[baseball_fan]

Friedman makes the argument that the "Israeli Hezbollah," Sharon's designs on the West Bank and inept American diplomacy regarding the Israeli/Palestinian issue are unifying enemies around the world, and that Yitzhak Rabin's vision was the correct one. He also makes the point that it is in the interests of those who are fighting us in Iraq to blurr distinctions at America's peril. "This trend has been helped by the Bush team's failed approach to the Arab-Israel problem, which is to tell the truth only to Yasir Arafat, while embracing Ariel Sharon so tightly that it's impossible to know anymore where U.S. policy stops and Mr. Sharon's begins." As such, he is calling on more American leadership to help resolve the dispute before extremists get more worldwide momentum.

It seems like it always falls to President Bush who is doing his best just to get re-elected. Could Tom Friedman call on the American Jewish community to bring pressure to bear on Sharon and the "Israeli Hezbollah" as he calls it to help protect Bush's flank given how much he is trying to do to stand up a democracy in Iraq? Maybe this is already happening, in which case it makes it more understandable for Thomas Friedman to go back and reexert pressure on the President after helping to organize the political cover for President Bush to do so. Short of this, he would seem to be making the argument to elect Senator Kerry. Not knowing the details, who knows what the real answer is?

[Dallas59]

I'm pretty sure our Soldiers have "pet names" for some of the Iraqis also...Most streets are two ways.

[TapTheSource]

Rabin had the correct view? Is this the same Rabin that fired on (and sank) the Altalena with M. Begin on board, and full of weapons that could have been used to defend Israel in the 48' war of independence? Is this the same Rabin who was willing to give up Judea and Samaria, and even contemplate turning over Jerusalem itself? Make no mistake about it, Friedman is a sellout. It's only fitting that he's working for the NY Times.

[MNJohnnie]

Boy isn't it amazing. Freidman comes up with an Anecdote that supposedly justifies his opposition to the liberation of 25 million Iraqis. Gee Funny how Friedman does tell us WHO calls us "The Jews" Could it be the guys who staffed Saddam's rape rooms? Or maybe it is the guys who line up mothers holding their babies and machine gunned them into ditches. Or maybe it the thugs who ambushed 50 unarmed Iraqi soldiers made them lie on the ground and shot them in the back of the head? Gee maybe we are being called "the Jews" by the guys who went thru Bin Laden's training camps in Afghanistan.

What this supposed Foreign Policy "genius" Freidman seems to miss is that the Arab Terrorists have an almost irrational fear of "the Jews". One way during he 1990s US Intelligence broke terrorists was by threatening to "Turn them over to the Jews" if they didn't talk to us. So being compared to "The Jews" is GOOD news for our guys.

[MNJohnnie]

Boy isn't it amazing. Freidman comes up with an Anecdote that supposedly justifies his opposition to the liberation of 25 million Iraqis. Gee Funny how Friedman does tell us WHO calls us "The Jews" Could it be the guys who staffed Saddam's rape rooms? Or maybe it is the guys who line up mothers holding their babies and machine gunned them into ditches. Or maybe it the thugs who ambushed 50 unarmed Iraqi soldiers made them lie on the ground and shot them in the back of the head? Gee maybe we are being called "the Jews" by the guys who went thru Bin Laden's training camps in Afghanistan.

What this supposed Foreign Policy "genius" Freidman seems to miss is that the Arab Terrorists have an almost irrational fear of "the Jews". One way during he 1990s US Intelligence broke terrorists was by threatening to "Turn them over to the Jews" if they didn't talk to us. So being compared to "The Jews" is GOOD news for our guys.

[kezekiel]

And it's partly because the Bush team, which is so inept at diplomacy, has never had the energy or creativity to shape a better Palestinian alternative to Arafat.

More global-testing, put-our-faith-in-diplomacy flaccidness. The fact is, the war against Israel is very popular in Palestine. How is it that some stuffed-shirt State Department types are going to change that elemental fact?

[Alouette]

the Israeli far right - the Jewish Hezbollah.

Tom is off his meds again. Where's the video of the "Jewish Hezbollah" beheading people?

[UncleSamUSA]

Regrettably, this is just more brain-addled, Muslim-appeasement drivel from Mr. Friedman. It is the usual porridge of lefty arguments: Americans in Iraq are bad; Jews in the West Bank are bad; its Israel-US's fault that the Muslim terrorists hate us; and if only the US would pull out of Iraq and if only Israel would agree to make itself defenseless to the PLO thugs, all would be right again in the Middle East.

Looks like TF took a three month sabbatical and came back just as biased and as antagonistic to Israel and the Bush administration as when he left.

So what else is new, I guess.

[Thinkin' Gal]

"Many Iraqis have so much distrust for U.S. forces we found they've come up with a nickname for our troops," Scott said. "They call American soldiers 'The Jews,' as in, 'Don't go down that street, the Jews set up a roadblock.' "

On a primitive level, even the sons of Ishmael and Esav perceive that this is a family feud! America = House of Israel/Joseph; Israel = House of Judah. Two sticks/trees joined at the root. The "Jews" (er, the whole house of Israel) really do control the world, hahaha. :-)

[Arizona Carolyn]

Is Friedman back? Or did he have to chime in before the election against Bush?

[rang1995]

he has always been an arabist-self hating jew..this article just makes blame israel for 9/11 more real to others

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on or off this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

[Aquamarine]

Aren't Christian's grafted in Jews (adopted)...Romans:11