The dishonest broker

President Barack Obama responds to an Israeli announcement of 1800 (!) new housing units (1000 in one place, 800 in another, all of them racist to the core in that they are intended for Jews only) in occupied Palestine by calling the action "never helpful." Really? That's it? Because there are about a billion things that are "never helpful" to the alleged "peace negotiations" that are (not) going on. McDonald's Happy Meals. Glee. Avocados. All those things are "never helpful" to peace negotiations. What Israeli colonization is, is hurtful to the "peace process." "Damaging" if you like. "Fatal" even. Anything stronger than "never helpful."

But that wasn't all Obama, the "honest broker," had to say. Oh no. He had to follow that up with the usual shared blame: "I’m concerned that we’re not seeing each side make the extra effort involved to get a breakthrough." Right. So Israel should make an "extra effort" to refrain from building more settlements, and Palestinians should make an "extra effort" by not criticizing them and boycotting peace talks if they do.

Of course the settlements aren't the only "extra effort" that Israel is going through not to help any peace process, but to scuttle it. Just today, for example, they abducted the secretary general of the Palestinian parliament in the West Bank city of Ramallah. I wonder if Obama will describe that action as "unhelpful." Chances are he won't have to, because although it was reported by Press TV and various Middle Eastern news outlets including Israeli ones, it's unlikely this news, like so much other news about Israeli actions against Palestinians, won't appear in U.S. media and Obama won't be bothered with having to address the subject.