Thursday, October 19, 2006
Get out the butterfly nets. Looks like the worst President in American History is about to get even worser: Carter Book Slaps Israel With ‘Apartheid’ Tag, Provides Ammo to GOP [The Forward is clearly horrified...by the GOP bit, not the apartheid part]
Judging from an advance review manuscript of the new work, published by Simon & Schuster and set for release November 14, Carter places the bulk of the blame on Israel for its continuing conflict with the Palestinians. But critics of the former president probably will be most offended by his use of the word “apartheid” in the book’s title and text.
Israel’s current policy in the territories, Carter writes in the book’s summary, is “a system of apartheid, with two peoples occupying the same land but completely separated from each other, with Israelis totally dominant and suppressing violence by depriving Palestinians of their basic human rights.” In a separate passage in the advance draft, the former president stated that “Israel’s continued control and colonization of Palestinian land have been the primary obstacles to a comprehensive peace agreement in the Holy Land.”
In addition, Carter takes what is being interpreted by some critics as a swipe at the pro-Israel lobby. “Because of powerful political, economic, and religious forces in the United States, Israeli government decisions are rarely questioned or condemned,” the former president writes.
Carter’s book comes as the Republican Jewish Coalition is already waging a nationwide media campaign to convince Jewish voters that the Democratic Party no longer can be counted on to provide unflinching support for Israel. (See story on Page A6.) One of the recent RJC ads features a large image of Carter and quotes the former president as saying, “I don’t think Israel has any legal or moral justification for their massive bombing of the entire nation of Lebanon.”
Simon & Schuster spokeswoman Elizabeth Hayes confirmed the substance of the quotes from Carter’s book, but said that the wording could change in the final edition...
In a world of real apartheid states, Carter chooses to blame Israel. Here is the web site of the Republican Jewish Coalition. Nuff said.
Carter genuinely repulses, there's a very real and visceral moral revulsion which sets in when reading this report; Carter ranges well beyond moral and intellectual obtuseness into the void of some type of solipsistic or profoundly atrophied sensibility.
Carter has become an utterly despicable, loathesome man. He was the worst President of my lifetime, and now he is bucking for the title of worst ex-President, too (Habitat for Humanity notwithstanding).
A commendable degree of disengagement with the topic.
I guess that's adviable when discussing the details might suggest that Carters contention isn't so far off the mark.
So Michael let me see if I've got this straight: Your method of engaging with the topic is to agree with most of Carter's contentions on the basis of two comments preceding yours on this blog thread that didn't engage with the topic to your satisfaction?
The previous comments didn't engage with it at all.
This had been the extent of weighty issues addressed - "Carter genuinely repulses", "Carter has become an utterly despicable, loathesome man."
I can't "agree with most of Carters contentions" because we don't know what they are.
There is one it seems - that a system of Apartheid is developing in Israel/Palestine. That can engaged with, but the previous commenters eschwed inquiry, preferring personal attacks.
Michael, that's because we know the "apartheid" arguments already, and we're just rolling our eyes. If Carter wanted to start a fresh discussion he wouldn't use discredited tropes.
The Dems never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.
what do you expect from the guy who sat next to Michael Moore at the Dem convention?
"discredited"? How so, besides that you disagree with it?