In an astonishing unified action, John Kerry
followed the lead of the Bush administration this week, with the result being the temporary closing of a
renowned liberal blog.
The blogger, who came to fame as a columnist here on
Kos,
is noted for his hard-hitting, insightful commentary on Iraq, and the many failures of the Bush administration. The move on the part
of the Administration which prompted the closing, which had the full backing of the democratic candidate, drove the blogger to declare:
The Popular Front isn't looking like a very viable proposition at the moment.
The Whiskey Bar is now
closed.
I'm rarely surprised anymore when the far left -- the ones who are most outspoken about
liberty, democracy, and justice -- cast their inhibitions to the wind and dismiss out of hand any action which supports Israel. Indeed, during the past years, as I've followed the luminaries like Billmon who argue so passionately and with such crystal clarity the reasons why Iraq was a fiasco, I've subconsciously turned a blind eye to their condemnation of and disdain towards the only democracy in the region.
Americans have a lot of reasons for supporting Israel, some based on history and injustices of the past, others based on religion and the desire for Gods blessings, yet others
based on our historical tendency to "root" for the underdog, and yes, some probably even based on propoganda and political influence. There's likely plenty of others, but it seems to me that supporting democracy is good enough to stand alone.
After Arafat offered power sharing to Islamic Jihad and Hamas two weeks ago, I didn't hear a peep from the likes of Billmon. It wasn't even a blip on the screen. Arafat abandoned the road map, and GWB, in possibly the most correct decision of his entire reign, decided that these "new realities" on the ground were enough to justify backing the Sharon plan. At long last, the fact that Arafat's PA can't be dealt with is setting the rules for policy, instead of being quietly ignored. I don't care if it has been our policy
for almost 40 years - it doesn't work.
The "unilateral" withdrawal from the Gaza and the West Bank makes sense to me -- hell, it worked out pretty well the last time they did it, and I hope Sharon gets his chance to try it out. And if there's to be a few settlements on the far side of the Green line
which will now find themselves inside the fence, well, good for them.
Yeah, maybe GWB has been influenced by the Jewish vote in Florida, or the potential gain in financial support, and maybe Kerry was too, when he indicated his support of the decision, but I don't think so. Like I said, there's plenty of reasons to support Israel besides money... but mostly, it's simply the right thing to do.
To those who lament the cost of our support, it seems to me that we've already paid the
price. Everything that's wrong with the world, and even the original 9/11 attacks, were blamed on our support for Israel. Indeed, directly following the attacks, there was a
noticable shift, if not in policy, then at least in language, towards a more "balanced"
stance in the region, following the laments and exhortations to fairness which "should be the result of the attacks". We, as a nation, became introspective and sought earnestly for a reason why we were attacked, and our bias in Israel was gleefully thrown up by individuals, and even governments, as the reason.
To them and to anyone else who despises Israel or our new and better policy towards her, I politely say bunk. You cant build peace on hatred and lies, anymore than you can build a nation on ego and greed. And make no mistake, I'll continue to despise our administration for their prideful, arrogant waste of American lives and resouces in Iraq, while terrorism grows stronger every day -- but I must grudging say "well done" today.