Tom Friedman's Sunday column despairing about Israel's future and condemning the "powerful Israel lobby" for holding Obama "hostage" to Israel's rightwing government continues to resonate.
One friend says it is the Walter Cronkite moment of the American presence in this conflict: In February 1968 Cronkite, having reported on the Tet offensive in Vietnam, declared that we were "mired in stalemate," signalling a huge shift in public opinion. A month later President Lyndon Johnson, elected by landslide four years before, declined to run for reelection. (h/t Ilene and Gerry)
Just look at the readers' comments on Friedman's column. Tom in Chicago looks to have the greatest approval, 789 people recommending a comment that could have appeared on our website:
Israel is no friend to the United States. It is our unqualified support of them that has garnered nothing but justifiable hatred and disgust from a very large chunk of the world's population. It exposes our double-standards toward freedom and justice and makes hypocrites of us all. I'm sick of having my hard-earned tax dollars be sent to Israel so they can slaughter children and steal land that everyone, including the US government, agrees isn't theirs.
Steve Walt feels vindicated, and he should.
I said when he and Mearsheimer published their paper in '06 that it was "high noon" for the lobby. I was just off by 5 years. Netanyahu's 29 standing ovations in Congress have sickened even Israel's supporters.
What has changed in the past few years is that the lobby's operations and its harmful influence are now out in the open for all to see, which makes it almost impossible to make the old arguments that Israel is a "vital strategic asset" or a country that "shares our values" with a straight face, or to convince anyone who's not already in agreement. Not after more than forty years of occupation, not after 9/11, not after the 2006 Lebanon War, not after Operation Cast Lead, not after the killings on the Mavi Marmara, and not after PM Netanyahu's repeated acts of contempt toward the U.S. president.
....The elephant has been in the room for a long time, but now it has the spotlights on it and it's wearing a pink bikini too. It's hard to miss, in short, which is surely why Tom Friedman wrote what he did.
A few more readers comments from the Times.
Jon Jost, Seoul:
Israel is the off-spring of Europe (and America's) historical anti-Semitism, which culminated in Germany's "final solution" to which many Europeans happily assisted. Following WW2 by imperial mandate a chunk of "the Holy Land" was expropriated to provide a homeland-- for Europe's guilt conscience. It has been festering ever since, and until the world faces up to this truth, there won't be a solution. More likely it will provide the trigger for a nuclear Armageddon -
Kurt Lambert, Sao Paolo:
As Bismarck used to say: May god protect me from my friends - I am perfectly capable of dealing with my enemies all by myself
Ken from Long Island:
Glad to see that at least someone is standing up for the truth. This week Ed Koch, our sainted mayor, who turned his back while every department under his administration robbed the city blind, strut like a peacock when he crossed party lines to back the Republican who "supports Israel."
Tom is NO Walter Cronkite… Tom is a stenographer… an opportunistic stenographer.
“Tom is NO Walter Cronkite… Tom is a stenographer… an opportunistic stenographer.”
That’s what makes the statement so significant. If the opportunistic stenographers are starting to say these things, change is in the air.
i agree with you mooser. what was cronkite? what took him so long. you and me were on to vietnam by 54 or so
phil, 54? don’t you mean ’64? in ’54 we were busy licking our wounds from the korean war.
no i was with the french at dien bien phu!!
I rode a tank
Held a general’s rank
When the blitzkrieg raged
And the bodies stank
in walts article and response to the news of the friedman article it seems walt didn’t really acknowledge it as a turning point.. i agree with mooser and phil that it is.. a commentator at walts had this to say, to which i agree.
“LOBEWIPER
2:27 PM ET
September 19, 2011
The Friedman article
is quite important, because Friedman has for many years been a knee-jerk supporter of militant Zionism, and has wide readership among many influential supporters of Israel (both Jewish and gentile). His article is an important signal to the Israeli government that their policy vis a vis the Palestinians is bankrupt in the eyes of its once stalwart backers, and acknowledges the very destructive role of AIPAC and its sympathizers upon US middle eastern policy. So, I diagree respectfully with Prof. Walt that his article is a ho-hum piece. It marks the onset (finally) of free and open discussion of our Israel policy without fear of the anti-Semitism smear.”
We all knew Walter Cronkite and Tom Friedmann is no Walter Cronkite.
“In February 1968 Cronkite, having reported on the Tet offensive in Vietnam, declared that we were “mired in stalemate,” signalling a huge shift in public opinion”
Friedman has never ever had a “Tet offensive” moment. Where have you ever read Friedman describe in detail Israeli crimes against Palestinians?
Friedmann has done many things to shield Israel’s illegal activities for decades. Cronkites news program often showed the American public what was really going on in Vietnam.
Freidman has more recently seen the writing on the wall. Jumping on the let’s try to be fair bandwagon.
We all knew Walter Cronkite and Tom Friedman is no Walter Cronkite.
But the comments in response to his article could be here at Mondoweiss
Crone you were making your comment at 9:29. I came on at 9:30. Same wave length your statement far more articulate.
Remember watching Walter as a teenager. The gruesome clips of Vietnam his face told the story as he would report about atrocities and the reality on the ground. Started standing out in front of Wright Patterson Air Force base protesting the Vietnam War with my dear cousin Barb Roberts (who worked for American Friends in Dayton Ohio for 30 years) Our MIT and Amherst educated engineer uncles and many of our other Catholic relatives would be driving into their jobs on the base. Real divides in our family at that point. Later of course found out uncles etc had not supported the US activities in Vietnam.
Tet offensive Part 2
link to youtube.com
link to youtube.com
link to youtube.com
Walter Cronkite was involved with Nuclear non proliferation issues in his later years
link to aboutliberalpolitics.com
Walter Cronkite to Speak for Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation is pleased to announce it will host a panel discussion entitled “Reviving Disarmament in the Nonproliferation Regime” on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 at the United Nations in New York. This important panel discussion will identify current nuclear proliferation threats and offer recommendations to strengthen the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), during the treaty’s Seventh Review Conference, which is taking place at the UN from May 2-27, 2005.
Eminent journalist Walter Cronkite will deliver the opening remarks. Panelists include: Dr. Daniel Ellsberg, Independent International Security Analyst; Hon. Marian Hobbs, New Zealand Minister for Disarmament; Dr. David Krieger, President of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation; and Hon. Douglas Roche, former Canadian Mini
Death of Walter Cronkite
link to obama-mamas.com
link to npolicy.org
From a military point of view, the Tet offensive was a disaster for the VC. However, from a political point of view, it was a major success. People all over the world saw through the American boasts of success and realised that the war was far from over.
My father said at at the time “The Americans told us they were winning, and now their embassy is under seige.”
The recent Taliban attack in Kabul carries a similar message.
I appreciate the vitriol in that last comment for Koch. Earlier this year, a major bridge in NYC was renamed in his honor. A very clubby move that had no popular support, but who cares about that sort of thing.
‘Get used to saying the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge…or not. NY1 reports that the City Council voted 38-12 to rename the bridge. Mayor Bloomberg wrote on Twitter, “The Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge: a fitting tribute to a mayor who brought #NYC back from the brink. All new signs will be covered by private $”‘
link to gothamist.com
Mayor Koch hated unions, but only when surrounded by police would he curse at strikers to give the media a show. Inside of every bully is a coward.
Walt “The elephant has been in the room for a long time, but now it has the spotlights on it and it’s wearing a pink bikini too. It’s hard to miss, in short, which is surely why Tom Friedman wrote what he did. ”
“It’s hard to miss” and Walt and Meirsheimers paper and book have been huge in opening up people’s eyes and ears even wider. As Walt points out Friedman is an opportunist in many ways like so many.
Former President Jimmy Carter, Prof Norman Finkelstein and others who were out on the front lines decades a go have demonstrated real courage over and over again…not Tom Friedman. He jumps on when it is more acceptable. But as always is the case better late than never
I think part of this is Tom Friedman trying to prove his “centrist” bona fides – with that column he can say, “hey, im willing to criticize Israel.” Just like Dersh claims (just before defending torture and occupation) – but, like I said the other day to the original post on Friedman, the Lobby has done its job and therefore can be mentioned now. You didnt see Friedman talking about the Lobby before congress put forth bills to allow Israel to annex most of the West Bank.
I think what you are seeing in comment sections is the anger and embarrassment Americans feel toward this totally one sided policy. Friedman is just trying to get out in front of it.
I think it’s hilarious that now as that his opinions are being thoroughly discredited, now, Friedman is willing to acknowledge the lobby may play a part in our ME policy.
What a tool
.
Why would anyone read the Times for opinions on the Middle East anyway, when they can read Walt in FP? What kind of chump would want to read a carefully manipulated story in the Times about I/P when there is Mondoweiss out there? They’re all becoming irrelevant as far as I can tell.
i agree with you iamuglow… i have felt this way for a very long time… why bother with the mainstream where news is manipulated regularly when we can read it much more direct at places such as here or walt at fp among other places?
I see, and news/commentary here is not slanted/biased?
#4) Everybody sucks.
“Friedman is just trying to get out in front of it.”
No way for him to get out in front of it. He is somewhat jumping on the justice bus way late in the game. Again…better late than never. Another crack in the wall
A great post by Walt. It isn’t just about Bibi or Cast Lead. It’s also the failure of the war on terror and the massive cost that wild goose chase imposed on the US.
It is noteworthy that Israel’s moment of isolation comes very close to the 10th anniversary of 9/11
That terrorism meme served Israel very well for 10 years and hid its structural weaknesses but all good things must come to an end, sometimes shudderingly.
Walt makes a good point about Christian Evangelicals being used to cover and protect the insider D.C. lobby. They were always useful idiots to say the least.
Pandora’s box is slowly opening for the greater public. What’s sad is that Israel foreign policy objective’s only seek to befriend other nations through coercion. Talk about burning all your bridges. What’s next for them?
Friedman’s is a harsh criticism of Netanyahu’s policies and delusions, and not a fundamental disassociation from Israel, or from support for US advocacy for Israel.
Friedman nailed it. You haven’t yet.
the last year or so. He has seen the writing on the wall. Total opportunist
You haven’t yet.
helpful criticism? I wonder…
Fundamental disassociation with Israel is a given.
You two belong together. You put the blame on Netanyahu rather than on Zionism from day one. You think he’s the elephant in the pink bikini.
Friedman is smart enough to see what’s coming down the road. At some point he will jump ship, the opportunist that he is. Not to discredit W&M fine work, but I think some credit should be given to Paul Findley’s book written in 1985, “They Dare to Speak Out”, which helped expose the lobby’s influence. These are interesting times, indeed.
I wonder how much the financial crisis and the associated revelations of the incompetence that goes right to the top of the US financial elite is now playing against Israel. AIPAC had a free ride when the money was flowing.
That’s the general position of the soft-core Zionist. Cut and run, and say to the crowds, ‘I knew it wasn’t going to work’. It’s a primitive survival technique. Israel and his Jewish connections gave Tom a great life and career, so naturally he had/has to work to support the Tribal agenda.
Paul Findley demonstrated real courage. Out in front along with Norman Finkelstein, Edward Said, former President Jimmy Carter etc etc.
These people spoke out early. Those are the truly courageous folks
The main point here, as I see it, isn’t Friedman’s motives or character, but his position. And pro-Israel NYT columnist Friedman is as mainstream as it can get in the US. The fact that he was the one who said what he said where he said it (puh!), signals a turning point.
what choice do they have?
Hi Kathleen.
You mean the Friedmans of the world? Well, I guess it was just a question of time before they had to admit the obvious. A pity they didn’t do that five, or fifteen years ago. Valuable time has been lost on these manipulative tactics.
But when you witness the craziness and distortions of issues among rightwing nuts in US politics and media today, one could perhaps argue that there is always a choice between reality-based opinions and extraterrestrial views – and perhaps just be grateful that Friedman chose to return to Planet Earth.
As I always repeat better late than never. But refuse to equate some who are stepping out now with those who came out long before an issue was becoming far more acceptable to talk about, push the facts etc or even popular to embrace. Of course Friedman getting closer to the facts on the ground in the New York Times is a good thing. More chinks in the walls of silence or very biased reporting. But refuse to attempt to canonize or paint these individuals as some type of trusted heroes, or saints the way Weiss keeps trying to do.
No saint or hero in my eyes – nor, I think, in Phil Weiss’ eyes: just one of those “opportunistic stenographers”, like Cronkite himself (see Mooser/Weiss above on this thread).
Will the abandonment of Israeli colonialism serve as a wake up call for all the Americans who are shafted via the other abuses carried out by the US elites?
I love this Christ Hedges piece that ties in so well with Bibi’s 29 ovations .
link to robinlea.com
” Life is not only about us. We can never have justice until our neighbor has justice. And we can never recover our freedom until we are willing to sacrifice our comfort for open rebellion. The president has failed us. The Congress has failed us. The courts have failed us. The press has failed us. The universities have failed us. Our process of electoral democracy has failed us. There are no structures or institutions left that have not been contaminated or destroyed by corporations. And this means it is up to us. Civil disobedience, which will entail hardship and suffering, which will be long and difficult, which at its core means self-sacrifice, is the only mechanism left.
The bankers and hedge fund managers, the corporate and governmental elites, are the modern version of the misguided Israelites who prostrated themselves before the golden calf. The sparkle of wealth glitters before them, spurring them faster and faster on the treadmill towards destruction. And they seek to make us worship at their altar. As long as greed inspires us, greed keeps us complicit and silent. But once we defy the religion of unfettered capitalism, once we demand that a society serve the needs of citizens and the ecosystem that sustains life, rather than the needs of the marketplace, once we learn to speak with a new humility and live with a new simplicity, once we love our neighbor as ourself, we break our chains and make hope visible”
789 people recommending a comment that could have appeared on our website
this is why some people work so hard to demonize this website. they don’t want other people thinking it is normal to think the way we do.
Huff Po totally allowing Mondoweiss links during discussions now. A few negative reactions…but hey.
that’s good news. it is admirable how you keep up on so much msm kathleen.
What difference did Walter Cronkite make to the Vietnam war in 1964 ? They were still fighting 11 years later. Way to go, Walter.
One little FYI about Cronkite. It was by someone pointing out that he was a big booster for the war early on. The piece was him riding along with a B-52 crew on their bombing mission, and you could see his exhilaration (as I would have felt) over kick-@ss US technology without a lot of contemplation over the details of high-explosives delivered from a high altitude weapons platform. But as pointed out, change for the better is always welcome.
As a window into the mindset at the time, take a look at this –
[on draft-age men who evaded military service during the Vietnam war] I hate them! I absolutely hate them! Whether right or wrong, their country was at war and their country asked them to serve, and they refused and ran away. Cowards, that’s what they were. ~ Jimmy Stewart
What’s that make Dick “Other Priorities” Cheney?
At the risk of arguing against a dead American legend — what a load of crap.
Their “country” didn’t “ask” them to serve. Politicians required them, under threat of imprisonment, to be shipped off to a foreign land to fight a war which the politicians wanted to have fought (but not so much that they wouldn’t set it up so THEIR OWN children wouldn’t have to go die in some third-world rice field.) It doesn’t take bravery to go fight an insane war. Quite the opposite.
I agree. That quote surprised me because of the nice guy Jimmy Stewart personna, but even in light of his own military career (far less ambiguous conflict), it seems quite caustic and deluded.
“Mr. Smith Goes to Washington – the Vietnam Years” might have been a voice decrying the mass killing of foreigners in a bloody game of real politik.
those who evaded the vietnam war because they opposed it were/are patriots*, not cowards –
*as per samuel clemens, “the true patriotism is loyalty to the nation all the time, loyalty to the government when it deserves it”
What a disappointment! I saw the words “pink bikini” and clicked on them straight away. Now I find the story is about Friedman and an elephant is wearing the bikini.
>> What a disappointment!
What do you have against elephants in pink bikinis?
On second thought, don’t go there. :-)
As far as I am concerned, any elephant who chooses to wear a pink bikini in the privacy of its own home may do so.
But I would object, on aesthetic grounds, to it wandering around in public in that attire.
Witty:
Friedman’s is a harsh criticism of Netanyahu’s policies and delusions, and not a fundamental disassociation from Israel, or from support for US advocacy for Israel.
Friedman nailed it. You haven’t yet.
Me:
I would not be so sanguine about Israel. After all, if you read readers’ comment in venues like Jerusalem Post or Ynet.com, he is widely reviled as spineless pussyfooter who does not stand as tall against contumely Muslim as he should. If you do not like what is happening between Netanyahu and lobby useful idiots in USA, either you can look away, or your disenchantment will grow more fundamental.
There is just no stable point in the middle.