mental cases yadda yadda yadda

And remember, it’s not what you say that counts. It’s what people hear. ~ Dr. Frank Luntz in the cover letter to The Israel Project's 2009 Global Language Directory (ie: the hasbara manual)

So long as the root of wickedness is hidden, it is strong. But when it is recognized, it is dissolved. When it is revealed it perishes. ~ John Lamb Lash

Do we want this misery and suffering to end? Then we need to see what is before us. There's a reason that the Israeli commandos went to the press room on the Mari Marmara and confiscated all tapes, camera, laptops, and recording devices of any kind from the passengers. But you don't really need them. Granted it would be great to have them for those who persist in being stubbornly obtuse, but the simple fact that the commandos took them ALL tells you everything you need to know. Obviously it is evidence. Obviously they are hiding it. What is not obvious about this situation? Autopsies reveal the activists were shot in the head, in the back, as reported in the UK newspaper, The Guardian. It's not a conspiracy theory, it's just a conspiracy fact.

The Israelis had taken control of the upper deck and were moving to the lower floors. Their target was the press room, where most of us had been causing the bad PR that Israel had been getting. I was right next to the press room and had to rush down to one floor below as the commanders started coming down.

I left my backpack in the press room with my passport, two of my three phones, my laptop, my still camera, watch, car and home keys, wallet, press accreditation, and a lot of cash. As the Israelis took over the press room, I had a feeling I was never going to get any of that back.

The Israelis resent when people don't slavishly reflect back the image they prefer of themselves. Why is that? Is there a psychological explanation? I think so. From an old post, narcissistic injury and rage: writ large:

Any threat (real or imagined) to the narcissist's grandiose and fantastic self-perception (False Self) as perfect, omnipotent, omniscient, and entitled to special treatment and recognition, regardless of his actual accomplishments (or lack thereof). The narcissist actively solicits Narcissistic Supply – adulation, compliments, admiration, subservience, attention, being feared – from others in order to sustain his fragile and dysfunctional Ego. Thus, he constantly courts possible rejection, criticism, disagreement, and even mockery. The narcissist is, therefore, dependent on other people. He is aware of the risks associated with such all-pervasive and essential dependence. He resents his weakness and dreads possible disruptions in the flow of his drug – Narcissistic Supply. He is caught between the rock of his habit and the hard place of his frustration. No wonder he is prone to raging, lashing and acting out, and to pathological, all-consuming envy (all expressions of pent-up aggression). The narcissist is constantly on the lookout for slights. He is hypervigilant. He perceives every disagreement as criticism and every critical remark as complete and humiliating rejection – nothing short of a threat. Gradually, his mind turns into a chaotic battlefield of paranoia and ideas of reference. Most narcissists react defensively. They become conspicuously indignant, aggressive, and cold. They detach emotionally for fear of yet another (narcissistic) injury. They devalue the person who made the disparaging remark, the critical comment, the unflattering observation, the innocuous joke at the narcissist's expense. By holding the critic in contempt, by diminishing the stature of the discordant conversant – the narcissist minimises the impact of the disagreement or criticism on himself. This is a defence mechanism known as cognitive dissonance.

Sound like anyone we know?

Now look at these remarks.

Danny Ayalon claims success in the PR battle: http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=177453 (This is the same clown who humiliated the Turkish ambassador a few months ago.)

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon has mounted a robust defense of official Israel’s performance on the public diplomacy “battlefield” over the fatal flotilla raid this week.

Writing in a Jerusalem Post op-ed elsewhere in these pages, Ayalon said the Foreign Ministry and many other governmental agencies had been working furiously ahead of the interception “to prepare for the worst, while hoping for the best. In fact the level of coordination before, during and after these events was unprecedented.”

Senior Foreign Ministry officials “held countless meetings with the leadership and ambassadors around the world,” he wrote, “especially from those countries whose citizens were involved in the flotilla, reiterating the dangers and true nature of the flotilla organizers’ strategy. The international media was briefed and many press releases and information packs on the true intentions of the flotilla were distributed well in advance.

“While some have criticized Israel’s public relations readiness for the ghastly events that took place on Monday morning, far more have expressed increasing satisfaction with the vast improvement in Israel’s official crisis management,” he added.

Responding to criticism of the delay in releasing IDF footage of naval commandos being attacked aboard the Mavi Marmara, Ayalon noted: “To be able to disseminate pictures from the operation to apprehend the ships, the IDF had to ensure that no soldier’s faces could be identified and that no operational procedures were broadcast to our enemies... Our first priority is to the safety of our citizens, especially when they are on the front lines defending us in increasingly difficult situations.”

The deputy minister added that “while public relations is vitally important, it is only one of the very many tasks that we had to attend to in light of the events surrounding the flotilla. At the Foreign Ministry, we were in constant contact with our ambassadors to spread Israel’s message and keep them updated, speaking to the foreign diplomatic corps based in Israel, especially coordinating with those whose citizens were aboard the flotilla. We coordinated our message with thousands of Jewish and non-Jewish organizations, NGOs, bloggers and volunteers. We kept foreign heads of government abreast of the situation and pressed Israel’s case while working with multilateral bodies, like the United Nations.

“Israel’s public diplomacy has become the new battlefield,” said Ayalon, “and if one gauges the results, it is clear that there are many positives. There is not one credible member of the international media that still parrots the stated motives of the organizers of the flotilla... More and more correspondents, many who were previously very critical of Israeli policy, have placed the blame squarely on the shoulders of the flotilla organizers. These are very real successes.”

 

You will reflect back the image we tell you to reflect back, do you understand? 

Yes, master.

This is published in the paper as though it's the most normal thing ever. OK?

You don't have to take my word for it. Max Blumenthal lays it all out. This was no mistake. They planned for things to go out of control and get violent, he suspects in hopes of lifting the morale of the Israeli people. Worth reading in full.

http://maxblumenthal.com/2010/06/the-flotilla-raid-was-not-bungled-the-idf-detailed-its-violent-strategy-in-advance/

First, the advance planning, translated from an article in Maariv, Israel's most widely circulated paper:

Subhead: The sea encounter that will occur at the end of the weekend is already planned detail by detail. From the moment that the ships will pass the “red line” on their way to Gaza, the fighters of Unit 13 will take control and transfer 800 passengers from their boats back to where they came from. And special arrest units were set up.
From the body of article: This operation was approved by Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Barak and will be led by the commander of the Navy, Lieutenant Colonel Eliezer Maron, who is nicknamed “Cheney.” If the people aboard the boats will not agree to turn around, the operation will transfer to the stage of force. “We are afraid that there will be a terror attack by the boats,” said a high ranking officer. “If terrorists have gotten on the boats or if there is an intention to use hot weapons against our forces, we will use full seriousness and caution. We want to avoid using force but as soon as there will be danger to the life of our forces we will be forced to use live fire as a last resort.

So was Rahm in on it too? And the rationale? And did they attack in international waters to make it easier to cut instant communications with the rest of the world? Back to Blumenthal:

Why didn’t Israel’s leaders choose to deal with the flotilla in a more judicious fashion? Were they that stupid, or just crazy? From the details of the plan it appears that Netanyahu and his cohorts had envisioned Entebbe Part Deux, a daring anti-terror raid that would lift the sinking morale of the Israeli public while intimidating Iran and the Arab world. Though Israel may be more isolated than ever as a result of the massacre, the Netanyahu administration is reaping considerable political benefits at home.

The day after the massacre, spontaneous celebrations broke out in Ashdod, Tel Aviv, and throughout the country, bringing together right-wing elements with everyday Israelis. Over a thousand Israelis gathered tonight outside the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv to rally against the Turkish government and express their support for the raid. Multiple demonstrators including one man who has lived in Israel for 60 years told me, “What Turkey [the sponsor of the Mavi Marmara boat] has done is great. I have never seen this country more united in my entire life. We are all standing together now.”

Here's that video in case you didn't see it, to prove the point that the Israelis TOTALLY CELEBRATED this like winning the superbowl. The violence against the flotilla caused a deliriously happy rally in Israel, in front of the Turkish embassy. They loved it, they really really loved it! Violence --> joy... ???

Oh but remember, not all Jews, yadda yadda yadda....


What about the politicians? Does anyone have a shred of common sense over there? Not so much, no.

The majority of Knesset members from left and right (Kadima, Likud) yesterday attacked Haneen Al-Zoubi, the Israeli-Arab parliamentarian member of the National Democratic Alliance who was on “Mavi Marmara”, one of the ships assaulted during the Israeli maritime piracy operation against the International peace activists on their way to break the genocidal siege imposed on Gaza. Al-Zoubi was released from police custody early Tuesday morning. The Knesset members cursed Al-Zoubi and tried several time to attack her, calling her “terrorist, traitor, trojan horse, bloodthirsty”, demanding that security check if she had a knife with her in the Knesset, and also that she should be deported out of Israel, during a debate about the IDF Flotilla raid in which Al-Zoubi gave a speech as a result of being attacked by other members when she arrived the session (Knesset rules demand that a member who is attacked be called to the podium to give a speech about the contended issue).

Go ahead, click through, read and watch the video. Blumenthal's piece notes that an Israeli Facebook group "devoted to inciting Zoabi’s assassination has gathered 600 members in just a day and a half."

Oh but remember, they love peace, they crave peace... yadda yadda yadda....

Right. Sometimes we forget.

Oh but remember, we must never forget..... yadda yadda yadda...

Oh STFU.