Parasite Nation.
What is a parasite? A parasite plant is one that wraps itself around the trunk of the tree and then slowly extracts nutrients from it and it grows stronger while the tree grows weaker. There are other more interesting forms of parasites. There is some sort of a beetle that lays eggs inside a wasp. Or something like that. Anyway, the egg becomes a larva and it takes over the brain of the host. It then makes the host do what it wants. A ground crawler suddenly starts climbing a tree even though it’s never done that before. That type of stuff. Pretty fascinating hostile takeovers. I mean what sort of DNA does that parasite have that allows for such an interesting adaptation. And the adaptation is only specific to that particular type of wasp. It involves at the very least an understanding of how the wasp’s brain works. And then a hijack of that brain. That’s an extremely advanced technical skill. How did a tiny parasite develop it through… evolution? Darwin must be rolling over in his grave.
Imagine if America was a parasite nation. It would start a war with Mexico, cause Mexico has terrorists and/or drug smugglers. And in order to bomb the Bejesus out of Mexico we needed bombs and armaments and money. And a shield against missiles. The fight was especially focused at the Texas border. The Texans considered Israel’s President to be their President. They would plead with him to help them in their fight against the Mexican Army of God. The Mexican had friends overseas who were also Catholics. Actually a particular form of Catholicism that involved placing Mary more in the center even over Jesus. A Mary that cried for the world’s sins. This other country, let’s call it Uruguay. It would bomb Missouri because they had better drones and missiles. So the Americans would ask Israel to send over their Navy and Marines and soldiers to bomb the bejesus out of Uruguay.
That in reverse is the essence of this article by Galit Alstein. The Texans are pissed off at Israel and its leadership, even though they keep pitching more wars and they keep pictures of Israel’s fearless leader on their walls.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2026-06-20/israel-s-north-seethes-as-lebanon-front-tests-trump-s-iran-deal?srnd=undefined
From the article:
Mayor David Azoulay’s office in Metula — Israel’s northernmost town — features a portrait of US President Donald Trump and an American flag. It’s not an act of praise, but ironic protest.
“Over the past four months, Israel’s policy has been driven entirely by Trump,” said Azoulay, from his office on the Lebanese border, which has become the central sticking point in US-Iranian negotiations to end the war. “Prime Minister Netanyahu is trapped in a bear hug that is slowly suffocating us Israelis. Case in point: the memorandum of understanding with Iran.”
Azoulay’s attitude is representative of a deepening national disillusionment with Trump and, by extension, with Netanyahu — who’s now struggling to regain public support ahead of fall elections. As it becomes increasingly clear that Tehran will emerge battered, but potentially stronger in the US-Iran peace deal, critics argue the prime minister traded Israel’s strategic independence for a Washington alliance that’s yielded little tangible reward.
In Metula, which was evacuated in October 2023 on fear that Hezbollah would attempt a deadly cross-border infiltration similar to the Hamas assault from Gaza, only two-thirds of the residents have returned. Those who did harbor little faith that real change is feasible.
“There won't be a ceasefire; it will just keep going like this, with intermittent rocket fire trickling down on us,” said Kobi Sarmili, a 63-year-old chicken farmer from Margaliot, a town near the border. “If they pull the troops out, then what? It will be a living hell. Trump is the one calling the shots for us, no one else. He is running our country.”
Miry Menashe, a 41-year-old coffee shop owner who moved to Metula four years ago, reflected the general unease with the MOU, which Trump signed on Wednesday and sets off a 60-day window for peace talks. While the document calls for an immediate ceasefire on all fronts, including Lebanon, residents can still see and hear fighting across the border.
She echoed the Israeli government line that the Israeli war against Hezbollah is separate from the Iran war.
“If the US wants to be part of the solution rather than enforcing a ceasefire on us, it must compel Lebanon to deploy its army to southern Lebanon. Train them, arm them, and give them the resources they need,” said Menashe. “Mr. Trump, if you want to be a friend, be a friend; if you want to be a foe, be a foe. Don’t be both.”
The shift in Trump’s popularity among Israelis is closely entwined with Netanyahu’s domestic standing.
Last October, when Trump orchestrated a Gaza ceasefire and pressured Netanyahu to end a two-year war in exchange for the release of nearly two dozen living Israeli hostages, two-thirds of Israelis believed the US leader prioritized Israel’s security needs. That sentiment has now reversed; 71% of Israelis believe the US president could abandon Israel’s interests in a future Iran deal.
Netanyahu’s Likud party and his ruling coalition — the most nationalist and religious in the country’s history — have been slipping in the polls since reclaiming power in 2022, and any momentum they regained has eroded recently. For two weeks, opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot has outpaced Netanyahu in opinion polls of who is better suited to lead the country.
Galit Altstein has over 4171 articles licensed.
https://muckrack.com/galit-altstein
Not much else in terms of a biography. Simply an incredible number of articles everyday on Israel.
