Sharon: Roadmap Not Dead Yet

[bemildred]

Some fascinating little things in this.

Sharon, who was addressing the Israeli media on the occasion of the
Jewish new year, welcomed the decision taken by his security
cabinet to get rid of Palestinian President. He considered it as an
extremely important decision, which he said led Arafat to fear its
implementation, which explains the slight decrease in the wave of
terrorism. He claimed that Arafat's popularity was not bolstered as a
result of this decision, and added that the Israelis shouldn't be
affected by what is happening, and that the expressions of sympathy
towards the Palestinian leader were only temporary and would soon
come to an end. According to Sharon, Israel had more than one
opportunity to get rid of the Palestinian President and kill him, but it
didn't, because he said, the Israeli government had pledged not to
harm him, indicating that he had promised this to President Bush as
well. He reiterated his accusations against Arafat, whose main goal,
he said, has always been to kill Jews and as such, was the greatest
enemy to peace, and that his main interest is to eradicate the Jewish
entity on Israel's land.

---

Sharon refuted the claims that he submits to the U.S. administration,
explaining that Israel manages its affairs in an independent way as
much as possible, and that apart from the U.S., there are no
completely independent countries in the world. He added that it would
be illogical for Israel to act as it pleases, while at that same time it is
asking the U.S. for billions of dollars, loan guarantees, and is receiving
combat equipment. The policy he is relying on is based on tight
relations with the U.S. administration and on trust," he said.

---

In parallel, Hebrew Radio confirmed the sayings of a high-ranking
official at the U.S. State Department, who said that Israel's Foreign
Minister Silvan Shalom promised his U.S. counterpart Colin Powell
during their meeting in New York that Israel would consult the U.S.
before carrying out any action against the Palestinian President. It
added that Powell demanded that Israel resume the dismantlement of
illegal settlements in the West Bank.

---

In parallel, Israeli Army Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon considered that
the main challenge of Israel in the new Hebrew year would be to try
to put an end to the Intifada. Addressing the listeners of Army Radio,
he said that he couldn't recall a time of attacks as intense as today,
ever since the beginning of the Intifada. He added that the army is
facing a number of challenges, mainly "fighting Palestinian terrorism."
He hoped that more Palestinian parties would start realizing that
Israel could not be defeated through terrorism, and that other means
should be used instead. He said that there are strong chances that the
current cycle of violence will stop in the coming days.

Dar al Hayat

[Darranar]

1. Yah, yah, yah...

Arafat-Bash, but peace is still possible, Arafat-Bash but peace is still possible, Arafat-Bash but peace is still possible...

Hey, Mr. Sharon, if you want to blame someone for lack of success on the roadmap, look in a mirror.

[bemildred]

2. Added some bolding.

I thought some of these statements bizarre, and there is a
definite flavor of butt-covering, one might almost suspect
that Washington has jerked their chain a bit.

[Darranar]

4. I skimmed through...

the end of the article - I just realized that I shouldn't have. There are indeed some interesting things there.

Sharon refuted the claims that he submits to the U.S. administration, explaining that Israel manages its affairs in an independent way as much as possible, and that apart from the U.S., there are no completely independent countries in the world. He added that it would be illogical for Israel to act as it pleases, while at that same time it is asking the U.S. for billions of dollars, loan guarantees, and is receiving combat equipment. The policy he is relying on is based on tight relations with the U.S. administration and on trust," he said.

Is this to placate the rightists who say that the world is against them so that they should do whatever they want for security? Or is this a show of defiance against the US? I think it's a combination of the two. Powell's comment and the whole discussion of the wall backs this up.

Of course, if Israel doesn't dismantle the settlements, I doubt that anything will happen from the US. S ome radically pro-israel website might write another disgusting op-ed about Israel's Colin Cancer and how Mr. Powell is a dove and a pacifist (I don't think lying in front of the UN to get us to war is a mark of this, but who knows?) though, and through a few of our members we might see it here.

[bemildred]

6. I'm not willing to hazard much of an opinion, it was just

different, and after three years of this shit, the prospect
of something different always makes me perk up my ears.

[Darranar]

7. Not that different...

Ever since Bush & Co decided to exploit the situation for political gain, they began to unleash insincere rhetoric calling for a Palestinian state and criticizing Israel.

Sharon has always made it clear in actions that he didn't care what the world, minus the US, thought of him, and has said without backing it up with actions that he acts independantly of the US. In other words, his actions support the Bush Administration's actions, and his words defy (and sometimes support) the Bush administration's words. It's an interesting political ploy for Bushco to please both sides, something that I doubt will work. It's a similar ploy by Sharon.

[bemildred]

8. The part I found different was that some of the statements

seemed defensive, like Shrub explaining about Iraq, and
usually I don't hear defensive language from Mr. Sharon and his
minions. But maybe I'm just imagining things.

[southern democrat]

3. Yeah,and there's still fuckers mining for fools gold!

[bemildred]

5. I gather you disagree with Mr. Sharon?

[Violet_Crumble]

9. I think they cut one of his quotes short...

and that apart from the U.S., there are no
completely independent countries in the world.

Clearly what he meant to say was 'there are no completely independent countries in the world that would give Israel billions of dollars and turn the other way as Israel's economy goes down the gurgler while it pumps more and more money into continuing the occupation and building settlements'...

Violet...

[bemildred]

10. I thought he meant what he said.

An interesting insight into his "thinking".

[MariMayans]

11. The paradox of Israeli right-wing thought

They simultaneously believe they could conquer the middle east tomorrow if they wanted and at the same time believe they are in mortal danger opposed by a hostile planet.

[bemildred]

12. One doesn't know where to start with this stuff.

I was mostly thinking that it shows that he thinks of the
World as a pecking order based on force, and he thinks the
USA sits at the top of it. I find both of those ideas at
best simple-minded, if not outright false. The nations of
the World are not a bunch of chickens, and the USA is at best
a peer among peers, and the grotesque military budget we
presently support works to our disadvantage in the competition
among nations. The last fifty years have been a long downhill
slide, and much of it can be blamed on over-militarization,
and a failure to grasp that colonialism is dead, and a unhealthy
propensity for short-term thinking about where the national
self-interest lies.

[MariMayans]

13. there are uniquely Israeli worldview elements you have to consider

Sharon believes completely that the world is divided into Jews and Gentiles and that all the Gentiles are anti-semitic and plotting in the background to screw over Jews.

I'm sure he is absolutely terrified of GW Bush. Sharon knew his father and Baker and Bush were not by any stretch of the imagination highly sympathetic to Israel's plight and I don't think the apple dropped that far from the tree.

[Darranar]

14. I disagree...

I don't think Sharon is an idiot in regard to everything. When it came to military matters, his expertise was admirable, though his concern for human rights most certainly wasn't.

I don't think Sharon is terrified of an idiot who is in the pockets of several officials who basically agree with Sharon when it comes to the Middle East.

[bemildred]

15. Anyone who gets far into nationalism, or any

xenophobic thought system, winds up with the
us vs them outlook. It's not special, and it doesn't
necessarily of itself make you all that stupid,
although it's hard to see how it could help, because
it interferes with dispassionate thought. Intelligent
people think about the World in complicated and flexible
ways, not simplified and rigid ones.

Sharon just looks narrow and parochial to me, an old
soldier who never looked over the fence much. He
believes in violence and the use of force and realpolitik.
There are many like him.

I do find the idea of the Bushs being pro-semitic,
to coin a term, out of anything but opportunism amusing.
I'm not sure how Spooked Sharon would be though, the
Bushs aren't especially anti-semitic either, their interests
lie elsewhere, and as long as they have common interests,
there is no need for trouble. It's business, that's all.

It certainly is true that a good deal of effort goes into
influencing the American political process, but that has
been true for a long time.

I do not entirely understand the closeness of the relationship,
in the sense that it's not clear to me what Mr. Bush expects to
get out of it. Of course Mr. Bush could just be taking the
easy way out, doing as little as possible, and picking a side
fits in with that. Maybe he just doesn't care much, so he lets
others run things. He does seem to have taken some bad advice
in other areas.