But while American Jews may have Battered Wife Syndrome, the state of Israel is hot, and she knows it. And she isn't sticking around just to get slapped around by a neophyte with delusions of grandeur. There are plenty of rich, important men who would like to woo her.
Starting with China..via The Lid:
The Chinese--one important official called it the "little superpower--perceive that Israel in particular and the Jewish people in general have been success stories.
Another factor which should not be underestimated is the lack of Chinese prejudice toward Jews and prejudgment against Israel that has become such a huge obstacle for Israel’s dealing with the West.
There is a huge amount of cooperation, far more than many people realize, on joint projects. While hi-technology is the most obvious area of such activity, there are many others as well. Energy issues are equally paramount. China shares with Israel a great interest in finding alternative energy sources, not so much due to environmental considerations but to financial and security ones. Some impressive ideas and pilot programs are underway that seem more imaginative and likely to succeed than what I’ve seen in the American debate...
And the next man with a bouquet of roses? Why, it's Russia's Vladimir Putin, who's just paid a visit to Israel, which is still one more than the self-declared "best friend" of the Jewish state, Barack Obama:
On President Putin’s visit to Jerusalem, he donned a kippah and went to pray at the Western Wall of the ancient Temple. As one press report has it, at the close of his visit, Putin turned to one of the Russian Jews present and said I came here to pray that the Temple should be rebuilt, and I wish that your prayers will be fulfilled.
Putin had more honeyed words for his Israeli hosts. Touring the Wall, he said “Here, we see how the Jewish past is etched into the stones of Jerusalem.” This is not quite a formal recognition of Israeli claims to the Old City, but it is much more than Israelis usually hear.
The reaction from the Arab side to Putin’s statement about the historically Jewish character of Jerusalem was correspondingly furious....
But Putin doesn't care if barbarians pound their clubs. His response is to kill them. More so than even the Israelis. It is only Obama who feels these animals somehow deserve more deference than the Jews. So where does that leave him, and the United States?
Obama strikes oil...
On the outside, as Israel develops itself into an energy superpower. Same article:
...evidence is accumulating that the Promised Land, from a natural resource point of view, could be an El Dorado: inch for inch the most valuable and energy rich country anywhere in the world. If this turns out to be true, a lot of things are going to change, and some of those changes are already underway. Israel and Canada have just signed an agreement to cooperate on the exploration and development of what, apparently, could be vast shale oil reserves beneath the Jewish state.
...following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s surprisingly cordial visit last week, Gazprom and Israel have announced plans to cooperate on gas extraction.
With Italy reeling under the impact of big wrong-way bets on Iran, Rome may also begin to appreciate the value of good ties with a closer and more dependable neighbor. Another sensible target for Israeli energy diplomacy would be India: the two countries are already close in a number of ways, including trade and military technology, and India is eager to diversify its energy sources.
No doubt Israel would love to make energy deals with the Untied States. But much like Canada's frustrating experience with the Keystone pipeline, Obama's intellectual intransigence leaves the Jewish state with little choice but to find new friends.
And - shock of shocks! - there is no shortage of them. Seems like anti-semitism is giving way to hard-headed reality.
Except in the Arab world. And within most of a collapsing Europe. And in America, under Barack Obama.
Sheesh. To be even bunched in with that crew...
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