More smoke and mirrors

If you read the article about what Nick Clegg, the U.K. deputy Prime Minister, said you may laugh. If you haven’t read it, it says that Great Britain will unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state if the newly reelected Israeli Prime Minister Mr. Netanyahu doesn’t reverse his announcement that a two state (theoretical) solution was out of the question.

It was clear that Mr. Netanyahu made this announcement to the right wingers in Israel to get every single vote he could at the last minute. Why? Because the polls showed that he was going to lose the election. Instead he won, by saying that the Arab Israelis were voting (imagine that) and that no second-state would be allowed. It’s called a last minute pandering session, or a Hail Mary play. It worked.

You may remember President Carter negotiating a two-state solution in the 1970’s. The notion of a two-state solution is a pipe dream; the game is to keep talking about it, but never doing anything. No wonder the Palestinians are desperate and angry. You can tease a donkey with a juicy carrot dangled from a stick in front of it for just so long before it gives up trying to get it.

Mr. Clegg, and I imagine our government wants Mr. Netanyahu to back off his statement to keep the illusion alive. It won’t mean anything except Israel and the west will keep talking about it forever. As the election is over, I suspect that Mr. Netanyahu will say whatever is necessary to go back to business as usual; that means he “misspoke” in the heat of the election and he didn’t mean any of it.

It’s smoke and mirrors… otherwise known as politics. The only thing that matters is election day, and politicians will lie say anything to have that one successful day. The public has a short memory.

Editor’s Note, March 23, 2015. The newly reelected Israeli Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu has amazingly (after his election) had a change of heart about using the Israeli Arabs as a reason for the non-Israeli Arabs to vote for him.

I’m also sure that he was just joking when he said that the Palestinians would never get their own country. That was also to encourage the undecided to vote for him as well.

It reminds me of people that have tried to sell the Brooklyn bridge and that some actually believed the lie.