The (More Than) Iron Lady
December 28, 2008
I’m on “vacation” from politics, because I feel like it consumes my entire life and I want to shop and eat in peace for at least a week, but I was watching Meet the Press for lack of a better option this morning and caught an interview with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said at the meeting that while world leaders were pressing for restoration of the calm, they were placing the blame for the current violence on Hamas. This is an important message, she said.
However, she added, “If civilians are hurt and as the operation goes on, international attempts to bring about quiet will become greater.”
But Livni said that Israel would stand firm on its demands, and would not be satisfied with superficial solutions and would accept only a true answer to the problem.
Let me just say, this is my new favorite woman. Ever. Not only was she kicking the crap, out of David Gregory, but she was adamant about the fact that Israel has the right to protect itself and its citizens right to remain in peace, that Hamas, not Israel was the one who broke the cease fire, that Hamas is a terrorist organization that doesn’t even represent the Palestinian people, that its a menace to international order, that it should be condemned by the international community, and that this time, Hamas is going to get its ass kicked to the point where its just not going to be able to lob missiles into Israel again. The time for diplomatic solutions has passed. Hamas doesn’t have a right to terrorize a peaceful nation, and they’re certainly, after Israel is finished this time around, going to have the ability.
She kind of makes Maggie Thatcher look cuddly. She’s incredible.
Who says women can’t be excellent at foreign negotiations? I can’t wait to see this woman go toe to toe with Hillary Clinton. Hillary has no idea how quickly she’s going to lose and its a sweet, sweet thought.
Since I’m not really fantastic at foreign policy in the Middle East, other than some more existential observations, you can read more about the implications of the current conflict over at Hot Air.
Posted in Uncategorized
December 28th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Props for watching Meet the Press. Gregory is such a vain, shallow partisan ninny that it makes me ill that they selected him to replace Tim Russert.
For the inside scoop on Israeli military operations, you can’t beat Debkafile:
http://www.debka.com/index1.php
regards,
December 28th, 2008 at 11:32 am
Let’s see if Ms. Livni can keep Olmert from going all “girlie”.
December 28th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
I’m actually kind of shocked that Livni is actually showing some spine. As a protege of Ehud Olmert, she has been complicit in such idiocy as losing the war to Hamas in summer, ‘07. She defended Olmert’s failed “prosecution” of that war before the last shot was even fired. I remain hopeful Netanyahu will replace Olmert, and soon.
Oh, and Richard, Debkafile has been proven wrong on far too many occasions to take too seriously.
December 28th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
But, but, but, what was she wearing?
December 28th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Sondiehl, I forgot to mention that earlier. I think she’s been given a lot more leeway lately, and that seems to be a good thing. Whatever she WAS, this morning she was DEFINITELY sincere about what she was saying and doing. She was passionate.
December 28th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
I don’t take Debka too seriously either, but they report a lot of fascinating stuff you won’t find anywhere else. The NYT is wrong at least as often.
regards,
December 28th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
Hillary? Yeah, she’ll get smoked. Liberals talk about our standing in the world. Wait ’till Barack and the gang get done with us.
December 28th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
Em, given that Livni may well be Israel’s next PM, I certainly hope your impression of her this morning is on the money. I wish I had seen her.
Richard, do you really think it’s wise to use the NYT as a benchmark of accuracy in reportage?
December 29th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
sondiehl
u can see the interview video on the meet the press website
off-topic
i always find it cute that in languages that have no “it” but only he or she (eg french, italian, hebrew)
when they speak in english they refer to inanimate objects as a he or she so she kept referring to hamas as “he”, ….or when i speak to a frenchman who will refer to a door or window as “she”….
whatever…..
cheers
December 29th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
actually that is not correct french has “ce” but i still have heard frenchmen refer to a window as “she”
December 29th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
well, first of all, to get the off-topic out of the way, french does not have “it.” “ce” is a translation of “this.” “it” is translated in french and all other romance languages (to my knowledge…i don’t speak a lick of rumanian) as the same properly-sexed third person pronoun as one would use for “he” or “she;” e.g., as you say, “the window is clear/it is clear” -> “la fenetre est claire/elle est claire,” circumflexes disregarding. if you consider the french “ce” to be the equivalent of “it,” then you could say hebrew has ZH זה, which is basically the same thing as “ce.” otherwise, as in french, you would use HV הו or HY הי.
i want to echo sondiehl’s precautions against taking ms livni’s newfound hawkishness with a grain of salt. we must not forget so quickly her pathological support of the WORST ISRAELI PM IN HISTORY, olmert, in his times of absolute treason towards the israeli people. it is nearly certain that her current political posturing is in response to the symphonic unison of the israeli people whose chorus has been crying out for actual *solutions* to the palestinian problem, rather than the UN-directed obsequiousness that olmert has so willingly seemed to embrace. he reminds of g.w. bush in that he seems to pine strongly for the benediction of his political opponents to the point that he is open to risking the good graces of his “base,” which, in this analogy, is the entire israeli people (to bush’s american right wing).
i can certainly understand your fervour in embracing a hard-line, home-defending woman; the comparison with ms thatcher, of course, was not missed. that being said, i should caution you against accepting her “politically expedient” (a phrase in the midst of whose overuse which, in the face of massive flip-flopping all over the map, i have come to despise, and thus the quotemarks of derision) turnabout at face value. i think we can, with a bit of retrospect, agree that her current ideas regarding the palestinian situation are *not* a valid annunciation of her leadership as a whole, but rather a carefully crafted image meant to build political leverage against netanyahu in the upcoming election.
December 30th, 2008 at 12:11 am
i agree with catluvver21 on all points above…
December 30th, 2008 at 7:34 pm
sondiehl
u can see the interview video on the meet the press website
Thanks, ADN