There is no “occupation.” There hasn’t been a single Israeli in Gaza since 2005. And all the territory of Gaza and Judea and Samaria (that is, the West Bank) belongs by right to Israel. No other state has any claim upon it. See the full explanation of why this is so in The Palestinian Delusion.
“Obama: ‘All of Us Are Complicit to Some Degree’ in ‘Occupation,’ Hamas Terror,” by Joel B. Pollak, Breitbart, November 4, 2023:
Obama told his former staffers on the Pod Save America Saturday that “all of us are complicit to some degree” in the violence in Gaza, as he appeared to describe a moral equivalence between Hamas murdering Israelis and the Israeli “occupation” of Gaza.
Gaza has not been “occupied” by Israel since 2005, when Israel withdrew all of its soldiers and civilians in a “disengagement” that aimed to reduce violence in the region. Hamas responded by launching thousands of rockets at Israel and starting several wars.
Obama’s remarks, as published by the podcast, are as follows:
If there’s any chance of us being able to act constructively, to do something, it will require an admission of complexity. And maintaining, what on the surface may seem contradictory ideas — that what Hamas did was horrific, and there’s no justification for it; and what is also true is that the occupation [sic] and what’s happening to Palestinians is unbearable. [Applause] And what is also true is that there is a history of the Jewish people that may be dismissed, unless your grandparents, or your great-grandparents, or your uncle or your aunt tell you stories about the madness of antisemitism. And what is true is that there are people right now who are dying who have nothing to do with what Hamas did. And what is true, right — I mean, we can go on for a while. And the problem with the social media, and trying to — TikTok activism, and trying to debate this, on that, is you can’t speak the truth. You can pretend to speak the truth. You can speak one side of the truth, and in some cases you can try to maintain you moral innocence, but that won’t solve the problem. And so if you want to solve the problem, you have to take in the whole truth, and you then have to admit nobody’s hands are clean, that all of us are complicit to some degree. I look at this, and I think back, “What could I have done during my presidency to move this forward — as hard as I tried, and I’ve got the scars to prove it. But there’s a part of me that’s still saying, well, “Was there something else I could have done?” That’s the conversation we should be having. Not just looking backwards, but looking forward. And that can’t happen if we are confining ourselves to our outrage. I would rather see you out there talking to people, including people who you disagree with. If you genuinely want to change thin, then you’ve got to figure out how to speak to somebody on the other side, and listen to them, and understand what they are talking about, and not dismiss it. Because you can’t save that child without their help. Not in this situation.
Obama’s approach matches his posture toward the Middle East throughout his presidency. He creates a false moral equivalence between the deliberate murder of 1,400 people in Israel, with extreme brutality, with an “occupation” that does not exist in Gaza and that exists in the West Bank only because the Palestinian Authority refuses to agree to peace with Israel….
rick says
What dumb comments. The most anti Semitic of them is ‘what is also true is that there is a history of the Jewish people that may be dismissed, unless your grandparents, or your great-grandparents, or your uncle or your aunt tell you stories about the madness of antisemitism” Does 1929 pass that test for Obama? That year the entire Jewish community of Hebron was subjected to acts of hideous murder and the amputation of limbs according to the Koran by Palestinians. Israel did not even exist so No Occupation is even possible. Just Jews living in a very Holy city for them. Relatives of those Jewish victims live today.
pfwag says
Islam is complicit. Obama is just part of the brain-dead collective.
somehistory says
bo was so fond of saying, “that’s not who we are.”…presuming to speak for every American and including himself as an American (which I firmly believe he never was, just like he was never really an elected president, and never Chrisitan as he claimed).
Now, to make everyone just as guilty as he, bo claims we all have guilty hearts and bloody hands.
No, bo, not all of us are as guilty as you, and many of us have clean hands. Trying to tie us all to the slaughter of innocent babies, young people, elderly Holocaust survivors, attempting to make us all feel guilty by lying about Israel and the mozlums in Gaza and Judea and Samaria, is a losing proposition.
bo may have gotten “applause” for his lies; but if he had been speaking to those who know the Truth, if he had been speaking to the survivors of the hamas slaughter, he would have been booed.
Go, swim with the great whites, bo, you stinking, lying snake,
Hoi Polloi says
These amateur psych techniques, indeed. I am never going to be one with a man who so fully hates people I love.
Siddi Nasrani says
O’ Bumma is delusional, want proof ?
FALSANI: “Do you believe in sin?”
OBAMA: “Yes.”
FALSANI: “What is sin?”
OBAMA: “Being out of alignment with my values.”
Wellington says
Shut up, Obama. You have already inflicted enough damage on America, on Israel and the world at large. You disgust me.
somehistory says
He won’t, Wellington, until he is taking that long dirt nap he so richly deserves.
Wellington says
Obama, somehistory, remains for me the single most destructive individual in all of American history. He stoked racial division and other divisions. He weaponized the federal government (which is continuing under the Puppet, Brain-Dead Biden filling out Obama’s de facto third term). He also bowed to Islam again and again, literally and figuratively. He lied about keeping one’s health care plan and doctor. He was keenly instrumental in conveying to the world that America was not an exceptional nation. He stupidly fostered along with Hillary the highly destructive Arab Spring. He did so much damage to America and to the cause of liberty across the globe. I despise him.
somehistory says
I also. abhor, can’t stand the slimy mozlum scum.
Paul R. says
I share your feelings about the muslim Trojan Horse, Wellington. He tried to, and, did, cause much damage to our country. But, I contend that Slick Willy did as much, if not, more, damage to us. Mostly, by hollowing out our manufacturing, via, (1) NAFTA, in 1994 (2) repealing Glass-Steagal, in 1999, and, (3) successfully getting China into the WTO, in 2000. The results of these actions have been to decimate our middle class, while allowing a massive transfer of middle class wealth to our mega wealthy.
Wellington says
I understand your point, Paul R.—and I am no fan of Bill Clinton—but at least his faults were “merely” economic ones, still huge as they are. By contrast, Obama struck at the very heart of America by stoking division within, especially racial ones. Bill Clinton certainly made mistakes but ones which could be corrected more easily than the ones made by Obama and which still haunt us to this day. Clinton was bad; Obama was worse.
gravenimage says
Agreed, Wellington. Obama was much worse than Clinton.
Bexarkat says
Deflecting the crap and pointing fingers at everyone else is a hallmark of Democratic politics and their party. The one solely to blame for this moral outrage is Obama himself and his apeasement of Iran, no matter whether it was in his first, second, or now, third term.
Westman says
Got Islam? Got antisemitism.
“We have seen a resurgence of antisemitic incidents and rhetoric in the European Union and worldwide: Molotov cocktails thrown on a synagogue in Germany, stars of David sprayed on residential buildings in France, a Jewish cemetery desecrated in Austria, Jewish stores and synagogues attacked in Spain, demonstrators chanting hate slogans against Jews.”
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_23_5527
Wellington says
Thanks for that link, Westman, even though the EU protests against anti-Semitism, to my mind, ring quite hollow. What the Hell did the EU expect supporting the immigration of millions of Mohammedan Jew haters into the heart of Europe.
The West is indeed right now overwhelmingly governed by fools aplenty—and these fools now shedding crocodile tears are actually the greater problem, not the damn ass-in-the air head-bangers. Oh yeah, too much of mankind is a collective idiot.
Westman says
You’re welcome, Wellington. You’ve made some very insightful posts.
It seems when the dominant money-making EU nation, Germany, notices it has an Islam problem that affects the coffers in Brussels and ignorant young people are out screaming for Israeli blood, the EU starts paying attention to antisemitism without, as usual, stating the religious factor.
Westman says
There is something very phoney about the PA, Hamas, Fatah, and Hisbollah all claiming they are the voice of the people. Just today the news speaks of, “President Abbas” who is in the 18(?)th year of his 4-year term. That’s not a President, that is a dictator and one so weak that jihad factions have taken over control –
Hamas even being, “elected”.
And here is the rub: Obama’s “innocent” Gazans voted for Hamas fully knowing what it is and how barbaric it would be to Israelis(it’s right in Islam’s “holy” texts ). They are not innocent. They voted for mayhem upon Jews and it has backfired upon them.
Nobody likes seeing Palestinians die, yet Hamas must be torn out by the roots or there will never be an end to the bloodshed. Unfortunately, Hamas terrorists are Palestinians and quite content to have others die to shield them.
Walter Sieruk says
It’s best to be on one side orv the other. In any way taking “both sides the fence ” is nonsense .
.
Therefore , Obama speaks nonsense.
For in reality ,there is no middle ground. Sio, all Christians and Jews as well as other good decent American. should be for God’s “special treasure.” Psalm 135:4, [N,J,K,V. ] and be against that demonic and murderous jihad entity, Hamas
Walter Sieruk says
Obama was speaking what is known as “warped logic .” This war that Hamas started with Israel on October 7th 2023 isn’t a matter of opinion . It the difference between right and wrong, good and evil
It’s Hamas is is wrong, very wrong and that brutal cruel murderous jihad entity ,Hamas , is absolute evil in the most callus demonic vile heinous and horrendous way.
Hamas is a hideous monstrosity Islamic deadly evil that a sin unto God and an affront and curse to humankind.
It really needs to be exterminated because it’s a misery inflecting murder machine that is the result and outcome of the religion of Islam
James Lincoln says
I believe that Obama is a muslim to the core.
A Brooks Brothers jihadi.
But – if he is not – he sure acts like one.
Scotsman48 says
Barack Hussian Obummer, that Born Again Christian who changed his Christian birth name to a full on islamic name once he embraced Jesus as his Lord and Savior says mentions people are dying who have nothing to with the Hamas Government even though at least 75% of the population of Gaza agree with Hamas but he failed to mention people in Israel were slaughtered who had nothing to do with the policies of the Israeli Government…
He speaks with a forked tongue but sounds so sincere, he should have been a salesman selling sand to the Kings of Saudi Arabia.
He was the worse President for America and Israel EVER…
Lisel Sipes says
Obama looks like he has terminal cancer. What a shame that would be. NOT
gravenimage says
Obama claims ‘all of us are complicit to some degree’ in ‘occupation’
……………………………………………
What rot–there is no “occupation”–particularly of Gaza, which Israel unilaterally withdrew from in 2005, with the vain hope of this leading to peace. Of course, Hamas just uses Gaza as a base from which to launch attacks on Israel, and has a large “civilian” population there to use as human shields.
gravenimage says
Obama claims ‘all of us are complicit to some degree’ in ‘occupation’
……………………………………….
Just appalling. I still can’t believe this thug was elected US president.