OF COURSE, THE PALESTINIANS ARE AN "INVENTED PEOPLE"

by Jerome S. Kaufman

 In this article, Jerry Kaufman sums up what Newt Gringrich said. In actuality, the Palestinians are a fake people. They had not developed into a people over the centuries. Those we called Palestinians have no identity distinct from the general Arab population. The 1911 edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica lists half a hundred groups living in Mandated Palestine -- Beduins, Circassians, Jews, Christians, Arabs, etc. There was no group called Palestinian or one that called itself Palestinian. Michael Curtis of the BESA Center puts it this way:

"...no independent Palestinian state has ever existed, let alone one that manifested a "Palestinian identity."

"A few examples can illustrate this. The first Congress of Muslim-Christian Associations in the area met in February 1919 to consider the future of the territory formerly ruled by the Ottoman Empire, which dissolved after World War I. The Congress declared: "We consider Palestine as part of Arab Syria as it has never been separated from it at any time. We are connected with it by national, religious, linguistic, moral, economic, and geographical bonds." The celebrated scholar Philip Hitti, testifying before the Anglo-American Committee in 1946, stated there was no such thing as Palestine in history, "absolutely not." The United Nations Special Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP), in its September 3, 1947 report, remarked that Palestinian nationalism, as distinct from Arab nationalism, was a relatively new phenomenon. It concluded that Palestinian identity was part of a rich tapestry of identities, mostly predicated on Arab and Islamic solidarity.

"The Palestinians themselves reached the same conclusion. Palestinian spokesperson Ahmad Shuqeiri told the UN Security Council in 1956 that Palestine was nothing more than southern Syria. The head of the Military Operations Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Zuheir Muhsein, declared on March 31, 1977, "Only for political reasons do we carefully underline our Palestinian identity. ...the existence of a separate Palestinian identity is there for tactical reasons." The PLO, in its own Charter or amended Basic Law (article 1), states that Palestine is part of the Arab nation. That "Arab nation" never included a state known as "Palestine." Indeed, the inhabitants of the general Palestinian area were not subjects of an Arab nation but of the Ottoman Empire, which ruled the area from 1516-1918. This was the last recognized sovereign power in the area. The area of Palestine was a district of the Empire, officially a vilayet (province), not a political entity. No independent Palestinian state has ever been established, nor was there a single administrative or cultural unit of Palestinians. Arabs in the area were not different in any way from other Arabs in the Middle East. Nor was Israel established on the ashes of any state other than the Ottoman Empire.

"On the other hand, a sovereign Jewish state existed prior to the rise of the Roman Empire. While the Romans destroyed the Second Temple, changed the name of the land to Syria Palestina, and banished the Jews from Jerusalem, this did not eradicate all Jewish presence in the area. Moreover, the Jews in the Diaspora maintained a strong consciousness of the historical connection of the Jewish people to Palestine — a connection that was acknowledged in the League of Nations mandate."

NEWT GINGRICH, THE MEDIA TAILORS AND THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

by Bernice Lipkin

Newt Gingrich said forthrightly that there was no such thing as a Palestinian people and they had never owned the land. Bernice Lipkin examines one aspect of the aftermath: the response of the media. In that most of the media have been more or less pro-Palestinian, one would expect they would be shocked and ask for proof. Instead the general response could be summed up as: we know but so what. Let's get on with the peace process. Now why is that?

WHY "INVENT" THE PALESTINIANS?

by Robert R. Reilly

Robert Reilly asks a critical question: why were the Palestinian people invented? The short answer is they serve as a political ploy, as visual aids to keep us focused on the unfairness of a nascent Israel surviving invasion by her neighbors. Their suffering becomes justification for the Arab doing any loathsome deed to drive the Jews out. The assertions that the Arabs Palestinians own the land, that they were driven from their homes, that they are Cinderella and Israel is cruel step-mother are latter-day accretions. The basic issue is that by the rules of Islamic theology, Jews have lost their right to the Holy Land, therefore they should not be a sovereign power. They should not.

THE RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL SON

by David Solway

  How do you return to what you hardly knew? David Solway recounts his all-of-a-sudden start of a journey to the religion of his birth, Judaism, when 9/11 shocked him out of the accretion of anti-Zionist hate propaganda that had coated him and cocooned him. He realized he had "acted out of mere rote behavior and fortuitous conjecture, out of an unexamined desire to think in accordance with the inferences and presuppositions of my friends and colleagues,..." He realized he'd made the Jew the repository of all he disliked; reacting against himself, he had expelled "himself from his own community." As he travels forward in time, he has shaken off opinions and attitudes he now sees as puerile and/or malignant. A fascinating odyssey.

LETS REFRAME THE ISRAEL DEBATE

by Lyn Julius

Lyn Julius writes that Israel's pointing out its significant contributions to the advancement of humanity "in technology, science, agriculture, ecology, immigrant absorption" doesn't rebut the negative opinion of Israel held by "grassroots" Europeans. To achieve that, Israel needs to "explode the misconception, commonly held on the Left, that Israel is an outpost of western colonialism and imperialism. Jews were indigenous to the region 1,000 years before the Islamic conquest" in the 7th Century. They lived everywhere in the Middle East without interruption for over two millenia world until the Arabs "ethnically cleansed" the Jews from their ancestral homes in 1948. More Jews than Arabs were made refugees when the Arabs invaded Israel in their attempt to nullify Israel's rebirth. "Jews 'stealing Arab land' is an offensive inversion of reality." Ironically, the Liberal's disregard of Jewish rights while supporting Muslim rights will have the effect of reinstating the Muslims as dominant and the Jews and Christians as inferior dhimmi -- which was the relationship of the religious groups imposed by the Muslims when they conquered the Middle East.

THE HIGH PRICE OF TELLING THE TRUTH ABOUT ISLAM

by Eric Allen Bell

When this article appeared on Frontpage Magazine, the editor, Jamie Glazov, wrote that he'd invited the author, Eric Allen Bell, to tell his story. "Bell [is] a filmmaker who was recently banned from blogging at the Daily Kos because he wrote three articles that ran afoul of the mindset there, specifically naming 'Loonwatch.com' as a 'terrorist spin control network.'" It started innocently enough when Bell heard that the local folk in Murfreesboro Tennessee -- where he was living -- were attempting to deny Muslims the right to build a mosque. Anyone even vaguely aware of stealth jihad would know immediately that giving the few local Muslims a place to pray wasn't why the Muslims wanted to put up a huge mosque plonk in the heart of the Bible Belt. It was, in fact, a typical Muslim in-your-face challenge. It is putting up a command center. It is announcing that from now on the Muslims will be pushing for special privileges, intimidating the natives, restructuring the environment for their own convenience and expanding their control of the region. Bell had to find it out the hard way, from first seeing the drama simply as bigotry on the part of the Christians and then slowly discovering there was more to the story. Islam really does pose real life threats to our way of life. Their Koran-based attitude towards women, homosexuals, Jews and infidels -- actually, to the entire non-Muslim world -- simply can not be aligned with ours, no matter how glib the Muslim presentation, no matter how untrue the accusation that all critics are Islamophobic. Bell's simplistic view has crumpled. As he says, "I support human rights and oppose anything which I perceive to be in violation of human rights." It's been a painful journey, refusing the pablum and opting for strong meat. Discombobulating. And I doubt it is over.

THE RIGHTS OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE OVER THE LAND OF ISRAEL UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW

by Howard Grief

Howard Grief sets forth the firm legal foundation of Israel being the exclusive owner of the land designated as Jewish by the League of Nations. The Land of Israel -- current Israel, Samaria and Judea (aka West Bank), the Golan and Gaza -- was given to the Jewish people as a perpetual trust and handed in that condition to the successor to the League of the Nations, the United Nations. This is a clear presentation of the documents that preceded the document of ownership and some of the history of the time. Any whittling away of this trust is illegal, whether it is attempted by a foreign country, the Israeli government or the U.N. itself. The question that remains is why have successive Israeli governments not asserted their claim. For that matter, why would a Jewish government allow control of the Temple Mount, its most holy site, by the Arabs?

WHY IS THE SAN REMO CONFERENCE SO IMPORTANT?

by: Canadians for Israel's Legal Rights

This a sister paper to Howard Grief's article on the San Remo conference. It was produced by the Canadians for Israel's Legal Rights (CILF) and summarizes the pertinents points.

ANNEXATION WINS HANDS DOWN OVER A TWO-STATE SOLUTION

by Matthew H. Hausman

The case for annexing Samaria and Judea -- the parts of the Land of Israel that Jordan grabbed as soon as Modern Israel was born -- is brilliantly presented by Matthew Hausman. We have reached the point that Israel has this choice: "Either she can continue participating in a farcical 'peace process' that is heavily weighted against her national interests, or she can proactively seize the day and craft a solution that makes sense historically, geographically and legally." I can only add that in reading Hausman's essay I had this thought: when Israel regained control in 1967, she didn't annex Samaria and Judea, fearing the large number of resident Arabs that would be incorporated into Israel. Solving the problem by annexing the land and relocating the Arabs was rejected -- it wouldn't be a nice thing to do. Consequently, Israel is now confronted with pressure to give the land to the Arabs, the Arabs they call Palestinian. And should that happen, Jews will not be allowed to live there. Jews will not be allowed in Biblical Israel or in parts of Jerusalem! The Jews living there now will be forced out and will become refugees in what is left of Israel. As they say, be kind to the cruel and you'll end up being cruel to the kind. Your own kind.

READY FOR STATEHOOD?

by David M. Weinberg

Are the Palestinian Arabs ready for statehood? David Weinberg points out they are on the dole and have almost no self-generated income. "Over the past 10 years, the Palestinians have received more than $25 billion in international assistance, and the PA itself pulled in more than $4 billion per year in 2009 and 2010." Yet "the PA has a billion dollar budget deficit." They squander water given them by Israel as if they were living in a rain forest and are polluting the common water supply by dumping their untreated waste. They have few organizational, administrative or governmental skills, nor are they eager to acquire them. They think in terms of death and destruction, not building and living in peace. Quel resumé!

A TALE OF PALESTINIAN NONSENSE

by Barry Shaw

Barry Shaw paints a picture of the Palestinians that is right on the mark: their illogic, their viciousness, their skill at becoming the world's pet victims. As Shaw writes: "They are trapped in their negative stew of victimhood and brutality. It finds expression in the nonsensical statements of people like Zahar, or those who accuse Israel of being an Apartheid state. Their nonsense, to them, makes sense. Sad tales have their impact. The emotional tale of victimhood is their power."

THE U.S. AND BIBLICAL ISRAEL

By Barbara Lerner

Barbara Lerner writes about the Muslim ambition to become top dog globally, with Islam the supreme religion and all other religions treated as inferior. Destroying Israel seems to be a necessary step. When invading Israel didn't work, Israel's Arab neighbors began waging a stealth war. Their weapons were oil money, taqqiya (creative lying, approved by the Koran, whereby a Muslim could do and say anything and not feel honor-bound to keep his word) and the newly-invented Palestinians would invert reality and become the quintessential victim. They are succeeding in discrediting Israel -- which was out of its league at playing their propaganda game -- and winning the overwhelming support of the Europeans. Lerner points out that our acceptance of Muslim's assertions and our denigration of our own Jewish and Christian Biblical values earn the West contempt and make the Muslims more confident they will win. "To change their minds, and our future, we need to reject the Palestinian Taqqiya and embrace Biblical Israel."

ENDING UNRWA AND ADVANCING PEACE

by Elliott Abrams

UNHCR, an agency of the United Nations, has helped millions of refugees since WW2 to find new homes in a timely fashion. Refugeehood isn't transferrable to the next generation. UNHRCR handles all refugees except the Arabs refugees, who have an agency, UNRWA, dedicated to them and their children and (great)grandchildren, with no termination point in sight. Unlike all other refugee groups, they have been preserved as refugees until they can return to their homes in Israel. UNRWA feeds them and provides them with education and medical services. It also allows them to be inculcated with hate toward Israel and trained as terrorists. Elliott Abrams makes the case that "Palestinian refugees should be handled by UNHCR with the intention of resettling them. That process should begin with a redefinition of who is a refugee entitled to benefits, so that benefits are based on need rather than on status." It would improve life for them. It might even improve the chances of peace in the Middle East. (For additional material on UNWRA and how it keeps the refugee problem from being resolved, see this.)

PALESTINE: WHAT SHERLOCK HOLMES WOULD SAY

By Martin Sherman

Martin Sherman has long suggested (See his article here.) that the best way to eliminate the Arab refugee problem is to eliminate UNRWA as an intermediary between the refugees and the outside world. He would provide "doweries" directly to individual Arab families to give them the means to find new homes in Arab countries or elsewhere. His latest articles on this are:
"Note to Newt I: Univenting Palestinians"
and "Note to Newt II: Rethinking"
The present essay answers concerns that have been raised and put the features of the plan in sharper relief.

TAWRIYA: NEW ISLAMIC DOCTRINE PERMITS 'CREATIVE LYING'

by Raymond Ibrahim

Raymond Ibrahim has previously written classic papers on taqiyya, the lying to the infidel that is permitted by Koranic law (e.g., see here). In this essay, he writes about tawriya, a Muslim "doctrine that allows lying in virtually all circumstances — including to fellow Muslims and by swearing to Allah — provided the liar is creative enough to articulate his deceit in a way that is true to him." It needs also to be differentiated from concept words that mean one thing in Arabic and another in English. For example, as Andrew McCarthy writes in his essay on the Moderate Muslim, "hurriya, Arabic for 'freedom,' connotes "perfect slavery" or absolute submission to Allah, very nearly the opposite of the Western concept."

THREE FUNDAMENTAL MISTAKES IN DEALING WITH ISLAM

by Daniel Greenfield

The Salafists are less well known than the Muslim Brotherhood,(MB) but share with them a mission to put Islam in control of the world. Roughly, the Salafists are more fundamentalist than the MB and less willing to cloak their ideology in a modern style in the political arena. They are more likely to speak openly of suppporting violent jihad. In this essay, Raymond Ibrahim writes about Sheikh al-Burhami, a Salafist leader who says clearly "that all notions of peace with non-Muslims are based on circumstance. When Muslims are weak, they should be peaceful; when strong, they should go on the offensive." The model for dealing with infidels is how Mohammad dealt with the Jews of Medina. Initially, when he was weak he spoke peace. When he was strong, he attacked them. Similarly, "Muslims may be tolerant of Egypt's Copts now, and not collect jizya and place them in dhimmitude, until they are more capable — just like Palestinians may make peace with Israel now, till they are more capable of waging an offensive." The Supremist goal in Islam doesn't change.

PREACH PEACE WHEN WEAK, WAGE WAR WHEN STRONG

by Raymond Ibrahim

The Salafists are less well known than the Muslim Brotherhood,(MB) but share with them a mission to put Islam in control of the world. Roughly, the Salafists are more fundamentalist than the MB and less willing to cloak their ideology in a modern style in the political arena. They are more likely to speak openly of suppporting violent jihad. In this essay, Raymond Ibrahim writes about Sheikh al-Burhami, a Salafist leader who says clearly "that all notions of peace with non-Muslims are based on circumstance. When Muslims are weak, they should be peaceful; when strong, they should go on the offensive." The model for dealing with infidels is how Mohammad dealt with the Jews of Medina. Initially, when he was weak he spoke peace. When he was strong, he attacked them. Similarly, "Muslims may be tolerant of Egypt's Copts now, and not collect jizya and place them in dhimmitude, until they are more capable — just like Palestinians may make peace with Israel now, till they are more capable of waging an offensive." The Supremist goal in Islam doesn't change.

INTRAMUSLIM CONFLICTS

by Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger

Gail Winston wrote about this article, "If the Western world could mentally and emotionally absorb the historical facts well catalogued by Yoram Ettinger, we might be able to understand why the Muslim world hates us in the West. Then, therefore, we might be able to live and thrive in our own countries by being strong enough to thwart the Muslim world's main goal and desire in their lives to create a Global Caliphate for and of Islam.

"They would require that we all follow their Shariah Law (strict Islam) or they would simply kill us. It says so very precisely in their Koran. Without this understanding of this basic bestial mode of death cult which they have literally "cultivated", we have little chance of surviving the storms caused by their conflicts which they intend to spread in order to conquer the Western way of life."

HAMAS AND THE WASHINGTON ESTABLISHMENT

by Caroline Glick

Speaking about the "Peace Process", Caroline Glick notes that in recent speeches by Gingrich and Perry, "the Republicans have generated ... useful contributions to America's collective understanding of current events in the Middle East." The Democratic Admistration, however, continues policies that are not responsive to the turbulent restructurings in that region. Iran continues to be run by an extremely repressive set of strict interpreters of Islam. And under P.M. Erdogan, Turkey is rapidly regressing to fundamentalist Islam, and the anti-Americanism typical of strongly-Muslim countries. Yet Obama's administration continues to support Turkey, which has an indirect alliance with Iran in mutual sponsorship of Hamas. In effect, Washington is acting as Hamas's protector. So Hamas is reinforced in its determination to destroy the Jewish state. The Administration also continues to maintain its support of Fatah, which more and more openly refuses to accept Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. "Fatah has no reason to compromise since the US will blame Israel no matter what. And Israel has no reason to make concessions since the US will deem them insufficient." Glick concludes that "[f]or the US to secure its interests in the Middle East, it requires leaders who are willing to reassess what passes for common wisdom on both sides of the aisle."

THE SALAFIST TENDENCY

by J. Millard Burr

In January 2012, the Muslim Brotherhood won two fifth of the seat in the Egypt Parliamentary election. This surprised the believers in the advent of an Arab springtime of democracy. This also surprised the pessimists who knew the MB would eventually take over, but expected it to take longer. The biggest surprise was the strong showing by the Salafists, who are as -- if not more -- devoted to implementing Sharia in all aspects of civil and political life as the MB. Together, the MB and the Salafists now control the Lower House of Parliament, making the notion of a democratic Egypt an impossibility, while they will see to it that Egypt joins the number of Muslim countries hostile to the West and Israel. We've been fairly well-educated about the Muslim Brotherhood and how it intends to overturn the West and establish a Caliphate. The Salafists groups are less known. J. Millard Burr brings us up to snuff on the Salafist groups: who they are and what we can expect.

THE TERRORISTS IN EUROPE'S BACKYARD

By Avi Jorisch

Avi Jorisch writes about one of the smaller groups of loosely-affiliated terrorists that infest the Middle East and north Africa. The Salafist al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) is an affiliate of al Qaeda, and is primarily to be found in Algeria and Mauritania. Its particular goal is to overthrow the Algerian government, but it is expanding its aims as well as the territory it covers.

SUNNI VERSUS SHIA: THE MIDDLE EAST'S NEW STRATEGIC CONFLICT

By Barry Rubin

Barry Rubin lays the broad outlines of the Sunni and Shia conflict as it plays out in the various Arab states. As Rubin points out, the tension had been between religious states and more or less secular states. "Once there are Islamist regimes, theology becomes central again, as it was centuries ago." He points out the negative impact on the Palestinian Authority and predicts a possible alliance of Sunni states, independent of both Iran and Turkey.

What is to become of the Arab Spring towards democracy and a 'tolerate your neighbor' attitude? Rubin suspects "the hope for moderation is minimal. In a region when regimes and movements are competing to prove their militancy and loyalty to a radical interpretation of Islam, nobody is going to want to make peace with Israel." So what else is new?

THE POINT OF NO RETURN

by Mark Silverberg

With regard to Iran, "the only question is when can Iran produce a nuclear weapon, and the reality is, it is in a position to do so whenever it chooses." As Mark Silverberg notes, "... the policy of the Obama Administration continues to be based on the carrot and stick approach — diplomatic engagement with the mullahs coupled with international sanctions and the build-up of a large military and naval presence in and around the Persian Gulf all aimed at compelling the Iranians to abstain from building a nuclear weapon. ... "Israeli military strategists are concerned that the U.S. may be unwilling to undertake ... a [military] strike regardless of how many 'red lines' are crossed by Iran." Iran says it wants to destroy Israel. If Iran is bluffing, the bluff is not about using its bombs but what it targets first: the little Satan, Israel, or the Big Satan, the U.S.A. Even if Iran holds off on its genocidal intentions, it will have the means to control the Middle East. We may dismiss them as a bunch of religious fanatics, but Iran's leaders have a mission that they intend to fulfill, regardless of the cost in human lives, including the lives of a sizable part of Iran's citizenry. As Silverberg says, "We are confronted with a fanatical theological Islamist movement that will accept nothing less than the submission of Western civilization to Sharia law."

What is to become of the Arab Spring towards democracy and a 'tolerate your neighbor' attitude? Rubin suspects "the hope for moderation is minimal. In a region when regimes and movements are competing to prove their militancy and loyalty to a radical interpretation of Islam, nobody is going to want to make peace with Israel." So what else is new?

THE CASE FOR MILITARY ACTION AGAINST IRAN

by Bruce Thornton

Bruce Thornton notes that "Iran has been killing Americans for 30 years with impunity, from the 241 military personnel killed in Beirut by a suicide bomber, to the hundreds more soldiers murdered in Iraq and Afghanistan by Iranian proxy terrorist outfits trained and armed by Tehran." The American President's weak responses to her growing nuclear capability doesn't signal a change in American's policy of appeasement and weak or empty threats. Moreover, Iran is led by fanatical believers so that ordinary deterrence techniques are not effective. Like it or not, we need to accept that military "force is the 'strong magic' that compels fanatical believers to abandon their murderous ideologies or keep them within their own borders."

OBAMA MAKES THE CASE FOR AN ISRAELI STRIKE ON IRAN

by Caroline Glick

American spokespeople seem to believe it's a comfort for Israel to know that if Iran strikes, America will then strike Iran. Thatcartoon where the children are gathering sticks for a bonfire and reassure the girl that she can play Joan of Arc. American pyrotechnics after the fact of first strike would only add to the horror. In this essay, Caroline Glick makes clear that President Obama is unwilling to jeopardize his reelection whatever the future costs to Israel and to America. He has intimidated Israel, threatened her and spoken false reassurances to the assembled Jews and Christians at AIPAC. Israel with less resources must strike before Iran makes much more progress. Or sit and wait for whatever happens. America can afford to wait longer before acting. "When one recognizes Israel's short timeline for attacking, one realizes that when Obama demands that Israel give several more months for sanctions to work, what he is actually demanding is for Israel to place its survival in his hands." "Israel will be completely at h Brotherhood, Iran's proxy takeover of Lebanon and Iran's most effective gofer, the Syrian government, Obama "...has adopted policies and taken actions that have endangered Israel militarily on all fronts and in fundamental ways." Naturally, he'd expect Israel to take him on faith.

THE AMERICAN ADMINISTRATION'S RESPONSE TO IRAN'S NUCLEAR THREAT

by Bernice Lipkin

Let's suppose that America really does have a workable plan to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power before it's too late. Suppose we muff the timing. Or suppose -- as is more likely -- we have no such plan but are hoping for the best. Bernice Lipkin pursues some of the possible scenarios that could be the consequences of ignoring the problem. And other implications.

ISRAEL'S OPTIONS AS MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD GAINS POWER

By Barry Rubin

The strife that was to usher in a flowering of democracy brought the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) into power "in Egypt, the Gaza Strip, Tunisia, and very probably Libya, where its branches will control the governments. In Jordan, the brotherhood leads the opposition; in Syria, it plays an important role in the revolutionary upheaval." The region is "now overwhelmingly controlled by radical Islamists." Despite the American President certifying to its moderation, the support of its members for violence, its open anti-Semitism and the speeches of this members say otherwise. Barry Rubin offers sensible suggestions on how Israel can best "respond to the brotherhood's new power and threat."

THE ISLAMIST PLAN FOR VICTORY: "GRADUALISM"

By Ryan Mauro

Ryan Mauro makes clear how misleading it is to assume that the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) is moderate because it is cautious, does long-term planning and constant re-assessment. Its single-minded mission is to reestablish Muslim dominance. If we don't understand this, it is not because the MB has kept it secret. It is us who are deaf, dumb and blind. They keep telling us. They call it gradualism. Of course, they also describe it as their form of "democracy" and "freedom," which, even their spokesmen admit, is a tad different than our concepts. In the West, to those who listen, it's better known as 'stealth jihad.' The basic MB strategy, called The Project, was discovered back in 1982 (See Poole, "The Muslim Brotherhood Project" here for a complete description of The Project.) The MB now has the White House reassuring us that the MB is moderate, but all objective signs suggest it would be injurious to our health to believe in the MB's good will.

GROVELING TO THE BROTHERHOOD

by Isi Leibler

How much plainer can it be said than how Isi Leibler phrases it: "What those attempting to embrace the Muslim Brotherhood fail to comprehend is that this organization represents one of the most fanatical and dangerous of the radical Islamist groups in the region, with a dark record of violence and terrorism imbedded in its DNA. It is rabidly anti-Western, anti-Christian and anti-Semitic, is committed to imposing sharia law and a global caliphate — and willing to employ any means to further its objectives." If this exaggerates, explain the pressures exerted against the West to accept Sharia law since 9/11. Explain the MB fronts that the MB has started. Consider its alliances with terrorists around the world. Explain the Muslim fingerprints that are everywhere: in insulting us by wanting to build a mosque where they destroyed our financial center; in infiltrating the FBI and Homeland Security and the White House, itself; in instructing our Military; in co-opting banks to make Sharia banking acceptable. Do you really think that the MB has abandoned its mission to conquer the West? Do you really think appeasement will stop them?

ISLAM IS ISLAM, AND THAT'S IT

The Arab Spring was not hijacked

by Andrew C. McCarthy

Some months ago, Andrew McCarthy wrote that he wasn't sure that was such a thing as a moderate Muslim, but he gave them the benefit of the doubt and wrote as if there were such an animal. Many of us essayists were doing the same. In this essay, he is no longer ambiguous. Nor can we be. A pious Muslim can not be moderate. He can not follow the dictates of the Koran -- especially when they are backed and reiterated by respected Mullahs and Muslim theologicians -- and at the same time agree that everyone can peaceably practice whatever religion to which he adheres.

PALESTINIAN MODERATES

by William Jackson Sullivan II

In the Hunting Of The Snark, Lewis Carroll wrote of the travails of a sea captain and his crew who hunted that hard-to-imagine and harder-to-capture beast, the Snark. In similar fashion, so many who purport to know the crags and crannies of the Middle Easterner's temperment believe there exists a subgenre of devout believers in the Koran who are pious yet who are 'just like us' -- involved in normal hopes and ambitions for themselves and their family. Unfortunately as the contours become clearer, we are beginning accurately to define the Moderate Muslim. He is simply an impious Muslim See Here OR he is hibernating, easily incited to rioting and ravaging when his sheikh and/or mullah so commands. The captain discovered his "snark was a boojum", capable of making anyone who meets up with it "softly and suddenly vanish away." In this article, William Sullivan writes of two cases of Palestinian moderates who turned out to be boojums. Me thinks we best start reshaping our beamish response to sharia infiltration, lest we, like the unwary crew member, disappear into the maws of Middle East Islam.

(ADDENDUM: When I finished this introduction, somewhat uneasy that I had drifted too far from a peshat exegesis of Carroll's boojum, I googled snark boojun and to my delight chanced upon "The Snark was a Boojum" at http://jostamon.blogspot.com/2008/05/snark-was-boojum.html. Read it and enjoy.)

ARAB LIKE ME

Maybe, just maybe, Arabs can break out of their self-destructive hatred and envy.

By Lee Habeeb

What can one say about this essay except maybe "Wow!" We've learned much about different genres of Arab in the U.S.A.: Arabs who are called moderate because they are indifferent to Islam; quiet-appearing Arabs who are easily made rabid by their leaders; lone-wolf Arab terrorists; organized Arab terrorists; Arabs with grievances; Arabs who push the envelop for special privileges; fanatic Arabs dedicated to destroying American culture and taking over our country; and moles who pretend to believe in democracy but who are actually Muhammad groupies. This essay is by a most unusual Arab. Lee Habeeb is unusual because he is a very ordinary American. He comes with his own baggage and a family history partially rooted in Arab mores but his identity is American. He's another amalgam in the American melting pot of diverse cultures. He suggests an simple test for determining where an Arab's basic loyalty lies: how does he feel about Jews -- the regular run-of-the-mill Jew? It doesn't count that he accepts the New York Times Jews who can justify any bad deed done by a minority, unless it was committed by a Jew. It is no test that he is friendly with the traitor Jews who loathe Israel because its very existence makes them aware of their identity problems. How does he feel about the ordinary Jew? And Israeli?

HARVARD'S ACADEMIC POGROM

by Steven Plaut

As Steven Plaut writes, "... in a few days it [Harvard] will be restoring a great Harvard tradition dating back to the 1930s: the tradition of hosting Nazis and violent anti-Semites on campus seeking the mass murder of Jews." The show will feature academics whose poorly-substantiated assertions (lies and Quasimodo-like distortions to us common folk) have been deservedly discredited. Unhappily for Harvard's reputation, Jew-hate rain dances are less acceptable than in the 1930's -- and this despite the huge sums of money the Muslims has spent to create a climate where Jew-Hate can thrive.

HARVARD PROMOTES THE PALESTINIANS' SLOW-MOTION 'FINAL SOLUTION'

by Bruce Thornton

Bruce Thornton examines a basic tactic used to delegitimize Israel: the world is called on to help the poor Palestinian deprived of his land by the evil Jews. This inverts reality but it gets a good response, usually from the ignorant. Surprisingly, this theme will serve to structure a conference held at the Kennedy Center at Harvard. The Center is a feeder at the well-filled Saudi trough and apparently it takes its commitment to its patron seriously, seriously enough to ignore academic standards and a truthful exploration of the facts. The conference is billed as a look at Israel, Palestine and the One State. The thrust is to promote the One-State solution, which -- when the spin slows down -- will be seen to be an Arab state, with the Jews in dhimmi status -- if they are allowed to remain, at all. As Thornton concludes, "The Kennedy School conference, then, is a propaganda exercise the effect of which is to further the Palestinian Arab "phases" strategy for destroying Israel."

POISON IVY LEAGUE

by Richard Baehr

Richard Baehr makes the point that the insidious anti-Israel poison coming from Harvard isn't unique. Unfortunately, Jew-hate in the form of anti-Israelism is showing up at many of the elite schools, to a greater or lesser degree. When asked why they allow these exercises in hate, the administrators at these schools fall back on the "free speech" defense, That would be fair, if it were applied in the same manner to all hate confabs. But it is hardly likely that "free speech" would be the important issue if the Klu Klux Klan wanted to hold a Day At The Racists.Or if a group of minorities held in fear and servitude in Muslim countries asked to have a Down with the Slave Masters powwow to examine conditions in Saudi Arabia. A cursory examination of the academics invited to speak at Harvard makes clear the organizers aren't aiming at a high level of academic quality. They just need to have the conference, so that later they can cite its findings as authority for anything they want believed by the hoi polloi. Do we really need to let this obscene show of hate run its course?

TAQIYYA FOR KIDS

By Janet Tassel

If you thought suggesting that academics have become fancy foot soldiers for introducing Sharia law into this country was over-the-hill alarmist, consider this consequence of various divisions of Harvard University working to convince the country that it isn't the Muslims who are the enemy, it's the Jooz. Janet Tassel presents anecdotes that reveal the pernicious connection between groups at Harvard who are exploiting Harvard's prestigious reputation to promote their political ideology and the Islamic propaganda being mouthed by duped school marms. That they are even able to get away with this: "Muslims from Europe were the first to sail across the Atlantic and land in the New World, starting in 889... [and that]West African Muslims had not only spread throughout South and Central America, but had also reached Canada, intermarrying with the Iroquois and Algonquin nations so that, much later, early English explorers were to meet Iroquois and Algonquin chiefs with names like Abdul-Rahim and Abdallah Ibn Malik." says much of the level of education and gullibility of our teachers. It is also important to note that the Harvard Administration has done zilch to stop this tripe being distributed in their name. What will it take to make them start saying, "I'm shocked. Shocked, I tell you."

ADOPTING PRO-SHARIA TEXTBOOKS: WHEN STATES SHOULD STEP IN.

by Alyssa Lappen

Alyssa Lappen provides us with a general survey of how Islam and sharia law are being taught in American schoolrooms. "In the last two decades, sanitized Islamic history and dogma [has] crept into broad use in U.S. public school books..." Fortunately, there has been some efforts at countering this misinformation. For example, a Texas Board of Education forced textbook publishers to rectify their half-truths and inaccurate portrayals of Islam. Lappen notes that "Islamic forces spent decades stealthily cultivating influence over our nation's public schools and curricula through 'minority' channels afforded by 'textbook adoption.' Other 'adoption state' authorities should perhaps now add teeth to their own Texas-like counter-efforts.'"

THE CHOSEN PEOPLE HAVE TO BE PERFECT: ANTI-SEMITISM IN THE PRESS IN HOLLAND

Yochanan Visser

This article was written by Yochanan Visser and discusses an article written by a Dutch reporter, Lisa van Heusden, who was living in Israel during her pregnancy. Laura, who sent in this article, is obviously indignant about a mother who complained because she received excellent pre-natal care in Israel. Laura writes:

"This is unbelievable. So Israel's committment to providing the best medical care possible is spun to be some nazi-like desire to produce a master race. What's wrong with these people? Instead of this woman being grateful for the high quality prenatal care she received in Israel and writing a positive article about it, this is the sick way she twists her experience. Whatever Israel does is spun by the media to be something sinister. If it helps earthquake victims in Haiti, Israel is accused of stealing organs. If it provides high quality prenatal care for its citizens, it is attacked for wanting perfection for the chosen people rather than being seen as an example of a modern, progressive society. And "critics" of Israel feign surprise when they are accused of antisemitism, yet we are constantly bombarded by hostile, ugly trash about Israel such as this."

It does seem incredible that a mother -- especially one with a viral infection that can interfere with the development of a healthy baby -- wouldn't be grateful her child was born healthy. Instead, she complained her baby was born perfect, when he could have had problems from the virus she carried. She was delighted that her son was born with a toe that was too small. As she put it "His personal revenge on the Israeli health system." The mother is a media person. So it must be hard for her to break old habits. She's learned how to make Israel look bad no matter what the circumstances.

Until Lisa came along, there was an iconic joke that best described Israel's always receiving bad press. The joke goes like this:

An Israeli is on vacation and is visiting a zoo in England when he sees a little girl leaning on the lion's cage. Suddenly, the lion grabs her by the cuff of her jacket and tries to pull her inside to slaughter her, under the eyes of her screaming parents.

The Israeli runs to the cage and hits the lion square on the nose with a powerful punch.

Whimpering from the pain the lion jumps back letting go of the girl, and the Israeli brings her to her terrified parents, who thank him endlessly.

A reporter has watched the whole event. The reporter says to the Israeli: 'Sir, this was the most gallant and brave thing I've seen a man do in my whole life.'

The Israeli replies, 'Why, it was nothing, really. The lion was behind bars.

I just saw this little kid in danger and acted as I felt right.'

The reporter says, 'Well, I'll make sure this won't go unnoticed. I'm a journalist, and tomorrow's paper will have this story on the front page. So, what do you do for a living and what political affiliation do you have?'

The Israeli replies, "I serve in the Israeli army and I vote for the Likud."

The journalist leaves.

The following morning the Israeli buys the paper to see news of his actions,and reads, on the front page:

RIGHT-WING ISRAELI ASSAULTS AFRICAN IMMIGRANT AND STEALS HIS LUNCH

I have to admit, Lisa's take on Israel wins by a mile.

IS THE NEW YORK TIMES'S AGENDA TO NORMALIZE ISLAM IN THE WEST?

by Phyllis Chesler

As Phyllis Chesler writes, "On a single day, the New York Times has been known to publish anywhere from two to six anti-Israel articles, editorials, op-ed pieces, and letters. Today, I see a new danger arising in their pages... After spending a year proclaiming the triumph of democracy and the miracle of the Arab Spring and, as PM Netanyahu has just noted, refusing to document the existential danger in which Israel finds herself, the Newspaper of Record has now begun the process of normalizing Islam in North America and Europe. Its pro-Muslim "multicultural" agenda is, paradoxically, another form of racism." What can account for their obsessive concern with the protecting rights for Muslim religion. Perhaps the answer is: cherchez la moneé.

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WEIRDEST CORRECTION OF THE DAY

by John Hinderaker

This essay by John Hinderker makes an astute observation about a New York Times practice. It also provides us with yet another indicator to alert us that the Gray Lady speaketh false and/or ignores truth.

HANNAH ARENDT AND THE ORIGINS OF ISRAELOPHOBIA

Sol Stern January 16, 2012

This is an impressive exploration by Sol Stern of the character and ideology of Hannah Arendt, perhaps best known for her exclaiming how banal evil was, when she saw the very ordinary looking Adolf Eichmann, who was responsible for the killing of thousands of Jews. She was raised as an assimilated German Jew and socialist. After the Nazis rose to power, she became a Zionist. Fleeing to the USA, she still considered herself a Zionist but was soon attacking outstanding heros such as Vladimir Jabotinsky, Peter Bergson and Ben Hecht, calling them fascists and charlatans. They saw clearly the coming Holocaust and were desperately trying to save the European Jews. She didn't help in the rescue effort. Stalin was her hero. She abhorred the idea of an independent Jewish state in Palestine and urged the Jews to establish a binational state controlled by the Arabs, ignoring that the Arabs wanted none of it. In sum, she behaved as a Marxist and a dhimmi, blaming the Jew for the Arab's recalcitrance. She became a confirmed anti-Zionist, supplying many of the criticisms that would become standard accusations for the next generations of Jewish haters of the Jewish state.

THE JEW FLU: THE STRANGE ILLNESS OF JEWISH ANTI-SEMITISM

By Uzi Silber

Uzi Silber describes Jewish self-hatred as Jewish flu, implying it is so varied and involves so many germ types, it is impossible to wipe out entirely. But it can be kept as a low level. Currently, "its modern symptoms are a rejection of Israel's identity as a Jewish state and a dismissal of its right to defend itself militarily, while embracing the goals of its nihilistic Arab enemies." Its adherents, both on the Left and on the Right, broadcast their anti-Jewish messages openly. Read a 'blame the Jews' article which ignores appalling behavior by Arabs, and you can be sure you'd nailed another victim of the Jew Flu.

BE YE THE ENEMY'S FOOL?

Paul Lademain, January 14, 2012.

Here be words of wisdom on how to designate areas, places and people, when labels are sensitized political statements. Paul Lademain provides us with simple rules that allow us to fight Israel's fight when we speak of events in the Middle East. Lademain's instructions have the added bonus that we will be speaking accurately and won't have adopted the meretricious language used by Israel's enemies. You will find ways to add to the list. I, for one, was alerted when a well-meaning supposed advocate for Israel said, "He is a Hamas activist." I corrected him, pointing out that the correct term is Hamas terrorist. As Lademain says, "Be ye not fools, O Israel." Master his examples. You'll be surprised how soon they become automatic, and other people repeat your language choices.

LOSING THE WAR OF IDEAS DUE TO INCOMPETENCE

by Isi Leibler

Isi Leibler presents another horror story about Israel's incompetence in presenting its case. What is there about the management of ideas that attracts those least able to produce information in a timely and understandable fashion? If only Israel's information officers could handle truthful information as adeptly as the Arabs and their buddies manipulate lies! When they eventually do get around to responding, it's We did not or We did, too. How about going on the offense? It's still the best defense. We understand that the brainy guys are busy elsewhere, but can't they filter the bottom layer a bit better? And oh yes, for the sake of accuracy, stones in this article should be changed to rocks or sharpened stones, depending on which was used -- Arab children are well-versed in a variety of weapons.

HOW CAN WE HELP WIN THE INFORMATION WAR?

by David Ha'ivri

David Ha'ivri writes in particular about distributing information about the Jewish citizens who live in Biblical Israel. But his advise is of general value to improve Israel's ability to communicate. As he says, "The problem is mainly that Israel's advocates are not addressing the particular issues for which Israel is under attack. By avoiding and not responding to the accusatory claims, it appears that Israel doesn't have a good answer." The comments in the original Ynet article serendipitously illustrate how to provide right answers. Someone pushes the incorrect but frequently-used "Israel is violating international law in occupying the West Bank." Knowledgeable readers respond appropriately. New points are raised and answered. A reader, "Gee" from Zikron Yaakov, puts Israel's ownership of Samaria and Judea succinctly this way:

"First under international law for it to be 'occupied' it needs to meet two conditions. The 'occupier' has to not have a legal claim to the land. The second part is the people claim need to have said legal claim.

Gaza, Judea and Samaria meet neither condition. Our claim to the land is enshrined in the UN Charter and the Covenant of the League of Nations - so we do have legal claim to the land. Whoops that means that it ain't 'occupied' by us.

Then there is the little fact that the Arabs do not have any legal claim to the land. Nobody on this planet has managed to date to produce said legal claim. So the Arabs are the illegal 'occupiers' of our lands, not the other way around. So much for the claim of international law."

THE PERSIAN CONQUEST OF JERUSALEM

by Frank Meir Loewenberg

Frank Loewenberg writes of a little known story -- the conquest of Jerusalem by the Persian King Khosrau II in 614 C.E., with thousands of Jewish soldiers as part of his army. At the time, Jerusalem was the capital of the province of Palaestina Prima of the Byzantine Roman Empire, and its Jewish and Christian subjects were "the victims of heavy taxes, confiscation of property and even forced conversions." When Persia began its rule in Jerusalem, sacrificial service on the Temple Mount was reestablished and Nehemiah ben Hushiel became Jewish governor of Jerusalem. But some three years later, Nehemiah was removed from office and Jews were banned from the city. By 628 C.E., the Byzantine Emperor had regained his lost provinces of Syria, Egypt and Palestine and the Jews of Jerusalem were massacred. A decade later, the Muslims invaded. And began another chapter in Jerusalem's history.

TOBRUK...THE STORY YOU DON'T KNOW

By Jerry Klinger

In the second World War, the German General Rommel was winning the War in the Middle East. He was stopped at Tobruk in Libya by a delaying action that gave the British Army time to revamp and re-equip, so that it was able later to win at El Alamein, which was "the beginning of the end for the Germans and their Italian allies in North Africa." As Jerry Klinger writes, a chief factor in holding the Germans from moving forward at Tobruk was the incredible fighting by the outnumbered soldiers of the Palestine Brigade, a group of some 400 Jews, "a battalion of mine layers, poorly armed and provisioned, without heavy weapons, or anti-aircraft equipment but with a grim, teeth clenched determination." They withstood the continous attacks by the Germans and in the end, battered and reduced to a quarter of their original number, they were victorious.

THE REHABILITATION OF AN UNDERGROUND REVOLUTIONARY

By Mitch Ginsburg

Avraham 'Ya'ir' Stern was a most unusual terrorist. He was a poet, knowledgeable in Torah and a student of classic Greek and Latin. In the 1930s, he had persuaded the Polish government to help train Jews to wrench Palestine from the control of the British colonial government, but this ended when Poland was invaded by the Germans. He was a man desperate to save European Jewry in spite of the English Government's refusal to let more than a few Jews immigrate to Palestine. (It is bitter ironic that the British were in Palestine because they had been entrusted by the League of Nations to help the Jews create a homeland.) On February 12, 1942, he was caught by the English and shot dead when found. During his life as commander of the Lehi, he was revered by a few and "widely detested by the majority of Jews in Palestine." As the years have passed, more and more people have come to his memorial service. Mitch Ginsburg describes Stern's 'rehabilitation.'

See also the video "Teaching the Legacy of Yair Stern" at
http://newsblaze.com/story/ 20120214084732nurg.nb/topstory.html

SYRIAN RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE SABRA AND CHATILA MASSACRES

by Dr. Franck Salameh

In September 1982, Arabs living in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian Arab refugee camps in Lebanon were massacred. The Lebanese Forces (LF), a Christian militia, was said to have avenged the assassination by the Muslim Lebanese of the Christian Lebanese leader, Bashir Gemayel. The LF and Israel were allies. In the aftermath of the massacre, much of the blame was levied on Israel, which was accused of not having the foresight to realize that allowing the LF to enter the camp hunting for terrorists hiding there would lead to a massacre. The massacre put an end to the possibility of reconciliation between the Lebanese Muslims and Christians. Franck Salameh suggests that Syria had most to gain from the massacre. "[I]t scuttled the prospects of peace with Israel, it extended the Lebanese war for another decade, it maintained Syria's occupation of the country for another twenty-three years, it tightened its grip over the functioning of the Lebanese state, it continued using Lebanon as a launching pad for Syria's regional settling of scores, and it provided the Alawites with a bottomless private piggy-bank bankrolling their wars-by-proxy."

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