Author Archives: First.One.Through

The NY Times begins its assault on Israel’s Search and Rescue

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It has been several weeks since Boko Haram kidnapped over 200 teenagers from their school. Over these weeks, the New York Times has repeatedly faulted the Nigerian government for not being aggressive enough in finding the girls. But in less than one week since the kidnapping of three Jewish teenagers, the New York Times is already running articles that Israel is too aggressive in trying to bring their boys back home.

NYT on Nigeria:

5/24/14: “That the hopes of many across the globe rests on such a weak reed as the Nigerian military has left diplomats here in something of a quandary about the way forward. The Nigerian armed forces must be helped, they say, but are those forces so enfeebled… the military presence on some of the region’s most dangerous roads is light, with only a handful of checkpoints”

5/27/4: [Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan] “responded to the kidnappings in the same way that he has responded to countless other Boko Haram atrocities (or indeed to the anti-civilian depredations of his own military): minimally, or not at all.”

NYT on Israel:

6/17/14 by Jodi Rudoren, the official NY Times reporter who covers news from a Palestinian perspective: “It was Day 3 of what Palestinians are universally calling a ‘siege’ on Hebron,” Jodi does not discuss the violent history of Hamas nor its past use of kidnapping. She quotes a “father of 10” (is this man with Hamas? A shopkeeper? Does his being a parent of 10 make him more or less reliable?): “’This is like they arrest 800,000 people in the Hebron area – look at the checkpoints.’”

Jodi continued that “many here and elsewhere in the Palestinian territories questioned whether the abductions even happened. Leaders referred to the ‘alleged kidnapping’ in their official statements… [Israel] staged the event…as a pretext to oust Hamas from the West Bank.”  Nice work getting a conspiracy theory into the public.

I wonder if the NY Times will get a reporter to cover the news from Boko Haram’s perspective. Perhaps they should send Jodi.

Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, Missing Kids and Prayers

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This past Mother’s Day, US First Lady, Michelle Obama gave an impassioned address about the abducted teenaged girls in Nigeria. The White House highlighted her “thoughts, prayers and support in the wake of the unconscionable terrorist kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls.”

Her feelings were heartfelt about “this unconscionable act [that] was committed by a terrorist group” in abducting innocent girls going to school. Mrs. Obama continued that: “in these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters” and “that Barack has directed our government to do everything possible to support the Nigerian government’s efforts to find these girls and bring them home.”

The crime committed by Boko Haram was horrific and Michelle Obama’s comments were not just a reflection of the country’s disgust with the kidnapping, but a clever use of Mother’s Day to draw the entire nation to the cause.

It made me hopeful that yesterday, on Father’s Day, that the US President would address the country in a similar way, as it was just a few days after three teenage boys were abducted near their school in Israel – especially since one of the boys is a 16-year old American citizen.

But President Obama did not address the abduction at all.

(US Secretary of State John Kerry did offer that “the United States strongly condemns the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers and calls for their immediate release. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families. …We continue to offer our full support for Israel in its search for the missing teens.” It is curious that Kerry chose not to mention that one of the teens has dual USA-Israel citizenship- but at least he issued a strong statement.)

While President Obama may not look at these Jewish boys and “see his own daughters”, he should at least see innocent teenagers and especially an American citizen. His outrage should match Michelle’s. His labeling the kidnappers as terrorists should be unequivocal. His efforts to assist Israel to bring them home safely should be unwavering.

President Obama’s annual Father’s Day address talked about the importance of fathers being present to act as fathers to their children.  As his wife may remind him, we need the children to be safe at home with them to make that happen.

The Sad Assault on Women in the Middle and Far East

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The world recently heard of horrific attacks on women in the Middle and Far East.

Last week, the world saw a video of a 19-year old woman fleeing a gang rape in Egypt in the middle of the presidential inaugural celebration in Tahrir Square. Remarkably, she was luckier than other recent victims.

Two weeks ago in India, two girls- aged 15 and 14 – were gang-raped and then strangled and hung from trees near their homes.

In Pakistan, an 18-year girl was raped by 5 men. After the police released the men, she set herself on fire outside of the police station.

pakistan girl on fire
Pakistani rape victim dies after setting herself on fire when her attackers were released,
March 2014

The treatment of women in much of the world is appalling. From the youngest age, women are often restricted from gaining an education. These girls are then married off (often under 14 years old) to much older men and become completely dependent on them for survival. Should these young women challenge the system and go to school or spur a marriage proposal, they are often attacked and disfigured for life.

In such a world, a woman’s mind is neither nurtured nor respected.  Her opinions are neither noted nor considered.  Her role rests solely as sexual partner and mother.  It is therefore both terrible and unsurprising, that sexual assaults on teenaged girls would flourish in such an environment.

A music video by First.One.Through with music by Bon Jovi about the terrible attacks on women:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVYCGxwobIE

Related First.One.Through articles:

Honor Killings in Gaza: https://firstonethrough.wordpress.com/2014/12/02/honor-killings-in-gaza/

The New York Times wants the military to defeat terrorists (but not Hamas)

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NYT 6/9/14: “Pakistan’s Latest Crisis” was a call to action for the military to defeat terrorists. What about Israel defeating Hamas? Not so much.

The Pakistan editorial led with a strong statement about the Taliban: “In its increasingly violent effort to destroy the Pakistani state”, the NYT made the Taliban’s ultimate goal clear. It continued with a call for the Pakistani government to wake up: “Will this be the crisis that finally persuades Pakistan’s government and its powerful military to acknowledge the Taliban’s pernicious threat and confront it in a comprehensive way? It should be.” The NYT editorial board clearly spelled out its desire for a military strike to defeat the terrorist entity that attacked civilians in Pakistan.

It is distressing to compare these statements with the 11/20/12 editorial about Gaza firing nearly 1000 rockets into Israel. The NYT did not describe Hamas as a terrorist entity (labeled so by the US, Canada, EU, Japan, Jordan, Egypt and Israel). It did not state that Hamas seeks the destruction of Israel – which it has made clear throughout its charter, and the statements and actions of its leadership for many years. Rather, the NYT stated that Hamas “resorted to violence” in a statement that is either evil or laughable in its ignoring the calls for death and destruction of Jews and the Jewish State.

The Times then went on to blame Israel: “Israel also has a responsibility for the current crisis,” Is the Times suggesting that if all the Jews would just leave the Middle East and dissolve Israel the way Hamas desires, they wouldn’t have to “resort to violence”?

The NYT was loath to suggest that Israel stamp out the terrorist entity bent on its destruction stating: “But military action is no long-term answer.”

The difference between the Taliban and Hamas is that Hamas is an elected government, having won 58% of the Palestinian vote in 2006. It governs a territory, Gaza, since 2007. But its desire to destroy all of Israel and kill civilians is not an iota less than the Taliban’s goals in Pakistan and the response from the government and military should similarly be supported. The links to the two editorials are below:

 

Pakistan-Taliban editorial:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/10/opinion/pakistans-latest-crisis.html

“given recent events, one has to assume the militants will stop at nothing until the state is utterly destabilized and they have taken control. Pakistani political and military leaders need to be honest about the militant threat that they and their people are facing”

 

Israel-Hamas editorial

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/20/opinion/hamass-illegitimacy.html?_r=0

“If Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel had pursued serious negotiations on a two-state solution with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinians could have hope in a different future”

When were Jews barred from living in Judea & Samaria?

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Jews have lived in Judea and Samaria for 3000+ years, except for windows of time when they were barred by the Romans, during the Crusades, and most recently, when the Jordanians attacked Israel and illegally annexed the area.  The Ottomans had no limit on Jews living there. The British also allowed Jews to live in the area.

No one denies that Israel administers the land and approves housing for Jews and non-Jews today. How could Israel only approve housing permits for non-Jews and deny the ability of Jews to live there?  How can people not condemn Abbas for suggesting Jews should be barred from the land?

 

The NY Times outdoes itself Swapping News and Editorials

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The New York Times has established a reputation for infusing its news stories with the editors’ biases.  However, it outdid itself when it posted an editorial about Obama’s drone strikes one day, and subsequently posted the virtually identical article as a news story on the following day.  Both had the same misstatements which: ignored the studies pointing to Obama’s killing of civilians with drones; blamed Bush for the program; and defended Obama.

The editorial:

The “news story” the next day:

 

Obama is the Drone President

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Barack Obama promised a presidency of transparency- he has delivered the opposite.

His use of drones in Pakistan and other countries has killed hundreds of civilians.  He has also authorized the assassination of an American citizen without due process, and he has not made the legal papers rationalizing such extrajudicial killing available to the public.

The US celebrates Israel

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On June 1, 2014, New York City will again host a Celebrate Israel parade in Manhattan.  Americans positive attitude towards Israel has increased in each of the past decades. Israel ranks #8 in Americans favorability rankings globally, and higher than any country in the Middle East and Africa.

 

 

The loss of Jews in Europe continues

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The recent fatal shooting at the Jewish Museum in Brussels may increase the probability of more Jews leaving Belgium.  Belgium is already one of the countries with the highest rates of aliyah to Israel.

In 1948, there were 34 countries with over 25,000 Jews.  Today, there are HALF -17 countries.  Belgium (30,400) and Italy (28,000) are the next countries that are likely to see their Jewish populations drop below 25,000.

Over 82% of the Jews in the world are concentrated in only two countries – Israel and the US – the greatest concentration of Jews in 2000 years.

 

NY Times skewed view on Pope prayer invitation and MidEast Peace

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NYT May 27, 2014 “For Middle East, Region of Religious Conflict, Pope Suggests a Respite in Prayer”

 

Jodi Rudoren penned a piece in a “Memo from Jerusalem”, freeing her from the invisible constraints of reporting news “truthfully”, and shared her personal observations about the pope and the Middle East conflict. Her bias towards the Palestinian narrative remains clear.

 

  1. Her opening sentence states that Pope Francis came back from the “Holy Land with the typical bag of ceremonial gifts, including, from the children of Bethlehem’s refugee camps, a mock-up of an identification card in the name of Jesus that lists family members as Mohandas K. Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Yasir Arafat and Martin Luther King Jr.” Wow.
    1. I’ve been to Israel 30+ times. I’ve been to Jerusalem, Jericho and Bethlehem. I never once came back with a propaganda ID card. Does she really think that it’s “typical”?
    2. Jodi has often written about the Vatican and the UN now referring to the “State of Palestine”. You cannot have a refugee camp of Palestinians in a “State of Palestine”. You cannot claim to have a state and be a refugee of that state while living in such state.
  2. It is quite impressive to list a terrorist like Yasir Arafat with Gandhi and MLK. I would have hoped Jodi would have continued to detail the outrageousness of the comparison, but alas, I believe she thinks it fine to equate a civil rights leader with the man who brought the world airplane hijackings. Here are two quotes: one from Arafat and one from Gandhi. See if you can guess who said which:
    i.      “I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people.”
    ii.      “We will not bend or fail until the blood of every last Jew from the youngest child to the oldest elder is spilled to redeem our land!”
  3. The article compliments the pope navigating his trip “without seeming to offend” any of the parties.  A strange comment considering over the prior three days Jodi pointed out the anger of the Palestinians for the pope’s laying a wreath at Herzl’s grave and of the Israelis anger for the pope stopping at the security barrier near a sign that labeled it an “Apartheid Wall”.
  4. Jodi goes on to compare the pope’s stopping at the security barrier, with a wall commemorating Israeli victims of terror. In a “normal” world, these two visits would be THE SAME prayer to stop violence, as the security barrier was built during the Second Intifada specifically to stop terrorism. However, Jodi’s remarks make clear that the stop at the barrier was not just the pope connecting with Palestinians and Israelis, but was meant to “shame” the Israelis. How can a parallel be drawn between a security mechanism and a memorial to innocent victims?
  5. She dismissed the prospects of the “peace prayer” at the Vatican “particularly” because Israeli President Peres role is “ceremonial” and he is set to leave the post in July.
    1. NYT again blames Israel for any path forward.
    2. Ignores the fact that Palestinian President Abbas’s term in office expired in 2009 – over four years ago.
  6. Jodi chose to liken the parties stating that “extremists on both sides have exploited religion to block resolution”. That statement is not an over-simplification, it is dishonest:
    1. Hamas won the last elections the Palestinians held, winning 58% of the vote back in 2006. Kahane’s party has been banned in Israel for decades.
    2. Hamas controls Gaza and 1.7 million people. Jewish “extremists” are individuals who do not control land or a population.
    3. The “right-wing” (NYT terminology) Likud and The Jewish Home parties have no disparaging comments about Christians or Muslims. However, the Hamas governing charter is a rant of anti-Semitism. A few quotes here:
      i.      Article 20: [the Jews are] “a vicious, Nazi-like enemy, who does not differentiate between man and woman, elder and young…The Nazism of the Jews does not skip women and children, it scares everyone.”
      ii.      Article 22: “[Jews] have been scheming for a long time,… they took over control of the world media such as news agencies, the press, publication houses, broadcasting and the like. … They stood behind the French and the Communist Revolutions and behind most of the revolutions”
      iii.      Article 7: “The prophet, prayer and peace be upon him, said: The time will not come until Muslims will fight the Jews (and kill them); until the Jews hide behind rocks and trees, which will cry: O Muslim! there is a Jew hiding behind me, come on and kill him!”
  7. Notable for its absence over a week of reporting on the pope visiting the Holy Land, and again in this article dedicated to religion and prayer, was the current status of Christianity in the region.
    1. Israel has freedom of religion for all; all churches are open and people are free to pray in the manner of their choosing. That is not true in most of the Middle East
    2. Israel is the only country in the Middle East where the Christian population is growing
    3. Israel is the only country in the Middle East where the number of Christian tourists surpasses any other religion, including Jews.
    4. Israel is the only country in the region which is the target of BDS by some Christian groups
  8. Also absent from the articles was Abbas’s comment to the pope that “Israel is systematically acting to change [Jerusalem’s] identity and character, and strangling the Palestinians, both Christians and Muslims, with the aim of pushing them out”. No comment from the NYT about the religiously charged lie:
    1. The Christian population in Jerusalem has increased since Israel re-unified the city in 1967. The only time that the Christian population declined over the past 100 years was during Jordanian rule 1949-67
    2. The Muslim population in Jerusalem never increased more over the past 150 years than it has under Israeli rule
    3. From 1967-2011, Muslim population in Jerusalem increased 4.4x, compared to 2.5x for Jews
    4. Jerusalem has had a Jewish majority since 1870. How has the “identity and character” changed in Abbas’s mind? Oh, Jews are once again living in the Old City, now that the 1949 Jordanian expulsion of the Jews and 19-year ban is over.