News

Somebody lied and it wasn't Mitchell

by Dan Huck on Mon Jun 08, 2009 09:24 PM PDT

Perhaps it would be informative to know who planted the lie in Ma'ariv saying Mitchell stated "'The Israelis lied to us all these years. It's over.'" However, whoever planted it obviously had for a goal the immediate denial of the statement by Mitchell, but more importantly, a further elucidation of how far that statement strays from what the Obama administration believes. Additionally, it is an attempt to use the made-up story as a ruse, a variety of the lower-level argument category known as the "Yes, but when did you stop beating your wife?" variety, the purpose of which is to suck the administration into defending itself by saying how much we love our Israeli allies, and distracting them from continuing to focus on the freezing of settlements and the insistence Israel meet its existing commitments.

Number one, isn't it totally unconscionable the Netanyahu government continues, almost five months after the invasion of Gaza, to stonewall on the unacceptable situation they are keeping the Gazans trapped in?

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon of the U.N. today called on Israel "to allow in the fuel, funds and materials that are urgently required to repair destroyed and damaged schools, clinics, sanitation networks and shelters and to restore a functioning market.” “Nearly five months after the end of the hostilities, nothing beyond basic needs such as food and medicine is allowed in,” he said, noting that current conditions preclude the success of recovery efforts and long-term development initiatives.