The US gives Israel over $3bn a year in military aid

israelaid-540x384.png

https://theintercept.com/2016/07/31/as-israel-prospers-obama-set-to-give...

but Netanyahu says, “Not enough”.
And Ms Clinton, should (likely when) she become President, will probably go along with that.
Does that make you happy?

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tapu dali's picture

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There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know.

thanatokephaloides's picture

8,219,178.08 per day.

Every day. Day in and day out.

For the apartheid state of Israel.

When will we ever learn?

Bad

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"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar

"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides

that produce arms. We don't have to start as many wars this way.

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Hillbilly Dem's picture

was spent on things that are now passe'. You know, like food, schools, hospitals, roads. But hey, it's a neoliberal world out there and the good ol' U S of A is drivin' the train!.

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"Just call me Hillbilly Dem(exit)."
-H/T to Wavey Davey

in my house.
What are we doing?
Why are we doing it?
Is this the best use of our treasure?

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

tapu dali's picture

far more dramatically than any mere listing of numbers could do.

"best use of our treasure"?
What about the $X tr flushed away by Near East adventures, together with the (hundreds of) thousands of American and local lives lost?

"When will they ever learn ..."

W, Obama, Trump, Clinton ... they're all the same.

I remember a political slogan form the Anarchist Party (of Canada) about 30 y ago: "Don't Vote -- they're all the same."

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There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know.

tapu dali's picture

oxymoronic about an "Anarchist Party" --- it is what it is.

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There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know.

as "treasure"... just so everyone is clear on that score.

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"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981

Alex Ocana's picture

This is just a tip of the iceberg of the suffering and death America has causedpeople around the world.

Gaza: The Last Picture

Shujayea: Massacre at Dawn

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From the Light House.

snoopydawg's picture

But haven't gotten an answer.
What gives our government the right to give away our money to foreign countries while they gut social programs here in our country?
I'm aware that no one can get elected to congress unless they kiss AIPAC's as, but why is Israel so important to our government?
Israel is behind most of the wars in the Middle East, but they don't send any of their military to fight alongside our troops, nor do they pay for any of them.
Can someone please explain why Israel is the 51st country?

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The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt

tapu dali's picture

"why is Israel the 51st state"?

Actually, the US appears to be an extrapolation of Israel, rather than v.v.

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There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know.

They've got to protect Israel until it can be destroyed in the Apocalypse, or something like that.

A home land for the dispossessed Jews after WW2 may make some sense, but we should have given them a reservation in Wyoming instead of letting the Stern Gang terrorists loose on the Palestinians.

Of course, it is much easier to give someone else's homeland of centuries away, and then wag a finger at how they aren't willing to share when they are forcibly dispossessed (and/or murdered).

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thanatokephaloides's picture

I'm aware that no one can get elected to congress unless they kiss AIPAC's ass, but why is Israel so important to our government?

Cult, amice. Specifically, the Puritan Protestant Evangelical cult, which wouldn't be able to keep itself in its grift business without a continuous flow of trumped-up fear based on Patmos John's Bad Acid Trip ("Revelation") in the Christian Bible.

Only once we break the ultimate "glass ceiling" and actually elect a non-believing President and Congressional majority will we be able to break the thrall AIPAC holds over us.

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"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar

"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides

Bisbonian's picture

we got kind of close.

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"I’m a human being, first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole.” —Malcolm X

... Netanyahu says, “Not enough”.
And Ms Clinton, should (likely when) she become President, will probably go along with that.
Does that make you happy?

Unfortunately, it's not 'probably'; she already has promised far more.

(If possible, please read in full at source.)

https://theintercept.com/2015/09/09/hillary-clinton-goes-militaristic-ha...

Hillary Clinton Goes to Militaristic, Hawkish Think Tank, Gives Militaristic, Hawkish Speech
Glenn Greenwald

Sep. 9 2015

... She vowed that in dealing with Iran, she will be tougher and more aggressive than Reagan was with the Soviet Union: “You remember President Reagan’s line about the Soviets: Trust but verify? My approach will be distrust and verify.” She also explicitly threatened Iran with war if they fail to comply: “I will not hesitate to take military action if Iran attempts to obtain a nuclear weapon, and I will set up my successor to be able to credibly make the same pledge.” She even depicted the Iran Deal as making a future war with Iran easier and more powerful:

Should it become necessary in the future having exhausted peaceful alternatives to turn to military force, we will have preserved and in some cases enhanced our capacity to act. And because we have proven our commitment to diplomacy first, the world will more likely join us.

As for Israel itself, Clinton eagerly promised to shower it with a long, expensive, and dangerous list of gifts. Here’s just a part of what that country can expect from the second President Clinton:

I will deepen America’s unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security, including our long standing tradition of guaranteeing Israel’s qualitative military edge. I’ll increase support for Israeli rocket and missile defenses and for intelligence sharing. I’ll sell Israel the most sophisticated fire aircraft ever developed. The F-35. We’ll work together to develop and implement better tunnel detection technology to prevent arms smuggling and kidnapping as well as the strongest possible missile defense system for Northern Israel, which has been subjected to Hezbollah’s attacks for years.

She promised she “will sustain a robust military presence in the [Persian Gulf] region, especially our air and naval forces.” She vowed to “increase security cooperation with our Gulf allies” — by which she means the despotic regimes in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar, among others. She swore she will crack down even further on Hezbollah: “It’s time to eliminate the false distinction that some still make between the supposed political and military wings. If you’re part of Hezbollah, you’re part of a terrorist organization, plain and simple.”

Then she took the ultimate pledge: “I would not support this agreement for one second if I thought it put Israel in greater danger.” So even if the deal would benefit the U.S., she would not support it “for one second” if it “put Israel in greater danger.” That’s an unusually blunt vow to subordinate the interests of the U.S. to that foreign nation.

But when it comes to gifts to Israel, that’s not all! Echoing the vow of several GOP candidates to call Netanyahu right away after being elected, Clinton promised: “I would invite the Israeli prime minister to the White House during my first month in office to talk about all of these issues and to set us on a course of close, frequent consultation right from the start, because we both rely on each other for support as partners, allies and friends.” She then addressed “the people of Israel,” telling them: “Let me say, you’ll never have to question whether we’re with you. The United States will always be with you.” For good measure, she heaped praise on “my friend Chuck Schumer,” who has led the battle to defeat the Iran Deal, gushing about what an “excellent leader in the Senate” he will make. What’s a little warmongering among friends? ...

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Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.

A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.

snoopydawg's picture

And her supporters Insist that she is NOT a warmonger!
Good lord, if that speech isn't the definition of warmongering, just what do they think is?
Now imagine if Trump or Cheney had given this speech.
There would be diary after diary on DK stating that Cheney has to be stopped from becoming president.
I can not wrap my head around their willful blindness to who Hillary is.
There are diaries daily about which republican has endorsed her and they are happy to have them on board.
They say that it's because they don't want trump to become president because he's so scary l
Jesus, I can figure out why people like Kagan, Paulson, active generals and other republicans are endorsing her.
Kagan and the generals are endorsing her because her foreign policy aligns with theirs. More deaths and destruction in the Middle East, Russia and China.
Paulson and the other republicans in the financial industry endorsed her instead of Trump because Paulson said that Trump wouldn't agree to privatize social security.
The Clintons have been in bed with the banks for over 25 years starting with Bill being governor of Arkansas, his presidency, Hillary's senate run, the page d speeches Bill started giving to them after they left the WH broke but was given a $2 million dollar loan so that they could buy their house, Hillary's paid speeches and they repaid them 20 fold when Bill deregulated the banks and many other bills that he passed with Hillary's help.
We already saw the damage that they did to this country and the Middle East and other countries.
Bill almost achieved privatizing social security and Hillary will finally achieve what so many people have wanted since it was created.
Hillary has already shown that she is a threat to humanity while she was SOS. I don't want to imagine what she will accomplish if she is president.
This country had probably the last chance to try to turn around the direction this country has been on for far too long, but people, the DNC, people in our government stole it from us.
God help us in this country and God help the world if she becomes president.

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The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt

snoopydawg's picture

and the banks and how they scratched each other's backs.
I don't know when was the last time, if ever, our government worked for us instead of the banks and the corporations.
Anyone have any examples?

http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/02/26/the-clintons-and-wall-street-24-y...

http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/03/16/the-clintons-93-million-romance-w...

For 24 years Bill and Hillary Clinton have courted Wall Street money with notable success. During that time the New York banks contributed:

* $11.17 million to Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign in 1992.

*$28.37 million for his re-election in 1996.

*$2.13 million to Hillary Clinton’s senatorial campaign in 2002.

*$6.02 million for her re-election in 2006.

*$14.61 million to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2008.

*$21.42 million to her 2016 campaign.

The total here is $83.72 million for the six campaigns,i ii disbursed from eleven congenial banks: Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, UBS, Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo, Barclay’s, JP Morgan Chase, CIBC, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, and Morgan Stanley.

And Hillary says this and her supporters believe that she is telling the truth.

Anybody who knows me, who thinks that they can influence me, name anything they’ve influenced me on. Just name one thing. I’m out here every day saying I’m going to shut them down, I’m going after them. I’m going to jail them if they should be jailed. I’m going to break them up.

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The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt

Why would Wall Street donate $6 million to her '06 campaign, when she had Some Guy as opposition?

(I suspect because it wasn't a donation so much as an investment. Draw your own conclusions.)

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You keep using that word...

lotlizard's picture

Spreading paranoia about Putin or whoever, when the elephant in the room is Netanyahu.

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gulfgal98's picture

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Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

fakenews's picture

Israel is not a member of the nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty and refuses to become one.

It is entirely prohibited by the Symington Amendment to give any kind of foreign aid to any state that has not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 was amended by the Symington Amendment (Section 669 of the FAA) in 1976. It banned U.S. economic, and military assistance, and export credits to countries that deliver or receive, acquire or transfer nuclear enrichment technology when they do not comply with IAEA regulations and inspections. This provision, as amended, is now contained in Section 101 of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA).

It seems our traitor government has completely overlooked legislation which is not beneficial to their benefactors. The benefactors most obviously being the israeli/jewish subverters of the nation. At least the manipulators have gotten one thing right, they no longer deny the DOCUMENTED FACT that israel is a nuclear capable country, not peaceful either. Since it is so obvious that it is absolutely never mentioned, what are we to make of this? What control of our own politicians do the citizens of the United States not possess that the israeli and American jewish subverters do possess?

credit for content to (edited): https://nationalconscience.wordpress.com/2013/08/11/the-illegality-of-fo...

Peace
FN

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"Democracy is technique and the ability of power not to be understood as oppressor. Capitalism is the boss and democracy is its spokesperson." Peace - FN

SparkyGump's picture

Israel keeps taking land from the Palestinians while blockading them and killing them for throwing rocks. We just keep giving them more and more "aid" while they refuse to make a permanent peace with their neighbors. Every time a Palestinian child is shot, ISIS and Al Qaida get more recruits. We could easily use this international welfare to influence Israel but we just keep giving them more and more like a poor parent rewarding a petulant, spoiled child for outrageous behavior. I yearn for the day when religion is truly separated from politics.

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The real SparkyGump has passed. It was an honor being your human.

lotlizard's picture

Israeli nationalism, walls-and-checkpoints border management, discrimination against Arabs, and dehumanization of “the other” in general make Trump’s ideas look timid and ho-hum.

Yet so many folks we do (or at least, until this campaign season, did) count as on the side of the angels — Democrats, liberals, progressives, or whatever the word of the day is — have been 110% behind that stuff for decades, even going so far as to starve needs at home to fund it.

Go figure.

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RejectingThe3rdWay's picture

This is my only BIG problem with the left.

One of the oldest, if not oldest forms of bigotry in the world and it is ACCEPTED by the left ....

Antisemitism

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When I was a kid, Republicans used to red scare people, now it's the Democrats. I am getting too damn old for this crap!

lunachickie's picture

Please be specific. Thanks!

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Rhizomes's picture

I'm not going to give you a history lesson on how Zionists have perverted the definition of antisemitism to fit their needs, but I needed to get this off my chest.

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"The voice of passion is better than the voice of reason. The passionless cannot change history." ~ Czesław Miłosz

tapu dali's picture

and if it's not allowed, I apologise, but

Thumbs down on this Comment.

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There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know.

lunachickie's picture

they're just as awful as we are, so I'm not surprised we're propping them up.

But I'm sick and tired of propping up other regimes when there are homeless, hungry and hurting people here at home. Sick and tired of it.

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Think, we're defending a country that has nukes. Remind me why we need to support them again? (rhetorical question)
Israel's Worst Kept Secret

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tapu dali's picture

The US refuses to acknowledge this fact.

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There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know.