The following article by Thomas Friedman appears – where else? – in the New York Times:
Israeli friends have been asking me whether a re-elected President Obama will take revenge on Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu for the way he and Sheldon Adelson, his foolhardy financier, openly backed Mitt Romney. My answer to Israelis is this: You should be so lucky.
You should be so lucky that the president feels he has the time, energy and political capital to spend wrestling with Bibi to forge a peace between Israelis and Palestinians. I don’t see it anytime soon. Obama has his marching orders from the American people: Focus on Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, not on Bethlehem, Palestine, and focus on getting us out of quagmires (Afghanistan) not into them (Syria). No, my Israeli friends, it’s much worse than you think: You’re home alone.
Of course, no one here will tell you that. To the contrary, there will surely be a new secretary of state visiting you next year with the umpteenth road map for “confidence-building measures” between Israelis and Palestinians. He or she may even tell you that “this is the year of decision.” Be careful. We’ve been there before. If you Google “Year of decision in the Middle East,” you’ll get more than 100,000,000 links.
Is this good for Israel? No. It is unhealthy. The combination of America’s internal focus, the post-Arab awakening turmoil and the exhaustion of Palestinians means Israel can stay in the West Bank indefinitely at a very low short-term cost but at a very high long-term cost of losing its identity as a Jewish democracy. If Israelis want to escape that fate, it is very important that they understand that we’re not your grandfather’s America anymore.
Read the full article here.
{Matzav.com Newscenter}
I read the piece twice, it is neither silly nor anti-Israel. condescending maybe, however it is time we realize we arent the center of OThe U.s.’s world and that is in fact a good thing
TF is a spiteful useful idiot.
Only the NYT can print such shallowness.
Ha’Sin’ah mekalkeles es ha’Shura.
The piece is condescending and with a liberal dose of triumphalism.
Nonetheless, Friedman is right to point out that Israel has to man up here. It’s not good for Israel to be viewed – or to view itself – as America’s little brother.
This piece of garbage has written his finest garbage to date!
Is this article;
Condescending? Very
Stupid? Absolutely
True? Hopefully
(I would love if the US stays away from Israel, and we could fight back without our hands tied)