Voltaire2
Voltaire2's JournalIsrael Resists Grand Bargain as U.S. and Saudis Work on Security Pact
President Biden is pushing for a broad deal that would get Israel to approve a Palestinian nation in return for Saudi recognition of Israel. But officials need to overcome Israeli opposition.
Two years into President Biden’s term, his aides began negotiating with Saudi leaders to have the kingdom establish diplomatic relations with Israel. But when the Israel-Hamas war began last October, the talks withered.
American and Saudi officials have tried to revive prospects for a deal by demanding more from Israel — a cease-fire in Gaza and irreversible steps toward the founding of a Palestinian nation. Now those officials say they are close to a final agreement on the main elements of what the Saudis want from the deal: a U.S.-Saudi mutual defense pact and cooperation on a civilian nuclear program in the kingdom.
...
That resistance, along with a potential full-scale assault by the Israeli military on the Palestinian city of Rafah, puts in jeopardy a potential three-way grand bargain that Mr. Biden envisions as the foundation to a long-term solution to the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Gift link: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/17/us/politics/israel-saudi-arabia-gaza.html?unlocked_article_code=1.sk0.fkA8.r1Sy3fN8qZtf&smid=url-share
Isn't taking pleasure in killing domesticated animals
a standard symptom of a serial killer personality? Like puppies 🐶 and domestic goats 🐐?
Just asking for a friend.
We need an exodus from Zionism
I’ve been thinking about Moses, and his rage when he came down from the mount to find the Israelites worshipping a golden calf.
The ecofeminist in me was always uneasy about this story: what kind of God is jealous of animals? What kind of God wants to hoard all the sacredness of the Earth for himself?
...
Our Judaism cannot be contained by an ethnostate, for our Judaism is internationalist by nature.
Our Judaism cannot be protected by the rampaging military of that state, for all that military does is sow sorrow and reap hatred – including against us as Jews.
Our Judaism is not threatened by people raising their voices in solidarity with Palestine across lines of race, ethnicity, physical ability, gender identity and generations.
Our Judaism is one of those voices and knows that in that chorus lies both our safety and our collective liberation.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/apr/24/zionism-seder-protest-new-york-gaza-israel
Naomi Klein
The Guardian
I've been pondering how to address the elephant in the room at our Seder celebration this week. Naomi has provided some answers.
I support the national student protests over Palestine.
Open Carry Dude.
You know the stereotype. Male, late 20s early 30s, Glockish weapon on one hip, spare clips on the other, threatening slogan on shirt (Be Good or Be Gone).
OCD strutted into starbucks while I was waiting to indulge in a vastly overpriced but somehow delicious latte, and I immediately got tense. I mean WTF OCD, go someplace else, you are indistinguishable from the perpetrator of a mass murder event. I of course kept all this to myself and merely glared. Fuck this OCD and fuck all the cowboy larping OCDs. What are you, four?
I left right after OCD and as he got into the armored car vehicle that was obviously his workplace, I unglared my glares in apology. Its his damn job. He actually has a legitimate reason to carry a weapon. The shirt didn't help the situation. A company logo might have been a better idea.
J.D. Vance: The Math on Ukraine Doesn't Add Up
The fascist the center-right just can't love enough gets to fly the fascist flag on the NYT's opinion page.
President Biden wants the world to believe that the biggest obstacle facing Ukraine is Republicans and our lack of commitment to the global community. This is wrong.
Ukraine’s challenge is not the G.O.P.; it’s math. Ukraine needs more soldiers than it can field, even with draconian conscription policies. And it needs more matériel than the United States can provide. This reality must inform any future Ukraine policy, from further congressional aid to the diplomatic course set by the president.
The Biden administration has applied increasing pressure on Republicans to pass a supplemental aid package of more than $60 billion to Ukraine. I voted against this package in the Senate and remain opposed to virtually any proposal for the United States to continue funding this war. Mr. Biden has failed to articulate even basic facts about what Ukraine needs and how this aid will change the reality on the ground.
Link: fuckthisfascistclown
No sorry, wrong link, here is the paywalled bullshit https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/12/opinion/jd-vance-ukraine.html
Israel's Account of Attack on Aid Convoy Raises Wider Legal Questions, Experts Say
The events that led to the deaths of seven World Central Kitchen workers suggest that there could be problems with the protocols used by the Israeli military, according to legal experts and aid organizations. Israel’s account of its attack on a World Central Kitchen convoy raises significant legal questions even if the strike was the result of a series of mistakes, experts say.
...
But the description of events that has emerged raises broader questions about the military’s ability to identify civilians and its procedures for protecting them, legal experts told The New York Times — including new concerns about whether Israel has been complying with international law in its conduct of the war in Gaza more generally.
The law: When in doubt, presume civilian status, and give humanitarian aid heightened protection
The first, most basic principle of international humanitarian law is that civilians cannot be targets of a military attack. Militaries must have procedures in place to distinguish between civilians and legitimate military targets.
Gift link: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/08/world/europe/world-central-kitchen-strike-israel-law.html?unlocked_article_code=1.jE0.ExRt.CcloycIfqsyE&smid=url-share
Biden's Choice.
Stop a genocide in progress, or win an election.
Assume that it is a given that what is happening in Gaza is a genocide in progress.
Assume that the United States can effectively intervene to stop this genocide.
Assume also that by intervening Biden will almost certainly lose the election.
Assume finally that a Republican victory will result in the transformation of our republic into a christian nationalist authoritarian republic.
I’m not at all interested in arguing the merits of those assumptions.
The question is simply, given these assumptions what is the correct ethical choice? Stop the genocide or save the republic?
Perhaps we should have 'Trump Free Tuesdays'?
We complain about the obscene fascination in the media over TSF's utterances, but this forum itself is just a sea of the same shit.
Also not a serious suggestion, I'm just exhausted by 8 years of his shit.
I took my own advice and trashed trump as a keyword. The latest page is much nicer now. I'll see how long this lasts.
Profile Information
Member since: Mon Mar 27, 2017, 07:57 AMNumber of posts: 13,353
