The President's Ear

One of Obama's advisers on the Middle East is the son of a Catholic father and Jewish mother, a certain, Dennis Ross, who has advised both Bill Clinton and George W Bush on the region, while advocating the view that the legal rights of the Palestinians, including those rights that are given expression in UN Resolutions 194 and 242, are less important than the needs of Israel. Those needs would seem to encompass their desire to expand and do what they want in the West Bank and Gaza.(1) It got me thinking, why not a job for Rashid Khalidi here?
Anyway, Rashid is doing a little tour of Israel at the moment before going on to Beruit and surprise, surprise, he wasn't subjected to that "special treatment" that is reserved for people with "suspicious" names at Ben Gurion airport.(2) Of course, the man is an American citizen so why should he be subject to any "special treatment" anyway? Well, because he says things that the Zionists don't like and, after all, he does also have that "suspicious" name. Made me think about Israel refusing Norman Finkelstein entry at Ben Gurion a few months ago; no Arab name here, American passport too and, what is the difference? The evidence would seem to suggest that there is a slight trepidation in the Zionist state that Khalidi might, indeed, be able to talk to the President elect, that he might, indeed, have his ear to some extent. Whatever, they appear to be exercising caution vis-a-vis a man who described his relationship with the "hope and change" man as follows, "Obama was my colleague at the University of Chicago, a family friend, neighbor and my district representative in the Illinois State Senate."(3)
In German they say, "Die Hoffnung stirbt zuletzt" (hope is the last thing to die), and one can only hope that, while officially people like Dennis Ross will be advising the President behind the scenes people like Khalidi will be exercising an influence of their own.
1 http://www.democracynow.org/2008/1/3/vote_for_change_atrocity_linked_us
2 http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1043689.html
3 ibid