Writing our own stories

Anger was my first reaction after listening to US president Barack Obama's two recent speeches, one to the world and another to AIPAC, the powerful Israeli lobby in the US. I went around to my friends with questions like "who does he think he is, presuming to tell Palestinians how they may or may not achieve freedom," or "what makes him think his vision for Palestinian dignity actually trumps the vision of Palestinians themselves," or "how dare he talk to us like a parent chastising a small child," or "when will we have a president who can and will tell the truth," or "I think AIPAC wrote his speech for him."

My friends are used to hearing impassioned political commentary from me. The ones close to me always advise me to let the anger dissipate before I write anything so that what I put into words is coming from a clear head. That's where I am now -- no anger, calm and clear-headed. And here is my reaction.

Who does Obama think he is, presuming to tell Palestinians how they may or may not achieve freedom? What makes Obama think his vision for the future of Palestine, indeed vision for the Arab world, trumps the vision of Palestinians or Arabs for themselves? How dare he talk to Palestinians like we're his bad little children in need of (his) parental direction? And will the US ever have a president capable of speaking frankly and truthfully? Because he has just put Israeli propaganda in his own voice for the world.

After paying lip service to the Arab Spring, Obama outlined how he plans to help -- read manipulate -- the new governments, and then he launched into the "cornerstone" of his vision, which pertains to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, although he referred to it as "the conflict between Israelis and Arabs." That wording is important. It is the obfuscating verbiage that Israel has employed for years in order to lump Palestinians into miscellaneous Arabs, instead of a distinct people native to the Holy Land, being wiped away and swept into other Arab lands. The president dutifully spewed Israeli diplomatic speak or hasbara. And that was just the first sentence on the subject.

In the second sentence, he managed to present Israelis as poor victims living in constant fear for the lives of their children and in pain because, according to Obama, Palestinians teach their children to hate them.

Love of the Land: Rennert - The lengths the Wash. Post will go to ...

In its June 16 edition, the Washington Post runs a major piece in its news section about GOP presidential candidates planning to be no-shows for conservative commentator Glenn Beck's Israel-solidarity rally in Jerusalem on Aug. 24. The four column headline above Rachel Weiner's article on page A2 reads: "Beck's Israel rally hasn't hooked GOP candidates." Question: Does this now portend a new departure in Washington Post journalism -- to give major play to articles exposing errors in other publications around the world? Because if Weiner's piece is a precedent for such undertakings, the Post easily could use up its entire daily news report refuting erroneous articles in other news organs. The Post could be expected to assume the mantle of fact-checker-in-chief for media around the globe. As a starter, I would recommend application of the Weiner precedent to errors aplenty in the New York Times, especially when it comes to Israel. Just one problem -- and it's a huge one -- with this formulation to describe Israel's War of Independence. The Arab-Israeli conflict did not begin after Israel declared its independence in 1948. It began many years before that. The conflict was spawned by the Arab world's determination to prevent creation of a Jewish state in Palestine -- as ordained by the UN in its two-state 1947 partition resolution and previously by the League of Nations; and failing that, to eliminate the nascent Jewish state. I visited Hevron in November 2000 after the outbreak of the Rosh Hashanah War to see what could be done to assist in the face of the growing daily attacks on the community. After returning to work for the community in the summer of 2001, a bond and a love was forged that grows to this day. My wife Melody and I merited to be married at Ma'arat HaMachpela and now host visitors from throughout the world every Shabbat as well as during the week. Our goal, "Time to come Home!

A History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

The Arab-Israeli conflict, a history

History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

The Arab-Israeli conflict, a history

A concise history of the Arab-Israeli conflict