Lieberman's dual allegiance

It should come as no surprise that Joe Lieberman, an Orthodox Jew with dual allegiance to Israel and the U.S., in that order, decided to support John McCain for president given the latter's strong support for the Iraq war.

Now that Iraq has undergone several bloody years of ethnic cleansing, and with U.S. troops serving as "baby sitters" as a result of the "surge," the Cheney-Bush administration has been in a position to continue wasting zillions of U.S. tax payers' dollars in a desperate attempt to save face as they prepare to leave the scene.

That these highly incompetent individuals were allowed to serve a second term, is incomprehensible to those of us who believe in efficient and effective government.

It is no secret that Israelis and their neoconservative cohorts in the U.S. have been instrumental in driving our nation into an unprovoked war on Iraq given their stated goal of "restructuring the Middle East in their image."

The arrogance of such an attitude is breathtaking in scope given that Israel is viewed as an intruder in a region dominated by Arabs/Muslims.

However, their objectives were embraced by Cheney-Bush since they had their own agenda, namely, to "liberate" Iraq from Saddam in order to pave the way for access of U.S. corporations to Iraq's energy infrastructure.

The fact that Saddam was doing business with nations such as Russia and France, while U.S. corporations were unable to do so due to the embargo, was a situation they were determined to rectify.

There was, obvious, an alternative to war, namely, to allow inspectors to complete their jobs and once they had determined that WMD were non-existent, the embargo could have been lifted and U.S. corporations allowed to bid for contracts in Iraq.

But, that was not to be. After all, Bush was also intent on proving who was the "real man" in his family given that Poppy refused to go into Baghdad during Gulf War I.

Israel, on the other hand, was intent on using the U.S. military as its proxy to get rid of neighboring leaders it did not like. Iran is clearly next on its list of "regime change" in the region.

Amazingly, much has been said and written about Lieberman's peculiar choice of backing a Republican for president, particularly since he had been chosen to run for Democratic V.P. by Al Gore. Predictably, the fact of his dual allegiance is nowhere to be found in the debate surrounding his support for a Republican aspirant to the presidency.

The fact that U.S. and Israeli interests in the geopolitical sphere are not always one and the same is obvious to any objective observer.

The question then becomes: Do we really want leaders in positions of power with dual allegiances to the U.S. and a given foreign nation?

Last time I checked, that was patriotism was all about.

The fact that Lieberman is in a position to throw the Senate back into Republican hands clearly weighs on steps that can be taken by Democrats given their slim majority in Congress.

Hopefully, the 2008 election will result in the selection of a candidate who has, first and foremost, the U.S.'s best interests at heart.

If Israel were a true ally of the U.S., it would have made a major effort to settle the bloody, never-ending conflict with Palestinians by allowing the establishment of a VIABLE Palestinian state with E. Jerusalem as its capital.

Reason: U.S. support for this bloody conflict has played a major role in the resentment and hatred by Arabs/Muslims vis a vis the U.S. Coupled with U.S. military presence on their lands, it has clearly led to the tragedy of 9/11.

Among the presidential candidates of both parties, only Libertarian Ron Paul understands, and has the guts to express, what should be obvious to everyone but is carefully concealed by members of both parties.

Actions taken by Israel have not only hurt U.S. interests in the region but Israelis as well. Had a viable Palestinian state been born, Arabs/Muslims in the region were willing to establish diplomatic relations with Israel, thereby paving the way for their nation to become the center of a flourishing region.

Given Israel's expertise in many areas and the need for such expertise in the region, one can only wonder why they waste their time hiding behind a wall and pretending that their Jewish State of Israel is a democracy as opposed to the theocracy it clearly is.

These are the double standards that drive Arabs/Muslims up a wall, as well as many others around the globe. A nation with two sets of laws, for Jews and non-Jews, is clearly not a true democracy.

As for Lieberman, he obviously doesn't get it either. His Jewishness trumps everything, including allegiance to his own party as well as the U.S.

Now, if the majority of Americans want another four years of Cheney-Bush, all they have to do is vote for McCain. He is clearly determined to continue the highly counterproductive foreign policy devised by right-wing Israelis and right-wing Americans.