March 25^th

Cal Thomas comes forth today with some whoppers. “The President …behaves like an enemy of Israel when he attempts to impose a Palestinian state on Israel…” but then there is the fact that Netanyahu himself has suggested a “two state solution.” The problem with his solution is that it comes with conditions that the Palestinians could never accept and it’s clear that Netanyahu knows that. Even so, just before the election he flatly denied the possibility of a two state solution before he later modified that assertion.

“Israel embraces western values …free elections and religious tolerance… a free press and equal rights for women…” says Thomas. That will be news to the Israeli women who were stoned for praying at the Wailing Wall while the police looked on and did nothing. At least the police didn’t force them to leave the wall as they have done over and over again in the past. Israel is a semi theocratic state dominated by orthodox Jews. As for “pluralism” why would Netanyahu claim, as a scare tactic, that Arabs were “being bused in to vote?” I guess he was catering to the “real” Israeli’s fear of Israeli Arabs most of whom are Muslim; why else would he say that if he had nothing to gain by saying it? (The episode reminds me of the voter ID laws popping up in red states here that once simply intimidated black applicants trying to vote. Now with a stacked SCOTUS these states have a way to limit voting rights legally.)

Thomas goes on to claim that a Palestinian state would be a launching pad for an attack on Israel, that it would be suicide for Israel to return to the 1967 borders which he claims President Obama is pushing Israel to do. Where exactly does the President push Israel to return to the 1967 borders except for the international expectation that conquered territory should not benefit the conqueror? Most European nations take the same view of the Israeli situation that our government has, yet Cal Thomas criticizes only President Obama. Again it is clear that this country is the only friend Israel has; its only supporter and Netanyahu has chosen to risk throwing that away. Now Thomas tells us this is President Obama’s fault.

Netanyahu, when he spoke to Congress, claimed he wanted to give them his message. No, he wanted to humiliate the President. He could have communicated with Congress in a letter but that would not have been sufficiently incendiary for him, not nearly colorful enough for Netanyahu the demagogue. He craved the standing ovations he knew he would get from a Congress hostile to the President and he got what he wanted, perhaps more that he wanted.

Finally Thomas references Old Testament passages in Deuteronomy and Zachariah describing the horrible fate that awaits those who support Israel’s enemies. If we take those warnings seriously Cal I guess Israel doesn’t really need us anymore.