Its a rare week when one liberal Democrat, much less two, get apologies right

Former President Jimmy Carter is a Christian.

In fact, he is one of the most famous, publicly declared, Bible-believing Christians of the 20th Century. Sadly, despite his great work in accommodating the Camp David accords between Egypt and Israel, he had become a stereotypical charicature from many centuries past of a Christian without much Christian accord for Jews named David.

Incredibly, despite the Spanish Inquisition, Nazi and Soviet Holocausts and multiple Arab war actions against Israel since 1948, Carter has, at least since the mid-70s and continuing thru his recent book comparing Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to the former apartheid segregation in South Africa, adopted the revisionist, morally equivalent history of the Left. The fact is that Israel has been nothing if not restrained in their responses to war and terrorist acts against them, and the treatment of Palestinians within Israel is better than the treatment of average citizens in any other state in the Middle East.

President Carter had a lot to apologize for, for a very long time, with respect to his rhetoric towards Israel, but has been under no pressure or clamor to do so, given his membership in the Democratic Party.

All of which makes his unsolicited Christmas apology all the more remarkable and appreciated by this announcer of dawns. This rooster regularly announces dawns from Georgia, and we hope this statement by the most famous Georgian alive today is the beginning of a realistic look at Israel and the enemies that surround them:

ATLANTA (AP) – Former President Jimmy Carter apologized for any words or deeds that may have upset the Jewish community in an open letter meant to improve an often-tense relationship.

He said he was offering an Al Het, a prayer said on Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement. It signifies a plea for forgiveness.

“We must not permit criticisms for improvement to stigmatize Israel,” Carter said in the letter, which was first sent to JTA, a wire service for Jewish newspapers, and provided Wednesday to The Associated Press. “As I would have noted at Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, but which is appropriate at any time of the year, I offer an Al Het for any words or deeds of mine that may have done so.”

Carter’s apology was welcomed by Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League and a vocal critic of Carter’s views on Israel.

“When a former president reaches out to the Jewish community and asks for forgiveness, it’s incumbent of us to accept it,” he said in a telephone interview from Jerusalem. “To what extent this is an epiphany, only time will tell. There certainly was a lot of hurt, a lot of angry words that need to be repaired. But this is a good start.”

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee could not immediately be reached for comment.

I know, a full mea culpa would be worded differently, and who knows whether the former President’s views have changed, but the most significant aspect of this apology, it seems to this observer, is that obviously President Carter felt personal guilt as a Christian that prompted him to say this.

I accept his apology and hope that everyone else will. That does not mean that Carter is given carte blanche for any future unjustified attacks against Israel. If such attacks are forthcoming, then we will call him on them; remind him of this apology; and demand another.

But for Christmas, we accept Carter at his word, and pray that the New Year will find a strong voice added to those that already understand the immoral Palestinian death cult that opposes Israel.

No Obama apology tours since the last one

This Gamecock also welcomes recent military actions at President Barack Obama’s direction against terrorists in Pakistan and Yemen, the last of which has not received enough attention in the press, including especially the conservative press, that should be cheering Obama for actions similar to those taken by former President George W. Bush that caused him to be vilified by the liberal press due to civilian collateral damage and in supposedly “creating terrorists.’

From the AP on December 17:

Yemen’s Houthi fighters say scores of civilians, including many children, have been killed in US air-raids in the southeast of the war-stricken Arab country.

The Shia fighters on Friday reported the deaths of 63 people, including some 28 children, in the southeastern province of Abyan.

Almost 90 people were also injured in the attacks by US warplanes in the village of Bakazam, they added.

Yemen’s southern provinces have recently been the scene of US airstrikes which Washington claims to be aimed at uprooting an al-Qaeda cell operative in the Persian Gulf state.

But the residents of the area dismiss the claims that al-Qaeda members are being targeted in the US attacks, while a Yemeni lawmaker has also called for an investigation into the raids.

The US operation in southern Yemen comes on top of a joint Saudi-Yemeni military campaign in the country’s war-weary north where Sana’a and Riyadh forces are engaged in a fierce fighting against the Houthi fighters.

The Houthis are terrorist proxies of Iran, similar to their Hamas and Hezbo counterparts in Palestine and Lebanon, respectively.

How long will the United States continue to refuse to take the war Iran is waging against the West to Iran proper? I don’t know, and quite frankly have had this complaint about American foreign policy since at least the Khobar Towers attack in the 90s and especially since the Quds forces alliance with Iraqi separatists in attacks against the U.S. armed forces in Iraq.

But tha U.S. attacks inside Yemen (similar to some actions taken by Bush soon after 911 in Yemen) are a great step forward for an Obama known more for turning his back on the oppessed in Iran and reaching out in apologetic terms to the mullah terrorists of Iran.

Bravo this time Mr. President, and bravo to your continuing drone attacks in Pakistan; military actions in Afghanistan; and continuing progress in Iraq.

A.J. Strata wonders if the Ft. Hood incident and increasing attempted attacks against the U.S. on planes and on the ground might be a sign that Obama’s Administration is dropping the ball on homeland security. It certainly would not be surprising to learn that FBI and CIA lawyers and agents were gun shy about defending the nation given the expostfactObamalism threats against the Justice Department lawyers and interrogators that kept us safe for 8 years after 911 under President Bush.

Hopefully Obama will realize that killing terrorists and preventing them from having the publicity of successful attacks killing Americans does more to prevent the creation of new terrorists than apology tours or Abu Ghraib obsessions.

The threat from Iran is acute, and not just because of their ongoing nuclear threat development. Iran has been the number one sponsor of terror since 1979 and are presently in an armed stand-off with our Iraqi allies over possession of an oil well, on Iraqi territory.

Obama now needs to heed Charles Krauthammer’s advice and apologize to the Iranian people.

Mike DeVine’s Charlotte Observer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Minority Report columns

“One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

Originally published @ Examiner.com, where all verification links may be accessed.