By: Daniel Greenfield (also blogs as Sultan Knish)
The Winograd Report focused on why the Second Lebanon War failed – but understanding why the war failed is not nearly as important as understanding why the war began.
From its birth, the State of Israel gradually expanded its territories, pushing back its enemies, increasing its frontiers and building new towns and villages to hold them. And then, in the last decade and a half, Israel began to shrink.
While Israel’s population may have grown, the Land of Israel has been reduced, carved up, given away, tossed aside. The State of Israel, born with a vision of Jews returning to their land, has traded away that land in exchange for treaties with its enemies and the promise of a New Middle East built on economic cooperation that has never materialized outside the realm of Shimon Peres’s oratory.
If one wishes to understand the mentality and mindset of a political class that has embraced withdrawal as a means of achieving security for Israel, no other words are needed but these, from a Jerusalem Post column by M.J. Rosenberg, director of the Israel Policy Forum’s Washington Center:
“The invocation of the worst years in the history of the Jewish people as analogous to today’s situation seems particularly absurd when you are walking along the seafront promenade in Tel Aviv.â€
Rosenberg goes on to say that Tel Aviv is “the place in Israel that is most antithetical to the Zionism of the settlers who choose to live not in an Israeli city, town, village or kibbutz but as a tiny minority among a Palestinian population hostile to its presence… The good news is that less than 5% of the Jewish population of Israel has chosen to abandon life in Israel for life on a hostile frontier.â€
Those are the words of a political class that walks the promenade of Tel Aviv, sits in its cafes, gazes at the sunsets – and even more closely watches its overseas bank accounts and IPOs. A political class that believes urban life somehow insulates it from the realities of life. Rockets have fallen on Haifa but so far not on Tel Aviv; until they do, war seems unreal and far away. CONTINUE
M.J.Rosenberg has a long history for anyone following his career; he has been a paid flunky mouthpiece for american left wing politicians and state dept agencies his credentials as pro israel advocate depends on which side of political spectrum you advocate. some people would argue that Uri Aveneri or Peace Now are also Israeli advocates. it is an open secret the Uri Avneri and Peace now are well funded by millionaires in and out of Israel. It is a well known open secret the EU funds any anti isrel internal groups or persons that they beleive will effectivly sway public opinion to defeatist positions inorder to weaken if not destroy Israel from within and if that dosent do the trick help to weaken israel so its enemies will have an easier job. The saying follow the money- Who supports MJRosenberg financially? Knowing sources of his fincacial support will lead to conclusions that he and many like him should be registerd as alein agent before they get to meet or speak with any israeli govt. official or representative. In short why should anyone pay him mind any more than they pay me mind? his opinions are suspect of reflecting those who pay him and mine are soley my own.
Jewish citizens of Israel aren’t the only ones pained by the repeated withdrawals from hard-won territory. Every one was a mistake. Why any reasoning Jew would think for even a moment that any muslim would honor any agreement with a Jew is beyond my understanding. It’s a point of honor among muslims to dishonor such agreements. Now you have the choice of either taking back those areas or being trampled. Politicians are such weak, pandering fools…