Posted by
Gabrielle Cusumano on Monday, March 26, 2007 12:11:09 PM
"Beverly Hills Vice Mayor Jimmy Delshad said in a e-mail to friends last week that Sen. Clinton "has asked to meet us as the Persian Jewish leaders."
90210 Persians for Hillary
While Barack Obama snags the Hollywood limelight this week (and the movie stars' mega bucks), his fellow frontrunner in the Democratic presidential sweepstakes will be cozying up with the Persian Jews of Beverly Hills.
Barack gets Denzel Washington, Jennifer Aniston, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg. Hillary Rodham Clinton gets Nina Ansary, Hassan Nemazee, Rashel Pouri and lots of other people you've never heard of. Another way to look at it: Obama attracts the stars to his fundraiser in Hollywood, but Clinton is the star of her fundraising gig in Beverly Hills.
Or reframe it this way: While the minority candidate gets to hobnob with the crème de la crème of the silver screen, Clinton is seeking out one of the most obscure voting blocs imagineable.
The Clinton event (take a gander at the invitation here), slated for Thursday night at the home of Nina Ansary and Ali Saffari, is expected to draw a Who's Who among Persian Jews living in Los Angeles, many of whom supported George W. Bush for president. (Ansary herself contributed $2,000 to Bush in 2004. Her husband, Saffari, gave $2,000 to Bush, though he also gave $2,000 to John Kerry and $1,000 to Howard Dean.)
Beverly Hills Vice Mayor Jimmy Delshad said in a e-mail to friends last week that Sen. Clinton "has asked to meet us as the Persian Jewish leaders."
Makan Delrahim, a Jewish Iranian-American who worked at the Justice Department for the current Bush administration, isn't at all surprised that the Persian Jewish community is embracing Clinton. He joked, "If Bill Clinton could be the first black president, Hillary can be the first Jewish Iranian president."
But Delrahim, who works for the Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber, Schreck law firm, won't dare speculate on what this may forebode for the GOP's ability to woo Jewish Persian voters in the '08 presidential election.
"As one who spends half his time in L.A., half in Washington, I'm going to do all I can to make sure my party is still the favorite with my community," he said.
By Mary Ann Akers | February 20, 2007; 6:56 PM ET
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Iranian-Born Mr. Delshad
Vies for Mayor's Job;
Printing Ballots in Farsi
By PETER SANDERS
March 5, 2007; Page A1
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- When voters here go to the polls tomorrow, Jimmy Delshad is a favorite to be re-elected to the City Council. Under the city's system, he would also become mayor -- the first Iranian-born mayor of this glitzy city, known around the world more for its palm trees and movie stars than its sizable Jewish Iranian-American population. ![[J D]](http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/images/HC-GJ605_Delsha_20070304181313.gif)
At a time when tension between the U.S. and Iranian governments is on the rise, Mr. Delshad, a 66-year-old Jewish immigrant, is on the brink of becoming one of the highest-ranking Iranian-American elected officials in the U.S. So what are some of the political issues he feels most passionate about? Traffic-light timing, reducing sprinkler-water use at local parks and even beautifying the city's alleys.
"I want to make Beverly Hills one of the safest cities in the nation, in order to protect our residents and visitors," Mr. Delshad said in a recent interview. "Oh, and free wireless too."
Roughly 8,000 of the approximately 35,000 residents of Beverly Hills are of Iranian descent -- an influx that began in earnest nearly 30 years ago after the fall of the shah of Iran and has fundamentally changed one of America's most iconic cities. The sensitivity of the situation was underscored recently when the city, for the first time, printed its entire ballot in English and Farsi -- a move that prompted an outpouring of complaints, including a number from Iranian-Americans. (See a sample ballot.)
Six candidates in tomorrow's election will be vying for two seats on the Beverly Hills City Council. Three are Persian. Mr. Delshad -- who changed his first name to Jimmy from Jamshid when he became a U.S. citizen -- first won election to the City Council in 2003. If re-elected, he would become mayor; council members rotate the job each year, based on seniority. |
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http://www.delshad.com/Mambo/
U.S.: IRANIAN TO BECOME BEVERLY HILLS MAYOR | |
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Los Angeles, 26 March (AKI) - With tension between Washington and Tehran on the rise, the US' first elected Iranian mayor is about to take up his new post. Iranian Jew Jimmy Delshad, 66, who emigrated to the United States 48 years ago, is the incoming mayor of Beverly Hills, home to movie stars and tycoons. Some 8,000 of the neighbourhood's 33,000 inhabitants are of Iranian origin. "Iranians have great success in the United States in all sectors except politics," he told Adnkronos International (AKI) in an interview saying he hoped to open the way for others.
A successful businessmen in computer storage systems, Jimmy Delshad entered politics four years ago, and was elected deputy mayor of Beverly Hills. "The reason why Iranians avoid getting involved in public affairs," added Delshad, "begins with the characteristic diffidence of Iranians towards politicians and parties."
"My election as mayor of Beverly Hills should pave the way and convince Americans of Iranian origin that we can play an important role in this country which welcomed us with open arms," he said.
He said the individualist spirit which characterises Iranian Americans is another factor. "We are not accustomed to working as a team, especially when it comes to politics. Everyone tries to force his own ideas refusing the compromises which are at the very foundations of politics," Delshad added.
"My electoral campaign has brought together many Iranians of different religious faiths and opposing political camps, and this shows the maturity of the community," he told AKI.
Delshad has already announced that one of his first measures will be to declare Norouz, the Iranian New Year which coincides with the spring equinox, a holiday even in Beverly Hills, just as it is in Los Angeles.
"From next year Beverly Hills will celebrate Norouz respecting Iranian traditions and in recognition of the enormous contribution that the Iranian community have made towards the development of this Californian city," he said.
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http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level_English.php?cat=Politics&loid=8.0.398861284&par=0
Clinton takes in $10 million last week
NEW YORK, March 26 (UPI) -- The presidential campaign coffers for Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., have swollen by nearly $10 million in the last week, the New York Post reported Monday.
About a third of the revenue came in during Clinton's weekend visit to California, campaign officials said. Sunday events in and around San Francisco raised $1 million, while on Saturday, Sen. Clinton raked in $2.6 million visiting the Beverly Hills mansion of supermarket magnate Ron Burkle.
Next week, Clinton travels to Miami for a major fundraiser with hip-hop producer Timbaland.
Copyright 2007 by United Press International. All Rights Reserved.http://www.newsdaily.com/TopNews/UPI-1-20070326-10065100-bc-us-politics-clinton.xml
Friday, March 23, 2007 8:15 a.m. EDT
N.Y. Post Writer Sues Bill and Hillary Clinton
For months, former New York Post scribe Jared Paul Stern was at the center of unseemly accusations that he tried to shake down billionaire Ronald Burkle in exchange for good press in the newspaper's gossip pages.
Now Stern has fired back in a lawsuit filed Thursday against Burkle, the Post's archrival Daily News - even former President Bill Clinton and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, whom Stern accuses of attacking him in an effort to suppress negative stories about themselves.
Represented by a longtime critic of the Clintons, Stern alleges the defendants defamed and inflicted emotional distress on him and wrecked his job as a contributor to the Post's hugely popular Page Six gossip column. He seeks unspecified damages.
Burkle spokesman Michael Sitrick called the lawsuit "preposterous."
"We are confident that we will prevail in this action," Sitrick said in an e-mail.
Daily News spokeswoman Jennifer Mauer and Jay Carson, a spokesman for the Clintons, all declined to comment on the lawsuit. So did defendant William Sherman, the Daily News reporter who broke the story about the allegations against Stern last year.
Federal authorities investigated Burkle's claim that Stern demanded $100,000 and a $10,000 monthly stipend to make negative stories about him stop appearing in Page Six. Stern has repeatedly denied such an extortion attempt, and federal authorities declined to file charges.
Stern, 36, was suspended from the Post and no longer works there. He is living in upstate New York, plotting his comeback.
"Jared did not commit extortion," Stern's attorney Larry Klayman said. "He did not conduct a shakedown. The bottom line is that Burkle is in deep, hot water."
Burkle, a California supermarket mogul and political donor, has previously spoken out on the case by expressing dismay with columns like Page Six, denouncing what he called the "shoddy standards of gossip reporting."
The Clintons are friends with Burkle, and Bill Clinton also has complained about Page Six items.
Stern's lawsuit claims the Clintons "conceived of and participated in and furthered the illegal actions of the other defendants in order to destroy Page Six of the New York Post and the New York Post in general."
"This was intended as a prelude to Hillary Clinton's run for the Presidency in 2008 as Page Six and the New York Post, owned and operated by Rupert Murdoch, were perceived as significant impediments to a successful candidacy and the Clintons' return to the White House," the lawsuit alleges.
http://10.1.4.71:15871/cgi-bin/blockpage.cgi?ws-session=3678521783
More Ron Burkle and Page Six
M. O'BRIEN: Just asking, what highly successful gossip column is now avoiding dishing details of its own steamy scandal involving a possibly loose canon stringer and a besmirched billionaire? The answer is "Page Six" which sits at the salacious summit of loosely sourced snippets of the rich, the powerful and the famous. Does it come as a surprise? Well, I guess you could say the gossip trade has been canoodling with disaster for a long time.
Deborah Schoeneman is the author of the book "Four Percent Famous," and has also contributed to the New York Post "Page Six" over the years. She joins us now.
Good to have you with us.
DEBORAH SCHOENEMAN, CONTRIBUTED ITEMS TO "PAGE SIX": Thanks.
M. O'BRIEN: Are you surprised?
SCHOENEMAN: Am I surprised? Well, I am surprised about a cash payoff. There's lots of arrangements in gossip reporting. There's lots of favors and favor banking and sources that you swap information with, and help each other out, but a cash payoff is something I'd never heard of before. M. O'BRIEN: All right, before we get to those details, let's talk about the favored banks and these little -- you know, favor deals and hotel rooms, all that. Give us an example of how that might work.
SCHOENEMAN: In gossip reporting, especially at a tabloid, there's a different set of rules than there are at other news organizations. A free hotel room or a free car rental, a first class plane ticket to a junket, free meals, free clothes. Those are par to the course.
M. O'BRIEN: And all these things, most journalists cannot even come close to accepting. Why is there a different set of rules for gossip?
SCHOENEMAN: Gossip reporting brings in a lot of ad revenue, it brings in a lot of readers. I think gossip is very addictive, and people buy the post for "Page Six."
M. O'BRIEN: And it is a --- obviously has been over the years a slippery slope, because the more you get into this, the more competition there is, the more of a desire there is to have that next scoop. So I guess they were courting disaster.
SCHOENEMAN: I mean, to come up with a column every day is extremely hard, and "Page Six" is so influential and attracts so many readers that they play all sorts of games to be first and to have the best news.
M. O'BRIEN: Now this potential stringer in question, his name is Jared Paul Stern. Do you know him?
SCHOENEMAN: I do know Jared.
M. O'BRIEN: What do you know about him?
SCHOENEMAN: Jared has an interesting persona. It's kind of Old Worldly. A monocle and a scotch.
M. O'BRIEN: A monocle?
SCHOENEMAN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow.
SCHOENEMAN: A fedora. It kind of harks back to the days of "Sweet Smell of Success."
M. O'BRIEN: Uh-huh. All right. So he's kind of -- sees himself -- he's created quite a persona for himself.
SCHOENEMAN: Mmm hmm.
M. O'BRIEN: The allegation is that he is sought a payoff from a billionaire who didn't like what was being written about him in "Page Six." Ron Burkle is his name. Hundred thousand bucks up front, $10,000 per month as a retainer, to have either nothing or good stuff in "Page Six."
SCHOENEMAN: Uh-huh.
M. O'BRIEN: Based on what you know about Mr. Stern, does that seem like something that would happen?
SCHOENEMAN: It seems surprising to me that it would be a direct cash payoff. I think Jared might have been looking for financing for his clothing line. And Ron Burkle does invest in clothing lines. And I think deals that happen where a billionaire or a powerful person might make themselves a desirable friend to "Page Six," perhaps giving them a book deal or giving them a ride on their jet. But I think actually writing a big check for protection, especially a monthly maintenance fee, that's something I've never heard of before.
M. O'BRIEN: You haven't? OK, so the jury is still out in your mind, as to what really went down in this case?
SCHOENEMAN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Let me ask you this. In your experience over the years, did you ever have any really uncomfortable moments where there are stories where you're, you know, pressured to put them in or gossip items that you thought maybe you shouldn't touch, that were too hot to handle? There must be stories like that.
SCHOENEMAN: Yes. I wrote the gossip column for "New York" magazine for two years, and now I only write features for the magazine, because I felt very conflicted about writing about gossip. It's a very hard line to walk. People are always getting upset with you. You're always delving into their private lives. It's very hard to do, especially every week.
M. O'BRIEN: And it is a different set of rules. I mean, as far as sourcing, for example. You can get one phone call and it ends up in the newspaper, essentially, right?
SCHOENEMAN: Well, it depends on your publication. At "New York" magazine, we have fact checking and lawyers look over items. We call everyone for comment. "Page 6," there is no fact checking. They don't really have the time. They have to crank out a column every single day.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow. And I guess that -- in that sense, you have to wonder what is real and what is not. What you read on "Page 6," what is real.
SCHOENEMAN: Or why it's so popular.
M. O'BRIEN: There you go. Deborah Schoeneman, who is a contributing editor for "New York Magazine" and the author of the book, which is coming out...
SCHOENEMAN: In May.
M. O'BRIEN: "Four Percent Famous." And we'll have you back for that, and you can explain what "Four Percent Famous" is.
SCHOENEMAN: Thanks very much.
M. O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.
Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: In just a moment, a look at the top stories of the day, including a big day for immigration rallies. Millions are planning to stage protests around the country.
And today is the day that DNA tests are expected back in the Duke rape investigation. A big day in the Enron trial, too. Former CEO Jeff Skilling will take the stand.
Then, the latest twists in what we were just talking about, the "New York Post Page 6" scandal.
And trouble in California, to fill in you in on torrential rains, pushing rivers and levees to their limits. And more bad weather is on the way.
We'll take a look at all of that, just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Just asking, what highly successful gossip column is now avoiding dishing details of its own steamy scandal involving a possibly loose canon stringer and a besmirched billionaire? The answer is "Page Six" which sits at the salacious summit of loosely sourced snippets of the rich, the powerful and the famous. Does it come as a surprise? Well, I guess you could say the gossip trade has been canoodling with disaster for a long time.
Deborah Schoeneman is the author of the book "Four Percent Famous," and has also contributed to the New York Post "Page Six" over the years. She joins us now.
Good to have you with us.
DEBORAH SCHOENEMAN, CONTRIBUTED ITEMS TO "PAGE SIX": Thanks.
M. O'BRIEN: Are you surprised?
SCHOENEMAN: Am I surprised? Well, I am surprised about a cash payoff. There's lots of arrangements in gossip reporting. There's lots of favors and favor banking and sources that you swap information with, and help each other out, but a cash payoff is something I'd never heard of before.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, before we get to those details, let's talk about the favored banks and these little -- you know, favor deals and hotel rooms, all that. Give us an example of how that might work.
SCHOENEMAN: In gossip reporting, especially at a tabloid, there's a different set of rules than there are at other news organizations. A free hotel room or a free car rental, a first class plane ticket to a junket, free meals, free clothes. Those are par to the course.
M. O'BRIEN: And all these things, most journalists cannot even come close to accepting. Why is there a different set of rules for gossip?
SCHOENEMAN: Gossip reporting brings in a lot of ad revenue, it brings in a lot of readers. I think gossip is very addictive, and people buy the post for "Page Six."
M. O'BRIEN: And it is a --- obviously has been over the years a slippery slope, because the more you get into this, the more competition there is, the more of a desire there is to have that next scoop. So I guess they were courting disaster.
SCHOENEMAN: I mean, to come up with a column every day is extremely hard, and "Page Six" is so influential and attracts so many readers that they play all sorts of games to be first and to have the best news.
M. O'BRIEN: Now this potential stringer in question, his name is Jared Paul Stern. Do you know him?
SCHOENEMAN: I do know Jared.
M. O'BRIEN: What do you know about him?
SCHOENEMAN: Jared has an interesting persona. It's kind of Old Worldly. A monocle and a scotch.
M. O'BRIEN: A monocle?
SCHOENEMAN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow.
SCHOENEMAN: A fedora. It kind of harks back to the days of "Sweet Smell of Success."
M. O'BRIEN: Uh-huh. All right. So he's kind of -- sees himself -- he's created quite a persona for himself.
SCHOENEMAN: Mmm hmm.
M. O'BRIEN: The allegation is that he is sought a payoff from a billionaire who didn't like what was being written about him in "Page Six." Ron Burkle is his name. Hundred thousand bucks up front, $10,000 per month as a retainer, to have either nothing or good stuff in "Page Six."
SCHOENEMAN: Uh-huh.
M. O'BRIEN: Based on what you know about Mr. Stern, does that seem like something that would happen? SCHOENEMAN: It seems surprising to me that it would be a direct cash payoff. I think Jared might have been looking for financing for his clothing line. And Ron Burkle does invest in clothing lines. And I think deals that happen where a billionaire or a powerful person might make themselves a desirable friend to "Page Six," perhaps giving them a book deal or giving them a ride on their jet. But I think actually writing a big check for protection, especially a monthly maintenance fee, that's something I've never heard of before.
M. O'BRIEN: You haven't? OK, so the jury is still out in your mind, as to what really went down in this case?
SCHOENEMAN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Let me ask you this. In your experience over the years, did you ever have any really uncomfortable moments where there are stories where you're, you know, pressured to put them in or gossip items that you thought maybe you shouldn't touch, that were too hot to handle? There must be stories like that.
SCHOENEMAN: Yes. I wrote the gossip column for "New York" magazine for two years, and now I only write features for the magazine, because I felt very conflicted about writing about gossip. It's a very hard line to walk. People are always getting upset with you. You're always delving into their private lives. It's very hard to do, especially every week.
M. O'BRIEN: And it is a different set of rules. I mean, as far as sourcing, for example. You can get one phone call and it ends up in the newspaper, essentially, right?
SCHOENEMAN: Well, it depends on your publication. At "New York" magazine, we have fact checking and lawyers look over items. We call everyone for comment. "Page 6," there is no fact checking. They don't really have the time. They have to crank out a column every single day.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow. And I guess that -- in that sense, you have to wonder what is real and what is not. What you read on "Page 6," what is real.
SCHOENEMAN: Or why it's so popular.
M. O'BRIEN: There you go. Deborah Schoeneman, who is a contributing editor for "New York Magazine" and the author of the book, which is coming out...
SCHOENEMAN: In May.
M. O'BRIEN: "Four Percent Famous." And we'll have you back for that, and you can explain what "Four Percent Famous" is.
SCHOENEMAN: Thanks very much.
M. O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.
Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: In just a moment, a look at the top stories of the day, including a big day for immigration rallies. Millions are planning to stage protests around the country.
And today is the day that DNA tests are expected back in the Duke rape investigation. A big day in the Enron trial, too. Former CEO Jeff Skilling will take the stand.
Then, the latest twists in what we were just talking about, the "New York Post Page 6" scandal.
And trouble in California, to fill in you in on torrential rains, pushing rivers and levees to their limits. And more bad weather is on the way.
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/10/ltm.04.html
Questions for Ron Burkle
Friend of Bill and Hill
Interview By DEBORAH SOLOMON
Published: March 18, 2007
Q: As a billionaire financier who claims to shun publicity, why are you holding a Hillary Clinton fund-raising dinner for 1,000 guests on March 24, at your home in Beverly Hills? They were doing a fund-raiser in L.A., and somebody from her campaign said, “Are we going to have it at Green Acres?” And I said sure.
You’re one of Bill Clinton’s closest friends — is there anything you can tell us about Hillary that we don’t know? I think to the extent that people miss who she is, she’s actually a very nice, warm, thoughtful, caring person, and I don’t think that comes across generally.
Were you surprised when your neighbor David Geffen publicly bad-mouthed the Clintons at the time of his own fund-raiser for Barack Obama, claiming they tell lies without compunction? I was surprised by it, and in many ways taken aback by it. But I have known David for a long time. David is very aggressive in his comments and very aggressive in his thoughts on everything.
You’re competing against him to buy The L.A. Times. David did something different. We bid for the Tribune Company, and David bid for The L.A. Times. The Tribune Company has a lot of media, not just a newspaper.
You’re also friendly with Al Gore. Do you think he will enter the race for the presidency? I told him the other day, he has made me so much money, I hope he keeps working.
You’re referring to his cable station, Current TV, one of your many media investments. Although you’re selling off Pathmark to A.&P., you seem destined to be known as a supermarket guy. I started out as a box boy. You know, I didn’t go to college, and I did well in supermarkets.
Do you like to shop in supermarkets? I live by myself, so I don’t buy a lot.
Right, your life as a divorcee was chronicled by a New York Post gossip columnist whom you accused of trying to extort $220,000 from you in exchange for favorable coverage. At first when you read articles that suggest you’re buying a modeling agency for the president to run the first reaction is disbelief. I think what happened at The Post was pretty clear. They had an agenda.
Do you mean a political agenda? I think it could have just as easily been an agenda by some people at the paper to make money.
As the co-owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins, you recently met with the mayor of Las Vegas to discuss moving the team there. Were you serious? Today we play in the oldest arena in the National Hockey League, with a lease that expires in June. Our fans deserve a new facility.
At last count, you were ranked as No. 117 on Forbes magazine’s 400 richest Americans list. Is that a good place to be? You certainly have a higher quality of life when you are not on the Forbes list. It just means that your security changes, and you’re known for the wrong things.
Were you disappointed that Bill Clinton mentioned you only once in the 900-plus-page text of his autobiography, “My Life”? No. It doesn’t matter to me. I was surprised I was in there at all.
But the Clintons have asked so much of you. That’s actually not true. The president has never asked me really to do much of anything.
Doesn’t he have his own bedroom in your house in Beverly Hills? There is one he always stays in. But my parents stay there when they come to visit, too, so I think my mother would be pained if she thought that wasn’t her bedroom too.
When you, Bill and Hillary are together, who is the most likely to be talking? Well, I am the most likely to be listening.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/18/magazine/18WWLNQ4.t.html?ex=1175054400&en=b7f96dc3b60f0ae9&ei=5070
Israeli Diplomat Analyzes Mideast
The lecture by the newly appointed Israeli ambassador to Great Britain, Ron Prosor, was sponsored by the Ronald W. Burkle Center for International Relations, the Israel Studies Program, Stand with Us, and the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles.
"We have a saying in the Jewish tradition that anyone who teaches us something new is called a rabbi. And I learned something new today." —Professor Judea Pearl
This article was first published on Feb. 28, 2007, in The Daily Bruin.
By Lucy Benz-Rogers
DISCUSSING COUNTRIES such as Israel, Syria and Iran, newly appointed Israeli Ambassador Ron Prosor shared his frank analysis and personal experience in the region at a lecture on Middle Eastern politics Monday.
Prosor began by stressing that it is important for people outside the Middle East to understand and pay attention to its problems in order to gauge the global effects of changes in the region and to make informed policy decisions.
He said it is also important for the world community to understand the unique geopolitical position of Israel.
"(Israel is) on the frontier of encountering problems that Western democracies have not encountered. ... We sometimes feel alone," Prosor said.
One of the main issues Prosor addressed is Iran's role in the Middle East. He discussed at length how a nuclear Iran changes the political scene in the region, and how this issue should be addressed.
"The Iranian threat would change the strategic environment in the Middle East," Prosor said.
During the question-and-answer portion of the lecture there was discussion of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's past comments threatening Israel. Ahmadinejad has been quoted as saying, "Like it or not, the Zionist regime is heading toward annihilation," and that Israel should be "wiped off the map."
When asked by an audience member about the Iranian threat and how seriously Ahmadinejad's comments against Israel should be taken, Prosor said he believes Ahmadinejad's threats should be taken very seriously.
He said he believes the Iranians are adept at overcoming restrictions and obstacles they encounter, such as economic sanctions.
"The Iranians are very, very sophisticated," Prosor said. "It is obvious that the Iranians are master tacticians," he added later in the lecture.
UCLA computer science Professor Judea Pearl called Prosor's analysis of Ahmadinejad the most enlightening part of the lecture.
"We have a saying in the Jewish tradition that anyone who teaches us something new is called a rabbi. And I learned something new today," he said.
Prosor said he supports a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and added that a large portion of the Israeli population is also in favor of this option.
He listed a number of obstacles to overcome before this can be a reality, including a need for more open communication between the two sides and the recognition of the state of Israel from Palestinian groups such as Hamas.
"What dialogue do I conduct with a side who does not recognize my right to exist?" he asked. "We know that the only way forward is to really talk to people, but you still need, as the song says, the bare necessities."
The lecture was sponsored by the Ronald W. Burkle Center for International Relations, the Israel Studies Program, Stand with Us and the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles.
Kelly Trombley, a second-year international development studies student who attended the lecture, said she enjoyed hearing the perspective of a foreign diplomat as opposed to someone from the United States.
Rebecca Byerly, a visiting graduate of American University who was also present, said the lecture raised many concerns for her about the future of Middle Eastern politics.
"It seems the situation really is as bleak as it appears, the threat of Iran is real, and peace negotiations with Syria seem bleak," Byerly said.
Date Posted: 3/1/2007http://www.isop.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=64853