Gilad Atzmon and John Mearsheimer: self-criticism, self-hate and hate ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ibishblog by Hussein Ibish - October 1, 2011 - 12:00am I've long been an advocate that self-criticism, both as an individual and as a group, is an essential element of healthy political engagement. Group-think, political orthodoxy and correctness, and chauvinistic received wisdom are the worst kinds of political poison. Triumphalism and/or paranoia are the inevitable consequences, and they lead to grotesque distortions of perception and judgment. Self-criticism, especially of a group one identifies with and participates in, is not only healthy, it is indispensable. » Read more

General Disassembly ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Emily Cadei - October 4, 2011 - 12:00am To hear Republican politicians tell it, the failure of the United States to stop the Palestinians' headlong drive for member-state status at the U.N. Security Council was the result of employing too many carrots and not enough sticks. That line of reasoning was on full display this week, as Congress froze $200 million in assistance earmarked for the Palestinian Authority in retaliation for its statehood bid. But a number of GOP figures are thinking even bigger -- or smaller, as it turns out: Seeking a tougher U.S. line on a U.N. » Read more

"Price Tag" Terrorism Crosses the Green Line ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Americans For Peace Now by Ori Nir - October 4, 2011 - 12:00am The extremist settlers call it "Price Tag." We have always called it by its proper name: Terrorism. Now, Israel's Shin Bet, the IDF's top brass and Israeli Cabinet members agree with us. On Monday, shortly after a mosque was torched in an Israeli-Arab village in the Galilee and "Price Tag" graffiti was found nearby, Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch, a member of the extreme right wing Yisrael Beitenu Party, told an Israel Radio reporter that he prefers not to use the perpetrators self-serving jargon. "This is an act of terrorism," he said. » Read more

Gandhi and Zionism ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by Ravi Menon - October 5, 2011 - 12:00am The Palestinian issue, more than any other wrangle in modern times, has huge overtones of a morality play and as an Indian living in this region, I have always been intrigued about what Gandhi, that apostle of peace and a strong advocate of morality above all in politics, had to say on this troubling matter. And all this takes on a special meaning on the eve of the upcoming historic debate and the move to table a resolution to recognise Palestine as a state in the UN. » Read more

Obama's Jewish Team Lays Out Path Back to White House ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - (Analysis) October 5, 2011 - 12:00am For the past three months, a group of President Obama’s Jewish supporters has been getting together for a weekly conference call to discuss strategy. The group, includes, among others, former White House adviser David Axelrod, Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, former Congress members Robert Wexler and Mel Levine, Chicago Jewish activist and attorney Alan Solow, and mega-donors Penny Pritzker and Lester Crown. » Read more

No lessons learned ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Mohammad Darawshe - October 5, 2011 - 12:00am For the Arab public in Israel, the October 2000 clashes remain an unresolved case. Thirteen families who lost their loved ones, joined by the entire Arab community, still ask out loud how it is possible that lethal fire was opened on demonstrators yet justice never prevailed. After all, tense, and occasionally violent, demonstrations were not invented by the Arab public: protesters have repeatedly blocked roads in Jerusalem, and settlers in Amona threw rocks at police officers, yet no one ever conceived of ordering sniper fire in response to those actions. » Read more

Palestinians seeking membership in UNESCO ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Google News by Angela Charlton - (Analysis) October 5, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian officials are set to seek membership in the U.N. cultural agency Wednesday, diplomats say, as they expand and accelerate their push for international recognition despite opposition from the United States and Israel. With peace talks stalled and landmark efforts to get Palestine recognized at the United Nations inching along a labyrinthine path, Palestinian diplomats are pursuing other, potentially faster avenues toward getting the world to consider their territories a nation. » Read more

Story of Jewish terror ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Zohir Andreus - October 5, 2011 - 12:00am It was the chronicles of a story foretold: The terrorism of radical Israeli elements against Arabs reached into the Green Line not too long ago, and it was a matter of time before it hit again. Here’s a reminder: In August 2005, four Arabs were murdered and dozens were wounded by Jewish terrorist Eden Natan Zada, the resident of Tapuach in the occupied West Bank. Early Monday, the al-Nur mosque in the Upper Galilee village of Tuba Zangaria was torched. » Read more

Congress looks to punish Palestinians, but cuts to security aid pose dilemma ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Ron Kampeas - (Analysis) October 4, 2011 - 12:00am If the Palestinians don’t pull back from their statehood push, congressional cuts in aid are inevitable, U.S. lawmakers say. Just how comprehensive such cuts will be, however, could end up depending on Israel’s stance on the issue. Lawmakers, lobbyists and congressional staffers told JTA that hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance for the Palestinians are on the chopping block because of the Palestinian leadership’s formal request last month for U.N. membership in the absence of negotiations with Israel. » Read more

Egypt sees new Israel gas deal soon ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Masry Al-Youm by Reuters - October 4, 2011 - 12:00am Egypt will soon finish drafting a new contract for gas exports to its neighbour Israel that includes a big increase in prices, a newspaper cited the petroleum minister as saying on Tuesday. Gas supplies to Israel have been disrupted by a series of attacks on the pipeline in the Sinai border region by assailants believed to oppose the sale of gas to the Jewish state. The attacks became more frequent and supplies were halted after the overthrow of Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak in February. » Read more