European miconceptions
This interview in Der Spiegel with Dan Meridor - probably the most left-leaning member of Israel's cabinet other than Ehud Barak - shows that Der Spiegel, and possibly its government and the European Union, have no clue of where Israel's government stands on the issues or what the facts on the ground here are. How these people think they can play a role in bringing about peace when they have such gross misconceptions and are so openly hostile is inexplicable. Here's a sample of the back and forth. SPIEGEL: You blame Palestinian intransigence. Western leaders are, of course, demanding that the Arab side compromise on some issues. But they are also putting pressure on Israel to make concessions, as well, especially when it comes to its aggressive settlement policy in the West Bank.And to think the Germans are supposed to be our 'best friends' in Europe.
Meridor: There is no such policy.
SPIEGEL: You don't regard new settlements in the occupied territories as being a major stumbling block in the peace process?
Meridor: That's exactly why we aren't building new settlements. We haven't approved any.
SPIEGEL: You are sidestepping the issue. US President Barack Obama wouldn't urge Israel to stop its settlement policies if he didn't have a reason to do so. He has demanded an immediate freeze to any expansion, but your government has chosen not to comply. Some of your colleagues in Israel's cabinet are even encouraging the most radical settlers to build new, completely illegal outposts. Just recently, several ministers visited these places and delivered provocative speeches.
Meridor: Ours is a big coalition government with diverging views. What you describe is neither the official policy of Prime Minister Netanyahu nor the official policy of the government.
SPIEGEL: But there is no question that your government is providing financial assistance to the ongoing, provocative expansion of existing settlements. This makes it impossible for the Palestinian leadership to negotiate with you.
Meridor: That's one of your misperceptions. Olmert made an agreement with the administration of former President George W. Bush according to which the Americans accepted that there would be construction within existing settlements. This has been admitted by the deputy national security adviser of the US, and it was recently published in the Wall Street Journal. That did not stop the Palestinians from negotiating with us over three years.
SPIEGEL: Well, the fact is that there is now a new American president who is urging Israel to make this concession. Why is it so difficult for your government to show some restraint and agree to the building freeze, when this is something that the US, the European Union and the United Nations are demanding?
Meridor: We don't feel pressured by Obama. We haven't built any new settlements, so we are fulfilling the understanding. Now there are some ongoing discussions about a compromise.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:18 PM
4 Comments:
The problem is not European misconceptions. It's the misconceptions of the lost Jews, like Meridor, who don't know why they're here. From the same interview:
Meridor: "The previous pope (John Paul II) said that Jerusalem is sacred to all religions, but was promised to one people. We have no religious claim on Jerusalem; we have a national one. Jerusalem is our capital," he said.
Apparently, we haven't been smacked around enough yet by the Ribbono Shel Olam.
Shy Guy,
I debated discussing that very same quote, but figured it was hopeless. Would you really expect Meridor to say otherwise? (But see page 12 of the Global Language Dictionary I posted yesterday).
Take counsel together, and it shall be brought to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand; for God is with us.
עֻצוּ עֵצָה, וְתֻפָר; דַּבְּרוּ דָבָר וְלֹא יָקוּם, כִּי עִמָּנוּ אֵל.
- Isaiah 8:10
I would not expect Meridor to say otherwise, nor would I expect Europeans to say otherwise after hearing from Israeli politicians for 60 years nothing but a rejection of their true Jewish heritage.
Midah K'Neged Midad.
It has always been up to us and we are constantly failing.
The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib; but Israel doth not know, My people doth not consider.
יָדַע שׁוֹר קֹנֵהוּ, וַחֲמוֹר אֵבוּס בְּעָלָיו; יִשְׂרָאֵל לֹא יָדַע, עַמִּי לֹא הִתְבּוֹנָן.
- Isaiah 1:3
We are chasing our own tail.
Meridor is an idiot who knows next to nothing about Judaism. One can't meet an Israel politician today who can articulate the Jewish claim to Eretz Israel and Jerusalem the rest of the world has to respect. Israel is not standing up for its rights but trying to appease a hostile world that wants to see the Jews dead and gone. The Der Spiegel interview revealed that for Europe the concern is not what the Arabs should do to live in peace with Israel but what Israel can do to bring the Arabs around. Cause and effect are inverted. Israel is the aggressor and the Arabs are the victims. Carl would add here that until Jews speak the same language of rights and justice the Arabs do, the world is not going to ever give Israel the standing due to a people that have had no real security for thousands of years.
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