Regarding Iran, as with talks with the Palestinians, the root of the dispute between the Israeli government and the Left, both in Israel and around the world, is the question of whether to believe the other side or not. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not believe the other side, and neither does most of the Israeli public. We are fed up with this laboratory experiment called the peace process. But Jeffrey Goldberg does believe the other side. So for Goldberg, an effort by Netanyahu to influence Congress against President Barack Obama's position represents a terrible threat. Netanyahu is not seeking to alienate the Democratic Party. Rather, he is committed to Israel's ongoing existence, even if this means friction and disagreements with the Obama administration. Here is Goldberg's logic: Because Israel is dependent on the U.S., Netanyahu must pay Obama to be able to influence the agreement with the Iranians. How to pay Obama? By "advancing the Israeli-Palestinian peace process." Ah, Israel must abandon its future on one front so as to save itself on another. Under the current circumstances, a Palestinian state is no less dangerous than an Iranian nuclear bomb. Goldberg wrote that new sanctions legislation against Iran is unnecessary, because the Iranians already understand that the failure of the negotiations would lead to further sanctions. But Goldberg's hypothesis is unfounded. The Iranians are looking to buy time, and once they have a nuclear bomb, what good will sanctions be? The truth is that the West does not really know how to negotiate with the Iranians, just like the Left in Israel and around the world does not know how to fight terrorist groups and evil states. Neville Chamberlain was not a unique phenomenon. He has successors today. The worst thing Goldberg wrote was the blood libel that Netanyahu has told people he has "written off" Obama. And after believing this false quote, Goldberg then got all preachy to Netanyahu about it, as if only Goldberg and his self-important liberal friends understand the importance and complexity of Israel-U.S. relations. Yes, Netanyahu must learn from Goldberg. Unbelievable. What does Goldberg know about running a country like Israel? There is one thing Goldberg knows how to do well -- sow hatred and venom between Israel and the Obama administration, doing his best to match the historic tradition of court Jews.
