Bizarre, International, Military, Politics, Society

Yes, Indeed Mr. Prime Minister, This is a Bomb

One of the things that we teach law students is how to address a jury in understandable terms without talking down to them. It is sometimes a delicate balance in dealing with complex questions or fact patterns. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu showed how not to strike that balance when he took the entire United Nation’s General Assembly through a “this is a bomb, this is a fuse” demonstration that instantly became a mockery around the world. That was a real missed opportunity when following Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who never fails to offer a clownish, absurd performance. It is one of those debates that you win by showing up and just stating your case . . . until you pull out cutout from the Rocky & Bullwinkle Show.

What is odd is that Netanyahu has a strong case about the danger of Iran having a bomb but proceeded in dumbing down the presentation to the point of insulting everyone above the level of a pre-schooler. Did anyone actually watch this presentation in advance? Presumably so given the fact that it was prepared for the event. That leads me to think that people around Netanyahu are either so clueless or enabling that no one bothered to tell Netanyahu that it looked ridiculous. In fairness, one of the aides may have said “Prime Minister, this is a bomb” and Netanyahu might have thought he was suggesting an actual line for the presentation.

The funny thing is that he had me at hello in describing the danger of a sponsor of terrorism with the bomb (though I am against a war as the way of addressing proliferation concerns with Iran). Then he pulled out the cartoonish diagram of a bomb and I actually thought he was making some type of joke. He then continued to explain the bomb with Romper Room delivery to the General Assembly. The only thing that he didn’t do was say “this is Billy the Bomb.”

In my view, it is a great example of losing an audience with you delivery. What do you think?

In the end, I do not know why he didn’t show the actual footage of Ahmadinejad heading out to get the bomb:

66 thoughts on “Yes, Indeed Mr. Prime Minister, This is a Bomb”

  1. I believe it was 1993 when this same Bibi assured us Iran was only 2 or 3 years away from having a nuclear bomb. Does “The Boy Who Cried ‘WOLF'” translate into Hebrew?

    He probably was justified to speaking as if to 6 year olds though. The talk was not aimed at the UN member states, most of whom are well aware of the Likkud’s plan for the destruction of Israel though stupidity. This talk was aimed at the US and its TV news viewers, most of whom seem to need to be spoken to as 6 year olds, particularly on the activities going on in the Middle East. It worked for the previous President here.

  2. I see the Down’s segment has arrived. They love music. And often understand (but not always) the consequences of what they sing.

  4. idealist707 1, September 29, 2012 at 6:02 am

    Dredd,

    Pretty much every year CIA et al use this question (does Iran have or not…?) as an excuse to grab a little attention. And their answer alway recently been: “In five years”.

    I won’t go OT on how this seems to make State Dept a twin to the cancerous (n growth AND effect) bureauratic mess at CIA.

    Repeated stupid messages are still stupid, but do fool new people. It is perhaps the youth segment that they are trying to cover.
    ==============================================
    Yeah.

    Mike S writes about “dicks” in his piece today, which fits this Iran propaganda quite well too.

  5. Dredd,

    Pretty much every year CIA et al use this question (does Iran have or not…?) as an excuse to grab a little attention. And their answer alway recently been: “In five years”.

    I won’t go OT on how this seems to make State Dept a twin to the cancerous (n growth AND effect) bureauratic mess at CIA.

    Repeated stupid messages are still stupid, but do fool new people. It is perhaps the youth segment that they are trying to cover.

  6. “… until you pull out cutout from the Rocky & Bullwinkle Show…”

    Specifically, the Wayback Machine.

    It looks like Netman went wayback a lotta years to pull that bomb out of the hat:

    For more than quarter of a century Western officials have claimed repeatedly that Iran is close to joining the nuclear club. Such a result is always declared “unacceptable” and a possible reason for military action, with “all options on the table” to prevent upsetting the Mideast strategic balance dominated by the US and Israel.

    And yet, those predictions have time and again come and gone. This chronicle of past predictions lends historical perspective to today’s rhetoric about Iran.

    (Play Pretend Missile Offense Rejected, quoting Christian Science Monitor). This ruse is boring on steroids.

  7. itchin…..

    Well, New Jersey is equally appropriate. One sinner is as good as another when looking for someone to stone.

  8. Michael Murry,
    Welcome back. I got a bookmark place with your name on it and it asked about you yesterday. Now it will be happy.

  9. Nick, I think bettykath IS serious and I agree with her. Israel has a bomb, so just who is protecting Iran? Sauce for the goose…

  10. While not a proponent of his, I think he made a very good case. I had to leave the presentation before he brought out his audio-visusal aids. But to the point where I had to move my attention, he was making a lot of sense.

  12. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu showed how not to strike that balance when he took the entire United Nation’s General Assembly through a “this is a bomb, this is a fuse” demonstration that instantly became a mockery around the world. That was a real missed opportunity when following Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who never fails to offer a clownish, absurd performance. It is one of those debates that you win by showing up and just stating your case . . . until you pull out cutout from the Rocky & Bullwinkle Show.

    What is odd is that Netanyahu has a strong case about the danger of Iran having a bomb but proceeded in dumbing down the presentation to the point of insulting everyone above the level of a pre-schooler. Did anyone actually watch this presentation in advance? Presumably so given the fact that it was prepared for the event. That leads me to think that people around Netanyahu are either so clueless or enabling that no one bothered to tell Netanyahu that it looked ridiculous. In fairness, one of the aides may have said “Prime Minister, this is a bomb” and Netanyahu might have thought he was suggesting an actual line for the presentation.
    =================================================
    Iran doesn’t have a bomb. Saddam was bluffing, and so is Iran.

  13. Nox Ninox
    1, September 28, 2012 at 11:57 am
    A nuclear bomb with a gunpowder fuse? The impractical physics aside, that had better be a very, very long fuse.
    ======================================================

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Idiot%27s_Loop#Over-the-shoulder

    aka “the idiots loop”
    ==========================================================
    bruce@2:18pm

    are you referring to one of the religious nuts in the US or israel?

  14. I watched the presentation. The red line was a good idea and done well. Americans have no history, no memory if they were functioning in 1979, of how specious these eyeatolla flockers are. When these Iranians get a nuclear bomb and turn one over to their “students” you will all rue the day when you snubbed the chance to stop these pukers. It may not be Israel where the bomb is set off. Most likely some place like Jersey.

  16. I resent the defamation of Rocky and Bullwinkle through any comparison with the Apartheid Zionist Entity and its execrable Prime Moron — a true nut and Yahoo if the world has ever produced one. Instead, I submit that “The Bibi who cried ‘Wolfowitz!'” metaphor best summarizes the current state of worldwide chutzpah fatigue brought about by the American government and its pet pariah parasite themselves.

    Oh for the bygone days of President George Herbert Walker Bush whose Secretary of State, James Baker III once said of the Apartheid Zionist Entity and its rabid American lobby, AIPAC: “F*** ’em. They didn’t vote for us.” My sentiments exactly.

  17. MikeS,

    Just what I implied when I facetiously suggested a one state solution where the ones with the most kids wins. And of course, already they would have a majority. So OK, let Israel have their gated community. But let’s get this fixed without bringing out the nukes.

    And if we are worrying about somebody buying them, then let’s remember that Ukraine left the USSR with lots of loose ones and poor Generals rolling around.

    And Israel is worried about Iran? Ha!

    People who scarify and flagellate themselves yearly to celebrate the death of Mohammed’s nephew are not my cup of tea. But we did screw them for the oil and depossed Mossadegh, which is not Israel’s fault. Just that devil OIL.

  18. “Netanyahu’s plan is to keep the Palestinians (some 12 million strong, 4 million of them in the Occupied Territories) stateless and without citizenship rights forever.”

    Nal’s link to Juan Cole produced that sentence above. I think that pretty much represents what Likud and Bibi have been trying to do for years. It also is a policy that to me is ridiculous and dangerous to Israel, but the mixture of Likudnik arrogance and stupidity, cross-pollinated by the fanaticism of the Ultra-Orthodox should be a given by now. Just as Bibi’s UN presentation was farcical, so is his policies. The simple fact is that this policy can only work against Israel and the real need is to have the Palestinians in their own state. I’ll be glad to debate Israel’s right to exist, or a “one state” solution with anyone, but at the same time I know that Israel cannot continue to exist with 12 million Palestinians under its aegis.

  20. Another piece for history…. Too bad not all of the stupid folks don’t just live in one country anymore…… They too are global….

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