In relative terms, you may be less of a sociopath than Trump. But that’s hardly a triumph.
For half of your term, you’ve presided over the killing of 45,000 people and the destruction of a territory with an intent to make it uninhabitable for the people who live there. Sure, it wasn’t you or your military who dropped the bombs on urban areas teeming with people, including their schools, hospitals (including ambulances), and refugee centers. But it was you who ordered the round-the-clock deliveries of those bombs to those who, you knew, would drop them as they wished.
All we — who had to fund this deadly escapade — ever heard from you and your imperial clerks (Blinken, Sullivan, Austin) and the performance monkeys in Congress was the fatuous tape-loop: “Israel has the right to defend itself”. That’s not entirely true. We did hear, constantly, about reminders allegedly communicated to Netanyahu and his fellow IDF criminals about their legal obligation to avoid civilian casualties. The tape was played even after it had become obvious that Israelis felt themselves under no such obligation.
Which leaves the taxpayer wondering: Did you believe that the US had no leverage, or did you simply choose not to use it? It clearly was the latter. The IDF confirmed soon after it set out to destroy Gaza and Gazans that, without American munitions — ferried in daily by multiple plane-loads — its efforts would not have been possible. (Of course, that never stopped Netanyahu from complaining that the US wasn’t doing enough.)
You’ve willingly aided and abetted daily war crimes. Yet, you’ve never explained and, undoubtedly, will never explain, why you’ve done so, let alone how your choice furthers the interests of the country. Not that the Infotainment Complex compels you to do so. This omertà is possible because (i) American journalists let Israel censor their coverage; and (ii) media executives are petrified of Jewish backlash and its impact on advertising dollars.
The effect? Barebones coverage. At least until it comes to Israeli howls about the ICC’s arrest warrant for Netanyahu for his war crimes (about which you have had nothing to say). That‘s front-page news. Never seen is criticism of Israeli conduct or, of threats by quarter-wits like Senator Graham to impose sanctions on the ICC and its individuals for their temerity to hold the lawless to account. With Gaza, international law is dead and buried.
A recent example of journalists’ allergy to demanding clarity from your Administration is an interview of your water boy, Blinken. The question posed was: “Did Israel commit genocide in Gaza?” The question is as disingenuous as the answer (“No”) useless. “Genocide” is a legal term, and a loaded one at that. It comes with conditions and qualifiers. Its use is a distraction, a way to make execrable conduct a parlor game. The journalist asking the question knew to expect only one answer.
What should have been asked: (1) How does the US Government justify Israel’s deliberate destruction of Gaza? (2) Why is the arrest warrant for Netanyahu illegitimate and, given the evidence, why should he not be required to answer the allegations? (3) For extra credit: How does Israel’s orgy of revenge further US interests in the wider region, assuming it’s not Washington’s long-standing obsession with Iran?
Instead, Blinken, purportedly the country’s chief diplomat, got the softball of softballs which let him — on your behalf — wipe away the ugly reality of your very much personal decision give a criminal psychopath like Netanyahu carte blanche to wipe out a subjugated people — and do so with my money.
You may not be Trump but, with Gaza, it’s impossible to see the difference.
