Some Sort of Perspective

How can we put America's starvation of Gaza in some sort of perspective? Do we write songs about it? Do we hold up signs? How do we get beyond what our country is capable of doing? Has it always been that way and we didn't notice?

The pictures are already upon us. The skeletal bodies and shrunken eyes. There are 90,000 children under imminent threat of starvation. The trucks are only a few miles away, but Israel, backed by its partner in crime, the United States, has decided not to let them through.

Do you think we live in a humane society? That we follow some sort of moral code? Do we believe in a God that doesn't slaughter children? How did we end up in a country that always puts money and power before its basic humanity?

We the people forced an end to our invasion and occupation of Vietnam. Not in time to save the lives of 58,000 US troops and over two million Vietnamese people. We worked at it, defying the police and the college administrators that kept telling us to shut up and be patriotic. It turned out that the war resisters were the patriots. Those in power were the liars and the murderers.

Today, we must overcome the apartheid state of Israel, a toxic mixture of religious fanaticism and wanton cruelty. We must end our support of this genocide against the Palestinian people. The battle is for the soul of our democracy, just as it was in Vietnam.

Fred

A protected part of free speech

Dear Daily Freeman:

When I was a child I shopped with my mother to buy a new blanket. In the store, I longingly stroked a cloud-soft white wool blanket, but my mother shook her head. Why? She showed me the label: "Made in Germany". I knew we had relatives who were murdered in the holocaust, perpetrated by Nazi Germany in World War II.

What a peaceful, meaningful act: a boycott, a protected part of free speech. For me, the holocaust meant "Never Again" for anyone. Never again the murder of civilians by a heavily armed state.

An event to talk about the Boycott Divestment and Sanction movement, which addresses Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian land in the West Bank, and the ongoing starvation, slaughter and ethnic cleansing taking place in Gaza, was cancelled due to threats from supporters of Israel. This makes clear that for some, there is nothing Israel does that can be criticized, even in a peaceful way. For these supporters, criticism of Israel will be met with violence.

Sincerely,

Marcy

Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been

Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been Critical Of Israel?

We live in a quid pro quo political universe. There are few laws that can keep the very rich from buying up all our elected representatives. The trick is to buy both the Republicans and the Democrats, and that is what the very rich have been doing for decades.

Foreign countries have learned this lesson as well. The Israel Lobby was there for Harry Truman when he was running low on reelection cash. In turn, he pressured the UN to recognize the state of Israel, in spite of the fact that Palestine was already owned by someone else.

More recently, the Israel Lobby has emerged as the most sinister political pressure group in our nation's capital. Biden was paid more than any other member of Congress during his long, quid pro quo career. Trump has done him one better, selling the move of the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem for 20 million in cash. Sheldon Adelson, billionaire Zionist, paid for the bribe.

A brief look at opensecrets.org will find that even our local House Representatives are awash in Israel Lobby money. Representative Pat Ryan from the Hudson Valley  stood tall against any cease fire resolution, despite the fact that millions of children in Gaza were starving. The Israel Lobby gave him over two hundred thousand last year to look the other way. In fact, the Lobby paid Congress over $58 million during the last election cycle, more than any other political action committee.   

But the US Empire is getting something more from its troubled relationship with apartheid Israel. The dominance of the Middle East has long been one of the Empire's goals, and Israel is more than willing to be our military proxy. That way, American troops aren't committing war crimes or dying in our perpetual wars for oil. The various international courts like the ICC and the ICJ blame Israel and not the Empire for the charnel house that Gaza has become. And the rest of the world strongly condemns Israel for crimes against humanity, while overlooking the country that is supplying the missiles and two thousand pound bombs.

Another benefit for the Empire is the right to use "antisemitism" to crush human rights groups in the United States. Controlling the free expression of ideas has long been a goal of the Empire, especially when college students and faculty speak out against US militarism and racism. Now, our Congress is busy passing laws that equate all criticism of Israel's war crimes with antisemitism. You don't like the destruction of the hospitals, universities, and public infrastructure in Gaza? Why, you must be an antisemite! Don't think starvation should be used as a weapon of war? Why, you must hate all Jews!

How many students will be mistreated or expelled under this new McCarthyism? How many teachers will be terminated or denied tenure? How many reporters will be fired? The Empire is having a field day with its new weapon against the free expression of ideas. Even bringing up the fact that the International Court of Justice found Israel guilty of genocide could cost someone their job.    

Some pro Israel institutions are more than willing to support the Empire's assault on our First Amendment rights. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance has come out with a definition of antisemitism that includes several examples of criticizing Israel. Many local and state governing bodies have accepted this flawed definition, without thinking too much about it. But conflating antisemitism with criticism of Israel has dangerous consequences for freedom of speech throughout American society. Apartheid and genocide must always be resisted, despite what the Empire would have us believe.

Fred

Lettter sent to congressional "reprsentatives."

The deliberate starving to death of civilians in Gaza, especially infants and children, is a crime equal to any genocide the world has ever seen. Deaths of Armenians at the hands of the Ottomans during World War I, murder of Jews by the Nazi government of Germany during World War II and deaths of half a million Tutsis in Rwanda in the 1990s are all chilling reminders of the inhumanity to which governments can descend. 

Now genocide is being supported by the government of my own country. And, unlike these earlier genocides, video images of this one are everywhere. We can watch the starving babies on CNN. The claims of “self-defense” issued by the government of Israel are an insult to our intelligence.

And none of this would be happening without the active support of the US government.

As your constituent, I demand that congress take action to remove the US from its role as enabler of this horrific attempt to exterminate the Palestinian people. All weapons shipments to Israel must stop. The blockade must end. The starving people must be fed.

Dick

From Ahmad--

How can I contain myself and stay sane in a world that is governed by either complicit or genocidal leadership. Over 18 months of genocides in Palestine and constant erosion of civil liberties, human rights and moral standing across the world.

Since Oct 7, 2023, the countries of the world as well as the institutions they have built internally and collaboratively externally have been exposed for their complicity, duplicity and effective participation by aiding and abetting genocide in Palestine (Gaza and the West Bank). Also, the morally bankrupt empire and its lackeys (proxies) have been on a rampage, suppressing their constituents by reverting to anarchy and enforcing colonial laws to silence dissent.

Additionally, the International laws that have been formulated to ensure peaceful resolution of conflicts and disciplining the non-compliant have been flagrantly ignored. Clearly, the winners of WWI and WWII have established the system of the UN only to serve their interest and protect them. The established laws are valid only to prosecute everyone but them and their proxies.

Clearly, the over 18 months of genocide have brought clarity and removed the masks from the faces of the pretenders. The sacred laws held dear to the Western world and the democracy preached by them have been exposed as lies to their own people and the world at large. Unfortunately, the warmongers, and the power- and wealth-hungry are forming a formidable front that is destroying nations, lives and the climate, and subjugating other countries to either internal wars and/ or poverty through sanctions, or arming factions in support of continued war. Also, they are enhancing their wealth by robbing the hard-working families of food, shelter, heath-care and education.

The situation is gloomy and depressing. The war machine is not stopping despite the protests of millions across the world. The students and the educational institutions who are the nucleus of change have been under attack and sidelined. Freedom of speech has been shut down using colonial laws and baseless claims of antisemitism. More poverty, homelessness and hatreds (of Islam, immigrants, genders, etc.) across the world.

That said, how do we move forward and what leverage do we have to fight back? It is crystal clear that the US and its proxies are the perpetrators of eroding human rights and international law. What is at stake is our collective civil liberties and human rights. Its the time for activists to take advantage of the onslaught to galvanize everyone behind the noble cause of gaining back our civil liberties and fair and just institutions. It is the time to shift the center of gravity from the few who have the power and resources to the many: people power. Activism at this point must be inclusive because we all reject subjugation, oppression and loss of the resources that are rightfully ours.

Despite the relentless attacks, we must be steadfast against their tactics of fear-mongering and attempt to co-opt our movement using our diversity or political identity. United, we will create a formidable coalition and build communities to head off the flagrant attacks and gain back our collective liberty and humanity. United we will stand a chance.

Finally, the gloomier the situation appears the more hope I have. And the darker it gets the more will be impacted and will be forced to wake up and notice that their civil liberties and well-beings are at stake; thus, the base of activism will expand and include even those we thought are hopeless.

Liberation will come with sacrifice, steadfastness and building broad-based community.

JOIN US THIS SATURDAY AND EVERY SATURDAY AS WE DEFEND GAZA FROM ISRAEL'S GENOCIDE!

Dear Mr. Stern

 

Dear Mr. Stern:

As commendable as your speaking out about the IHRA definition of antisemitism being used to silence speech is, I am mystified by your part in promulgating the definition in the first place. You have claimed that the definition was intended to study and track antisemitism, not to restrict speech. But the following examples serve no discernible purpose other than restriction of free speech and defense of Israel from criticism:

"Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor." 
Amnesty International, Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, the author Peter Beinart, and many other individuals, groups, and institutions have described Israel's system of government as apartheid. That is, a racist form of government. A state in which Jews have superior rights to all other groups is obviously a racist endeavor. It is not antisemitic to state this. 

"Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation." 
Free speech guarantees the freedom to criticize any country, without the requirement that every other country which exhibits similar behavior must be included in the criticism. This example is simply absurd. It is, however, an AIPAC talking point, embraced by defenders of Israel.

"Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis." 
Does the description of Palestinians as "human animals" resemble Nazi propaganda films that equated swarming rats with Jews? What about computing the number of calories the people of Gaza need to survive, but no more? What about blocking all food, water, and electricity? What about killing more than 60,000 Palestinians (with no end in sight) because 800 Jewish civilians died on October 7, 2023? 

These are important questions that demand answers. You defend the definition you wrote, but imply it's being wrongly applied. When will you look at the actual examples chosen, and admit their only purpose is to defend the state of Israel, not protect Jews from antisemitism? And when will you work to have them removed?

As a Jewish woman who was raised with a strong awareness of the Jewish religion, the holocaust, and my grandparent's Yiddish Socialist background, I condemn the state of Israel for its human rights violations and the genocide it is conducting. Zionism, the political ideology you embrace, has ever and always been about Jewish supremacy. The IHRA definition, by including the above examples, as well as others, does not address antisemitism. It instead seeks to shield the state of Israel from criticism. When will you address these basic faults?

Sincerely,

Marcy

Antisemitism and “Antisemitism”

The assault on freedom of speech and on higher education in the US continues as if on steroids. And the mainstream media accepts and repeats the government actors using the pretense of defending against antisemitism and against “the enemy.”

The abduction, detention and jailing of students and faculty by ICE or other entities is being used to send a clear message to “shut up or else.” This is done with the tacit, and often even active, collaboration of local authorities and institutions, including universities.

To understand the various aspects of the use of antisemitism to justify these excesses, Timothy Snyder’s piece illustrates how they are manipulated and promote very tangible racist antisemitic ideas. 

https://open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p/fomenting-antisemitism?r=3u5ol&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

A big part of these attacks is centered on the denial of Palestinian humanity to "justify" the genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). 

Just last week we had a well-attended and engaged discussion about the message that the film “The Palestine Exception” so clearly documents. (See below for info about Monday night showing on SUNY NP campus.)

The charge of “antisemitism,” along with other “sins” like promoting Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI), is being used as a pretext for defunding education and dismantling even the meekest policies to fight racism and discrimination.

A big stick in this campaign is the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism that gives “examples” to help identify antisemitism. Out of the 11 examples, seven are speaking or writing in opposition to Israeli policies such as:

·       Claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.
·       Applying double standards to Israel by requiring of it behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.
·       Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.

If this was an abstract issue, it could be argued that it is just a question of opinions and nothing more.
But the IHRA’s statement has been adopted by federal, state and local governments and by non-governmental institutions as a weapon to silence any and all opposition to Israel’s policies and actions, including the massacres and  ethnic cleansing of Gaza and the OPT. This goes well with the goal of creating a submissive population that will go along with the destruction of any semblance of democracy and civil rights.

Under the IHRA’s definition, even the current criticism against the government in Israel by millions of Israelis would make them "antisemites." Not to mention, of course, those Israelis that have been fighting for years alongside Palestinians against the racism of apartheid laws and policies. This includes organizations and groups focused on witnessing and informing the world of what is going on in the OPT as well as individuals refusing to serve in the army. These are being violently repressed and even imprisoned. 

In the last several years, more and more Israelis, while still a small minority, have abandoned the false promises of the “Zionist dream” and joined with Palestinians in the fight for a truly democratic state with equal rights for all. 

In the meantime, we stand every Saturday in solidarity with Palestinians as they struggle to survive Israel's genocidal assaults, starvation, and land theft. We demand an arms embargo on Israel--U.S. stop funding and enabling Israel's genocide. Join us! 

Yakov