There have been all kinds of US presidents, but no one, easy to recall, who has been as feckless as the current occupant of the White House.
BY DR. ARSHAD M. KHAN
JANUARY 6, 2024
Image source: X @POTUS
There have been all kinds of US presidents: liars (Bill Clinton comes to mind), corrupt (The Teapot Dome Scandal 1921-1923), girlfriend problems (Grover Cleveland 1885-89) and some with other frailties. But no one, easy to recall, who has been as feckless as the current occupant of the White House; none that is as subservient to Israel and the demands of its minority-vote prime minister … in power because of the support of very small religious parties with whom he seems to have made a Faustian bargain.
So it is that Palestinian civilians continue to be slaughtered in Gaza, at the approximate rate of 7,000 per month since October 7th when this lopsided conflict began.
Now who is likely to have the most influence with Israel? Why, the supplier of the vast arsenal of bombs, artillery shells and the like that penetrate, dismember, kill and embed in the soft flesh of the old men, women and children left in Gaza … while the young men are dispersed in the 300-mile network of tunnels dug over the years by Hamas for protection against Israeli onslaughts.
Supplying such weapons to a callous user without accountability renders the supplier also culpable. Article 2(c) of the 1948 Geneva Genocide Convention states expressly in its definition of genocide: deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction as a whole or in part.
It fits what is happening in Gaza like the proverbial glove. And unconditional support for Israel makes the US culpable. No wonder Biden has been labeled “Genocide Joe” in the world press. The hapless and feckless Joe has been blinded and mesmerized by the power of the Jewish lobby as he breaks his own word to the people to run for a second term in November 2024. This, despite the fact that many Jewish groups oppose the war and have held rallies against it. The most powerful AIPAC, however, has supported Israel throughout and opposed a ceasefire.
For prompt action, the UN security council would have been a better bet. But the surety of a US vote against a ceasefire, in compliance with its ally’s position, led the matter to the General Assembly. The overwhelming support for a ceasefire (150 voted ‘yes’) represented the general feeling in the world about the war. Even India, which has become close to Israel under the Modi government, voted for it.
Only 10 countries including the US and Israel voted against. Excluding the US, their total population amounted to 50 million in a world populated by about 8 billion people or a little over a half percent. It is a startling indicator of how the world feels about the issue and how US prestige, influence and support have declined.
Bernie Sanders who is the US senator from Vermont and is himself Jewish is asking Congress to block additional funding to Israel while the Gaza war continues. He did not mince words calling the Israeli response, “grossly disproportionate, immoral and in violation of humanitarian law …Enough is enough, congress must reject that funding. The taxpayers of the United States must no longer be complicit in destroying the lives of innocent men, women and children in Gaza.” Is Joe Biden listening?
Dr. Arshad M. Khan is a former Professor based in the US. Educated at King's College London, OSU and The University of Chicago, he has a multidisciplinary background that has frequently informed his research. Thus he headed the analysis of an innovation survey of Norway, and his work on SMEs published in major journals has been widely cited. He has for several decades also written for the press: These articles and occasional comments have appeared in print media such as The Dallas Morning News, Dawn (Pakistan), The Fort Worth Star Telegram, The Monitor, The Wall Street Journal and others. On the internet, he has written for Antiwar.com, Asia Times, Common Dreams, Counterpunch, Countercurrents, Dissident Voice, Eurasia Review and Modern Diplomacy among many. His work has been quoted in the U.S. Congress and published in its Congressional Record.
There have been all kinds of US presidents: liars (Bill Clinton comes to mind), corrupt (The Teapot Dome Scandal 1921-1923), girlfriend problems (Grover Cleveland 1885-89) and some with other frailties. But no one, easy to recall, who has been as feckless as the current occupant of the White House; none that is as subservient to Israel and the demands of its minority-vote prime minister … in power because of the support of very small religious parties with whom he seems to have made a Faustian bargain.
So it is that Palestinian civilians continue to be slaughtered in Gaza, at the approximate rate of 7,000 per month since October 7th when this lopsided conflict began.
Now who is likely to have the most influence with Israel? Why, the supplier of the vast arsenal of bombs, artillery shells and the like that penetrate, dismember, kill and embed in the soft flesh of the old men, women and children left in Gaza … while the young men are dispersed in the 300-mile network of tunnels dug over the years by Hamas for protection against Israeli onslaughts.
Supplying such weapons to a callous user without accountability renders the supplier also culpable. Article 2(c) of the 1948 Geneva Genocide Convention states expressly in its definition of genocide: deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction as a whole or in part.
It fits what is happening in Gaza like the proverbial glove. And unconditional support for Israel makes the US culpable. No wonder Biden has been labeled “Genocide Joe” in the world press. The hapless and feckless Joe has been blinded and mesmerized by the power of the Jewish lobby as he breaks his own word to the people to run for a second term in November 2024. This, despite the fact that many Jewish groups oppose the war and have held rallies against it. The most powerful AIPAC, however, has supported Israel throughout and opposed a ceasefire.
For prompt action, the UN security council would have been a better bet. But the surety of a US vote against a ceasefire, in compliance with its ally’s position, led the matter to the General Assembly. The overwhelming support for a ceasefire (150 voted ‘yes’) represented the general feeling in the world about the war. Even India, which has become close to Israel under the Modi government, voted for it.
Only 10 countries including the US and Israel voted against. Excluding the US, their total population amounted to 50 million in a world populated by about 8 billion people or a little over a half percent. It is a startling indicator of how the world feels about the issue and how US prestige, influence and support have declined.
Bernie Sanders who is the US senator from Vermont and is himself Jewish is asking Congress to block additional funding to Israel while the Gaza war continues. He did not mince words calling the Israeli response, “grossly disproportionate, immoral and in violation of humanitarian law …Enough is enough, congress must reject that funding. The taxpayers of the United States must no longer be complicit in destroying the lives of innocent men, women and children in Gaza.” Is Joe Biden listening?
Dr. Arshad M. Khan is a former Professor based in the US. Educated at King's College London, OSU and The University of Chicago, he has a multidisciplinary background that has frequently informed his research. Thus he headed the analysis of an innovation survey of Norway, and his work on SMEs published in major journals has been widely cited. He has for several decades also written for the press: These articles and occasional comments have appeared in print media such as The Dallas Morning News, Dawn (Pakistan), The Fort Worth Star Telegram, The Monitor, The Wall Street Journal and others. On the internet, he has written for Antiwar.com, Asia Times, Common Dreams, Counterpunch, Countercurrents, Dissident Voice, Eurasia Review and Modern Diplomacy among many. His work has been quoted in the U.S. Congress and published in its Congressional Record.
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