While I was posting about fast food ads...
...David Gerstman, aka Soccer Dad, was participating in a blogger conference call with former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He asked one of the most interesting questions of the session, and got an equally interesting answer (following from interview transcipt posted on Atlas Shrugs, another interview participant):
Netanyahu: Number three. The reason is simple. You know if (unintelligible) United States, the American public has a pretty good feel for who the bad guys and who the good guys are, but the important thing is to mobilize the American people to understand, this is not a war between two native tribes, the Jews of Israel and the Arabs of Hezbollah/Lebanon. This is our ... of war, would be a simple thing, and less compelling, and as I said this was the opening salvo of Iran's bid for empire, and Shiite Islam's bid for world dominion, and it is an unrestricted, uninhibited quest and will use nuclear weapons once it acquires them. A lesser creed, or if you will the matching creed of "I don't want to use nuclear weapons," if they had it they would have smashed not into the Twin Towers, but (unintelligible) altogether, destroyed Washington, and probably other cities. The only limitation they had was not having the weapons, and so they improvised, and if Iran has nuclear weapons then every American is in great peril. America is in peril. Our world is in peril. It's very important that people understand that this is not Israel's war, you know, our house against their house, to a limited extent. It is our house, in the broad sense of the word "our."
One thing in Netanyahu's answer bears repeating, a reference to the recent Israeli/Hezbollah fight: this was the opening salvo of Iran's bid for empire, and Shiite Islam's bid for world dominion, and it is an unrestricted, uninhibited quest and will use nuclear weapons once it acquires them.
I would love to hear someone present some facts that would disprove Mr. Netanyahu; I really would. But, I'm not holding my breath. All evidence seems to point to the fact that only Israel, America, and to a lesser extent, Great Britain are standing in the trembling pause that precedes a global conflict of unimaginable devastation, and the short fuse that cannot be allowed to be lit is Iran's procurement of nuclear weapons.
Global editorializing aside, this interview seems to underscore the increasing legitimacy of bloggers as "citizen journalists." Was Netanyahu preaching to the choir, using a group of friendly bloggers as a megaphone to get his message out? Of course he was, and it's a shrewd move on his part, in light of the enemy's ability and willingness to do the same thing.
I don't intend to turn the Gazette into a political or news commentary publication; I have neither the skill nor inclination to do that, and I don't think most of my readers come here for that sort of thing. At the same time, it's important that we each take a stand on issues that will, whether we like it or not, affect the world in which we dwell. In this instance, I choose to stand with Israel.
The fact that Israelites are God's chosen people...Let's just say I wouldn't want to persecuting them.
Posted by: Rach at August 16, 2006 11:23 PM
Scary, scary times. I, too, stand with Israel.
Posted by: Cowtown Pattie at August 16, 2006 09:18 PM