Israel's continued insistence on attacking Gaza with all its disproportionate might, killing hundreds of people, is barbaric and self-defeating, for if they really want peace they wouldn't do it. Nor would they build a partition wall on Palestinian territory. Nor would they cut off electricity and water to millions of Gazans. Nor would they refuse to allow humanitarian aid (food, medicine and other basic needs) into Gaza to help the hundreds of thousands who are destitute as the result of their collective punishment for having democratically elected Hamas into their government.
No one dares to say it here in the U.S., where few people understand the truth about the history of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, but Hamas is not a terrorist group. It is a national, patriotic, humanitarian organization which was voted in by Palestinians because of all the good things they have done for them and their dedication to defending them against a criminal occupation.
Since taking power in Palestine, the Hamas leader has several times extended an olive branch of compromise to Israel with assurances that if it ends the occupation, removes the illegal settlements and apartheid wall, and withdraws to the 1967 borders, it would be possible for the two entities to live side by side in peace. These overtures were ignored ... even by most in the American press.
Israel's ongoing violent occupation speaks volumes about its intentions for Palestine and its people. Yet, we refuse to see it and effectively intercede. Such actions and America's apparent blind support of them merely serve to breed terrorism, not prevent it. Is this what we want? Israel has not learned that destructive air strikes in Gaza, Lebanon, or anywhere else will not quell the masses as it always claims it will. Instead, it will foment further hatred and indignation and more generations of resisters will undoubtedly emerge.
If, on the other hand, Israel is being honest about wanting peace, then I urge you to persuade its leaders to cease with this continued, counterproductive policy of oppression and inhumane treatment of Palestinians and the usurpation of their land by illegal settlements and government land grabs.
If we don't take action, our country is sure to go down in history as Israel's biggest partner in extinguishing an entire indigenous population. Is that what we want?
This is not a legacy that I as an American citizen wish to share.
Please do something to stop these air strikes on Gaza. These people have already suffered beyond our comprehension.
Thank you for your time.
Elaine Shiber
Van Lear
The Jewish people have been treated abominably through the centuries, as you know. One reason for this is self-inflicted isolationism, of course. Interestingly, however much propaganda tells us otherwise, they received immense refuge among Muslims of the Arab world, especially after the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisitions from which Spanish Jews & Muslims both fled to Arab countries...Morocco in particular. The 20th century Holocaust, which took the lives of millions of innocents, chiefly (but not restricted to) Jews, was a Western world crime in which Arabs had absolutely no part. I find it quite ironic, therefore, that Arab Muslims and Christians have to pay the price for the Western world's sins, especially when they have historically been protectors of Jewish (and Christian) rights within the framework of Islam. There are many Jews who became very well-to-do and/or rose to great renown in the Islamic world, e.g. the great physician Maimonides.
doc1stdiv: Quack! I do have a life beyond this :) It's the cruel injustice that continues to fester that keeps me at it.
jack2005: The crude comments in your first entry were unwarranted. As you said, "Each writes history as they see it", but one should be able to do so without risk of being personally derided.
Putting that aside, however, I totally agree that the situation in the Middle East is far more complicated than most of us think. That is why I write about it. Mine is an unusual perspective seldom seen in this region, since I, American born and Christian bred, have lived in the Middle East and have read a great deal on the issue from both the Zionist & non-Zionist Jew perspective, and from the Palestinian Muslim & Christian perspective. Moreover, I keep right up-to-date on events, not only from non-governmental organizations (e.g. World Health Organization, Amnesty International, International Atomic Energy Agency and others), but also by reading reports in several newspapers in the U.S., Great Britain, Israel and in the Occupied Territories (Palestine).
So, what I say comes from a wealth of information absorbed over a long period of time and keeping current. People may not agree with or even believe my assessments, but they can be sure I have made them through careful thought.
It is very important to share information we believe others may not have access to. Through sharing, we learn. We Americans are brought up with total sympathy for Israel and total animosity, bordering on hatred, towards the native people the Zionist state displaced and has subsequently held captive for decades. It's about time we hear more about the other side of its history and America's (current and past)role in it, so we can help solve this festering problem. It is, after all, our tax dollars (3.5-plus Billion a year) and weapons that are helping to perpetuate it.
Before anyone who comments on this they need to go back in history and read...Not only from U.S. history bc OUR government lies, go research on the net!!
Cant believe this, get slaughter on your own land that was stolen from them!