President Obama's Ahistorical World - An Analysis (9/25/10)
By Professor Lawrence Davidson
Department of History
West Chester University
West Chester, Pa 19383
USA
On September 23, 2010 it was President Obama's turn to take the podium at
the United Nations. There was a world of problems for him to draw on but,
not unexpectedly, he chose to concentrate on the Middle East. Thus, as has
been the case with almost every President since John Kennedy, Mr. Obama is
also trying his hand at cutting the Gordian Knot and drinking the sea dry.
That is he is trying his hand at making peace between Israel and Palestine.
Will he succeed where all others have failed? Not likely, and his speech at
the UN points to one reason why. His approach is ahistorical and, at least
publically, ignores the context from which all this strife has emerged.
This is not unusual for President Obama. From the beginning of his
administration he has ignored history. His most notable early example was
when he refused to investigate the prima facie war crimes of his
predecessors, crimes which the Nuremberg prosecutors would have easily
recognized. Instead he proclaimed a new day. We will look forward he said,
and not backward. It was a foolish statement for such a reportedly bright
man, for where does he think the new day and the fresh future come from? The
present and the future are built on the past. With all due respect, only the
very near sighted can suppose that they can defy historical gravity and
float above it all, sublimely free of all roots.
So now President Obama takes the podium in New York and tells us the
following:
1. Obama: "Make no mistake: the courage of a man like President Abbas-who
stands up for his people in front of the world-is far greater than those who
fire rockets at innocent women and children."
A. Historical Context: "President" Abbas is a heartily disliked fellow who
helped usurp power from the legally elected government of Palestine. The
United States under George Bush Jr. helped him do so. Thus, the Abbas's
regime, internally supported by little else than the remnants of Fatah, is
now in control of the West Bank and cooperates with the Israeli occupation
army. Given such an historical record Abbas cannot "stand for his people in
front of the world" except in the propaganda picture painted by his American
ally. Abbas's regime is wholly dependent on U.S. and European money and
American weapons and military training.
We can surmise two probable reasons why Abbas is presently sitting at the
table with the Israelis: One - the Obama administration has twisted his arm,
perhaps by threatening to abandon him if he does not "negotiate." They
probably hope they can pressure him into signing a "peace" deal that no
other Palestinian leader would ever touch. What "courage" Abbas has, at
least to this point, does not go so far as to stand up to the Americans on
whom he is so dependent. Two - the Obama administration has promised him
support, whatever that might mean. This same level of dependency means Abbas
must conveniently forget history-that such promises coming from Washington
have always been worthless.
2. Obama: "If an agreement is not reached, Palestinians will never know the
pride and dignity that come with their own state [and] Israelis will never
know the certainty and security that come with sovereign and stable
neighbors who are committed to coexistence."
A. Historical Context: The Palestinians have been struggling for a state of
their own for at least 75 years. They have been betrayed by outsiders so
often that it defies reasons to believe that any America president truly
cares about their pride and dignity. After so many years of struggle facing
a foe who, by the way, has never cared a fig about "stable neighbors" or
"coexistence" or even about "security" (which Israel equates with being
armed to the teeth by the U.S.) the Palestinians have been able to find
"pride and dignity" in one thing only-resistance.
3. Does President Obama know any of this? If so does he understand it? It is
questionable for he next tells us that killing Israelis is not resistance
and "it will do nothing to help the Palestinian people?" Oh. Well then, what
will? What has? What can?
A. Historical Context: Only someone devoid of historical knowledge and
context concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can possibly believe
that it is the Palestinians who presently, as a strategy, go out of their
way to target "innocent women and children." What isolated incidents of this
sort you can find pale in comparison with the behavior of the ally
Washington arms and protects. There is a recent B'Tselem report entitled,
"Void of Responsibility: Israeli Military Policy Not to Investigate killings
of Palestinians by Soldiers." It demonstrates that the Israelis have been
killing innocent Palestinians with impunity. Historically, they have been
doing so from a time before President Obama was born. Against this tireless
brutality, Palestinian attacks on imperialist settlers and firing rockets
devoid of warheads from that open air prison of Gaza that Israel has
created, are tragic expressions of despair. And, sadly, historically, they
are the only source of "pride and dignity" Israel and the United States have
left to the Palestinians. Finally, it would take enormous hypocrisy for
Obama, or any American leader whosoever, to point a moral finger at the
Palestinians. Their hands are much too bloody to stomach anything like that.
4. Obama: "It should be clear to all that efforts to chip away at Israel's
legitimacy will only be met by the unshakable opposition of the United
States."
A. Historical Context: Well, speak for yourself Mr. President. You certainly
do not speak for a fast-growing number of people worldwide whose efforts in
this regard you cannot stop. And it is this effort, this movement of civil
society both within and without the U.S., that has the best chance of
bringing down the racist regime to which you pledge such solidarity.
Ideally, what will it be replaced with? Well, U.S. leaders are always saying
they want to see more democracy in this world. And that is what Israel
needs. It needs the Zionist government to be replaced with something truly
democratic that will support real civil and political rights for all
Israelis, regardless of religion. So, one can only hope that standing
against those "chipping away" at Zionist racism puts President Obama on the
wrong side of history.
It was Oscar Wilde, a man who had his own confrontation with a viciously
discriminatory social system, who once said, "A set of assumptions
committing suicide is always a depressing spectacle." And so it was on
September 23 in New York. After so many years of tragedy we still witness
our political leaders working from assumptions that are suicidal. That
destroy justice and prolong oppression.
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