Students Of Success

In May, 1978, one of the Major American Television Networks put on a broadcast in celebration of the 30th Anniversary of the Founding of the State of Israel. The show was hosted by Barbra Streisand who, at the time, I guess, was deemed to be a well-known enough entertainer and “Jewish” enough to carry off the show, credibly.

The finale of the show consisted of a live (via satellite) interview between Streisand and Prime Minister Golda Meir, everyone’s favorite chicken-soup with matzo balls Jewish grandmotherly type. (She was, in reality, to those who know her, ANYTHING but that person). After the interview, Streisand sang Hatikvah, and brushed a tear from her eye.

Oy!

There was, of course, only one flaw in the idea behind the show, and its ultimate execution: Golda Meir was not the Prime Minister of Israel; in fact, some months before, she and the Labor Party had been unceremoniously booted out of office, for the first time in Israel’s history, having finally paid the price for Israel’s complete military unpreparedness for the Yom Kippur War back in October, 1973. A disillusioned Israeli public had put the ultimate Opposition-party outsider, Menachem Begin, into power.

Unfortunately for Network executives, who had probably been planning the show for many months, nobody outside Israel, except, perhaps for students of Zionist and Israeli history, knew who Begin was (though the world would certainly come to know him quite well). The radio broadcasters had not yet learned how to pronounce his name, and their mangled attempts verged on hilarity. Begin…as in Begin the Beguine. I don’t know whether Streisand knew anything about Begin, but if she did, it’s probably a safe bet she wouldn’t have liked his politics.

Why is any of this relevant now? Because, in an act of misguided utter desperation, the Bush Administration is pushing the newly elected Israeli Government to begin peace negotiations with an individual who is NOT the democratically-elected Prime Minister of the Palestinians. You see, in a Democracy, you have to take the leaders you are given, and play the cards you are dealt. The Israelis (and President Bush, for that matter), were dealt Hamas. We don’t negotiate with Hamas, since it is a terrorist organization, which calls for suicide bombings and the destruction of the State of Israel. But because it seems somehow unacceptable either to allow Israel to make unilateral decisions affecting Palestinians, or not to move the (Middle East Peace Process) ball forward at all, the clueless foreign policy mavens have decided on a middle course: let’s negotiate with Mahmoud Abbas. After all, goes the rationale, he’s “moderate.” While Abbas may (certainly by contrast to Hamas) be considered a “moderate,” he does suffer from one considerable deficiency: a complete and utter lack of authority to speak for the Palestinians. That prerogative, alas, is given to the sponsors of suicide bombs and Jihad.

The policy is doomed to failure, for a very simple reason. Any agreement reached with Abbas is subject to total deniability and undermining by the real powers in the Palestinian territories: Hamas. Today’s New York Times reported a statement by the State Department Spokesman, Sean McCormack, as follows:

“While not suggesting Israel could work out a peace agreement at this point with Abbas, McCormack, in promoting “back channel” negotiations with Abbas said, ‘He is a political leader within the Palestinian political context.’” [NY Times, May 23, 2006]

What, on earth does that mean? Even by the standards of State Department Foggy Bottom doublespeak, that’s a real doozie!

It all seems like utter nonsense, doesn’t it? But just a minute. There may, in fact, be method in the apparent madness.

According to the same report, Ehud Olmert’s primary purpose in visiting President Bush is to test the waters on the President’s willingness to allow Israel to continue to pursue Ariel Sharon’s previous policy of unilateral disengagement. In other words, will Olmert have Bush’s tacit agreement to allow Israel to create borders and retreat behind them, without the consent of a political entity that will not negotiate? Sharon’s experience was, as we now know, that the Bush Administration was (pretty overtly) on board with that policy. But that was Gaza. Now, we are talking about the West Bank–Judea, Samaria and yes, Jerusalem–an infinitely more complicated and emotional issue for both sides to this endless dispute.

In the meantime, as Olmert is just beginning his tenure, Bush, by virtue of his increasing unpopularity occasioned by the War in Iraq, his indecisiveness on immigration policy and $3-plus per gallon gasoline prices, not to mention the mere passage of time leading to inevitable lame duck impotence, is rendered less and less relevant to the process. Not completely, of course. After all, Bill Clinton participated in negotiations at Sharm-el-Sheikh until virtually hours before George W. Bush’s inauguration. But before we know it, the American Presidential sweepstakes will be beginning in earnest (right after this fall’s midterm elections, we can assume), while Israel will have to make life and death decisions. Does having Bush largely on the sidelines help or hurt Israel’s cause in this respect? It’s hard to say, because American “prestige” or status as an “honest broker” in peacemaking can hardly be of any real value when the U.S. is also boycotting Hamas (as well it should). Can Israel, therefore, conduct some sort of unilateral disengagement “under the radar screen?” Doubtful. Nothing Israel does is EVER allowed to remain under the radar screen.

But European dithering and Arab impotent rage notwithstanding, the only opinion valued by the Israelis comes from inside the Beltway. And the real reason Olmert needs Bush’s support is to give him cover in the treacherous waters of Israeli politics, where the U.S. President’s imprimatur still matters. Let’s see whether he gets it. And if the price for it is that Olmert has to negotiate with a powerless Palestinian figurehead, so that bilateral discussion can fail and Israel and the U.S. can fall back on the tried and true “Well, we tried, but there was nobody to talk to,” I, for one, am satisfied to have Olmert meet with Abbas, sing a chorus of Hatikvah and brush away a tear.

Warren R Graham
Copyright 2006

Warren R. Graham is a New York attorney with the Firm of Cohen Tauber Spievack & Wagner LLP. He is a frequent writer on a variety of topics, including legal matters, political and religious affairs. His opinions are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of his firm or its members. Additional information on him may be found at either http://www.ctswlaw.com/templates/page3_attorney.asp?docid=667 or http://warrenrgrahamlegal.blogspot.com.

When most “dating gurus” and sex therapists spout their dating
tips, they often complicate the whole process with unusable
theory and psychobabble.

I’m going to bypass that, make it brain-dead simple for you, and
most importantly, reveal a few dating tips you can apply in the
real world. In these dating tips, I’m going to share with you
the little-known concept of the “three types of women.”

There’s a wonderful book you should read called “Winning Through
Intimidation” by Robert Ringer. You can get it on Amazon for a
few bucks (get the original version published in the 1970’s, not
the new “touchy feely” one.) Many people are turned off by the
title, thinking it’s about “scaring” people into giving you what
you want. That’s not what it’s about, though. It’s actually
about protecting yourself from intimidation. It’s also a fun
read, full of hilarious stories and even a few cartoons (of
turtles wearing sunglasses). But it’s a book each and everyone
looking for dating tips needs to read, because the part I’m
about to share with you absolutely applies to interacting
successfully and effortlessly with sexy women.

In the book, Ringer talks about the three types of people in the
business world- and in my experience he’s 100% correct. Here
they are. Type #1- this is the guy who is out to get all your
“chips” and lets you know about it. This guy is
“straightforward” about his intentions, what some would call
honest. Type #2 this is the guy who assures you he is not out to
get your “chips”, and in fact, tells you he wants you to get
everything that is coming to you. Then he attempts to grab all
your “chips” anyways. Type #2’s are the most treacherous type.
Type#3: this is the guy who assures you he is not out to get
your chips, and sincerely means it, but by his bumbling,
stumbling or just pure incompetence he winds up trying to take
them anyways (even though he doesn’t mean to). How do the “three
types” translate into a usable dating tip?

And, how does all of this relate to success with attracting sexy
women? Well, it’s been my experience that women fall into,
roughly, these three types as well. Type #1: she’s
straightforward with you about her intentions… whether she’s
into “fun friends,” or looking for a husband, she is forthright
with you up front. She knows herself and what makes her happy.
Type #2: this is the woman who appears to be straightforward
with you about what she wants… but for whatever reason, she’s
out to get your money, deliberately break your heart, or she’s
just pissed at all men -what a female friend of mine called a
“cruel woman.” Like the above type #2, the operative word here
is “treacherous.” Type #3: this is the woman who truly believes
herself when she tells you what she’s looking for, but for
whatever reason, bad things seem to happen around her… she “self
sabotages” whenever things are going good, and winds up wreaking
great emotional havoc on the men in her lives, even though she
doesn’t mean to. The result is still the same as dealing with a
Type #2, though, and that’s why it’s vitally important you pay
close attention to the above dating tips.

Obviously you want to spend your time with the Type #1’s (in
business and with women) and avoid the Type #2’s. If you pay
attention and listen for her, what I call, map/model of the
world, you can usually identify the Type #2’s. You’ll hear
things like “my last boyfriend was cheap, he wouldn’t take me
out or buy me things.” Or, things like, “I drove by his house
and a strange car was in the driveway… he was cheating on me.”
Here is a dating tip that will save you time, money, and
heartache: when you hear things like this, run away FAST.

Type #3’s can be more difficult to identify. It usually takes a
lot longer, and you have to pay careful attention. Listen for
things like, “It was going along so good, and I just don’t know
what happened.” Type #3’s are controlled by their “inner world,”
not in control of it. That’s why I usually recommend starting
any relationship as just “fun friends” so you can begin to get a
clear picture of her map/model of the world and pinpoint her
Type. A lot of what appear to be Type #1’s in the beginning
actually identify themselves as Type #3’s later on down the
line. You can never stop paying attention, or you will get in
trouble. Dating tips like this one can be applied, and used day
in and day out. Start paying attention to this, and watch just
how true this is. It’s the difference between happiness and
misery!