http://www.opendemocracy.net/usa/blog/jared-malsin/2008/05/12/obama-the-view-from-palestine Comments for "Obama: the view from Palestine, Jared Malsin " en http://www.opendemocracy.net/usa/blog/jared-malsin/2008/05/12/obama-the-view-from-palestine <p> I was drinking beer with my friend Baha&#39; the other night when the US presidential election came up. Baha&#39; is an educated, left-wing Palestinian guy who lived in the US for a while. Like a lot of Palestinians, he is sympathetic to Barack Obama, preferring him over Hilary Clinton, but is puzzled about Obama&#39;s views on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. </p> <p> If Obama is supposed to represent &quot;Change&quot;, Baha&#39; asked me, why doesn&#39;t he stand up to the Israel lobby? Why not make a complete break with the old politics? </p> <p> It&#39;s a fair question, and a complex one. It&#39;s also a question that&#39;s been underlined in the last few days with Obama&#39;s repeated <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AaL1Se38gg">statements </a>about the 60th anniversary of the founding of Israel. </p> &nbsp;<a href="http://www.opendemocracy.net/usa/blog/jared-malsin/2008/05/12/obama-the-view-from-palestine" class="read-more" title="Read the rest of this posting.">Read the rest of this post...</a><p><a href="http://www.opendemocracy.net/usa/blog/jared-malsin/2008/05/12/obama-the-view-from-palestine">read more</a></p> http://www.opendemocracy.net/usa/blog/jared-malsin/2008/05/12/obama-the-view-from-palestine#comment elections Israel Jared Malsin Obama openUSA palestine USA USA Mon, 12 May 2008 17:09:37 +0100 Jared Malsin 44579 at http://www.opendemocracy.net