Well, actually Barry Rubin has many words for John Kerry, but let’s just focus on a few.
In Kerry’s confirmation hearings he was, with the clear exception of Rand Paul, largely scratched behind the ear by his Senatorial friends and colleagues. Paul asked him just why it was that the United States government felt it necessary to send F-16 fighter jets and Abrams tanks to the genocidally anti-Semitic leader of Egypt.
Among Kerry’s responses to the questions posed by Rand we get this:
The fact that sometimes other countries elect someone that you don’t completely agree with doesn’t give us permission to walk away from their election….
This response resonates with me due to the fact that throughout the “Arab Spring,” and with the election of the anti-Semitic Muslim Brotherhood into power in Egypt, we were constantly told by progressive-left Jewish “Zionists” that, “Well, Gosh Darnit, that’s democracy for ya! Don’t you want the rest of the world to have the blessings of democracy? What do you have against democracy? We have to respect other people’s choices! What are you, some kind offascist?!”
Throughout the entirety of last year I was dumbfounded, disgusted, and amazed that people were making that argument.
In any case, this is Professor Rubin’s response:
This is truly ignorant. Just because Egyptians—or anyone else—elected a government does not mean that U.S. policy must accept whatever that government does. Yet I think Kerry and Obama actually believe that it does mean that. Moreover, the Brotherhood didn’t just win but had U.S. backing. It was the party Obama favored. And now, of course, the regime has killed dozens of Egyptians in anti-government riots. It has also jammed through an ultimately anti-democratic constitution. The money and weapons the United States gives the Brotherhood government will help it consolidate power, buy off dissent and be able to repress the population. Is that what U.S. interests require, the consolidation of an Islamist regime in Egypt?
United States’ foreign policy under Barack Obama is an absolute disaster and part of the reason that it is is because the administration believes that we are obligated to support any regime, with the sole exception of Israel, so long as it is democratically elected. It doesn’t matter to Obama that the Brotherhood is a fascist and theocratic organization with historical ties to the Nazis. They honestly don’t care, or at least, they very definitely do not seem to care. They make no such noises, now do they?
But the Brotherhood did come to power through, more or less, democratic means. They may have violently repressed the Coptic vote, but who are we to quibble? And this means that as good liberals we must support our newly elected democratic friends in the Brotherhood, or so progressive-left “Zionists” told us throughout all of last year.
It’s absolute nonsense, of course. The first thing to understand is that we get to choose who we support in an election, including foreign elections. Just as the United States was under no obligation to support the democratically elected government of Nazi Germany, so we are under no obligation to support the democratically elected government of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.
And, really, how dumb must a Jew be to support an anti-Jewish organization like the Muslim Brotherhood? How profound must the Jewish Stockholm Syndrome be to literally suggest that the rise of political Islam throughout the Middle East is a good thing because it represents “democracy”?
I just find it unfathomable.
Egypt will not be a democracy any time soon because it is highly unlikely that the Brotherhood will allow themselves to be voted out of power.
But in terms of U.S. foreign policy the bottom line is that the Obama administration has abdicated any responsibility for standing up for western interests because they believe that standing up for western interests is in opposition to standing up for western values. But what kind of “values” is it that says you have to support those who would see you dead?
It simply makes no sense and it is something well beyond irresponsible.
Rubin writes:
He also missed an opportunity to point out that arms were sold to some countries precisely because they had made peace with Israel and other countries because they supported U.S. policy generally despite being very anti-Israel. Arms were not given, however, to countries led by anti-American revolutionary Islamist groups that also openly declared their support for genocide of Israel and all Jews generally.
The question is not if Obama is selling out American interests… and thereby selling out Israel, as well… but just why he is doing so.
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Mike Lumish is the proprietor of the pro-Israel blog, Israel Thrives.
@ dweller:
Can you two step?
@ yamit82:
That all you got by way of an ‘answer,’ sport?
Anybody can call names, it takes nothing out of you to do that
— making a case, OTOH — and putting it in writing — takes a minimum of contemplation. Too much to ask for, apparently.
The tax-return remark that’s been floating around on the web — and which you quoted — was clever, trenchant & thoughtful.
The rest of your post, was — regrettably (though, alas, predictably) — boring, hateful & shallow.
Yamit, that is the most creative thing I have ever heard someone do on a tax return, and very funny. It would be even funnier if it weren’t so regretably true.
dweller Said:
Idiot!!
“I just received my tax return for 2012 back from the IRS. It puzzles me!!! They are questioning how many dependents I claimed. I guess it was because of my response to the question: “List all dependents?”
I replied: 12 million illegal immigrants;
3 million crack heads;
42 million unemployed people on food stamps,
2 million people in over 243 prisons;
Half of Mexico;
and 535 persons in the U.S. House and Senate.”
Evidently, this was NOT an acceptable answer.
I KEEP ASKING MYSELF, WHO THE HELL DID I MISS?”
Your worst nightmare is not as realistic as mine is. I hope mine materializes just to see your reaction. You will probably explain it away in some pseudo psychobabble explaining that too much repressed anger was at the root of all problems and flight from Youshka teachings were the cause?
@ yamit82:
Even in the most unlikely event that he GOT the abrogation of term limits, it couldn’t apply to his OWN presidency without making it an ex post facto law.
— There may well be black helicopters in the offing, but they won’t come THAT way.
@ yamit82:
We line dance, video looks like our dance hall. Can you dance to “Ole Joe Clark:.
@ yamit82:
yamit82 Said:
He won’t need to. I predicted back in ’08 that after Obama’s second term Michelle will run to succeed him. Interestingly, CBC just recently asked the question whether Michele Obama will become more political during her husband’s second term. (CBC’s next intelligent question will be whether the Pope is still Catholic.) Michelle’s candidacy – and potentially presidency – is s frightening prospect: she is the more radical of the two and even now Obama is her Charlie McCarthy.
Honey Bee Said:
Yes but it’s been awhile. This is what we do mostly
My neighbors
@ yamit82:
Yamit, I wasn’t aware you were blind. Have you been unable to see all your life or did you lose you sight in a terrible accident?
@ Alanjo55:
What is Obama’s skin color? Green?
@ Shy Guy:
“Davenning Parrot”
@ C.R.:
Of Obama’s 50% black side he is actually 65% or higher arab and only 6% black. He is much more arab than he is black. In many states in the USA there was voting fraud. Obama likely stole the election but no matter how he got in, the Jewish scriptures in Daniel 5 teach us that God ultimately put Obama in office.
@ C.R.:
Don’t be to sure Sugar, half my family has disowned me because I refuse [under great pressure] to support Obama and the progressive agenda. However
@ yamit82:
My greatest fear is that Obama wil call on the memory of Roosevelt and push for a third term. I am sure I am not the only one. Guns and powerful guns are jumping off the selves now. To me the the future looks bleak.
I found a great cook book on Texas cooking at the flea market,I have recipe to Vipora de Cascabel, if” push comes to shove”.
D & C song number4 “I Need a Honky Tonk Song” George Jones. Can you ” Two Step”?
C.R. Said:
Or Americans are really that stupid. That’s the simplest answer and it looks about right, from what you hear from the average man or woman on the American street.
It’s not uniquely American. There is a dumbing down (perhaps it should be called dumbing up) of society in Europe and also in Israel.
Perhaps someone wants us dumbed-down, but that topic deserves its own thread.
Basically the only people who like his smile–are those who do not see him for who and what he truly is. Barack Obama is not a black man–duh; but rather he is half Negro and half white–which means he is both–not one or the other!
And Barack Obama did not legally win any election–it was all accomplished by corruption.
Barack Obama is provably unpopular among most Americans.
C.R. Said:
Hmmmm I seem to remember ELECTION NOV. 2012. The Black guy with the likeable big smile won. That’s the only poll and criteria that matters. You got a complaint take it up with your fellow Americans and Illegal immigrants who voted for him.
Maybe if you exchange the American people for like Chinese and Koreans you might get a majority to agree with you but no guarantees, they are all Marxists at heart.
The so called but not mainstream media promotes the Obama cult of personality–the misperception that Barack Obama is wildly popular; when the reality is very different among most Americans–as Barack Obama is very unpopular!
Shy Guy Said:
Is there any doubt in your mind he won’t get his grand slam and more?
Actually he has become the most powerful President in modern times. He has no credible opposition and the media covering for everything he does and nothing has been able to stick or diminish his power and popular likeability.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t push for and get the abrogation of term limits.
First base!
@ Laura:
Basically true.
However this rule does not apply when it comes to Israel. In the case of Israel, not only does the Obama administration believe it doesn’t have to accept whatever the democratically elected Israeli government does, but can actively undermine that democratically elected Israeli government.
Its very simple–Barack Obama is a Marxist–a communist–and he is working to destroy both the United States of America and Israel–this is why he is weakening the US military–this is why he is deliberately destroying the economy–this is why he has worked to depose moderate Arab governments in favor of the Nazi Muslim Brotherhood–and why he is training and arming them.
For the coming war against Israel–the war Barack Obama and the other Muslims hope will wipe Israel off the face of the Earth forever!
The Marxist left and right in America are supporters of the Nazi Muslim Brotherhood–because they are like minded–they also hate America and Israel.
There will never be democracy in any Muslim dominated nation–Egypt will not get better–but rather far worse–and will continue to go to hell!
John Kerry was chosen because he is like minded with the Obama administration–he will do as the evil Obama administration orders him to do–just as H. Clinton before him!