By Stan Goodenough
Jan 03, 2008
Thousands of American flags are being unfurled to line the routes along which he will travel, streets which will be made empty of all other traffic for the duration of his three day visit.
Small clusters of US security men can be seen making their way to and from the so-called western Jerusalem US consulate, their brash and noisy CC-plated vehicles rushing around the Israeli capital - even though it is not recognized as such by Washington.
The Prime Ministers' Office has assembled a special task force to prepare for his arrival, and there is little doubt that he will be made to feel very welcome indeed.
But what US President George W. Bush will not get, when he makes his first visit to Israel as the world's most powerful man next week, is more than just a taste of how many millions of Israelis feel about his reason for coming here.
They disapprove.
The purpose of his visit is to demonstrate physically his often verbalized "personal commitment" to creating an Arab state on ancient Jewish lands.
And it is in the interests of the Olmert government that Bush be made to feel the Israeli people support him in this.
Dissenting voices will therefore not be allowed, or will be cordoned off out of the president's way.
A couple of things will be happening, but unless he reads about them or keeps his eyes peeled, the president will remain blissfully unaware of their opposition:
On Monday before Bush arrives, a small square near Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's official residence, which has been known for years as Paris Square, and which is the site of frequent political demonstrations, is to be renamed "Freedom for Jonathan Pollard Square" in honor of the American Jew who spied for Israel and paid for helping to save Jewish lives by being incarcerated in an American prison for 22 years, so far.
According to the Jerusalem City Council, the square will keep its new name until Pollard, who is also an Israeli citizen, is set free and allowed to come home to Israel.
Meanwhile Israel National News reports that billboards all over Jerusalem will be plastered with a new poster on the eve of the Bush visit to Israel.
Pictured is a gigantic Bible, towering over the walls of the Old City.
The caption says: "Bush, read your Bible. God gave Israel to the Jews."
He did, of course. But observers have noted that Israeli governments live more in fear of the White House than in the fear of the Lord.