Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Finkelstein: Israeli army “most cowardly on earth"

There are many reasons Israel can't invade. The most obvious is, this time there are lots of foreign journalists in Gaza.  The IDF (Israeli army) is the most cowardly army on earth. They don't attack without first destroying everything in front and to the sides of them, which of course means massive civilian casualties.

 This time they can't do this because the operation was largely spontaneous, unlike Operation Cast Lead (in Gaza 2008-2009), so they weren't able to seal the borders.

There's even a NY Times reporter in Gaza, and she's plainly not happy with what she's seeing.  The Times even made an “error" yesterday and referred in the headline to the Israeli attack on "civilian buildings."  A few hours later they referred to "government buildings.”  But today the Times led with the deaths of 11 people, five women, four children (killed by the Israelis Sunday, Nov. 18; the victims are now said to be 12).

Of course, Israel can't be thrilled with this, and they know that in the event of a ground invasion, it'll be scores of civilians killed, not just because they like to kill civilians (which they do) but also because that's the only way the know (how) to fight: destroy everything in your path for miles around.  They can't do that now, but also Netanyahu can't risk significant IDF casualties.  (It would be a) Disaster with an (Israeli) election looming.  So, I still say, no invasion. --Norman Finkelstein

New York Times online, Monday Nov. 19, 2012

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2 comments:

  1. Eric Robinson8:15 PM

    No cease-fire for now... hopefully Finkelstein is correct and there will be no invasion.

    Hasbara is trying its best to conceal the crimes of the Israelis, to lay the foundation of public support (or indifference) for a ground operation:

    http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/the-limits-of-israel-s-online-hasbara.premium-1.479298

    "Long before the cabinet authorized the Israel Defense Forces to call up 75,000 reserve troops, masses had already flocked to the flag. High-schoolers, students, good Jews from the Diaspora, all heeded the call of the Electronic Hasbara Force to engage in public diplomacy and have been serving ever since in virtual Iron Dome batteries and the trenches of the social networks. They’re busy intercepting every Palestinian calumny and launching missiles with warheads full of facts and crushing arguments for Israel’s rightness and its army’s moral superiority."

    "Israel still has the somewhat limited support of the U.S. administration and European Union, but this is not due to the PR efforts, only geopolitical interests...Reporters and editors around the world are swamped with material from both sides; they pick and choose to create a narrative that fits their preconceptions."

    "Neglecting the info-wars or deserting the Internet is not an option for Israel but it has to acknowledge its limitations. Hasbara can achieve at most a tie. The electronic stalemate between Israel and Hamas has created also an equivalent perception of either side..."

    "A quick Google search reveals the unwelcome news that in fact, Israel is not winning on Facebook or Twitter. The supporters of the Palestinians are fighting back, there are many of them and we are not convincing them."

    ReplyDelete
  2. Steve2:52 PM

    The General's Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine
    http://www.amazon.com/The-Generals-Son-Journey-Palestine/dp/193598215X

    speech parts 1-3
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCqHcNaw8uU
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcWRWIksY7M
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V65P68mB2mQ

    ReplyDelete

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