Disqus - Latest Comments for jdledell

Re: Media Wakes Up About the Obama Administration’s Middle East Failure (Guest Voice)

jdledell — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:45:33 -0000

This is a real smear job by Rubin. There is no question that Obama has made some mistakes in foreign as well as domestic policy. He is facing some deep seated and intractable problems. Specifically, Iran has been pusuing nuclear capabilities for the last decade - what success did Bush have.in stopping it? For that matter what changes in arab policy was Bush able to effect - none. Did Bush magically make the Lebanon and Syria problems go away in his 8 years - NO!!!!!! What the Hell was Bush's strategy in Afganistan?????? No one knows. Rubin's commentary is not an objective analysis but merely a hit job for the republican base.

However, it's on the Israeli/Palestinian issue that I have the most objections. Obama made a mistake in calling for a settlement freeze without first knowing Israel's answer - never put a President's prestige on the line without having the result firmly in hand. That being said, calling Netanyahu and Israel's position on settlements benign is a ridiculous mis-representation. The settlement freeze is important because Israel has always used negotiations as a cover to expand settlements. In 1993 the start of the Oslo process, Israel had about 140,000 settlers in East Jerusalem and about 110,000 in other areas over the Green Line. Today those numbers are roughly 200,000 in East Jerusalem and 300,000 in other areas. In other words, while the parties were negotiating the settler population roughly doubled.

Now as to the "limitation" on settler growth that Bibi has supposedly implemented to 3000 units, it is nothing but a lie and a smokescreen. There is no halt. I was just there for the High Holy Days and as a dual passport holder I can go everywhere in the West Bank where all my relatives live. The settlers in ALL the established settlements will readily admit they are building without permits and that they are not part of the 3000. They are proud of it. When I was visiting my niece in Kiryat Arba and looked in amazement at all the building she told me that last month Ariel Atias, current Housing Minister, assured the town council that all the building will be retroactively approved, as usual.

In February when I was in Israel for the elections, I visited Maskiot, a new Jordan Valley settlement that is currently expanding it's permanent structures. I was told that Bibi personally promised these and other Jordan Valley settlers that he would annex the Jordan Valley before he left office. Without the Jordan Valley there is no viable Palestinian state. That is the Likud objective and they will use every trick, bluff and lie they need to make that

Re: “Here Are Two Sides of the Truth”

kathykattenburg — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:16:59 -0000

I saw that video at YouTube, didn't listen to it yet, but I will. If it's even equal to Jeff Buckley's version, much less better, I'll be impressed.

Re: “Here Are Two Sides of the Truth”

jdledell — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:49:43 -0000

Kathy - These are two of my favorite musicians. The Tapestry album is an absolute treasure, As for KD Lang, one listen to her rendition of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah and you will never ever forget it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTv9m8c6hnw

Re: Ted Turner: ‘War is Obsolete’

JeffersonDavis — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:41:27 -0000

"JD - Exactly how is China a threat to the USA? Are they going to invade us? They will threaten our # one position economically but that will be our own damn fault. Militarily how can they threaten us?"

I don't consider them a traditional military threat, jd.
China is becoming the world ECONOMIC superpower. That's all well and good. They have that right.
However, they are prepping for a massive economic/industrial takeover of the world. They are securing all the natural resources, building a massive infrastructure, and obtaining a stable seat at the world financial table. Once that's ready, you'll see an explosion of industry the likes of which haven't been seen in history - a second industrial revolution. In short, China will take over the world without a shot being fired.

And if you think pollution on Earth was bad before, what til China gets going.

Re: Has Turkey Been Lost To The West?

ronbeas — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:20:06 -0000

I think your right jdledell - Glick's only concern is Israel and it's all about Israel in that part of the world.

Re: Ted Turner: ‘War is Obsolete’

jdledell — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:44:13 -0000

shannon - What are we getting for our $1 trillion and 4,000+ lives from Iraq. It's an ally of Iran and did you see that all the recent oil deals were wth Europe and China. Once the kick our troops out of there in 2011 we will have almost zero influence with them and zero gratitude.

JD - Exactly how is China a threat to the USA? Are they going to invade us? They will threaten our # one position economically but that will be our own damn fault. Militarily how can they threaten us?

Re: Germany’s Got Revolutionary Power

jdledell — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:33:26 -0000

Germany is far and away the leader in solar technology. The USA sits on it's butt when it comes to making energy in a 22nd century way. As with most things, America says it's number one in everything and we have NOTHING to learn from other countries, especially Europe.

Re: Has Turkey Been Lost To The West?

jdledell — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:26:38 -0000

Caroline, the sky is falling, Glick is looking at this strictly through an Israeli perspective. Israel has lost Turkey but I think it's way too premature to say Turkey is lost to the west. Turkey relationship with Israel has been on a downward slope since the 1996 Lebanon war and Gaza was the proverbial last straw. There is no question that Turkey's relationship with the West and US has been under strain since they would not agree to be a transit for Iraq war troops. Turkey has strengthened it's ties with the muslim world and even improving their relationship with the Kurds.

If you look at the situation from Turkey's eyes, why should they put all their eggs in the West's basket? What have we done to deserve Turkey's support? Most of the EU is dead set against their entrance and their NATO membership currently protects them against whom? NATO made sense when the USSR was on the prowl but not really any longer. I don't think even the secular military can stomach Israel anymore especially since Israel backed out of a deal to sell them 40 UAV's. Turkey's current negative position on Israel is a warning not to start a war with Iran (a disaster to Turkey) and a message of Turkey non-cooperation with such an endeavor.

Re: Health Care and Insurance: A Lost (and Crucial) Distinction

jdledell — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 11:36:35 -0000

Leonidas

I did not mean to deliberately sidestep your question, it's just that there is a lot of material in this thread to absorb. As to your question on big insurance companies vs small here is the best analysis I can give. For large companies - Microsoft, Verizon, GE etc, there is simply no way for smaller carriers to compete - the big 7 are the only answer. To break up coverage between different carriers by geography simply adds too much to the premium. For small employers who are located in one spot with say 50 employees, it's still hard for a small carrier to compete with the big boys. That is due to the large carriers having significantly more volume and thus driving better deals with hospitals and docs. With Insurance so expensive, a lower premium that large carriers can offer is 90% of the buying decision.

Large carriers use their cost advantage to pad profits by using the smaller carriers higher premium as a straw target and just undercutting it rather than pass all the cost savings along. Insurance companies don't make much, if any profit, on large employers. The buyers are too sophisticateed and competition is fierce amoung the large carriers since all of them want the big volume to drive their deals with health providers.

The plans offered by large carriers are usually consistent state to state. Most large employers opt for self insurance with the carrier providing administrative services only (ASO) This makes the palns exempt from state regulation by way of ERISA. There is no way for small entreprenurial companies to compete when premiums are so important. If I can get a computer from Dell for $500 vs having my local computer store build the same one for $1000, which am I going to buy regardless how much I like the guy at my local store? The same is true with large and small insurance carriers.

Re: Health Care and Insurance: A Lost (and Crucial) Distinction

Polimom — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 10:39:32 -0000

jdledell -- you're bringing a lot of insight into this discussion -- I appreciate it VERY much.

Let's bring some of this together. I'm going to gratuitously lift a comment by CStanley from another thread, from a post started by elrod.

Americare - a defined basic health insurance package paid for through general taxes, and for those who can afford it and want it, a regulated market that offers supplemental insurance.

That's actually a model I might support, depending on how it's structured.

Like most conservatives, I think that our current system which prevents hospitals from turning away poor/uninsured people is responding to a true public obligation. I don't think that giving everyone a publicly subsidized, gold plated healthcare plan is a good method of reducing costs and in fact will add to it by increasing demand for routine care.

But having everyone covered by a basic, bare bones plan- particularly if it were along the lines of HSA/HDHP structure which encourages people to think about how the dollars are being spent- would allow people to get routine care without going to the ER. If it had that kind of individual accountability built into it, but also allowed for a sliding scale according to people's means- then it might work to reduce costs and keep demand under control. The sliding scale could be implemented in one of two ways- either by having the actual price for the policy adjusted to income, or by giving tax credits for people to purchase the policy and fund their HSA.

There should also be some focus on increasing supply, so that it's not so mismatched to the demand which will still increase somewhat under that scenario.

There could probably also be a gradual dissolution of Medicare and SCHIP, if the new system could accommodate those needs.

Elrod's phrasing is at odds with my post. I don't see the solution as a "basic health insurance package"; rather I think we should be thinking in terms of a "basic health care package". Since that thread evolved from a different place altogether, I'm going to just invoke semantics, and see if anybody agrees with me that there are possibilities here.

Re: Health Care and Insurance: A Lost (and Crucial) Distinction

jdledell — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 10:01:51 -0000

Here are some additional thoughts and clarifications.
1 - Someone asked how many uninsureds might be covered with health reform. The best guesses in the Industry are some 20-25 million of the 47 million unisured. Mandatory coverage will never get everyone - auto insurance and Mass health are examples. Some people will always stay on the fringes of society. Nonetheless, even 20-25 million additional insureds means $80-100 billion in additional insurance company revenues - that makes it attractive from a capitalistic perspective.
2 - The issue of mandatory additional coverage in many states is a vexing problem. Making things like chiropractors, accupuncturists, social workers, drug and alcohol coverage, etc etc etc adds 5%-10% to the premium. Whether they are necessary or not depends on your individual perspective. Most times states pass these laws in keeping with our democractic capitalistic approach to things - if you give money to politicians you get what you want.
What I would recommend is plans and insurance carriers can opt for either a federal license or a state license, similar to what banks do. A federally chartered carrier could offer the same plan in all 50 states. Currently there is some semblance of this approach in that an Insurance contract is governed by the state of domicile of the plan sponsor and the same coverage can be offered in all 50 states. The same is true of self-insured coverage under an ASO or ASC approach. However, HMO managed care necessitates not only state specific coverage but also separate business entities by state - an expensive waste of money.
3 - It was asked if competition from little companies operating accross state lines would be adventageous competition to big insurance companies which already operate across state lines. There already are 7 national carriers, more competion than cell phone, car or computer companies so I don't see any real advantage.
4 - Medicare administrative costs run about 3.5%. However, this is not as big a savings vs group plans as most people think. Large employers under and ASO contract pay fees of 4%-5% on top of the actual cost of claims. Medium size employers pay fees of about 10-12% and small employers pay fees of about 20-25%, An individual policy runs costs of 30%. A single payer plan would cut about $200 billion in administrative costs out of a $2.2 trillion dollar health care budget. The cost savings of a single payer are half on insurance company side and about half on the health provider side as they no longer have to deal with most of their paperwork and plan confusion. The administrative savings would be enough to cover 47 million uninsureds.
4 - Even though I worked for an insurance company for 32 years, I believe ultimately we in the US will end up with a single payer plan - however it is too radical now for American culture and the job dislocations in the insurance industry alone would be enormous. However, the cost savings of size are too juicy to ignore. Consequently, I see the healthcare industry consolidating to the point we have only 2-3 carriers, each covering 100+ million people.
5 - One of the things that is going to have to be addressed is the geographical differences in the practice of medicine. The practice of medicine is primarily based on local physician culture - it's incestuous. Docs get together all the time both socially and business wise. If Otto the orthepaedist does knee replacements a certain way and if the docs like Otto, everyone follow that pattern. The referral game is the same way, if George the GP likes Carl the cardiologist, then many referrals are made and Carl will probably reward George with a case of vintage wine at Christmas and a few very expensive dinners and golf outings etc. The result is that rates of things like cesarean births, angiograms, knee and hip replacements vary by hundreds of percent geographically and there is no sound medical reason for the difference. This is one of the primary reasons health costs vary geographically far, far, far in excess of the differences in cost of living.
6 - One of the things that would be a game changer is taking the risk and management of high cost patients out of the insurance equation. This is a proposal that I tried to push in the 90's after Clinton's plan blew up, in dozens of trips to DC meeting with Congress staff and politicians. Essentially Congress would set up a quasi-public reinsurance facility like Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac for high cost patients. Insurance carriers would pay a reinsurance premium and the new Henry Health corp would cover claims in excess of $100,000. This would immediately make insuring individuals and small business far less risky and would save 10-15% of the premium immediately. Claims in exces of $100,000 amount to some $400-500 billion annually, an amount large enough to need government financing of the risk. This would allow carriers to concentrate on providing health care rather than spending so much time and energy on health care FINANCING.
7 - Ultimately we have to decouple healthcare from employers. It will aid our economic competiveness internationally, as well as make changing jobs less painful. What I would like to see replacing the employer model is a geographical model. Each state would have two competeing plans with annual rebiding to keep carriers honest. Smaller states would be grouped together to to provide critical mass. The geographical model provides incentives to attack the local disparity in medical practice approaches.

More later.

Re: Health Care and Insurance: A Lost (and Crucial) Distinction

Polimom — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 22:45:04 -0000

jdledell -- thank you for your thoughtful input. There's a lot in there to think about, and as APR says, your comment illustrates a great deal of why this is all so very complex and difficult to reform. I've argued in other threads that expecting consumers to pick and choose specific treatments because they're paying for them is asking a bit much.

I'm going to have to come back around to some of your specifics in the morning -- it's been a long day here. In particular, I'm interested in further discussion of how we (as a society) can encourage ongoing maintenance / preventive care, while simultaneously decoupling some of these components.

Re: Health Care and Insurance: A Lost (and Crucial) Distinction

jdledell — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 19:26:23 -0000

As a former Senior VP of Prudential Healthcare I have found this discussion interesting. After reading 60 plus comments here are my thoughts on what has been said so far.
1 - The advent of full comprehensive medical coverage started during the Korean war. There was a wage freeze at the time so generous health benefits were awarded by corporations as a way to get around the wage freeze. It was not a political ploy by the Democrats but Insurance companies certainly did not object to the added revenue. This was strictly a capitalist reponse to problems retaining qualified employees given so many men were overseas at war.
2 - There is no question that HSA's and high deductible plans will save money in the short run. However, they can start to have problems in the longer run. Namely, the reluctance of people to spend money on preventive health. One of the ways, I overcame this is by providing a premium discount for the following year if the insured had an annual exam. This could be expanded by providing further discounts if the insured followed up on the physician's advice.
The other long run problem is the high deuctible plans exacerbate the cost differences by age. In other words for young healthy people the high deuctible plans are a real advantage. Utilizing this advantage makes the pool for older works hgher cost to the point premiums on the catastrophic portion start to rise dramatically. In effect the excess premiums that insurance companies collected on the young are lost, making premiums on the rest of the people higher.
Another problem is that purchasing medical care is unlike any other market driven practice. If you are really sick, you end up doing whatever the doctor tells you and thus are not controlling anything. Also because there are so many parts and participants to the health care process, it's impossible to quantify pricing. For example, if you have a heart attack you go in whatever ambulance arrives to an unknown price. The ambulance takes you to a hospital, maybe even one you are unfamiliar with. Said hospital may or may not be in your network. The ER doc does a bunch of tests and gives you a bunch of pills - no cost information available. You end up in an operating room for an angiogram and you are subject to the mercy of whatever cardiac surgeon and anesthesiologist happens to be on call that day. Cost differences for said personel can vary by tens of thousands of dollars. While under 100% high deductible plans this will not make much difference - such plans are on their way out and 80% plans will be primary in the future.
3 - HMO's are insurance companies. The idea that a group of docs could get together and run their own plans died in the early 90's. They simply did not have the administrative saavy and financial resources to run such plans. All it took was a couple of premature babies and the docs were bankrupt. It takes many millions of dollars to be able to handle the risk in healthcare expenses. As soon as the docs start hiring administrative, business, marketing and financial people they are no longer just a bunch of docs that got together but a full-fledged business subject to the profit pressures of their financial backers. Kaiser and Group Health up in Seattle are the only two full fleged non-profits left. Even the BX-BS plans are changing to profit making insurance companies.
4 - Pricing in healthcare is very complex full of jargon. It's all driven by CPT codes and there are thousands. The hospitals are driven by DRG codes and there is no such thing as given a person a set price for a knee replacement. An estimate can be given but as the case with mechanics and contractors, the price never comes in at that number. The entire pricing model of health providers would have to change in order to have a consumer friendly pricing policy.
5 - The idea that allowing insurance companies to cross state lines will save a lot of money is bogus. United Healthcare, Aetna, Cigna, Humana, Wellpoint etc etc already operate in 50 states. They can easily handle association plans and goups of small employers. The only ones who could gain anything by waiving state regulation are the small fly by night organizations who collect premiums and then disappear leaving insureds holding the bag.
6- The big money in claims come from chronic conditions like diabetes, cancer, and heart ailments. Controlling costs here is critical and the way to do that is with comprehensive preventive care - not high deductible insurance.
7 - Purchasing coverage as an individual is a daunting task. Even if you can read and understand the coverages and limitations and exclusions that's only about half the battle. The company's claim practices are crucial- What is their Usual and prevailing fee structure look like, what is their policy on new surgical procedures and techniques, what is their definition of medical necessity etc etc. Group coverage has the advantage of having the corporation as your advocate and believe me that works when it comes to claim problems. As an individual, you have zero power in disputes and little in the way of cost effective ways to fight.
8 - Tort reform is a minor issue in health care costs. The total expenditure on malpractice annually is $60 billion less than 3% of the total health costs. How much defensive medicine is practiced and it's costs is anyones guess. More tests means more money so who is to say those extra things would not have been done anyway.
9 - Community rating and doing away with pre-existing conditions is absoluely essential. However, we do have to come up with a way to handle people who drop out of the insured market until they are sick. This can be handled with premium surcharges for a certain number of years or two year benefit cutbacks.

Anyway, my wife is calling me for dinner - so maybe more later.

Re: http://themoderatevoice.com/41202/41202/

jdledell — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 16:51:48 -0000

DLS - Since you already know everything there is to know about racism -maybe you could write a book and enlighten the rest of us dummies. What unmitigated arrogance.

Re: Would A Webcam At Gates’ Home Have Changed Anything?

jdledell — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:13:27 -0000

I notice no one has responded to Joe's point about the increasing militarization of the police. Do you agree or disagree with Joe's prognosis? I for one agree. There is absolutely no way I would ever ask the police for directions or help. Any encounter with the police is a no win situation - only bad things can happen. I have never in my life had a positive encounter with a policeman and I'm 64 years old. I guess their training is to assert their authority but if you ask me they have taken that too far and are enjoying their power too much. I know there are a lot of bad guys out there and cops do have to be careful but they should be able to fairly quickly size up who is potentially dangerous and who is not. Once a determination of no real danger is present, they should drop their bully tactics.

Specifically on Joe's point on miltarization, in the last couple of days we had a situation in Jersey City where a couple started shooting at police who came to arrest them. The couple then retreated into their apartment. The cops rightfully, emptied the building but instead of waiting out the bad guys who were absolutely trapped, or using tear gas etc, they went in with guns blazing. It was the military macho response and it ended with 6 police with gunshot wounds, one of whom died. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Re: Would A Webcam At Gates’ Home Have Changed Anything?

jdledell — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 19:52:39 -0000

Why did Crowley not just leave. He had to be aware that his presence at the scene was causing a disturbance. Had he left, my guess is the yelling would have stopped since Gates would not have anyone to yell at. Crowley understood by that time no crime had been committed so why is he still there?

Re: Muslims’ Great Fear: ‘Obama Can’t Do It’: de Volkskrant, The Netherlands

jdledell — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 17:49:06 -0000

Chicagotrance - If you want to be considered serious then state specifically what your objections to Obama's speech were. Which statements are half-truths, distortions, and falsehoods. Spewing a bunch of deraogatory adjectives tells us less than nothing and is a waste of bandwidth.

Re: Quote of the Day: Israel’s Own Cuban Missile Crisis?

jdledell — Fri, 29 May 2009 20:12:59 -0000

Joe - First off ,Congratulations on the new look - it is classy and first rate. It reminded me to send some money your way to pay for all this nice work but I can't find the tip jar anymore. Help!

Now on to the issue at hand. Having spent the equivilent of several years in Israel over the past 50 years and having lived there in 82 - 83, I can tell you that the current existential fear far exceeds the mood prior to 1967 and 1973. Currently some 700,000 to 1 million Israelis live elsewhere and as speculated an Iran with nuclear weapons would dramatically increase that number. It would be the best and the brightest of the Israelis that would move and Israel would be left with the poorer and more religious Jews.

The ONLY solution is a peace agreement with the Palestinians and all the arab countries. Israel has the capacity to be the economic and technological hib of the mideast. Building cooperative and dependent relationships with neighboring countries is Israel's best defense for longevity. It doesn't mean arabs and/or persians are suddenly going to love Israel or Jews but over time everyone in the mideast will come to depend on each other. It is the only way Jews are going to become acceptable in the mideast if the others NEED them for their own well being.

Re: Palestine Quiz

jdledell — Tue, 26 May 2009 20:01:51 -0000

As a Jew who just spent the last 6 months, mostly in Israel, considering Aliyah, this cartoon captures the current mood of the Israel. Most Israelis believe that since the Palestinians never had a state before they don't need one now. When polls ask Israeli Jews (arabs are not part of Israel's polling on 99% of the polls) about a two state solution, the majority still is positive. However, when you drill down to find out what kind of state they mean for the Palestinians, it's clear they are only talking about autonomous "reservations". No military, no control over any border, no control of water or mineral rights, no right to commercial aviation or sea traffic, no ability to enter treaties of any kind even on trade. Everyone and everything entering or exiting this Palestinian "state" would be subject to Israel's approval. In short, the Palestinian government would police and govern cities and villages on behalf of Israel. ____This has been the plan of the settlers for decades (I know - 35 of them are my relatives). The settlers and their supporters in the government have set about carving up the west bank with 100+ ever expanding settlements and 120+ outposts. Do not be fooled by Bibi's offer to disband some outposts - it's just a shell game. For example, Moaz Esther has been taken down and rebuilt at least 4 times. By next week all the structures will be rebuilt and hooked up to the electrical and water grids again. ____I find it hard to believe that Israel thinks it can get away with keeping people stateless on reservations but you keep hearing that if it was good enough for the American Indians, it's good enough for the Palestinians.(Israelis seem to forget native Americans are citizens and get to vote - an anathema to Israel). We shall see where this ends up, but I rejected Aliyah because I don't think the future of Israel is very positive. Unless they very quickly offer a viable and Just Palestinian state, they will either end up with a one state solution and the loss of the Jewish homeland or they will end up being an outcast in the world at large.

Re: The F-35 JSF Program—International Ramifications

jdledell — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 19:34:46 -0000

Dorian - I was in Israel last week and the word there is they are going to drop out of the F-35 program. The reason is the US will not allow the IAF to put its own avionics and armaments in the plane. I don't think this will slow down the program in becoming a big world-wide success.

Re: Israeli Army Vindicated

jdledell — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:04:24 -0000

Holly - I can't believe you are this naive. I am in Israel right now, up because of jet lag, and here to celebrate Passover with all my relatives. As I mentioned before I have nephews in the IDF, one is a Captain in the Golani and the other is in the Givati. We have discussed the Gaza campaign extensively and while they did not witness personally the episodes cited by Danny Zamir, they saw and participated in plenty of action which comes as close to war crimes as they ever want to be.

Most typically, you could characterize the IDF as showing a callous disregard for civilian life. Examples would be coming into a town and designating a building or home for IDF survelliance purpose. First, tanks would shell each floor of the building. Then troops would enter and throw grenades into every room to make sure everyone was dead. One home that was so designated had a mother and a small boy peaking out a window, the commander then ordered the tank to blow that room up - killing the mother and a small boy and girl. In another instance, in a home the soldiers heard someone crying in a back room - they just opened the door a crack and threw two grenades in - killing a mother and her toddler.

The ROE during Operation Cast Lead was don't get killed or captured - anything else was golden. Red Crescent workers were shot at as they tried to pick up wounded - if it moved it was fair game, especially if was male. In one house they encountered an old woman holding a WWI rifle - protecting her daughter and grandchildren. They opened up and shot her full of about 100 rounds then arrested the daughter, leaving 5 children behind in the house with the oldest being about 9 or 10.

I know it is war and sh.. happens but even the IDF captain said this was different even from when he was in Lebanon in 2006. He is considering retiring after 17 years in the IDF. A huge portion of the IDF now comes from the settlements and most of them have chips on their shoulders and an absolute hatred of all things arab. This isn't the IDF my nephew once knew and was proud of. He is not anti-settler as he lives in Ariel (a side note- not one of my 35 relatives live in pre-67 Israel).

The word has come down from Ashkenazi himself - NO ONE TALKS about Gaza ever again except through his approved channels. The Hasbara is going to be the only voice heard from now on.

Re: Mom And Dad Won't Run Your Life

jdledell — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 19:30:23 -0000

Patrick - I think you are hyperbolizing a bit. One guy got canned and the COO is taking his place. This is a LONG, LONG way from your Mom and Dad example.

Re: Considering the Who and How of Criticizing Israel

jdledell — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 20:02:44 -0000

Pete - You really miss the point. Ben-Ami is one of us and thus is allowed to criticize Jews and Israel. Just read the Israeli newspapers and you will see far more contentious debate about Israel's actions than you would ever see in an American paper. Jews can criticize fellow Jews all they want. However, when a non-Jew like Freeman criticizes Jews and/or Israel we close ranks to fight off such critiques. It all goes back to Jewish existential fear of our history when criticism sometimes mushroomed into pogroms. For the record, I think the treatment of Freeman was unfair and the US lost a unique mind for it's intelligence activities. I heard Freeman speak twice and both times I was a little aghast at his unvarnished words but after reflection realized he had an important point he was making that required me to dig a few layers deeper in my analysis than I would normally do.

Re: Hamas is Not the Answer

jdledell — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 14:57:38 -0000

Peter - Without defending the odious Hamas organization, your blog entry gives only a superficial analysis of a complex situation. First and foremost, Hamas has stated many times they would allow Abbas to negotiate a peace agreement with Israel and would honor that agreement if a plebecite of Palestinians approved it. Second, Hamas did win the Palestinian elections but were prevented from having a free hand in governing by Israel and the US. Third the Hamas takeover in Gaza was a direct result of Dahlen's attempted military assault -probably with Israel and US backing.

Hamas does not trust Israel and the reverse is also true. Remember, the occupation has been going on 40 years and each side has tried to cheat it's way into a better position. Until everything is out in the open with transparent negotiations peace will never arrive.

Re: Obama administration to boycott Durban II due to anti-Semitism

jdledell — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 14:43:14 -0000

Jill - I suspect this is a concession to Israel which Obama will use to extract a commitment to freeze all settlement growth during his upcoming peace initiative. Obama is a strategic thinker and giving up the ridiculous Durban II for the more important settlement freeze is a no brainer. If settlement growth is not frozen, there will never be a two state solution.