Israel is a vibrant country without peer in ways that Americans would appreciate if they were aware of them. Yet as a result of Israel's depiction in the mainstream media, Israel's image in the United States and elsewhere inverts reality. . .Agreed--but unsupported nonsense often seems to trump logic and truth. There's more; read the whole thing.
1. Image: Israeli society is oppressive and militarized. Reality: Israel is one of the freest countries in the world. Almost unbelievably, its Arab citizens enjoy more rights protected under the rule of law than Arab citizens of every other country in the Middle East. Even during wartime, it protects the freedom of the press to such an extent that it has contributed to the enemy's efforts. The Israeli military is a citizens' army that reflects the principles of a free people committed to the preservation of human rights. . .
3. Image: Israel is a brutal country lacking in civil society. Reality: It has built all the institutions necessary for the cultivation of democracy. Individual rights are protected by the rule of law. Its court system protects the rights of all citizens and jealously exerts supremacy over the legislative and executive branches of the government. In every area of modern life Israel, from business to the arts, Israel boasts a genius that on a per capita basis is unrivaled. It has become a high tech hotbed.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
What Scott Did on His Summer Vacation
Powerline's Scott Johnson just returned from Israel and compares image and reality:
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2 comments:
What's the unsupported nonsense and what's the logic and truth? What I mean is, do you think that the "image" in the Power Line post is true, or the "reality"?
Miriam:
As set forth in the eight posts of mine linked to in the penultimate sentence, like Scott, I know the "image" is false and the "reality" true. And on the subject of myth-busting, I always recommend an analysis by the Institute for Counter-Terrorism entitled An Engineered Tragedy: Statistical Analysis of Casualties in the Palestinian - Israeli Conflict, September 2000 - September 2002, first linked on the estimable Little Green Footballs web site. I also agree with the analysis on the Sigmund, Carl and Alfred site, of which this is a notable example.
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