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> > < > http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/gaza-flotilla-drives-israel-into-a-sea-of-stupidity-1.292959 > > > > Gaza flotilla drives Israel into a sea of stupidity Of course the peace > flotilla will not bring peace, and it won't even manage to reach the Gaza > shore. The action plan has included dragging the ships to Ashdod port, but > it has again dragged us to the shores of stupidity and wrongdoing > > By Gideon Levy <http://www.haaretz.com/misc/writers/gideon-levy-1.402> - > > > The Israeli propaganda machine has reached new highs its hopeless frenzy. > It has distributed menus from Gaza restaurants, along with false > information. It embarrassed itself by entering a futile public relations > battle, which it might have been better off never starting. They want to > maintain the ineffective, illegal and unethical siege on Gaza and not let > the "peace flotilla" dock off the Gaza coast? There is nothing to explain, > certainly not to a world that will never buy the web of explanations, lies > and tactics. > > Only in Israel do people still accept these tainted goods. Reminiscent of a > pre-battle ritual from ancient times, the chorus cheered without asking > questions. White uniformed soldiers got ready in our name. Spokesmen > delivered their deceptive explanations in our name. The grotesque scene is > at our expense. And virtually none of us have disturbed the performance. > > The chorus has been singing songs of falsehood and lies. We are all in the > chorus saying there is no humanitarian crisis in Gaza. We are all part of > the chorus claiming the occupation of Gaza has ended, and that the flotilla > is a violent attack on Israeli sovereignty - the cement is for building > bunkers and the convoy is being funded by the Turkish Muslim Brotherhood. > The Israeli siege of Gaza will topple Hamas and free Gilad Shalit. Foreign > Ministry spokesman Yossi Levy, one of the most ridiculous of the > propagandists, outdid himself when he unblinkingly proclaimed that the aid > convoy headed toward Gaza was a violation of international law. Right. > Exactly. > > It's not the siege that is illegal, but rather the flotilla. It wasn't > enough to distribute menus from Gaza restaurants through the Prime > Minister's Office, (including the highly recommended beef Stroganoff and > cream of spinach soup ) and flaunt the quantities of fuel that the Israeli > army spokesman says Israel is shipping in. The propaganda operation has > tried to sell us and the world the idea that the occupation of Gaza is over, > but in any case, Israel has legal authority to bar humanitarian aid. All one > pack of lies. > > Only one voice spoiled the illusory celebration a little: an Amnesty > International report on the situation in Gaza. Four out of five Gaza > residents need humanitarian assistance. Hundreds are waiting to the point of > embarrassment to be allowed out for medical treatment, and 28 already have > died. This is despite all the Israeli army spokesman's briefings on the > absence of a siege and the presence of assistance, but who cares? > > And the preparations for the operation are also reminiscent of a > particularly amusing farce: the feverish debate among the septet of > ministers; the deployment of the Masada unit, the prison service's commando > unit that specializes in penetrating prison cells; naval commando fighters > with backup from the special police anti-terror unit and the army's Oketz > canine unit; a special detention facility set up at the Ashdod port; and the > electronic shield that was supposed to block broadcast of the ship's capture > and the detention of those on board. > > And all of this in the face of what? A few hundred international activists, > mostly people of conscience whose reputation Israeli propaganda has sought > to besmirch. They are really mostly people who care, which is their right > and obligation, even if the siege doesn't concern us at all. Yes, this > flotilla is indeed a political provocation, and what is protest action if > not political provocation? > > And facing them on the seas has been the Israeli ship of fools, floating > but not knowing where or why. Why detain people? That's how it is. Why a > siege? That's how it is. It's like the Noam Chomsky affair all over again, > but big time this time. Of course the peace flotilla will not bring peace, > and it won't even manage to reach the Gaza shore. The action plan has > included dragging the ships to Ashdod port, but it has again dragged us to > the shores of stupidity and wrongdoing. Again we will be portrayed not only > as the ones that have blocked assistance, but also as fools who do > everything to even further undermine our own standing. If that was one of > the goals of the peace flotilla's organizers, they won big yesterday. > > Five years ago, the noted Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa, who is a > Jerusalem Prize laureate, after concluding his visit to Israel, said the > Israeli occupation was approaching its grotesque phase. Over the weekend > Vargas Llosa, who considers himself a friend of Israel, was present to see > that that phase has since reached new heights of absurdity. > > > ________________________________________________ Send list submissions to: [email protected] Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
