Gaza Got Exactly What It Deserved

Earlier this week, I reported on the release of a Wikileaks cable that set out Israel's strategy for dealing with Gaza.

"As part of their overall embargo plan against Gaza, Israeli officials have confirmed to (U.S. embassy economic officers) on multiple occasions that they intend to keep the Gazan economy on the brink of collapse without quite pushing it over the edge," one of the cables read.

Israel wanted the coastal territory's economy "functioning at the lowest level possible consistent with avoiding a humanitarian crisis", according to the Nov. 3, 2008 cable.

Writing in the National Post, Barbara Kay agrees with me that Israel had every right to keep Gaza 'on the verge' of a humanitarian crisis.

There should be nothing controversial or newsworthy in that statement. All it tells us is that Israel treats dangerous, sworn enemies on its borders with a lot more compassion than other countries would in the same circumstances. Of course Israel wants Gaza to suffer, as well Gaza should suffer.

The full 2007 blockade came about for a good reason. Hamas still refuses to recognize Israel’s right to exist; its militants have fired thousands of rockets inside Israeli territory, wounding and even killing Israeli citizens and demoralizing the country; Hamas refuses to return soldier Gilad Shalit, abducted from an Israeli border post in 2006. Most important, Hamas has given the world no assurances whatsoever that their ambition to drive every Israeli into the sea has abated.

In keeping Gaza “on the brink of collapse,” a phrase also cited in the leaks, Israel was acting in its own self-interest, as any normal state would and should. What Israel did for three years on Gaza’s borders is precisely what U.S. and EU sanctions aim to do with Iran in order to make them back down from nuclear weaponization: starve the economy without actually starving people. Rational people tend to get a message when their economy is suffocating, and surely economic pressures are preferable to bombs.

In fact this “news” should redound to Israel’s credit. Clearly it is well within Israel’s power to cause a humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Contrary to international accusations, this it refuses to do, and never wanted to do. The cable backs up that claim. So much for the Israel-haters’ frequent, favourite comparison of Israel with Nazi Germany.

Indeed. We have nothing of which to be ashamed.

Labels: Barbara Kay, Gaza plenty, Wikileaks

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:08 AM

I Dare McCain to Ape His President

On the same day, President Bush and Federal Reserve Chief Ben Bernanke gave two very different assessments of where the US economy is going. Bush was Mr. Positive while Chairman Bernanke's testimony forewarned of the pain to come. Read excerpts from the two takes below.

Bush:

President Bush said Tuesday the nation's troubled financial system is "basically sound" and urged lawmakers to quickly enact legislation to prop up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He also called on the Democratic-run Congress to follow his example and lift a ban on offshore drilling to help increase domestic oil production.

Amid soaring gas prices, the toughest real estate market in decades, falling home prices and financing that's harder to come by, Bush said: "It's been a difficult time for many American families." But he also said that the nation's economy continues to grow, if slowly.

Bush said that despite the woes of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the recent government takeover of California bank IndyMac, U.S. depositors should not worry because their deposits are insured by the government up to $100,000

HuffPost

The Crash of 2008

The Crash of 2008–04–17

When your neighbor is fired, it’s a recession. When you lose your job, it’s a depression.

The economy is an expression of culture. The psychological factors are vital the surge of adrenalin when the customers bring ropes to the bank.

The first report is from the Federal Reserve. Since they are partly to blame for the mess, they do not probe very deeply.

Conditions in the US economy have worsened noticeably in the past six weeks, the Federal Reserve said in its closely-followed Beige Book report.

The central bank's regular snapshot of business activity across the US described "weaker" conditions and "softening" consumer spending.

The report also described the troubled housing market as "anaemic".

The IMF recently warned that the US economy could be set for a "mild recession" this year.

Some commentators believe the economy may already been in recession, although figures published on Tuesday showed that industrial output actually rose slightly in March.

In a speech on Tuesday, one of the bank's senior officials said that the economy had "all but stalled" and may contract in the first half of the year.

"I am not ruling out a recession," said Janet Yellen, president of the San Francisco Reserve Bank.

The Beige Book monitors economic activity in 12 of the country's largest business districts.

The economists at Tom Paine concentrate on the people involved they call Main Street America.

Borosage, Tom Paine

On Wall Street, the masters of the universe have turned to prayer and worry beads. At the Federal Reserve, a full night's sleep is a fading memory. Across Main Street, the recession is starting to hit, stores are shutting down, bankruptcies are spreading, houses are being foreclosed or abandoned. The pain of the recession is just beginning to hit.

Note: Soon, we will see claims the Administration is cooking the books, as an election ploy.

Hmmmm! I wonder how they got that impression.