Arlene Kushner on Iran: Are They Afraid of Netanyahu and Israel

From Arlene Kushner:
April 11, 2013

Iran and More

This past Monday, at a joint press conference with President Peres, Secretary of State Kerry said, with regard to Iran:

"No option is off the table.  No option will be taken off the table.

"And I confirm to you, Mr. President, that we will continue to seek a diplomatic solution. But our eyes are open, and we understand that the clock is moving.  And no one will allow the diplomatic process to stand in the way of whatever choices need to be made to protect the world from yet another nuclear weapon in the wrong hands."

I sighed, and thought then, as I think now, "I wish."  Great words.  But I have not the remotest reason to trust them.

~~~~~~~~~~

Jewish Groups Condemn Cardozo Award To Jimmy Carter -- And We Are Still Going To Sue Him

When the New York Times reported on the growing controversy over Yeshiva University's Cardozo Law School giving an award to Jimmy Carter -- with the headline Law School Group Incites Fury With Choice to Honor Carter -- it became clear that this was no small disagreement among Jewish groups.

The anger is real, and the controversy and the history of Jimmy Carter's anti-Israel campaigns are the story.

Now Jewish groups are making their views known.

YnetNews reports that Young Israel Calls to Rescind Invite to Jimmy Carter:

Arlene Kushner On What Makes Cardozo Honoring Jimmy Carter So Shameful

From Arlene Kushner:

April 9, 2013

Shameful

A brief correction first -- one more lesson that we cannot believe all that comes to us on the Internet.  Several people have forwarded me an e-mail about the last 819 Jews leaving Norway because of anti-Semitism.  I was a bit dubious about this and did a bit of checking. 

Found a statement from the ADL at Alarmist E-Mail Claims Norway is 'Judenrein':

"Much of the information in this e-mail message [about the 819 Jews leaving] is alarmist and outright false.

"ADL is in close contact with the leadership of the Norwegian Jewish community. The community has assured us there is absolutely no truth to the claim that all 819 Norwegian Jews have left. The Jewish population of Norway is approximately 1,700 and there has not been any significant emigration."

~~~~~~~~~~

And then... a follow-up on my notice yesterday that Jimmy Carter is about to be presented on Wednesday with the “International Advocate for Peace” award at Cardozo Law School at Yeshiva University.  This is what I call shameful.

Why Do Jewish Institutions Keep Honoring Antisemites and Enemies of Israel?

The following by Daniel Pipes is reposted here with permission

Mainstream Jewish Institutions Celebrate Anti-Zionists

by Daniel Pipes
April 8, 2013

http://www.danielpipes.org/blog/2013/04/mainstream-jewish-institutions-celebrate-anti

Major Jewish institutions show a marked propensity to promote and celebrate the enemies of Israel and even antisemites. Here are some examples, working backwards chronologically:

• Cardozo Law School of Yeshiva University: Plans to give its International Advocate for Peace Award is going to Jimmy Carter, author of Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, on April 10.

  Movie poster for "Rachel."

• 92^nd St. Y: Scheduled (but then postponed) a talk by Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, leading exponent of artistic boycotts of Israel and purveyor of antisemitic canards.

Why Cardozo Law School Honoring Jimmy Carter Is A Shame and Embarrasment

There is a new site: Shame on Cardozo for Honoring Jimmy Carter!

A Message To Cardozo Alumni

On Wednesday, April 10, 2013, Jimmy Carter will be honored at the Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School, part of Yeshiva University, to receive the International Advocate for Peace Award from the Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution.

Jimmy Carter has an ignominious history of anti-Israel bigotry. He is responsible for helping to mainstream the antisemitic notion that Israel is an apartheid state with his provocatively titled book “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid”, the publication of which prompted mass resignations from the Carter Center. He has met numerous times with leaders of the terror group Hamas whitewashing their genocidal goals and undermining US efforts to isolate Hamas. And Carter’s record of slandering Israel is so voluminous that both CAMERA and Alan Dershowitz have written books refuting his lies.

Read the whole thing -- including what action you can take.

Speaking of Jimmy Carter, lies and books -- here is an article written 6 years ago by Kenneth Stein, who was the Carter Center's first permanent executive director, between 1983 and 1986, and the center's Middle East fellow.

Stein broke off the association in December 2006 when he resigned over the inaccuracies in Carter's book "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid" and its message.

The following by Kenneth W. Stein is reposted here with permission of Middle East Forum:

My Problem with Jimmy Carter's Book

by Kenneth W. Stein
Middle East Quarterly
Spring 2007, pp. 3-15

Jimmy Carter's "Argo" Boast Easily Debunked

Paul Bedard writes that In 'Argo' brag, critics say Jimmy Carter ignores Desert One deaths:

Former President Jimmy Carter is winning new criticism over the 1979 Iran hostage crisis for his comments at the end of the blockbuster Ben Affleck movie "Argo" that everyone made it home safely and "we did it peacefully," overlooking the horrific deaths of eight killed in the Desert One fiasco, say critics.

"Revoke Jimmy Carter’s Security Clearance"

James Kirchick makes that suggestion when he writes about Carter's recent revelation about Israel's nuclear capabilities:

One of the perks that former presidents receive, if they choose to utilize it, is a daily security briefing from the CIA. This is how Jimmy Carter came to know (or at least claim) that Israel has 150 nuclear weapons, considering the fact that the Israeli government has pursued a policy of deliberate ambiguity about its nuclear weapon capability. This is a policy that was formed with tacit agreement by the United States, which in exchange for a promise by Israel not to conduct nuclear tests, agreed to the rubric that the Jewish State would not be the first, officially acknowledged Middle Eastern nuclear power. Of course, Carter knew a lot about Israel’s nuclear capability during his time in office, and it’s unprecedented that a former president would reveal this information publicly.

Carter did not make this revelation in the midst of top-level policy discussion with world leaders (or terrorists who pretend to be leaders), but at the Hay-on-Wye literary festival in Wales, an annual event sponsored by The Guardian newspaper.

Should someone who meets with terrorists and reveals classified information about America's allies really be entitled to daily security briefings from the CIA?

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Maybe if Florida and Michigan voted to endorse Hamas...

At Hot Air, Ed Morissey comments on Carter's claim that Florida and Michigan disqualified themselves from the primaries:

Carter isn't entirely wrong here, in that the parties had to take steps to punish states that broke the rules. However, the smug dismissal of American votes as illegitimate coming just after his insistence that a terrorist group should be recognized because it won an election provides a mind-bending irony that may just be too large to contemplate all at once. Maybe if Florida and Michigan voted to endorse Hamas, Carter's opinion would change?

Could be. We all know what an open-minded guy Carter is...

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

New Photo Reveals The Real Jimmy Carter!

Check out Baruch Who, who has a photo that reveals Carter's favorite negotiating technique.

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Hamas Pushes Their Advantage

Noah Pollak that Hamas is now focusing on their greatest strength:

Hamas has lost — often badly — in every military theater it has fought in. Its suicide bombings have been thwarted by fences and walls, its rocket attacks, while a serious problem, do not cause many casualties and whenever Katyushas have been employed Hamas has suffered a stinging response from the IDF. So Hamas is now concentrating its efforts on fighting in the only theater in which it still enjoys superiority over Israel — in the media. Almost everything the terror group does today is oriented toward winning media coverage that condemns Israel and apologizes for Hamas.

Along those lines, Powerline quotes Dan Diker, Director of the Jerusalem based Institute for Contemporary Affairs, about the gains Hamas is making:

Reports in Israel today of U.S. pressure to button up a ceasefire with Hamas in advance of President Bush’s upcoming visit to Israel are worrying but not surprising.

...Most importantly, Hamas is interested in playing along with the idea of a ”calmer, gentler” Gaza at this moment to lend legitimacy to its aggressive and unprecedented play for international legitimacy as the one real Palestinian leadership that has already succeeded where U.S.-backed PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has not. Former President Jimmy Carter’s visit to the region last week and his meeting with Iran’s top Hamas agent Khaled Mashaal in Damascus were very helpful in legitimizing Hamas while politically undermining if not burying Abbas among Palestinians.

Now Hamas can say to the Palestinian public that it has a gained foothold of legitimacy even in the West while conceding nothing and has already established a sovereign Islamist emirate in Gaza that is not, from a Palestinian viewpoint, the vassal state of the U.S. and Israel that Abbas is negotiating with Olmert.

Read the whole thing.

Speaking of Carter, at Hot Air Ed Morrisey notes an interview Jimmy Carter gives where he calmly mis-states the history of Hamas, claiming that the US and Israel never said that Hamas was a terrorist group until after they won the election.

Carter is nothing if not consistently off the mark.

Technorati Tag: Hamas and Jimmy Carter.

Carter Just Can't Do the Math

In Carter Lies In Cairo, Tigerhawk quotes from the LA Times blog, Bablylon and Beyond about Carter's trip to Cairo:

Before the college student could grin in agreement, Carter did the mathematics of bloodshed. He said that for every Israeli killed in the conflict, 30 to 40 Palestinians die because of Israel’s superior military and “pinpoint accuracy.”

Tigerhawk notes that, not surprisingly, Jimmy Carter has no clue what he is talking about:

Actually, since Yasser Arafat ordered up the current intifada on September 29, 2000, 4,604 Palestinian Arabs have died compared to 1,033 Israelis (figures through February 2008). That's according to the manifestly anti-Israeli IfAmericansKnew.com. So while any politician can manipulate statistics and I am sure Jimmy Carter could cherry-pick some period of time in which "30 to 40" Palestinians died compared to a single Israeli, in the sweep of this war the ratio is more like 4.6 to 1. Carter essentially lied, certainly within the political blogger standard for the term. Anybody have a problem with that?

Carter may claim he is an emissary for peace, but bottom line he is a politician pushing his own agenda--and the only thing reliable about him is that he will say anything to push that agenda.

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Hamas Learns There Is Such A Thing As A 'Useless' Idiot

One would thing that by now Jimmy Carter is wearing out his welcome--even among the terrorists

Carter insists Hamas really wants peace, problem is Israel

Former US President Jimmy Carter on Monday said that following a meeting with the Hamas leadership in Damascus late last week, he can confidently announce that Hamas truly desires peace with Israel. The premature claim was almost immediately rebuffed by Hamas.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Israel Council on Foreign Relations, Carter asserted that Hamas is prepared to accept a Palestinian Arab state in Gaza and the West Bank and Israel's right to exist in the rest of the land west of the Jordan River.

The self-styled peace envoy said that Hamas' top leadership had assured him that it would accept such a solution to the conflict if approved by a majority of Palestinians in a referendum.

Having established Hamas' willingness to make peace, Carter went on to imply that the only obstacle remaining was Israel's unwillingness to hold talks with the terror group.

However, almost immediately after Carter spoke, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told reporters that the American had apparently gotten ahead of himself, or misinterpreted statements by the Hamas leadership to fit his own agenda.

Hamas, said Abu Zuhri, was indeed prepared to allow a referendum on a two-state solution, but made no guarantees that it would accept the results.

And that, of course, is the primary reason Israel will not consider including Hamas in peace talks.[emphasis added]

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

If You're A Terrorist, The Washington Post Wants You (Updated)

Circulation at the Washington Post must be hurting again--today another terrorist gets an op-ed.

Back in 2005, Hamas terrorist leader Mahmoud al-Zahar gave an interview to an Italian newspaper:

Hamas will not compromise on one inch of Greater Palestine, Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar told an Italian newspaper earlier this week.

Speaking to the Corriere Della Sera newspaper, al-Zahar said Hamas would "definitely not" be prepared for coexistence with Israel should the IDF retreat to its 1967 borders.

"It can be a temporary solution, for a maximum of 5 to 10 years. But in the end Palestine must return to become Muslim, and in the long term Israel will disappear from the face of the earth."

Now, to further his agenda, al-Zahar has The Washington Post which has kindly given him the podium. One of his key claims is that Israel has the chutzpah to have found a way to stem the tide of suicide bombers:

Israeli military strikes on Gaza have killed hundreds of Palestinians since then with unwavering White House approval; in 2007 alone the ratio of Palestinians to Israelis killed was 40 to 1, up from 4 to 1 during the period from 2000 to 2005.

Oh, and about those pesky 1967 borders:

A "peace process" with Palestinians cannot take even its first tiny step until Israel first withdraws to the borders of 1967; dismantles all settlements; removes all soldiers from Gaza and the West Bank; repudiates its illegal annexation of Jerusalem; releases all prisoners; and ends its blockade of our international borders, our coastline and our airspace permanently. This would provide the starting point for just negotiations and would lay the groundwork for the return of millions of refugees. Given what we have lost, it is the only basis by which we can start to be whole again.

Al-Zahar stated very clearly 3 years ago that withdrawal to 1967 borders would not result in co-existence, but would just be a stepping stone to taking over Israel. If he feels differently now, let him go ahead and say so.

Instead, once again Al-Zahar gets to make outlandish claims, ignore the murder of Israeli citizens by Hamas, and get recognition as a regular government official.

Who needs Jimmy Carter when you have The Washington Post?

UPDATE: Speaking of Carter, the following from Clifford D. May's piece on Carter (""Carter's Confusion") applies equally to The Washington Post as well:

The Hamas Charter asserts that “initiatives, and so-called peaceful solutions and international conferences, are in contradiction to [Hamas’] principles. . . . There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad.” And by Jihad, Hamas does not mean an internal struggle for personal improvement. [emphasis added]

To assume that al-Zahar is in any way claiming that there is a possibility for peace requires a certain level of ignorance of Hamas and its goals. Now, through The Washington Post, ignorance of Hamas and its true goals can be easily spread to its--albeit--declining readership.

Technorati Tag: The Washington Post and Mahmoud al-Zahar.

Time For Jimmy Carter To Move On

Jimmy Carter just isn't getting any respect.

Watching the unfolding Carter debacle has rewarded us with unexpected reactions. His meeting with Hamas terrorist leaders has brought Carter's isolation into sharper focus.

First there are Carter's fellow Elders. Unlike Carter, The Elders knew when to fold

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APRIL 8, 2008

Statement by The Elders on the Middle East

The Elders have been exploring ways that they can contribute to peace and to the world’s understanding of the complex issues involved in the Middle East conflict.

They had planned a visit to the region in April to meet and listen to representatives from government, civil society, business and the public in Israel, the Palestinian territories, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Saudi Arabia. The Elders will continue consultations with key leaders in the region and outside with the purpose of developing a comprehensive report, but have decided to postpone their visit. [emphasis added]

On the other hand, while Israel is understandably shunning Carter, they are not alone. Eric Trager writes that one Islamist group still thinks Carter is a puppet of Israel and the US:

Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) has announced that its leadership has refused former U.S. President Jimmy Carter’s request for a meeting. According to PIJ’s QudsNews website, Egyptian authorities contacted PIJ Secretary-General Dr. Ramadan Shallah on Carter’s behalf earlier this week, inviting Shallah to meet with Carter in Cairo. Shallah is listed on the FBI’s list of Most Wanted Terrorists, and the reward for information leading to his apprehension is $5 million. In turning down the request, Shallah declared that Carter is “carrying an American-Israeli agenda,” while PIJ spokesman Daoud Shahab blasted Carter’s criticism of Palestinian rocket attacks during the former president’s visit to Sderot.

No matter how subservient Carter has shown himself ready to be, there will always be those like Islamic Jihad who will demand complete dhimmitude. According to Carter, Hamas and Syria must be made part of the negotiations, regardless of their terrorism--what will he do with Islamic Jihad's participation?

Meanwhile, back in the US, Congressman Joe Knollenberg of Michigan introduced legislation preventing the US government from giving taxpayer money to the Carter Center.

“America must speak with one voice against our terrorist enemies,” Knollenberg said. “It sends a fundamentally troubling message when an American dignitary is engaged in dialogue with terrorists. My legislation will make sure that taxpayer dollars are not being used to support discussions or negotiations with terrorist groups.”

...Knollenberg was the first member of Congress to speak out against President Carter’s planned meeting with Hamas, sending a letter to the former president immediately following news of the plan. Knollenberg’s letter is available online at: http://knollenberg.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=88299

The bill, the Coordinated American Response to Extreme Radicals Act (CARTER Act), would prohibit any taxpayer dollars from being directed to the Carter Center. The Center has received at least $19 million in federal taxpayer funds since 2001.

With all of the attention he has been getting, apparently those with the most to gain (or lose) from Carter's venture--couldn't care less. Lisa Goldman reports that Carter's visit has been virtually ignored by the media--but not necessarily out of maliciousness:

Still, even here in super-liberal Tel Aviv, the fact is that I could not find anyone on the street who could acknowledge anything beyond bare awareness of Carter’s visit.

Curious to know whether the Palestinian street was similarly underwhelmed by the visit of an ex-president who is considered pro-Palestinian, I called a Palestinian friend who is the Ramallah-based correspondent for a major international Arab satellite news channel.

Turns out that the people on the streets of Ramallah didn’t really care about the visit of “an ex-president who is old and has no real power,” either.

Carter's presidency was a disaster. His claim to fame rests on his Carter Center and his Nobel Prize. There is already a move to without funding from his Center. As far as his winning of the Nobel Prize goes, it was recognized more as a statement, as a slap in the face to Bush:

The head of the Nobel committee, Gunnar Berge, said the decision to pick Carter "can and must also be seen as criticism of the line the current U.S. administration has taken on Iraq."

Well, the message was received--and it is time for Carter to move on.
Apparently everyone else has.

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Carter Gives A Terrorist a Hug--And Pays His Respects To Another Murderer Of Americans

Carter had the opportunity to give a terrorist a hug:

Former President Jimmy Carter embraced a leading Hamas figure Tuesday, according to participants in a meeting that infuriated Israeli officials already upset by Carter's freelance Mideast peace mission.

So Carter has gone ahead to embrace and honor murderers of Americans both current and past. He has honored the same Hamas that is behind the murder of Americans, while Charles Schumer has called for Carter's new buddies to be extradited for those murders.

But Carter could not pass up the chance to pay his respects to his other terrorist friend:

Carter also laid a wreath at the grave of Yasser Arafat, whom the Bush administration and many Israelis blame for the breakdown of peace talks seven years ago and the violence that followed.

That's the same Arafat who ordered the murder of American diplomats, as the State Department website recounts:

In the early evening hours of 1 March 1973, eight Black September Organization (BSO) terrorists seized the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Khartoum as a diplomatic reception honoring the departing United States Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) was ending. After slightly wounding the United States Ambassador and the Belgian Charge d'Affaires, the terrorists took these officials plus the United States DCM, the Saudi Arabian Ambassador and the Jordanian Charge d'Affaires hostage. In return for the freedom of the hostages, the captors demanded the release of various individuals, mostly Palestinian guerrillas, imprisoned in Jordan, Israel and the United States.

The Khartoum operation was planned and carried out with the full knowledge and personal approval of Yasir Arafat, Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), and the head of Fatah.

...Negotiations with the BSO terrorist team were conducted primarily by the Sudanese Ministers of Interior and of Health. No effort was spared, within the capabilities of the Sudanese Government, to secure the freedom of the hostages. The terrorists extended their deadlines three times, but when they became convinced that their demands would not be met and after they reportedly had received orders from Fatah headquarters in Beirut, they killed the two United States officials and the Belgian Charge. Thirty-four hours later, upon receipt of orders from Yasir Arafat in Beirut to surrender, the terrorists released their other hostages unharmed and surrendered to Sudanese authorities. [emphasis added]

But Carter does not play favorites--he doesn't much care who his favorite peace partners have killed, so by all means let's include the murderer of Lebanese leaders:

"Since Syria and Hamas will have to be involved in a final peace agreement, they have to be involved in discussions that lead to final peace," Carter said Tuesday.

In an interview with James Welsh who heard Arafat issue the order:

It was a long time ago but this man did order the deaths of two U.S. diplomats. We taped his words. I guess there is nothing that can be done now but I often wonder why Yasser Arafat's image and continued presence on the world scene is more important than simple justice for two dedicated diplomats who were murdered thirty years ago.

Perhaps Jimmy Carter should answer that question.

If you can really judge a person by the company they keep...

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Carter Wants To Shake Hands That Have The Blood Of Americans On Them

There have been a number of angles taken in response to Jimmy Carter's decision to meet the terrorist leader of Hamas Khaled Meshal. John McCain's point goes beyond the terrorism embraced by Hamas, and extends to their victims:

"It is a grave and dangerous mistake for an American leader to meet with a terrorist organization like Hamas. Engaged in a campaign that deliberately targets innocent Israeli civilians, Hamas is dedicated to the destruction of Israel. President Carter is wrong to meet with Hamas, a terrorist group that has also killed innocent Americans."

Unfortunately, the record of American condemnation of the murder of Americans by Palestinian terrorists is uneven. Michael Freund wrote back in 2003 in a piece entitled: Bush forgot about American victims of Palestinian terror:

Two years ago, John Branchizio, 37, of Texas; John Linde Jr., 30, of Missouri; and Mark Parsons, 31, of New Jersey, all died in Gaza as a direct result of Palestinian terror. They are among the more than 50 American citizens murdered by Palestinian terrorists since the signing of the Oslo accords, and none of their killers have yet to pay for their actions.

That incident has practically been forgotten and those responsible for that terrorist attack have never been caught--and neither have the Hamas terrorists who have killed Americans--

In August 2005, the Boston Globe carried the story about the attempt to freeze the US-based assets of the PA. The case was a first, but the terrorists it targeted were not Fatah:

The case is the first to result in a financial judgment under a 1991 antiterrorism law that allows US citizens to sue foreign organizations in civil court for terrorism. It stems from the 1996 murders of Brooklyn-born Yaron Ungar, a US citizen, and his pregnant Israeli wife, Efrat, whose car was sprayed with bullets by Hamas militants.

But the Ungars were not the only Americans murdered by Hamas. In 2002, The Jerusalem Post reported on the reaction to the murder of 5 Americans by Hamas in a bombing at Hebrew University:

US politicians call to extradite HU terrorists
Several New York politicians are calling on the Bush administration to demand the extradition of the perpetrators of last week's terror attack at the Hebrew University to the US to stand trial for the murder of five American citizens.

Twenty-four Americans have been killed in Palestinian terror attacks, and 43 wounded, since September 2000.

At a Thursday evening press conference in New York, Sen. Charles Schumer (D) demanded the extradition of Hamas leaders to the US, among them spiritual head Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, after the terror group claimed responsibility for the July 31 blast inside a university cafeteria, which claimed the lives of seven students and staff members.

"If Hamas killed five Americans on US soil, the United States would demand justice for the families of the victims, and we would go after Hamas," Schumer said.

"We should do no less now. This was an attack on America, not simply an attack on Israel. And we need to take action. We cannot simply sit on the side and let these horrific attacks go unanswered."

At the time Schumer made the point that the murder of Americans by Hamas cannot be excused as accidental collateral damage:

Schumer dismissed a statement issued by Hamas after the bombing claiming that Americans had not been targeted in the attack. By planting the bomb at the Hebrew University, "they knew that they wouldn't just be killing Israelis, that they'd be killing Americans as well," said Schumer.

In the House, Rep. Anthony Weiner sent a letter to Attorney-General John Ashcroft on Thursday asking him to extradite those responsible for the attack. "US law makes it a crime to kill or injure, or to conspire to kill or injure, an American national outside the US in furtherance of a terrorist cause even if Americans were not the intended targets," Weiner wrote.

Is that a point of law of which Carter is merely ignorant, or is he ignoring it out of hand? In any case, the list of Americans murdered by Hamas is more extensive, and there is a website with a list of American victims of Palestinian terrorism running from 1968 to 2003, including the following American victims of Hamas terrorist attacks:

December 1, 1993: Yitzhak Weinstock, age 19, an American-Israeli student whose family came from Los Angeles, was murdered by Hamas terrorists in a drive-by shooting attack near El Bireh, north of Jerusalem.

October 9, 1994: Nachshon Wachsman, an American-Israeli, was kidnapped and then murdered by Hamas terrorists.

August 21, 1995, Jerusalem, Israel. A bus bombing in Jerusalem by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) killed four, including American Joan Davenny, and wounded more than 100.

February 25, 1996, Jerusalem, Israel. A suicide bomber blew up a commuter bus in Jerusalem, killing 26, including three U.S. citizens, and injuring 80 others, among them another three U.S. citizens. Hamas claimed responsibility for the bombing.

March 4, 1996, Tel Aviv, Israel. A suicide bomber detonated an explosive device outside the Dizengoff Center,David Boim Tel Aviv's largest shopping mall, killing 20 March 4, 1996 Tel Aviv Bombing persons and injuring 75 others, including two U.S. citizens. Both Hamas and the Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the bombing.

July 30, 1997, Jerusalem, Israel. Two bombs detonated in Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market, killing 15 persons, including a U.S. citizen and wounding 168 others, among them two U.S. citizens. The Izz-el-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' military wing, claimed responsibility for the attack.

September 4, 1997: Yael Botwin, age 14, an American-Israeli from the Los Angeles suburb of Claremont killed in a Hamas suicide bombing attack in downtown Jerusalem.

August 9, 2001, Jerusalem, Israel. A suicide bombing at Sbarro's, a pizzeria situated in one of the busiest areas of downtown Jerusalem, killed 15 people, including a 31-year-old tourist from New Jersey, Shoshana Greenbaum and wounded more than 90. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

July 31, 2002, Jerusalem, Israel. Seven people including four Americans, Marla Bennett (24) of Marla Bennett David Gritz Benjamin Blutstein Janis Ruth CoulterSan Diego, California, David Gritz (24) of Peru, Massachusetts, Benjamin Blutstein (25) of Susquehanna Township, Pennsylvania and Janis Ruth Coulter (36) from New York were murdered when a remote-controlled bomb detonated in the Frank Sinatra Cafeteria on Jerusalem's Hebrew University Mt. Scopus campus. Eighty-six others were injured. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

Schumer would have the Hamas leaders brought to justice.
Carter would prefer to offer them tea and sympathy--and recognition.

[Hat tip: David Freddoso]

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Carter: "I've Been Meeting With Hamas Leaders For Years"

"I feel quite at ease in doing this."I think there's no doubt in anyone's mind that, if Israel is ever going to find peace with justice concerning the relationship with their next-door neighbors, the Palestinians, that Hamas will have to be included in the process." [emphasis added]
Jimmy Carter

Not that Carter's hobnobbing with terrorists should come as a surprise. It's not clear just how long Carter has been meeting with Hamas terrorists, but it may very well be that he's been meeting with them since before Hamas won the election 2 years ago.

Considering the huge amount of funding that Carter has received over the years from Arab financiers, it is fair to ask just where the idea for these trips have come from:

Journalist Jacob Laksin has documented the tens of millions of dollars that the Carter Center has accepted from Saudi Arabian royalty and assorted other Middle Eastern sultans, who, in return, Carter dutifully praised as peaceful and tolerant (no matter how despotic the regime). And these are only the confirmed, public donations.

Carter has also accepted half a million dollars and an award from Sheik Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, saying in 2001: "This award has special significance for me because it is named for my personal friend, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan." This is the same Zayed, the long-time ruler of the United Arab Emirates, whose $2.5 million gift to the Harvard Divinity School was returned in 2004 due to Zayed's rampant Jew-hatred. Zayed's personal foundation, the Zayed Center, claims that it was Zionists, rather than Nazis, who “were the people who killed the Jews in Europe” during the Holocaust. It has held lectures on the blood libel and conspiracy theories about Jews and America perpetrating Sept. 11.

Another journalist, Rachel Ehrenfeld, in a thorough and devastating article on "Carter’s Arab Financiers, [link broken; read here]" meticulously catalogues Carter’s ties to Arab moneymen, from a Saudi bailout of his peanut farm in 1976, to funding for Carter’s presidential library, to continued support for all manner of Carter’s post-presidential activities. For instance, it was the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI), founded in Pakistan and fronted by a Saudi billionaire, Gaith Pharaon, that helped Carter start up his beloved Carter Center.

Considering the fact there Carter has mentioned that some of "The Elders" may be accompanying him on the trip, it would be interesting to see if that group owes any of its funding to Saudi backing as well.

Interestingly, Carter sees no reason to boycott the Olympics in China:

As president, Carter led the boycott of the Moscow Olympics in protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. "That was a totally different experience in 1980, when the Soviet Union had brutally invaded and killed thousands and thousands of people," he said, rejecting the idea of boycotting the Beijing games to protest China's crackdown in Tibet. He did not address whether just the opening ceremonies should be boycotted.

Apparently, Carter has no interest in the occupation of Tibet by the Chinese. For that matter, the fact that since 1950 there have been over 1 million Tibetans killed by China is not worthy of Carter's attention either--putting aside the 44.5 to 72 million total killed by China.

Carter's "peace with justice" has its limits. Going after China won't pay the rent.

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter.

Carter Will Enlist Aid Of Fellow Superheros In Meeting With Terrorist

So not only is Carter going to Syria to convey recognition on Hamas terrorist leader Khaled Meshal, but apparently he is taking along 2 members of The Elders, a group of which Carter is a member and was formed last year as part of an initiative by Nelson Mandela.

Global Elders [from left]: Peter Gabriel, Muhammad Yunus, Mary Robinson, Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela, Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Sir Richard Branson

At the time, the group declared with comic book boldness on the one hand:

"The Elders can become a fiercely independent and robust force for good, tackling conflicts and intractable issues, especially those that are not popular," said Mr Mandela.

The group will "speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes, working wherever our help is needed".

..."This group derives its strength not from military, political or economic power, but from the independence and integrity of those who are here." [emphasis added]

balanced by Tutu's comment

One of the ways to be effective is that no one gets to know precisely what we have done," he said.

We are left to wonder if these guys themselves have a clue--and whether there is anyone they would not be willing to meet and convey legitimacy upon?

This is especially pertinent at a time when there are those in the Arab world who themselves are turning against Hamas. The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs has taken note of a trend in

the mainstream Arabic-language newspapers, which are printing ever more articles and editorials that are unsympathetic towards Hamas. Arab public opinion is starting to become conscious of the fact that Hamas is harmful to many basic interests of the Palestinian people.

Among the recurrent themes:

* Blaming Hamas for the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza;
* Attempting to provoke Israel into attacking Gaza;
* Condemning Iranian influence over Hamas;
* Protesting against Hamas plans to establish a Muslim caliphate in Gaza;
* Denouncing the Hamas coup against the Palestinian Authority.

This is not going to stop Carter and his buddies.

Actually, there is an irony to Carter's insistence in backing Hamas--which after all is a puppet of Iran. Iran must be enjoying Jimmy Carter's blind incompetence once again giving them support in furthering their goals.

Technorati Tag: The Elders and Jimmy Carter.

So, How Badly Does Carter Miss Arafat?

This much:

Former President Jimmy Carter is reportedly preparing an unprecedented meeting with the leader of Hamas, an organization that the U.S. government considers one of the leading terrorist threats in the world.

The Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat reported Tuesday that Carter was planning a trip to Syria for mid-April, during which he would meet with Khaled Meshal, the exiled head of the Palestinian terror group Hamas, on April 18.

Deanna Congileo, Carter’s press secretary, confirmed in an e-mail to FOXNews.com that Carter will be in the Mideast in April. Pressed for comment, Congileo did not deny that the former president is considering visiting Meshal.

“President Carter is planning a trip to the Mideast next week; however, we are still confirming details of the trip and will issue a press release by the end of this week,” wrote Congileo. “I cannot confirm any specific meetings at this point in time.”

The reactions to news of Carter's apparent meeting are about what you would expect--no surprises from Stever Emerson, John Bolton and CAIR's Hooper:

“I think this [visit] undermines the U.S. policy of isolating Hamas,” said Emerson. “I think this encourages Europeans to further dilute their sanctions against the Hamas government.”

"When you put the prestige of a former president of the United States in a meeting with one of its terrorist leaders, you’re giving it a legitimacy and currency it never had,” said Bolton.

But Ibrahim Hooper, communications director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a non-profit advocacy group, said Carter's efforts demonstrate he's a true partner in peace.

“I think if true, this report would indicate that President Carter is willing to travel any road in search of peace,” he said. “I think President Carter would only undertake such a mission if he believed that something could be achieved in terms of peace and reconciliation in the region.”

Hooper added that because of Carter's reputation among Palestinians he might be able to bring some pressure to bear.

That last comment is actually interesting. Surely Hooper doesn't mean that Carter's rep with Palestinians means that he can bring added pressure on Israel. Is Hooper actually advocating that Carter should get the Palestinian Arabs to actually make some kind of meaningful gesture to demonstrate a real desire for peace?

That would fall well withing the realm of wishful thinking especially when you have CAIR executive director Nihad Awad writing in a January 2008 article about "President Jimmy Carter, arguably a staunch supporter of Israel."

Uh-huh.

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter and Khaled Meshal.

Jimmy Carter--The Conscience of Saudi Arabia!

When the trailer for Jonathan Demme's new movie--Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains--claims "One Former President Has Become...The Conscience Of A Nation," I just naturally assumed...

Anyway, here's the blurb that goes along with the trailer:

Jimmy Carter Man From Plains is an intimate, surprising encounter with President Jimmy Carter. Following the path of Mr. Carter’s recent controversial book tour for Palestine Peace Not Apartheid, AcademyAward©-winning director Jonathan Demme reveals a complex individual who,with the gusto and determination of a youngster, criss-crosses the country to get his message across, even as that message creates a media onslaught in which his credibility and judgment are called into question. Jimmy Carter Man From Plains explores both the private and public sides of Jimmy Carter, whose intense sense of justice compels him to pursue, with undiminished energy and hope, his lifelong and deeply spiritual vision of reconciliation and peace.

And you thought Demme's Silence of the Lambs was scary.

Technorati Tag: Jimmy Carter and Man From Plains and Jonathan Demme.