FresnoZionism.org — ציונות פרסנו

I agree: don’t change the Law of Return. But find a way to kick these ugly creatures out.

There are dozens more neo-Nazis in Israel, and police are working on finding them, Israel Police Insp.-Gen. David Cohen said on Monday, two days after police announced they had uncovered a neo-Nazi ring in Petah Tikva composed of former-Soviet Union immigrants.

Public Security Minister Avi Dichter reiterated … that Israel should not hurry to change the Law of Return, which permitted the neo-Nazi youths to enter Israel, and that it was important to examine the matter very carefully. — Jerusalem Post

Germany has laws against neo-Nazi activity. Apparently, Israel does not, since nobody ever expected it. Making the Law of Return more restrictive might not help, and anyway it’s impossible and repellent to investigate the genealogy of prospective immigrants.

I’m hoping that the legal experts can find a way to deport them nevertheless. Imprisoning them will be expensive, and they will be able to recruit other prisoners to their cause.

However it’s done, they need to be removed from Israeli society. There are limits.

Technorati Tags: Israel, Nazis

There’s a great deal of speculation about an incident Thursday, in which Israeli warplanes overflew Syria, at some point flying supersonically, and may have been fired on by Syrian antiaircraft batteries. They apparently jettisoned fuel tanks which landed near the Syrian border with Turkey.

In an interview with the Dubai-based satellite TV channel Al Arabiya, Syrian parliament member Muhammad Habash claimed that Israel launched an attack mission – which failed.

Habash cited the Israeli Air Force’s attack on the Iraqi nuclear plant 26 years ago – which had immediate impact in the Israeli media as soon as the planes landed. If Israel had succeeded in attaining its aims this time too, Habash says, the world would certainly know. — YNet

The truth is probably much simpler.

Syria has recently obtained new antiaircraft systems from Russia. My guess is that the overflight was intended to provoke the Syrians into “lighting up” the radar equipment on these units, at which point the aircraft could collect data on frequencies and other key characteristics, making effective countermeasures possible.

One of the problems that surfaced in the 2006 war was a lack of preparation and intelligence, particularly in the ground forces, which were surprised by the weapons, fortifications, and command and control capabilities of Hezbollah. The IDF is under ‘new management’ now, with a new Chief of Staff, and there is good reason to believe that — like the air force — the ground forces will be well prepared for what they will encounter next time.

Technorati Tags: Israel, Syria, IDF

By Vic Rosenthal

Nothing that I’ve read related to Israel recently has irritated me quite as much as this (“I look at Israel as just another country“):

“I am supposed to feel something towards Israel, but it’s such a mess over there I generally try not to think about it,” says Molly Umberger, a second-year student at Sarah Lawrence College in New York…

“Because I’m Jewish I should have a loyalty to Israel, but I happen to believe both Israel and Palestine made a lot of mistakes, so I’m not 100 percent in favor of what Israel is doing,” says Umberger, the daughter of [Naomi Paiss] the communications director of the New Israel Fund (NIF). But dismay with the situation or even criticism of Israel has not led Umberger to get more involved…

“My connection is not as strong as that of older generations. I feel I’m not as biased. My grandmother believes that no matter what Israel does, it is always right, but I look at it as just another country,” she explains…

“We are Zionist but very progressive,” says [Molly’s mother Naomi] Paiss.”We think it’s important that the NIF perspective be a part of what young students learn when they go to Israel for the first time.”

And what is the NIF perspective?

“Israel is a downer,” says New Israel Fund Director Bruce Temkin. “What people see is the occupation, corruption, a stalled peace process, and they are frustrated and turned off.” Where Israel used to be the central connecting point for identified Jews, today “Israel is a turnoff,” says Temkin.

I’m sorry Temkin is ‘down’ and ‘turned off’, but I wonder what is so special about Israel among the nations that these are the characteristics that so stand out for him?

Consider the US, the UK, France, Russia, etc. (don’t even mention the Arab countries or the PA!) Is there corruption? Are there military adventures, occupations, political problems that won’t go away? Can you say Iraq, Chechnya, Ireland? Rioting by disaffected ‘youths’? The response to hurricane Katrina?

Don’t forget that pre- and post-state Israel is almost unique in being under constant military and terrorist pressure from its neighbors for almost a century, and is now the object of a worldwide campaign of delegitimization whose goal is its destruction. Nevertheless Temkin is ‘turned off’ by occupation, corruption, etc.

The NIF is just another example (albeit a very well-funded and smooth one) of a ‘progressive’ Jewish organization which has internalized the propaganda of the enemies of Israel and as a result is actually working to damage it, not help it.

There is a difference between a Jew who doesn’t believe that everything Israel does is right, and one who thinks that it does not deserve her support.

It is not surprising that Molly Umberger feels as she does. She is simply reacting logically to the message that she has gotten at home, from the ‘progressive’ media, and from most of her teachers in the ‘progressive’ academic milieu.

Technorati Tags: Israel, New Israel Fund

The Washington Post has described a study by psychologist Norbert Schwartz which appears to show that attempts to dispel myths often have exactly the opposite result:

The psychological insights yielded by the research, which has been confirmed in a number of peer-reviewed laboratory experiments, have broad implications for public policy. The conventional response to myths and urban legends is to counter bad information with accurate information. But the new psychological studies show that denials and clarifications, for all their intuitive appeal, can paradoxically contribute to the resiliency of popular myths…

The research also highlights the disturbing reality that once an idea has been implanted in people’s minds, it can be difficult to dislodge. Denials inherently require repeating the bad information, which may be one reason they can paradoxically reinforce it.

Indeed, repetition seems to be a key culprit. Things that are repeated often become more accessible in memory, and one of the brain’s subconscious rules of thumb is that easily recalled things are true. [my emphasis]

So, the researchers suggest that the best way to counter a myth is to present opposing information without denying the original incorrect statement. Instead of saying “Saddam didn’t attack the US on 9/11, Osama bin Laden did”, one should say “Osama bin Laden was the one who attacked the US on 9/11”.

The article goes on to discuss some persistent myths:

…many in the Arab world [and not just the Arab world! — ed] are convinced that the destruction of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11 was not the work of Arab terrorists but was a controlled demolition; that 4,000 Jews working there had been warned to stay home that day; and that the Pentagon was struck by a missile rather than a plane.

The keys to making something memorable are repetition and emotional content. Probably a classic case of effective propaganda that has made use of these is the case of the ‘killing’ of 10-year old Mohammad al-Durah. Evidence may shortly be forced to light which will establish that not only was al-Durah not shot by Israelis, but rather that the entire incident was staged (see Joanna Chandler, The Al-Durah Hoax). But even if this is demonstrated conclusively, the effect on worldwide perceptions will be minimal.

Indeed, the Schwartz research indicates that discussing the hoax to refute it may only embed it more firmly in people’s minds!

Technorati Tags: propaganda, memory, al-Durah