http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?id=65513&mador=1&datee=01/07/00
Israel want’s $65 Billion to compensate the 1,700 Jews in the occupied Golan Heights. This would be the cost of relocating those people back to Israel, which supposedly bring peace to the region. (Yeah, right.) Talk about a relocation allowance! Compare it to what we gave to the folks in Love Canal.
We suckered into this when they put the bit on us to evacuate the occupied Sinai. It was cheaper then - they only got about $450,000 per family. To show their contempt for us, the Israeli’s bulldozed and dynamited everything standing as they left.
Should the worlds largest debtor nation, the USA, contribute this to the worlds richest people? I don’t think so.
I do not know the facts of what you have just stated, but I will tell you, I’m sick of other nation’s peace costing us money all the time. I fear that Clinton will give EVERYONE what they want to insure his role in history and aid his wife’s Senate run.
If Israel really needs that money then let the World chip in and not straddle the US alone with the cost.
Things are not what they seem to be; nor are they otherwise.
[lankavatara Sutra]
Tom - Israel calls itself THE JEWISH STATE. When I mentioned the worlds richest people, I was referring to the Jews of the world, not the nation of Israel. There are sources around to prove that on a per capita basis, Jews are the wealthiest people, as an identifiable group.
I am not critical of them for this. In most cases they earn their money. They see to it their kids get a good eduaction, start them off right, help them when they need it, etc…
What I don’t like is the way they yank the hairs of the heads of our leaders to keep giving Israel all this money. Let them spend it, and let Israel behave as civilized nation.
Political correctness is just tyranny with manners.
I wish for you the courage to be unpopular. Popularity is history’s pocket change. Courage is history’s true currency. Charleton Heston
You want to maybe cite one, or would that be too tough? And it can’t include the words “Pat Robertson,” “Protocols,” or “international banking conspiracy.”
Since a great many of the world’s Jews live in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, sounds like a load of horseshit to me.
“It’s my considered opinion you’re all a bunch of sissies!”–Paul’s Grandfather
In any event, “CaptainEd”, if you think the USA would give any country US$65 billion to advance the cause of peace, you are absurdly naive.
The USA would do it because it would serve their political interests, and the money would bear fruit in other intangible ways, e.g. by making two middle Eastern countries more sympathetic to the USA and gaining us allies in one of the world’s “hot spots.”
Arnold - I’m not sure we wouldn’t give it to them. We’ve already given Israel over $100 in aid and grants over the past 30 years or so.
This business of Israel calling itself THE JEWISH STATE. It also claims to be the only democracy in the Mid East. How can that be? What about all the Gentiles in Israel?
Political correctness is just tyranny with manners.
I wish for you the courage to be unpopular. Popularity is history’s pocket change. Courage is history’s true currency. Charleton Heston
That aside, so what if they call themselves a Jewish state? What does that have to do with democracy? Non-Jews can vote. There are Arab members of their parliament. Do you even have the foggiest idea what you’re ranting about?
Captain, I didn’t say that the USA wouldn’t give money to Israel. I’m saying that if/when it does, it’s not for any noble reason, but because it suits US foreign policy to do so, and people in the US state department have determined that it’s a wise investment.
Unstability in the Middle East has the potential of affecting oil prices, which could end up costing a lot of money to the US, which is why the US is so intent on peace in the Middle East.
I think the truth lies somewhere between your positions on the money-spending issue - or, perhaps, incorporates both.
Yes, the US spends money largely to support its self-defined self-interest. Politicians also do all sorts of things with public funds to benefit themselves, their parties, and their contributors.
It is not inconceivable that one of the President’s motivations, in anything he does, involves his or his family’s future gain. That just seems to be the nature of the beast, and is certainly not restricted to the current office-holder or even just the POTUS. (That is, cabinet officers, Congresspersons, etc. seem subject to that failing, too.)
David - You got me there. Change $100 to $100 Billion.
Political correctness is just tyranny with manners.
I wish for you the courage to be unpopular. Popularity is history’s pocket change. Courage is history’s true currency. Charleton Heston
We have no significant foreign debt (as opposed to Mexico’s stunning $160B foreign debt). Our national, internal debt is huge, but it’s also irrelevant to this issue. Besides, we owe ourselves $5.7 trillion and only give Israel $3B a year: insignificant. We spend more than that on bubblegum every year.
Israel does not have anything close to the “world’s richest people”. They are not even considered a wealthy nation. (e.g., Israel’s GDP per capita is $15,940 the US’s is $29,340 and we’re not even in the top 10 wealthiest nations!)
Our relationship with Israel is mutually beneficial and our foreign aid helps the area’s stability.
Let’s speculate for a moment, what do you think would happen if we completely withdrew all aid and presence from Israel?
The point is - there is no more EVIL EMPIRE (the Russians) to provide weapons to Israel’s enemies. So why do we need to keep arming them? Syria is a poor country, and without Russian support, I wouldn’t last a minute in a war with Israel.
What makes you think the Russians aren’t still selling weapons to countries in the Middle East?
Incidentally, my prediction for what would happen if we stopped supporting Israel is that there would eventually be a war that would end with a number of large glassy regions of desert caused by nuclear explosions.
Ed, I would like to know your source for the statement “Jews are the richest people in the world”? Israel is not a rich nation, if it were it would not need money from the US.
Jews are NOT the richest people in the World, or even in this county. WASPS are.
I think at some point, now?, we have to scale back the money we give Israel and other natins. The cold war is over and the need to balance power against the Evil Empire has passed. I do thinik we need to keep Israel strong militarily in the region but we do not have to constantly pay the rent for her and help manage her infrastructure.
Things are not what they seem to be; nor are they otherwise.
[lankavatara Sutra]
I think David’s prediction ain’t far off. (Although, the good 'ol USA sells weapons to those same nations too. Nothing like shooting yourself in the foot.)
John John, I think that statement stems from the erroneous stereotyping of Jew = $$$$$
The Evil Empire is also irrelevant to this discussion. We were never afraid that the Soviets would roll their tanks from Moscow to Damascus & Jerusalem.
The threat is twofold. We want mideast stability for our economic interests and we need a safe military staging ground (airstrips, ports, supply, etc.) in the mideast theater in case of regional trouble not necessarily having anything to do with Israel (e.g., Greece, North Africa, Turkey).
The prime threat is unstable arab nations plastered with posters of maniacs with facial hair.
One last time. . .We ONLY give them $3B. You are completely out of touch with reality if you think that $3B can produce a strong military, raise the wealth of the people AND pave the roads with gold. I mean, ONE stealth bomber costs $1B (pilot sold separately).
