Peretz: Israel Beiteinu 'racist party'

[oberliner]

Israel Beiteinu is a racist party which is a danger to the state of Israel, Defense Minister Amir Peretz said during the Labor faction meeting on Monday.

"The decision to appoint Ghaleb Majadle as minister is causing people to say things that are way out of proportion," Peretz said. "If there is a danger to the state of Israel, it is the danger a racist party like Israel Beiteinu."

In addition, Peretz singled out Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman (chairman of Israel Beitenu) for criticism.

"(Lieberman) has yet to prove that he is contributing something positive and good to the State of Israel," Peretz said. "His comments regarding Majadle are unwarranted."

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1167467737898&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[geek tragedy]

1. Then leave the coalition. eom

[Poll_Blind]

3. Yep, Paz-Pines went on a rant which sums it up real well:

Peretz to Lieberman: Keep hands off IDF

Paz-Pines scoffed at Labor officials who were already talking about the possibility of replacing him in the cabinet with an Arab minister, such as MK Ghaleb Majadleh.

"They say they want to appoint an Arab minister to make the abomination (of appointing Lieberman) kosher," he said. "I say, let's end this cynicism. Let's prove that we are a party with a spine, with responsibility for the country and its values. Let's prove Labor is not lost but alive and breathing."

  Just leave. But as I said in another message, this is the same sort of thing that the Democrats are going through with Boosh. How much do you work with the devil? Do you work a bit and keep him from having all the power or do you reject him entirely?

  I'm more of the "reject them entirely", especially in the Israeli case of Lieberman. Lieberman's not the disease, he's a symptom. Just like the potential changes to the Right of Return are a symptom. I don't know if Israel has a strong enough immune system to fight off (or even really identify) the disease.

PB

[azurnoir]

2. Interesting, but not surprising

The talkback was particularly interesting, i would love to ask the American commenters their opinon of Congrssman Ellison or Barak Obama hid middle name is Hussien after all:sarcasm:

[Tom Joad]

4. But the Clinton's were happy to party with Lieberman, and he is a welcome guest

of the US
Brookings' Saban Center Forum in Washington, DC was his host.
Of course, the Clintons are not really opposed to ethnic cleansing of Palestinians either.

Though the rhetoric is different among the major Israeli parties, i don't see much evidence that the Likud, Labor, Kadima party are that much different.

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=11627

[Shaktimaan]

5. Huh?

Of course, the Clintons are not really opposed to ethnic cleansing of Palestinians either.


What are you referring to?

[Violet_Crumble]

7. Lieberman supports the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians...

I'd be guessing it means that if the Clintons were appalled by Lieberman's vision of a Greater Israel where the Palestinians and Israeli-Arabs have been moved somewhere else, they wouldn't have associated themselves with him. After all, it's not like he was the head of another state, which is when I could understand that some biting of the tongue and fake friendly handshaking sessions might happen...

[oberliner]

6. And Jimmy Carter was happy to spend a lot of time with Begin and Sadat

The Carter administration met frequently with Menachem Begin a man who advocated the Greater Israel agenda. He also worked closely with Anwar Sadat who himself held some pretty unpleasant viewpoints. He helped those two men to get awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.

Bill Clinton has had to engage with some pretty unsavory characters in order to get different sides in different conflicts to sit down together and make some compromises.

President Clinton made a sustained and concerted effort to try to help bring about the reality of a Palestinian state. He worked with Arafat, Peres, and Rabin and helped those men to get awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.

I am not sure how you can be so critical of Clinton on the one hand and have Carter as your avatar on the other. I know that you are pleased about Carter's book, however, it should be noted that the West Bank and Gaza settlements grew almost four times in size while Carter was president.

One thing both Carter and Clinton have in common that Republican presidents do not is that they both made finding a peaceful solution to this crisis a priority, and they both had the intelligence and diplomacy to engage the two parties and to move constructively towards a potential solution. We have seen nothing like that from Ford, Reagan, or Bush Sr. or Jr.

Personally I think that President Clinton, like President Carter, deserves praise for the work that he did as president in the difficult service of seeking an equitable resolution to this situation. I am hopeful that we can elect a Democratic president, be it Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Dennis Kucinich, or any of the other fine Democrats who are running. I trust that any of these individuals will do what the Republicans seem to avoid at all costs - engage in diplomacy and make an effort to seek peace.

There is a profound difference between the values of members of the Labour party and those in Likud and Kadima in Israel. Just as there is a profound difference between the values of the Democratic party and those of the Republicans here in the US. (in my humble opinion)