshipers. So, where did they go?

(1) Israel destroyed many Palestinian Christian villages, and 35% of Christians west of the Green Line became refugees.
(2) Israel's oppressive policies forced a large percentage of Christians from Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza to leave.
(3) The "security wall" deliberately barricaded the road leading from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, which bankrupted most Christian businesses along that road and drove out many Christians.

Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land, December 17, 2012, IMEU at http://imeu.org/article/palestinian-christians-in-the-holy-land details the constant attacks on Christians and the severe discrimination against them in Israel. There is too much data to summrize in this article, which shows that prejudice may be more severe than acts against Christians in Iran.

Or look at in another way.
ISIS claims they represent all Muslim Arabs. Christians are allowed if they accept the Islamic state and pay a 10% tax.
Netanyahu claims that Israel represents the Jewish people and Christians are allowed if they accept the Jewish state. Christians who pay taxes should expect inferior services and lesser allocations for education, health and housing than for Jewish citizens.

Netanyahu recites an exciting tale, "Iran is on a march of conquest, subjugation and terror." After hearing these suffocating words, a sound and sane assembly of listeners would have leaped out of the halls and sought fresh air. What nation has Iran conquered? What people has the Islamic republic subjugated? What terror has Iran committed, well some in retaliation? Specifics are never recited.

Iran is probably the only major nation that has not attacked another nation in 200 years.
Because the U.S. invasion of Iraq and installation of the Shi'a al-Maliki government brought Iraq closer to Iran; because the anarchy and weak operations of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi in Yemen forced the Shia rebels loyal to Abdul Malik al-Houthi, who are 40% of Yemen's population and no relation to the Iranians, to unwillingly seize control (Never mentioned is that previous President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had been in power for 30 years until ousted in 2011, was a Zaidi Shiite.); and because Syria and Hezbollah, both fellow Shi'a, have a natural tendency to ally with Iran, does this mean that Iran has conquered and subjugated other peoples? U.S. dictates a demand -- Iran can have no friends.

To identify the attachment of Iran to terrorism, Netanyahu resurrected the usual and ancient charges -- the 1983 killing of marines in Beirut by suicide bombers who revenged the shelling of the Shouf mountains by U.S. naval ships (nothing to do with Iran), occupation of the U.S. embassy by mostly students in Tehran in 1979 (not agovernment operation), unproven accusations of involvement in bombing of Jewish cultural center in Argentina in 1994, and a supposed plot to kill the Saudi ambassador in the U.S. in 2011.

"Iran is on a march of conquest, subjugation and terror."
Sounds familiar; just change Iran to Usrael (U.S. and Isarel) and it might be more correct.

The paranoid thread reappears. "Another Persian potentate is trying to destroy our people."
The name of the country is Iran and it exiled the last potentate, the Shah Palevi. Netanyahu apparently does not know that the Persian leader Cyrus the Great freed Jews from Babylonian exile and permitted them to return to Jerusalem. Jews thrived in Persia for centuries.

"Isis and Iran are competing for an Islamic state - first for region and then for rest of the world."
Where has the Islamic Republic tried to convert others to their brand of Islam or attempted to spread its ideology one inch beyond its borders? Iran did not convert 70 percent of the population of Bahrain; they were always Shi'a, as are those in Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.

"The enemy of my enemy is not my friend."
Imagine, if during World War II, Netanyhau's hero Winston Churchill, an antagonist to the Soviet Union, came to the U.S. Congress to solicit support for an attack on the Soviet Union and characterized the relationship as "The enemy of our enemy is not our friend."

The Soviet Union's role in halting the Nazis was much more significant and decisive than Iran's anticipated participation in derailing ISIS could ever be. But if Islamic Republic involvement in Iraq saves U.S. lives and helps accomplish the difficult task of subduing ISIS, should not its participation in the endeavor be welcome.?

And finally, the specious references to history.
"We have 4000 years of history in which many have tried to destroy the Jews."

Let us dispense with this repetitive and self-serving misinterpretation of history. No historical record or archaeological digs have verified the biblical accounts of the ancient Hebrews before 800 B.C. Moses, Exodus, Conquest, David and Solomon remain myths of history. No Hebrew civilization that left a significant imprint on history is known to have existed. No credible direct relation between western Jews and the ancient Hebrews has been established.

As most minorities, Jews have been subjected to severe abuses. Unlike, Mayans, Celts, Incas, Cathars, American Indians, Nabateans, and hundreds of other ethnic groups, the Jews have survived and prospered. Could this be because they have been disbursed and been able to integrate into other societies rather than remaining a completely separated community that resided in one area?

According to Netanyahu , they (the Jews) are now threatened with possible extinction by Iran (Persia), which is similar to a time of the Persian Empire, when Queen Esther (the face in the Starbucks logo) supposedly saved the Persian Jews and ushered in the festival of Purim.

The biblical Story of Esther relates how Prime Minister Haman offered Persian King Ahasuerus 10,000 silver talents in exchange for permission to exterminate the Jews. Ahasuerus agreed, and Haman ordered the people to rise up against the Jews and kill all their men, women, and children on the13th of Adar. Queen Esther revealed to the king her Jewish ancestry and pleaded that Haman was plotting against her people. She asked "and if it pleases the king, let my life be granted me by my plea, and the life of my people by my request. For my people and I have been sold to be annihilated, killed and destroyed!"
The king adored his Queen and ordered that Haman be hanged.

Was Purim a true story?

The True Story of Purim
By JUDITH SEID
http://jbooks.com/secularculture/Seid/Purim.htm

Although the story purports to be historical, it was written several hundred years after the events it talks about would have taken place. There is no evidence in any other record, either Jewish or otherwise, that the events ever happened or that the characters ever existed. In fact, the historical record directly contradicts the main plot ideas, and the characters appear to be named for Babylonian gods. The story itself is what we would now call a fairy tale. Still, we have adopted this episode into our national history.

What happened after the Persian king revoked Haman's proclamation against the Jews?
Here is the Old Testament account.

8:17 And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them.
9:2 The Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, to lay hand on such as sought their hurt: and no man could withstand them; for the fear of them fell upon all people.
9:5 Thus the Jews smote all their enemies with the stroke of the sword, and slaughter, and destruction, and did what they would unto those that hated them.
9:6 And in Shushan the palace the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men..
9:16 But the other Jews that were in the king's provinces gathered themselves together, and stood for their lives, and had rest from their enemies, and slew of their foes seventy and five thousand, but they laid not their hands on the prey
9:19 Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns, made the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of gladness and feasting, and a good day, and of sending portions one to another.

Plead self-defense and then slaughter the opposition without taking casualties. Sound familiar?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's story intended to describe why a proud Iran should prostrate itself before USrael (US and Israel) and halt all nuclear endeavors. He achieved the contrary and proved why Iran should have an atomic weapon -- to prevent an irrational Israel from dominating the Middle East and using its bomb to intimidate other nations.

alternativeinsight
march, 2015

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