"A strong supporter of Israel"
Last night's Four Corners was interesting... a profile of Joolya, our PM. (Nice to see that Kerry O'Brien is still around, I thought he'd retired, but that was just from the 7.30 Report apparently).
I'd seen/heard much of Joolya's background in a frenzy of media when she gazumped Kev, but the extra detail provided in the profile last night cemented my dislike for her. But then I'm always more keen on people of principle, rather than pragmatists. Give me Gough over Hawke any day, or Mal over Johnny for that matter. I'm surprised that no one used the word Realpolitik last night. (Aside: Paul Howes: "I think Julia's as left wing as my right foot" was the quote of the show.)
During the interview with Liz Jackson, Joolya consistently refused to have words put in her mouth, and any time Liz asked her to confirm or deny a quote from someone else or a perception put in her words, Joolya would always come back with her own phrasing (or a slightly off topic statement) - as we expect from politicians. But the one phrase that she repeated back verbatim was: "I am a strong supporter of Israel".
With all the crisis in Egypt (F.I.R.E.I.N.C.A.I.R.O. not heard on any coverage, BTW), and the Middle East in general, my mind started racing... I've occasionally talked to people about issues around Israel/Palestine, but never really been able hold A Position before.
For a start, I'd rarely be caught saying anything about supporting or opposing a whole country. I would usually state my opinion in terms of what a particular government or leader was doing, or the mainstream culture of a country, or the laws of a country. What exactly does the aforementioned statement mean? (a) That you support all the actions of a succession of governments of Israel? Or in the case of Israel (b) that you support the existence of such a nation state, as opposed to, say, having all it's people massacred or driven into the sea, and replaced by another nation state called Palestine. I'd strongly reject (a), but support (b)...
And then my opinions on the existence or otherwise of Israel dry up... having read the wikipedia potted history of the Mandate of Palestine, and the formation of the state of Israel, it's just too complex to untangle. I can't help but come back to the position of "two wrongs don't make a right", and surely there's a better way for Israel to ensure that weapons and warriors are not being imported into Gaza than blockading the whole territory, and leaving its people with no economic prospects, and ever growing resentment.
I guess A Position is still beyond me.
I'd seen/heard much of Joolya's background in a frenzy of media when she gazumped Kev, but the extra detail provided in the profile last night cemented my dislike for her. But then I'm always more keen on people of principle, rather than pragmatists. Give me Gough over Hawke any day, or Mal over Johnny for that matter. I'm surprised that no one used the word Realpolitik last night. (Aside: Paul Howes: "I think Julia's as left wing as my right foot" was the quote of the show.)
During the interview with Liz Jackson, Joolya consistently refused to have words put in her mouth, and any time Liz asked her to confirm or deny a quote from someone else or a perception put in her words, Joolya would always come back with her own phrasing (or a slightly off topic statement) - as we expect from politicians. But the one phrase that she repeated back verbatim was: "I am a strong supporter of Israel".
With all the crisis in Egypt (F.I.R.E.I.N.C.A.I.R.O. not heard on any coverage, BTW), and the Middle East in general, my mind started racing... I've occasionally talked to people about issues around Israel/Palestine, but never really been able hold A Position before.
For a start, I'd rarely be caught saying anything about supporting or opposing a whole country. I would usually state my opinion in terms of what a particular government or leader was doing, or the mainstream culture of a country, or the laws of a country. What exactly does the aforementioned statement mean? (a) That you support all the actions of a succession of governments of Israel? Or in the case of Israel (b) that you support the existence of such a nation state, as opposed to, say, having all it's people massacred or driven into the sea, and replaced by another nation state called Palestine. I'd strongly reject (a), but support (b)...
And then my opinions on the existence or otherwise of Israel dry up... having read the wikipedia potted history of the Mandate of Palestine, and the formation of the state of Israel, it's just too complex to untangle. I can't help but come back to the position of "two wrongs don't make a right", and surely there's a better way for Israel to ensure that weapons and warriors are not being imported into Gaza than blockading the whole territory, and leaving its people with no economic prospects, and ever growing resentment.
I guess A Position is still beyond me.
posted by Keith Duddy at 1:51 pm
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