Verbal gymnastics or sacrificed intellectual honesty?

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Sunday, June 14, 2009

[Verbal gymnastics or sacrificed intellectual honesty?] PM Netanyahu's 14.6.09 Speech at the Begin-Sadat Center at Bar-Ilan University

Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: Was Binyamin Netanyahu correct when he warned in the past that if a sovereign Palestinian state were established that it would be impossible to enforce security restrictions and limitations on it? Was right 59% Wrong 28% Other replies 13% (Maagar Mohot Survey telephone poll of a representative sample of 503 adult Israel Jews on 10-11 June 2009.) "If we receive this guarantee regarding demilitirization and Israel's security needs...then we will be ready in a future peace agreement to reach a solution where a demilitarized Palestinian state exists alongside the Jewish state." So proclaimed Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu this evening. Hands down Binyamin Netanyahu made his most eloquent and straightforward speech to date back on May 12, 2002 when he explained to the Likud's Central Committee why Israel must oppose the creation of a sovereign Palestinian state. Netanyahu warned that if a sovereign Palestinian state were established that it would be impossible to enforce security restrictions and limitations on it and that once created, .the sovereign Palestinian state would continue to exist even though it defied the terms of the agreement under which it was established. If anything, developments since 2002 - including a series of failed internationally backed security arrangements and numerous instances when the harsh reality of security-related violations were essentially ignored because recognizing them didn't serve the agenda of various countries - have only served to vindicate Netanyahu's stand. So while the talking heads on TV may actually think that it is possible to come up with a set of durable guarantees, Netanyahu knows damn well that this is a sham. Netanyahu tonight said Palestinian "state". He didn't say "sovereign state." He didn't say "independent state." Granted, technically speaking he could back into claiming that what he meant was an "autonomous state" - after reaching the logical conclusion that the absolutely only possible "state" that could truly be guaranteed to be a "demilitarized Palestinian state" would be a "demilitarized autonomous Palestinian state" = demilitarized Palestinian autonomy. So did Netanyahu knowingly sacrificed his intellectual honesty tonight or did he engage in verbal gymnastics? PM Netanyahu's 14.6.09 Speech at the Begin-Sadat Center at Bar-Ilan University Click here