[Salon] In Israel, Politicians Are Allowed to Talk About Genocide Only if They Support It - Haaretz Today - Haaretz.com



Right-wing Peacenik Ramaswamy! A chip off the old block of Hindu-Fascist Modi. Also a fave of Israeli fascists!

"In a speech before the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, the aspiring 2024 presidential candidate said he “would love nothing more than for the IDF to put the heads of the top 100 Hamas leaders on stakes and line them up on the Israel-Gaza border as a sign that October 7, 2023, will never happen again.”


This headline applies as well to the Republican Party, especially the “New Right,” who are even more Zionist/Fascist than Netanyahu himself, given their ideological alignment with Hazony’s National Conservative Movement, and its ideological alignment with Ben Shapiro, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich, and that entire Jabotinsky/Kahanist Movement which is in fact; National Conservatism. Which is apparent when one does a comparative political theory analysis of Israeli Conservatism of today, and its fascist forebears. And their American Conservative partners. (Until I see a “Conservative” take a principled stand against this Movement, the “New Right,” I will “over-generalize.”)

The "New Right” consists of “Non-interventionist Conservatives,” “Restrainers,” and “Prioritizers,” as Quincy Institute’s “New Right” supporters (their “Conservative” side) and the American Conservative magazine call these “Uber-Hawks.” As they have the effrontery to claim. All involved as “National Conservatives.” Their “prioritizing,” before 7 October, meant “Total War” against China, though Heritage's Project 2025 is more “honest” in making clear that their target list includes all of Russia, China, Iran, Venezuela, and any other “mopping up that will be called for after the nuclear armageddon they’re intent upon bringing upon the world, is over. Just like Air Force Generals LeMay, Powers, and their friend and fellow General, Goldwater were so ready to do during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and thereafter.

It didn’t take many words into this article to recognize those lovable Heritage Foundation partners of TAC and other Koch funded organizations were at it again, inciting war: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/the-rise-of-republican-national-security-prioritizers/
I didn’t even need to see this bio: "Alexander Velez-Green is Senior Advisor to the Vice President for National Security and Foreign Policy at The Heritage Foundation. He previously served as National Security Advisor to U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.).

To anyone with eyes to see and a brain to think, it should be fully evident that a massive “deception campaign” has been underway by our MIC Oligarchs, principally Charles Koch, Peter Thiel, Miriam/Sheldon Adelson, since they concluded in about 2014 that to get a Republican elected POTUS again, they had to pretend to have turned against Perpetual War and non-stop interventionism, after Romney and McCain went down to defeat, foaming at the mouths as the did. So a different tack was called for, and we got it, good and hard, with an immediate $100 billion+ military budget increase, in perpetuity, as demanded by Trump (and McCain, talk about teamwork!) 

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sheldon-adelson-koch-brothers_n_7563866
Sheldon Adelson And The Koch Brothers Are Closer Than Ever


Charles Koch has always been on the offensive against Palestinians, as his funding of anti-BDS legislation through ALEC is proof of. His contribution to “National Conservatism” along with funding all the anti-Palestinian Republicans he helps get elected every cycle. Here, Koch’s are getting right-into the Israeli Military Industrial Complex: 
https://jewishinsider.com/2019/02/will-kochs-shift-include-israel/
Will the Koch’s ‘shift’ include Israel?

"Now 52, he spent three years as a top aide to then-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, serving as director-general of the Prime Minister’s Office. Any political savvy he gained in government has been useful in representing Koch Industries, whose owners are among the biggest contributors to right-wing causes in the U.S. . . . When it first funded Insightec, KDT didn’t have an office in Israel. On a visit to meet industry players, company executives had an encounter with Groner, fresh out of the Prime Minister’s Office, who offered a geopolitical overview of Israel and the region. “We really connected on vision and values,” Groner said. “Six months later I got a formal offer to join KDT and open up the Israel office.”

"Groner has since led KDT’s investments in 13 Israeli startups that operate in fields ranging from health care, semiconductors and cybersecurity to manufacturing and agriculture. 

And, there’s all that oil off the coast of Gaza calling to Charles, I’m sure.  

Here’s one example of how their deception campaign worked: 
". . . from Trump to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy . . .  Even before the debate starts, the Heritage Foundation will be rolling out an ad opposing President Joe Biden’s latest Ukraine spending push. That’s a much larger and more venerable conservative think tank than the Bill Kristol-led outfit pushing in the opposite direction.” 

No, they’re not in the “opposite direction.” They’re both in the same direction, for war. Only the “priority” differs. Which, if anyone ever read beyond Conservative headlines, and Republican campaign propaganda, these “Right-wing Peaceniks” invariably qualified their votes against Ukraine aid, in various way, even to, at least in one case I recall (it's called “research,” a two word online search), saying they “wanted more funding for Ukraine!

And while Trump was in office, as his administration has bragged, they did far more than Obama had in the way of “Low-Intensity Warfare” aggression against Russia, setting in motion reciprocal actions by Russia, as John Mearsheimer has noted. 

But 7 October revealed their true nature, as ultra-war fanatics, for their “National Conservative,” fellow fanatic’s country and the genocidal Settler/Fascists they’re tied to ideologically. With Vivek Ramaswamy showing his true fascist colors perfectly:

"In a speech before the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, the aspiring 2024 presidential candidate said he “would love nothing more than for the IDF to put the heads of the top 100 Hamas leaders on stakes and line them up on the Israel-Gaza border as a sign that October 7, 2023, will never happen again.”

Here’s your “Freedom-loving, anti-war benefactor” Charles Koch for you: 


NOVEMBER 18, 2016
The Koch Brothers’ Favorite Congressman Will Be in Charge of the CIA

"Mike Pompeo is an extremist who stokes fears of Muslims and talks of executing Edward Snowden."

Right-wing Peacenik, my ass! 

In Israel, Politicians Are Allowed to Talk About Genocide Only if They Support It - Haaretz Today - Haaretz.com

Israeli lawmaker Ofer Cassif has been a lightning rod from the moment he stepped into the national political arena.

When he made his debut ahead of the 2019 election, Haaretz columnist Ravit Hecht described his approach as "fire and brimstone," predicting that Cassif "is likely to draw fire from opponents and be a conspicuous figure."

Her prediction proved to be an understatement.

At the time, he was already on record for calling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an "arch-murderer," Minister Miri Regev "repulsive gutter contamination" and former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked "neo-Nazi scum." He was initially prevented from running for the Knesset by the Central Elections Committee and only permitted to do so with the intervention of the High Court of Justice.

Nearly five years and three elections later, the acid-tongued senior Jewish lawmaker for the Arab-Jewish Hadash party has regularly faced attempts to oust him from Israel's parliament for statements made while serving there. These include a description of Zionism as "a racist ideology and practice that espouses Jewish supremacy."

Efforts to punish him for his views have intensified since the Gaza war broke out on October 7. About two weeks later, the Knesset Ethics Committee suspended him for 45 days and revoked his salary for 14 days, for expressing "a connection between the content world of the Holocaust and current government policy in times of war." This after 400 complaints were filed against him for calling a proposal by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich the "final solution" to the Palestinian problem.

This week, 70 Knesset members from both right-wing and centrist parties have signed a motion to expel Cassif from their ranks over his support for South Africa's genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice. He signed a petition on Monday supporting South Africa's suit in the world court ahead of a hearing on the matter in the United Nations' top court starting Thursday.

Time will tell if enough votes will be mustered in the Knesset House Committee and in the full Knesset to see Cassif expelled –and, if it happens, whether it will withstand a review of the High Court.

Cassif's words and behavior are undeniably inflammatory, and his signing of the petition is offensive to many at such a sensitive moment. But it also feels an odd time to be discussing removing government officials for extreme and offensive views. Cassif, after all, is merely a member of an opposition party. His words and petition-signing may trigger distress, but have no real impact.

At exactly the same time, senior government figures like National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Smotrich are making statements that aren't just offensive. They are actively undermining Israel's war effort, alienating Israel's most important ally and supporter in the battle against Hamas: the United States.

As Cassif has pointed out, ministers who "have explicitly called for population transfer, the destruction of Gaza by fire or atomic bomb, the starvation of its people, and to infect them with disease, are sitting at the cabinet table."

Presumably, the purpose of a parliament with a wide spectrum of parties is to make sure all voices and points of view are represented, as in other democracies that guarantee free speech – including those of the extreme left and right. If that's the case, then Cassif deserves to keep his job.

If it isn't and Cassif is shown the door, then the extremist right-wing leaders who keep the Netanyahu government in power should be forced to get in line right behind him.

Read more about Israel's war against Hamas:

Gaza genocide case against Israel: Key legal questions facing the ICJ

Unlike South Africa's ANC, Hamas is not waging a just war for liberation

Israelis can't understand how they could be accused of genocide

Israelis can't understand how they could be accused of genocide

On northern border, Israel fails to translate tactical victories into strategic gains

'Worst crisis ever': Jewish-Muslim partnerships in U.S. become another victim of Gaza war

Concern about Palestinian and Israeli human rights isn't a 'blood libel'

'The misconception was that the Palestinians aren't a people'

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