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Israel Reigns Supreme

By Margaret Kimberley | Black Agenda Report | May 25, 2011

It used to be said that Social Security and Medicare were the “third rails” of American politics. That is to say, their popularity with the public rendered them beyond the bounds of any change politicians might contemplate. Now that the Republicans have publicly tried to eviscerate Medicare and our Democratic president has appointed a deficit reduction commission which immediately saw entitlements as the only deficit problem, we know there is now nothing sacred when it comes to the safety net.

However, there is a still a political third rail, and it is the nation of Israel. Israel’s untouchability has nothing to do with popularity amongst the masses, but everything to do with a well funded lobbying and propaganda machine. This decades long, sustained effort to render critics of Israel powerless and mute has been quite effective. Politicians who dare to break the rules of silence suddenly face well funded opponents. Professors are denied tenure and authors are boycotted. Even former president Jimmy Carter was hounded and vilified for being truthful about Israel’s resemblance to apartheid era South Africa in a book published three years ago.

We have seen the continuation of this propaganda campaign for the past two weeks. First, Israeli troops shot and killed peaceful protesters on their borders. The constant excuse that Palestinians would be supported if they protested peacefully went unacknowledged when Palestinians who did just that were shot dead.

Just this week, the annual ritual of the American president prostrating himself at the AIPAC convention took place. Barack Obama, a man who definitely knows his audience, made himself look like a peacemaker a few days earlier when he uttered words about 1967 borders being important in upcoming peace talks. The perennial peace talks never bring peace because they are never conducted honestly. America is a dishonest broker if there ever was one, asking nothing of Israel, actively assisting its wars on Lebanon or Gaza or wherever it chooses to kill people, and allowing itself to be the vassal state of a country that exists only through its largesse.

His “reset” speech was no different, but the corporate media would have us believe otherwise. There is nothing new about calling for a “two state solution.” Even some Israelis do that. Most importantly, Obama made it clear that Israel’s borders will be determined by Israel.

Obama has already publicly stated his opposition to the Palestinian plan to seek recognition at the United Nations. Even if the General Assembly wants to support such a measure, the United States will use its Security Council veto to squelch it. Once again, an American president makes certain that the Palestinians get nothing but the shaft.

The peace prize winner dispensed with any pretense or niceties at the AIPAC convention. He stated that he made Israel’s security “a top priority” and went even further: “It’s why we’re making our most advanced technologies available to our Israeli allies. It’s why, despite tough fiscal times, we’ve increased foreign military financing to record levels.”

So much for change agents and resets.

Pro-Israeli propaganda is as deeply embedded in the minds of most Americans as the mythology of their home country. Most know nothing about the “Nakba,” the catastrophe of Palestinians being kicked out of their communities and their homes in 1948 when Israel was founded. The continued theft of Palestinian land is never discussed, nor are Israel’s imprisonment and killing of Palestinians. American peace protesters are crushed to death by tractors or executed at sea on missions of mercy to Gaza. Even American sailors were killed on the U.S. Liberty by Israeli war planes. These undisputed facts are kept from public view in this country. Self-selected individuals who want to know the truth for themselves are alone in their knowledge of history and are forced to watch politicians outdo one another in caving to Israeli demands.

The dependence of American media and politicians on Zionist support makes it all but impossible to foresee any changes in this failed dynamic. That fact does not mean that everyone should be silent. Instead, opposition is called for and a commitment to change outside of the two party system. Democrats and Republicans alike are afraid to make any real changes in this dysfunctional relationship. Although it can be said that in fact it functions quite well, but for one side only.

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Margaret Kimberley’s Freedom Rider column appears weekly in the Black Agenda Report

May 25, 2011 - Posted by aletho | Progressive Hypocrite