These 83 US Senators did not wake up one morning and say, "Gee, what
the US needs to do is to shuffle off another pile of money to help
Israel defend Freedom in the Middle East."
Somehow they heard the twiddling of the pipers, playing the favorite
tunes of the duly elected Senators. The words to that tune go
something like, "There is money in my campaign war chest if I back old
Israel. And all the Jews in my district will sing praises to me. And
when the election comes and goes, I'll still be sitting here. And I
can tell you from long years of experience that the American Workers
will never miss a dime of the money we take from them." And by the
way, not that any senator would be suicidal enough to suggest it, but
just try taking money away from the Pentagon and see what happens.
I swear that our American Oligarchy has been taken over by a bloodless
coup by the Pentagon.
Carl Jarvis
On 4/29/16, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
++++++++
Haaretz April 28, 2016
ABOUT 83 U.S.SENATORS VOTING TO INCREASE ISRAEL'S YEARLY ASSISTANCE!!!
America's 83 Ignoramuses Are Enabling Destruction by Israel
http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.716703
HAARETZ - By Gideon Levy - The 83 U.S. senators who urged the president to
increase military assistance to Israel are 83 ignoramuses and their letter
is a disgrace. Israel of all countries? Military assistance of all needs?
Increasing military aid won't add one iota of security to Israel, which is
armed to the teeth. It will harm Israel. Those 83 out of 100 senators base
their extraordinary demand on "Israel's dramatically rising defense
challenges."
What are they talking about? What "rising challenges"? The rise in the use
of kitchen knives as a deal-breaking weapon in the Middle East? The
challenge for one of the world's strongest armies to survive against young
girls brandishing scissors? Hamas' tunnels in the sand? Hezbollah, which is
bleeding in Syria? Iran, which has taken a new path?
It's time they expanded their narrow view and reduced the enormous aid they
shower on Israel's arms industry - one of the world's largest weapons
exporters - and its army.
The United States is allowed, of course, to waste its money as it sees fit.
But one may ask, senators, if it makes sense to invest more fantastic sums
to arm a military power when tens of millions of Americans still have no
health insurance and your senate is tightening its purse strings despite
the
challenges of climate change.
A world power is arming a regional power as part of a corrupt, rotten deal.
Your money, senators, is largely being spent on maintaining a brutal,
illegal occupation that your country claims to oppose - but finances.
The weapons you provide are for a brazen state that dares defy America more
than any of its allies does. It ignores America's advice and even
humiliates
its president. It gets twice the aid you give Egypt, an ally that needs the
money much more. It's three times more than you give Afghanistan, which is
devastated in part because of you.
It's almost four times more than you give Jordan, which is in a precarious
state due to refugees and the Islamic State. To Vietnam, which you
destroyed, you gave $121 million, and to Laos, which you ruined, $15
million. Impoverished Liberia received $156 million and awakening,
liberated
South Africa $490 million.
But for Israel, even $3 billion a year isn't enough. It gets more than any
other country in the world yet insists on $4 billion, not a cent less,
including an unconditional commitment for a decade.
If you've already decided to pour such huge sums on Israel, why on its army
of all things? Have you seen what its hospitals look like? And if you're
financing weapons, why not condition it on the only democracy in the
region's appropriate behavior?
What do you have over there in the world's most important legislature? An
automatic signing machine for letters supporting Israel? An ATM for the
Jewish lobby's every whim?
Only 17 of 100 senators were courageous enough, or bothered to think for a
moment, before they signed another scandalous venture by AIPAC and the
Israeli Embassy.
More money to arm Israel will end in blood. It must end in blood. There are
old weapons that must be used and new weapons that must be tried (and then
sold to Azerbaijan and Ivory Coast).
This destructive, murderous force will fall again on devastated houses in
Gaza, and America will finance it all once again. The money will also
corrupt Israel. If this is the prize for its refusal to make peace and its
flouting of international law, why shouldn't it behave this way? Uncle Sam
will pay.
The senators who signed the letter didn't act for either their country's
good or Israel's. It's doubtful whether they know what they signed. It's
doubtful whether they know what the real situation is.
Maybe among them are people of conscience or people familiar with their
country's national interests. But the blood money will serve neither those
interests nor morality
