The great Australian comic, Paul Hogan, once translated "Oy vey" to Australians as "Stone the crows."
Martin Indyk, the former Clinton administration Mideast envoy, is originally an Australian, as anyone who has heard him speak more than half a sentence can tell.
I lived in Sydney for three years. Great, funny people, great, beautiful country, but not a lot of love for the touchy-feely explorations they perceive Americans as indulging over-often.
So I couldn’t help but smile when I read the Jerusalem Post’s Herb Keinon’s account of a panel at Shimon Peres’ Presidential Conference today.
Elliott Abrams, formerly of George W. Bush’s National Security Council, insisted Obama has "no great love in his heart for Israel." Maybe he got his ex-boss to look into Obama’s eyes — these insights are way above my pay grade.
Indyk was having none of it:
This dimension of the Israeli psyche – of wanting to feel, and not only hear, about the love – was dismissed as "neurosis" by Indyk, who today is vice president of the Brookings Institute.
Saying that Obama is not a "warm and cuddly guy," and calling him "no drama Obama," Indyk said that the only intimate relationship Obama has with any foreign leader was with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
Calling [former IDF spokeswoman Ruth] Yaron’s description of Israel’s psyche the picture of a "neurotic nation," Indyk said "it’s time to grow up. We should get over the question of whether he loves me or he loves me not, and focus on question of finding a solution to conflict with the Palestinians. When Israel decides by itself to solve that problem, it will have the overwhelmingly cuddly support of the US President."
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