And you’re worried about New York Times correspondent Ethan Bronner’s son joining the IDF? Well the other New York Times correspondent, Isabel Kershner, is an Israeli married to an Israeli, Hirsh Goodman, and below is Goodman’s take on the Mavi Marmara bloodbath.
Goodman is a journalist and author, now at Tel Aviv University. Note that he seems to think that the Gaza onslaught of 08-09 was just fine. This is a measure of the degradation of the lib-left in Israeli society.
The excerpt, in which Goodman laments the fact that "materials showing the brutal attack on the Israeli commandos were withheld" by the government for several hours:
It seems that a major reason for withholding the pictures may have been the concern in the military that their disclosure would lead to demoralization in the army, not to speak of public criticism. In consequence, the military, with appropriate government approval, withheld the videos, a correct decision perhaps from the army’s perspective, but a bad one for the country’s international relations….
Both in Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, which led to the Goldstone commission, and in this incident, the need for materials that will help Israel make its case are crucial. This is no longer a question of image, but in the context of post-Goldstone realities and the concerted campaign to besmirch Israel and de-legitimize the country, it is probably as important, if not more so, than the conventional battles Israel faces. As a result of this campaign, Israel faces economic, artistic, and academic embargoes, continuous attacks in the UN, and other world forums. It undermines our allies, especially in the Arab world, where anti-Israel sentiment it at a peak, and embarrasses our friends.
It is time for those in the intelligence and security communities to switch gear when it comes to information sharing. There is a growing awareness that this is needed, but concrete action in this regard still needs to be taken. Israel has in place the necessary public diplomacy structures to make Israel’s case effectively. But without ammunition they are powerless.
