Why Bother with Sculpture?Just Spray His Comatose Corpse with Thin Plaster of Paris.
It Will Harden Fast, and Voila!
It is a Lot Cheaper!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Lebanon – land of phantom oil deals, spies and political murder
Robert Fisk on the real story behind Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent visit
"....And the dark spectre of Iranian oil men drilling the Mediterranean seabed 70 miles north of the Israeli border is also illusory. French and Norwegian companies have done much of the drilling in Iran; the refining has been carried out by French and Italian companies. Now the Russians and Chinese are doing the same job in Iran. The idea that Tehran would furnish cash to pay Moscow and Peking to explore reserves off Lebanon is close to fantasy.
So why on earth did the Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and the Lebanese Energy Minister Gebran Bassil sit down to sign those 17 agreements a week ago? Herein lies a tale. For it just so happens that Mr Bassil is the son-in-law of the Christian Maronite ex-general Michel Aoun whose political party long ago aligned itself with Syria and Iran. In Lebanon, its Christian supporters have thus found themselves an ally of Hizbollah and in opposition to the majority government of the Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
On the surface, this makes sense. Aoun is helping the Iranians to move into the Lebanese economy. But right now, the ex-general has a few other things on his mind. For a start, three of the team of alleged spies for Israel arrested by the Lebanese army over the past nine months have turned out to be working for Aoun's party. And this "spy ring" is supposed to have been involved in amassing data within the Lebanese communications system. Indeed, one of them was a senior official in Lebanon's largest mobile telephone network...."
"....And the dark spectre of Iranian oil men drilling the Mediterranean seabed 70 miles north of the Israeli border is also illusory. French and Norwegian companies have done much of the drilling in Iran; the refining has been carried out by French and Italian companies. Now the Russians and Chinese are doing the same job in Iran. The idea that Tehran would furnish cash to pay Moscow and Peking to explore reserves off Lebanon is close to fantasy.
So why on earth did the Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and the Lebanese Energy Minister Gebran Bassil sit down to sign those 17 agreements a week ago? Herein lies a tale. For it just so happens that Mr Bassil is the son-in-law of the Christian Maronite ex-general Michel Aoun whose political party long ago aligned itself with Syria and Iran. In Lebanon, its Christian supporters have thus found themselves an ally of Hizbollah and in opposition to the majority government of the Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
On the surface, this makes sense. Aoun is helping the Iranians to move into the Lebanese economy. But right now, the ex-general has a few other things on his mind. For a start, three of the team of alleged spies for Israel arrested by the Lebanese army over the past nine months have turned out to be working for Aoun's party. And this "spy ring" is supposed to have been involved in amassing data within the Lebanese communications system. Indeed, one of them was a senior official in Lebanon's largest mobile telephone network...."
Sarkozy came to power on a mission to change a nation. He has failed
By John Lichfield
The Independent
"President Nicolas Sarkozy came to power three years ago planning not just to reform France but to mess with, and change, the country's mind. Like Margaret Thatcher in Britain in the 1980s, he set out to create a more enterprising, can-do country; less obsessed with acquired rights and traditions and prepared to unleash its own latent creativity and to "work harder to earn more".
Whatever the outcome of the present dispute, it seems that Mr Sarkozy has already lost this battle. Millions of people took to the French streets yesterday.....
Whose fault is that? Mostly it is Mr Sarkozy's fault. There was a mood for real change in the country after his election in May 2007. But this has been frittered away by the President on a series of half-hearted and disconnected reforms which have often seemed to favour the rich. Having promised the French a government that would be all about Vous, he has delivered a presidency which has often been about Moi.
Worse may be still to come. The more militant, or more mindless, protests have no coherent leadership, no realistic objectives and could yet spin out of control. Mr Sarkozy will not back down but he could decide to crack down – with unforeseeable consequences."
The Independent
"President Nicolas Sarkozy came to power three years ago planning not just to reform France but to mess with, and change, the country's mind. Like Margaret Thatcher in Britain in the 1980s, he set out to create a more enterprising, can-do country; less obsessed with acquired rights and traditions and prepared to unleash its own latent creativity and to "work harder to earn more".
Whatever the outcome of the present dispute, it seems that Mr Sarkozy has already lost this battle. Millions of people took to the French streets yesterday.....
Whose fault is that? Mostly it is Mr Sarkozy's fault. There was a mood for real change in the country after his election in May 2007. But this has been frittered away by the President on a series of half-hearted and disconnected reforms which have often seemed to favour the rich. Having promised the French a government that would be all about Vous, he has delivered a presidency which has often been about Moi.
Worse may be still to come. The more militant, or more mindless, protests have no coherent leadership, no realistic objectives and could yet spin out of control. Mr Sarkozy will not back down but he could decide to crack down – with unforeseeable consequences."
Who calls the shots in Iraq?
Reports on al-Maliki's visit to Tehran have overplayed the extent of Iran's regional influence
I disagree with Sami Ramadani about this article, but I am posting it anyway.
Sami Ramadani
The Guardian, Wednesday 20 October 2010
"....Second, there are other players, Iraqi and regional, who are keen on exaggerating Iran's influence in Iraq. Saddam loyalists, for example, who insist that Iran is a greater danger to Iraq than American occupation. Or the myriad Iraqi politicians who believe that hostility to Iran is their ticket to gaining US backing. Even the Islamic Supreme Council, a sectarian party led by the Shia cleric Ammar al-Hakim – whose forces were stationed in Iran before 2003 – have been drawn into the realities of US domination and been distancing themselves from the more anti-US Iranians, led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iraqis are reminded daily that it is the US, not Iran, which is the foremost foreign influence in their country. They also know that, despite promises to the contrary, strategic interests are such that the US will endeavour to maintain its presence in Iraq beyond the deadline of 2011, by trying to secure a pro‑Washington regime in Baghdad.[and what is it exactly that Iran is trying to do by bullying everyone to back the puppet Maliki, Mr. Ramadani?]"
I disagree with Sami Ramadani about this article, but I am posting it anyway.
Sami Ramadani
The Guardian, Wednesday 20 October 2010
"....Second, there are other players, Iraqi and regional, who are keen on exaggerating Iran's influence in Iraq. Saddam loyalists, for example, who insist that Iran is a greater danger to Iraq than American occupation. Or the myriad Iraqi politicians who believe that hostility to Iran is their ticket to gaining US backing. Even the Islamic Supreme Council, a sectarian party led by the Shia cleric Ammar al-Hakim – whose forces were stationed in Iran before 2003 – have been drawn into the realities of US domination and been distancing themselves from the more anti-US Iranians, led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iraqis are reminded daily that it is the US, not Iran, which is the foremost foreign influence in their country. They also know that, despite promises to the contrary, strategic interests are such that the US will endeavour to maintain its presence in Iraq beyond the deadline of 2011, by trying to secure a pro‑Washington regime in Baghdad.[and what is it exactly that Iran is trying to do by bullying everyone to back the puppet Maliki, Mr. Ramadani?]"
Israeli-Arabs fear for their future
Arab citizens say they feel increasingly unwelcome in Israel and fear forced transfer to a new Palestinian state
Rachel Shabi in Umm al-Fahm
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 19 October 2010
"Like other Arab citizens of Israel, Leyla Ahmoud is anxious about her future. A young mother of two girls with another on the way, Ahmoud says recent moves by the Israeli government are making it increasingly obvious that the Arabs are not welcome in their own country.
"I feel like my life is not in my hands," said 24-year-old Ahmoud, who lives in Umm al-Fahm, a mountain-ridge town of some 43,000 inhabitants in northern Israel. "The government decides how I live and where I live. We exist in fear, from one day to the next."
Israel's prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, famously referred to Arab citizens of Israel, who make up a fifth of the population, as a "demographic bomb" in 2003. His cabinet recently passed a new citizens bill that, if approved, will require all non-Jewish migrants to pledge loyalty to Israel as a "Jewish and democratic state" – although, apparently in response to international pressure, the law may now be amended to apply to all new migrants, including Jews....."
Rachel Shabi in Umm al-Fahm
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 19 October 2010
"Like other Arab citizens of Israel, Leyla Ahmoud is anxious about her future. A young mother of two girls with another on the way, Ahmoud says recent moves by the Israeli government are making it increasingly obvious that the Arabs are not welcome in their own country.
"I feel like my life is not in my hands," said 24-year-old Ahmoud, who lives in Umm al-Fahm, a mountain-ridge town of some 43,000 inhabitants in northern Israel. "The government decides how I live and where I live. We exist in fear, from one day to the next."
Israel's prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, famously referred to Arab citizens of Israel, who make up a fifth of the population, as a "demographic bomb" in 2003. His cabinet recently passed a new citizens bill that, if approved, will require all non-Jewish migrants to pledge loyalty to Israel as a "Jewish and democratic state" – although, apparently in response to international pressure, the law may now be amended to apply to all new migrants, including Jews....."
UAE: Spousal Abuse Never a ‘Right’
"(Dubai) - A decision by the United Arab Emirates Federal Supreme Court upholding a husband's right to "chastise" his wife and children with physical abuse violates the right of the country's women and children to liberty, security, and equality in the family - and potentially their right to life, Human Rights Watch said today. The ruling, citing the UAE penal code, sanctions beating and other forms of punishment or coercion providing the violence leaves no physical marks.
Human Rights Watch called on the government urgently to repeal all discriminatory laws, including any that sanction domestic violence.
"This ruling by the UAE's highest court is evidence that the authorities consider violence against women and children to be completely acceptable," said Nadya Khalife, Middle East women's rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Domestic violence should never be tolerated under any circumstances. These provisions are blatantly demeaning to women and pose serious risks to their well-being."......"
Human Rights Watch called on the government urgently to repeal all discriminatory laws, including any that sanction domestic violence.
"This ruling by the UAE's highest court is evidence that the authorities consider violence against women and children to be completely acceptable," said Nadya Khalife, Middle East women's rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Domestic violence should never be tolerated under any circumstances. These provisions are blatantly demeaning to women and pose serious risks to their well-being."......"
US: The dishonest broker
Despite high expectation for Barack Obama, the US president has not convinced Israel to cease settlement construction.
By Avi Shlaim
Al-Jazeera
"....There are many reasons for America’s failure to broker a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians but the most fundamental one is that it is a dishonest broker. As a result of its palpable partiality towards Israel, America has lost all credibility in the eyes not only of the Palestinians but of the wider Arab and Muslim worlds.
The so-called peace process has been all process and no peace. Peace talks that go nowhere slowly provide Israel with just the cover it needs to pursue its expansionist agenda on the West Bank.
The asymmetry of power between Israel and the Palestinians is so great that only a third party can bridge the gap. In plain language, this means leaning on Israel to end the occupation and to permit the emergence of an independent Palestinian state on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
In theory America is committed to a two-state solution to the conflict but in practise it has done very little to push Israel into such a settlement. It is not that America lacks the means to bring pressure to bear on Israel. On the contrary, Israel is crucially, and almost exclusively, dependent on America for military, diplomatic, and financial support.
America’s financial support amounts to three billion dollars a year. So the leverage is there.....
The American position is pusillanimous and feeble. Instead of taking a firm position on the side of the Palestinians and pressing the point of principle, they press the weaker party to make more and more concessions. Under these conditions, the prospects of a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are close to zero.
There is no light at the end of the tunnel, only more illegal settlements, and consequently more strife, more violence, more bloodshed, and ultimately another war."
By Avi Shlaim
Al-Jazeera
"....There are many reasons for America’s failure to broker a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians but the most fundamental one is that it is a dishonest broker. As a result of its palpable partiality towards Israel, America has lost all credibility in the eyes not only of the Palestinians but of the wider Arab and Muslim worlds.
The so-called peace process has been all process and no peace. Peace talks that go nowhere slowly provide Israel with just the cover it needs to pursue its expansionist agenda on the West Bank.
The asymmetry of power between Israel and the Palestinians is so great that only a third party can bridge the gap. In plain language, this means leaning on Israel to end the occupation and to permit the emergence of an independent Palestinian state on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
In theory America is committed to a two-state solution to the conflict but in practise it has done very little to push Israel into such a settlement. It is not that America lacks the means to bring pressure to bear on Israel. On the contrary, Israel is crucially, and almost exclusively, dependent on America for military, diplomatic, and financial support.
America’s financial support amounts to three billion dollars a year. So the leverage is there.....
The American position is pusillanimous and feeble. Instead of taking a firm position on the side of the Palestinians and pressing the point of principle, they press the weaker party to make more and more concessions. Under these conditions, the prospects of a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are close to zero.
There is no light at the end of the tunnel, only more illegal settlements, and consequently more strife, more violence, more bloodshed, and ultimately another war."
جريمة الاعتراف بيهودية الكيان الصهيوني
"....
ولهذا حين تعلن سلطة رام الله باسم رئيسها وناطقها الرسمي أن موضوع يهودية الدولة "شأن خاص لا يعنينا". ومن ثم "لماذا لا نعترف أو لا نعترف به؟"، أو عندما يطالب أمين سر اللجنة التنفيذية (المزعوم والمزعومة) لمنظمة التحرير ياسر عبد ربه بمقايضة دولة فلسطينية على حدود 1967 مقابل الاعتراف بالدولة اليهودية أو يهودية الدولة، فإن الأمر هنا يصل إلى حدّ الخيانة العظمى للقضية الفلسطينية ولحقوق الشعب الفلسطيني التاريخية والحالية ولأجزاء الشعب الفلسطينية التي تشكل أغلبيته سواء أولئك الذين بقوا في وطنهم تحت الدولة الصهيونية أم أولئك الذين هجّروا من الوطن في 1948-1949.
أما الذين يهوّنون من إضافة تعبير اليهودية هنا باعتبار أن لا جديد فيها فيرتكبون خطأ فادحا في إدراك محتواه وأبعاده وأخطاره المتعدّدة الأهداف والقاتلة للقضية والشعب والحقوق والثوابت.
"
ولهذا حين تعلن سلطة رام الله باسم رئيسها وناطقها الرسمي أن موضوع يهودية الدولة "شأن خاص لا يعنينا". ومن ثم "لماذا لا نعترف أو لا نعترف به؟"، أو عندما يطالب أمين سر اللجنة التنفيذية (المزعوم والمزعومة) لمنظمة التحرير ياسر عبد ربه بمقايضة دولة فلسطينية على حدود 1967 مقابل الاعتراف بالدولة اليهودية أو يهودية الدولة، فإن الأمر هنا يصل إلى حدّ الخيانة العظمى للقضية الفلسطينية ولحقوق الشعب الفلسطيني التاريخية والحالية ولأجزاء الشعب الفلسطينية التي تشكل أغلبيته سواء أولئك الذين بقوا في وطنهم تحت الدولة الصهيونية أم أولئك الذين هجّروا من الوطن في 1948-1949.
أما الذين يهوّنون من إضافة تعبير اليهودية هنا باعتبار أن لا جديد فيها فيرتكبون خطأ فادحا في إدراك محتواه وأبعاده وأخطاره المتعدّدة الأهداف والقاتلة للقضية والشعب والحقوق والثوابت.
"
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
I want to exercise my birth right as well...
Since Israel and Zionist are insisting on having the world and Arabs recognize Israel as a "Jewish State" or a State for "Jews only" or a "Jewish and Democratic" state.
This new twist in the negotiations has triggered debate and points of views that are very varied , some believe this insistence on the Jewishness will create an apartheid state where non-Jews will become seventh class citizens , and some fear Israel will proceed with an ethnic cleansing procedure of the 1.2 million Palestinian Arabs living in "Israel". Some see this as the only way "Israel" will survive some see this is the demise of "Israel". I was talking to one Jewish friend recently who told me that he did not feel he needed to exercise his birthright to go and live in "Israel" , because he preferred living in the USA more. Now I thought about it for a good two minutes... Here is a clean cut gentleman who never been to "Israel", does not speak Hebrew, does not observe most Jewish holidays, does not go to the temple , does not keep Kosher and does not observe the sabbath, yet he has the BIRTH RIGHT to go and live in "Israel" as "Jew" since being Jewish has nothing to do with religion apparently and has to do with what your ancestors decided to worship. While most of my Palestinian friends can NEVER go back although their families have been living there for hundreds and hundreds of years and lost their land in 48 or 67 (a very well documented recent case of exile)
Yes I know I am not writing anything new here but an Idea came to me while hearing him talk about his birth right:
Why not have all the Palestinians convert to Judaism and then have them exercise their birth right and go back to their land. I mean they have a better claim to it than 95% of the Jews who are not native to Palestine , and invented the myth of exile and are using the murky line between culture/religion/nation to colonize Palestine. if Palestinians go through a mass conversion (we need a cool Sheik to allow it to happen on the Muslim side , and a cool rabbi to do mass conversions to help expedite the process) within a few years all
Palestinians who where kicked out of their land , can go back and claim it back , they can even live on stolen land in the west bank without anyone complaining , how cool is that ? This solves all the problems we are facing:
- Israel does not become an Apartheid state (since it is homogeneous now )
- No need to worry about any UN resolution since the refugees are now back and they can even colonize Jerusalem, even a cooler idea
- No need to worry about ethnic cleansing since the population inside Israel converted as well
- Jewish and Democratic will allow the "new Jewish immigrants" to vote in the new Jewish party "Khamas" into power
- Through national democratic referendum everyone votes on whether Zionism should be the allowed to exist and by a majority of the new Jewish vote it will be defeated (no reason for it anymore)
- The new Jews can democratically change the name of their country since they are a majority now to Falasteen.
One consequence is that a number of Israelis of European descent will find Palestine too crowded with "darker Jews who can dance and make better hummus than we do" and will decide to exercise their original birth right and go back to the truly democratic and secular European states they came from. I am starting the conversion process immediately , I am circumcised already (thank God) so it should be easy , I am contacting the local temple and started looking at real estate in Akka , birth right here I come !!
Obama expands his Islamophobia to include Sikhs as well
US President Barack Obama has has ruled out a visit to the Golden Temple in Amritsar, sacred to Sikhs, because Obama does not want to wear the head-covering that is required as a sign of respect.
It's hard to imagine anything more insulting to his hosts than this. But of course Obama had absolutely no qualms about wearing a religiously-mandated head-covering when he visited the Wailing Wail, holy to Jews, in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem as part of his pandering to US Zionists and other racists when he was running for president, as the photo above from his July 2008 visit to Israel and occupied Jerusalem shows (The Guardian).Obama's aides finally came up with the idea of a "modified" baseball cap. It would have to be modified because the Golden Temple does not permit a baseball cap instead of a headscarf. In fact, the temple authorities have no problems with skull caps.As Giani Gurbachan Singh, head priest of the Golden Temple, puts it: "We have no problems if he wears a skull cap, the kind that Muslims wear to the mosque - or any other cap that is modified to something similar. But we don't allow baseball caps or Army hats."
Saudi prince convicted of murder
[ What is the filthiest family name in Arabic ? "Al Saud " without a doubt ]
A Saudi prince has been convicted of murdering one of his servants in a frenzied attack in a British hotel.
A jury in London's Old Bailey criminal court on Tuesday found Prince Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud guilty of murdering Bandar Abdullah Abdulaziz at the Landmark Hotel in London on February 15.
The 34-year-old prince, whose grandfather is a brother of the current Saudi king, faces a possible life term in prison when he is sentenced on Wednesday.
The jury deliberated 95 minutes before returning its verdict.
Sexual abuse
Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw said the prince had abused his aide in the past, showing jurors a video shot in the Landmark's elevator which appears to show the prince, dressed in white, throwing his 32-year-old servant around and battering him.
Photographs of Abdulaziz stored on a mobile phone "plainly proved" that there was a "sexual element" to the abuse, Laidlaw said.
"Beneath the surface this was a deeply abusive relationship which the defendant exploited, as the assaults in the lift so graphically demonstrate, for sadistic reasons, for his own personal gratification," Laidlaw told the jury. [Not surprised , look at the case in Abu Dhabi a few years ago where another prince tortured an afghan and recorded it and displayed on the big screen for his guests. Sick corrupt people can only give birth to sicker more corrupt children]
Al-Jazeera Video: Questions over US contractors role in war zones
"US troops numbers have increased since President Barrack Obama took office. But they are still outnumbered by private companies that have been hired to carry out some US operations. A recent US Senate report found many of these private contractors are funneling funds to Afghan warlords. Tom Ackerman reports on how the contractors themselves view their future."
Fearing Increased Wikileaks 'Credibility', Pentagon Asks Media Not to Use Leaked War Files
AP
"WASHINGTON - The Pentagon asked media organizations yesterday not to publish any classified war files released by the WikiLeaks website as the United States braces for the potential disclosure of hundreds of thousands of secret Iraq war documents.
In July, WikiLeaks obtained and released nearly 77,000 classified military reports from Afghanistan. Now, the Pentagon says the group has as many as 400,000 documents from a military database on operations in Iraq....."
"WASHINGTON - The Pentagon asked media organizations yesterday not to publish any classified war files released by the WikiLeaks website as the United States braces for the potential disclosure of hundreds of thousands of secret Iraq war documents.
In July, WikiLeaks obtained and released nearly 77,000 classified military reports from Afghanistan. Now, the Pentagon says the group has as many as 400,000 documents from a military database on operations in Iraq....."
Report: Barghouthi to be freed in Shalit deal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to release Fatah strongman Marwan Barghouthi in a prisoner swap deal for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit when finalized, a Saudi Arabian newspaper reported Tuesday.
According to Al-Madina, quoting sources, the German mediator told Hamas that Barghouthi would be freed but other prisoners on the Islamist movement's list would not.
Barghouthi's wife Fadwa told a German anti-nuclear war delegation visiting Ramallah that she too had also received word that her husband would be released in the prisoner swap deal.
According to Al-Madina, quoting sources, the German mediator told Hamas that Barghouthi would be freed but other prisoners on the Islamist movement's list would not.
Barghouthi's wife Fadwa told a German anti-nuclear war delegation visiting Ramallah that she too had also received word that her husband would be released in the prisoner swap deal.
Who Made Netanyahu the King of the Jews?
By Tony Karon
"(Israel’s) demand for recognition of “Jews as a people, indigenous to the region and endowed with the right to self-government” is problematic, not only for Palestinians, but also for many Jews. Israeli Jews may have constituted themselves as a nation with the right to security and self-determination, but the majority of the world’s Jews have not claimed a right to self-determination as Jews. On the contrary, we’re very happy that anti-Semitism in the West has been marginalised to the point that we can freely integrate ourselves into the democratic societies in which we’ve chosen to live.
Growing up as a Jewish anti-apartheid activist in South Africa, I was often told by white racists to “go back to Israel”. The idea that Jews don’t belong among non-Jews is the traditional language of anti-Semitism – and also of the modern ideology of Zionism that emerged in the late 19th century. Zionism’s founder, Theodore Herzl, believed that anti-Semitism of the sort I encountered was inevitable and even “natural” whenever Jews lived among gentiles. He effectively concurred with the anti-Semites’ remedy: that I should “go back to Israel”.
Apartheid, by the way, denied black people the rights of citizenship on the basis that their “national homelands” were in Bantustans such as Transkei and Kwazulu – bogus “states” in which they supposedly would exercise their right to self-determination.
Jews have certainly suffered for the right to live in security and safety, but the majority have chosen to exercise that right not in a separate Jewish nation state, but instead as Americans, Argentines, British or French…"
"(Israel’s) demand for recognition of “Jews as a people, indigenous to the region and endowed with the right to self-government” is problematic, not only for Palestinians, but also for many Jews. Israeli Jews may have constituted themselves as a nation with the right to security and self-determination, but the majority of the world’s Jews have not claimed a right to self-determination as Jews. On the contrary, we’re very happy that anti-Semitism in the West has been marginalised to the point that we can freely integrate ourselves into the democratic societies in which we’ve chosen to live.
Growing up as a Jewish anti-apartheid activist in South Africa, I was often told by white racists to “go back to Israel”. The idea that Jews don’t belong among non-Jews is the traditional language of anti-Semitism – and also of the modern ideology of Zionism that emerged in the late 19th century. Zionism’s founder, Theodore Herzl, believed that anti-Semitism of the sort I encountered was inevitable and even “natural” whenever Jews lived among gentiles. He effectively concurred with the anti-Semites’ remedy: that I should “go back to Israel”.
Apartheid, by the way, denied black people the rights of citizenship on the basis that their “national homelands” were in Bantustans such as Transkei and Kwazulu – bogus “states” in which they supposedly would exercise their right to self-determination.
Jews have certainly suffered for the right to live in security and safety, but the majority have chosen to exercise that right not in a separate Jewish nation state, but instead as Americans, Argentines, British or French…"
Video: Women and children treated like cattle
"EVERYONE SHOULD SEE THIS AND WHAT IS ACTUALLY GOING ON! Does this remind you of the Holocaust?? Residents of the West Bank have to go through the Qalandia checkpoint to get to El Aksa. On the Fridays during the Ramadan women over the age of 45 and men over the age of 50 are allowed through. Tens of thousands get to Qalandia hoping to get to the prayers on time, thousands go through and still thousands are left behind. This is what it looks like.
Filmed by Hadass Shuve and Merav Amir.
Editing: Hadass Shuve.
Translation from Arabic: Hasan Masri."
عن الانتفاضة الجديدة ومقدماتها وشروط نجاحها
"يستحق موضوع الانتفاضة الجديدة التي كثر الحديث عنها خلال العامين الماضيين وقفة مختلفة حتى توضع الأمور في نصابها، ويكون الطرح مجديا ويصب في مصلحة القضية.
ونحن هنا لسنا من القائلين بأن الانتفاضة صارت على الأبواب، في ذات الوقت الذي لا ننتمي فيه إلى المثبطين الذين ينشرون اليأس بين الناس، بل نسعى إلى دعوة الجميع إلى تحمل مسؤولياتهم، بحيث يمكن الحديث عن مرحلة جديدة في الصراع مع العدو تشبه انتفاضة الأقصى، في ذات الوقت الذي تتجاوز فيه أخطاءها ويمكنها تبعا لذلك تحقيق أهدافها في المواجهة مع الاحتلال وفرض وقائع جديدة عليه
....
لا شك أن عدم حسم قيادة السلطة ذاتها (عرفات تحديدا) لخيار المقاومة وطرحه مشروعا واضحا لها لا يقبل المساومة كما فعل حزب الله، فضلا عن ممارسات "الزعرنة" التي دأبت عليها عناصر في فتح، قد ساهمت بدورها في تخريب الموقف وتحويل الانتفاضة إلى عبء على الناس، تماما كما حصل مع الانتفاضة
الأولى نهاية العام87.
الآن تتركز المشكلة (مشكلة تغييب خيار الانتفاضة والمقاومة) في سيطرة فريق عباس، ليس على السلطة فحسب، بل على منظمة التحرير وحركة فتح أيضا. وعندما تقف هذه الأخيرة بكل قوتها في الضفة الغربية إلى جانب خيارات السلطة مهما كانت، فسيكون من الصعب الحديث عن انتفاضة جديدة، فضلا عن الأبعاد الأخرى العربية والدولية، والتي تقف جميعا ضد خيار من هذا النوع.
....
من المفيد الإشارة هنا في سياق الحديث عن البعد الشعبي إلى عمليات إعادة تشكيل الوعي في الضفة الغربية عبر التركيز على النمو الاقتصادي والاهتمام بالمصالح الشخصية، لكن ذلك لن يكون قادرا برأينا على شطب إرادة الشعب الفلسطيني، وإن تمكن من تغيير وعي بعض القابلين للبيع والشراء.
.....
لمواجهة هذا الوضع، ومن أجل التمهيد لانتفاضة جديدة مؤثرة وقادرة على تحقيق الإنجازات للشعب الفلسطيني، فإن المسار الوحيد المتاح هو الانقلاب على معادلة السلطة تحت الاحتلال (الأكذوبة بحسب تعبير عباس)، والمصممة لخدمته وتخليصه من الأعباء الأمنية والاقتصادية والسياسية، ورفض مشروع المصالحة المرتبط بهذا المسار.
وهنا يمكن لحماس والجهاد ومن معهما ومن وافق على المشروع أن يقلبوا الطاولة في وجه الجميع عبر طرح إدارة بالتوافق لقطاع غزة بوصفه منطقة شبه محررة، بينما تعلن انتفاضة حتى دحر الاحتلال من دون قيد أو شرط عن كل الأراضي المحتلة عام 67، وهو هدف ممكن التحقق، ولا يقيد الشعب الفلسطيني بأية تعهدات تهدد حقه فيما تبقى من أرضه وحقوقه، وسيكون بالطبع مقدمة لتفكيك المشروع الصهيوني برمته.
....
هذا هو الخيار المتاح أمام الشعب الفلسطيني، أما استمرار الحديث عن مصالحة على قاعدة الورقة المصرية التي لا عنوان لها سوى الانتخابات المصممة لوضع الجميع في معسكر رفض المقاومة، كما يدعو بعض قادة فصائل اليسار، فهو كلام سقيم لا يستبطن إلا موقفا سلبيا من حماس على حساب مصالح الشعب الفلسطيني، لأن سائر العقلاء يدركون أن المصالحة المطروحة هي محض جر للجميع إلى مربع السلطة تحت الاحتلال (دولة الأمر الواقع بحسب فياض)، والقبول باستحقاقاتها وليس شيئا آخر، وهو أمر فصلنا فيه مرارا في مقالات شتى نشرت في هذا الموقع وسواه.
"
ونحن هنا لسنا من القائلين بأن الانتفاضة صارت على الأبواب، في ذات الوقت الذي لا ننتمي فيه إلى المثبطين الذين ينشرون اليأس بين الناس، بل نسعى إلى دعوة الجميع إلى تحمل مسؤولياتهم، بحيث يمكن الحديث عن مرحلة جديدة في الصراع مع العدو تشبه انتفاضة الأقصى، في ذات الوقت الذي تتجاوز فيه أخطاءها ويمكنها تبعا لذلك تحقيق أهدافها في المواجهة مع الاحتلال وفرض وقائع جديدة عليه
....
لا شك أن عدم حسم قيادة السلطة ذاتها (عرفات تحديدا) لخيار المقاومة وطرحه مشروعا واضحا لها لا يقبل المساومة كما فعل حزب الله، فضلا عن ممارسات "الزعرنة" التي دأبت عليها عناصر في فتح، قد ساهمت بدورها في تخريب الموقف وتحويل الانتفاضة إلى عبء على الناس، تماما كما حصل مع الانتفاضة
الأولى نهاية العام87.
الآن تتركز المشكلة (مشكلة تغييب خيار الانتفاضة والمقاومة) في سيطرة فريق عباس، ليس على السلطة فحسب، بل على منظمة التحرير وحركة فتح أيضا. وعندما تقف هذه الأخيرة بكل قوتها في الضفة الغربية إلى جانب خيارات السلطة مهما كانت، فسيكون من الصعب الحديث عن انتفاضة جديدة، فضلا عن الأبعاد الأخرى العربية والدولية، والتي تقف جميعا ضد خيار من هذا النوع.
....
من المفيد الإشارة هنا في سياق الحديث عن البعد الشعبي إلى عمليات إعادة تشكيل الوعي في الضفة الغربية عبر التركيز على النمو الاقتصادي والاهتمام بالمصالح الشخصية، لكن ذلك لن يكون قادرا برأينا على شطب إرادة الشعب الفلسطيني، وإن تمكن من تغيير وعي بعض القابلين للبيع والشراء.
.....
لمواجهة هذا الوضع، ومن أجل التمهيد لانتفاضة جديدة مؤثرة وقادرة على تحقيق الإنجازات للشعب الفلسطيني، فإن المسار الوحيد المتاح هو الانقلاب على معادلة السلطة تحت الاحتلال (الأكذوبة بحسب تعبير عباس)، والمصممة لخدمته وتخليصه من الأعباء الأمنية والاقتصادية والسياسية، ورفض مشروع المصالحة المرتبط بهذا المسار.
وهنا يمكن لحماس والجهاد ومن معهما ومن وافق على المشروع أن يقلبوا الطاولة في وجه الجميع عبر طرح إدارة بالتوافق لقطاع غزة بوصفه منطقة شبه محررة، بينما تعلن انتفاضة حتى دحر الاحتلال من دون قيد أو شرط عن كل الأراضي المحتلة عام 67، وهو هدف ممكن التحقق، ولا يقيد الشعب الفلسطيني بأية تعهدات تهدد حقه فيما تبقى من أرضه وحقوقه، وسيكون بالطبع مقدمة لتفكيك المشروع الصهيوني برمته.
....
هذا هو الخيار المتاح أمام الشعب الفلسطيني، أما استمرار الحديث عن مصالحة على قاعدة الورقة المصرية التي لا عنوان لها سوى الانتخابات المصممة لوضع الجميع في معسكر رفض المقاومة، كما يدعو بعض قادة فصائل اليسار، فهو كلام سقيم لا يستبطن إلا موقفا سلبيا من حماس على حساب مصالح الشعب الفلسطيني، لأن سائر العقلاء يدركون أن المصالحة المطروحة هي محض جر للجميع إلى مربع السلطة تحت الاحتلال (دولة الأمر الواقع بحسب فياض)، والقبول باستحقاقاتها وليس شيئا آخر، وهو أمر فصلنا فيه مرارا في مقالات شتى نشرت في هذا الموقع وسواه.
"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)