Before I wrote the following comparison I had read, attentively, an article in- don’t laugh – Vanity Fair (April 2008 Issue)
“The Gaza Bombshell” by David Rose
I don’t know David Rose, but – given the built-in problems (he wanted to be published in the USA) – his article “makes sense”. It’s long, and if you – whoever – are that interested – you may be able to download it yourself – try
http://www.vanityfair.com:80/politics/features/2008/04/gaza200804?printable=true¤tPage=all
good luck !
I discussed the article with Kim – see on greenleft_discussion@yahoogroups.com – who is very knowledgable in matters of Palestine/Israel – she agrees. It’s worth reading, if you want to understand what is happening there.
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IN SUMMARY: David Rose tells, in detail about the brilliant American/Israeli policy to “eliminate” Hamas, inacceptable, and replace it by Fatah, led by Mahmoud Abas or rather Dahlan, by Palestinians who could be considered as Quislings or (see my Vichy comparisons, below) Petainists. As willing (if not capable) of doing the “right” (i.e. American, Israeli) thing as once Petain, Quisling, Laval (who remembers him ?) were of doing the German, Fascist, thing. So the USA, with Israeli government unhappy approval, armed Dahlan, Fatah, in Gaza to the teeth, assuming they would then be able to wipe out Hamas, which had – unpardonably – won “democratic” elections in Palestine. Those election had been another brilliant Rice-American idea ! (Why ever talk up democracy, if the wrong ones win ?)
Anyway, financing and arming Dahlan and doing everything to provoke a Palestinian civil war between Fatah and Hamas, the bright sparks in Washington and Jerusalem miscalculated – again – totally. Dahlan, Rice, and Olmer failed utterly in their allocated task of eliminating Hamas, but instead wound up with a totally Hamas controlled Gaza strip. Brilliant ! And now they are endangering their man, quisling, Mubarak, in Egypt as well ! Forcing him to either openly do their bidding, or lose what street-cred he maintains in the Egyptian army…. oihwoi !
Another memory from the past: I once asked cousin Luka, a bemedalled hero, a major in Tito’s partisans, what they did with the captured Croatians, sent by the Germans and Italians to fight them? “The fascist Ustacha, we shot. They were murderous sadists, irrecuperable. The regular Croatian army Domobraci, we fed (when we had something to eat ourselves) and sent them home. Usually they were re-captured again, and we got another rifle and ammunition off them”.
Ah well….
Max