Obama: Please Stop Digging

         

It amazes me how POTUS Obama has made so many blunders in regards to Syria – and he’s still piling them one on top of each other!

Obama’s off-the-cuff “red line” comment a year ago was the start, but If he had just fired off a few cruise missiles at Assad when he did use chemical weapons – much like his predecessors Clinton and Bush had done with Libya this whole affair would be a distant memory by now.

But no, POTUS Obama could not make even a small decision that he would “own” – so he had to go to Congress to get approval for an action that he already had the authority to make under the war powers act. Obama’s advisors knew that Congress would not approve the act because it was not thought out and he couldn’t get anything through Congress anyway. Obama’s political strategy was to be able to blame Congress for not authorizing action and hopefully the whole affair would go away. Obama elevated what should have been a minor decision to fire some cruise missiles into a deliberation worthy of WW3 – and it isn’t about to go away.

Now that Obama has been thrown a razor blade covered life preserver by Russian President Putin, Obama has effectively pivoted away from all of the US allies in the region and has effectively rendered the US impotent from a political and military perspective in regards to Iran. Unfortunately for Obama, the story isn’t about to go away anytime soon. The whole chemical weapons inspectors fiasco will last years while Assad resumes slaughtering his people, and each massacre will now have Obama’s name associated with it.  The former allies of the USA  (like Egypt Saudi Arabia, etc.) in the Middle East will be reassessing their relationship with the USA and form alliances that met their national interest – which may not coincide with USA interests. Why wait for Obama to throw them under the bus like foormer Egyptian President Mubarak?

Even as I write, Obama is being manipulated by both Russia and Iran in what may be the most humiliating foreign policy fiasco in the history of the USA. There is an old saying that when you are in a hole, the best course of action is to stop digging. Would someone please take the shovel from Obama’s hands?

The Naivety of the Exporting “Democracy”

They say history is the record of the victor. If that is the case, then the story of the rise and fall of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt should become a textbook example of how NOT to promote “Democracy” and/or U.S. foreign policy in the Mideast.

The Obama administration’s rational behind pulling the rug from under long-time Egyptian ally Hosni Mubarak and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood – an organization with solid terrorist credentials was the mistaken belief that there was a material difference between the paramilitary terrorist arm of the MB and the political arm of the MB - disregarding that the only difference between the MB and the Nazi party was the symbol of a crescent instead of a swastika. The “Obama theory” was that if the MB could be “co-opted” by participating in a democratic voting process (one man, one vote) that there was a good possibility that “political Islam” would be forced to moderate it’s total world view and in a domino effect, would usher in a wave of moderation across the middle east.

The Obama “Democracy Doctrine” hit opposition from almost every U.S. ally in the region immediately. Israel, of course, had a peaceful border under PM Hosni Mubarak solidified by a treaty that was effectively enforced for over 40 years. The U.S. pressure to oust Mubarak took them by surprise and immediately raised the threat level on their southern front. Being a dutiful U.S. ally - and also with awareness that they could not/should not have any affect on internal Egyptian politics, they had to lay low and let events outside their border play out over time. In usual fashion, the Israelis prepared strategies to react to different political and military possibilities.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Kuwait on the other hand had a much different reaction to this “embrace” of political Islam. To them this was clearly a Trojan horse for the MB to organize politically and eventually force them out of power and reduce the influence of Sunni Muslims to a subservient role across the Middle East in their grandiose ambitions of Iran to be the torchbearer of Islam across the world. They immediately lobbied Washington to reverse course, but to no avail. They considered Obama an inexperienced meddler in their world and immediately started making plans which would be executed at the right time and place – hoping on events to organically take place that would give wind to their plans.

It is in this scenario that the MB took office. One of Egyptian President Morsi’s first acts was to dismiss the leadership of the Military. His second act was to re-write the constitution in such a way as to vizierate the opposition and install ultra-conservative Muslim religious laws into civil law. His arresting of opposition leaders, restriction on alcohol and turning a blind eye towards the killings and abuse of the Christian minority were also “not so democratic” and angered the “Egyptian street”. This brings to question why President Obama never protested these abuses of power. Is one man, one vote all there is to democracy? Obama’s lack of interest in the “quality” of Egyptian “democracy” delegitimized his “Nobel Prize” claim to the moral high ground when preaching human rights and pro-democracy efforts around the world. It is no surprise that there was an overwhelming organic movement to oust Morsi. If the same set of circumstances happened here in America against Democrats or Republicans, I would not be surprised to see millions marching in Washington - and our saving grace being our mature liberal democracy which has impeachment embedded and respected within our constitution.

The Gulf States of the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia saw the massive demonstrations in Cairo, saw an opening which could be exploited to their advantage, and for the first time in the 65 year history of the Middle East, these countries executed their own regional military/political strategy against the wishes of their protector – the USA. These countries would have never considered this outcome IF THEY BELIEVED that the USA really had their back. The announcement that the USA was relegating the Mideast into a second tier area of US military/political concern also signaled a lack of commitment and created a vacuum. Either the Gulf state would fill the vacuum or someone else would do it for them.

Obama’s embrace of the MB was a strategic mistake and the reverberations of damage is best exemplified in the $13 billion commitment by the Gulf states to Egypt just for the month of July. The internal U.S. debate over whether to continue the $1.5 billion in assistance is a moot issue now. Egypt is spinning away from our influence along with the other Gulf States.

Meanwhile, President Obama has Secretary of State Kerry shuttling back and forth on another “make believe” foreign policy blunder that fortunately will only spin wheels and not pose a risk. There is virtually zero chance of a peaceful 2 state solution between the Palestinians and the Israelis – and both sides know it. The Palestinians don’t have any leadership that can deliver on their side of any agreement, and the USA and the UN have no credibility in making safety guarantees after the UN abandoned their Sinai and Golan Heights posts.

The best example of democracy in the Middle East is Turkey and the recent riots and brutal way the PM Endogen pacified Giza Park was not exactly conducive to a “liberal democracy”.  It’s time that Obama makes a distinction between a “liberal democracy” where minorities have rights and a “democracy”. After all, Hitler and his socialist party were voted into power too. Would Obama not consider their record  of human rights abuses  BEFORE they executed their “final solution” an abomination of a true democracy? I would hope not.

Obama's Mideast Strategy - if he even has one - is in ruins. How is he going to react now?

It was a total shock that President Obama literally threw America’s long-time ally – Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak under the bus when a hundred thousand disenchanted Egyptians protested his autocratic regime. Mubarak was clearly willing to hand over the government, but in an orderly fashion that protected the integrity of Egypt’s national institutions. President Obama forced early elections in Egypt, when no other group was organized other than the Muslim Brotherhood – who promised that they would not run for political office. Of course, they DID run and won a bogus election without any real competition. The MB won, they immediate focused on imposing their extremist religious values on the other 75% of the country – at the expense of letting the infrastructure of Egypt disintegrate and generally create a non-functioning state.

It is no wonder that millions of Secular Egyptians, Christians, and moderate Muslims are protesting the MB regime. The protester leaders have been jailed, any critic in the press is jailed, all organs of the government are led by extremist MB in posts where they are ill equipped to govern. Egypt’s infrastructure is destroyed, and the country is on the verge of civil/sectarian war and is likely to become a failed state like Somalia without global intervention.

Our President gave the Muslim Brotherhood credibility with his undeserved support. Most Mid-East scholars knew where this was heading, yet President Obama only surrounds himself with people who agree with him and rarely convenes advisory boards to supplement his decision making process.

President Obama is not responsible for the chaos in the Mideast, but he has certainly contributed to reversing 70 years of U.S policy and even to this day he is still committed to reducing U.S. influence to the point where our allies no longer have faith in America. Many people want to frame America’s place in the world, as a “has-been” as far as global leadership is concerned. The fact is that while we had suffered an economic setback in 2008 – and are in recovery now – when compared to the rest of the world, we are in the most advantageous position of any 1^st world economy. President Obama has many problems to deal with today with the NSA, Obamacare and the Mideast. To date he has only shown an ability to be reactive and place blame elsewhere. It would be nice to see some pro-active governance that helps shape the world, rather than letting the world shape America.

The May 1, 2013 Arab League "Peace Proposal" should have been annouced on April Fools Day

As Israel has just celebrated it’s 65^th birthday, the Obama administration and the Arab League have concocted a new “groundbreaking peace initiative” that theoretically throws the “peace ball” back into Israel’s hands. The Israelis have always wanted a “durable peace” with her neighbors, but this effort is doomed to fail on so many levels that any reasonable person familiar with the conflict would have to declare it just another Arab League “dead on arrival” diplomatic PR scheme.

Let’s start with all the failed Arab peace initiatives that cost Israeli lives:

1)   The Oslo Accords (Via Bill Clinton) served to bring the PLO and Yasser Arafat into the West Bank where he systemically organized the killing of hundreds of Israelis and terrorized the country with suicides bombings. The only reason it has virtually stopped is because of a defensive wall – heavily protested b y the Palestinians - erected to prevent infiltrators. Arafat, by the way, got a Nobel Peace Prize for initiating this swindle.

2)   The U.N. negotiated Israeli pullout from Lebanon to get Israel to abandon a buffer zone utilized to protect her population from Hezbollah rockets. It was supposed to end the arming of Hezbollah and put the Lebanese army in control of the border. Instead, Hezbollah became part of the government, they have taken complete control over the border – under the nose of the U.N. troops – and have completely re-armed with over 70,000 rockets.

3)   The Gaza pullout was a strategic effort on the part of PM Sharon to demonstrate to the world that Israel wanted peace and to prove that the conflict wasn’t about land for peace. Since then there has been nothing but one bomb after another from the terrorist Hamas regime.

On top of all these failed “papered over” diplomatic peace initiatives, one has to question the 2 small elephants in the room:

1) The Palestinian as a diplomatic entity are fragmented and unable to even agree on a unified government much less a peace agreement. The West Bank under the PA, the Gaza Strip under Hamas, and the diaspora of Palestinians living in Lebanon, Jordan and elsewhere have never seen common ground

 2) The Arab league as a diplomatic entity is has zero credibility. It has a history of grand pomp and circumstance for the purpose of promoting itself as a credible entity, but exactly what have they done? If they can’t stop the genocide among their Muslim brothers in Syria, or get Hezbollah or Hamas to comply with agreements, why should the Israelis – or even Obama give them credibility?

Israel has not just survived 65 years – it has thrived and has one of the most dynamic economies in the world. Israel has built, in a short 65 years, a modern, democratic country with one hand building the country and the other hand defending it. The Palestinians, on the other hand, have institutionalized – with the help of the U.N. – their identity as victims.

Stripping away the competing Israeli and Palestinian narratives about who did what to whom, the largest elephant in the room is somehow not the most obvious: The U.S.A. is not going to give America back to the Indians, the Australians are not going to give their country back to the Aborigines, and Israel – after all the blood, sweat and tears of building their country and realizing their destiny, are never going to surrender land they see vital to their security as a nation. The Palestinians are going to have to internalize this fact. This conflict was never over how much land the Israelis would concede in the West Bank, after all – Jordan controlled the entire West Bank and Jerusalem from 1948 thru 1967 and the entire time they fought Israel over it’s right to exist and their was never an effort to develop a Palestinian state. This conflict is over the acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state by the entire Arab nation. The current decaying state of the Arab world today - the failed “Arab Spring”, a belligerent terrorist Iranian regime, the disintegration of both Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Egypt, etc., the Israelis can’t be expected –nor should they – sign any agreements with any Arab entity until conditions stabilize. Unfortunately, that is not even on the horizon.

Santa Claus Downsizing at North Pole

From the A.P. desk, 7:04am February 27, 2013

A spokesman for Santa Claus has announced a layoff of 50% of his elite elves workforce, effective immediately. The total workforce, estimated at approximately 7,000 little people has worked for Mr. & Mrs. Claus for generations. Mr. Claus said “When I first started in this business, there were only 25 Elves. “ As the world’s population grew, so did the elf population at the North Pole.   In fact, the elf population grew at a rate 3X the regular population rate, probably attributable to a lot of time off during the year, as well as having to spend a lot of time indoors due to the harsh North Pole winters.”

The spokesman, Hans Claus, said “1000 of the 3500 laid off workers will be retrained to work in a top-secret state-of-the-art factory and/or distribution center that is currently being built in an undisclosed location in the North Pole.  The elves will be trained in the latest robotic manufacturing technologies, as well as logistics. A special group of elves will be trained in logistics and will  develop and implement the delivery of presents around the world via the latest laser guided drone technology in order to address the increased delivery demand.  If successful, the drone program will insure Christmas deliveries well into the next century.”

Mr. Claus said “I have an obligation to ensure the long-term viability of the Claus family business.” If this program is successful, I anticipate a productivity assessment of the rest of the organization in 2015. We are just following trends and technologies that increase productivity and increase the customer "experience".

The 2500 permanently laid off elves will be given 12 month’s pay, a discretionary retraining expense account to help migrate to another industry, and a generous travel expense allowance to move their families to a new location.

Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are holding a press conference at noon today in Chicago to protest this mass re-organization of the Claus family business. “A boycott of the Claus business is not anticipated”, said Mr. Jackson’s spokesperson.

Israelis not comforted by world's reaction to Syrian conflict

The atrocities committed against the Syrian people by both the Syrian government  and the increasing barbaric Islamic extremist opposition seems to have fallen not only on deaf ears at the U.N., but  also among the global press.  If a raging civil war that has killed 60,000 people doesn’t inspire action on the part of the U.N. or the Arab governments that have a stake in resolving this conflict, then what exactly would? I am not suggesting U.S. intervention, but those with a stake in resolving the conflict should step up to the plate.

When I think of the “2 state solution” that President Obama, the U.N., the E.U and of course the Arab League want to “impose” on Israel, I can visualize a similar conflict taking place in Israel. I have no doubt that the world would sit idly by as their carefully crafted “peace agreement” (much like the Oslo Accords) disintegrates into chaos and destruction.  There is no logical reason why the current Israeli government should think their predicament with the Palestinians and the greater Arab world would be treated any differently than Syria by the U.S, the U.N. and those who perceive themselves as residing on the “moral high ground” of diplomacy.

France has just entered into a war against Islamic extremists in Mali and Somalia. The U.S. is winding down wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. None of these wars against Muslim extremists have anything to do with Israel or the Palestinians, and for anyone to say with a straight face that a 2 state solution will resolve the divide between Islamic extremists and the West is deluding themselves. Fortunately, the Israeli government under PM Netanyahu clearly understands the reality and stands firm against the diplomatic pressure, and his anticipated overwhelming victory in the upcoming Israeli elections proves that the Israeli people are in total support of his initiatives and have a strong resolve in the face of the constant threat they have fought against for 66 years.

Jordan is already 75% Palestinian, so a Palestinian state already exists.

Santa Announces Mass Layoff Effective Immediately

From the A.P. desk, 7:04am December 26, 2012

A spokesman for Santa Claus has announced a layoff of 50% of his elite elves workforce, effective immediately. The total workforce, estimated at approximately 7,000 little people has worked for Mr. & Mrs. Claus for generations. Mr. Claus said “When I first started in this business, there were only 25 Elves. “ As the world’s population grew, so did the elf population at the North Pole.   In fact, the elf population grew at a rate 3X the regular population rate, probably attributable to a lot of time off during the year, as well as having to spend a lot of time indoors due to the harsh North Pole winters.”

The spokesman, Hans Claus, said “1000 of the 3500 laid off workers will be retrained to work in a top-secret state-of-the-art factory and/or distribution center that are currently being built in an undisclosed location in the North Pole.  The elves will be trained in the latest robotic manufacturing technologies, as well as logistics. A special group of elves are training to implement the delivery of presents via the latest laser guided drone technology in order address the increased delivery demand.  If successful, the drone program will insure Christmas deliveries well into the next century.”

Mr. Claus said “I have an obligation to ensure the long-term viability of the Claus family business.” If this program is successful, I anticipate a productivity assessment of the rest of the organization in 2014. We are just following trends that are all too obvious in the rest of the world’s economy.

The permanently laid off elves will 2500 elves be given 12 month’s pay, a discretionary retraining expense account to help migrate to another industry, and a generous travel expense allowance to move their families to a new location.

Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are holding a press conference at noon today in Chicago to protest this mass re-organization of the Claus family business. “A boycott of the Claus business is not anticipated”, said Mr. Jackson’s spokesperson.

Egypt: Is Obama going to make the same mistake twice?

It is disappointing that President Obama has not come out firmly in favor of the tens of thousands of Egyptians demonstrating against the Muslim Brotherhood regime under Egyptian President Morsi. The Muslim Brotherhood promised Obama that they would not run a candidate for President because of the fact that the Brotherhood was the only organized party and legitimate political competition representing the Egyptian people did not have time to organize and develop. The Brotherhood reneged on their promise and Obama turned a blind eye. Now the brotherhood, under Morsi, has made a move to institutionalize Shiria law in Egypt and rig the political system so that the Brotherhood will have control of the congress and Judiciary. This is not democracy and Obama should be standing up and verbally supporting western educated Egyptians, secular Egyptians and the over 6 million Coptic Christians  in Egypt who are putting their lives on the line. We saw what happened in Lebanon to the Liberal educated Muslim and Christian communities, and know too well how this story is going to turn out if Obama does not intervene politically. Obama threw Mubarak under the bus for far less than what is happening in Egypt at this moment, and there is no way he can remain silent while this continues.

In 2009 tens of thousands of people in Iran put their lives on the line to protest against their government, and President Obama ignored them for 2 weeks while they were slaughtered, finally giving verbal support after the people were already repressed by the military. One would hope that Obama would learn from the “Iranian mistake” and pound his desk at the oppression of true democracy in Egypt. I am not suggesting US military interference on the ground, but I am asking for Obama to demonstrate moral clarity on what he considers American interests: Supporting radical religious regimes  led by dictators that suppress their minorities or the people who want a liberal democracy along the lines of Turkey, which is a model for and Islamic democracy?

First time, shame on Palestinians, second time shame on Israel

The sophistic attempt by the Palestinian Authority to violate the Oslo Accords by achieving non-state status at the U.N. has set the stage for the elimination of the generally accepted pretense by the diplomatic community that a legitimate peace process was ever possible with the Palestinians.  Who was Israel supposed to negotiate this mythical Peace Process - with the Palestinians in the West Bank, or the Palestinians of Gaza?  The Palestinians of Lebanon or the Palestinians in Jordan or Egypt? Until the Palestinians can work out their internal differences, organize pre-state national institutions, accept Israel’s existence and commit to a peaceful solution – they will continue to rely on meaningless ceremonies like their most recent celebration of “statehood”. Firing 1,500 missiles at Israel from Gaza isn't inspiration for the peace process, especially when it comes from territory that the Israel’s gave up in a “land for peace” swap. 

Two simultaneous acts of diplomacy happened on 11/29/12: A meaningless “cyber” Palestinian state was born, and the death of the 1993 Oslo Accords, which was a diplomatic framework for resolving the Israel/Palestinian conflict. It can be debated why the Oslo Accords had not achieved it’s desired goal: Israel’s supporters  contend that it was from a lack of a legitimate partner that wanted peace, or that the Palestinians are  too fragmented to enforce - much less agree on a durable settlement of the issues. The Israelis say that the “pond of peace had been poisoned” by the institutionalization of victimization and anti-Israel (anti-Jew) incitement within the Palestinian educational system and culture. Now, after the 11/29/12 U.N. declaration, Israelis can say that agreements with the Palestinians are meaningless. If they will violate the Oslo Accords, blow up civilian buses in Jerusalem, fire 1500 missiles at Israel – and they are rewarded at the U.N. with an elevated non-state status, I doubt Israel will be in the mood to take ANY RISKS for peace going forward.

The silver lining is that Israel no longer has to operate under the failed diplomatic pretense that there is a peace process to advance. I’m sure that many diplomats assigned the impossible task of keeping the Oslo Accords alive will try to minimize the Palestinian achievement at gaining non-state status, just like they minimized the 1500 Hamas rockets shot at Israel, the 6 Israeli deaths , the thousands terrorized,  or the Jerusalem bus bombing. The Oslo Accords have failed and the reason doesn't matter now. What replaces it will be more realistic, which actually gives hope to those who viewed the entire Oslo Process as an exercise in failed diplomacy from day one.

First time, shame on them, second time shame on you. If anyone is going to have to take a risk for peace going forward, it’s going to have to be the Palestinians, because Israel has learned that there is no atrocity or violation of agreements that the Palestinians will commit - that isn't celebrated in the U.N.

Obama Foreign policy: Confused and Non-Committal

I am amazed – but not surprised – at the statement from White House Press Secretary Carney regarding the effort by Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi’s decision to assume sweeping powers through a decree which in essence makes him a dictator.  “Our interest in the development and transition to democracy in Egypt is one that reflects what the Egyptian people demanded through the revolution and continue to demand, which is a government that reflects the will of the people. We will continue to work towards that goal because it reflects what the Egyptian people want,” the White House Press Secretary said.

Former President Mubarak, a 3 decade staunch ally of the USA was thrown under the bus by President Obama while trying to keep the country together during the transition to democracy. The Islamic party vowed not to run for office, as they were the only organized party at the time and didn't reflect the “will of the people” if the elections were held in the short term. The Islamic Brotherhood party lied and fielded Morsi as a candidate, who won easily against unorganized opposition. President Obama stood silent while this played out.

There are all types of democracies. Nazi Germany was a democracy. Hamas and Hezbollah both listed as terrorist organizations are democratically elected. Is the Obama administration endorsing illiberal democracies as opposed to liberal democracies like Sweden where human rights and the minorities are protected from the will of the majorities?

The USA used to have a clear vision about where we wanted the Mideast to go in the future: First and foremost, it was to protect American economic interests, but we respected the Islamic religious perspective, but not militant religious Islamic politics that persecuted the very minorities (Christians, Secularists, Western Educated, etc.) that reflect our values of freedom of speech and religion, basic human rights and peace with their neighbors.

The Obama administration is sending out no message, a message that is too late in the cycle to make a difference, or a vague message that is designed to postpone taking a position.  No wonder our allies around the world are looking for alternatives to American leadership. It’s become a trust issue.

Israel Forced into the Abyss of War

The most current escalation in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza has deep roots going back since before the creation of the state of Israel (1948) – when it was part of Egypt.  Israel had tolerated a tit-for-tat low level war of attrition as long as the threat to its citizens was contained. The difference today is that Iran is increasingly supplying the Gaza Palestinians with sophisticated missiles capable of terrorizing the main population centers in the heart of Israel, including Tel Aviv – Israel’s version of N.Y.C... Iran’s surrogate force in Gaza, Hamas, has fired up to 25 Iranian made versions of the long-range Russian Katusha  rockets at Tel Aviv and thousands more shorter range missiles randomly in the south of Israel terrorizing over 1 million innocent civilians, killing scores of Israelis.

Israelis have fought (and successfully won) many long, hard wars and have suffered thousands of casualties. They know the price of war, and they openly admit they love life and grieve for every lost soldier and innocent civilian caught up in this conflict. Israel has done everything it could possibly do in order to minimize its casualties and avoid war. Israel uprooted hundreds of thousands of Israelis living in Gaza in order to test the “land for peace” concept touted by the Palestinians and parroted by diplomats.  In return Israelis received over 10,000 missiles that originated in Iran, and traveled through Egypt unimpeded. Israel can no longer be content with developing and depending on a sophisticated defensive array of anti-missile systems to knock down Palestinian projectiles, as the sheer number of missiles fired assures some will get through the shield to terrorize Israeli civilians. Nor can Israelis depend on sophisticated fortifications to protect its citizens from Palestinian missiles.

The core responsibility of ANY government is to protect its borders. No country on earth would have been as patient as Israel has been with the Gaza Palestinians led by Hamas/Iran. Israel is finally taking the offensive against this threat in order to protect its citizens. In every war that Israel has been in, the outcome was never known or guaranteed. Israel’s leaders are well aware that this unavoidable clash with the Palestinians of Gaza could escalate into a wider conflict with Iran, Egypt, Syria and/or Lebanon.  It is with this knowledge - that the scale of war, the number of casualties, and the outcome is unknown that the Israelis have entered into the abyss of war. 

2013 Nobel Peace Prize goes to the EU? Is this a joke?

I almost choked on my coffee this morning when I read that the Nobel committee gave the Nobel Peace Prize to the EU. Really? Their rather loose explanation is that they are recognizing the EU for staying committed to the concept of the EU during the financial crisis that continues to test the alliance’s union.  I'm sensing a trend in how the Nobel committee prioritizes its selection: Let’s honor and individual or entity that has the potential to advance the EU’s political and social interests, and let’s ignore the actual individuals who have helped the world avoid war(s) or helped humanity. I mean, really, did President Barak Obama – in hindsight – really deserve to receive the Nobel Peace prize as his first act as President – for the image of world peace maker that he projected during his 2008 campaign?

The Nobel Peace Prize committee is choosing to ignore the fact that the EU led the campaign against Libya’s Gaddafi  which ended up in his lynching and the total dismemberment of the Libyan infrastructure, with thousands killed. The country is now run by armed gangs - along with the Al Qaeda Islamist extremists that killed our American Ambassador and 3 others. The Nobel Prize committee is choosing to ignore the fact that the EU, while encouraging the downfall of Bashar Assad of Syria by supplying arms and ammo to the Syrian opposition, has done little else while over 30,000 Syrians have died.

Here’s my nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize: Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who has seen his country attacked with thousands of missiles from Iranian surrogate’s Hamas and Hezbollah, while at the same time has given EU/US sanctions against Iran 6 years to work despite the fact that they aren’t stopping Iranian efforts to produce nuclear weapons. PM Netanyahu has always had the necessary military capacity to attack Israel’s enemies, but he has “walked the walk” of true peacemaking and “gone the extra mile” by holding back in hopes of a peaceful resolution to Israel’s “Iranian problem”.

The credibility of the Nobel committee was seriously damaged in 2009 when it awarded Barak Obama the Nobel Peace Prize and elevating him to the same level as Gandhi – a true warrior for peace. This year’s award to the EU is no less offensive. 

Israel should not trust the Obama administration

As the drumbeat of Iranian belligerence towards Israel increases both on the terror, political, and nuclear front continues unabated, my only hope is that the Israeli government doesn’t miscalculate their  relationship with the Barak Obama led U.S. government.  President Obama’s Mideast policy is littered with broken promises, abandoned allies, and a sophomoric propensity to project Western social values on a region where tribal and Muslim values are the bedrock of society. One may be able to debate Obama’s health or economic policy, but his foreign policy has seen a disaster and has reversed 60 years of carefully crafted and consistent foreign policy.

With that said, the Israeli people should be quite concerned with the current situation: Iran is building a nuclear capability and already has a delivery system (which the Obama government is allowing to go forward), Iran is making overt declarations in the press that they have every intent to destroy Israel (which the world is ignoring), and the Obama government is demanding that Israel not attack Iran because of the economic implications to the rest of the world. Given the fact that Obama threw Egypt’s Mubarak under the bus at the first opportunity, didn’t help the Iranian revolution in 2009, and sits and watches as tens of thousands die in Syria - If I were them I would not depend on the Obama led U.S. government to deal with Iran or back them up in a war.

Israel has been under attack in one form or another from Iranian surrogates (Hezbollah/Hamas) ever since the Shah was deposed in 1979. Additionally, Iran has been directly implicated in numerous terror attacks around the world against mostly innocent Jews (Argentina, India, etc.). Israel needs no additional pretext to wage a defensive war against the Iranian government (not the Iranian people). I seriously doubt that had the USA been the victim of this Iranian treatment that they would have tolerated it for 33 years.

As for those who want to bring up the Palestinian issue as an Israeli aggravating cause of the Mideast conflict? Even if you disregard the Jewish historical ties to Israel and buy the Palestinian narrative - historical connections have no ownership implications. Ask the Indians, Incas and the Aborigines.