Jeff, What do you think about Helen Thomas' comments?

[Anonymous]

Have to agree 14:39. I agree with Thomas on many things but no question she blew it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seemed to me that Helen Thomas started out by talking about Israel the nation, and it was the interviewer who really led the discussion toward where individual Jews might go (Nesenoff: "So you're saying ...."). And when he did that, Helen Thomas's response was to again focus on the Palestinians ("Why push people out of there ...?"). I'm not defending Helen Thomas, but it's not so clear to me that she was advocating a mass exodus of Jews from the region. Here is the text of the interview, which someone else helpfully posted a couple pages ago.

Helen Thomas interview wrote:On May 27, 2010, outside the Jewish Heritage Celebration Day event at the White House, the following exchange took place between Thomas and Rabbi David Nesenoff:

Nesenoff: Any comments on Israel? We're asking everybody today, any comments on Israel?
Thomas: Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine. (laughs)
Nesenoff: Oooh. Any better comments on Israel?
Thomas: (still laughing) Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. It's not German, it's not Polish ...
Nesenoff: So where should they go, what should they do?
Thomas: Go home.
Nesenoff: Where is the home?
Thomas: Poland. Germany.
Nesenoff: So you're saying the Jews go back to Poland and Germany?
Thomas: And America and everywhere else. Why push people out of there who have lived there for centuries? See?
Nesenoff: Well, yeah, are you familiar with the, the history of that region and what they're (unintelligable)?
Thomas: Very much. I'm of Arab background.

I'm sorry, but even though I'm willing to give Helen a bit of a pass because of her age, I think the Rabbi was the one who was reacting to what must have been, to him, a pretty surprising series of statements. In particular, it was Thomas who brought up Germany and Poland, pretty much out of nowhere. Even at that, when he asked where they should go, the natural answer would have been "Back inside Israel's recognized borders."

This is interesting, the natural answer for an American; but for a Palestinian, the natural answer would be "anywhere other than Palestine", meaning Israel too.

[Anonymous]

I'm sorry, but even though I'm willing to give Helen a bit of a pass because of her age, I think the Rabbi was the one who was reacting to what must have been, to him, a pretty surprising series of statements. In particular, it was Thomas who brought up Germany and Poland, pretty much out of nowhere. Even at that, when he asked where they should go, the natural answer would have been "Back inside Israel's recognized borders."

This is interesting, the natural answer for an American; but for a Palestinian, the natural answer would be "anywhere other than Palestine", meaning Israel too.


AGREED

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:... Even at that, when he asked where they should go, the natural answer would have been "Back inside Israel's recognized borders."

This is interesting, the natural answer for an American; but for a Palestinian, the natural answer would be "anywhere other than Palestine", meaning Israel too.

14:39 here again. I think you are quite right about Palestinians. But then it sounds like you are saying that Thomas , because of her Lebanese ancestry, should be heard as a Palestinian rather than an American. I doubt that is your intent; am I wrong?

[Anonymous]

I'm confused, do the PPs think that Jews didn't live in Israel before 1948?

And Helen was never shy about her anti-Israeli feelings. She's entitled to them. I find them egregious, but it's not necessarily surprising, especialy when you compound the age factor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm confused, do the PPs think that Jews didn't live in Israel before 1948?

And Helen was never shy about her anti-Israeli feelings. She's entitled to them. I find them egregious, but it's not necessarily surprising, especially when you compound the age factor.

Yeah, the anti-Israel stuff is fine; I think Israeli policy sucks too. It's the part about sending my people back to Germany that someone who was in her 20s during WWII ought to stifle.

[Anonymous]

http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Abducted-Soldiers-Family-Argues-Against-Easing-Blockade-96976009.html

So sad. Perhaps the Palestinians can show compassion when shown compassion?

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Abducted-Soldiers-Family-Argues-Against-Easing-Blockade-96976009.html

So sad. Perhaps the Palestinians can show compassion when shown compassion?

The VOA should interview the parents of the thousands of Palestinians being held in Israeli prisons. They probably have a different opinion about the blockade.

[Anonymous]

OK Hammurabi.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Abducted-Soldiers-Family-Argues-Against-Easing-Blockade-96976009.html

So sad. Perhaps the Palestinians can show compassion when shown compassion?

Gilad, Gilad, Gilad. One person -- ONE PERSON. He would get more sympathy if the Israelis stopped detaining people without charge or trial. Why is that any different? Does it sound more respectable when you call it "detention"?

[Anonymous]

The Israelis have terrorists in prison. Gilad was manning a border crossing. Two of his fellow border patrolmen were killed and he was abducted. Hamas has not allowed the red cross or any international organization to assess his condition in four years. Hamas's response is free terrorists from Israeli prisons in order to NOT free gilad, but to prove he's alive! Last prisoner for hostage deal, hezbollah returned hostages in coffins. That's the way these terrorist organziations play. But DCUM posters don't get that. Because Israel is the bad guy, and Hamas is pure. Just today rockets were fired into a government building by Hamas.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:The Israelis have terrorists in prison. Gilad was manning a border crossing. Two of his fellow border patrolmen were killed and he was abducted. Hamas has not allowed the red cross or any international organization to assess his condition in four years. Hamas's response is free terrorists from Israeli prisons in order to NOT free gilad, but to prove he's alive! Last prisoner for hostage deal, hezbollah returned hostages in coffins. That's the way these terrorist organziations play. But DCUM posters don't get that. Because Israel is the bad guy, and Hamas is pure. Just today rockets were fired into a government building by Hamas.

Do you know who else has prevented the Red Cross from visiting prisoners? The US and Israel:

http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/news/middle-east/1181-the-red-cross-and-israeli-mps-prevented-from-knowing-location-of-secret-prison

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4512192.stm

I condemn this action in all three cases. How about you?

Gilad is a soldier. The two soldiers killed when he was captured were, obviously, also soldiers. The "hostages" killed by Hizballah were soldiers captured during the war. The two Palestinians killed by Israeli bombs in Gaza today were civilians. So exactly who are the terrorists?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Israelis have terrorists in prison. Gilad was manning a border crossing. Two of his fellow border patrolmen were killed and he was abducted. Hamas has not allowed the red cross or any international organization to assess his condition in four years. Hamas's response is free terrorists from Israeli prisons in order to NOT free gilad, but to prove he's alive! Last prisoner for hostage deal, hezbollah returned hostages in coffins. That's the way these terrorist organziations play. But DCUM posters don't get that. Because Israel is the bad guy, and Hamas is pure. Just today rockets were fired into a government building by Hamas.

I get it. There is no-one to broker with in Israeli - Palestinian negotiations. I feel badly for Israelis. There is no sane way out of the rabbit hole.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Israelis have terrorists in prison. Gilad was manning a border crossing. Two of his fellow border patrolmen were killed and he was abducted. Hamas has not allowed the red cross or any international organization to assess his condition in four years. Hamas's response is free terrorists from Israeli prisons in order to NOT free gilad, but to prove he's alive! Last prisoner for hostage deal, hezbollah returned hostages in coffins. That's the way these terrorist organziations play. But DCUM posters don't get that. Because Israel is the bad guy, and Hamas is pure. Just today rockets were fired into a government building by Hamas.

Oh, the Israelis have many people in prison who have no connection to terrorism. They sit in jail for years, without even being charged. Here is just the first one I pulled, and the source is Human Rights Watch, an organization advocating for Gilad Shalit: http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/12/04/israel-end-arbitrary-detention-rights-activist

[Anonymous]

Which makes keeping Gilad Shalit right? Why do Palestinians expect the Israelis to behave any differently than they do?