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An excellent post. I also like Simon. Anyone who has ever lived in an authoritarian state knows how the good journalists have to play ball so they can continue to publish anything. Thanks to Scott Roth for showing us the price Simon paid.
"Bill" is a man of courage and integrity, with the rare quality of being able to challenge his own once deeply-held views. I look forward to Part 2. I also would like to see Bill tell his own story at some stage.
hophmi: What do you see as Beinart's "main arguments?"
Fred: Go back to Hasbara Central and warn them you are in over your head here. Shmuel, tree, and Woody have squashed your ignorant comments using only a little of the international law and Israel/Palestine history that they know. They insist on more informed debating partners.
Or are you actually merely trolling?
Hamishe_Sabz reveals one of the true faces of the pro-Israel argument -- naked racism.
A superb report by Matthew. The Times article was a joke; if I were still teaching journalism, I could use it as an example of bias.
Why were elected officials even called for their comments in the first place, (unless they belong to the coop)? Next step: start interviewing members of the New York Knicks for their views?
My dad was also in the Flying Tigers, the 14th Air Force, stationed in Kunming and Kweilin.
Both statements critical of Atzmon that Adam reproduces here are eloquent and completely persuasive.
The great MJ Rosenberg is right as usual -- this time about the silliness of "Jewish unity." Although Yonatan Shapira, the great Israeli air force pilot-turned courageous dissident, warns that the Jewish tradition for vigorous debate dies down in some quarters when Israel is the subject. "It used to be, '3 Jews, 4 opinions,' Yonatan says. "But when Israel comes up, now it is '100 Jews, 1 opinion.'"
Shmuel: Please elaborate why you don't use the word "goy." I understand it is at least mildly offensive, and I've upbraided Phil privately for using it, even in his joking way. What's more, I never hear anyone under about 70 using it, and there's no need to reintroduce it to a younger generation.
Don't forget Obelix, and the special potion to keep the village concealed from the Romans.
Pamela's presentation last night was excellent and well-attended. She was asked whether she ever felt any danger during her years in Palestine, where she identified herself as an American.
"Five times," she said. "Four times from the Israeli occupying forces. But only once from Palestinians -- from a taxi driver, who was driving like a maniac until I asked him to slow down."
A powerful requiem for Sheikh Emad. The Egyptian military/industrial ruling class, which still retains power, is coldly calculating in its use of snipers against the Tahrir Square demonstrators. The regime cannot open fire indiscriminately, because a massacre would promote an even bigger uprising. But it cannot allow the crowds to grow too large, or too noisy, even though the demonstrators are nonviolent. So they shoot 2 people here, 3 people there. Sheikh Emad, a moral giant, was one of the victims.
The United States gives the Egyptian military $1.3 billion of aid a year.
Shmuel: Hasbara Central really needs a better training course. Winnica has followed their long-familiar pattern: a new commenter shows up on Mondoweiss, full of wide-eyed, feigned innocence, followed within 48 to 72 hours by outrage at most of what they see here. Mondoweiss demands more sophisticated sparring partners!!
Avi: Thanks, as always, for your comment and for the link. I'm also optimistic, although Walid's fears expressed above are not entirely out of the question. So far, though, the old remnant regime has been behind the worst of the sectarian violence; as I wrote, it has not spontaneously arisen in either the Muslim or Christian communities.
Richard Witty said, 'Look how dimadok and I arrogantly discuss whether Lillian is "Jewish enough." Of course, I don't respond to the substance of her post. This is the height of rudeness.'
Richard Witty said, 'I continue to threadjack, instead of having "dialog" with Lillian Rosengarten.'
Richard Witty said, 'Notice how I've made a number of comments on this thread, but I have absolutely nothing at all to say in response to Lillian Rosengarten's eloquent post, even though I regularly whine that I want "dialog." Ms. Rosengarten was actually aboard one of the peace ships trying to break the blockade of Gaza, and actually witnessed Israeli violence against that moral giant, the former Israeli pilot Yonatan Shapira.
'I, Richard Witty, by contrast have not been in Israel for over 25 years, and I haven't witnessed anything.
'Lillian Rosengarten's first-hand testimony frightens my guilty conscience. That's why I divert and try to threadjack.'
Richard Witty said, 'More dishonest apologetics for Israel from me:
"I'm making another false comparison. If Mississippi state troopers had attacked one group of peaceful demonstrators, murdered 9 of them at the same time, then arrested all the others, destroyed their cameras and other evidence, and held them incommunicado for days, preventing them from talking to the eager world press, then I might have a valid comparison.'
3e: Why was Israel "in" the Sinai in 1956? Did they join an imperialist attack against Egypt with Britain and France?
Cui bono?
Richard Witty said, 'Palestinians and Arabs are not part of my understanding of "we."'
Richard Witty said, 'Donald: I'm not responding to Dan Crowther. I was objecting to this line of yours:
'I'm pointing out, as I do regularly, that although Mondoweiss may not have a military capability, the incendiary language here from "dissent" and "solidarity" is a key factor that promotes fear among Israelis, and prevents them from negotiating. Don't underestimate the power of Mondoweiss. I don't, which is why I'm here nearly 24 hours a day, ignoring my own blog for months now, countering Phil, Adam and the other threats to peace who appear here.'
Richard Witty said, 'Donald: You grossly underestimate the power of Mondoweiss. This website, which is dominated by "dissent" and "solidarity," is the single greatest factor that frightens Israelis and prevents them from negotiating with Palestinians. Why do you think I spend hours here, day and night, policing the site, and warning Phil and others that they jeopardize peace every time they make incendiary, hurtful statements like suggesting that Israeli settler/colonists are in the West Bank illegally? Why do you think I haven't had the time to post on my own Israel blog since last September? I'm standing here, with my thumb in the dike, nearing 12,000 comments, doing by far the most important thing I can.'
Richard Witty said, 'Another fake effort by me to engage in dialog (sic). I know most Mondoweiss visitors endorse BDS as a first step toward "affect[ing] a change in Israeli policy. (I should have written "effect[ing]", but I was in a hurry.)
'Now watch me squawk as I misrepresent BDS for the 11,000th time.'
Richard Witty said, 'Ouch, Donald. You noticed that I can write carefully and precisely when I have to; I am an accountant after all.
'Over the past couple of years, I've made more than 11,000 comments on Mondoweiss. I've done absolutely nothing to argue against settlement EXPANSION. So now thousands more settler/colonists have illegally gone into Occupied Palestine.
'We should just forget about them. The future is what counts.'
Richard Witty said, 'Notice how I insult MRE!
'The truth is: I, Richard Witty, am not who I say I am. I pretend to be "liberal," but I have a well-established double-standard that always defaults to Israel. I'm really no different than 3e.'
Richard Witty said, 'You won't see me within a country mile of this thread. If I had an ounce of the integrity of someone like Professor Jerry Slater, I would be over here denouncing the murder of this scientist, and the likely involvement of Israel. Instead, I'm elsewhere, continuing my usual quibbling about how the illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank deserve a hearing in a "color-blind court of law."
'This Iranian scientist never had the privilege of a trial; he was simply murdered.
'The truth is: his death doesn't upset me. I've already endorsed "attacking Iran lightly," and I go along with everything Israel wants -- while I lecture Phil Weiss and the legions of Mondoweiss readers that they have to "make the better argument."'
Richard Witty said, 'More hot air above from me. Here are facts: I've made 11,662 comments here on Mondoweiss, and I have the nerve to accuse the site of "censorship." I even used to promote my own site here regularly. I could post and comment to my heart's content over there, but I haven't put anything up since September 12, 2011. I guess no one was paying attention.
'My jealousy at the attention Phil, Adam and others get here just jumps off the page. That explains why I've grown increasingly nasty. No longer do I encourage visitors to "humanize the other."
'What's more, regular Mondoweiss visitors have noticed that I can become particularly condescending to women -- whether we are talking about annie robbins, Lillian Rosengarten, or, more recently, MRE. What's up with that?'
Richard Witty said, 'Another failed presumptuous effort by me to engage Phil in "dialog." I know he's running a website that has a worldwide and growing reach, but I expect him to drop everything and answer my silly comments.
'I'm still steaming over my failed effort to elbow my way into the Professor Jerry Slater threads.
'Meanwhile, I used to trumpet my own "liberal Zionist" blog. But I haven't found the time to post anything on my own site since last September.'
Richard Witty said, 'Another futile effort by me to provoke Professor Jerry Slater into a one-on-one dialogue. As though Professor Slater has the time to answer my silly questions.
'As a first step, I could take enough care with my posts to write them in English. After 11,000 plus comments, I still haven't learned the difference between "its" and "it's." Professor Slater surely knows that sloppy writing means sloppy thinking.
'Second, take a look at this question I pose to him:
'If I paused for half a second before I posted, I would realize that I'm grossly insulting Professor Slater. I'm suggesting that he and Phil Weiss -- established, articulate thinkers and writers -- are not as good at reading comprehension as I, Richard Witty, am.'
I think Phil is somewhat mistaken to use the analogy from Egypt. He is partly right, in that the 20 percent or so of Egyptians who are "liberals" are tending to vote for the more moderate Muslim Brothers vs. the more conservative Salafists in the second round of the parliamentary run-off elections. Egyptian liberals may not like the Brotherhood, but they are afraid of the Salafists.
What's different here is that Ron Paul is raising vital issues of war and peace that all the other candidates from both parties are ignoring. I personally do not think Israel or the United States will attack Iran, but even if the odds in favor are only, say 20 per cent, the prospect is such a calamity that Paul must continue to be heard this entire election season.
The fact that he is attracting military veterans to his cause is also promising. Once the other spineless candidates from both parties see that you can be antiwar without being labelled weak, they may start to shift.
If I do contribute to Paul's campaign, I will not do so because I agree with most of his policies, or because I want him to win. I want him to keep speaking out against an attack on Iran that would be a disaster for everyone.
I agree with Phil's analysis. Ron Paul is not going to be president. I don't want Ron Paul to be president. I do want Ron Paul to continue to raise issues no other candidate will touch.
What has particularly impressed me recently is that reports from Iowa say many military veterans turn out at Ron Paul rallies, and are among his volunteers. Our country sent these people into war zones for multiple tours and now we are forgetting about them -- or worse, considering sending them into another conflict with Iran.
At the very least, Ron Paul's campaign continues to question this evil and dangerous warmongering. I'm considering sending him a campaign contribution.
Richard Witty said, 'Another threadjacking by me.'
Waleed: Only on Mondoweiss would an articulate young multilingual person like yourself who is living under a violent siege that is a violation of international law have to reassure a prosperous (barely) unilingual American who is living far from any war zone -- who has not in fact visited Israel since 1986, but who claims to know everything about it.
Koshiro is right. Waleed, a Palestinian in Gaza, knows more about Shakespeare than the American English-speaker Richard Witty. One theory is that Shakespeare took a stock character of the time, the financially rapacious Jew, and through his genius gave him a human dimension. If the play were simply anti-Semitic it would not continue to be performed.'
Richard Witty said, 'Let's review the facts, to underscore my arrogance and insensitivity. Waleed files a post from inside blockaded Gaza, on the third anniversary of a murderous attack that killed 1400 people, including 300 children, many of whom he probably knew. Instead of reading his post and giving it a little thought, I jump in at the top of the thread and whine that he called "me" an enemy. I disrespected him so much that I didn't notice his post never used the word "Jews," and wasn't even directed at "me".
'I've never apologized for misreading and insulting him. Instead, I now accuse him, Waleed, of not "coming back to clarify."
'My callousness has never been more on display. Waleed lives in a society under siege, where Israeli drones and warplays patrol the skies. He may not even have an internet connection at home, having to go out to an internet cafe, where the connections are not as reliable as in my comfortable home up here in western Massachusetts.
'I don't care. What matters is that he, Waleed, should reassure me, Richard Witty, that he is not my enemy.'
Richad Witty said, 'I'm more concerned with getting Professor Jerry Slater to respond to my bizarre meanderings than I am to listen to Waleed's original post. Waleed gave us a view from inside Gaza -- one we do see on Mondoweiss, but we will never see in the mainstream media -- and I jumped in at the top of the thread to distort his message and to whine.'
Waleed: Thanks for your humane response to Richard Witty's insensitive foolishness. No one here at Mondoweiss takes Richard seriously. Please keep on, and keep writing and carrying the message about life in Gaza.
Thanks, Refaat, for telling the truth:
You could not be more clear.
Richard Witty said, 'Here I go, threadjacking again. Waleed al-Meadana has given us a passionate, powerful depiction of life under the violent Israeli siege, and all I can do is quibble over a single word.
'What's more, my comment is thoroughly dishonest:
'Nowhere in Waleed's post does he mention the word "Jews." Once again, I'm playing the same old game of trying to conflate "Israel" -- which blockades his homeland, and regularly invades it -- with "Jews." I'm trying to slyly suggest that Waleed's anger is motivated by old-fashioned anti-Semitism, instead of the fact that he lives with the Israeli siege and violence.'
Walid: In other words, as Mondoweiss grows and becomes more effective, the quality of the puppetmasters behind the 3e screen name improves.
3e: This statement of yours is funny:
Your profile reveals you have made 4486 comments since 1/28/10. Unless there are more than 1 of you, that doesn't sound like "occasionally."
3e: Your approach is contradictory.
a) You constantly tell us that Israel is impregnable, BDS is a total failure, that we are powerless and insignificant.
b) Yet you spend hours here, nearly every day.
Aren't you wasting your time? I don't go over to the Flat Earth Society website and try and correct them.
3e: What's more, if BDS is so ineffectual, why has Israel criminalized even speaking out for it? The superb young Israeli journalists at the outstanding website +972 are under orders to express no support for BDS.
3e: If BDS is such a failure, why do you and others spend hours, days and weeks on Mondoweiss fighting it?
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this!
'Which must mean that I respect international law, and support the right of return for Palestinians and their descendants who were victims of this "repugnant terror."'
Richard Witty said, 'I have an odd understanding of the word "boycott." Professor Jerry Slater is engaged in vigorous discussion on this thread with other Mondoweiss visitors. I insist that he also respond to my posts, even though I am characteristically barely coherent. When he doesn't, for whatever reason, I arrogantly accuse him of "boycotting" me.
'It's no wonder I don't understand the Boycott Divestment Sanctions movement.'
Richard Witty said, 'Before I expect Professor Jerry Slater to respond, I should learn how to spell "dialogue," and I should learn the difference between "its" and "it's." (I might also stop using "dialogue" as a transitive verb, although Professor Slater might be willing to overlook this, provided I at least spelled it correctly.) Otherwise, people like Professor Slater might regard me as a sloppy thinker who just posts the first thing that comes into his head.'
Elliot, as always, adds a valuable comment. For years, Hasbara treated just about all the settlers as outliers, who did not represent the real Israel. Now, there are so many settlers that no one really believes all 550,000 of them will return to Israel. So, as Elliot points out so well, Hasbara creates the category of "hilltop youth" -- a handful of wild-eyed fanatics, not like the thousands of Israelis who now live illegally in Har Homa, a complex the size of Co-op City in the Bronx.
Richard Witty said, 'My Big Lie continues. I still have not produced a quote from a Mondoweiss visitor that says, "Once Norm Finkelstein started calling Israelis human beings, I turned against him."
'I could apologize for lying. Instead, I'll continue to evade.'
Richard Witty said, 'My Big Lie continues. I stated clearly that Mondoweiss visitors had turned against our erstwhile hero Norm Finkelstein because he started "to call Israelis human beings." I should have been able to respond to Hostage's polite request, and found a quote from a visitor that said, "Now that Norm Finkelstein regards Israelis as human beings, I can no longer respect him."
'There is of course no such quote. Instead, I accuse Hostage and James North of "taking my statement out of context."
'In other words, I continue to promote the Big Lie.'
Richard Witty said, "Hostage, you caught me out. I continue to use the Big Lie technique. (Now who was it that pioneered the Big Lie?) Of course I can't find any Mondoweiss visitors who criticized Norman "for calling Israelis human beings." Of course I can't produce the quotations that you politely asked for. Instead, I'll weasel, evade, and pop up with another Big Lie on a new thread.'
Richard Witty said, 'I say that I support
'In actual fact, I support Israel's murderous invasion of Gaza, which killed 1400 people, including 300 children.'
Richard Witty said, 'You would never know from my vague words above that I support Israel's invasion of Gaza, coming up on its third anniversary, a full-scale attack that killed 1400 Palestinians, including 300 children.'
Sarah Hawas is absolutely right:
Let's remember: that $1.3 billion in aid means that the United States has tremendous influence over the Egyptian military. Where is the sustained indignation out of Washington?
An excellent evisceration by Professor Bromwich. I read Friedman's column as a feeble, half-hearted semi-apology for being wrong about the war, followed by weaselly retractions. All that was missing was his usual moving yardstick: "the next 6 months in Iraq will be decisive . . ."
MRW: Thanks for an eloquent argument for libraries. I wish my mother, a librarian, were still alive to read it.
We in the wealthier countries forget just how limited internet access is in the Global South. The technological utopians suggest that all you have to do is wire up the poor countries, and they will catch up to us in a few short years.
In fact, as you point out, only a minority of Egyptians can afford the internet. There are internet cafes, but they are not on every street corner. The connections can be slow, and the cost is insignificant for us, but a lot for an Egyptian who is trying to live on 300 Egyptian pounds ($50) a month.
As I mentioned, the Alexandria Library was filled with Egyptians, mostly university students, the afternoon I visited.
Richard Witty said, 'Citizen: You've never seen such statements from me because I support the settlement/colonies. I ignore evidence from Shmuel, Hostage and others as I insist that most settlers are innocents, unaware they are violating international law, and that their "purchases" of land in Palestine should be examined in what I fancifully call a "color-blind court."
'What's more, I quite ludicrously ask the Palestinians who lost their land to "put the past behind" them and work toward "reconciliation" in the future. (Of course, when it comes to the Holocaust, or what I comically describe as "the 2000-year history of Zionism," I'm not so willing to forget about the past.')
Richard Witty said, 'In other words, I'm "humanizing" Allison by using Bob Dylan to call her an "idiot." This is what I call "dialog."'
Richard Witty said, 'Oops, I forgot real Palestinians like Ramzi Jaber visit Mondoweiss, with eloquent first-hand testimony about what occupation really means. I, on the other hand, haven't been to Israel/Palestine since 1986, and even then only briefly.
'I'll try and ignore Ramzi Jaber. On the plus side, my offensive comment about "peaceful settlers" succeeded in one of my main aims here at Mondoweiss: drawing attention to myself. Mooser regularly points out that my jealousy of Phil Weiss and the esteem in which he is held just jumps off the page.'
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this!
'Don't you admire my breathtaking distortion: "the peaceful settler movement." !!! Hundreds of thousands of Israelis violate international law by stealing land in occupied Palestine, where they are protected by the Israeli army and police, and I call them "the peaceful settler movement." And I praise them!!
'What's that Yiddish word to describe what I'm doing here?'
Richard Witty said, 'Notice how I'm hiding on this new thread, instead of responding to repeated, polite requests for substantiation of my wild allegations on earlier threads. This is how I keep my Intellectual Ponzi Scheme going.'
Richard Witty said, 'I could have learned from Shmuel's comment, and condemned Mayor Gafsou. Instead I attacked James North. Gafsou is a lesser danger to human rights in Israel/Palestine than James North is, so I've clearly got my commenting priorties right.'
Richard Witty said, 'Wow, Shmuel. If I wanted to establish some credibility around here, I would condemn Mayor Gafsou. But even thinking about him gives me the willies, suggesting that my dream castle view of Israel is a mirage. I'll stay safely over on other threads, nitpicking, to protect my conscience from being disturbed.'
Richard Witty said, 'More incomprehensible verbiage from me, but still no citations to back up my positive view of Joan Peters.'
Richard Witty said, 'I get snippy with James North, but I still haven't provided any links to support my wild allegations about the Peters book. No matter; shortly new posts will be up and I'll jump in right away.'
Richard Witty said, 'I'm hiding over here. On the Norm Finkelstein thread, Mondoweiss visitors have asked me for links to my unsourced claims defending the Joan Peters book, (which I do admit I didn't read). Instead of responding to them, which would constitute "dialog," I come over here, and issue more of my usual pro-motherhood statements.
'I'm lucky Mondoweiss is such a busy site. Another few hours, and the Finkelstein thread will recede even further, with my claims still unsubstantiated. Meanwhile, I'll be ready late tomorrow morning, to pounce on the very latest posts.'
Richard Witty said, 'Citizen, I'm hiding over on one of the Hitchens threads. You are a real sucker if you think I will spend even one nano-second looking up your polite request for examples. I'm just counting on you to forget you even asked.'
Richard Witty said, 'I forgot to add that the "many prominent liberal journalists" that "I've corresponded with" about Mondoweiss unanimously agree that the clear, persuasive comments by one Richard Witty are the site's single redeeming feature.'
Richard Wity said, 'Hostage, you are missing the point. Although I do have a sneaking admiration for your vigorous and informed use of sources, the Jewish people are my only priority. If anyone says anything anywhere that could be twisted by someone somewhere into even a minimal threat to Israel, the original statement should not have been made.'
Richard Witty said, 'Shmuel, Hostage: Watch what I do next. I will ignore all your thoughtful, sourced explanations. Instead, I will seize on the fact that MRM's allegation about settlers signing documents is wrong, and I will use that to justify my view that all 550,000 of them have the right to stay there. I will feel vindicated, and I will accuse you two and other Mondoweiss visitors of cruelty and racism because you insist that international law must be respected.'
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this hilarious statement from me:
'The "many others" is the clincher. I'm suggesting that Mondoweiss visitors are suckers who will believe anything. Any Israeli who did not know the West Bank was disputed territory would have to be living in a cave. But I expect people to believe that "many" people told me the settlers were "duped," and what's more, I BELIEVED THESE MYSTERIOUS INFORMANTS -- instead of first-hand evidence to the contrary posted on Mondoweiss every day by Israelis, Palestinians, and ex-Israelis.
'How can anyone on Mondoweiss take me seriously after this preposterous statement? I'm not interested in the truth; I'm just interested in defending my Exodus view of Israel.'
Richard Witty said, 'Notice how I indict Israel, without realizing it.
'What I'm really saying is that there is one law for Israelis, another for Palestinians. Shmuel, Hostage and others have spent quite literally years pointing this out to me, citing law after Israeli law, chapter and verse, but I continue to ignore them.'
Richard Witty said, 'Hostage: Don't forget that Israel is so indispensable to my continued existence as a Jew that I've visited it exactly twice in my entire 55 years, for a grand total of a few weeks, most recently in 1986.'
Mooser is, as always, right.
Richard Witty said, 'Uh-oh. I should have thought twice before I challenged Hostage to a theological argument. I have heard of Maimonides, but the Three Oaths? Iggeret Teiman? I better hide out on more recent threads.'
Richard Witty said, 'Ouch, Donald. But the popularity of Mondoweiss means that the site is so busy that I can hide out on more recent threads. Relatively few people will see that you shredded my argument entirely.'
Richard Witty said, 'No can do, Donald. I'm over on other threads, making more unsubstantiated charges.'
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this!
'But a little earlier, I had stated baldly,
!!!! (Meanwhile, I accuse the Mondoweiss visitors who have read Peters and Finkelstein and who use facts to repudiate her of "passive fawning.") !!!!!!
Richard Witty said, 'Ouch, Donald. When I made my unsubstantiated attempt to defend Peters, I certainly didn't expect you would respond with a devastating quote from Porath. Of course, I won't be able to come up with any evidence to refute what he said in the two long quotations you reproduce above. I'm so out of touch that I don't realize that even hard-core hasbarists abandoned Peters decades ago.
'I'll lay low until this blows over. I have to be careful that I don't weaken the pro-Israel case even further by making more wild allegations, which then prompt calm and rational responses -- which will win over even more visitors to Mondoweiss who are genuinely curious.'
This is a great post, about a great man. I've been associated with In These Times for nearly all its 35-year history, and I remember well Norm's pathbreaking exposure of Peters back in 1985. I also enthusiastically recommend his book Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict, which includes his full essay on Peters along with his debunking of other made up stories.
Richard Witty said, 'Thank you, Jonah, for your insight. I agree entirely that most Mondoweiss visitors are afflicted with "prejudices" and "tribalism." By contrast, Israel-right-or-wrong people like you and me (and eee and a few others) are universal humanists, who see the truths these other benighted souls can't see.'
ulindsey is entirely right. Thanks for the corrections.
My favorite line in Rich Siegel's eloquent letter is this one:
Richard Witty said, 'My arrogance is breathtaking. I misuse a word that is obsolete, and then I woof at people who ask me what it means!'
Richard Witty said, 'One more example of me respecting other points of view, and simply and politely "making the better argument:"
Richard Witty explained, 'Actually, I regard myself as quite the wordsmith. "Civilist' is not one of my usual mispellings or elementary errors in English grammar. I've coined this new word, a little like my of formulation of "wholes, not holes," because I want to see if it flies. Inside this body of an accountant is the soul of a frustrated poet.'
Richard Witty said, 'Once again, I show my double standard. I'm not at all moved by hundreds of thousands of Egyptians coming out into the streets day after day, demanding democracy at the risk of their lives. All I care about is the impact on Israel. I call myself a "humanist." That is false. I am actually a quite conservative Jewish nationalist, at bottom just like 3e, although I try and conceal my harsher views with hippie language.'
Richard Witty said, 'Hostage: I skipped right over your comment, as always. I can't let myself recognize the truth of what you so eloquently say. I will continue practicing not so much the Big Lie as the Chronic Lie: the Israeli settler/colonists are innocent victims who "purchased" their land and that to remove them would be cruel and "fascist."'
Richard Witty said, 'This is a cunning maneuver on my part. I condemn the Irgun, but I continue to accept that the much larger, mainstream Zionist military organizations in 1947-8 drove hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes -- and violated international law by not letting them return .'
Richard Witty said, 'More sophistry from me, complete with one of my usual grammatical errors:
'Here I try and equate Palestinians, who have been living in Palestine for many centuries, with European Jews, who started arriving in the area a century ago. I'm justifying recent and ongoing Israeli land-stealing, and I'm slandering the people who condemn it as "fascist."
'It's funny: I don't seem to be urging Mondoweiss visitors to "humanize the other" and "make the better argument" any more. These days I'm more nasty than my ally, 3e.'
Richard Witty said, 'My longwinded, planetary survey above can be boiled down to a single sentence:
The Israelis who have violated international law by settling on the West Bank are simply "migrants," who should be left alone to stay on the land they stole.'
[[space reserved for Mooser to have fun with this 3e sentence:]]
Avi_G + Shmuel: The Mondoweiss one-two punch against hasbara. I imagine the two of you must get tired of chronically weak competition, but the rest of us learn from your knock-outs.
3e: If the West Bank is not "Israel," why do Israeli soldiers and police patrol it, and why do the 550,000 "Israelis" who permanently live there serve in the Israeli military, pay Israeli taxes, and get to vote in Israeli elections?
Avi: I'm not judging them either, nor did my Palestinian friends -- just pointing out that the original comment, that Israel no longer relies on Palestinian workers, is not true.
My Palestinian friends told me the gigantic settlement/colony of Har Homa was built mainly by Palestinian workers.
[[Space for Richard Witty to add a comment politely disagreeing with Ms. Fogel, and urging her to "humanize the Other"]]
Richard Witty said, 'My usual diversionary tactic. I'm pained that I have to repudiate Derfner on Costanza and the phony peace process, so I try and change the subject to Iran.'
Richard Witty said, 'Here I go, hiding the truth again. Over on the +972 blog, I actually attack Derfner's excellent post -- even though I claim, like Derfner, to be a liberal Zionist and I also claim to be his "friend." My response to Derfner over there is nothing if not "nit-picking and petulant."
'How can I call myself a "liberal Zionist," when I attack examples of same (Derfner, Jerry Slater) every chance I get?'
Thanks to Larry Derfner and +972 for telling the truth about the phony "peace process." Is it possible to imagine Derfner's argument appearing in any mainstream American media outlet?
[[Space reserved for Richard Witty's nit-picking, petulant response]]
Richard Witty said, 'Instead of apologizing to Phil for my preposterous charge on the "proud Zionist" thread, I jump over here -- to troll and distract.'
Richard Witty said, 'Once again, Hostage gives us more established facts in a single comment than I have in all my 11,000 comments put together. But all I can do in response is snidely call him a name.
'Longtime Mondoweiss visitors are noticing how nasty I've become lately. Gone are all my hippie-dippie exhortations to "humanize the other" and "make the better argument." Now all I do is reply with personal attacks.'
Richard Witty said, 'Here's how disorganized and contradictory my thinking is. I become enraged at anyone who tries to generalize about how "Jews are," accusing them of anti-Semitism. Yet I also insist that this same group, who you can't generalize about, have the right to "self-govern," which means they can travel to Palestine and take land away from the people who already live there!'
'Why not just take every third person from the state of Indiana, who you can't generalize about, and give them the Right to "Return" to Palestine as well?'
Richard Witty said, 'Here's how I politely try and put across my point of view:
'This is how I promote "dialog" (sic)'
Richard Witty said, 'Mr. Blankfort: I admit I'm more than a little disingenuous here. I'm implying that "organizing around common social/economic issues" is my top priority. It is not. My top priority is silencing any criticism of Israel. Once that is accomplished, we can turn to "social/economic issues."
'Here's proof of my disingenuousness. Discussion about Israel/Palestine has been a very small part of the OWS demonstrations. But I've seized upon it, in comment after comment after comment. That's because I chime in on what is really important to me.'
Mayhem: So you justify Israel killing Palestinians today and stealing their land today by what was written or not written 1300 years ago? And you wonder why Israel is losing support, and why people like you have to spend hours at Mondoweiss to protect its image?
Richard Witty said, 'Once again, watch me lecture Phil about how to run his completely successful website. My condescending comments give the impression he is a very young man, and I am his rather stern uncle, telling him how to behave.
'In fact, we are both men of the same age, in our mid-50s. Through family connections, I once knew Phil, but I've only seen him 4 times in the past 30 years. Nonetheless, that long ago (now disappeared) acquaintanceship gives me the right to supervise his behavior.'
Congratulations to both of you!
Richard Witty said, 'Thanks for the compliment, Mooser. The secret of my precision is that I take a great deal of time with my comments, and I'm specially aware that grammar is important. We are dealing with vital issues here, and I have to make my meaning crystal clear. Otherwise, people might not understand me, and then I might have to accuse them of deliberately misreading what I have to say. Fortunately, my clarity prevents such unfortunate misunderstandings.'
Richard Witty said, 'Anyone who can understand my last paragraph above should apply for work at some intelligence service's code-breaking division.'
Richard Witty said, 'Ouch, Mooser. But you made one mistake; I've now made over 11,000 comments -- all of them as diplomatic and sensitive as the ones you highlight here.'
Richard Witty said, 'Wow. ymedad is an honest-to-goodness settler/colonist, visiting us here at Mondoweiss. What a splendid opportunity for me; any second now I will spring into action, earnestly imploring him to "humanize the other."
'Because if I ignore him, Mondoweiss visitors might conclude that I'm not even-handed at all, that I'm just here to sabotage and undermine the movement for Palestinian solidarity. I can't leave that impression.
'Watch out, ymedad!! Here comes one Richard Witty, full of syntax!!'
Mooser: This is terrific!!
(Can't you teach Richard Witty how to be (intentionally) funny once in awhile?)
As usual, Jerry Slater makes a central point:
An attack won't succeed. So why are the pro-Israel forces, including their allies here on Mondoweiss, even suggesting one?
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this.
'1400 dead Palestinians in the attack on Gaza. 300 of them children. All justified by me.
Richard Witty said, 'Correction. My comment total has already reached 11,009!!'
Richard Witty said, 'My insensitive response above is more evidence for those who believe that Phil and Adam pay me to comment -- and thereby further undermine the pro-Israel argument.
'Radhika Sainath posts about a minor, amusing feature of an Israeli occupation that is usually not amusing -- and all I, Richard Witty, can do with my tin ear and my lack of social skills is jump in at the head of the thread with a lame comment.
'My comment total is up to near 11,000. If I keep alienating 2 or 3 people with each of my comments, the 1-state solution will be here before you know it.'
Another shift change at Hasbara Central.
Richard Witty said, 'Hostage: I have to (reluctantly) recognize that you are a legal/historical genius, which is why I pose to you questions like this one (assuming you can figure out what I mean):
Here's another question, even more important: Can you map out for me, how you would regard the right of return as feasible, taking account of the hundreds of generations of Richard Witty's ancestors who have lived outside Palestine, that would justify my right to immediate Israeli citizenship in a place I have only briefly visited twice in my entire life? And while you are at it, please provide a legal justification for my right as opposed to the non-rights of Palestinians who were born there?
Richard Witty said, 'More proof that my mellow ex-hippie persona is just a disguise. It doesn't take much to bring out my nasty streak, as here, when I accuse Donald, who has always tried to understand me, with taking "the morally lazy route" of "shoot first." I ask Donald to "respectfully ask for clarification," but then I accuse him of moral failings.
'Just imagine me, Richard Witty, trying to have "dialog" (sic) with Palestinians who have lost family members to Israel. No wonder I hide out here in western Massachusetts, not having visited the place I "self-govern" in since 1986.'
Richard Witty said, 'Here again I try to apply my unusual standard to moral reasoning: BW (Before Witty), and AW (After Witty).
'Morality changed that magical day in the early 1950s when I, one Richard Witty, was born. Alleged crimes that took place BW, like the ethnic cleansing of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, are not in fact crimes. But theoretical events that might take place AW -- Israeli settler/colonists not being allowed to keep their stolen lands on the West Bank -- are in fact immoral.'
Richard Witty said, 'I'm not interested in paragraph numbers and legal citations:
'My view of international law is actually quite simple. If it helps Israeli Jews, I'm for it; if it doesn't, I'm not.'
Richard Witty said, 'Uh-oh. Hostage sounds like a real lawyer. I think I'll hide until this blows over, then pop up on another thread to once again flog my "color-blind court system" remedy, even though, as Hostage points out, it has no basis in legal reality.'
Richard Witty said, 'I call for "dialog" (sic), and to "humanize the other," but the moment Jeffrey Blankfort says something I don't like I a) insult him by mispelling his name, and b) call him "a likud plant" (sic).
'You see that I'm quick to reach for the insults, but I don't hesitate to lecture Palestinians who have been murdered, imprisoned, tortured and driven off their land that they should be calm, stay polite, and "make the better argument."'
Richard Witty said, 'Ouch, Mooser! But admit you had fun with the slogan I coined myself: "wholes rather than holes."'
Our resident Mondoweiss experts can demolish this David Fromkin/Martin Gilbert/San Remo argument like shooting fish in a barrel. Memo to Hasbara Central: Please send over people equipped with better arguments. Don't you think Mondoweiss deserves to face your A Team?
Richard Witty said, 'Look how I instruct annie on being "a respectful person!"
'Why just yesterday, I flatly told Lillian Rosengarten, an elderly (courageous) Jewish woman (who went on a peace flotilla last year),
'I didn't say, "Ms. Rosengarten, I respectfully disagree," or "Ms. Rosengarten, maybe there's another way to interpret this."
'Nope.
'If someone, especially a woman, crosses me, my ageing hippie persona goes right out the window.'
Richard Witty said, 'Once again I show that I've never read the lengthy explanations of what BDS really means by Shmuel and others. I'll just continue to distort and lie about it.'
Richard Witty said, 'Ouch, Mooser. Don't you have some business to attend to out there in the North Woods?'
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this!
'Instead of the mellow ex-hippie I pose as, I'm actually a military expert! Let's attack Iran "lightly!"
('How many dead Iranians is "lightly?" How many Iranian children?')
Richard Witty said, 'Look again at the one Goldberg sentence I cling to:
'Notice how I twist it around
'I must assume Mondoweiss visitors are stupid, that they cannot see the word "could" in Goldberg's sentence. What Goldberg is doing here is covering his ass, in case Israel does attack and it does turn out to be a disaster, (for Israel. He and I don't care about the Iranian people who would be killed or hurt in such an attack. Goldberg has been wrong so often that he has to include such a disclaimer.)
'I've turned the single cautionary sentence in his otherwise warmongering article into what I call an "explicit recommendation NOT to attack Iran" -- adding my usual irritating ALL CAPITALS for emphasis.
'Do I really think other Mondoweiss visitors are fools?
Richard Witty said, 'Look how my manner of addressing Ms. Rosengarten once more shows my lack of social skills and my tin ear:
'I monotonously lecture other Mondoweiss visitors that they have to "humanize the other" and courteously "build bridges." But here I speak to an elderly Jewish woman (who had the courage to join the peace flotilla last year) as if she were a dim-witted child.
'The truth is that I pose as an elderly ex-hippie, but when my dream castle view of Israel is threatened, my nasty streak emerges.'
Avi: Thanks for the link. Friedman worships technology, but here it does him in. His immoral foolishness is only a click of a mouse away.
WJ: I agree entirely with your 3 comments.
But I don't think you go quite far enough. I think there is a good chance the Cheney/Bush administration would have succesfully pushed for war against Iraq no matter what. Yet I suspect you would agree that their aim was greatly helped along by support not just from neo-conservatives, but from purportedly centrist opinion-makers like Friedman.
What continues to astonish me is that Friedman seems to have suffered no consequences from his failure on the greatest foreign policy issue of our time. If he made the same kind of error in the business world, he would have been fired.
Richard Witty said, 'Look at this
'Other visitors to Mondoweiss have been unable to find Thomas Friedman's apology for cheerleading for war against Iraq, in which he showed both terrible political judgment and abject moral failure. I will soon provide links to Friedman's apologies. Otherwise, Mondoweiss visitors might think I'm just making things up -- or else that I can read Friedman's mind.'
Richard Witty said, 'My point is -- I'm sympathetic to Occupy Wall Street, as long as they don't mention Palestinian rights. Once Israel/Palestine comes up, the Except for Palestine outweighs the Progressive in my PEP identity, and I'll have to turn away from the OWS protests.'
Richard Witty said, 'It's hard to know what to highlight in my condescending put-down of annie, but here's a start:
'Note my use of the word "punish." Here I use it to describe a simple political disagreement. But you will never see me use the same word to describe, say, Israel's ongoing campaign to occupy, steal land from, imprison without trial and kill Palestinians, including hundreds of children.'
Shift change at Hasbara Central.
Richard Witty said, 'The next time I learn about Israelis firing weapons at Palestinians I will also encourage Palestinian visitors to Mondoweiss to "stay safe." I'm aware that many of our visitors have family members in Gaza and the West Bank, and I care about them just as much as I care about Israelis.'
Lillian Rosengarten. A moral giant.
Shmuel: I think 3e is using that new Torah, the one with contributions from the Prophet Nietzsche.
Shmuel: Thanks. So in this Israeli film I saw some years ago, that the settler zealot was called Pinhas was possibly deliberate? (Remember the film? The zealots were going to blow up Al-Aksa mosque? The Kahane-type rabbi's daughter was played by someone called Tinkerbelle?)
Richard Witty said, 'Shmuel, I'm not as up on theology as I should be. Please explain this reference. . .
A powerful post. I found this part particularly compelling: