Comments on: Tom Friedman: Consultant to IDF General Staff

By: Shirin

Shirin — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 07:53:54 +0000

Well, Helena’s “persuasion” in this case consisted of suspending his commenting privileges for two weeks, followed up by further suggestions once the suspension was up that he get his own blog. Even Helena has her limits it seems.

By: Richard Silverstein

Richard Silverstein — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 06:44:23 +0000

Ah yes, now that you mention it I do recall seeing those initials in the comment threads of Helena’s blog. Should I be happy he’s not had me in his sights till now?

I always tell people who chafe here in my comment threads or claim that I’m a bully & censor if I ask them to stop repeating the same pt 10 times in the same thread, that if they don’t like it they should start their own blog. No one’s ever taken me up on it. I guess Helena is more persuasive.

By: Shirin

Shirin — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 04:17:56 +0000

He’s been a semi-regular at Helena’s for a couple of years. Over time his comments have become less and less substantive and more and more off topic, irrelevant and nasty-personal. We have Helena to thank for the fact that he finally started his own blog. He also shows up now and then at Philip Weiss’s to toss out a few personal smears at someone or other.

By: William Smart

William Smart — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:35:09 +0000

Seen in a Forum (so we shouldn’t necessarily trust it!):

When Tom Friedman visited Israel as a youngster in the 1960s, the kids would ask him, “When you taking up Aliyah?” When he returned to become ME correspondent for the NYT, as he relates in ‘From Beirut to Jerusalem’, the kids only wanted his advice and assistance getting a Green Card and a job in the States.

Does anyone have his book, is that really what he said back then?

By: Richard Silverstein

Richard Silverstein — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 07:30:24 +0000

Guess I haven’t been keeping up on my Jewish wingnut profiles. I didn’t know he was well known for this sort of thing.

By: Shirin

Shirin — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 06:21:31 +0000

“nice try at using a totally irrelevant smear to attempt to discredit my attack on Friedman.”

That is SOP for JES everywhere he goes.

By: Ewropean

Ewropean — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:26:56 +0000

Having read this thread over multiple sites, three questions to Friedman:
Q1: Why cannot you specify which (and thus how many) roadblocks were removed, after talking to IDF/IOF? Who else knows?
Q2: Why did you not share your impressions from these Arab states with us in your column?
Q3: Why talk to Israel _military_, and not with say Israel ministry of foreign affairs? Now you were talking some Arab politics! to a foreign military!.

By: Richard Silverstein

Richard Silverstein — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 19:32:21 +0000

One person’s (that would be you) snark is another’s serious critical discourse. Instead of being vague, bring some actual content to illustrate yr pt.