Author Archives: Soccerdad

About Soccerdad

I'm a government bureaucrat with delusions of literacy.

Stuck on “moderate”

As members of Fatah leave their conference preparing to govern their people effectively, they offered what sounds like a tantalizing commitment. They reiterated their commitment to the “peace option.” We would like very much to take the delegates’ words at … Continue reading

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Human wrongs watch 2

Last week Human Rights Watch issued its third report on Israel’s war against Hamas. Dion Nissenbaum reported: One of the most incendiary charges to emerge from Israel’s three week military offensive in Gaza was that Israeli soldiers killed Palestinian women … Continue reading

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It takes a village league

In the early 80’s Menachem Begin appointed an academic, Menachem Milson to be the administrator of the disputed areas. Begin made the appointment after reading an article by Milson in Commentary arguing that Israel should deal with the indigenous populations … Continue reading

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Echoes of a blue dress

As my co-blogger JudeoPundit and others have noted, Iran’s Press TV is accusing Binyamin Netanyahu of starting the Obama birth rumors. Read the excerpt at Don Surber’s: California attorney Orly Taitz, who filed the lawsuit challenging President Obama’s citizenship, was … Continue reading

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Malley’s folly

The other day the New York Times published an op-ed by Robert Malley and Hussein Agha, The Two state solution doesn’t solve anything: They conclude: For years, virtually all attention has been focused on the question of a future Palestinian … Continue reading

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Cynical misery

Often those of us who support Israel claim that the Palestinian issue is one that was created and maintained by the Arab world in order to have a weapon against Israel. A few weeks ago, Daniel Pipes linked to a … Continue reading

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Letters of disapproval

Ronald Lauder writes: Respect the sovereignty of democratic allies. When free people in a democracy express their preferences, the United States should respect their opinions. The current administration should not try to impose ideas on allies like Israel. The administration … Continue reading

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Where “liquidate” means “living side by side peacefully”

Back on August 30, 1993 Clyde Haberman of the New York Times reported the significant change that the PLO was going to undergo: Another important step is that the P.L.O. is to renounce terrorism, according to some officials. But they … Continue reading

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Moral hazards

Dion Nissenbaum who has never seen a rationalization of terror or condemnation of Israel that he hasn’t accepted uncritically wrote about “Breaking the Silence” a few weeks ago. He accepted the view that some soldiers claimed that the IDF operated … Continue reading

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The fog of war lifted

The BBC at the time it happened. Strike at Gaza school ‘kills 40’ … The UN officials said they regularly provided the Israeli military with exact co-ordinates of their facilities, and that the school was in a built-up area. UN … Continue reading

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Huzzahs for Hussam

Reading Isabel Kershner’s Fatah postpones elections but Extends Conference, I wonder if I’m missing anything. Kershner informs us that the younger members of Fatah want a greater say in its governance. Are they more moderate? She doesn’t tell us. But … Continue reading

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Ethnic smearing

Earlier this week, Israel evicted a group of Palestinians from a building in Jerualem. The New York Times reported: Thirty-eight members of the Ghawi family were removed from six apartments that made up one of the houses. There are 17 … Continue reading

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After 20 long years they let them out of the home

In the NYT Isabel Kershner reports in Abbas Urges ‘New Start’ at Fatah Conference : The day was filled with contradictory messages reflecting the disarray in Fatah. A huge poster on the wall bore the legend “Resistance is the legitimate … Continue reading

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Fatah con 2009

The players Barry Rubin wrote an informative roundup of the personalities who will be participating. Most importantly he observed: Of the Fatah Central Committee’s seventeen surviving members, only three can be classified as relative moderates. At least seven can be … Continue reading

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Worth every penny of “free”

In “Free marriage counseling” Thomas Friedman offers advice how to repair the currently strained American Israeli diplomatic impasse. The operative word is “free” because that is exactly what Friedman’s advice is worth. Friedman simply strings together his past positions and … Continue reading

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