How To Be An Arafat Apologist 
By Jamie Glazov 

Posted 4/17/2002 

With all the empirical evidence that has now confirmed, beyond any reasonable doubt, Yasir Arafat’s terrorist connections and duplicitous behavior vis-a-vis Israel, it has become impossible for Arafat’s apologists to make any legitimate excuses for their hero. 

I know a number of academics and writers who have become extremely depressed because of this situation. Having based their entire lives and professional careers on blaming Israel for any and every sparrow that fell from the sky, they have now lost the will to live. 

I feel sorry for these pathetic people, and have therefore decided to help anyone who wants to continue championing Arafat but simply doesn’t know how.

Since I have dedicated most of my adult life to observing and dissecting the psychotic mindset that it takes to blame Israel for the conflict in Palestine, I know exactly what it takes to be an Arafat supporter. Even in these difficult times, I can teach an individual how to effectively defend Arafat and the Palestinian Authority " even if the entire charade is filled with specious nonsense and lies.

Tip #1 Imagine that the Palestinians are fighting for a homeland that was taken away from them by the evil Jews. That’s right. The foundation to becoming and remaining a faithful pro-Arafat enthusiast is to intoxicate yourself with the belief that the Palestinians actually once owned a homeland that was, in turn, stolen by the greedy and parasitic Jews.

While trying to convince yourself of this fantasy, ignore the historical fact that the Palestine Mandate was never a nation, let alone even a political entity of any kind. It was a “mandate” that was created by the British from the remnants of the Turkish Empire after World War I.

Nor should you ever wonder how your moral indignation on this issue fits with your complete indifference to the fact that Jordan occupies 80% of the land that made up the original Palestine Mandate. Of course, if you really cared about the Palestinians, you would obviously be focusing your energy on protesting the crime being perpetrated by the Jordanians against the Palestinians. 

But the key here is that, deep down, you don’t really care about the Palestinians. You must never admit this, but the Palestinians are only there for you to cynically exploit as pawns in your contributory effort to finish off what Hitler started. 

That’s right. You know what I’m talking about. And even the Palestinians are in on this with you. I mean, think about it: if the Palestinians themselves really cared about getting a homeland, don’t you think they would be screaming about " and fighting for " the land that Jordan occupies? Don’t you think it is somewhat curious that Jordan has never, even for a second, been the target of a Palestine liberation movement? Don’t you think it is a little bit curious that, in 1948, the Palestinian Arabs rejected an international resolution that would have established a Palestinian state, and instead focused all of their energies on destroying the new Jewish state?

You’re starting to get the picture now, right? So be a smart and clever Arafat apologist. The last thing you should be doing is worrying about the Palestinians; at the same time, however, in terms of what you actually say in public, you must always discuss the Middle East "problem" on the assumption that you are agonizing over the Palestinians’ plight and how their entire “homeland” somehow lies in tiny little Israel.

Tip #2 Never question the cause of Palestinian terror.

Every time a Palestinian blows himself up along with innocent Jewish civilians, you should shake your head in despair and say things like, “That poor Palestinian. But he simply had no choice. The Israelis have pushed his people beyond their means."

You should always say things like this with a tone that implies that the "Israeli occupation" is the most oppressive reality in the world. Say things like, "The Israelis are doing to the Palestinians what the Nazis did to them."

When you mouth these slogans, make sure to have a serious and sincere look on your face, otherwise the asininity of what you are saying might become more easily discernible. Maintaining a sober facial expression can be made easier if you convince yourself that the wars of 1973 and 1967 are irrelevant to the subject at hand.

Before Israel was attacked in 1973, it occupied less of the land that is now in dispute, and before 1967, it occupied none of it. In other words, the Arab terror that was unleashed against Israel in 1967 had nothing to do with the Israeli "occupation" of the West Bank and Gaza Strip because the "occupation" did not exist.

From 1949-1967, Jordan had occupied the West Bank while Egypt controlled the Gaza Strip. But instead of the Arabs using terror against Egypt and Jordan to get them off of the Palestinians’ "land," an Arab war of terror against Israel was launched in 1967. Israel won that war and grabbed both the West Bank and Gaza Strip as a security measure.

So why is it, do you think, that Jordan’s annexation of the West Bank and Egypt’s annexation of the Gaza Strip from 1949-67 didn’t trigger any emotions in the Palestinians who lived in those territories? Why is it that not once, in all of those 18 years, was there even a sentence of indignation uttered by the Palestinians about the injustice done to the inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza Strip? Why did other Arab states say nothing about it?

You know why. And this means that the terror against Israel has always been, and still is, caused by something other than Israelis being on any kind of "territory." I’ll give you six hints about what the real cause is connected to:

Hint #1: Hitler formulated the Final Solution because of it.

Hint #2: It has something to do with why Israel cannot be found on a map in Palestinian geography classes.

Hint #3: It’s why the Palestinian Authority has published the Arabic translation of Mein Kampf, and why that tract has reached number six on its best-seller list.

Hint #4: It’s connected to why, in 1960, when the Israelis captured Adolph Eichmann, the government-run Saudi Arabian newspaper ran a story headlined: "Arrest Of Eichmann, Who Had The Honor Of Killing Six Million Jews."

Hint #5: It has something to do with the great honor and respect that is bestowed in the Middle East upon anyone who succeeds in killing Jews.

Hint #6: The whole matter is related to why Hashemi Rafsanjani, the eminent representative of "Iranian moderation," has boasted that once the Muslim world gets a hold of nuclear weapons, which he assures will be very soon, the Jewish "question" will be solved forever.

Tip #3 Ignore the words of Palestinians. When you make your arguments for the Palestinian right to a homeland, always make sure to emphasize that the Palestinians acknowledge the right of Israel to exist. To make sure this works effectively, never mention, or ever even think about, what the Palestinians actually say themselves.

For instance, never talk about the Palestinian Covenant of 1968, because it embodies the philosophical principles of the Palestinians themselves and says things that would shatter the foundation to all your arguments. Article 19 affirms that, "The partition of Palestine in 1947 and the establishment of Israel is fundamentally null and void, whatever time has elapsed, because it is contrary to the wish of the people of Palestine and its natural right to its homeland." Article 15 states that, "The liberation of Palestine, from the Arab viewpoint, is a national duty to repulse the Zionist, imperialist invasion from the great Arab homeland and to purge the Zionist presence fromPalestine."

You should most definitely stay away from the subject of the Palestinian Covenant, because this could cause you problems. If someone else brings it up, change topics immediately.

Tip #4 Imagine that Palestinians were and are better off without Israel and the Israeli "occupation." You should be constantly angry about the suffering of Palestinians and be convinced that it is the fault of Israel. Palestinian suffering should always be equated with Israeli responsibility. These two notions must be inseparable in your mind.

So try not to reflect too much on why the Palestinians of the West Bank are barred from becoming citizens in the Arab world. When the Gaza Strip was under Egyptian administration, for instance, the Palestinians there were denied Egyptian citizenship and thereby remained stateless. This is exactly why the Palestinians are known as "refugees."

The Arabs love their Palestinian brothers. It’s just that, well, they love them from a distance.

It is also a very good idea for you to ignore the fact that Israel has given birth to an Arab citizenry inside Israel of more than one million people. This way you won’t have to wonder how it is that as Israeli citizens, Arabs have more rights, privileges and opportunities than the citizens of any Arab state in the Middle East.

So what you have to do is visualize images of Israel as the most evil nation on the face of the earth and how Arabs and Palestinians have endured unspeakable suffering because of it.

Tip #5 Imagine that Israel controls the "occupied" territories for some bizarre, vague and sinister reason. That’s right: imagine that Israel controls the "occupied" territories because Jews have nothing better to do than to inflict pain. They think it’s in their interest to trigger terrorism against themselves, as well as to ignite the hatred of a large portion of the world’s population. 

With great moral indignation you should say things like, "The Israelis need to get out of the occupied territories." Say this as if it is a really easy, simple and safe thing for the Israelis to do. Never consider that the Israeli "occupation" of the territories in question might actually not be the greatest crime in world history.

Tip #6 Insist that Arafat isn’t a terrorist. You should always say things like: "One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom-fighter." 

You must always ignore that Arafat has provided sanctuary and support to Palestinian suicide bombers and terrorists of all stripes. And always make sure to announce things like, "Arafat has imprisoned militants." When you say this, don’t worry that the Palestinian "jails" that Arafat places “militants” in are notorious for their bars in the front and revolving doors at the back.

And by all means deny to others, as well as to yourself, that connections between the Palestinian Authority and international Islamic terror organizations, including al-Qaeda, have now been established beyond any reasonable doubt. If you accept this reality, then your whole belief system will come crashing down.

Tip #7 Imagine that Arafat has the interests of his own people in mind. This is the key to being an effective apologist for Arafat. You must always tell people that your hero truly cares about his own people - even though the history of his every move negates the possibility of this being the case.

A person who truly wanted the best for the Palestinian people would have embraced an offer that accepted 95% of the Palestinians’ negotiating demands and would have given the Palestinians their own sovereign state in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, more than 90 percent of the West Bank, and a capital in Jerusalem.

You know that the "Palestinian problem" is far more useful to Arafat than its solution will ever be. Arafat knows that peace with Jews is his own political suicide at best - and his own death warrant at worst.

What you have to do is look people in the eyes as honestly as you can and say things like, "Arafat is really trying to help his people." Say this as if you yourself have been talking to Arafat and that he tells you things that he wouldn’t confide in most people.

Tip #8 Say that Arab terrorism has nothing to do with jealousy. It is absolutely crucial that you consistently tell anyone you talk to that Israel is vehemently hated by the Arabs because of something that Israel has done to the Arabs.

Never suspect that Middle Eastern Arabs spend such an inordinate amount of their daily life hating a nation that takes up 1% of land in the Middle East because they might have a little problem with envy and jealousy.

It might not be the easiest thing for Arabs to reconcile themselves with the reality that their culture has yet to produce one prosperous, functional and democratic society. Yet they see that the Jews have accomplished exactly that in a tiny piece of land that was a desert 50 years ago. 

This is a very painful truth for Middle Eastern Arabs to accept. So as an Arafat apologist, your job is to completely ignore this phenomenon. You must fantasize that when Arabs jump up and down with ferocious rage for hours on end every day screaming “Death to Israel,” that the solution to their rage is definitely not to get a job, let alone a life of any kind.

Tip #9 You should constantly say that it is in Israel’s interest to pursue "peace," even though all of the evidence suggests the exact opposite. More Israelis have died from terrorism since the signing of Oslo in 1993 than in the four decades before it. There have been more than 80 suicide bombings against Israel since the "peace process" began. 

You should ignore facts such as these and make it a daily habit to say things like, "The Israelis should really try to make peace with Arafat. It’s in their interest."

Tip #10 In order for you to practice the previous nine tips successfully, you need to make sure that you rid yourself of any personal dignity or integrity that might ever have been a part of your character and personality. You have to be absolutely shameless and live by absolutely no ethical or moral standard of any kind. Otherwise you will not be able to lie to others, and to yourself, the way I instruct you to. Arafat supporters have done it effectively before you. But now you can do it the best. Be the best liar you can be. That way, you might yet become the best Arafat apologist on earth. You can do it! 

Jamie Glazov holds a Ph.D. in History with a specialty in Soviet Studies. He is the author of “15 Tips on How to be a Good Leftist” and “Canadian Policy Toward Khruschev’s Soviet Union” (McGill-Queens University Press, 2002). Born in the U.S.S.R., he resides in Vancouver, Canada. He writes the Dr. Progressive advice column for angst-ridden leftists at EnterStageRight.com.