Review of my new book, A State Beyond the Pale: Europe’s Problem with Israel
For readers who have not yet purchased my recent book, A State Beyond the Pale: Europe’s Problem with Israel please see this extremely generous review. Obviously, I would be grateful if readers would pass this on to anyone they think might be interested and/or post up the link on any relevant websites. To read the review, click here:
http://www.thejc.com/arts/book-reviews/21604/review-a-state-beyond-pale
To purchase the book on Amazon, click here:
Tags: Israel
November 20th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
Thank you for telling the truth and not supporting the porpaganda and lies that are spewed forth with great gusto by journalists such as Oborne. In fact it is with reference to his Dispatches programme aired channel 4 17.11.09 pm that I have decided to leave a reply. Last evening I was perusing the sky news channels and lo and behold on Press Tv saw George Galloway expounding and playing the great moralist re the Disptaches programme. I am most concerned that he highlighted the fact that the Conservatives had been part of this, not good when we hope to have a fair and non prejudicial election next year in UK. Then he gave great rant to the fact Christian Zionists also support Israel and used the term fundamental which is actually derogatory because it is bible believing Christians who recognise the Jewish claim to the Promised Land. And to really top it he said he was most concerned that the black Christians in London had sent buses to support Israel and wave little Israeli flags outside the Israeli embassy during the Gaza campaign. Well African Christians in African countires such as Nigeria actually are losing their homes, churches and yes their lives in most brutal and horrifying ways. I mention this because I believe that the disgusting Dispatches programme contained many inaccurate fabricaitions and slanderous innuendos, and most damming, it will inflame racial and religious hatred. Not only will Jews be even more unpopular and despised, as well Israel and Israelis, but also Chritians who are Zionists and those in Africa and Islamic countries. Not to mention possible damage to the Conservative Party. And even more heinious is the fact we have troops out in Iraq and Afghanistan who are vulnerable. Despite 7/7 when citizens going about life were ruthlessly murdered by Jihadis and those watching could be enraged and carry out further 7/7’s this concerns me greatly. To suck up to those who have the wealth produced by liquid gold, and to support an extreme left wing agenda how much blood and mayhem could Oborne, Galloway and thier ilk be party to?
Thanks for your sterling and intelligent and honest moral reporting.
Regards
Charlene Hale
November 20th, 2009 at 11:50 pm
Robin, I fear that you belong to a dying breed in Britain. Sadly, I have little hope for that former bastion of decency and fair play. As we say in Israel, I would buy you a sweater to keep you warm, but instead I clicked on the link above and ordered your book from Amazon. Keep healthy and keep going. It is important that your voice be heard.
February 27th, 2010 at 11:14 pm
Thank you for writing the book. I was one of the ‘great unwashed’ - brainwashed by the education i received and by the media I read. I am friends with a Jew who told me that my thinking was skewed. Then i bought your book and I certainly agree with him. What a relief not to have to makej intellectual decisions based on emotional knee jerk reactions.Ev erything you wrote is what he said,almost word for word.
B rilliant.
March 1st, 2010 at 2:51 pm
I’ve read Shlomo Sand’s book and found it quite well researched (as it should be, him being an academic and all), although I was left throughly depressed by his conclusions and indeed unbelieving…
Am I to understand that I do not exist? Wow, man, it feels good not to be a Jew any longer! Thanx, Shlomo.
And now for more realistic matters: having read the reviews, I’m gonna buy your book and see a different take on the “Jewish Question”. Right?
I’ll let you now…
March 2nd, 2010 at 2:13 pm
I am in the process of reading Shepherd’s book right now, and I find that he’s verbalizing my feelings about the hysteric Anti-Israelism today, which is voiced not only by radical Muslims but by people and institutions one would think knows better. I appreciate that Shepherd is fact-oriented rather than polemic. This works better in the milieu where I work, i.e. Swedish media and politicians.
The review from the JC is spot-on.
March 2nd, 2010 at 7:10 pm
So I am to understand that my grand partents were gassed ,because they were khazars?
I would defianatly buy you book as good reference when i battle with todays Anti Zionists meaning Anti -Israelism really meaning Antisemites
March 8th, 2010 at 7:34 pm
Well, my friend, as promised I’ve read it and… I love you!
Devoured it in two nights, I realised you wrote what I always wanted to write, but being Jewish myself, I thought I couldn’t because I’d be biased, partial, unilateral, in fact “Zionist”. Ha, ha, ha!!!
You ain’t Jewish, and you beautiful.
Clear minded, well posited, good background, excellent discourse and truly factual, it’s a much needed book and I hope it’ll sell well - I’ll spread the word, rest assured.
We need all the friends we can get.
Kol tuv, shalom
K
March 11th, 2010 at 10:57 am
Sir, I would like to have your opinion and possibly your review of the recent book (a novel) by Assaf Gravron, “CrocAttack”, just published by FourthEstate, and relating to suicide bombers in Israel.
Your honest opinion, that is.
Ibadti et haderekh sheli…
Thank you
March 15th, 2010 at 9:42 am
Robin,
you ruined my girlfriends plans for the weekend. bought the book at 4 on saturday and finished 7 on sunday. just another witless brit poisoned by the lies in our media and establishment, i have for years sat quietly, passively and cowardly consuming the fictions, exaggerations and outright lies designed to undermine Israel and by extension the jews - knowing there was ’something wrong with this picture’. ‘a state beyond the pale’ has given me room to breathe. I cant thank you enough..
but thanks anyway.
March 15th, 2010 at 11:49 pm
joseph gilfillan
“…knowing there was something wrong with this picture…”
Thanks for that brilliant phrase. Absolutely spot on.
I remember watching the BBC coverage of the Balkan crises some years ago and thinking to myself, I can’t trust any of this coverage - I don’t know if the Serbs are getting the ‘Israel treatment’ or if in fact, they were as bad as they were portrayed. And all because the BBC and the MSM in general have forfeited their credibility, through their highly partial reporting.
I’m currently reading Robin’s book and have to agree with every word written here.
March 19th, 2010 at 5:34 pm
In ‘ A State beyond the Pale’, you enunciate eight points (pages 10 - 34, in which you cite that the settlement issue is problematic, but not insurmountable are and highlight several…
As you also mention, Partition of Palestine (which refered in 1947-48, to only thes land west of the Jordan River, as the Brits had already partitioned Palestine and transfered TransJordan (Palesininan land east of the Jordan River to a foreign ruler) was based on the Jews being a majority within the boundaries of the territory allocated by the United Nations for the Jewish State, and the Jews being a minority in the territories allocated for the Arab state.
Jews had actually settled in both territories prior to partition (and excluding the laws implemented forbidding Jews from purchasing land in Arab designated territories, on both sides of the Jordan River - TransJordan, mimicking restrictions put into law by the House of Saud to the south, implemented laws forbidding Jews from residing within the Hashemite kingdom) Other than recognizing these regime as Apartheid, how can we accept these laws that forbid Jews from residing in territories that are not a part of the Jewish State?
When, and if, an independant Palestinian State is declared, and recognized by the members of the United Nations, that state will adopt its own judicial system, and residents within that nation’s borders will become subject to these laws.
When the Palestinian legal system is implemented, they will have to address three groups of settlers.
1. Those settlers who have legally acquired (or reacquired) lands on which they reside within the Palestinian territory, should be able to remain, as long as they have legal documentation of their ownership, and agree to reside in the territory, and observe the laws of the Palestinian state.
2. Those settlers who have settled on lands which were deemed property of the Ottoman government (it is by these laws that Israel has determined what lands are declared State Lands), should be able to remain, but within the parameters set by the Palestinian government (formal leases would need to be drawn, indicating the terms of residence and leasehold). Again, residence would be allowed as long as these settlers agree to observe the laws of the state.
2. Those settlers who have illegally taken lands from Palestinian residents should be prosecuted for their actions, fined for damages, the land returned to their rightful owners, and the guilty individuals deported from the Palestinian state, or if they wish to be able to remain, incarcerated for the appropriate term. If the Palestinian State is amenable to keeping these settlers, and allow them to reside in their claimed residences, then, under the new Palestinain legal system, they may choose to work out individual agreements, and levy compensation.
So, given the legal authority that will be derived from the establishment of a Palestinian state, the barrier to peace presented by the settlements, as claimed by the PA, is in fact, a non-issue.
The key to this resolution, is the trust built between all parties that a legal solution can and will be implemented, and, as we see from the oft halted talks, there is ample distrust on all sides.
April 12th, 2010 at 4:10 pm
Now on page 98 of the book : terrific; well-written and cogent.
All members of our so-called intelligentsia should be required to read and inwardly digest.
I shall be passing it on to a good friend- who used to work for the diplomatic service-and who shares my concern about the absorption of hysterical and unbalanced ‘Israel-bashing’ into mainstream public discourse in the UK.
We both believe that there has been a substantial,and insidiou,-shift of covert prejudice in the UK and that the targets are now the Jewish community and white ‘chavs’.Open season as far as these groups are now concerned
The examination of the decontextualisation of so much of the condemnation is particularly telling : my worry is that many younger people will grow up in ignorance of the true facts and hence come to believe all the poisonous nonsense that is peddled by influential commentators who should know better.
I’ve been to Israel 3 times and my support for this tiny beleaguered country has never wavered.
As regards Serbia, a visit to the country in 1995 convinced me that a similar, but less vitriolic, bias existed within the western media and aid agencies.
May 8th, 2010 at 10:34 am
Robin I have just came back from Israel where I have purchased your book,actually I got the last copy as the Steimatzky branch where I bought it run out of the copys!!! . Will start to read as soon as I can
June 2nd, 2010 at 3:32 am
robin
i read this book and finally finished after one sitting, so refreshing to read something that at least has credibility. you are really to be commended as it a rare and brave soul that would actually write such a piece given the level of hostility towards israel.
it’s a brilliant book, absolutely explosive in it’s well thought out factual case. please promote it worldwide, get on tv, radio and print media as this stuff should be out there. however i fear the irrational hate fuelled frenzy is unstoppable by any common sense.
June 21st, 2010 at 1:50 pm
Dr. Shepherd, your book is what I’ve been waiting for! Your opening chapters put EXACTLY (only far better) my explanation to anyone with ears in his/her head regarding the start of this interminable conflict. “Who started it” sounds like some kindergarten plea, but it is genuinely a vital point. The continual escalation of this seemingly insurmountable dead end situation is mind blowing. And as anyone could see during the recent “Flotilla-gate”, the international media could wait to portray those lovely Turkish (and who knows what else) extremists provoking the Israelis off the shores of Gaza as innocuous peace-niks, and the wicked Israeli commandos were looking for anyone to assassinate as they do every day. Honestly, one could weep. I am from well left of centre in Israel, I never supported the settlement movement - as Ben Gurion said “Give the territories back..we have enough Arabs”, and I’m pretty disgusted by the religious fanatics who sit in the middle of Hebron and aggravate the Arabs there, and who cut down their olive trees out of spite - shameful. But none of this would have come about if, as you so fairly point out, 100 million Arabs would have accepted a tiny corner of the Middle East as a refuge for what was at the time less than one million Jews (and even now is only six and a half million)…I will recommend your book everywhere and thank you.