More N J blog + Homage to Dana Milbank

"A blue-and-white Israeli flag hung from Blair House. Across Pennsylvania Avenue, the Stars and Stripes was in its usual place atop the White House. But to capture the real significance of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's visit with President Obama, White House officials might have instead flown the white flag of surrender."  Milbank

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/06/AR2010070604005.html

http://security.nationaljournal.com/2010/07/what-is-netanyahus-strategy.php

Comments

[N M Salamon]

The recent meeting of N and the President is a clear exampole of WHY THEY HATE US!

Yet another example, this from Afganistan is clearly depicted at:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/LG08Df01.html

Some more useless cover-up by the USA forces.

[J]

Colonel,

"So on Tuesday, Obama, routed and humiliated by his Israeli counterpart, invited Netanyahu back to the White House for what might be called the Oil of Olay Summit: It was all about saving face.

Obama caving to the crafty lunatic Bibi with his AIPAC lobby hoard shames U.S..

How do we wrest our nation from the grasps of the Israel/AIPAC hoard to where once again U.S. policy is driven by U.S. interests, NOT the interests of a Foreign Power? Change the laws where the actions of AIPAC and such ilk are illegal and declared 'treason' which is it? That won't happen as both the Republicans and Democrats have been bought like common street prostitutes by the AIPAC/Israel Lobby with the direction and assistance of the Israeli government. Use deadly force to route the AIPAC hoard? Those that try that will be hunted down by the Israeli Kidon hunting dogs with the assistance of their sayanim networks and partners like the SPLC/ADL etc.. The JCS/DOD arrest the White House/Congress under Article 25 until the whole mess can be straightened out and the guilty parties tried for the treason? The generals love their gravy trains too much.

We the ordinary U.S. citizen are screwed, until the Congress can be cleaned out of those who put the interests of a foreign power ahead of U.S..

We're screwed, Israeli style!

[Fred]

The protester quoted by Dana Milbank is right, Obama looks like a 'wus'. Who's the superpower? Does Obama really think the jewish vote will all go to Palin/Romney/Jindall or whoever is nominated two years from now? That's half an term away. Perhaps he should at least follow Bush's example and not give a damn about 'bi-partisanship'. Bush at least got his agenda passed. Where's that backbone in standing up to US interests?

[Thomas]

"and then he declined to say that Israel should extend a moratorium on settlements that expires in September."

Dana Milbank 7/6/10

"The Arab world has given Obama until September to get things done," said Turki. "It is not enough to talk the talk. He has to walk the walk. "If he does not succeed... then I (will) ask President Obama to do the morally decent gesture and recognise the Palestinian state that he so ardently wishes to exist. "He can then pack up and leave us in peace and let the Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese negotiate directly with the Israelis. No more platitudes and good wishes and visions, please."

Turki al-Faisal 5/15/10

An interesting Autumn awaits.

[N M Salamon]

Colonel:
any ideas on this:

http://www.welovecostarica.com/public/46_US_Warships_Plus_7000_US_Marines_On_Route_To_Costa_Rica.cfm

thanks

[N M Salamon]

Americans and Congress disagree on Israel;

Hasbarapocalypse — Leaked Frank Luntz memo:
Israeli public diplomacy in US on Flotilla failed dismally

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25883.htm

[Roy G]

Wow, Obama is Bibi's bitch. Sorry to be so bald, but that's the best way to put it.

Still, the world is getting bigger, and this only serves to drag down American influence. The Lobby doesn't work in Europe, Russia, China or Turkey.

[Fred]

NMS

There seemed to be no problem in the rest of the OAS with Unitas 2010. Here's one report on it.
http://www.public.navy.mil/usff/CSG2/Pages/MemphisReturnsfromSuccessfulExercises.aspx

I was on Unitas 25 in the '80s. My best friend on board the USS Scamp met his future wife in Lima when we were on liberty.
Though I doubt the US has 2 regiments of marines available all at once for an anti-narcotics deployment, I'm sure the spending from 10,000+ service members on liberty won't hurt Costa Rica's economy at all. Maybe they can send 46 ships to Detroit for a few weeks.

[Walrus]

I'm going out on a limb to say that this is not going to end well. I am getting that feeling we are living a Tom Clancy novel again because we have a number of plot elements converging shortly.

The first element is that Obama is now firmly under Israeli control until the November elections.

The second is that according to the Iranians, the Bushehr reactor is scheduled to go critical in September. Once this is on line, I don't believe it can be bombed without risking serious radioactive consequences, but I stand to be corrected.

I assume the Israelis are watching the Russians for any sign of the start of fueling operations.

http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8904161495

The Third is the question of Americas economy. Smarter people than me, who have been right about global economic developments since they started forecasting in 2006, believe that America has yet to encounter the full force of the perfect economic storm created by its financial profligacy and borrowing requirements. That hits in 2011 or maybe sooner, it's the "double dip" recession (translation: beginning of major depression) you are starting to hear about right now.

When that hits America, deep cuts in defence expenditure are going to be necessary. That is why Iraq and Afghanistan must stop soon - you can't afford them. American ability to influence events in the Gulf (including "pacifying" a bellicose Iran) has to wane, unless the Saudis will pay for it.

http://www.leap2020.eu/English_r25.html

The Fourth element, in my opinion anyway, is that AIPAC is a wasting asset unless control over the message can be reasserted by controlling the availability and content of internet news and opinion.

The international reaction to the "Cast Lead" and "Mavi Mamara" events, and the adoption of passive resistance techniques by the Palestinians all demonstrate that Israel is losing the information war to the Palestinians and their citizen journalist Western supporters.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/naomi-klein/blinding-the-witnesses_b_600773.html

http://coteret.com/2010/07/05/hasbarapocalypse-leaked-frank-luntz-memo-israeli-public-diplomacy-in-us-on-flotilla-failed-dismally/

The Israeli response to this (via the likes of Lieberman) is to try an assert American Government and corporate control of the internet to try to silence citizen journalists and opinion leaders (dare I say it) Col. Pat Lang, Phil Wiess, Glen Greenwald and others.

This is what that "internet kill switch", "Net neutrality" and citizenship stripping is really about;

http://www.zdnet.com.au/internet-kill-switch-proposed-for-us-339303838.htm

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2010/05/how_liebermans_citizen-strippi.html

If the Israelis can't win this war, it's only going to get worse for them, especially if Iran successfully mounts an information campaign. That would mean that at some point advocating the Israeli position is going to be impossible for AIPAC and it's minions without exposing oneself to the charge of massive pro Israel bias. They made an example of Helen Thomas, they can't do it to everyone.

International and Domestic public opinion is not working in Israels favor and it's going to get worse.

At some stage America is going to have to address the dual loyalty issue in the current and future Administrations, purge the public service and make AIPAC and its associates register as agents of Israel.

My view is that Netanyahu is going to make a grab for everything he can get as soon as possible, trusting, like the Japanese, that some accommodation can be negotiated after an attack on Iran and the expulsion of the Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza to satisfy the "Greater Israel" agenda.

[Walrus]

When does the harvest come in in Israel?

[Jackie]

My question is, did Obama have to take a shower after meeting with Yahoo? I know I would have had to. Does anyone think at some point Israel will overplay their hand and everyone will get disgusted with them and turn away?

Col.,
How is the little guy doing today? Sorry about his manhood, but it might be for the best if they were testosterone fueled tumors.

[Castellio]

But wouldn't Bibi be right, Walrus? Can't an "accommodation" be reached after an attack on Iran and the expulsion of the Palestinians? I think the US would be quick to approve such an accommodation, rapidly followed by U.K., Canada, France, etc.

Israel has grown since 1947 (and before) by grabbing the opportunity, why not grab this one as well? What's different?

[Patrick Lang]

Jackie

Ashby is a tough little dude. He looked little unhappy last night and grumbled a bit, but today his appetite is good and he looks better. He is 12, but Norwich Terriers often live to 15 or 16 and we hope to keep him around for a while. We will not let him suffer without reason. thanks. pat

[Patrick Lang]

Anon

You need to be more specific. Talking about what? pl

[The beaver]

Israeli Top Secret base : Interesting :-)

http://www.themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=29322

[J]

The Beaver,

See:

http://directoryofjoliet.com/blog/israeli-top-secret-military-base-exposed-on-facebook

second half of the article:

" Sdot HaElla (Ella Fields), also known in the Israeli military as Kanaf 2, Sdot Micha and Beit Zachariah, is an Israeli Air Force base located 28 miles south of Tel-Aviv near the towns of Sdot Micha and Zachariah.

The group, named after the base, is accessible to anyone surfing the web and is advertised using the Hebrew expression “There things hidden from us, which we will never know or understand.”

“Give respect,” the group’s description reads. “The group with the most quality serving people on Facebook.”

To see any further content, and the list of 265 members, a visitor must request to join the group and be approved by its administrators.

A reporter for the Israeli daily Yedioth Aharonot was accepted to the group without his identity being cross checked against a list of base veterans. He copied a number of the posts on the group’s wall.

“Guys, we were privileged to get to be in this fantastic place,” wrote one member. “Keep in touch and protect the secret.”

“Whoever didn’t experience this place missed out a lot in his life, that’s for sure,” wrote another.

While the participants uploaded many photos of themselves inside the base, potentially damaging photos of soldiers doing sensitive work was not found on the group’s Facebook page and several members posted reminders on the group’s wall not to upload sensitive material.

The Sdot HaElla base is home to the 150th, 199th and 248th squadrons and is believed to be equipped with nuclear-tipped Jericho ballistic missiles.

The base is located just south of the Sorek River between Kiriat-Gat and Beit-Shemesh, a few miles southwest of the Tel Nof Air Base, which a number of military analysts have also alleged is a storage site for Israeli nuclear weapons.

Built in a limestone region, an extensive network of tunnels and hollowed out emplacements at Sdot HaElla are believed to house a number of nuclear-tipped missiles. Globalsecurity.org, a defense analysis firm, estimates that the base has 23 to 50 hardened missile shelters capable of supporting operational Jericho-2 missiles, which have a range of at least 1,500 kilometers. A Jericho-2 was test fired from the base in December 1990, just before the Gulf War.

The base also may hold a series of Jericho-1 missiles, which were developed in the 1960s and have a range of over 450 kilometers, although it is possible these missiles have been decommissioned.

Sdot HaElla also houses extensive munitions, likely as a support for the nearby Tel Nof base. The two bases are rumored to be connected underground. There are also rumors that the base is connected to a missile factory in Beer Yaakov by a secret, underground railroad running along the Sorek River.

The airspace above Sedot Micha and the surrounding area is closed to commercial air traffic.

Much of the publicly available intelligence on the base depends on satellite photos taken in 2002 by the commercial satellite Ikonos, as well as photos from the American spy satellite Corona, and released by the CIA after the Federation of American Scientists used the United States’ Freedom of Information Act to win access to them.

Commercial satellite imagery of almost any point on the planet can be purchased on the open market. However, Israel has convinced the US and Russia to use a special patch that prevents American and Russian companies from selling satellite images of Israel at a resolution of less than two feet, meaning close-up satellite photography of Israel often seems blurred.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, an Israeli soldier intimately involved in the army’s cyber operations said the group is one example of many serious security breaches by Israeli soldiers in online social networks.

“It’s a security failure and they made a big mistake,” the soldier told The Media Line. “There is a reason why this base is a secret and this will undoubtedly cause harm, allowing Israel’s enemies to get important information and use it to attack Israel.”

“They not only did they set up a group, they used the official, public name of the base, rather than the secret name or some code, and they setup the group publicly, rather than by invitation only,” they said.

Facebook groups can be public, in which anyone can join; by request, in which the group is publicly advertised and anyone can request membership; or private, in which the group’s existence is hidden from the public and members are privately invited by the group’s administrators.

“Beyond national security, It is also a safety issue,” the source continued. “In the past Hezbollah operatives would set up a profile pretending to be an Israeli woman and ask to be friends with soldiers or join soldiers’ groups on Facebook. Over time through the status updates Hezbollah learned a bit about the soldiers, where they lived and were able to connect the dots. In theory, they could eventually kidnap that person.”

“It’s a significant problem for the Israeli Defense Forces because they have cell phones and any of them can take a photo or make a film and upload it to the Internet,” they said. “Soldiers themselves don’t really know what can cause harm. For example, a soldier might think that simple photo of a room inside a base is harmless, but there is a poster on the wall with a map or operational details.”

“We cannot censor every picture or video that a soldier uploads,” they concluded. “So the only solution is education and awareness.”

It is not clear whether the Facebook group violates the security regulations incumbent upon soldiers at the base, who are forbidden from passing on information about anything seen or heard on the base. On the one hand the Facebook group’s contents, as well as the names of its 265 members, are not publicly visible. On the other, such data has been stored on a private company’s server, in theory much easier to breach than the army’s data systems.

The Israeli Army, as well as the Israeli Military Police, did not return a request for comment on this article.

“There is a policy that outlines what can and cannot be uploaded,” Amir Rappaport, a military analyst at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Israel’s Bar Ilan University told The Media Line. “It is not forbidden for soldiers to be on Facebook, but soldiers are forbidden from uploading any material with information of military important, and they are punished here and there for doing it.”

“The reality is that you can go on Facebook and find pictures of almost any base in the country, including the Kirya,” he said, referring to the Israeli army’s headquarters in Tel Aviv. “So this is a problem that the army is very aware of and has a hard time dealing with, but they are trying to find a solution.”

“In this case, it’s quite foolish what they did,” he continued. “These are soldiers who are meant to be a bit more aware of the issue of information security.”

Soldiers from Sayeret 13, the unit that was involved in Israeli assault on the Gaza-bound flotilla, were recently ordered to close their Facebook accounts.

Israeli military intelligence officers faced a similar fate earlier this year after a Hezbollah operative was found to have befriended them under a false identity.

“The army has very strict instructions vis-a-vis what a soldier can and cannot say in public or on a social network,” Matan Shani, an Israeli Information Security Expert at Power Communications told The Media Line. “Soldiers who upload pictures to Facebook is fine as long as there is no damage or information that could be used as a military tool.”

“If any journalist can just get into this group, it’s a serious problem and I would like to believe that the army is looking into this,” he said. “The central issue is that the users of such networks need to be educated as to their potential damage.”

While Israel has a policy of neither confirming nor denying its possession of a nuclear arsenal, it is widely believed that the country has over 200 ready-to-launch nuclear warheads.

The U.S. has put mild but increasing pressure on Israel to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, a request the Jewish state has so far refused.

US President Barack Obama has publicly supported a push for a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction, but he has predicated such an initiative on a comprehensive peace agreement that will make Israel feel secure in the region.

[N M Salamon]

Fred:

Thanks for the info.

[confusedponderer]

From Mondoweiss,
‘Haaretz’ says Obama caved because Netanyahu applied ‘hidden pressure’ in Chicago

Writing about how Netanyahu fought back and gained the upper hand of Obama, Ari Shavit writes in Haaretz:

After 18 wasted months during which Obama was the president who exerted pressure, he has become the president who embraces. Obama is embracing the State of Israel and the prime minister of Israel. What happened?

Three things have happened. On one level, Netanyahu waged a struggle. And the statesman who is depicted as susceptible to pressure did not succumb to the American pressure of this past spring. He fought back. The price for what Netanyahu did was felt by Obama in Chicago. The Israeli leader applied hidden pressure to the American leader, which made it perfectly clear to him: No more...

Now what is meant by the reference to Chicago? (It can't be just a slip.) Of course ALL this kind of pressure is "hidden"; doesn't Shavit imply what he's talking about was a move more hidden than most? Will American journalists report on this? Does it involve Pritzkers and Crowns, the big money that launched Obama, or Lee Rosenberg of AIPAC, an early backer? Rahm?

[Clifford Kiracofe]

confusedponderer,

The Chicago connection is placed into context when one considers how an outsider from Hawaii, via Columbia, Harvard, and Wall Street could rise in Chicago/Illinois politics.

There is ample context, and research leads, in the book: Gus Russo, Supermob (available in paperback from Amazon etal.)

You will note the Chicago organized crime networks include Italian and Jewish circles. You will also note the reach of the Chicago "boyz" to Vegas and to California. You will also note therein documentation of the Crown and Pritzger families and the "alleged" ties to organized crime. Penny Pritzger, was Obama's campaign finance chairman. (Her brother donated to Hillary.) You will also note how the Jewish political kingpin, Jake Arvey, swung Truman on Israel and the account given.

Old methods, old networks. And, of course, these Jewish mob elements are very "pro-Israel": nice for vacations, nice for money laundering and all that. The Italians like Sicily and Calabria...