I am not at all surprised at Blair jumping on that particular wagon, but conversely, I do believe that Howard is made of a somewhat different cloth. That’s why I find the placement of the second set of quotation marks in the following sentence particularly puzzling:
“Far more importantly … let us intensify our efforts towards a sustainable and just solution to the Palestinian issue,” which is fueling anti-Western sentiment among Muslims, Howard said.
Or is it just me?
November 15, 2006 at 10:00 am |
If Muslims had wanted the palis well cared for over the last 50 years, they could easily have absorbed them into their own ranks (of what? 1 billion) rather than leaving them to languish as political footballs. Islam is leaving the palis hanging becuase it allows for easy formentation of rage.
November 15, 2006 at 2:10 pm |
It’s not just you.
In this part of the world anti-Semitic speech hidden under “anti-Zionism” is becoming common amongst the latte’ slurping crowd to such a degree that people are doing it without even seeing it as a problem.
Seems to have filtered all the way up.
Of course in NZ it filtered down from the top so it was a lot faster.
November 15, 2006 at 2:17 pm |
At the rate things are going, I’ll have to hurry to get my attic finished off as livable space – I have a lot of friends who will need it.
November 15, 2006 at 3:55 pm |
I think its just you Murray with a bit of editing of his words from the reporter .
In that article Howard is his usual self telling it like it is.
Here are his quoted words ““Far more importantly … let us intensify our efforts towards a sustainable and just solution to the Palestinian issue,”
and here is the reporters paraphrase of the rest of the sentence: which is fueling anti-Western sentiment among Muslims.
A very old trick.
When the full text of the speech is posted we can see what he actually said. Probably tommorrow
November 15, 2006 at 3:57 pm |
Looking again I see some words have been ommitted from the quoted section as well.
Lets wait and see what the full sentence was. Probably be very interesting to compare.
November 15, 2006 at 4:37 pm |
Just me Andrei?
Who wrote the post?
November 15, 2006 at 5:17 pm |
Mea culpa Murray.
I misread what you meant by this post. Re reading you were highlighting the selective editing.
November 15, 2006 at 5:36 pm |
Andrei, it is my post, not Murray’s. I guess I should shave more often…
November 15, 2006 at 5:37 pm |
Are the Joos what you blame when you don’t have a labour govamint?
November 16, 2006 at 5:51 am |
According to the MSM, anything that happens which they do not like is the fault of George Bush, or the Jews, or both (with a minor supporting role assigned to Christian Evangelicals and/or Fundamentalists, also known as the “Christian Taliban”). It is so prevelant that the rare departure from such a meta-narrative is notable.
November 16, 2006 at 4:01 pm |
Well maybe I can get something right on this thread.
Here is the paragraph from John Howards speech from which the quote was extracted.
“By all means let us talk to countries such as Syria and Iran, but let us do so with a realistic mindset about the motivation and the behaviour of those countries. Far more importantly my friends and not withstanding the difficulties and the setbacks of recent times, let us again intensify our efforts towards a sustainable and just solution to the Palestinian issue. Wherever one goes in the Muslim world and whenever one talks to moderate Islamic leaders such as Yudhoyono and Musharraf who are so vital to the struggle against Islamic extremism, there is a legitimate desire for a lasting settlement to this issue. Any settlement must of course be fundamentally based on a secure Israel behind internationally accepted borders and free at last from the constant harassment that it has endured for decades. Second, it must establish a viable and independent state for the Palestinian people. But above all of this, let us remember where Australia’s long term national interest lies. A weaker America, a withdrawn America, would significantly change the power dynamics in our own region to the detriment of Australia. A strong and engaged America is essential to dealing with all our regional security challenges, not least the nuclear brinkmanship of North Korea. In a recent speech I listed the basic goals of Australian foreign policy that have remained remarkably stable and effective in our relatively short history as a nation state.”
For the love of me I cannot find anything approaching the unquoted bit in his words.
November 16, 2006 at 5:39 pm |
“Any settlement must of course be fundamentally based on a secure Israel behind internationally accepted borders”
Which is why if you are being realistic you can’t talk to these states as their only requirement is the destruction of Israel. No conversation is possible under these conditions.
Don’t have a go at me about it, ask them, they will tell you.
November 17, 2006 at 12:44 am |
I do hope that Howard is not getting mealy mouthed about Israel as Blair has done. We need to be as strong a supporter of Israel as any other time.
November 17, 2006 at 5:42 am |
The Israeli/Arab conflict should not have even figured in Howard’s speech, or any other speech that deals with the war in Iraq, for that matter. Still, he did bring it up, although not directly connecting it to the subject at hand, as Blair did (which was my original point).
BTW, Murray, if you ask them, being a Westerner, they will lie through their teeth, as they always do, and as there are always more than enough fools/antisemites who are eager to believe them.
November 17, 2006 at 8:29 am |
Alisa is absolutely corect here. Islam promotes lying to infidels (when it is to Muslim advantage to do so). Ignore everything said in English and to Westerners. You can only go by what they say in Arabic (Farsi, etc.) for home consumption.
November 20, 2006 at 6:53 pm |
Maybe this brings a little comfort Alisa
From the Australian Ambassador to the UN when voting against the quadrillionth condemnation of Israel in the UN
” ROBERT HILL (Australia), noting his country’s commitment to a just, lasting and comprehensive solution to the Middle East conflict, said he supported a two-State solution that recognized the legitimate aspirations of Palestinians and Israelis to live in peace within secure and recognized borders, in accordance with Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973). Australia was concerned at the escalating violence since the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier by Palestinian militants in June, and called on all sides to avoid actions that would lead to further violence.
Recognizing Israel’s right to self defence against terrorist attacks, he called for the halting of rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel. As neither the resumption of the emergency special session, nor a proliferation of resolutions would help to create peace in the Middle East, he also encouraged the General Assembly to address issues in a balanced manner. Singling out one side only for blame in a complex situation was a useless endeavour.
The key to reviving the Middle East peace process was for the Palestinian Government to renounce violence and recognize Israel, he said. Australia strongly supported continued efforts for peace and would look for practical ways to contribute new initiatives.”
Which is not mealy mouthed in the least.
I am embarressed about what Helen’s representative said but if you really want to know my post on the matter is here and her weasel words are posted
http://www.sirhumphreys.com/andrei/2006/nov/19/un_condemms_israel_yet_again
November 20, 2006 at 11:59 pm |
Yes, it does, to some extent, although it is all relative, as they say. “To address issues in a balanced manner”? What is there to balance? They started, we responded. “…the legitimate aspirations of Palestinians and Israelis to live in peace within secure and recognized borders”? Are there really such aspirations on the Palestinian side? Call me extremist, but I really do expect any decent person to take an unapologetically pro-Israel stance vis a vis this conflict. Besides, what really puzzles me are the continuous attempts to bring the said conflict into any discussion about any problem anywhere Arabs/Muslims are concerned. And don’t even start me on Helen. All I can say is that I truly sympathize with you, and hope that your compatriots have enough sense and self respect to kick her out sooner than later.