Dive into the archives.
- It All Makes So Much Sense Now
The New York Times has all but confirmed to The Electronic Intifada (EI) that the son of its Jerusalem bureau chief Ethan Bronner was recently inducted into the Israeli army. Over the weekend, EI received a tip suggesting this had been the case and wrote to Bronner to ask him to confirm or deny the [...]
- Washington’s Record
My captors harbored many delusions about Westerners. But I also saw how some of the consequences of Washington’s antiterrorism policies had galvanized the Taliban. Commanders fixated on the deaths of Afghan, Iraqi and Palestinian civilians in military airstrikes, as well as the American detention of Muslim prisoners who had been held for years without being [...]
- Editorializing in the NYT
The council has a long history of focusing on Israel, while ignoring human rights abuses in other member states like China and Saudi Arabia. (full article…)
- The NYT Always Gives Israel the Final Word
By the Israeli military’s count, 1,166 people were killed in the war: 295 noncombatants, 709 of what it called Hamas terrorist operatives, and 162 men whose affiliations remain undetermined. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights in Gaza said 1,417 died: 926 civilians, 236 combatants and 255 police officers. Israel says about 400 Gazans die of [...]
- Heckuva Job, Barack
True, Obama didn’t ask for this. It was obvious, from his halting delivery and slightly shamefaced air last Friday, that he wishes the Nobel committee hadn’t put him in this spot. But he still wasn’t brave enough to tell it no. (full article…)
- What?
Offsetting the need for reform is a deep Mediterranean resignation (full article…)
- Standards of the NYT
After the June 28 coup, President Obama joined the region in condemning the action and calling for President Zelaya to be returned to power, even though the Honduran president is an ally of Mr. Chávez, America’s biggest adversary in the region. (full article…) In an article discussing the $400,000 being spent by the coup regime [...]
- Déjà Vu
Not all are persuaded. Glenn Greenwald, an author and a left-leaning blogger for the online magazine Salon, called the parallels with the charges that Iraq had so-called weapons of mass destruction in 2002 “substantial and disturbing.” “The administration is making inflammatory claims about another country’s W.M.D. program and intentions without providing any evidence,” he said. [...]
- Surprising… But You Wouldn’t Realize This By Reading the NYT
Most Iranians express acceptance of the outcome of the Presidential election. Eighty-one percent say they consider Ahmadinejad to be Iran’s legitimate president, and 62 percent say they have a lot of confidence in the declared election results, while 21 percent say they have some confidence. Just 13 percent say they do not have much confidence [...]
- We Thought We Could Get Away With It
They expected the military operation to be condemned as grossly disproportionate. They expected Israel to be lambasted for not taking sufficient care to avoid civilian casualties. But they never imagined that the report would accuse the Jewish state of intentionally aiming at civilians. (full article…)
- This is “Change”
The two candidates’ starkly different reactions to that ruling was supposed to underscore one of the true differences between them: that Obama, the Constitutional Law Professor, would insist on adherence to core Constitutional liberties even while prosecuting the War on Terror, but McCain wouldn’t. Yet here we are, barely more than a year later, and [...]
- Every Crime Recorded
The report, the bulk of which focused on the Israeli violations, said that during the war, Israeli forces engaged in a deliberate policy of collective punishment in furtherance of “an overall and continuing policy aimed at punishing the Gaza population” through blockades and the destruction of food, water and sanitation systems of its people. In [...]
- In the NYT Letters Section
The only real solution %u2014 one that replaces the profit motive with actually keeping us healthy and operates in most civilized nations on the planet %u2014 has already been taken off the negotiating table by our government-corporate plutocracy, and that is a single-payer system.(more…)
- This is American Capitalism
Despite a recession that knocked down global arms sales last year, the United States expanded its role as the world’s leading weapons supplier, increasing its share to more than two-thirds of all foreign armaments deals, according to a new Congressional study. The United States signed weapons agreements valued at $37.8 billion in 2008, or 68.4 [...]
- Zionism is Racism
The message to President Obama, he said, is that this is Jewish land. He did not use the president’s name, but an insulting Hebrew slang for a black man and the phrase “that Arab they call a president.” (more…)
- The Western Press Justifies the Overthrow of Democracy
They removed him over fears that he was trying to undermine the Constitution and extend his tenure. (more…)
- (Baseless) Statements from the NYT
He made no mention of American troops in a nationally televised speech, even though nearly 130,000 remain in the country; most had already pulled back from Iraq’s cities before Tuesday’s deadline. The excitement, however, has rung hollow for many Iraqis, who fear that their country’s security forces are not ready to stand alone and who [...]
- The Western Press Justifies the Overthrow of Democracy
Mr. Zelaya, who took office in 2006, has moved steadily to the left during his presidency, railing increasingly against the country’s elite, who he says have opposed his politics of inclusion. Critics accuse Mr. Zelaya, who comes from a well-off family of landowners, of blatant populism and of doling out cash to try to solidify [...]
- Training the Proxy Occupation
The U.S. Congress recently approved additional funding for the training in Jordan of three more battalions of the Palestinian national security force, and by the end of the year the Palestinian Authority will have a total of seven battalions at its disposal whose training was supervised by the Americans. (more…) Notice that Isabel Kershner’s report [...]
- Friedman Pulls Facts Out of Thin Air (Again)
Hamas is facing an energized Fatah in the West Bank and is increasingly unpopular in Gaza. (more…) I know it may come as a surprise to Thomas Friedman but unpopular as Hamas may be, Abu Mazen and Fatah are even more unpopular. Friedman’s use of the word “energized” simply means “U.S./Israeli-trained proxies”. But that doesn’t [...]
- Thomas Friedman’s Standards
Third, the Bush team opened a hole in the wall of Arab autocracy but did a poor job following through. In the vacuum, the parties most organized to seize power were the Islamists — Hezbollah in Lebanon; pro-Al Qaeda forces among Iraqi Sunnis, and the pro-Iranian Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and Mahdi Army among [...]
- The Brilliant Political Analysis of Thomas Friedman
At first, this dialogue took place primarily through violence. Liberated from Saddam’s iron fist, each Iraqi community tested its strength against the others, saying in effect: “Show me what you got, baby.” (more…)
- Friedman the Funnyman
During a telephone interview Tuesday with President Obama about his speech to Arabs and Muslims in Cairo on Thursday, I got to tell the president my favorite Middle East joke. It gave him a good laugh. (more…) I’ll say it again: I can’t stand Thomas Friedman.
- Terrorists the NYT Can Appreciate
Pre-State Jewish Underground Leader Dies.
- Cheney Grabs a Third Term
“The punks thought they could roll over us,” Vice mutters. “Nobody puts Baby in a corner.” (more…)
- Humanizing Ethnic Cleansing
“An old man sat with his back to the village — he could not bear to watch it burn,” said Yisrael Cohen, a Jewish militia officer, recalling the conquest of an Arab village. “From a burning courtyard a young boy came running to me laughing; he wanted to play. He came up and I took [...]
- NYT Image Selection
Wrong. Instead, they went with a poetic Getty image: little children peaking over a little wall. How enchanting! (more…)
- From the NYT Letters Section
I find it hard to believe that a man as intelligent as Mr. Obama, who once taught constitutional law, would equate the pursuit of justice with retribution. It makes it appear as if his decision is one of political expediency. If holding the C.I.A. operatives accountable for violating federal or international laws is retribution, then [...]
- Noam Chomsky: “Exterminate All the Brutes”
On Saturday December 27, the latest US-Israeli attack on helpless Palestinians was launched. The attack had been meticulously planned, for over 6 months according to the Israeli press. The planning had two components: military and propaganda. It was based on the lessons of Israel’s 2006 invasion of Lebanon, which was considered to be poorly planned [...]
- Obama Wants More
Thousands of tribesmen on Saturday attended the funeral prayers of the victims of Friday’s drone attacks in the North and South Waziristan Agencies. They condemned the killings and asked US President Barack Obama to spend the money on the welfare of the tribal people instead of killing them with sophisticated weapons. . . They claimed [...]
- Spoiled Crybabies
Branding foreign journalists “spoiled crybabies” unwilling to make “a little effort” to get into Gaza during Operation Cast Lead, Government Press Office head Danny Seaman denied Sunday there had been any ban on their entry into the Strip during the battle. (more…) Just like an Israeli propaganda chief to call the international media “crybabies” while [...]
- This is What Passes as Political Analysis in the U.S.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. “Guy walks into a bar …” No, not that one — this one: “This is the most critical year ever for Palestinian-Israeli diplomacy. It is five minutes to midnight. If we don’t get diplomacy back on track soon, it will be the end of the two-state solution.” [...]
- Bill Moyers Expresses His Ignorance on the Middle East
I do believe that the violence in the Middle East has roots deep in history, and in the competition of the three monotheistic faiths, each of which claims divine title to much of the same land. (more…) Oh really Mr. Moyers? The conflict is religious is it? It has nothing to do with decades of [...]
- Long Live the Tunnels
“Everybody’s busy rebuilding now,” said a manager of one digging team. “In a month, it will be back to normal.” (more…)
- An Extension of Israel
Look at New York City. Look at the major newspapers. They have a Zionist agenda. They do. I’m not Jewish. I’m not anything. I don’t care about the Israelis. And I’m not anti-Semitic. It’s just a fact. I suggested to my publisher writing a book on Israel, and he said forget it. You can’t talk [...]
- Victims of Zionism
In Gaza, Ms. Abu Halima said that when her family was hit, “fire came from the bodies of my husband and my children.” “The children were screaming, ‘Fire! Fire!’ and there was smoke everywhere and a horrible, suffocating smell,” she said. “My 14-year-old cried out, ‘I’m going to die. I want to pray.’ I saw [...]
- What You Won’t Read in the New York Times
“We will not give up. In the next Knesset we will pass the Citizenship Law, which will put a border on the disloyalty of some of the Israeli Arabs,” he added. (more…)
- Israeli Propaganda (Courtesy of the New York Times)
The Israeli government’s stated war goals were relatively modest: to reduce Hamas’s ability and will to fire rockets and to change the security equation in the south. (more…) Isabel Kershner really takes the cake when it comes to waving the Israeli flag for the New York Times. I mean, Steven Erlanger and Ethan Bronner are [...]
- Angry Arab on Steven Erlanger
I am not sure whether the top Israeli propaganda award should go to Steven Elranger or Ethan Bronner or Isabel Kershner of the Times. I mean all three did their best to explain and justifiy Israeli crimes against Palestinian civilians. Look at this article by Erlanger: “Whatever the military and political results of Israel’s 21-day [...]
- Israeli Propaganda (Courtesy of the New York Times)
Steven Erlanger, in a particularly appalling article, excuses Israel’s grotesque behavior in Gaza. He no longer even attempts to justify his reporting of Israeli allegations as fact; he simply accepts it all verbatim: “Hamas fighters are also putting civilians at undue risk by storing weapons among them, including in mosques, schools and allegedly hospitals, too, [...]
- Angry Arab on Isabel Kershner of the NYT
There is something called “war propaganda” and the New York Times has proven that it is more than ever an arm of the Israeli terrorist propaganda. Isabel Kershner is one of many propagandists for Israeli terrorism in the New York Times. Just look at this passage: “But Israel tightened the military pressure on Hamas on [...]
- Steven Erlanger is Shocked… SHOCKED!
And the Israelis, too, are resorting to tricks. (more…) Apparently only the morally depraved evil-doers of Hamas are expected to use booby traps. Erlanger’s morally superior Israelis have resorted to trickery… It’s almost as if he believes trickery is something new to Israeli tactics in the Occupied Territories.
- A Headline You Would Never See in the New York Times
How Israel Gets Away With Murder
- Israeli Propaganda (Courtesy of the New York Times)
Before boarding my flight this morning, I picked up a copy of the New York Times (I had forgotten what a strange printing dimension it is – very narrow) and discovered this picture adorning the front page: According to the caption, the image depicts, “Soldiers rested on the Israeli side of the border with Gaza [...]
- Israeli Propaganda (Courtesy of the New York Times)
Most notably, after more than eight days of Israeli bombing and Hamas rocket launching in Gaza, The New York Times had produced exactly one editorial, not a single commentary by any of its columnists, and only two op-eds (one already published elsewhere). The editorial, several days ago, did argue against the wisdom of a ground [...]
- Found in the NYT Letters Section
To the Editor: If Israel feels threatened these days, imagine how the Palestinians feel (“Why Israel Feels Threatened,” by Benny Morris, Op-Ed, Dec. 30). Gaza is a virtual prison, and the West Bank is on its way to being chopped up into apartheid-like cantons. Palestinians inside of Israel do not enjoy full citizenship and are [...]
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One excellent way to show your concern for wounded veterans is not to make so many of them. (more…) The New York Times didn’t seem to mind going to war at the time, but now they are a paragon of pacifism.
- Jeremy Scahill: Obama Doesn’t Plan to End the Iraq Occupation
The New York Times is reporting about an “apparent evolution” in president-elect Barack Obama’s thinking on Iraq, citing his recent statements about his plan to keep a “residual force” in the country and his pledge to “listen to the recommendations of my commanders” as Obama prepares to assume actual command of US forces. “At the [...]
