Sometimes I think Alan Dershowitz is so politically schizophrenic he deserves a diagnosis title of his own in the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM – Dershowitzophrenia.
Today the Harvard Law professor has an excellent article in NRO (one wonders if he offered it first to the NYT, WaPo, etc.) taking President Obama to task for his potential nomination of Chuck Hagel for SecDef. Given Hagel’s record on Iran (not even branding the Republican Guard as terrorists, etc.), Dershowitz correctly states the former senator’s appointment would send a message to the mullahs that the administration is not serious in their threat of using force to prevent the Iranians from developing nuclear weapons.
But, hello…. What kind of person would Obama nominate for SecDef and what does the president himself really think about Iran? The professor surely recalls Obama’s extraordinary indifference when the demonstrators in the streets of Tehran cried out for the president’s support.
It’s perfectly natural and predictable Obama would want a Hagel — or someone like him — at Defense. Where was Dershowitz? Ignoring what everyone else knew?
And it’s not just Defense. Who would Obama nominate for the even more important secretary of State? If he can’t get the prevaricating Susan Rice, a mindlessly progressive bloviating Assad apologist like John Kerry will be just the ticket.
No one but a certain Harvard professor and consistent public supporter of Barack Obama would be surprised.
BTW, the American Psychiatric Association has announced its Fifth Edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders will appear next May. Dershowitizophrenia anyone?
More from Powerline’s Scott Johnson.
PJM Flashback:
no thank you, I gave at the office.
Alan Dershowitz: on America’s and Israel’s side… except when it matters. Seriously, his post-election conversion is only slightly less predictable than his pre-election conversion was.
And the oh so smart set can always be relied upon to prevaricate, but also to remain fixated to their ideology when it matters most NOT to!
Leftist profs, regardless of their religion are more wedded to their dogma than most. And this goes doubly for Jewish profs, G-d save us all from their delusions. And the most astute psychiatrist, re the Oslo Syndrome:Delusions of a People Under Siege, can’t cure many of them, despite his Harvard & Princeton pedigrees,even knowing full well what drives the left.
Leftist dogma is the same world over, and leftist profs are the bane of our western existence – http://adinakutnicki.com/2012/08/21/the-paradox-pitfalls-of-liberal-democracies-in-a-time-of-immoral-relativism-the-havoc-wrought-by-leftist-academia-commentary-by-adina-kutnicki/
So, the fact that Dershowitz is a Harvard prof makes him that much more deluded.
I understand that this is the internet. And that blogging is to some extent an art of immediacy. But still, “has announced it’s Fifth Edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual,” is an abomination the eyes of god. The apostrophe is not appropriate here. Stop. Just stop. You have beclowned yourself. You are a professional writer. I believe we should expect more of you.
Here, borrow my mirror.
Richard K. Jones if you could take Rick K’s mirror and take a close look at this sentence:
“is an abomination the eyes of god”
Then perhaps you could humbly decide to not be so picky in the future. Or if OCD just makes you crazy when you see that typo, perhaps you could proof your criticisms more diligently. Just saying.
I wrote about DSM-IV here: http://clarespark.com/2012/12/09/neurotic-vs-objective-anxiety-dsm-iv-and-beyond/. Retitled Holiday Blues. Much as I deplore its structural functionalist method of analyzing neurotics and psychotics, it is better than mystical explanations for human suffering, such as “the devil made me do it.”
OF COURSE, ROGER KNOWS WHAT ‘IT’S’ IS (EVEN IF BILL CLINTON DOESN’T).
Dickk – Roger’s mistake (as well as your own) is ‘First-at-any-Cost’ syndrome.
This is when someone is so eager to post that, even though he makes changes to what he’s written in order to make it read better, he then doesn’t proofread it before posting.
True.
Do we really want to confirm a Sec State nominee whose personal history includes telling an outright lie to Congress?
what you mean ‘we’ white man?
I think her term is ending.
Thank God for Chuck Hagel!
I mean…my God! The post of SecDef is NOT in the Constitution!
Obama could have nominated an Valerie Jarrett! Or her father! All legal!
Sorry, Valerie is already tapped as the next National Security Advisor. Kind of like how Nixon got Kissinger.
Although, the Nazis had ALREADY been defeated when that happened!
Judging by these replies, it is clear that I missed out on the complimentary rum/eggnog offered at the door.
“Sorry, Valerie is already tapped as the next National Security Advisor”
Really? Who’s been tapping Valerie?
Will Jake Tapper?
We should feel deep deep pity for Alan Dershowitz because his soul must live for eternity with Claus Von Bulow, and what happen on Dec 21 1980 to wife Sunny then TRuth was made illegal in the form of the insulin needle with USA on the way to murder 30 million babies in Mother’s womb these words remain:”"Relativity became confused with relativism,” Paul Johnson writes. “It formed a knife… to help cut society adrift from its traditional moorings in the faith and morals of Judeo-Christian culture.”
Huh?
Alan Dershowitz is perfect illustration of multiple personalities. In one hand he praises Obama for his Marxist world view which includes anti Israel/Jews demagoguery and votes for him. On the other hand he gets mad when Obama acts on what he truly believe. Go figure. Can a human being can brilliant and dumb at the same time? Yes it possible Dershowitz is the living prove.
The words that can be alternately used to describe Alan Dershowitz are opportunist and publicity hound.
Why is there so little correlation between commenter and commentee? A bit early for the eggnog and rum isn’t it?
DERSHOWITZ HAS DUELING AGENDAS.
On one hand he wants to get nominated to the Supreme Court. OTOH he wants to get nominated to the Supreme Court.
Debate between Desrshowitz and Rabbi Kahane.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mfnsRA2EEw
Menachem – I was in NYC when Rabbi Kahane was murdered. At the time I was too busy working to be political, so I just briefly took note of it. Now I see it was a targeted assassination that ‘worked’, as no one has really been able to take his place.
It reminds me of another assassination on US soil — that of Col. Yosef Alon in Chevy Chase, MD (near Washington) in 1973. I heard an interview w/Fred Burton of Stratfor on the John Batchelor Show when his 2011 book, “Chasing Shadows”, came out. Neither he nor John said who the murderers were, but Burton seems to have unmasked them through international channels. The name ‘Black September’ came up.
The same group that ultimately brought down The World Trade Center was responsible for the murder of Rabbi Kahane.
There are two relevant points-
The first is that the enemy knew Kahane was a more important target than the WTC for by attacking Kahane first they risked exposure which could neutralize the WTC attack.
The second, that if the murder of Rabbi Kahane had been prosecuted properly their is a chance we might have saved the three thousand plus who died when the WTC was attacked.
Neither lesson has been learned.
As a tenured professor at the University of Atlantis, I have written a history quiz on the the life of President Obama. I’ll be happy to forward it to Professor Dershowitz. It has multiple choice and true and false question such as:
1. How many articles did law student Obama publish in the Harvard Law Review when he was the editor of that publication? and
2. How was scholar Obama’s tuition at Columbia and Harvard Universities?
Etc….
If Professor Dershowitz can pass the quiz, I’ll bestow upon him a PhD in History.
He will have earned it or he will have guessed phenomenally well.
As I hvae said many times before on this and other blogs: Derschowitz is all about progressivism firt; Israel second. He is DELIGHTED BO got re-elected and now thinks he (dersch) can use his influence to get BO to deend Israel. Memo to Dersch: you are not useful anymore.
If Iran (or other dictatorship) attacks the US with a nuke, it will likely be against a progressive coastal city (most are…look at a red vs blue map!). If that happens, there will immediately be many thousands fewer progressives and then general support for progressive politics will evaporate.
Interesting point and a good one. And I live in New York City/
To Alan Dershowitz:
When you choose to jump in bed with the devil, he will extract his due.
Now you are pissed off about Hagel.
Well , tough sh^t; you supported Obama so shut the hell up and live with the consequences. All of us have to a well.
Simon is right about Dershowitz’s schizophrenia with respect to Obama but “Romney Goes to Israel and Dershowitz Flacks for Obama?” Romney goes to Israel and then Romney and his surrogate, Senator Jim Talent, fought conservative Christian delegates on our Republican national platform writing committee last August for a Muslim-enemy state in Israel. Romney sided with Israel’s enemies in the December 10, 2011 Iowa debate with Gingrich (remember Romney rebuked Gingrich for saying the Palestinians are terrorists and an invented people?) and then on our national platform. Come on Roger. Do your homework. Please.
nobody wants to remember that newt dared to voice this unmentionable truth
or that romney was quick to pounce on him and to condemn him for saying it
Professor Dershowitz has always been intellectually honest and appears now to be taking the journey that David Horowitz once took. Professor Deshowitz is coming over to the light. Encourage it. The article about Hagel and the SecDef position was very good. Professor Dershowitz has penned some good articles published by David Horowitz in frontpage magazine.com.