Talk to the hand!
Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu (informally called Bibi) went on NBC's Meet the Press this past Sunday to talk Iran and peace efforts. He largely failed to communicate any new positions or say anything largely surprising. He did, however, make clear his deference to President Obama and subsequently, Israel's intent to wait for U.S. approval on action over the Iranian nuclear program.However, I must point out Bibi's blind language. In concern to the danger of oppressive regimes: "There is no question we would all like to see a different Iran [Israel] with different policies. Remember, this is a regime that not only represses its own people. Andrei Sakharov, the great Russian scientist and humanist, said that a regime that oppresses its own people sooner or later will oppress its neighbors and, certainly, Iran [Israel] has been doing that." I am glad to see that Bibi owned up to Israel's oppressive policies in concern to the occupation and its own Arab citizens; oh, wait, he didn't, darn.
Furthermore, Bibi spoke on the domestic response to his Bar-Ilan University speech. He almost said what we would all like to hear: "What I am suggesting is that if we are asked to recognize the Palestinian state as the nation state of the Palestinian people, then the Palestinians should recognize Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people who have been deprived of a land of their own and of security for so long." However, Bibi could not see through his own turnspeak and sadly ended the interview with such a backwards statement. Shouldn't Israel recognize a Palestinian people? Who have been deprived of their land and their safety for so long? I'll let you decide.
To see the interview and read the whole transcript, Click here: Bibi on Meet the Press.
