MUSIC TO SOME EARS

Daniel Barenboim is an extraordinary person. The famous Israeli conductor has for years been campaigning to bring about peace and reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians. He was in Gaza last week with his orchestra performing "in solidarity with its Palestinian residents” - Barenboim performs in Gaza

He told his audience last Tuesday that the people of Gaza "have been blockaded for many years and this blockade has affected all of your lives".

Well, it may have affected their lives but they still have malls, shopping centres, swimming pools and most of the necessities of life and there's no blockade affecting the territory because the Egyptians are removing their blockade. One supposes that they can now look after the ordinary everyday needs of the local population without bothering the Israelis.

As for the weapons and missiles that are imported into Gaza, they have been looking after themselves for some time. These include laser guided missiles of the sort used by Gazan authorities (aka Hamas) to shoot across the border recently into Israel at a schools bus that killed a 16 year old countryman of Barenboim’s.

Of course, we’re told everything’s changed now. We should ignore the Hamas Covenant which calls for Israel’s destruction and, according to this recent article in the Age - Peace deal may give Palestinians a stronger voice PA President Mahmoud Abbas's position appears to have changed, stating that 'it is not required of Hamas to recognise Israel' in the formation of the new interim Palestinian government.

So why not move all the goalposts and stop talking about occupation and settlements as a pre-requisite to peace talks as well and sit down at the peace table with the Israelis?

Quite frankly, this posturing by the Palestinian leadership has become a farce.

As I indicated above, Barenboim the musician is an extraordinary person. He plays Wagner, the favourite music of the Nazis, and lives in Berlin. The extraordinary thing about him is that for a man of such talent, he doesn't understand that he is just another useful idiot if he thinks that playing some music for Gazans is anything more than yet another sop for the genocidal regime that rules these people and keeps them under the jackboot.

That makes him another Finkler.