Ira Glunts writes:
Eric Lynn joins the list of Jewish-Americans with a special attachment to Israel who are currently serving in the Obama administration in positions in which their Israel connections appear to present a serious conflict of interest. Ben Smith at Politico reports that Lynn is now working at the State Department as Director of Special Envoy Affairs. In this position, he will serve as a liaison between the White House and the State Department diplomats Dennis Ross, Richard Holbrooke and George Mitchell. All three have portfolios in which Israeli interests are a major consideration.
Eric Lynn was candidate Obama’s liaison to the Jewish community. He has been credited with helping Obama garner wide support among Jewish voters despite a well-funded and organized opposition by some far right-wing Jewish groups during both the Democratic primaries and general election. Lynn began his career as a summer intern with AIPAC and, according to Ha’aretz, subsequently spent a year studying and working in Israel. Lynn was an aide to former Rep. Peter Deutsch who is particularly close to Dennis Ross, according to Politico’s Smith. During the presidential campaign, Lynn created a Hebrew/English language blog for his candidate. The blog did not attract many visitors, but the news coverage received following its launch did disseminate the message that Obama will pay special attention to what Israelis think.
Recent Israeli governments have supported policies toward Iran and the Palestinians which are directly at odds with American interests. Dennis Ross is the poster boy for the dangerous influence of Israel on U.S. policy. Richard Holbrooke has joined the campaign to demonize Iran and supports a confrontational American policy toward that nation. George Mitchell, who is the hope of those who long for justice for the Palestinian people, is in constant (and well publicized) contact with the “organized” Jewish community. To what degree are Obama and Mitchell worried about the political damage that these folks could cause?
It is neither anti-Semitic nor “self-hating” (in my case) to point out that the Israelis have become a belligerent nation which is an oppressor of Palestinians and a nuclear-armed military threat to Iran. When the new administration by its appointments indicates that it will support the “special relationship” between Israel and the U.S. and will help promote Israeli oppression and threats, it is important that we note this.
I cannot prove that Lynn is as committed to the Israeli agenda as Dennis Ross. However, one more appointment of a Jewish-American with roots in pro-Israel politics in deeply troubling.
"The State Department is infested with communists. I have here in my hand a list of 205—a list of names that were made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping policy in the State Department."
- Sen. Joseph McCarthy, Wheeling, Va. February 9, 1950
Perhaps, Phil, you can just pull out a piece of paper from your pocket and wing it!
Thank you Ira, but boy, these reports do raise the blood pressure.
It is really hard to share Phil's optimism that things are getting better. It would be just as easy to make the case that they're getting worse, both in terms of the lobby's grip on our political system, and in terms of the grassroots Jewish community's continued attachment to that lobby. The spectacle of Gaza awoke some sleeping consciences it's true, but that's not saying very much given what actually transpired. I think a fair assessment is that the community as a whole was quite happy with what Israel did.
And remember we haven't even seen organized Zionism's response to its challenges yet. There's plenty they can do.
"There's plenty they can do."
Like this.
Weiss isn't PRETENDING there are Zionist-American subversives pursuing the Zionist agenda from within and without the US government; he is actually DOCUMENTING it — which is what drives Jewish Zionists so crazy. And probably for one of two reasons: either they seek to keep operatives, operations and their agenda a secret, or they can't stand to have a mirror held up to themselves because they can't stand the image of their own treachery.
Jewish subversives in the West have often (accurately) been compared to closeted or self-denying homosexuals. Weiss is probably actually doing you a favor by outing your ilk, JES. That way you can come to terms with what you are and openly admit it to the world instead of sneaking around and conspiring to overthrow the moral status-quo — which inevitably results in suspicion, hatred, and vicious blowback.
And in the case of the Jewish Zionists, because the subversion has geopolitical and life and death implications for all involved, the blowback will be all the worse.
Just admit what you are JES. You'll feel much better about yourself.
"It is neither anti-Semitic nor “self-hating” (in my case) to point out that the Israelis have become a belligerent nation which is an oppressor of Palestinians and a nuclear-armed military threat to Iran."
But it would still be a lie. Israel is not a military threat to Iran UNLESS Iran develops nuclear weapons and aims them at Israel. Israel has never threatened to wipe the Iranian regime off the face of the earth.
No, its just actively pursued an agenda to wipe the Palestinians off the face of the West Bank.
And not a peep from the so-called progressive blogs on how our foreign policy is being manipulated.
Hillary certainly seems to be delivering!
Plus, look at what's happening at Firedoglake and Daily Kos — [and some other website that claim be progressive -- ha!] — clambering to support Harman's defense that this is all a 'political attack' — refusing to discuss the fact there's a massive AIPAC spy case coming to it's conclusion — that was probably intentional screwed up from the beginning by not going after AIPAC itself. Nothing is being said about investigating what was on the tapes, and who she might have been speaking to!
Again, I'm not surprised — but this certainly leaves a bad taste in my mouth… Where are all these people going to be when Obama and Hillary start wanting military action against Iran?
Also, J-Street is not going to stop the conflict of interest infiltrating the party — For example, I looked at 'one' of their candidates last election — a blind rabbi Shulman vs. Republican Garret… Great! — looks progressive enough on social issues, but still on Israel he comes off as a 'raving' Israel-Firster — Do you think a guy like this would be even-handed with I-P issues? Or, god forbid let the US use financial tools to pressure Israel to do what is legally right? No chance. And what about Iran? — God it just doesn't stop. To me, I'm beginning to feel the same way about these possessed Israel-Firsters as I do about the anti-choice Democrats worming their way into the party — But this time the focus is to get into politics to make damn sure Israel is protected against losing its money, it's vice-grip in the ME, and that the Arabs get nothing.
"…Israel and foreign aid
When the subject turned to Israel, the two candidates began in agreement.
“My feelings as a Jew are extremely intense,” said the Democrat.
Garrett said he felt “affinity toward Israel as a Christian.”
But the mood soon turned confrontational when Shulman criticized Garrett for joining House Republicans’ attempts to reduce the foreign aid appropriations bill in 2007.
“If his vote were in the majority — which it wasn’t — it would have immediately reduced the budget of Israel by five to seven percent. People who watched these things very carefully were very troubled by that vote,” said Shulman.
Responding indirectly, Garrett asked Shulman, “If you are such a strong supporter of Israel, why is it you would allow negotiations to go on with terrorist organizations such as Hamas without any preconditions to them? Why would you be willing to have negotiations with the leadership of Iran?”
Shulman denied making such a statement.
[ME: Note, he doesn't say where he stands either!]
(A day after the debate, the Shulman campaign e-mailed NJ Jewish News a copy of a June 2006 letter signed by Garrett and 11 other Republican House members applauding President Bush for “recent moves toward a possible dialogue with Iran” without allowing “a disagreement over preconditions to scuttle negotiations.”)
link to njjewishnews.com
ACTBLUE also had him on their page. He certainly knows how to bring in the $$$:
link to actblue.com
This is all very depressing. Progressive bloggers protecting AIPAC.
Also, your site keeps crashing on me — saying it's not responding? It doesn't seem to happen to other sites — just yours.
I've done a virus scan, deleted cookies, deleted the cache etc… but still having problems… If someone else tech savvy knows what may be the problem — I would be grateful for any suggestions — thanks.
Communists witch hunt = Zionist witch hunt?
Where? The analogy is false and very dishonest (I would expect nothing less from a Zionist goon).
The Red Scare and the communist witch hunting during the Cold War era is similar to the Stalinist tactics of the Jewish Establishment today in response to anti-Zionist activism or simply a just peace settlement to the I-P conflict.
Anti-ethnic cleansing and anti-apartheid = antisemitism.
In the mainstream media we only hear Israel's side of the story (virtually) and there are several circles on has to jump through to make it to that mainstream platform to speak.
Renounce terror
Agree to the following:
-Israel has a right to defend itself
-Hamas is a terror group
-Fatah is moderate and Abbas is moderate and Egypt and Jordan are moderate
-Israel is protecting it's citizens
-There is no apartheid. There is no Jewish racism or supremacy towards Arabs.
-There was no ethnic cleansing in 1948.
-There is no Arab partner for peace.
-Criticizing Israel is like criticizing Jews and Jewishness and Judaism.
-Iran is an existential threat to the world – not just Jews and Israel and the US.
-Iran is Nazi Germany. Ahmedinjad is Hitler.
Etc. etc. etc.
The notion that there is a Zionist witch hunt in the mainstream is bullshit.
It's the opposite. It's the Hitler/Nazi/Holocaust/Antisemitism card that is used against anyone who speaks out against Zionism and Israel or against the US and it's imperialist wars.
LOL@"Jewish liberalism"
Sand, my browser (IE7) is also having great troubles with this site since the new message system went up, with frequent lockups. Anyone else experiencing problems?
(Thanks for your report on Shulman.)
Me three. It seems to lock up when clicking on the "comments" if the main page is still loading. Try hitting "stop" if the main page is taking a long time to load before clicking on "comments." (LOL. I can't understand why why hasbara operatives would want to techno-sabatoge the comments section. How is Berel supposed to get the good word out?)
Yes, same here, with IE8. It will crash on this site and this site only. Firefox doesn't crash, but sometimes won't load comments correctly.
Thanks for the suggestion — but nope it completely locks up on me… Well, glad the little green men in 'my' pc aren't playing up…
Benny Morris's op ed in New York Times: "Using Bombs to Stave off War"
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/18/opinion/18morris.html
Has this as it's first paragraph:
"ISRAEL will almost surely attack Iran’s nuclear sites in the next four to seven months — and the leaders in Washington and even Tehran should hope that the attack will be successful enough to cause at least a significant delay in the Iranian production schedule, if not complete destruction, of that country’s nuclear program. Because if the attack fails, the Middle East will almost certainly face a nuclear war — either through a subsequent pre-emptive Israeli nuclear strike or a nuclear exchange shortly after Iran gets the bomb."
I'm having troubles lately as well with site freezing and comments not displaying – this happens with Chrome browser as well. Phil may be having too many hits and not enough bandwidth?
I can't get the comment on a couple of the article threads, using Safari 3.2.1
BTW, the "red witch hunt" actually did turn up a lot of people in influential slots with real conflicts of interest
The WASP arabists have long been replaced by the zionists and anyone who points them out is put on a powerful shit list.
No LD (and Ed), because Phil has not proven any of these positions in relation to Eric Lynn.
Yes Eva. And Morris said that in the New York Times nearly a year ago. So, I tend to think that that says something significant about Morris' prognostication skills!
And then yesterday this from Avigdor Lieberman:
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1081170.html
The Internet has a shit filter, eva. You and phil have posted too much shit.
As I told Eva, there is a shit filter. you and phil have posted too much shit.
"And in the case of the Jewish Zionists, because the subversion has geopolitical and life and death implications for all involved, the blowback will be all the worse."
Uh Ed, what did you have in mind: mass arrests, revocation of citizenship, deportations, concentration camps?
LD, I didn't say that there was a "Zionist witch hunt in the mainstream…." Phil Weiss, Adam Horowitz and you are not "mainstream". I implied there were the seeds of a very anti-democratic witch hunt on the exreme periphery.
BTW, while all anti-Zionism cannot be attributed to anti-Semitism, would you agree that some of it can?
@ Chris Berel
"Israel has never threatened to wipe the Iranian regime off the face of the earth."
Please readers, take note of this lie. Check out what so many Israeli leaders have said. Check out PNAC's trail too. While Israel settled for Iraq first, it was only condition Iran would be next. Note too, the correct interpretation was that
the zionist regime would eventually vanish from the pages of history; in context, like the former USSR.
JES, using the word 'mainstream' is dishonest. It implies credibility. People often use mainstream sources for their superficial credibility. The name 'New York Times' evokes a sense of respect and integrity. But it's just a name. Similarly, something can be mainstream but be shallow or fraudulent or simply propaganda.
What is the mainstream anyways? If you mean what's on television or the 'mainstream' MSM in general, then sure, I agree – Phil/Adam are not 'mainstream'.
It's meaningless though. We ought to judge people on the quality of their arguments/ideas rather than whether they coincide with 'the mainstream'.
Now if you are simply making the observation that these views are not broadly accepted – and not applying any value judgment to that supposed fact, I also agree. That is an accurate observation.
I also agree that there are anti-Zionists who are anti-Semites as well.
Let me also clarify that I am not calling YOU dishonest, but the word itself in this context has to be clarified as I implied.
Hey Ira! Shalom My Brother. Can you say "fair & balanced' cabinet?, (by the way maybe it should be called a kinessit). see Barghouti interview : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1c1cWJGHJU Speaking of Poster boys, maybe there is a gene for being a right-wing Blowhard. And if so, where can I get some vaccine ( or a lobotomy) for the "dead-enders" over here ? Regards to the 'Contessa', I remain as always, a 'brother-in-arms' TBone