Financial appeasement
The EU is in the process of bailing out the Palestinians. Because the Palestinians elected a Hamas terrorist Government (even the EU defines Hamas as terrorist, although they don't define Hizbollah thus) all Western governments stopped paying funds to the PA. In any case, everyone knew that most of the money paid was being stolen and misued by the PA Government, both under Arafat and his successor Abbas. EU money was being used to subsidize weapons to support terrorist actions against Israeli civilians, but the EU didn't want to acknowledge that, especially when Chris Patten was in charge of their foreign policy.
There is no doubt that the PA and the Palestinians are becoming impoverished due to this situation. Never mind, the EU has stepped in with a generous aid package. First they are paying direct salaries to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civil servants who are no longer being paid by the PA itself. This money is not paid via the Hamas government to avoid the appearance of breaking the rules, since the EU has also accepted the formula that the Hamas Government should not be supported unless they: 1. recognize Israel's right to exist, 2.stop the use of violence, and 3. accept previous PA agreements with Israel.
Nevertheless, in its munificence the EU countries have awarded another m$50 to the Palestinians for relief of humanitarian workers, such as health workers (and security men). And in addition to that, at the conference held in Stockholm yesterday for supporters of the PA (after the one for support of Lebanon), the EU pledged another m$65, bringing their total commitments to the Palestinians to over m$200! There must be some special relationship between the poor, suffering Palestinians and the wealthy, philanthropic EU, because no other group in the world gets anything like this kind of support (let the black Sudanese in Darfur starve). In effect, the EU is bailing the Palestinians out of the consequences of their mistakes.
To what can we attribute this incredible financial support? Well, of course, the suffering of the Palestinians is there for all to see in the media (apart from a break for the Lebanon war), because the Palestinians are the darlings of the leftist-oriented media, and can do no wrong. As the Fox reporter said, immediately after he was released from captivity by a Palestinian terrorist group, "the Palestinians are a beautiful people, kind, generous and friendly"!! His wife had said several times before he was released, "why would they kidnap him when they know he is presenting their case." I don't get it, no bitterness, no complaints, must be "Stockholm syndrome"!. They even said that they hoped their kidnapping wouldn't deter other reporters from going to Gaza to present the case of the Palestinians, but I don't think you'll see the two of them back there any time soon. (Why were Fox personnel targeted? Perhaps because they are the only network critical of the Palestinians. I wonder if Fox made a deal to moderate their critical reports for the lives of their personnel).
But, apart from the obvious suffering, there are two other political reasons for the EU support of the Palestinains: 1. Since the US generally supports Israel, in reaction the EU must support Israel's enemies. This is a measure of the anti-Americanism that suffuses the EU, especially in France and Britain, but generally in all the liberal-leftist sectors of European society. The US is by definition "imperialist" hence so must Israel be imperialist. Any brown, poor people must be intrinsically "good" and any white, rich and powerful people must be intrinsically "bad" (as the Europeans were so "bad" in the past - but that's history). It's such a simple way to rationalize one's guilt. 2. There is residual anti-Semitism in Europe, especially in Germany, that they can rationalize as anti-Israelism, thus freeing themselves of the guilt associated with the Holocaust. Overall, the EU support for the Palestinians is appeasement, they are saying in effect to their "home-grown" and immigrant Muslims, don't hate us, see how nice we are to the Palestinians!
But, behind this attitude lies the concept that all conflicts in the Middle East and with Muslims in general derive from the Israel-Palestinian conflict. If only that were solved then peace would reign in the world! What a lot of nonsense! Does the Kashmir conflict have anything whatsoever to do with Palestine? Does the Chechen conflict have anything to do with Palestine? Does the Iraqi situation have anything to do with Palestine? Does the ages old Sunni-Shia conflict have anything to do with Palestine? If there were peace in the Holyland, would any of these other conflicts stop? Do the Iranian threats to Israel and the West have anything to do with Palestine? Only insofar as the totalitarian Iranians seek to use Israel as a means to rally support among their own people as a convenient focus of their hatred. So the conflict in Palestine has been used by the Sunni Arabs as a means of self-aggrandisement, and it failed, now the Shia Muslims are having their turn. And the EU's response is appeasement, just pile in the Euros.
There is no doubt that the PA and the Palestinians are becoming impoverished due to this situation. Never mind, the EU has stepped in with a generous aid package. First they are paying direct salaries to hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civil servants who are no longer being paid by the PA itself. This money is not paid via the Hamas government to avoid the appearance of breaking the rules, since the EU has also accepted the formula that the Hamas Government should not be supported unless they: 1. recognize Israel's right to exist, 2.stop the use of violence, and 3. accept previous PA agreements with Israel.
Nevertheless, in its munificence the EU countries have awarded another m$50 to the Palestinians for relief of humanitarian workers, such as health workers (and security men). And in addition to that, at the conference held in Stockholm yesterday for supporters of the PA (after the one for support of Lebanon), the EU pledged another m$65, bringing their total commitments to the Palestinians to over m$200! There must be some special relationship between the poor, suffering Palestinians and the wealthy, philanthropic EU, because no other group in the world gets anything like this kind of support (let the black Sudanese in Darfur starve). In effect, the EU is bailing the Palestinians out of the consequences of their mistakes.
To what can we attribute this incredible financial support? Well, of course, the suffering of the Palestinians is there for all to see in the media (apart from a break for the Lebanon war), because the Palestinians are the darlings of the leftist-oriented media, and can do no wrong. As the Fox reporter said, immediately after he was released from captivity by a Palestinian terrorist group, "the Palestinians are a beautiful people, kind, generous and friendly"!! His wife had said several times before he was released, "why would they kidnap him when they know he is presenting their case." I don't get it, no bitterness, no complaints, must be "Stockholm syndrome"!. They even said that they hoped their kidnapping wouldn't deter other reporters from going to Gaza to present the case of the Palestinians, but I don't think you'll see the two of them back there any time soon. (Why were Fox personnel targeted? Perhaps because they are the only network critical of the Palestinians. I wonder if Fox made a deal to moderate their critical reports for the lives of their personnel).
But, apart from the obvious suffering, there are two other political reasons for the EU support of the Palestinains: 1. Since the US generally supports Israel, in reaction the EU must support Israel's enemies. This is a measure of the anti-Americanism that suffuses the EU, especially in France and Britain, but generally in all the liberal-leftist sectors of European society. The US is by definition "imperialist" hence so must Israel be imperialist. Any brown, poor people must be intrinsically "good" and any white, rich and powerful people must be intrinsically "bad" (as the Europeans were so "bad" in the past - but that's history). It's such a simple way to rationalize one's guilt. 2. There is residual anti-Semitism in Europe, especially in Germany, that they can rationalize as anti-Israelism, thus freeing themselves of the guilt associated with the Holocaust. Overall, the EU support for the Palestinians is appeasement, they are saying in effect to their "home-grown" and immigrant Muslims, don't hate us, see how nice we are to the Palestinians!
But, behind this attitude lies the concept that all conflicts in the Middle East and with Muslims in general derive from the Israel-Palestinian conflict. If only that were solved then peace would reign in the world! What a lot of nonsense! Does the Kashmir conflict have anything whatsoever to do with Palestine? Does the Chechen conflict have anything to do with Palestine? Does the Iraqi situation have anything to do with Palestine? Does the ages old Sunni-Shia conflict have anything to do with Palestine? If there were peace in the Holyland, would any of these other conflicts stop? Do the Iranian threats to Israel and the West have anything to do with Palestine? Only insofar as the totalitarian Iranians seek to use Israel as a means to rally support among their own people as a convenient focus of their hatred. So the conflict in Palestine has been used by the Sunni Arabs as a means of self-aggrandisement, and it failed, now the Shia Muslims are having their turn. And the EU's response is appeasement, just pile in the Euros.
posted by Jack Cohen at 5:51 PM
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