August 16, 2007

Israel out of the news

Nothing happened in Israel today. Israel did nothing of note. Well that's the verdict from google anyway. Time was when I would get up at 5.30 am, google "Israel" and three news items would appear at the top of the page. Not now. I got three maps of Israel.




As always, there's an issue here. What is a news blog for example? I remember Little Green Footballs campaigning to count as a news blog on google's list but go look at it, if it's still there. It was no more news than mine. I don't think LGF was ever on the list but one that was and was subsequently dropped was URUKnet. I was told that it was an Iraqi Ba'ath site. I think I remember they ran something from my blog or maybe it was just a link. News? Hardly. I also remember Atzmon boasting that he could get his antisemitic tosh on there as well as other sites that ought to know better. But is he or anything he says news? The SWP covering for him is baffling but it's gone on for three years now since Lenin's Tomb exposed his antisemitism so again, the man's hardly news. But I'm rambling. I think it is conflict aversion that has caused google to drop the news as a given at the first point of enquiry. It still has a secific news button. Oh, and I just discovered, it runs the maps now because it's touting its map's button.

Ok, so we've seen the news when there's no specific enquiry. Now let's try "Israel". Now I get it. Israel is still in the news and what news? America is upping its aid from more than anyone else gets to much more than anyone else gets. But according to Mearsheimer and Walt its because of the lobby. According to zionists that's antisemitic. According to Chomsky and Massad it's because America wants Israel to be its regional strongman because of its inherent stability and depedency as a colonial settler state. According to zionists, well the "non"-zionists at Engage, that's anti-American. So why give Israel all this money. It's because America is nice and Israel is nice. Apparently that's how international relations works. It's all about degrees of niceness.

Oh why oh why did I want to know what was news about Israel today?

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