New president, new concerns?

President-elect Obama told the world he is willing to sit down with anyone.

He is being told by a Pakistani that he should sit down with the Taliban, to deal with the organization famous for 9-11, "diplomatically."

He may try to do that.

But I can almost guarantee that only the Taliban will benefit.

Based on what?

Based on the constantly displayed mentality of the people who populate the Taliban - and Hamas and similar organizations.

If Mr. Obama thinks he can deal with the mid-east mentality as he would with a European mentality, he is making the same mistake France and the US made in Indo-China - whose population has a similar lack of concern for human life.

Mr. Obama needs to understand - and frankly I doubt he does understand this - that leaders and followers of the Talban, Hamas, Iran, Iraq will promise anything and deliver nothing.

The Oslo Accord was supposed to benefit both Israel and the Arabs in Aza and other parts of Israel.

Israel gave and gave and gave. In return Hamas gave Israel missiles; it gave it suicide murderers.

What Mr. Obama needs to understand - and what Israel's politicians need to understand - is that you must deal with the "audience" on the audience's terms.

That's Journalism 101.

Funny that journalism offers a lesson to be learned by politicians.

If Mr. Obama is the Pollyanna he appears to be, the US may become at once both the darling of the world and the patsy to the world's demigods.

While I am not a one-issue voter, I am concerned that Mr. Obama will pressure Israel to surrender more in exchange for . . . nothing.

I have other concerns about Mr. Obama's presidency, but most of those concerns are mitigated by the fact that he needs congress to agree to his plans.

His foreign policy, however, is a different matter, and with a notoriously anti-Israel State Department (some things never change), Israel must be prepared to stand alone.

That might be the best thing that could happen to Israel, but at the same time, an appeasing president will embolden Israel's foes.

Puts me in mind of a fellow named Chamberlain, Neville not Wilt, who promised the world that "there will be peace in our time."

I hope that Mr. Obama does better than Mr. Chamberlain.

We'll have (at least) four years to find out.

yohanon