This seems to match my thoughts as well. I have held back because I feel I cannot take sides in this conflict. I really feel for the Palestinians. I also really feel for the minority of Israelis who would like peace with the Arab states. I hope for all our sakes that a peaceful resolution is found where both sides can save face, otherwise I can see no end to the hate between Western nations & the people of the Islamic faith. I really feel sorry for the minority of Moslems in Australia, who are beginning to see the start of anti Islam sentiment in Australia. Most of these people are peace loving as are the majority of Australians. Unfortunately, our government seems to be blindly following the policies of the US, with no thought to the consequences of relations with our crowded Islamic neighbor, Indonesia.
regards Doug On Sunday 23 July 2006 5:35, Keith Addison wrote: > Once again I'm much in agreement with Bill Blum. He seems to get > inundated by a lot of the arguments that happen here too. (Poor guy.) > I think we've had all this stuff now that he debunks, and more, not > for the first time, and it's tiresome. Please see next. Thankyou. > > Keith Addison > Journey to Forever > KYOTO Pref., Japan > http://journeytoforever.org/ > Biofuel list owner > > -------- > > http://members.aol.com/bblum6/aer35.htm > > The Anti-Empire Report > Some things you need to know before the world ends > July 22, 2006 > by William Blum > > The End Is Near, but first, this commercial. > > There are times when I think that this tired old world has gone on a > few years too long. What's happening in the Middle East is so > depressing. Most discussions of the eternal Israel-Palestine conflict > are variations on the child's eternal defense for misbehavior -- "He > started it!" Within a few minutes of discussing/arguing the latest > manifestation of the conflict the participants are back to 1967, then > 1948, then biblical times. I don't wish to get entangled in who > started the current mess. I would like instead to first express what > I see as two essential underlying facts of life which remain from one > conflict to the next: > > 1) Israel's existence is not at stake and hasn't been so for decades, > if it ever was, regardless of the many de rigueur militant statements > by Arab leaders over the years. If Israel would learn to deal with > its neighbors in a non-expansionist, non-military, humane, and > respectful manner, engage in full prisoner exchanges, and sincerely > strive for a viable two-state solution, even those who are opposed to > the idea of a state based on a particular religion could accept the > state of Israel, and the question of its right to exist would > scarcely arise in people's minds. But as it is, Israel still uses the > issue as a justification for its behavior, as Jews all over the world > use the Holocaust and conflating anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism. > > 2) In a conflict between a thousand-pound gorilla and a mouse, it's > the gorilla which has to make concessions in order for the two sides > to progress to the next level. What can the Palestinians offer in the > way of concession? Israel would reply to that question: "No violent > attacks of any kind." But that would still leave the status quo ante > bellum -- a life of unmitigated misery for the Palestinian people > forced upon them by Israel. Peace without justice. > > Israel's declarations about the absolute unacceptability of one of > their soldiers being held captive by the Palestinians, or two > soldiers being held by Hezbollah in Lebanon, cannot be taken too > seriously when Israel is holding literally thousands of captured > Palestinians, many for years, typically without any due process, many > tortured; as well as holding a number of prominent Hezbollah members. > A few years ago, if not still now, Israel wrote numbers on some of > the Palestinian prisoners' arms and foreheads, using blue markers, a > practice that is of course reminiscent of the Nazis' treatment of > Jews in World War II. [1] > > Israel's real aim, and that of Washington, is the overthrow of the > Hamas government in Palestine, the government that came to power in > January through a clearly democratic process, the democracy that the > Western "democracies" never tire of celebrating, except when the > result doesn't please them. Is there a stronger word than > "hypocrisy"? There is now "no Hamas government," declared a senior US > official a week ago, "eight cabinet ministers or 30 percent of the > government is in jail [kidnapped by Israel], another 30 percent is in > hiding, and the other 30 percent is doing very little."[2] To make > the government-disappearance act even more Orwellian, we have > Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, speaking in late June about > Iraq: "This is the only legitimately elected government in the Middle > East with a possible exception of Lebanon."[3] What's next, gathering > in front of the Big Telescreen for the Two Minutes Hate? > > In addition to doing away with the Hamas government, the current > military blitzkrieg by Israel, with full US support, may well be > designed to create "incidents" to justify attacks on Iran and Syria, > the next steps of Washington's work in process, a controlling > stranglehold on the Middle East and its oil. > > It is a wanton act of collective punishment that is depriving the > Palestinians of food, electricity, water, money, access to the > outside world ... and sleep. Israel has been sending jets flying over > Gaza at night triggering sonic booms, traumatizing children. "I want > nobody to sleep at night in Gaza," declared Israeli Prime Minister > Ehud Olmert[4]; words suitable for Israel's tombstone. > > These crimes against humanity -- and I haven't mentioned the terrible > special weapons reportedly used by Israel -- are what the people of > Palestine get for voting for the wrong party. It is ironic, given the > Israeli attacks against civilians in both Gaza and Lebanon, that > Hamas and Hezbollah are routinely dismissed in the West as terrorist > organizations. The generally accepted definition of terrorism, used > by the FBI and the United Nations amongst others, is: The use of > violence against a civilian population in order to intimidate or > coerce a government in furtherance of a political objective. > > Since 9-11 it has been a calculated US-Israeli tactic to label the > fight against Israel's foes as an integral part of the war on terror. > On July 19, a rally was held in Washington, featuring the governor of > Maryland, several members of Israeli-occupied Congress, the Israeli > ambassador, and evangelical leading-light John Hagee. The Washington > Post reported that "Speaker after prominent speaker characteriz[ed] > current Israeli fighting as a small branch of the larger U.S.-led > global war against Islamic terrorism" and "Israel's attacks against > the Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah were blows against those who have > killed civilians from Bali to Bombay to Moscow." Said the Israeli > ambassador: "This is not just about [Israel]. It's about where our > world is going to be and the fate and security of our world. Israel > is on the forefront. We will amputate these little arms of Iran," > referring to Hezbollah.[5] > > And if the war on terror isn't enough to put Israel on the side of > the angels, John Hagee has argued that "the United States must join > Israel in a pre-emptive military strike against Iran to fulfill God's > plan for both Israel and the West". He speaks of "a biblically > prophesied end-time confrontation with Iran, which will lead to the > Rapture, Tribulation, and Second Coming of Christ."[6] > > The beatification of Israel approaches being a movement. Here is > David Horowitz, the eminent semi-hysterical ex-Marxist: "Israel is > part of a global war, the war of radical Islam against civilization. > Right now Israel is doing the work of the rest of the civilized world > by taking on the terrorists. It is not only for Israel's sake that we > must get the facts out -- it is for ourselves, America, for every > free country in the world, and for civilization itself."[7] > > As for the two Israeli soldiers captured and held in Lebanon for > prisoner exchange, we must keep a little history in mind. In the late > 1990s, before Israel was evicted from southern Lebanon by Hezbollah, > it was a common practice for Israel to abduct entirely innocent > Lebanese. As a 1998 Amnesty International paper declared: "By > Israel's own admission, Lebanese detainees are being held as > 'bargaining chips'; they are not detained for their own actions but > in exchange for Israeli soldiers missing in action or killed in > Lebanon. Most have now spent 10 years in secret and isolated > detention."[8] > > Israel has created its worst enemies -- they helped create Hamas as a > counterweight to Fatah in Palestine, and their occupation of Lebanon > created Hezbollah. The current terrible bombings can be expected to > keep the process going. Since its very beginning, Israel has been > almost continually occupied in fighting wars and taking other > people's lands. Did not any better way ever occur to the idealistic > Zionist pioneers? > > But while you and I get depressed by the horror and suffering, the > neo-conservatives revel in it. They devour the flesh and drink the > blood of the people of Afghanistan, of Iraq, of Palestine, of > Lebanon, yet remain ravenous, and now call for Iran and Syria to be > placed upon the feasting table. More than one of them has used the > expression oderint dum metuant, a favorite phrase of Roman emperor > Caligula, also used by Cicero -- "let them hate so long as they > fear". Here is William Kristol, editor of the bible of neo-cons, > "Weekly Standard", on Fox News Sunday, July 16: > > "Look, our coddling of Iran ... over the last six to nine months has > emboldened them. I mean, is Iran behaving like a timid regime that's > very worried about the U.S.? Or is Iran behaving recklessly and in a > foolhardy way? ... Israel is fighting four of our five enemies in the > Middle East, in a sense. Iran, Syria, sponsors of terror; Hezbollah > and Hamas. ... This is an opportunity to begin to reverse the > unfortunate direction of the last six to nine months and get the > terrorists and the jihadists back on the defensive." > > Host Juan Williams replied: "Well, it just seems to me that you want > ... you just want war, war, war, and you want us in more war. You > wanted us in Iraq. Now you want us in Iran. Now you want us to get > into the Middle East ... you're saying, why doesn't the United States > take this hard, unforgiving line? Well, the hard and unforgiving line > has been [tried], we don't talk to anybody. We don't talk to Hamas. > We don't talk to Hezbollah. We're not going to talk to Iran. Where > has it gotten us, Bill?" > > Kristol, looking somewhat taken aback, simply threw up his hands. > > The Fox News audience does (very) occasionally get a hint of another > way of looking at the world. > > NOTES > > [1] Washington Post, March 13, 2002, p.1 > > [2] Washington Post, July 16, 2006. p.15 > > [3] Washington Post, July 3, 2006, p.19 > > [4] Associated Press, July 3, 2006 > > [5] Washington Post, July 20, 2006, p.B3 > > [6] Sarah Posner, The American Prospect, June 2006 > > [7] FrontPageMag.com, Horowitz's site > > [8] Amnesty International news release, 26 June 1998, AI INDEX: MDE > 15/54/98 > > > _______________________________________________ > Biofuel mailing list > Biofuel@sustainablelists.org > http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: > http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > > Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 > messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
