Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Sarkozy Presses for Tougher Actions Against Iran - WSJ.com

Its encouraging to know that the Western world has at least one president who has an ounce of common sense.
Sarkozy Presses for Tougher Actions Against Iran - WSJ.com

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Naïve or Not? - The Opinionator Blog - NYTimes.com

Naïve or Not? - The Opinionator Blog - NYTimes.com

“It was a very naïve, Wilsonian speech, and very revealing of Obama’s foreign policy,” says Bolton. “Overall, it was so apologetic for the actions of prior administrations, in an effort to distance Obama from them, that it became yet another symbol of American weakness in the wake of the president’s decision to abandon missile sites in Poland and the Czech Republic, and his recent manifest hesitation over what to do in Afghanistan.”

“The most significant point of the speech was how the president put Israel on the chopping block in a variety of references, from calling Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegitimate to talking about ending ‘the occupation that began in 1967.’ That implies that he supports going back to 1967 borders,” says Bolton. “Obama has a very tough road ahead. He is frequently taking the side of the Palestinians, who don’t have a competent leader who can make hard decisions and compromises in the future.”

Also noteworthy, Bolton says, was how Obama highlighted “just how much of American foreign policy that he wants to run through the U.N.”

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Gaza Report Shows Anti-Israel Bias - WSJ.com

Gaza Report Shows Anti-Israel Bias - WSJ.com: "The argument seems to be that Hamas can surround its combatants with civilians, and for Israel to strike back is a war crime. The report holds Israel culpable for pursuing a strategy essential in war, which is to break the enemy's will to fight. By this logic, FDR and Churchill could have been charged because the bombing of German industries and cities killed civilians in World War II.

The U.N. also holds Israel accountable as Gaza's 'occupying power,' never mind that former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon uprooted all of Gaza's Jewish settlements in 2005. As for the 'blockade' it accuses Israel of inflicting on the Strip, one wonders why Egypt, which has also sealed its border with Gaza, doesn't come in for similar condemnation."

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Op-Ed Columnist - Three Cheers for Irving - NYTimes.com

Op-Ed Columnist - Three Cheers for Irving - NYTimes.com: "“There are no benefits without costs in human affairs,” he once wrote. And so there is no idea so true and no movement so pure that it doesn’t require scrutiny. There was no position in this fallen world without flaws."

Thursday, September 17, 2009

U.S. Shelves Nuclear-Missile Shield - WSJ.com

U.S. Shelves Nuclear-Missile Shield - WSJ.com

This is ground shaking on a lot of levels. If the Russians do not give us what we need on Iranian sanctions within the next 30 days or so, view this as another nail in the coffin towards Israel's attacking Iran -- US long term commitment to its allies is never something that is worth much to the Arab nations, Eastern Europe and other allies, and even worse in Israel, where Obama has a 4% approval rating (seriously) for confidence that he is dedicated to the "special relationship" we have with Israel. The world, and Obama, doesn't adequately understand how Jewish history, with the Holocaust as an exclamation mark, imparts on the Israeli psyche that at the end, it cannot trust the words of others and must take care of itself because it is surrounded by those who wish it dead. The Iranians may be bluffing, but against that background, an Israeli leader,with a military background and a strong a sense of history (Netanyahu), will act unless strong action is taken by the world.

Let's pray Obama didn't get snookered and double crossed by the Russians on this, not only for the immediate result in Iran and among our Eastern European allies, but also because it will show a dangerous lack of respect by the Kremlin for Obama, which could lead to tragic miscalculation (a march into the Ukraine, for example). History tends to repeat itself -- The Soviet's low opinion for Carter led to its feeling of confidence that it could invade Afghanistan.