The War's Just Started, But Benjamin Netanyahu Has Already Lost

[Celerity]

No matter what happens following Israel’s siege of Gaza, the Israeli prime minister’s political ambitions are likely damaged beyond repair.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-wars-just-started-but-netanyahu-has-already-lost?ref=home

https://archive.ph/EZtit



The crisis triggered by Hamas’ savage attacks on Israel on Oct. 7 is at a very delicate stage. As Gaza awaits a full-scale Israeli invasion, Iran and its proxies are dialing up their threatening rhetoric, and the U.S. is moving another carrier battle group into the region, major questions loom about the nature, scope, and consequences of the war the terrorists triggered. It is not too early, however, to draw certain conclusions about the consequences unleashed by Hamas’ brutality.

One is that it is highly unlikely the Iranian-funded terror group will survive this war. Another is that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also almost certain to be brought down and many of his highest priorities dashed due to the widespread perception among the Israeli public that it was Netanyahu’s leadership failures that put the public at risk of the attack, an assault that resulted in the greatest single day loss of Israeli lives in that country’s history.

As the viciousness of the terrorists and the human toll of their crimes become clearer with each passing day, thinking in terms of political winners and losers or even geopolitical maneuvering seems almost petty. But because the role of leaders and that of regional players have had and will have such profound consequences for the lives of millions of others, it is essential we understand how the attack at the end of the first week of October may have changed the landscape of power in the Middle East.

Clearly, at this point, Netanyahu is beginning to understand. It looks like his more than two decades of dominance of Israeli politics is finally coming to an end. Yes, he remains in office at the head of a “unity” government. But it is widely expected that he will be forced out after the end of the conflict in Gaza—if not before. Polls have made it clear that politically, he is a dead prime minister walking.



snip

[The Magistrate]

1. Devoutly To Be Hoped, Ma'am

The man has done more harm to Israel than any individual I can call quick to mind....

[totodeinhere]

7. I just wonder if his replacement will be any better.

The far right in Israel is not going to give up power easily..

[SouthernDem4ever]

36. Is the Israeli govt more far right than Hamas and Iran?

Or any of the Arab states? Don't think so. They are as far right as you can get. Right now = fascism.

[Crunchy Frog]

20. I feel like I've seen him rise from the dead before. Hope it doesn't happen again.

Sometimes seems like a cat with 9 lives.

[Deuxcents]

2. He was in trouble politically before this invasion

And I think, as the article states, he will be forced out and held accountable for his offenses before this horrible war.

[True Dough]

42. He was busy trying to rejig the Israeli judicial system

to save his own sorry hide. The country deserves a much better leader than that guy.

[Bettie]

3. He's been "finished" before

and he always comes back...corruption, indictments, and yet, he's in charge again.

He'll be done when he dies in his sleep as a very old man because the extreme right loves him.

[leftstreet]

4. How many times have we heard this n/t

[womanofthehills]

24. His intelligence failed big time

His people don’t like him and now he has Pro Palestine protests around the world. He is a hated man.

[Farmer-Rick]

32. I still don't believe he didn't know something like this was being planned

I think he was warned and ignored it. It's like W letting the radical Muslims attack the towers. They knew and did nothing to protect people.

Why does it seem like authoritarian right wing leaders have more of their own citizens die than their opposition? Look who was in charge when this attack on Israel, 9/11 and COVID happened.

[inthewind21]

35. Well

9/11 sure gave W a HUGE boost and very many of the American people bought the bullshit hook line and sinker out of fear and willingly allowed the stripping of rights left and right and the waging of completely useless wars against countries that didn't haven anything to do with 9/11 that cost trillions in the name of winning a war on terrorism. Which DID NOT Happen. It was successful on one front, it CREATED a whole lot more terrorists!

We ended up with soldiers in jail for being their own form of terrorists, loss of any credibility on the world stage, in debt up to our eyeballs, the patriot act, a whole host of other fucked up nonsense and hey, where is "America's Mayor" now?


Clearly a very many across the globe, leaders and citizens alike have completely forgot ALL of that and failed to learn any lessons from it.

But hey, duct tape, plastic sheeting, survivalist gear companies and LOTS of US "contractors" made a shit ton of money so I guess it wasn't a total loss. Carry on...

[LiberalFighter]

43. Wasn't Condoleezza Rice complicit too?

[Farmer-Rick]

44. OMG I can't believe I forgot the Hurricane Katrina disasterous response by W

Rice buying overpriced shoes while Americans were drowning weeks after the hurricane had passed. It will always stay in my head.

Add another column to the right wing death count of their own citizens. The failure of the Katrina hurricane response. W and Rice let those people to die and suffer horribly.

[UTUSN]

5. If only long ago and some other way.

[T_A]

6. Interesting

A spokesperson for the IDF said that Hezbollah should militarily restrain itself.

Ah, might want to check a mirror, dude.

There's already more than 2600 dead in Gaza, likely at least half children, and not a single tank has crossed the border yet.

[totodeinhere]

8. In this political environment I could believe almost anything could happen.

I think it would be a mistake to write him off just yet. He is a clever politician and he will try to play this in some way or another so he can stay in power. Just you watch.

[malaise]

9. Bibinis history

That is all

[Celerity]

11. Good luck to Likud with if they keep ramping up the RW totalitarian batshittery.

Jerusalem Post: 86% of Israelis blame gov't for Hamas massacre, majority say Netanyahu must resign

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100218362448

[wnylib]

13. Amen.

The origin of the word "amen" means "so be it" or "may it be so."

[Celerity]

21. what did that post say?

[wnylib]

25. It said that the poster's ideal dream was that

Hamas would be destroyed, Netanyahu would be replaced by a better leader for Israel, and both sides would then work together on a two state solution.

[Celerity]

26. thanks

[wnylib]

27. I don't know why the post was removed. It was

a good post, IMO.

Must have been something in the post that I missed since it was removed.

[johnp3907]

29. .

[Celerity]

31. lol, strange days

[wnylib]

38. Oh my. Any idea what the next removed post was about?

[Celerity]

41. None.

[johnp3907]

30. .

[tornado34jh]

15. If only that was possible

But both the Israelis and the Palestinians would have to realize that who they are supporting does no good for either.

[bdamomma]

19. 86%

can't argue with that amount of Israelis who want him out. Plus for the last 6 months on Saturday nights the Israelis have been protesting regarding how BeBe wants to neuter their Supreme Court. He does not want to be held accountable for his indictment charges sounds familiar doesn't it???

[brush]

17. If he hadn't surreptitiously backed Hamas as a way of controlling Gaza...

he possibly could weasel his way out of this crisis and still held power, but no, it's over as that becomes more evident. It all backfired on his corrupt ass and hundreds of Israelis are dead and the country is at war.

The chameleon-like bad penny is finally done and won't turn up again.

[Warpy]

14. Yes, please

Israel had a much better reputation before he showed up.

[Nasruddin]

16. Incomprehensible

I have a hard time understanding why Netanyahu is still strutting around. Why hasn't he been booted already?

Perhaps George Bush the second is a model ... but the life trajectories of the two men have been very different.
GB was a relative newcomer, BN has been around for decades. Bush had some benefit of the doubt. (Which he did manage to squander.)

If, as has been reported, Netanyahu has in essence supported Hamas in the past to keep Palestinian politics off balance ... I have even more questions. Why isn't he in a room with bars on windows and doors, answering questions about his apparent collaboration with these malefactors? If reports are true, at best he must be a useful idiot, at worst ... well I guess I gave it away.

Perhaps this coup has already happened, & he's being marched around for a while until he is no longer useful to the war effort.

The worst possible thing I can imagine is he is really still in charge and off to make even more disastrous mistakes.

[IronLionZion]

23. Why do Trump and Putin still exist

in some countries it's harder to get rid of bad leaders but it needs to be done.

[ratchiweenie]

18. If this horrible tragedy would bring down Likud and Hamas, perhaps it would have been worth it.

[ArkansasDemocrat1]

33. A pox on both their houses n/t

[IronLionZion]

22. He's a crook and liar so Israeli people shouldn't trust him

dude should have been in prison long ago. He's pretending to be some sort of hero but that's not working out for him.

[Sky Jewels]

34. He needs a stake through his heart...ya know, metaphorically.

What an evil piece of crap. He has caused untold suffering on countless people for years. Enough!

[quakerboy]

37. When?

Around the time he has ensured he is free of personan consequences and ready to retire?

What's the specifically mechanism that will cause anything to change before it becomes irrelevant?

[617Blue]

39. Aren't Right Wing Strongmen supposed to keep everyone safe?

He divides the country and corrupts the justice system - in return wasn't he supposed to be on top of this shit?

[Martin68]

40. "...thinking in terms of political winners and losers or even geopolitical maneuvering seems almost

pretty." No, it is not petty. It is Netanyahu's poor judgement, high stakes brinkmanship, and political maneuvering that gave Hamas the opportunity to make this attack. There were warnings that the state of preparedness and security was precarious. Netanyahu ignored those warnings and fired military advisors who pressed him on it. He was primarily focused on keeping a grasp on power so that he could neuter the supreme court and avoid the consequences of his criminal behavior. Very Trumplike in every respect.