1933 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Norman Angell on exhibit to the public at the Imperial War Museum, London, England (Wikipedia)
MEDIA-OCRITY OF THE WEEK
Donald Trump Is Leaving Behind Blueprints to End Democracy: Timothy Egan, NYTimes, Nov. 20, 2020 Just when we thought we could sleep again. Just when we thought his malevolent reign was over, his poison bottled, that the sun was coming out tomorrow. Just when nearly 80 million Americans could shout the words of Dr. Seuss to Marvin K. Mooney: “Please go now!” … Failing in court, this most authoritarian of presidents is pressuring Little Trumpers everywhere to overturn an election that Trump’s own cybersecurity chief, Christopher Krebs, said was “the most secure in American history.” He’s trying to force canvassers, certifiers, election board referees and state legislators to create enough chaos so that he can steal a win. … This is Trump’s legacy: an attempt to blow up an election, from Wayne County, Mich., to Maricopa County, Ariz. For Trump the failed businessman, cheating and suing were a way of life. For Trump the failed president, cheating and suing are a blueprint for his followers into the future. And I fear there’s no going back.
WEEKLY QUOTES
“We will recognize the global BDS campaign as antisemitic,” he said. “The time is right… We want to join all the other nations that recognize BDS for the cancer that it is,” – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told PM Bibi Netanyahu during a meeting in Jerusalem. Pompeo later released a statement that the US “strongly opposes the global discriminatory Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign… and practices that facilitate it, such as discriminatory labeling and the publication of databases of companies that operate in Israel or Israeli-controlled areas.” He added that “anti-Zionism is antisemitism.” (Jerusalem Post, Nov. 19, 2020)“There can be no going back to the previous nuclear agreement. We must stick to an uncompromising policy of ensuring that Iran will not develop nuclear weapons,” — PM Bibi Netanyahu referencing the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. “Thanks to our determined stand against the nuclearization of Iran, and to our opposition to the nuclear agreement with Iran, many Arab countries have fundamentally changed their approach to Israel,” he added, referring to Israel’s recent normalization deals with the UAE, Bahrain, and Sudan. (Algemeiner, Nov. 22, 2020)
“The Zionist regime is well aware that the era of hit and run is over…. Iran’s presence in Syria is advisory, and naturally, if anyone disrupts this advisory presence, our response will be a crushing one.” — Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh declared after Israel struck Iranian Quds Force installations in Syria. (PJ Media, Nov. 23, 2020)
“The Government of Canada has now doubled-down on its incomprehensible support for a resolution that simply expands the anti-Israel narrative within the United Nations system,” – CIJA president Shimon Koffler Fogel. He called it “an aberration in the voting pattern established and re-affirmed by successive Canadian governments for almost two decades until the Liberal government changed its vote last year.”CIJA, a Montreal Jewish advocacy group, was one of several Jewish organizations that protested Canada’s vote in favour of a UN resolution on Palestinian self-determination, arguing the resolution is one-sided against Israel. The resolution passed 163-5, with only Israel, the United States, Marshall Islands, Micronesia and Nauru voting against, and ten other countries abstaining. This was Canada’s second such vote in a row. (National Post, Nov. 20, 2020)
“[Trump] recently inked so-called ‘peace deals’ between the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Sudan, and Israel,” – US Rep. Ilhan Omar(D-Min) tweeted, referring to deals that preceded Trump’s earning three Nobel Peace Prize nominations. “The only problem?” she added. “They weren’t peace deals. They’re arms sales to human rights abusers, designed to empower the Gulf States and increase the risk of war with Iran.” (Fox News, Nov. 21, 2020)
“BREAKING: More than 750,000 Georgians have requested their ballots for the January 5 runoff elections,” — Stacey Abrams tweeted. She encouraged Georgians to “request yours today and let’s get it done … again.” Abrams, who has blamed “voter suppression” for her loss in the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial race and has launched a campaign against “voter suppression,” announced a surge in absentee ballot applications that will likely give Democrats an edge. The results of this election will determine who controls the US senate. (PJ Media, Nov. 24, 2020)
“Of course, we were hoping the states would not certify their inaccurate results and that’s a process … it’s like entering into a contract, where, that is a procedural step, but a court can undo that and say, ‘you know, what? That’s invalid’ or ‘that’s illegal,’ ‘that’s void’ for various legal reasons. So, that’s just one procedural step and I’m very grateful that the Michigan legislature is going to provide the opportunity for a bipartisan hearing that will be fully transparent because they’re very concerned about election integrity.” – Trump senior legal adviser Jenna Ellis told Newsmax TV, expressing disappointment in Michigan and Pennsylvania certifying their results. “All this media chatter of Joe Biden picking his cabinet is like fantasy football. Meaningless in the real game,” she tweeted. (PJ Media, Nov. 24, 2020)
SHORT TAKES
NETANYAHU NOMINATED FOR NOBEL PEACE PRIZE (Jerusalem) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed have been nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize by Lord David Trimble of Northern Ireland for their path-breaking peace deal that opened the door for Israel to normalize ties with its Arab neighbors.The Prime Minister’s Office reported Tuesday on the nomination, noting that Trimble was a recipient of the prize in 1998 for his efforts to resolve the conflict in Northern Ireland. (Jerusalem Post, Nov. 24, 2020)
NETANYAHU REPORTEDLY TRAVELS TO SAUDI ARABIA FOR MEETING WITH CROWN PRINCE(Riyadh) — Israeli media said Netanyahu had secretly flown on Sunday to Neom, on the Red Sea, for talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Reports of the meeting between the crown prince and Netanyahu were denied by Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud. (Algemeiner, Nov. 23, 2020)
ISRAELI-PA SECURITY COORDINATION RESUMES AFTER RAMALLAH MEETING (Ramallah) — Senior Palestinian Authority and Israeli officials met this week in Ramallah for the first time in more than six months to resume security coordination and discuss the transfer of Palestinian Authority tax funds that were held for the PA by Israel since May. Both the PA and Israel agreed to resume relations. Hussein al-Sheikh, member of Fatah Central Committee and the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) chief liaison officer with Israel, wrote on Twitter that Israel agreed in their meeting to transfer the taxes owed to the PA collected on behalf of the Ramallah government. (Jewish Press, Nov. 20, 2020)
PALESTINIANS SAY THEY REACHED UNDERSTANDINGS WITH BIDEN TEAM (Washington) — In an interview on official Palestinian radio, Fatah Deputy Chief Mahmoud al-Aloul said that the Palestinian leadership has reached understandings with the new administration of President-elect Joe Biden, the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported. The understandings are related to the measures that must be taken on the political level and regarding future of relations with Israel, but he offered no details. (WIN, Nov. 24, 2020)
PRESIDENT RIVLIN RECEIVES PRESTIGIOUS WASHINGTON INSTITUTE SCHOLAR-STATESMAN MEDAL (Washington) — Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin was officially awarded the Scholar-Statesman Medal by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. The Scholar-Statesman Award celebrates outstanding leaders who, through their public service and professional achievements, exemplify the idea that sound scholarship and a discerning knowledge of history are essential to wise and effective policy and the advancement of peace and security in the Middle East. (Jewish Press, Nov. 19, 2020)
FULLY FREE, POLLARD TO HEAD ‘HOME’ TO ISRAEL WHEN WIFE’S HEALTH ALLOWS (NYC) — Jonathan Pollard plans to move to Israel as soon as his wife’s health allows it after the US Justice Department on Friday terminated the parole of the American Jew convicted of spying for Israel. Pollard served 30 years in prison for providing sensitive US intelligence to Israel and was released in 2015 under strict terms of parole. Esther Pollard is undergoing treatment for cancer. (Times of Israel, Nov. 21, 2020)
‘TOTALLY INAPPROPRIATE’: FLORIDA HOLOCAUST CENTER ELICITS OUTRAGE WITH NEW GEORGE FLOYD EXHIBIT(Florida) — The Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Florida, located in Maitland, has launched a new exhibit, “Uprooting Prejudices: Faces of Change,” which includes, as described by the museum on its website, “stunning images and powerful words captured in the aftermath of the George Floyd murder, at the scene, by renowned photographer and storyteller John Noltner.” George Floyd, an African American, died last May during an arrest in Minneapolis, when a white police officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes. The incident resulted in mass protests across the U.S., including rioting and demands to end police funding. Famous Nazi hunter Efraim Zuroff, director of the Israeli office of the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Israel branch, called the exhibit “totally inappropriate.” “The death of George Floyd is obviously tragic and there’s no question that racism in the United States exists, and African Americans suffer from it. There are cases of police brutality, which should never take place, and the fate of the victims is a tragedy. But this is not anything that’s to be compared to the Shoah.” (WIN, Nov. 22, 2020)
EXPERTS FEAR US TROOP REMOVAL FROM AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ COULD FURTHER EMBOLDEN IRAN(Washington) — The Pentagon ordered a drawdown this week of U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, a move that experts said might actually empower Iran. The drawdown to 2,500 in both places is slated to take place by Jan. 15, said Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller, who was installed in the top Pentagon role last week after Trump fired U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper. Currently, approximately 3,000 troops are stationed in Iraq and 4,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. (Jewish Press, Nov. 20, 2020)
SJP-BACKED STUDENT REFERENDUM AT TUFTS PUSHES ANTISEMITIC LIBEL THAT ISRAEL TRAINS US POLICE TO HARM MINORITIES (Mass) — The Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter at the Massachusetts institution is pushing a student referendum at Tufts University that promotes the discredited libel that the Jewish state trains US police forces to harm minorities. Their initiative calls for the “demilitarization” of the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) — on the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate special election ballot that will be sent out this week. (Algemeiner, Nov. 23, 2020)
ANTI-SEMITISM PANEL TO FEATURE BDS ADVOCATE RASHIDA TLAIB(Washington) — After an announcement that outspoken BDS supporter and Democratic congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (MI) is set to speak on a panel about anti-Semitism, the event’s organizer, the far-left Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), is facing heavy backlash on Twitter. In 2019, Tlaib was banned from visiting Israel alongside her colleague Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN) for supporting the BDS movement. The other speakers on the panel, titled “Dismantling anti-Semitism, Winning Justice,” include Professor Marc Lamont Hill, who called for “a free Palestine from the river to the sea” in a 2018 speech to the UN. NYTimes columnist Peter Beinart will also lend his voice to this illustrious panel. (WIN, Nov. 22, 2020)
EUROPEAN POWERS MEETING TO DISCUSS IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL AFTER TEHRAN’S LATEST BREACH(Berlin) — The German government says the foreign ministers of Britain, France, and Germany are meeting in Berlin on November 23 for talks focusing on the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, days after the UN’s atomic watchdog said Tehran had again breached the agreement. The meeting between German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and his British and French counterparts, Dominic Raab and Jean-Yves Le Drian, comes after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on November 18 that centrifuges in a buried part of Iran’s main uranium-enrichment site at Natanz were now operational. (Radio Free Europe, Nov. 23, 2020)
BREAKTHROUGH ISRAELI STUDY SHOWS HYPERBARIC OXYGEN CAN REVERSE AGING(Tel Aviv) — Hyperbaric oxygen treatments can stop the aging of blood cells and even reverse the aging process in healthy aging adults, according to a recently published study from scientists at Tel Aviv University (TAU) and Shamir Medical Center. The researchers found that a unique protocol of high-pressure oxygen treatments in a pressure chamber can reverse two major processes associated with aging: the shortening of telomeres (protective regions at both ends of every chromosome) and the accumulation of old, malfunctioning (senescent) cells. (WIN, Nov. 22, 2020)
NEARLY A TENTH OF BIDEN VOTERS IN KEY STATES WOULD NOT HAVE VOTED FOR HIM HAD THEY KNOWN ABOUT HUNTER BIDEN SCANDAL: SURVEY (Virginia) — Large numbers of seven battleground state voters who backed former Vice President Joe Biden would not have voted for him had they known about major stories the national news media ignored, according to a survey conducted by The Polling Company. Knowing about the scandals involving Biden’s son Hunter’s dealings with officials and firms in China, Ukraine and Russia would have prompted 9.4 percent of those surveyed to change their vote, according to the survey (pdf) of 1,750 Biden voters in Nevada, Georgia, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Arizona, and Michigan. (EpochTimes, Nov. 24, 2020)
CANADIAN JEWS, MUSLIMS ANGERED OVER QUEBEC EASING RESTRICTIONS FOR CHRISTMAS(Quebec City) — Leaders of the Canadian Jewish and Muslim communities reacted angrily after Quebec Premier Francois Legault announced the province would allow gatherings between Dec. 24 and Dec. 27 with a maximum of 10 people. That announcement did not go over well with Quebec’s Jewish and Muslim communities, who have been calling on their communities to comply with health restrictions and not gather, especially during the Jewish and Muslim holidays. (WIN, Nov. 23, 2020)
FOR FURTHER REFERENCE
Caroline Glick: At a Diplomatic Crossroads, Israel Must Act: Caroline Glick, WIN, Nov. 22, 2020 — Three diplomatic events transpired last week. Together they describe the crossroads at which Israel now stands following the U.S. presidential elections.
PA Wants Biden to Reverse ‘Anti-Palestinian’ Decisions: Kaleb Abu Toameh, Jerusalem Post, Nov. 22, 2020 –– The Palestinians will demand that the new administration under US President-elect Joe Biden cancel “anti-Palestinian” decisions taken by the administration of President Donald Trump, Palestinian officials said on Sunday.
FBI Buried Hunter Biden Laptop: Lee Smith, Epoch Times, Nov. 24, 2020 — News reports last month claimed that in late 2019 the FBI had opened an investigation of matters related to information found on a laptop purportedly belonging to Hunter Biden.
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