It’s 2016 and my New Years resolution is join the far right in not being “PC”! NO I ain’t joining the Republican party! I just want to be able to talk to them since they have decided not to be “PC”! Lets see who blinks first!
I am NOT antisemitic! Anti-Zionist? Maybe! Depending on the definition. Too often the word hate is used in the definition of both.
As I have said in previous postings, I feel the need to define terms, as Top Gun felt “the need for Speed”. I DON’T HATE PEOPLE! ANY PEOPLE!
I strongly disagree with the many, many of the actions of Israel. And to do so IS NOT anti-Semitic. I don’t care how many times you say it is, how loud you say it or who says it.
So If we define Zionist as one who supports “the return of the Jewish people to their homeland and the resumption of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel.” Then I probably am anti-Zionist. For too many reasons to go into in this post.
Suffice it to say, I have a problem with taking land from people, to give to another and then refusing to allow those displaced to ever return, while encouraging Jews from all over the world to come to Israel. It’s a thing called the “Right of Return”. It’s important!
I have a problem with taking land because a book, sacred to many, but still a book, written by who knows who, said, it’s O.K.
Having lived in the middle-east for many years, and having been there just a year ago, believe me I know just how much can be lost in translation. Trust me! Never mind translation, just a story told over and over changes with each telling. Like the time back in 1960 Adana…….well never mind, Just trust me on this!
So I might be an Anti-Zionist, but I should say, as an atheist, I don’t have a dog in that fight when it comes to religion. So my logic is totally void of religious influence. Whereas it appears Zionism is based almost entirely on Religion. So there!
I am EXTREMELY worried that our relationship with Israel threatens our Democracy!
Slavery aside, I believe in America. I believe in so-called “American Values”. I believe in Americans as basically good people. Because I believe in these things, I choose to believe Americans in general support Israel without knowing why except for religious reasons.
I am suggesting we examine more secular reasons why we support Israel with our eyes wide open. Our understanding of Israel has never been more crucial. As Israeli’s like to say, “our very existence is at stake”. Our PRESS WILL NOT TELL US THE TRUTH ABOUT OUR ALLY!
So let us begin with, did you read or hear about the front page article run in the NYT, which some, including me, found not only to be an ad for AIPAC,(the strongest Jewish lobby in America) but extremely offensive. When ANYONE, country or PAC THREATENS the President of MY COUNTRY, I tend to go all stars and stripes on them!
(http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/08/world/middleeast/fears-of-lasting-rift-as-obama-battles-pro-israel-group-on-iran.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0)
This was taken from the Mondoweiss (http://mondoweiss.net/) commenting on the NYT article:
The tone of the current dispute is raising concerns among some of Mr. Obama’s allies who say it is a new low in relations between AIPAC and the White House. They say they are worried that, in working to counter AIPAC’s tactics and discredit its claims about the nuclear accord with Iran, the president has gone overboard in criticizing the group and like-minded opponents of the deal.
“It’s somewhat dangerous, because there’s a kind of a dog whistle here that some people are going to hear as ‘it’s time to go after people,’ and not just rhetorically,” said David Makovsky, a former Middle East adviser for the Obama administration and now an analyst at the Washington Institute for Near East Studies.
Wait a second! AIPAC is spending $20-40 million to defeat the president’s signature foreign policy achievement. It is acting in concert with a right wing foreign leader. This same group, and same foreign leader, lobbied for the Iraq war, an unending disaster in US foreign policy. Why not “go after” them? Instead, the Times is publishing pure propaganda for the right wing Israel lobby, several of whose members are quoted in the article — Makovsky, Malcolm Hoenlein, and Marshall Wittmann. –
This was taken from the same article:
“Ronald Reagan opposed AIPAC when he defied Israeli objections over the sale in 1981. A decade later, George H. W. Bush took on the group during a fight over housing loan guarantees for Israel, saying he was just “one lonely little guy” going up against a thousand lobbyists on Capitol Hill.”
The housing loan guarantees fight was especially interesting. Please read but here is a snippet:
‘By ADAM CLYMER,
Published: September 15, 1991
WASHINGTON, Sept. 14— As President Bush faces off against Congress in his effort to delay its consideration of $10 billion in loan guarantees for Israel, he confronts one of the most powerful lobbies in the capital.
Israel’s supporters in American politics put at least $4 million into last year’s election campaign, sent at least 1,000 volunteers to Capitol Hill last week and are trying very hard to sign up sizable, perhaps veto-proof majorities in Congress to back the loan guarantees, which are meant to help Israel provide housing for its large influx of Soviet Jewish émigrés.
President Bush, who wants consideration of the guarantees delayed until January, portrayed himself at a news conference on Thursday as “one lonely little guy” contending against “powerful political forces” who want Congress to act without delay.”
“the loan guarantees, which are meant to help Israel provide housing for its large influx of Soviet Jewish émigrés.”
Remember I said the “right of return” was important!
Understand we are NOT talking about the NRA or any other domestic lobby. This is a foreign Country! Friend or not it is a FOREIGN COUNTRY!
You see the problem I have here is that I do understand how lobbying works. But there is, and has to be, a line not to be crossed. Lobbying crosses the line when it becomes “interference”! It crosses the line when it is NOT registered as a foreign agent but acts as such.
AIPAC is an instrument of the Israeli government and always has been. And therefore should be registered as a foreign agent. But Israel has fought this tooth and nail. Yet The same woman who referred to Palestinians as “snakes” recently presented a bill in Knesset that would REQUIRE NGO’S in Israel primarily funded from foreign governments to register? demanding that the U.S. and EU governments not intervene in internal Israeli legislation. REALLY? read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.696880
I thought Netanyahu addressing a joint session of congress COULD BE seen as “intervening”. BIG TIME! He could have declined. He could have said in the interest of US-Israeli relations, and since the White House was opposed based on the timing, I respectfully decline. But his political aspirations would not allow that. He had an election coming up. So election trumps relations. Definitely no pun intended!
Nitanyahu makes all the news shows and constantly reminds us that Israel is our closes ally. We have “shared values”. I personally don’t think so! As I said from the onset religion has NOTHING to do with my opinion! When you say “Shared Values to me, I’m thinking fairness, justice, truthfulness. I don’t see these things coming from Israel.
Of course we really don’t hear anything about that! Which again speaks to my point of the “Blackout” of negative news in America about Israel.
Conservatives are lousy at governing but unbelievably good at disinformation and getting their message out. Hear it enough you start to believe it. But let’s take a look at this “shared values” thing. I try to ALWAYS leave links to references whenever possible. I don’t want anyone to just take my word at face value. Although I must say I’m a pretty honest person. That said!
Did you know that Israel attacked a US Navy ship killing 34 crewmen and wounding another 174. This happened in 1967 and in my humble opinion greatly shaped US-Israeli relations. http://whatreallyhappened.com/WRHARTICLES/ussliberty.html
Did you know that we have told the world the Israel-Palestine issue has to be resolved between direct negotiations between the parties? And have used our Veto powers in the UN to shield Israel. You did?
Well did you know that while we were telling the world that, the Likud party of which Netanyahu is the leader, and currently the ruling party of Israel has ALWAYS maintained that Jerusalem would NEVER be divided and would always remain under Israeli rule? That is kind of important since a big part of the two state solution rests on east Jerusalem being the Capital of Palestinian state.
Yet after more than six years of recent negotiations with the Palestinians, Netanyahu the head of the LIKUD party said on the eve of this last Israeli election there would be no two state solutions on his watch? Many believe that pronouncement won him the election.
This was while Netanyahu was telling CNN they needed a “partner in peace”! He lied to our faces! And made us look like fools to the rest of the world.
Recently President Carter who probably knows more about this than anyone living or dead, said the two state solution is dead BECAUSE of ISRAEL. NOT PALESTINE!
Did you know during Israel’s 2014 attack on GAZA another a member of the Likud party Ayelet Shaked posted on her Face Book page the following referring to the Palestinians:
“They are all enemy combatants, and their blood shall be on all their heads. Now this also includes the mothers of the martyrs, who send them to hell with flowers and kisses. They should follow their sons, nothing would be more just. They should go, as should the physical homes in which they raised the snakes. Otherwise, more little snakes will be raised there. “
Over 500 Palestinian children died in last year’s attack on GAZA. I’m sure Ayelet Shaked was thrilled!!
I asked a friend of mine, after last year’s incursion into GAZA , how could he blindly support Israel after over 500 Palestinian children were killed? His answer was “children die in war”! He was so cavalier about it. How can you be that cavalier about the death of Palestinian children, and expect empathy for the Holocaust? Just imagine someone saying “yeah the Holocaust was bad, but in war sh*t happens get over it!” I dare you!
But then again they were ONLY Palestinian babies! Not Jewish babies!
Did you know Netanyahu, appointed Ayelet Shaked; yes that same Ayelet Shaked , Minister of Justice? I think that speaks volumes. The woman who looks at Palestinians lower or equal to “snakes” as the MINISTER OF JUSTICE?
Did you know that illegal settlements continue to be built as of this post? Illegal according to the U.N. https://youtu.be/1sib5HbdEV4
Did you know Mohammed Abu Khdeir a Palestinian teenager was BURNED TO DEATH prior to the 2014 attack on Gaza?
Did you know that an 18 mo Palestinian baby named Ali, and his father and mother were BURNED TO DEATH by the same illegal settlers? This seems to be the weapon of chose by these cowards. His 4 yr old brother is hanging on by a thread. Still no one has been convicted! Yet we make movies glorifying how good Israeli intelligence is! Another just came out this week,Tracking down German Nazi’s ALL OVER THE WORLD! But can’t find the people responsible for this heinous crime in an area 141 sq miles! BULL!
I guess this falls under the label of “Israel has a right to defend itself”! Because we know Ali would have grown up to be a “terrorist”! And fighting “Terrorism” is a part of our “SHARED VALUES”!
Did you know that 90% of attacks by Israeli illegal settlers on Palestinians go uncharged?
Did you know Israel is an APARTHEID state? Yes I said APARTHEID!
Did you know a new luxury apartment complex in Israel under construction in the Ajami neighborhood of Jaffa is only offering homes to Jewish buyers. Shared Values?
“in a revealing radio interview in 2010, the United States senator indicated he believed God had chosen him to be a guardian of Israel. “[M]y name, as you know, comes from a Hebrew word,” Schumer said to Nachum Segal, founder of “the Jewish world’s premier English-language internet radio network.” The Hebrew word, Schumer said, is “shomer, which means guardian. My ancestors were guardians of the ghetto wall in Chortkov [in the Ukraine] and I believe Hashem [God], actually, gave me that name, as one of my roles that is very important in the United States Senate [is] to be a shomer for Israel. And I will continue to be that with every bone in my body.”….
Of course this is just twitter, but what’s going around in “twitter world” is that Schumer: is talking about “Secondary sanctions” on Europe to force Iran back to the negotiation table. I’m trying to run down the quote. As I said this is “twitter world” talk. But IF true,and he utters this nonsense in any official capacity, it should trigger an immediate recall. This is not the rhetoric of a US Senator but rather that of a member of the Knesset.
Dahlia Scheindlin @dahliasc speaks of what she calls “Dual Loyalties” as an out, for Jewish politicians. I’m sorry I don’t know of any such reference in the oath they took.
And all this rhetoric about “IRAN MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO GET A NUCLEAR WEAPON”! Is crazy talk to begin with.
Iran threatened to wipe Israel off the map! I get that. That was uttered by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. HE IS NO LONGER THE PRESIDENT!
Russia threatened us the same way. The difference was they actually HAD the bomb. What I don’t get, is why it is necessary for the United States of America to go to war with Iran because of it.
Our deal with is Israel, is to have their back against any aggression. ACTUAL AGGRESSION! We would be PLAIN STUPID to go to war with Iran, because of rhetoric!
And please don’t give me that same old tired Neville Chamberlain argument. There is no comparison to be had here. Certainly not an intelligent one.
If Israel doesn’t want the proliferation of nuclear weapons in the Middle-East, why does Israel refuse to ratify the Non-proliferation Treaty?
Because ISRAEL has Nuclear weapons and everyone knows it. Netanyahu during his address to the joint session said “Israel can defend itself”. THEN DO IT ALREADY!
How can we just be blind to these things? America is better than this. Americans are better than this.
Israel wants us to get a better deal with Iran. I want a better deal with Israel. Before it’s too late! Israel has entirely too much influence in our politics and on our Politicians!
The amount of money Israeli lobbyist pay our ELECTED Politician’s is obscene.
To all those who want to “TAKE OUR COUNTRY BACK ” OR MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN ” OR ANY any other such nonsense…START HERE! Lets see if you serious or Et tu BRUTE?
To the rest of us remember they are an ally NOT the 51st STATE!