Thomas Friedman, "Break All the Rules": "Everything That Guy Just Said Is Bullshit"

"Everything that guy just said is bullshit."

- Vincent Gambini (Joe Pesci), opening defense statement, "My Cousin Vinny"

"My Cousin Vinny" is another of my favorite movies, and I am particularly appreciative of Vincent Gambini's terse opening statement in defense of his cousin from New York, who, in this 1992 comedy, is on trial for murder in Alabama. I regret that in the past, when appearing in court, I never found reason to use this line. Today, however, regarding Thomas Friedman's latest New York Times op-ed entitled "Break All the Rules" (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/23/opinion/friedman-break-all-the-rules.html?_r=0), I can think of no better way of drawing attention to this flatulent opinion piece. Let's have a look at some of what "The Great One" has to say to America's next secretary of state, John Kerry:

"First, my congratulations and condolences to John Kerry for being nominated to be our next secretary of state. There is no one better for the job today and no worse job to have today."

Classic toadying directed at a man who not long ago called Syrian mass murderer Bashar al-Assad "my dear friend."

"If there were an anti-Nobel Peace Prize, Putin would win hands down."

Sorry, Tom, but that anti-Nobel Peace Prize belongs to Kerry's "dear friend" Assad. On the other hand, Obama received a Nobel Peace Prize for prolonging America's inane ground involvement in Afghanistan, so perhaps Nobel prizes can be awarded without rhyme or reason.

"If he is looking for a break, Kerry could always call on our longtime ally Egypt, whose president, Mohamed Morsi, we find out, in 2010 described Jews as 'descendants of apes and pigs.' Who knew?"

Tom, who sang paeans from Tahrir Square to the virtues of the "Arab Spring" is beginning to awaken to reality. "Who knew? Actually, anyone who could speak Arabic and was willing to take the trouble to listen to the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood over the years.

"Rather than negotiating with Iran’s leaders in secret — which, so far, has produced nothing and allows the Iranian leaders to control the narrative and tell their people that they’re suffering sanctions because of U.S. intransigence — why not negotiate with the Iranian people?"

Tom prefers not to remember that Obama turned a deaf ear to the Iranians who revolted against Ahmadinejad during the 2009 Green Revolution. "Where is Obama?" they cried, before being shot down and led off to prison, and it would be almost impossible to create a credible dialogue with ordinary Iranians given the president's past conduct.

"[T]he U.S. would recognize the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank as the independent State of Palestine on the provisional basis of the June 4, 1967, lines, support its full U.N. membership and send an ambassador to Ramallah, on the condition that Palestinians accept the principle of 'two states for two peoples' — an Arab state and a Jewish state."

Palestinians are prepared to accept a "Jewish" state, after claiming for so long that Jews have no legitimate ties to Israel (see: http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/278417/palestinians-want-peace-just-not-jewish-state-dennis-prager#? Even I am overwhelmed by Friedman's naivete.

"Israel’s election on Tuesday showed that the peace camp in Israel is still alive and significant."

The big surprise in Israel's parliamentary election was the success of the centrist Yesh Atid Party, which is seeking domestic reforms at the expense of the religious parties and long ago declared its willingness to participate in a Likud-led coalition. Yesh Atid, for whom many of my Israeli friends, who are anything but doves, voted, does not belong to a "peace camp."

"But we need to start behaving like a superpower and forcing a moment of truth. Our hands are full now, and we can’t waste four more years with allies (or enemies) who may be fooling us."

Or, in other words, Obama has stated that he knows better than Israelis what is in Israel's best interests, and this amounts to yet another call to ram the terms of an peace treaty down the throat of Israel. Does this remind you of what Chamberlain did to Czechoslovakia? It should.

Yup, "everything that guy just said is bullshit."