New Glasses for the President
Gary Cooperberg
March 31, 2003
B"sd
Secretary of State, Colin Powell, is quoted as having said, "Israeli settlement activity is inconsistent with President Bush's two state vision." Wouldn't it be wonderful if Foreign Minister Shalom would issue a statement that, "President Bush's two state vision is inconsistent with the sovereignty of the Jewish State, not to mention his own war on terror"?
It is especially vital for the Israeli government not to wait for the rope to be tightened around our neck before starting to kick and gasp for air. I fully support President Bush's decision to attack and disarm Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq, even though Iraq is on the other side of the world and does not present a clear and present danger to the United States. His courageous and proper decision and action, however, is inconsistent with his expectation that Israel create a new terrorist state on their own sovereign land! There is absolutely no credible evidence to indicate that Arafat and his entire gang are anything other than terrorist hoodlums. It is absolutely clear that the "Palestinian" concept was created for the exclusive purpose to completely destroy the Jewish state.
Recent statements by Powell, Straw, Bush and Blair, calling for Israel to make concessions to the PLO were motivated either by latent anti Semitism, fear of Islamic reaction to the Gulf War, or both. Of course the President of the United States had no choice but to react to the horror of September 11. Bombing Afghanistan was relatively without risk. I do believe that the President has become aware that the war he is trying to wage is not as simple as he would like it to be. Finding Bin Laden and hanging him will not put an end to terror. Saddam Hussein is not the only mad dictator in the Middle East with oil wealth and potential access to weapons of mass destruction. The war against Iraq already has Bashar Assad of Syria getting very nervous. And he is not the only dangerous Arab dictator who is watching this war with a very personal perspective.
Bush and Blair are conscious of this very real threat. Just one spark from the Iraqi war could easily detonate a huge conflagration throughout the entire Middle East. One can easily see this by the reaction of Arabs living in Israel. They have been celebrating openly at the reports of downed US helicopters and murders of American soldiers. In a futile attempt to mollify the likelihood of a pan Arab reaction to this war against Iraq, Bush and Blair have been promising to gently stick a knife into the back of the Jewish State. It may well be that these declarations are the only thing preventing Syria, Iran, Libya and others from immediately joining with their fellow Islamic dictator in a holy war against the western infidels.
One does not defeat despotism by trying to appease it. History has consistently shown that to appease terror is to encourage terror and make it that much more difficult to defeat. Clearly the Islamic threat is very real and very significant. It takes tremendous courage to stand up to that threat. President Bush is to be commended for beginning to take on that challenge. But he is quickly discovering that it is far more complex than he had realized. It is too late to back out. He and even his Israeli counterpart must understand that you cannot trust terrorists to fight terror. It was Shimon Peres who originated the idea of making Arafat honest by getting him to fight terror. The result was that he set up a sophisticated terrorist infrastructure within the sovereign state of Israel which launched and is continuing to conduct a terrorist war against the Jewish State. Just as President Bush would never consider forming an alliance with Bin Laden or Saddam Hussein, it is equally absurd to expect Israel to in any way support Arafat or any so-called "palestinian" authority on Jewish soil or elsewhere.
The government of the United States may well have found itself in an untenable position from which it cannot find a way to extricate itself. It is nothing short of self-deception to imagine that by serving the tiny Jewish State to the Islamic monster the problem will go away. It won't. There is no easy way out.
George Bush has prided himself on his faith in G-d. Now is the time for him to demonstrate that faith. The Jewish State has come into existence to serve as the vehicle for all those who wish to express faith in G-d. It can never be destroyed because it is protected by the Creator of the Universe. He designed it to appear weak and helpless in order that the nations of the world be given an opportunity to demonstrate their faith in G-d, or lack of it. Those who do not believe in the Living G-d of Israel will be tempted to side with the enemies of Israel, who have wealth and overwhelming numbers on their side. The Divine Process of Redemption is unfolding before our eyes. Those who truly believe in G-d will stand against the majority and with the Jewish State.
It is not too late to save the United States from the fate of so many great nations before it. If Mr. Powell is truly the optometrist of President Bush, it is high time for him to give the president a new prescription. At present it seems that the President of the United States is suffering from double vision. There is only one state in the Land of Israel and there will always be but one. If the president sees two, then it is time for him to get new glasses. He will find the proper prescription in the Bible.
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