The other day some fellow at al-Jezeera interviewed an Israeli professor from Bar Ilan, Mordechai Kedar, live, about the Israeli crimes in Jerusalem. Or that's what the interviewer thought. Kedar, speaking fluent Arabic, turned the interview around.
The interviewer started by asking about Israeli intentions to build in (East) Jerusalem, to which Kedar responded sharply by saying that Jerusalem was Jewish long long before the Arabs had Islam. When the interviewer tried to quote the Koran, Kedar told him Jerusalem isn't mentioned in the Koran even once... and you can see the astonishment on the fellow's face.
FROM CAROL HERMAN
ReplyDeleteWhen the word games stop, you can et off the merry-go-round.
The time has just not come for Jerusalem to house the 3rd Temple. or a house for old-time religion. And, in its zeal, animal sacrifices. We're two-thousand years on, ya know?
The other thing to point out?
Following WW2 the UN was very busy. India was birthed. FDR had made it clear to Winston Churchill, there was no way America would be involved in WW2, and at the same time condone colonies.
Also, starting out of this gate, besides Israel. Besides India. You have the darkest horse: Japan.
In America? The Japanese were our enemies. And, the chances given to them for recovery weren't so hot, either.
The Japanese, desperate for markets where they could manufacture goods and sell things ... ended up with the cheapest of labels. When products said "Made In Japan."
General Douglas MacArthur, knowing a thing or two beyond war strategy, helped build Japan into a democracy.
Japan. A nation that for 700 years had been closed off from the world. And, ruled by the iron hand of a few aristocrats. Who plunked a family on the throne, convincing the Japenese this guy was the SUN.
The General (Douglas MacArthur) was a super-brilliant man. There were those in the American military who wanted to kill Herohito. But, not MacArthur! He knew the people believed in him. And, that keeping him alive meant that surrender documents could be signed that would be very meaningful.
When the aristocrats tried to create a "top heavy" Constitution, MacArthur, living in Tokyo, threw it in the garbage. Sat down with a yellow pad. And, created the Japanese Constitution.
So, that now, when you look back you can see the universe growing larger when it comes to democratic states.
And, yes. Even though politics, even in America, remains a dirty pool.
Want a dirty election? Try 1800. The race Thomas Jefferson won.
While, I'm not sure, but I think the religious right in Israel is on the wrong course; trying to say that Israel and religious fundamentalism (as long as its Jewish), is the real deal.
No. It is not.
And, the saddest thing alive is to see people believing in the mythology of old. And, weaving way too much importance into religious artifacts.
Heck, India, too got birthed at around the same time. And, if you'll notice, India lost the holy Ganges River to Pakistan. Why? Diplomats create borders.
And, whatever else is nuts around the world, the borders have something to do with this. And, so too, do the various populations that live within them.
The surprise, of course, is that the Japanese figured it out.
And, Israel is still myopic. A living Soap Opera.
The Koran, by the way, is NOT the Yellow Pages! Arabs have been underfoot in the Middle East for a very long time. Tribal affiliations count more than anything. And, the middle class life has yet to be learned and absorbed. Doesn't mean that the buildings the arabs do have, aren't full of history.
And, banging your heads into a wall, is not a religious experience!
Okay. So, this information isn't in the Koran. But it is available from the Yellow Pages, all the way through to the paperwork that came about back in the late 1940's ... as WW2's Allied Victory set the pace for nations to become free and independent.
I'm just saddened (as an American), to see Israel lagging behind Japan! Look at the point where they started! Look at what they had to overcome! And, if they did it? You bet, all modern men can prevail. Oh, and they will.