Posted on 11/12/2004 1:26:33 AM PST by Stoat
Bin laden's inspiration
Yasser Arafat was the godfather of international terrorism who dashed his people's hope for statehood, stole billions of dollars intended for the relief of their suffering, and indoctrinated their children with so much hatred that they willingly turned themselves into human bombs.
He did manage to leapfrog the Palestinian cause over equally or more deserving causes – such as Tibetan freedom, Kurdish independence, and Basque statehood – by wielding three immoral weapons: first, international terrorism on a scale previously unknown to the world; second, an alliance with oil-rich states willing to extort support for his cause by energy blackmail; and third, exploitation of international anti-Semitism against the Jewish state.
Arafat was personally responsible for the murders of thousands of innocent Israelis, hundreds of innocent Americans, and countless others. Like other ethnically motivated butchers before him, he delighted in killing Jewish children, as he did in several well-planned attacks on Israeli schools and nurseries. He also personally ordered the murder of hundreds of his own people who disagreed with him or collaborated with Israel. Never a man to tolerate dissent, he employed bullets rather than arguments to respond to his critics.
Arafat was the inspiration for Osama bin Laden, because he proved to his eager student that terrorism works and that terrorists can be praised and rewarded by a craven world, as Arafat was by so many for so long.
Arafat was not one of those leaders who could, a la Nelson Mandela, make the transition from terrorist to peacemaker. He never learned how to take "yes" for an answer and he never missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity.
According to former president Bill Clinton and his chief adviser, Dennis Ross, Arafat was personally responsible for the failure of Camp David and Taba to produce statehood for the Palestinians in 2000-2001. Instead of now celebrating their third anniversary of statehood, the Palestinians have suffered thousands of casualties and years of self-inflicted pain, while inflicting death and suffering on the Israelis as well.
Arafat's legacy is one of bloodshed and war, yet tears are being shed over his peaceful passing, not only by Palestinians but by many Europeans as well. Had Arafat accepted the offer of statehood, his body could have been buried in the part of Jerusalem that would have been the capital of the Palestinian state instead of in the rubble of Ramallah.
The world made a terrible mistake by not treating Arafat as a criminal.
He should have been indicted for ordering the murder of American diplomats, Israeli athletes, and international travelers instead of being praised for his "courage." It takes no courage to kill the helpless and much courage to risk one's own life in pursuit of peace. It was such courage that Arafat lacked.
The Nobel Peace Prize was cheapened by being awarded to this hater of peace. The Vatican was tarnished by its frequent welcoming of a man who violated every teaching of the Church. The United Nations was trivialized by its lionization of this coward. And terrorism was encouraged by the rewards Arafat received for his murders.
In the end, Arafat was a lucky man, lucky because his perceived enemy was the Jewish state. Had his enemy been a Christian or Muslim or communist state, he would never have received a pass for his mass murder. He understood the world's lingering anti-Semitism better than most, and he exploited it for all it was worth. Those grandchildren of Europeans who supported or welcomed Hitler and who willingly allowed their lingering bigotry to be exploited were complicit in his evil.
Eventually, the Palestinians will have their state, when they finally reject the legacy of their failed leader Yasser Arafat. When Palestinian statehood is declared, Arafat will posthumously receive much of the credit. He will not deserve it. A more farsighted leader would have done more for his people, less for his own pocketbook, and better for the world than did Hitler's failed successor and bin Laden's successful predecessor – Yasser Arafat.
Excellent post.
Bump for Later Reading.
This is by far the best summary of Arafat's miserable life I have read to date. Thanks for posting this article.
Yet, as I watch BBC and hear the praise flow for this murderer, the "conventional wisdom" expressed by the Arab and European "intellectuals" is that the moment has passed for Israel because no leader in Palistine or the Arab world can lead toward peace as did Arafat. Noone has the legitimacy of this terrorist.
the BBC is setting up the expectation that the only road to peace in the Middle East is one which has one Palistine from sea to river. Now they use Arafat's death as an excuse to continue their single minded campaign to exterminate Israel. Europe has moved closer to their position. Sick.
USA and Israel against the world.
And don't forget we Canadians. Even if our government may not show it, the people of Canada have no tolerance for butchers posing as doctors.
No one should care what Dershowitz has to say.
bttt
I hadn't heard this before, but I'm wondering if you might think that these points might be worthy of consideration:
1. Anti-Israeli sentiment, (or at least pro-Palestinian sentiment) has been quite popular among American Jews, something that I've always had trouble understanding and rationalizing. However, in the past several decades the Republican party as well as a very large segment of the Christian community has made a particular effort to reach out to Jews and not merely take them for granted as the Democrats have for generations. The Republican/Christian outreach has included a strong and vocal support for the state of Israel.
Particularly during this last election, polling data that I've seen suggests that many Jews are reacting much more favorably to the Republican message, and voted for George Bush this time in much larger numbers than in times past. I am wondering if it's possible that Mr. Dershowitz is changing his opinion on the matter of Israel, as it seems many other Jews are doing as well? If so, would it not be appropriate to welcome Mr. Dershowitz to the correct side of the aisle?
2. I am not seeing anything of an anti-Israel nature in this current article from Mr. Dershowitz, in fact quite the contrary:
"Arafat was personally responsible for the murders of thousands of innocent Israelis, hundreds of innocent Americans, and countless others. Like other ethnically motivated butchers before him, he delighted in killing Jewish children, as he did in several well-planned attacks on Israeli schools and nurseries. He also personally ordered the murder of hundreds of his own people who disagreed with him or collaborated with Israel. Never a man to tolerate dissent, he employed bullets rather than arguments to respond to his critics. "
These do not sound to me like the words of someone who is anti-Israel. He is solidly endorsing the right of existence for the state of Israel, and similarly criticising the tactics and goals of the Palestinians. Would it not be appropriate to regard this article as a firm and solid endorsement of the state of Israel? I see nothing in this article to contradict this assumption.
The numbers I saw (24%) don't look very significant to me, considering that Kerry would have gladly watch Israel languish and die.
Alan Dershowitz - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Included in that bio is this statement:
"He is known for his work as a defense attorney in high-profile cases, as well as his staunch support for the State of Israel."
Furthermore, among his recent writings is "The Case for Israel"
The Case for Israel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Quote: "The time has come for a proactive defense of Israel to be offered in the court of public opinion. In this book, I offer such a defense -- not of every Israeli policy or action, but of its basic right to exist, to protect its citizens from terrorism, and to defend its borders from hostile enemies."
As I stated in my first post to this thread, I definitely take issue with many of his social and political stands in times past, including his perspective on the 2000 election:
Amazon.com Books Supreme Injustice How the High Court Hijacked Election 2000
but I must confess that on the matter of Israel I am having trouble finding evidence of anything other than strong support from him. Here is another Dershowitz quote that Conservatives will appreciate:
"[Those] who are trying to read the Second Amendment out of the Constitution by claiming it's not an individual right [are] courting disaster by encouraging others to use the same means to eliminate portions of the Constitution they don't like." — Alan Dershowitz
All in all, with Professor Dershowitz we have a brilliant and complex man whom I will disagree with on occasion but not on all issues.
When Israel needs him, he's not there. It's plain crazy for a Jew to finance and vote for an anti-Israel candidate. Dershowitz cares more about what the liberals think about him, hanging with the right crowd, than he cares about Israel. NOKD. Can't be rubbing elbows with the Baptists who are trying to pull the Israel's bacon out of the fire...
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