georgephillip
Diamond Member
- Dec 27, 2009
- 43,922
- 5,271
Uri Avnery has lived in Palestine longer than John Kerry's been alive. He served in Irgun as a teenager, fought in Israel's '48 War of Independence, and was elected to Israel's Knesset in 1965.
Avnery has a question for Kerry: in whose favor are you neutral?
"Lenin, in his Swiss exile, once inquired about the party affiliation of a newly elected member of the Duma. 'Oh, he is just a fool!' his assistant asserted. Lenin answered impatiently: 'A fool in favor of whom?'
"I am tempted to pose a similar question about people touted to be neutral in our conflict: 'Neutral in favor of whom?'
"The question came to my mind when I saw an Israeli documentary about the US intermediaries who have tried over the last 40 years or so to broker peace between the Palestinians and us.
"For some reason, most of them were Jews.
"I am sure that all of them were loyal American citizens, who would have been sincerely offended by any suggestion that they served a foreign country, such as Israel.
"They honestly felt themselves to be neutral in our conflict.
"But were they neutral?
"Are they?
"Can they be?
My answer is: No, they couldnt."
Neutral ? in Whose Favor? » CounterPunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names
The violence in the Middle East is spiraling out of control, and Israel's treatment of Palestinians drives much of it. Without neutral peacemakers in Palestine, the next Great War could easily begin there.
Avnery has a question for Kerry: in whose favor are you neutral?
"Lenin, in his Swiss exile, once inquired about the party affiliation of a newly elected member of the Duma. 'Oh, he is just a fool!' his assistant asserted. Lenin answered impatiently: 'A fool in favor of whom?'
"I am tempted to pose a similar question about people touted to be neutral in our conflict: 'Neutral in favor of whom?'
"The question came to my mind when I saw an Israeli documentary about the US intermediaries who have tried over the last 40 years or so to broker peace between the Palestinians and us.
"For some reason, most of them were Jews.
"I am sure that all of them were loyal American citizens, who would have been sincerely offended by any suggestion that they served a foreign country, such as Israel.
"They honestly felt themselves to be neutral in our conflict.
"But were they neutral?
"Are they?
"Can they be?
My answer is: No, they couldnt."
Neutral ? in Whose Favor? » CounterPunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names
The violence in the Middle East is spiraling out of control, and Israel's treatment of Palestinians drives much of it. Without neutral peacemakers in Palestine, the next Great War could easily begin there.
