The United Nations couldn't stop a pig in a passage.

David Singer MUST stop deciding (thou shalt not) how much real power the UN has and how they deploy it! Particularly when other players ignore their findings?

Say, like Jewish squatters building ILLEGAL settlements on annexed Palestinian land with the unambiguous approval and ratification of the Israeli parliament?
Alan B.

#Alan B

1. Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) is not illegal - being legally authorised by article 6 of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine and article 80 of the UN Charter.

2. Jewish settlement is not taking place on "annexed Palestinian land " but within Area "C" of Judea and Samaria over which Israel has sole administrative and security control under the Oslo Accords as agreed with the PLO.

Please check your facts before rushing in to comment.

You appear to be another unwitting victim of Arab propaganda.

Given how so many in IPA circles rail against 'political correctness' then this comment could running for Comment of the Year.

It is no surprise the day after 'The Settlements' is published up pops the Hasbara response by Singer. Could have knocked me down with a feather. :)

If only those blasted Palestinians and the UN would just get their undemocratic acts together!

My comment in the other article went: "I saw that one day there would be one nation state upon the land of Palestine. A real functional democracy based upon a true Constitution under Law Equal rights for all citizens and it's name would not be Israel."
http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?article=18512&page=2

That being said, I have a few refs to share about Hasbara activists:

"Hasbara targets political elites, opinion makers and the public simultaneously; The Israeli government encourages all citizens to actively engage in Hasbara."
http://972mag.com/hasbara-why-does-the-world-fail-to-understand-us/27551

Jonathon Blakeley: A guide to Hasbara trolls
"...the vile and destructive impact of Sayanim and Hasbara agents on the social networks."
http://www.gilad.co.uk/writings/jonathon-blakeley-a-guide-to-hasbara-trolls.html

Make ‘hasbara’ a household word
The activity is concerted, organized, and subsidized; and the organized component is partly concealed. Anyone who’s seen the regular shift changes in commenters at this site knows what I’m talking about."
http://mondoweiss.net/2014/06/hasbara-household-word/

http://electronicintifada.net/tags/hasbara

For some editorial balance - Hasbara Fellowships
http://www.israelactivism.com

HAARETZ: "It’s self-deception, of course, and it’s also part of the campaign of propaganda and lies. It just won’t work."
http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/.premium-1.659480

HAARETZ: "The only problem is that for all the money spent by the State of Israel and Jewish philanthropists on the hasbara industry [..] - none of it has ever worked."
http://www.haaretz.com/israel-is-more-focused-on-hasbara-than-it-is-on-policy-1.415977

Daniel Berrigan’s 1973 prophecy: Israel is becoming ‘the tomb of the Jewish soul’

We publish that speech in full below because so many of the points that Berrigan made 43 years ago are as fresh today as then, notably his understanding of: the destruction of Palestinian human rights and property, the importance of refugees, the complicity of leading American Jewish organizations in Israel’s militarism, and, most crushingly, the spiritual effect of Israel’s emergence on the formerly “peaceable” Jewish presence in society.
http://mondoweiss.net/2016/09/berrigans-prophecy-becoming/
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Hi David,

This might be a little 'off topic' but I really enjoyed it and thought OLO readers might to

"On April 1st, this year, Israel called off its infamous, erotic laced, birthright trips. In an interview with Mondoweiss Birthright CEO Gidi Mark explained:

--- Given the rightward, and frankly racist turn in Israel we could no longer conduct a trip that would present the country in the most flattering light. We determined that in order to build support for Israel, young people are best off leaving it to their imagination.
--- Time and time again we found participants were turned off by actually seeing the country.
--- As I watched the U.S. presidential debates, I kept thinking, “why can’t we show people the Israel these politicians seem to see?”
--- We finally figured it out, the best way to build support for Israel is to have as little contact with Israel as possible."

Brilliant don't you think?

Well, Dave, I don't think any of us work for the UN so there's no point telling us what they need to do. You need to tell them.

If I were you, I would write them a nice letter explaining to them how to do their jobs. And I'm sure they'll take it very seriously and not just immediately bin it as the inconsequential ramblings of some jumped-up antipodean nobody.