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By Debbie Israel
September 26, 2008
I was watching an old episode of "Cold Case," and at the murder scene the phrase "Evil Triumphs" was spray-painted on the walls. When they spoke to the young man who painted these words on the wall, he told them it was only part of a phrase. The entire phrase he was intending to write was "Evil triumphs when good men do nothing".
A few days ago, I was very pleased to hear that Sen. Hillary Clinton and Gov. Sarah Palin were both going to be participating in a rally to protest the United Nations yet again giving a platform to Iranian madman Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's anti-Israel, anti-American, anti-Jewish diatribes. I was excited by the bipartisan support of the rally against the man who has publicly stated his desire to destroy Israel, who stares in the eyes of the free world and tells them he will create nuclear bombs and they won't stop him would have made a strong statement.
But somewhere along the line, the purpose of the rally has been derailed. Clinton decided not to appear the rally, and soon after the groups sponsoring the rally were pressured into "disinviting" Palin. They said they did this to depoliticize the rally and to make certain that the critical message of the rally not be lost.
In their efforts to "depoliticize" the rally, however, they have done just the opposite. They have turned this rally into a tug-of-war for the Jewish vote. They have lost an opportunity to show Ahmadinejad and his cronies that the U.S. will not stand still and allow him to create nuclear weapons and destroy Israel.
A number of years ago, there was a rally here at Rutgers University. A virulently anti-Israel group was planning to have an event at Rutgers that would have served to lionize the Palestinian cause and demonize Israel and Jews. So there was a rally there to protest this group and several politicos showed up, including Democratic Alabama Rep. Artur Davis, who spoke quite eloquently about Israel and the Jews in a very positive way, many other Democrats, and Republican N.J. State Senator Joseph M. Kyrillos. By having this bipartisan political support, the rally drew attention and accomplished its goals -- the anti-Israel group was sent packing.
If the rally had featured Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin standing side by side in support of Israel, the U.S., and freedom, the rally would have been a strong statement against Ahmadinejad and Iran and all the U.N. toadies who feel the need to glorify societies that venerate violence. Haaretz, a newspaper published in Israel, published the speech Sarah Palin would have given. You can read the entire speech online at http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1023408.html -- Here are a few excerpts: "Ahmadinejad may choose his words carefully, but underneath all of the rhetoric is an agenda that threatens all who seek a safer and freer world. We gather here today to highlight the Iranian dictator's intentions and to call for action to thwart him. He must be stopped.
"The world must awake to the threat this man poses to all of us. Ahmadinejad denies that the Holocaust ever took place. He dreams of being an agent in a ‘Final Solution' -- the elimination of the Jewish people. He has called Israel a ‘stinking corpse' that is ‘on its way to annihilation.'
"...Earlier this year, Sen. Clinton said that ‘Iran is seeking nuclear weapons, and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is in the forefront of that' effort. Sen. Clinton argued that part of our response must include stronger sanctions, including the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization. John McCain and I could not agree more.
"Senator Clinton understands the nature of this threat and what we must do to confront it. This is an issue that should unite all Americans. Iran should not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons. Period. And in a single voice, we must be loud enough for the whole world to hear: Stop Iran!
"Only by working together, across national, religious, and political differences, can we alter this regime's dangerous behavior. Iran has many vulnerabilities, including a regime weakened by sanctions and a population eager to embrace opportunities with the West. We must increase economic pressure to change Iran's behavior.
"Tomorrow, Ahmadinejad will come to New York. On our soil, he will exercise the right of freedom of speech -- a right he denies his own people. He will share his hateful agenda with the world. Our task is to focus the world on what can be done to stop him...."
By taking herself out of the equation, Clinton put the spotlight on her and took it off Ahmadinejad. By doing this, by taking away the show of support, Clinton made this about politics and parties, trivializing the danger this man poses. By turning the spotlight on herself, Hillary Clinton did a disservice to everyone involved.
It is very important that the world see a united front, an America that is against Ahmadinejad and all he stands for. It is very important that politicians keep the politics out of rallies such as these. It is far too vital an issue to play politics.
I am certain that the Democratic Party leaders understand that they may have lost a large percentage of the Jewish vote by nominating Sen. Barack Obama for president. Obama's support of Israel is spotty at best. McCain, on the other hand, has shown his support for Israel throughout and by adding Palin to his ticket he showed this even more strongly. Palin's support of Israel and Jews is unwavering. Between the two of them, McCain and Palin present a strong pro-Israel, anti-terrorist front.
Support of Israel and condemnation of Iran and Ahmadinejad is too critical an issue to allow anyone's ego to get in the way. We can't allow petty personal or political issues to overshadow the urgency of keeping Ahmadinejad and Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Debbie Israel is a graphic artist (see https://
www.cafepress.com/compugraphd2 for some of her work) and tutor living in Highland Park.
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