Halls of Shrewd'm / US Policy❤
No. of Recommendations: 7
President Biden met with Israel's war cabinet today and was able to convince Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Egypt for the Palestinian population in the southern Gaza strip.
"In light of President Biden's request, Israel will not prevent the flow of humanitarian aid from Egypt as long as it is food, water and medical supplies for the Palestinian population in the southern Gaza strip and as long as it doesn't go to Hamas. Any aid diverted to Hamas will be prevented," Netanyahu's office said.Biden got other countries on board before meeting with with Israel's war cabinet and was able to convince Israel that allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza would help in maintaining international support for the operation against Hamas.
There's still a long way to go but solid first steps by a 'sleepy old fool'.
https://www.axios.com/2023/10/18/gaza-humanitarian...
No. of Recommendations: 9
I watched the last fifteen minutes of his statement he gave after ending the meeting with Netanyahu. Yes, he's old. Yes, he stuttered or repeated a word here and there. I wish he could have conveyed the message with more energy.
But...
Listen to the message...
In the real sense of the word, he acted as a TRUE friend of Israel. It seems he didn't tell Netanyahu "do what you gotta do, the US is up for anything.." Instead, as he publicly described his purpose,
* he conveyed support for Israeli citizens - who no doubt have SOMEONE in their family affected
* he reiterated efforts the US is taking to keep secondary proxy powers (Iran, Syria, Lebanon, etc.) from further meddling / escalation
* he reiterated military support the US will provide Israel to replenish its air defenses
* he outlined efforts to establish supply paths into Gaza and evacuation paths
* he cautioned Netanyahu about the long-term danger of Israel acting out of rage versus long term strategy
* he reiterated that "Hamas" is not the same as "the Palestinians" and expressed sorrow for the suffering of innocent Palestinians as well
Biden's statement about acting on strategy rather than rage took a great deal of courage to say, not to Netanyahu and the Israelis but to American audiences. Anyone who looks back our America's response to September 11, 2001 and says everything we did was the best tactic we could have adopted and that everything we did SHOULD have been done learned nothing from the $3.4 trillion dollars spent in Afghanistan and Iraq and the 7000+ military and 8000+ contractor deaths in those wars. And that's not counting deaths of Iraqis (295,000) and Afhanis (about 147,000).
Do you think any of America's allies were calling up George Bush on September 12, 2001 and telling him not to confuse what America COULD do with what it SHOULD do? I doubt it. I suspect the leader of every one of our allies called Bush and said "Git 'em!". No thought whatsover to the folly of trying to invade a desert country of scattered tribal klans to install democracy instead of just capturing / killing bin Laden. "Justice" / revenge shall be ours, so Bush thought.
Whether Netanyahu acts on that message is another story. It is interesting to note that even after this attack, Israelis have not forgotten their displeasure with Netanyahu. It seems most Israelis blame the intelligence failure that allowed the attack to occur in the first place and poor military preparedness that allowed areas to go undefended for HOURS squarely on Netanyahu. No "rally 'round the flag" going on whatsoever. More curiously, Biden's popularity among Israelis is higher than Netanyahu's. Maybe that's why Biden felt the lattitude to provide such cautionary support in his private meeting, then state it publicly to the Israeli public.
If more intelligence is dug up to reinforce the finding that the rocket that destroyed the Gaza City hospital was in fact launched from a block of the hospital by a Palestinian militia, the leaders who cancelled the summit thinking the hospital bombing was an Israeli act will find themselves in a very difficult public stance. Unfortunately, it seems likely that any momentum that might have come out of such a meeting has zero chance of being established. The parties involved are all too small-minded to admit mistakes and start over.
WTH
No. of Recommendations: 2
Biden got other countries on board before meeting with with Israel's war cabinet and was able to convince Israel that allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza would help in maintaining international support for the operation against Hamas. - co
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There is just so much wrong here i don't know where to begin....
First of all, Joe shouldn't be there and his presence is a distraction. Israel and those who support them should be encouraging one thing loudly and consistently, "Hamas is evil and must be destroyed". That is exactly what Israel is up to and they need all the support they can on that simple goal. Of course Palestinians, the MSM, college professors, and most of the Arab world have already started talking how Israel is killing innocents calling for ceasefires and/or whipping up hatred for Israel.. Well the fact is, this is true. In any war there are civilian casualties and I give Israel high marks for avoiding civilian casualties "as much as possible."
But when you enemy embeds himself in the schools hospitals and fabric of communities, you either admit defeat or do what you know has to be done. Get it over with.
Meanwhile, there will be horrific damage so Hamas and those who oppose Israel can air some truly awful pictures and videos of the carnage of war, every day. Disgusting. But the fact is you are going to bombarded with that so be ready. We cannot let international pressure once again force Israel to fall short of completing what we all know must be done. We can talk about a post Hamas Palestine later, right now it is a detraction. A distraction such as Biden admonishing Israel to not occupy Gaza. A post victory consideration but quite irrelevant since the ground action has not even started.
None of those humanitarian supplies will make its way to Hamas, right? Yeah, Right. How exactly will that work and what sort of operation will be setup and how will it be managed? That takes resources away from the task at hand. So inspections will be superficial or non existent. Once a can of pork and beans makes it way past the inspection point, how will that can of beans be tracked to a dinner table and determining who is eating dinner that night.
No. of Recommendations: 10
bighairymike:
First of all, Joe shouldn't be there and his presence is a distraction.Leaders lead. We know you're not used to it (Trump was too frightened to even face E. Jean Carroll in the courtroom.)
bighairymike:
Israel and those who support them should be encouraging one thing loudly and consistently, "Hamas is evil and must be destroyed". Like this?
"I think Israel has to respond. They have to go after Hamas,' [Biden] said. "Hamas is a bunch of cowards. They're hiding behind the civilians."
Invading and "taking out the extremists" is a "necessary requirement," he added.
Asked if Hamas must be eliminated entirely, he replied: "Yes I do."Given your position and statements, you should be applauding Biden.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/biden-says-hamas-mus...
No. of Recommendations: 2
Despite some folks wearing their backs out carrying water for this administration, one simple fact remains:
The world wasn't on fire when the last guy was in office.
Seems like things are a bit different now.
And in news that most miss:
https://www.foxnews.com/world/us-over-180-risky-in..."Since the fall of 2021, we have seen more than 180 such incidents," said Assistant Defense Secretary for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner. "More in the past two years than in the decade before that. That's nearly 200 cases where PLA operators have performed reckless maneuvers or discharged chaff or shot off flares or approach to (sic) rapidly or too close to U.S. aircraft."Does anyone want to guess why someone would pop chaff right in front of another aircraft?
Bbbbut Fox News. Sure, Jan.
And, oh yeah:
https://apnews.com/article/iraq-militias-iran-us-b...The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iranian-backed militias, issued a statement afterward claiming responsibility for the two attacks and saying it 'heralds more operations' against the 'American occupation.'Interesting times.
The world's on fire, it's more than I can handle
Tap into the water, try to bring my share
Try to bring more, more than I can handle
Bring it to the table, bring what I am able
No. of Recommendations: 4
BHM: None of those humanitarian supplies will make its way to Hamas, right? Yeah, Right.
You really don't understand the value of maintaining international support? It's crucial. There is a vast propaganda/disinformation network operating internationally and my guess is it wouldn't take too much time to turn attitudes against Israel if there's no water, food, or medicine allowed in.
No. of Recommendations: 2
>>BHM: None of those humanitarian supplies will make its way to Hamas, right? Yeah, Right.<<
You really don't understand the value of maintaining international support? It's crucial. There is a vast propaganda/disinformation network operating internationally and my guess is it wouldn't take too much time to turn attitudes against Israel if there's no water, food, or medicine allowed in. = Lapsody
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Fine but lets not deceive ourselves by maintaining the delusion that these supplies will not get into the hands of Hamas. Now today Biden announces $100M in new Palestinian Aid. We are funding both sides of the war. Not optimal.
No. of Recommendations: 5
bighairymike: Fine but lets not deceive ourselves by maintaining the delusion that these supplies will not get into the hands of Hamas.
Actually, let's not deceive ourselves by believing that each of us sitting in our comfortable homes typing out messages on our computers knows better than the people trying to deliver aid to people desperately in need food, water, and supplies.
And Biden has stated that if they find that the funds are not reaching the people who need them, they'll end.
BIDEN: "If Hamas diverts or steals the assistance, they will have demonstrated once again that they have no concern for the welfare of the Palestinian people, and it will end as a practical matter. It will stop the international community from being able to provide this aid."
bighairymike: We are funding both sides of the war. Not optimal.
You seem to be confusing the Palestinian people with Hamas. Not optimal.
Tell us, Keyboard Warrior, of your better solution to provide assistance.
No. of Recommendations: 4
Funny how Palestinian people can't be connected with Hamas.
Yet fringe white supremacist groups like Proud Boys is connected to most of us on the Right.
No. of Recommendations: 1
IIRC Biden was supposed to meet with 4 international leaders on his trip.
How many did he actually meet? That would be 1. The other 3 ghosted him. Nice job!
Oh, and now we have this:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2...https://archive.ph/H6fDUIn Riyadh, the Saudi ruler kept Blinken waiting several hours for a meeting presumed to happen in the evening but which the crown prince only showed up for the next morning.LOL. Sucking up to the Saudis, only to be told to stay in the waiting room. His call is important to the Prince, and will be taken in the order received.
America. It's back, baby!
No. of Recommendations: 2
And in yet another facepalm moment, here's team Biden in Israel:
https://twitter.com/samosaur/status/17149621259809...The Whitehouse media team shared this picture last night (I added the black boxes) without blurring or censoring the faces of the 'Delta Force' (CAG) operator's faces. They deleted it an hour later after hundreds of thousands had already viewed it.
This is a massive failure on the Biden admin.Idiots.
So, yes. The Biden admin just confirmed US boots on the ground there.
Top.
Men.
No. of Recommendations: 3
And Biden has stated that if they find that the funds are not reaching the people who need them, they'll end. - CO
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Your faith is simply stupefying that the politicians making these utopian pronouncements have their bloviating backed up with a realistic and effective implementation process with the funds and resources (people) to make good on the promise. None of the Billions in Aid provided to Palestinians over the years, not one dollar, was earmarked for tunnel building, yet here we are.
No. of Recommendations: 9
bighairymike:
Your faith is simply stupefying that the politicians making these utopian pronouncements have their bloviating backed up with a realistic and effective implementation process...Not faith, facts.
The U.S. Treasury has already blocked Iran from accessing the $6 billion that was unfrozen recently.
The U.S. and Qatar have reached an agreement to prevent Iran from accessing $6 billion recently unfrozen as part of a prisoner swap, the deputy treasury secretary told lawmakers on Thursday, sources confirmed to ABC News.
Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo told House Democrats in a closed-door briefing that the money "isn't going anywhere anytime soon," sources said.The administration will certainly want to keep an eye on humanitarian spending as the war heats up.
Your hatred of Biden has blinded you to what's actually happening in the real world.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-halting-release...
No. of Recommendations: 2
Not faith, facts.
The U.S. Treasury has already blocked Iran from accessing the $6 billion that was unfrozen recently.
The U.S. and Qatar have reached an agreement to prevent Iran from accessing $6 billion recently unfrozen as part of a prisoner swap, the deputy treasury secretary told lawmakers on Thursday, sources confirmed to ABC News.
Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo told House Democrats in a closed-door briefing that the money "isn't going anywhere anytime soon," sources said.
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Here is a fact, a big old pile of money in the custody of one internationally known entity is easier to keep an eye on than thousands of truck loads of pork and beans moving hither and yon through the desert and assuredly making it only to the kitchens of innocent, non aligned Palestinian civilians.
No. of Recommendations: 4
BHM: Fine but lets not deceive ourselves by maintaining the delusion that these supplies will not get into the hands of Hamas. Now today Biden announces $100M in new Palestinian Aid. We are funding both sides of the war. Not optimal.
No Mike, we aren't funding both sides of the war, and it's a misrepresentation to say that. Anyone who thinks has to recognize some of the food, water, and medical supplies will get diverted, but we have the opticals of a declared siege on an area that's 95-99% civilians. I mean a siege? Israel is going Medieval on Gaza?
So we back off the big talk, allow humanitarian aid in. Not worried if some of Hamas gets to eat, drink, etc., because sieges won't get international support for long. And Israel gets to do it's offensive - which will be painted as a holocaust. We need as much international support as we can get.
Unlike what Dope and some of the MAGATS think, alliances, and maintaining alliances, are going to be key things for the US from here on out. Let's not toss hard won good will into the trash bin,and be serious about maintaining it.
