Israel headlines, November 8 -11, 2013

Israel headlines tell a story. They tell you the news. But sometimes, they reveal some underlying truths.  

Return to this blog every Tuesday and Friday after Noon. You’ll see a sampling of headlines from Israel’s press—and some comments about those headlines.

Today’s headlines—and those comments--come from November 8 - November 11, 2013.

 

The Arab-Israel conflict

- Terrorist Shot While Attempting to Stab Soldier

- Firebomb Attack Next to Efrat

- Hamas Official: We'll Expel or Kill All the Zionists

- PA Official: Israel the Prime Suspect in Arafat Death

-Report: Tests on Arafat poisoning paid for by his widow, P.A.

- Russian report stirs new confusion in Arafat death

- Netanyahu: PA's Swaztikas Clear and Direct Incitement

- IDF discovers 4 pipe bombs on Palestinian man in routine search near Jericho

- Netanyahu: International pressure on Israel won't bring peace

-PM, Minister to Discuss PA Debt to Electric Company

-Islamists Threaten: Al Aqsa is 'a Volcano'   

-Rock Attack at Halhoul   

-IDF soldiers identify explosive device north of Ramallah, detonate it

 

America’s Reputation

- Struk to Kerry: Thanks to You, Intifada's Already Here

-Women in Green Blame Kerry for Terror Attack

- ‘Crisis of faith’ between Israel and US over possible Iran

-Netanyahu hits back at Kerry in Jerusalem

-Analysis: US Rushing Iran Deal, Selling Out Allies

-Disappointed with the US, Saudi Arabia eyes the bomb 

-Why France stood alone to scuttle Iran

 

Iran

-Report: U.S. to Allow Iran to Continue Enriching

- Obama: A Deal with Iran is Better than a Confrontation

- Netanyahu: Israel 'Utterly Rejects' Iran Nuclear Deal

- 'US capitulated' on Iran deal, Jerusalem

- Geneva talks with Iran end without nuclear deal

-Iran Sulks, Blames France-Iran FM: Sunni

 

Life in Israel

- Magic Software files to raise $60m on Nasdaq

- Gov't deficit continues to narrow

- TAU experiment finds awareness in ‘vegetative’ patients

-Discount Coffee Chain Plans 50 Branches 

 

Israel politics

- Cabinet approves appointment of Lieberman as foreign minister

 

The war against religion

- Dozens of Hareidim Inducted in IDF Technical Positions

--Women of the Wall 'Threatens Critics'

 

Jews around the world

- Survey: Anti-Semitism in Europe Increasing

- Lawsuits Over 'Pervasive Anti-Semitism' at New York School

- 'G. W. Bush to Raise Funds for 'Messianic Jews'

- At a crossroads: North American Jews' moment of truth

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Sometimes, reading the news feels a lot like walking into a noisy mall: you get bombarded with too many attractions competing for your attention.

In today’s news cycle, there’s almost too much to digest: Arabs attack Jews, Iran almost out-bargains the West, the Palestinian Authority won’t pay its electric bill to Israel—they now owe close to a billion NIS---the US insults Israel and the leaders of the Women of the Wall maintain significant ties to pro-Arab organizations as they pursue their own goals for Israel.

But if this seems like too much at once, that’s okay—because there is order here. Can you see it?

The order comes from themes embedded in the news. For example, Israel is a target. We know this. We live with it. There are daily Arab attacks against Jews. This is a constant. It won’t go away. It doesn’t change. 

As Arabs war against Israel, everyone demands peace. This is the second theme. It’s another constant. The West pushes ‘peace’ by ignoring Arab hate.

The third theme we see in the current news cycle has to do with the nature of this ‘peace’: it’s a fake. It’s fake because it ignores the basic definition of ‘peace’.

The West’s ‘peace’ is not real. It’s a fraud because peace does not happen when one side can’t stop inciting against the other side.

Peace happens only when both sides respect one another. Peace happens only when both sides are willing to do business with each other.

The 1993 Oslo Accord recognized this. It required cooperation between Arabs and Israel. It recognized that a new ‘Palestine’ could never survive without cooperation with Israel. But the Arabs don’t want cooperation. They want conquest.

Why would the Arab cooperate with a ‘partner’ when his goal is to take over, not share?

Still, the US and the European Union (EU) continue to demand peace. They continue to ignore Arab hate. Their peace effort is a fake because if this is how they proceed (ignore Arab hate, pressure only Israel), then peace is not their goal.

Their goal is to give the Arab what he wants—the destruction of Israel. How do we know that’s the Arab goal? We see it in Arab stores, where they sell maps of their new ‘Palestine’. That new ‘Palestine’ doesn’t sit next to Israel. It replaces Israel.

What’s newsworthy in this news cycle is not the West’s effort to create a fake ‘peace’. What’s newsworthy here is the extent to which that effort suddenly appears to be poisonous, not curative.

That’s a third theme that’s suggested here: this fake peace effort is not benign. It has dangerous consequences.

The consequences of fraud are never good. This fraud is no different from any other fraud. It will not create winners. It will create losers.  

The fourth theme is the identity of those losers. Those identities are going to surprise a lot of people because Israel won’t be one of them. The US will be.

The US could become the biggest loser of all. In just this one news cycle, the French, the Saudis and the Israelis are showing a very public loss of faith in the US. They are frustrated, even furious over US appeasement towards Iran. Are they starting to turn against the US?

By contrast, there’s a fifth theme in this news cycle: Israel itself. Israel behaves like a winner.

Israel—unlike the US--reduces its budget deficit. Unlike the US, Israel continues to enhance its reputation as a world-class innovator. Unlike the US, Israel is excited by a business plan to reduce the price of a cup of coffee.

There are other stories in this news cycle. But it’s possible that the biggest story here is Israel.  This tiny, demonized and hated country seems to grow stronger every day.

The US, meanwhile, looks weak. It seems increasingly like a selfish, aging giant who has become incompetent. It seems not to understand how it betrays its friends.  

Is the US dying?