Yesterday World Public Opinion presented a poll at the Brookings Institution showing that people in 18 countries, including the U.S., don't want their governments to take sides in the Israel/Palestine struggle by 58 to 27 on average. But of those 27 percent who do want their governments to take sides, the components are: 20 percent for the Palestinians, 7 percent for the Israelis. There's more bad news for Israel in opinion on whether the Israelis and the Palestinians are or aren't doing their part to resolve the problem. 47 percent of the citizens said the Palestinians weren't doing well, 54 percent said the Israelis weren't. On the positive side, Israel scored 22 percent of people saying they were doing their part. The Palestinians bested them here, at 28 percent.
The U.S. public was more pro-Israel. Israel is doing its part well: 30 percent. Palestinians doing well: 15 percent. We should be on Israel's side: 21 percent. Palestinians' side: 3 percent. Evenhanded: 71 percent. Still, I read that as OK news for the Israel lobby... By 7 to 1 those who want us to take a side favor Israel. In the world, it's 3 to 1 against Israel.
And as to world opinion, big majorities were in favor of UN Peacekeeping forces to make a peace in Israel/Palestine, and good numbers for preserving Israel's security against Arab attacks, and vice versa.
Another poll suggests that the world's sour opinion of Israel's performance is leaking into the U.S. Today's Daily kos has the headline "The Video the Jewish Lobby Didn't Want You to See," with a link to the Dutch documentary on Walt & Mearsheimer and the Iraq war. The accompanying Kos piece is further evidence that leftwing/realist/pro-Arab views are leaking into the Democratic progressives' base. Says its author, FLS:
I'm not arguing that AIPAC was the only reason Bush invaded Iraq that would not be true, but the Israel lobby had been very influential push into this debacle. More recently you can hear the voices again of the Israel lobby pushing for military action in Iran. The question is when will the US citizenry wake up....No I am not an anti semite. Although AIPAC and it's supporters would define that as anything critical of Israeli policy.
There's a Kos poll underneath, with a question about the U.S.-Israel policy as it stands: 1, Just right, 2, All wrong, 3, Needs some fine-tuning, 4, Hopeless. An amazing 52 percent said, "All wrong." Huh.
The first title the guy used was "The video the Jewish cabal doesn't want you to see": in other words, a title that is so anti-semitic sounding it would make the average American lefty's head spin.
Then, under pressure from readers, he changed it to "Jewish lobby," claiming ignorance about the resonances of the word "cabal" in terms of anti-semitism. My only point is I wonder how someone could be so ignorant in this day and age, and whether his real intention was to wind people up, reveal the "new anti-semitism" among the left, etc.
Note that the first comment is someone complaining about the "new anti-semitism" of the left, which is alienating Jews from teh Democratic party.
The entire commentary that follows, the idioacy of it, reminds me of how silly DailyKos has become.
Why do you pose your interpretation as either or? Pro-Israel OR pro-Palestine.
Aren't you an advocate for peace?
Did you see that Dutch documentary Phil? Would that have been your standard of an effective and fully informative report?
"International Poll: Most Publics–including Americans–Oppose Taking Sides in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
July 1, 2008
Israeli, Palestinian, American and Arab Leaders All Get Low Marks On Efforts to Resolve Conflict "
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John Pilger July 2, 2008:
"From triumph to torture
Israel's treatment of an award-winning young Palestinian journalist is part of a terrible pattern"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/02/israelandthepalestinians.civilliberties
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Haw!
And if America had a press that was actually objective and not slanted on Israel you would see Israel hit a popularity score of 0 and Americans start demanding an attack on Israel.
And probably that day is coming….the net has outstriped the MSM on this and the net is where it's at concerning politics now.