By Michael R. Shannon

It was somewhat disconcerting last week to witness the man our MSM assures us is the essence of cool, calm and collected resorting to the Redneck Philanderer’s defense.

Yet there was President Obama — at the AIPAC conference — defending his latest Mideast stumble by essentially asking the 10,000 member audience if they were going to believe him or their lying eyes.

This is what happens when your governing style tends toward pronouncements from on high. Obama sabotaged his latest peace plans by making the unprecedented declaration that any final agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority “should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps.”

Government by edict is very popular under this administration and remains a big hit with unelected, unresponsive regulatory agencies, but it is markedly less popular outside Obama’s amen corner.

During a White House meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed Obama that the ’67 lines were indefensible and he has no intention of agreeing to Obama’s pre–condition.

The photos from that meeting are priceless. While Netanyahu was dissecting Obama’s latest fantasy–based initiative, Obama stares at him like a petulant, sulky adolescent. You can almost see him thinking, “Yeah, well wait ‘til I tell Hillary, then we’ll see who’s the big talker.”

Which is why Obama was at the AIPAC conference explaining that what he said didn’t really mean what he said.

An excellent rule of thumb for evaluating the sincerity of any Obama statement is this simple test: if his position would garner a unanimous vote of approval in the Harvard faculty lounge, Obama really means it.

AIPAC attendees take note.

In an earlier AIPAC speech during the 2008 campaign, Obama proclaimed to wild applause that “Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided.” That firm commitment lasted until he left the building and was criticized by leftists and pro–Arab pressure groups. Now Jerusalem will be part of a joint custody arrangement — the kind where both parties have restraining orders.

Arabs are just as pleased with this new pre–negotiation condition as they were over Obama’s last edict that instructed Israel to ban any new “settlement” construction.

The 1967 lines are not actually like the border that exists between say the US and Mexico. (For one thing, Israel guards its border, even though Arabs are willing to do the exploding Jews don’t want to do.)

These boundaries represent where the Arab attack in the 1948 war stopped and where the Arabs intended to renew their attack in 1967. Obama’s endorsement of these lines serves to fix the total number of square miles of territory each side will possess in a final agreement even before negotiations start.

If Israel needs to annex so much as a truck garden on the right side of the ’67 line it has to give up an equal amount of land on the left side of the line on a one–for–one basis.

Size matters when it comes to security and unfortunately the pro–Israel side has made a mistake in metaphors. Supporters in the US often compare Israel’s size to that of New Jersey. Conservatives hear that startling fact and realize Israel has no margin for error. In the event of an attack the Israelis can’t trade space for time to organize a defense.

People like Obama hear that and conclude that since New Jersey is protected by a handful of state troopers, Israel can be, too.

And that’s not the most bizarre of Obama’s fixations.

It’s amazing he believes you can have negotiations at all. Successful agreements require two sides to negotiate in good faith. Yet the Palestinian Authority does not even recognize the existence of Israel and has just formed a coalition government with Hamas, a group who’s charter also refuses to recognize Israel and further calls for the destruction of both Israel and the Jews. There is even a question whether the US can have any dealings with the new coalition, since the State Department lists Hamas as a terrorist organization.

It could be that since Obama says many things he does not mean, he assumes the PA and Hamas do likewise, but cemeteries in Israel prove him wrong.

Back in the 90’s then Secretary of State James Baker – no friend of Israel – gave some advice that could prove useful to Obama. In testimony before Congress he said, “Everybody over there should know that the [White House] telephone number is 1–202–456–1414. When you’re serious about peace call us.”

The President just needs to make sure it’s a conference call.
Michael R. Shannon is a public relations, advertising and political consultant with experience around the globe. He is also a popular speaker and can be reached at michael–shannon@comcast.net.

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WesternFront America

By Alan Caruba

Is Obama a Muslim? Does Obama hate Israel? Will Israel be attacked again? Will Iran nuke Israel? Has Maghreb and Middle Eastern turmoil flummoxed the White House? Why did Obama bow to Saudi Arabia’s king? Questions, questions, questions?

Watching President Barack Hussein Obama try to pick winners and losers in the Middle East would be amusing if it were not so deadly serious. Not a word about Syria’s slaughter of its protestors. A demand that Libya’s Gadhafi step aside and a quick retreat behind NATO’s skirts. Throwing Egypt’s Mubarack under the bus when saying nothing would have sufficed. And then there was the infamous and inauspicious start to his presidency with the “World Apology Tour” that included a stop in Cairo.

A May 11^th Reuters news article published in the Jerusalem Post was titled “Obama may preempt PM’s speech to U.S. Congress.” Benyamin Netanyahu, at the invitation of Speaker John Boehner, will address the Congress on May 24. If President Obama delivers a speech about “political change in the Middle East and North Africa” prior to the PM, it will be impossible to deny that it is a deliberate effort to rebut in advance anything Netanyahu says.

Israel just celebrated the 63^rd anniversary of its founding. Successive American administrations have struggled and failed to secure any peace between it and its sworn enemies. The reason is simple and obvious. Only Egypt and Jordan negotiated peace treaties with Israel and then only after having been decisively defeated in war.

Neither the Palestinian Authority, nor Hamas wants peace, nor does Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy group based in Lebanon. Not all the handshakes, Oslo Accords, and other diplomatic dances will change this.

President Obama’s special envoy, George Mitchell, whose mission it was to fashion a peace between Israel and the Palestinians just rendered his resignation. He could have saved himself the bother by not even taking the job.

The Israelis have given up territory and made countless concessions to the Palestinians without any reciprocity. Now the Palestinians are counting on the United Nations to unilaterally declare them a sovereign state. When not killing Israelis, they kill each other.

The United Nations has a long, ugly record of hostility, passing endless resolutions condemning Israel while maintaining the Palestinians as the world’s oldest “refugee” group to the tune of millions via the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

The European Union whose World War II member nations allowed their Jews to be frog-walked to Nazi concentration and death camps has also demonstrated its hostility.

America, to its credit, has always been Israel’s one true friend. During the campaign, Obama even visited the Wailing Wall to demonstrate his solidarity. Once elected, however, and to the astonishment of voters the new Obama administration was reluctant to even say that militant Islam was the enemy or to even use the word “terrorism.” It was renamed “overseas contingency operations”!

Call me a cynic but I believe that the decision to kill Osama bin Laden was not taken until the 2012 elections became a priority. Why? Because three terrorist attacks, including the Fort Hood murders, had previously been swept under the rug by the Obama administration. Moreover, the Obama Justice Department continues to threaten CIA agents with jail for the aggressive interrogation techniques that led to finding bin laden.

The Obama administration’s hostility to Israel and the rush to preempt the Israeli Prime Minister’s speech is a reflection the 180 degree reversal of all previous administration’s relations with Israel. The president’s national security advisor, John Brennan, has referred to Jerusalem as “Al Quds”, the Arabic name for the ancient and modern capital of Israel and the State Department continues to send funds to Hamas.

In a speech delivered in March 2010, Netanyahu said, “The Jewish people were building Jerusalem three thousand years ago and the Jewish people are building Jerusalem today. Jerusalem is not a settlement. It is our capitol.”

The Muslim “tilt” of the Osama administration would be obvious to a blind man. At one point the U.S. Navy was instructed to call the Persian Gulf the “Arabian Gulf.” Who can forget the President’s weak response to a proposal to build a mosque within a short distance from New York’s Ground Zero, the site of 9/11?

New voices out of Egypt are calling for the abrogation of its peace treaty with Israel. Hezbollah has been removing its cache of long-range rockets (courtesy of Iran) from Syria as that regime faces opposition. Hamas, designated a terrorist organization worldwide, has joined hands with the PLO, negating any possibility for peace with Israel.

It is bad enough when various nations openly declare their hostility to Israel, but it is very dangerous when the current regime in Washington demonstrates its hostility in subtle and not-so-subtle ways.

President Harry Truman recognized Israel when it declared its sovereignty on May 14, 1948. At the time he said, “I have faith in Israel and believe it has a glorious future, not just as a sovereign nation, but as the embodiment of the great ideals of our civilization.”

Israel and Americans who support it must wait for the November 2012 elections before the threat the Obama administration represents can be removed.

Israel’s enemies may not be willing to wait, seeing the present regime and time as the best and possibly the last opportunity to make good on their threat to “wipe it from the map.”

© Alan Caruba, 2011

 

WesternFront America

By J. D. Longstreet

You should know that the Zionist regime has reached the end of the line and no one can save this regime.” Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a speech Thursday April 7^th, 2011. (SOURCE)

Earlier, on April 4^th, Ahmadinejad said: “A Mideast without Israel and America is now possible.” (Source)

American evangelical Christians are backing Israel now, more than ever, as they interpret Obama’s rejection of Israel as the fulfillment of Bible prophesy in reference to the so-called “end-times.”

In the Scriptures, as the huge armies gather from, in my opinion, Russia, China, and the Arab Nations to bring all their power to bear in a combined effort to destroy Israel, it becomes clear that the US will not intervene on Israel’s behalf.

The alignment of nations against Israel today is eerily like the alignment of the great nations from the North (Russia), from the East (China) and from the South (the Arab Nations) … in fact, EXACTLY as laid out in the scriptures.

(As Iran is backed by Russia, we have to add Iran to the Army from the North. Remember, too, the Iranians are not Arabs. They are Persians.)

Students of Bible prophecy, observing the events unfolding in the Middle East today, are fairly trembling with anticipation. Observing the events they have studied for so long seem suddenly to be prophecy no longer — but real world fact — is sending shock waves of jubilation through certain denominations within the Christian faith.

Why?

Because their faith teaches that when they see these things happening — then their “redemption is nigh.” In other words, the Rapture of the Church is at hand.

Look. This is important stuff! Whether you are Christian, or not, whether you are a believer, or not. Whether you are Gentile or Jew, agnostic, atheist, or secularist, there can be no question that an event of earth shaking importance is about to happen in the Middle East. In fact, I believe it has already begun.

In my opinion, it is sensible to believe that, at some point, Iran will attack Israel with nuclear weapons — unless, of course, Israel takes Iran’s nuclear capability away. Israel has first AND second strike nuclear capabilities … NOW.

The situation in the Middle East is so fluid that it is difficult to stay abreast of it on a daily basis. There is one thing fairly certain. That is that Iran is in there, somewhere, pulling the strings that will leave them in the catbird’s seat when things begin to settle down.

The creation of an Islamic caliphate has been suggested as Iran’s motivation. That is certainly a possibility but I think it is much simpler. It is, I believe, a power grab by the mad mullahs and their puppet Ahmadinejad.

Do not be so naive as to believe that Israel has been sitting in its bunker while all the surrounding Muslims have been clawing at each other’s eyes. Israel has, quite possibly, the best intelligence service existing on the planet today… far better than either the US or British intelligence services. If anyone knows what Iran is up to, what all the fighting in the Arab countries surrounding them is REALLY about — it is Israel’s Mossad. And that intelligence is in the hands of Israel’s IDF and their Prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, himself, a former member of the Israeli Special Forces.

Looking past religion … take a look at the price of gasoline today. Now, consider this: When the Muslims turn their rage on Israel, there is every reason to believe that the US oil supply from the Middle East will be cut off –completely. The Suez Canal will last … maybe… 48 hours, as will the Straits of Hormuz. That means, what … eight or ten dollars a gallon gasoline? We should be so lucky!

Now, I am not a theologian. I’m not a prophet. I’m not an “expert” on anything I am aware of … believe me. I’d like to think I’m a fair “pamphleteer” … and that’s about all. But, I am aware of what’s going on round me. I make a real effort to stay informed on current events … and I don’t mean the lives of movie and TV celebrities and/or royalty.

Too often I have had friends say to me, when I question them about current events: “I don’t worry about that because there is nothing I can do about it, anyway.” That cop-out won’t fly any longer. Do you realize that a virtual hand-full of Americans changed one half of the national legislative body of the United States last November?

By this coming fall, I expect we will see a strong push by the Obama Administration, in league with the UN, to force upon Israel a Palestinian state — and in the process take away a portion of the city of Jerusalem in the deal. Any fool can already see that such a move will only bring on war between the two states and Israel will conquer and take back that which is rightfully her’s and, I expect when the dust is finally settled, Israel will own ALL of the land God gave them … not just that sliver they hold today.

So. When is the Battle of Armageddon? I have no idea. But this I do know: Hung out to dry by the US and much of western Europe and the English speaking world, Israel will still have any ally. See. Like so many others of my generation – I have read the book – and I know how it ends. Israel will win — decisively!

Oh. Israel’s ally? Just God.

J. D. Longstreet blogs daily at INSIGHT on Freedom at: http://www.csadispatch.blogspot.com/

E-Mail: longstreet1862@gmail.com

 

WesternFront America

There has been much talk lately of creating a state of Palestine with Jerusalem as it’s capital city. Many of us take a dim view of this approach to peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians.

Jerusalem is known to many as “The City Of David.” (Actually only the southeastern portion of The Old City is the historic “City of David”. But to many Jews and many evangelical Christians the entire city of Jerusalem is recognized as “The City of David.”) Jerusalem is at the heart of Jewry no matter where on the face of the globe a Jew happens to be.

Jerusalem can NEVER be the capital city of a non-existent state known as “Palestine.” NEVER! Even if the world finally has it’s way and declares such a thing as a Palestinian state, the city of Jerusalem will forever remain the capital city of Israel.
Here are some facts a few minutes research on the Internet will reveal:

Jerusalem has been inhabited since at least 3000 BC. It was originally built around a water source known then as the Gihon Spring, to the south of what is known today as the Temple Mount. King Solomon expanded the limits of the city beyond that area known as the City of David.

There are those who will argue that Jerusalem did not exist at the time of David or the time of his son, Solomon. I respect their right to believe what they will, but I choose to believe that it did. See, I am one of those old “Hard Heads” who maintain the plausibility or validity of the Biblical account of a conquest by King David who, as described in the Bible, captured the city by climbing upwards through the ancient water system at the Gihon Spring.

It was around the year 1010 BC, when King David defeated the Jebusites in Jerusalem and decided to make the city his administrative capital. David brought the Ark of the Covenant to the city.

When David brought the Ark to Jerusalem he intended to build a great Temple for God as a permanent resting place for the Ark of the Covenant. According to Jewish tradition, as reported in the Bible, David was not permitted to build the Temple because he had been a warrior. Building the Temple would fall to his son, Solomon. The Temple became the focus point of Jewish veneration from that point to today.

We would do well to remember that Jews have been living in Jerusalem continuously for nearly two millennia. They make up the largest single group of inhabitants there since the 1840′s. Today, the total population of Jerusalem is approximately 662,000. The Jewish population in areas formerly controlled by Jordan exceeds 160,000, outnumbering Palestinians in “Arab” East Jerusalem.

Ever since the day King David declared Jerusalem the capital city of Israel some 3,000 years ago, the city has been at the center of Jewish existence. The last remaining wall of the ancient Jewish Temple, the Western Wall, located in the Old City, is the holiest site in Judaism. It is the object of Jewish veneration and the focus of Jewish prayer. For thousands of years, three times a day, Jews have prayed, “To Jerusalem, thy city, shall we return with joy,” and they have repeated the Psalmist’s oath: “If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.”

And, yes, Muslims also revere the Holy City. According to Islamic belief, the prophet Mohammed was miraculously transported from Mecca to Jerusalem, and it was from Jerusalem that he made his ascent to heaven. But, please remember, even though Muslims controlled the city for more than a thousand years, Jerusalem was never the capital of any Arab entity, or country.

For Christians, on the other hand, Jerusalem is also thought of as holy. It is where Jesus lived, where he preached, where he died, and, most importantly, where he was resurrected. Even though it is the heavenly and not the earthly Jerusalem that is emphasized by The Church, places mentioned in the New Testament as sites of Christ’s ministry and passion attracted pilgrims and Christian worshipers for centuries and they continue to do so today.

Jerusalem can NEVER be the capital city of Palestine. Never!
Now, I’ll do a little prophesying myself. It is not too difficult to see a near future in which the UN recognizes a state of Palestine. And it will make no difference whether Jerusalem is designated the capital city of the new state of Palestine. Here’s why: At the first international incident between the state of Palestine and the state of Israel, Israel will invade, conquer, and occupy the new state of Palestine and very soon it will become a part of the newly enlarged country of Israel… again!

If the US really wants to do something constructive toward peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians the best thing it can do is get out of Israel’s way. Allow Israel to take care of business and, fairly soon, the Palestinian problem will be solved. There will be no peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians as long as BOTH of them exist on this earth. Remove the Palestinians and –Walla! — THAT problem solved.

Maybe Israel should consider the grant of statehood, to a state called Palestine, as a boon, really — sort of a gift from the UN to Israel. It would open the door for Israel to solve their ongoing problem with the so-called Palestinians once and for all.

However, I personally believe, as do the Evangelical Christians, that Israel will never know peace until the Prince of Peace returns. Then, that’s just me.

There is a piece of scripture, from the Bible, of which, I’d like to remind the Obama Regime. It reads thusly: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”… Genesis 12:3. Oh, may I suggest the White House fax this lttle snippet of scripture over to the State Department and share it with them?

Happy Hanukkah!

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J. D. Longstreet blogs daily at INSIGHT on Freedom http://csadispatch.blogspot.com/

longstreet1862@gmail.com

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WesternFront America

By Larry Miller

Once again the Israeli government is defying international pressure, and our very own Barack Hussein Obama, as they begin building a 124 unit apartment complex in the Gilo section of Jerusalem. This is a section of the city that never was occupied by Arabs and is not being built on Arab owned land. Yet, the President of the United States of America has taken it upon himself to order that this not be done. For those who did not realize that Israel was subject to US authority, you are among most of the world outside of Washington DC.

We have seen a shift in American loyalties and support since our new President has taken office. Where in times past, we realized that Israel was our one reliable friend and ally in the middle east, the new kids in town have a decidedly different outlook and value system. They now hear with favor the complaints from the Palestinians who refuse to integrate into any society, in Israel or any of the of the surrounding friendlier countries.

Zalman Shoval, Former Israeli Ambassador to the US, believes there are two possible reasons for this determined attempt at interference in the country’s domestic affairs. “Perhaps they confused the Gilo issue with the planning of a new Israeli neighborhood between Gilo and Beit Jala. Overall, when you sit in Washington and look at the maps it’s hard to tell the difference. The other reason could be that the US administration wants to encourage Abu Mazen (Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas) and is also trying to cover up Hillary Clinton’s various statements, maybe they were trying to create a balance.”

It’s interesting that Ambassador Shoval’s first thoughts were of errors and incompetence in the White House. The administration’s position comes from a complete lack of understanding of a situation where the Gilo project will eventually provide 900 housing units. On the other hand, 5000 units are being built in Arab areas. It’s hard to see where the needs of both sets of citizens are not being met.

Knessett member Danny Danon was outraged by this attempted manipulation of his country’s affairs, “President Obama should not interfere with the rights of the Jewish people to live in Jerusalem.” He continued,. “This … is a racist demand, saying that Jews cannot live in Jerusalem, only Arabs.”

But it’s not just our manchild President, as Rush Limbaugh is fond of calling him, who is having ajada over this building project. The whole world seems to be joining the chorus in criticizing Israeli action. This would make Obama’s mentor, Saul Alinsky, beam with joy. If you can’t cope with logical arguments, respond with drummed up public opinion. The nations surrounding the Jewish state, in unison have achieved something akin to the chanting of ACORN followers bussed in to any of a hundred events where they attempted to defeat logic with intimidation. This is old school Chicago politics!

But that is not the end of the similarities between Obama’s approach to foreign affairs and his old days as a community organizer pressuring banks and other businesses into making bad decisions for the benefit of those within his direction. As with the welfare recipients looking to ACORN to redistribute other peoples wealth, the Palestinians are whining to the world to make Israel give up land they lost years ago. They find themselves unwilling to integrate into a society where they could live in peace… as their leaders keep the fires of hatred stoked toward the Israeli state.

What we have in Israel, and in our own country, an administration that does not understand the limits of it’s authority… or it’s own understanding. It was never better illustrated when Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi responded with “Are you serious?” when asked where the constitution gives congress authority to do the things they are doing to the American people. This is a lesson we can only hope they learn before we have to teach them.

Originally posted at Political Christian © Larry Miller

 

WesternFront America