Message from Cynthia McKinney

Mairead Corrigan Maguire, 1976 Nobel Peace Prize winner and I will join 34 others taking medical, school, and building supplies to Gaza. I'd like to thank Nadira Kaili and Erin Connors of Atlantic Television News for donating dollars to help in my purchase of school supplies for Gaza's children. And I want to thank Jay Winter Nightwolf for the turquoise good luck ring that he gave me for this journey.

On Tuesday, June 16, President Carter visited Gaza and said that he was almost brought to tears by what he saw. He said that he felt partly responsible because the American International School, one of many destroyed by the Israelis, had been "deliberately destroyed by bombs from F-16s made in my country." Not only that, he added that Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were being treated "more like animals than human beings."

Last time I went--or rather, tried to get to Gaza--my father told me to buy a notebook and write everything down. This time I've got a video camera!!! Now I've got to learn how to use it!! As often as I can, I will get the video uploaded to our tv channel.

Yes, we have been trying to do a lot with very little to get our DIGNITY presence online up and running before letting you know about it. Well, I think the time has come to at least let you in on what we're trying to accomplish (and to volunteer your help where you can!!).

Thanks to Anita Stewart, Don Debar, DJ Radio Conscious, Lindsey Tackett, and of course, the rest of the DIGNITY crew, I am proud to announce that we have a tv channel (www.livestream.com/dignity), a ning page (http://dignity.ning.com/), facebook (www.facebook.com/CynthiaMcKinney) and myspace (www.myspace.com/dignityaction) pages, and yes, we tweet (www.twitter.com/dignityaction)!!!

I have notified the White House that I am on my way to Gaza. I'm reading that the White House also wants Israel to ease its blockade of Gaza and specifically mentioned consstruction materials, food, and medicine. That might be just what is needed to allow us to get through this time, because in addition to the medical and school supplies, we are also taking cement and building supplies.

Finally, the President wants to take $600 billion from health care programs that are working--Medicare and Medicaid. Rahm Emanuel's brother is a health policy advisor. $12.8 trillion have been transferred to the financial classes already even though the entire US GDP for 2008 was only $14.2 trillion. You and I are squeezed while the war machine and the robber barons (as Cindy Sheehan calls them) get our green. Please tune in to our efforts and let's work together!

Thank you so much for all the words of encouragement you have sent to me in these past few days. I'm trying to respond to everyone. Even though it might seem impossible at times, I still believe we can change our country and our world. Thank you for helping me and for supporting me as we all join together and try. We can effectively resist--with DIGNITY.

Here's the note I sent to President Obama today:

"I understand that you sent a message to Israel about its blockade of Gaza. Thank you. It is reported that you specifically mentioned food, medical supplies, cement and building supplies in your note. This note is to inform you that I embark today on a trip to Gaza and we will have for the people of Gaza, exactly the materials that you mentioned, and school supplies for the children. Thank you for the note to Israel and I hope that also means that you will not sign any appropriation bill that has weapons for Israel. President Carter noted that seven schools were completely demolished with F-16s from this country. We all are responsible and I know you know that. But all of us are not in a position to stop the carnage. You are. Please, not one more dime not one more weapon for Israel's war machine."

Politicization of FBI continuing under Obama

Seasoned FBI agents on the trail of foreign spies and U.S. election fraudsters were routinely transferred off their investigations and out of their jurisdictions as political "payback" by the Bush administration. WMR has learned the policy of punishing FBI agents who get too close to criminal enterprises involving politically-connected individuals and companies is continuing under President Obama and his Attorney General Eric Holder.

WMR has learned that an FBI agent in Florida who was investigating ties between a NASA and Florida state contractor, Yang Enterprises, and Chinese intelligence was abruptly transferred to Alaska. Then-Representative Tom Feeney, who served on the House Judiciary Committee, was connected financially to Yang.

WMR has, in the past, reported on an FBI agent on John O'Neill's Joint Terrorism Task Force being transferred to Lahore, Pakistan and then to an insignificant desk job at FBI headquarters in Washington, DC. The agent had been the lead investigator of a number of Israeli furniture movers, including the Mossad-connected Urban Moving Systems of Weehawken, New Jersey, who were seen in and around the World Trade Center before 9/11. O'Neill, punished by the FBI for having a brief case containing classified information temporarily "stolen" in Florida, died while heading up security for the World Trade Center on 9/11.

We have now learned that the Obama Justice Department is pressuring FBI agents in Ohio not to investigate documented cases of Israeli industrial espionage being committed against a number of high-tech firms in the state.

Many FBI agents know that investigating Israeli espionage, industrial- or national security-related, in the United States is a virtual "third rail" that will end their FBI careers.

Under the Bush administration, FBI agents in Ohio were ordered not to investigate election irregularities in the 2004 election -- electoral fraud which handed the state's electoral votes to George W. Bush, ensuring him re-election.

The CIA’s machine war in Pakistan (and implications)

19th June 2009, 04:58 am by StanGoff

Despite protests from other countries, the United States is expanding a top-secret effort to kill suspected terrorists with drone-fired missiles as it pursues an increasingly decentralized Al Qaeda, U.S. officials say.

FULL

For a systems development account of this, see Manueal De Landa’s War in the Age of Intelligent Machines.

For an apologetic account, listen to the silence. This is not the armed forces. It is the CIA, an agency without the strict constitutional accountability of the armed forces to Congress (as if Congress had exercised its prerogative any time lately against the military).

Warfare by drone is the latest leap in two directions: eliminating “friendly” exposure to the perils of the battlefield, and acceptance of the inevitability of civilian casualties in operations that amount to assassinations. Note the latter, because it’s very important. These are not really military operations. They are not conducted by the military; and they involve no engagement between opposing forces.

We are becoming more and more like the Israelis. Drone assassinations of political targets is a mechanized Phoenix Program; and killing a target that might be at a given location with a projectile that has a bursting radius big enough to blow up a building is the same as the Israelis exploding car bombs (as they have done) to hit one target with full knowledge that the bomb is detonating in a crowded street.

I think this rasies an ethical question that I’d like to see debated and discussed more, as one who sits with Yoder’s question and challenge: At what point(s) are we willing to trump our moral decisions with efficacy? This is a question that confronts activists, too. If you want to see what happened to communism, for example, in the context of hostile encirclement and the forced march to industrialization, find the points at which efficacy trumped morality (and was then called “necessity,” while opposition on moral grounds was characterized as “bourgeois sentimentality”). It’s a big question, because efficacy and morality are not the same, and can often come into conflict.

The short-term acceptance of these “compromises” is a slippery slope for sure; and I have to wonder if short-term efficacy doesn’t in some way undermine a longer-term moral stability the way termites silently gnaw out the load-supporting structures of a building. Fanon made note of how the oppressed becomes the oppressor, given the chance. So have others.

Oppressed people are frequently very oppressive when first liberated. And why wouldn’t they be? They know best two
positions. Somebody’s foot on their neck or their foot on somebody’s neck.

- Florynce R. Kennedy (1916-2000)

This drone warfare (by a “civilian” agency shrouded with official secrets) is a phase-transition in the interplay between people and technology in warfare, a signpost along a new — even more morally fraught — path, that will transfer not only justificatory technique from the Israeli application of hit teams (it was illegal until recently to use the CIA for assassinations, even though they did it), but one that will entrain American society with further habituation to nationalist efficacy at the expense of anything like a collective morality.

Bush brought us a long way foward in this trend already in motion (with the whole post-WWII security state). Obama has become the new, improved, hi-tech Lyndon Baines Johnson, with his very own secret CIA war.

Obama - change you can believe in!

I would ask those who share an interest to pass along articles and analyses of interest on this secret CIA war of flying robots.

And I would ask us all to think about where and how we might be tempted to abandon our moral principles on behalf of efficacy. The left, in particular, and I use myself as an example in my past apologetics for armed struggles, eg, needs to take a serious account of this moral threshold, and I would say (naturally) that gender needs to be examined in that account. (Proudly teling somone that you feel nothing in the face of the suffering of another sentient being is a masculine pose (that under the pressure of probative masculinity in male groups becomes an arms race of cruelties); as is calling “sissy” when people demonstrate a reluctance to physically attack and kill others.)

In a culture based on male domination and in which most things feminine tend to be devalued, even if they are secretly envied, the most important thing about being a man is not being a woman. This powerful adult male imperative to be unlike females and to repudiate anything that smacks of maternal caretaking [EMPATHY, SG] is played out just as powerfully in politics as it is in personal life.

Holder pursuing old cases against Black Panthers - Obama AG now believes Stellar Wind wiretapping was legal.

Attorney General Eric Holder is living up to his legacy as someone whose conservative credentials were so impeccable that President Ronald Reagan appointed him as a judge for the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in 1988.

WMR has learned from a knowledgeable source that Holder has decided to pursue criminal cases against members of the original Black Panther Party that date back to 20 and 30 years ago. Some leaders of the African-American community said they are shocked that Holder would be pursuing such old cases dug from dormant files.

In addition, WMR has learned that the Holder Justice Department continues to target whistleblowers in the federal government who have raised serious fraud, waste, and abuse charges against a variety of federal agencies. The whistleblowers charge that the malfeasance that began during the previous Bush administration is continuing in force under Obama.

The Justice Department and FBI, according to information received by WMR, is using warrantless wiretapping powers to pursue whistleblowers. In testimony before the Senate yesterday, Holder, who said in a June 2008 speech, "I never thought that I would see the
day when a president would act in direct defiance of federal law by authorizing warrantless NSA surveillance of American citizens," backtracked and told Senator Russ Feingold during questioning that he did not believe the warrantless wiretapping program, code named Stellar Wind by the National Security Agency, was illegal.

Hybrid A/H1N1 flu tied to genetic trigger for larger, mutated version

WMR previously reported on the genetic manipulation of the 1918 flu from tissue extracted from an Inuit woman who died from the pandemic in Alaska. On May 6, WMR reported: "WMR has obtained information from biological researchers that the 1918 Spanish flu genetic sequences were 'manipulated' in order to effect transmission capability. The current H1N1 virus, called 'swine flu,' is reportedly a combination of two forms of human flu, two forms of swine flu (North American and Eurasian), and avian or bird flu . . . Two bio-safety laboratories have been associated with the genetic reverse engineering of not only A-H1N1, the current 'swine flu' strain, but also the deadly Ebola virus. They are the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Canada."

WMR has now learned from virus researchers that the current A-H1N1 strain strongly appears tied to vaccinations for the seasonal form on influenza. The hybrid flu began in countries where seasonal vaccinations are commonplace and where A-H1N1 did not respond to the normal seasonal flu vaccination antibody, according to researchers studying the new virus.

What has some researchers alarmed is that the engineers of A-H1N1 purposely planned to make the virus non-responsive to any available vaccine. There is also a suspicion by researchers that the A-H1N1 vaccine under development will trigger a more deadly mutated form of the virus for which the A-H1N1 vaccine will be ineffective.

On May 19, WMR reported: "What researchers have told us is that as long as the current AH1N1 can infect humans, it will not try to mutate. Even though there have been deaths from AH1N1, most of those infected are sick for up to four days, take Tamiflu or similar drugs, and recover with immunity from the hybrid or 'novel' virus . . . However, with vaccinations, the AH1N1 virus will, of course, be rejected by human hosts and cases around the world will decrease. However, then, the virus will begin to mutate in order to successfully infect human hosts. And when that happens, the new, newly-mutated virus will become much more transmissible and more pathogenic. The nightmare scenario is that the new, mutated virus may take on the characteristics of H5N1 or the avian flu. The vaccines administered for AH1N1 will be ineffective against the new strain of H5N1 and the world may face a more deadlier pandemic then the current AH1N1 outbreak. There are scientists at WHO who are aware of this scenario but their alarm has been suppressed by political and economic considerations."

Public health officials in Brazil are now reporting that the A/H1N1 virus is now in the process of mutating, confirming our earlier reports. A new variant of the pandemic virus is showing up in patients in Brazil making treatment more difficult.

On May 13, 2009, WMR reported: "Because of the rapid mutation of the virus and the fact that, unlike 1918, rapid global transportation is now the norm, scientists are predicting that the molecular clock of the A/H1N1 virus, coupled with modern transportation, means that almost all the countries of the world will experience an A/H1N1 outbreak within the next few months."

The prediction about the rate of global infection is being borne out by reports of the virus now being reported in many more nations, including South Africa, Yemen, Qatar, India, and Morocco, as well as uncontained surges in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Utah, and Argentina.

In another suspicious turn of events, Ivorian national Konan Yao, a former researcher at the Winnipeg laboratory that has been involved in A/H1N1 research and who was arrested by the FBI at the U.S. border crossing on May 5 trying to sneak 22 vials of Ebola and HIV genetic material into the United States for his new job at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, near Washington, DC, was given his post-plea bargain sentence in federal court in Grand Forks, North Dakota late last month: 17 days in prison which equated to time served and a $500 fine. Yao's federal charge was "failure to present merchandise for inspection," a lesser charge from the original "attempting to bring biological material into the United States without a permit." Yao's new job was at the NIH's Biodefense Research Laboratory. The federal prosecutor who cut the plea deal with Yao is Lynn Jordheim, the Assistant U.S. Attorney in Fargo, who also happens to be the U.S. Attorney's office representative on the Anti-terrorism Advisory Council (ATAC) and Crisis Management Coordinator for the federal jurisdiction and, more intriguing, the "Confidential Human Source Coordinator."

A posição de Israel contra o Estado Palestino

por Lejeune Mirhan*

A imprensa deu destaque na última segunda-feira, dia 15 de junho, à notícia de que Israel, através de seu primeiro Ministro Benjamin Netanyahu, “aceitaria um Estado Palestino”, desde que “desmilitarizado”. É um assunto que não temos como não tratar nesta semana. A euforia da mídia foi de que isso se tratou de um grande “avanço”. Algumas coisas precisam ser mais bem aclaradas.

Netayahu discursa em Universidade

Qual proposta foi feita?

Parece que querendo imitar o presidente americano Barak Obama, que pronunciou um discurso histórico semana passada em uma Universidade no Cairo, Netanyahu fez a mesma coisa na Universidade Bar Ilan, perto de Tel Aviv. Durou cerca de uma hora e ocorreu no domingo, dia 14 de junho (lembremos que domingo é o primeiro dia útil da semana para os judeus).

Já dissemos em artigos anteriores que este atual governo de Israel é o mais à direita, o mais conservador de toda a história dos 61 anos de existência do Estado judeu. Nunca uma coalizão de partidos de extrema direita elegeu tantas cadeiras no parlamento a ponto de formar um governo com essa configuração ideológica como o atual.

Nesse sentido, queremos dizer desde já que só pelo fato da palavra “Estado Palestino” ter sido pronunciado pela primeira vez da boca de Netanyahu, por si só, já tem aspectos positivos. No entanto, precisamos conhecer os detalhes da proposta que ele apresentou.

Em síntese, esse tal “Estado” Palestino teria as seguintes características:

• Seria completamente desmilitarizado, ou seja, não poderia ter exército, nem marinha, nem aeronáutica e não poderia vigiar suas fronteiras, que também não seriam bem definidas;

• Não poderia ter nenhum controle do seu espaço aéreo;

• Teria que abster-se de forma pública e declarada de qualquer contato e relações com o Irã e o agrupamento político do Hezbolláh, que atua no Líbano;

• Deve reconhecer de público o caráter “judeu” de Israel;

• Não poderia nunca “incitar” o ódio contra judeus;

• A solução para o problema dos refugiados palestinos deve ser encontrado fora das fronteiras de Israel e com a ajuda da comunidade internacional;

• Jerusalém seguiria como capital indivisível do Estado de Israel.

Antes de entrarmos na análise do significado dessas propostas, é preciso relembrar as propostas que os palestinos, os países árabes (em sua maioria) e mesmo o grupo chamado Quarteto, tem apresentado, como proposta viável para a paz pelo menos as seguintes questões: a) fronteiras definidas, como as de antes da guerra de 1967; b) Jerusalém como capital do Estado; c) solução para os refugiados, com a sua volta (pelo menos em parte) e d) desmantelamento das colônias e assentamentos judaicos.

Uma proposta inviável

Olhando o mínimo aceitável por parte dos palestinos, mesmo em uma situação adversa do ponto de vista internacional, a proposta que Netanyahu apresenta menciona “Estado Palestino”, mas de estado não tem nada. Quando muito, uma espécie de bantustão nos moldes do que existiu na África do Sul na época do sistema de apartheid. Não há autonomia alguma, não se desmantela nenhuma das colônias, esse novo “estado” palestino não teria nenhuma autonomia. As estimativas internacionais e mesmo dados de Israel, existem entre a Cisjordânia e Jerusalém Oriental, quase meio milhão de israelenses que moram em terras palestinas.

As sete propostas apresentadas delineiam de forma geral, as concepções do sionismo na verdade, dos direitistas de Israel sobre esse arremedo de Estado. Se Obama mandou seu porta voz declarar que “celebrou” a declaração, do lado palestino a proposta foi completamente rechaçada por todas as correntes, do Hamas ao Fatah da ANP. Senão vejamos:

1. Pouco muda na proposta com relação ao atual formato da Autoridade Nacional palestina. Esta não tem quase nenhuma autonomia, apenas poder de polícia. Não emite dinheiro, nem cobra impostos, nem fiscaliza fronteiras. Assim quer Netanyahu para o “estado” palestino;

2. Não há menção alguma a fronteira desse “estado”, ou seja, nada fala sobre as fronteiras anteriores à Guerra dos Seis Dias de junho de 1967. Caso um Estado palestino fosse criado nesse território, ainda assim ele seria apenas 22% da Palestina histórica;

3. Ao pedir que palestinos reconheçam o “caráter judeu” de Israel, proposta do partido fascista Israel Beitenu, de Avigdor Liebermann, seria como se quase 1,5 milhão de palestinos abrissem mão de sua origem e cidadania palestina, abjurando de sua história, de seu passado, de suas tradições e declarasse lealdade e fidelidade a um estado teocrático judaico. Um verdadeiro absurdo essa proposta, inaceitável;

4. Existem quatro milhões de refugiados palestinos, que vivem espalhados pelo mundo. Netanyahu quer que eles nunca mais retornem, nega-lhes esse direito, como todos os governos israelenses negaram nesses 61 anos da Nakba. Ou seja, judeus de qualquer parte do mundo podem retornar quando quiserem e serão recebidos de braços abertos pelos israelenses, mas palestinos tem que continuar no seu exílio forçado;

5. Quanto às colônias e assentamentos, até menciona em não expandi-las mais, mas fala que elas terão um “crescimento natural” (se expandirão sempre);

6. Por fim, a questão da capital. Se os palestinos quiserem, que pensem em outra cidade para ser a sua capital, mas Jerusalém seguirá como “capital indivisível de Israel” (sic).

Assim, ainda que possa sinalizar um recuo nas suas posições de nem sequer mencionar a palavra “estado” palestino, a proposta colocada agora em discurso – mas não na mesa de negociações – é, me parece, inaceitável para as lideranças palestinas.

Com relação especificamente os assentamentos judaicos na Cisjordânia e em Jerusalém Oriental, há três situações que poderiam, em tese, ser implementadas: a) desmantelar todas elas e deslocar os quase meio milhão de judeus dessas localidades, passando seu controle total aos palestinos que recuperariam suas terras e propriedades nessas cidades, aldeias e vilas; b) “congelamento” de sua expansão, ou seja, tudo ficaria como esta e c) sua ampliação, seja ela “naturalmente” ou mesmo criando novas. A média de nascimento de crianças judaicas nessas localidades, onde moram judeus ortodoxos, se equipara à média palestina, ou seja, quase cinco filhos por casal.

Por fim, devo comentar que Netanyahu de certa forma rebateu uma parte sensível do discurso de Obama para o mundo muçulmano. Obama havia mencionado que Israel fora criado em meio à comoção do holocausto judeu na Alemanha. Netanyahu, sem citar esse trecho do discurso de Obama, disse que o direito do estado judeu de existir nada teve a ver com o holocausto, chegando a afirmar que se tal estado existisse antes, o holocausto não teria ocorrido. Aqui ocorre uma polêmica, mas que, do ponto de vista sionista e judaico, Netanyahu que dizer ao mundo que Israel tem mesmo direito à sua existência, desde tempos imemoriais. Entra em uma seara que nada tem a ver com a história, mas apenas com as lendas bíblicas. Não há região no mundo mais antiga, de vida continua e que tem nome idêntico há milhares de anos tal qual a Palestina. E, um dia, os palestinos todos a ela retornarão.

Liebermann no Brasil?

Circularam notícias pela Internet de que no próximo mês de julho, estará em nosso país o chanceler de Israel, Avigdor Liebermann. Ele viria ao Brasil para discutir com nossa chancelaria a visita – polêmica desde já – que Lula pretende fazer à Israel no final do ano, já anunciada. Na semana que vem abrirá em Brasília a 2º CONAPIR, Conferência Anti-Racista, da qual pretendo me fazer presente integrando a delegação palestina. Acho que esse será um bom momento para discutirmos ações conjuntas e unificadas de todas as entidades representativas da sociedade brasileira, de repúdio a esse presença de um fascista e sionista em solo brasileiro.

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*Lejeune Mirhan, Presidente do Sindicato dos Sociólogos do Estado de São Paulo, Escritor, Arabista e Professor Membro da Academia de Altos Estudos Ibero-Árabe de Lisboa, Membro da International Sociological

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* Opiniões aqui expressas não refletem, necessariamente, a opinião do site.

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Líbano segue sob influência americana

por Lejeune Mirhan*

Não voltei a este tema nos últimos 30 dias pela falta imensa de cobertura das eleições libanesas. Dos jornalões brasileiros, apensa o Estadão mandou representante. As pesquisas eram contraditórias. Algumas davam vitória para a oposição e outras para a situação. Agora saíram os resultados. Tudo ficará mais ou menos como era antes, com poucas mudanças. Mas, mudanças vão ocorrer ainda.

Najib Mikati com o Presidente Lula

Os campos opostos e as eleições

As eleições ocorreram no último dia 7 de junho, domingo. Muito disputadas. Dois blocos rivalizavam as disputas e as consciências dos eleitores. Na oposição, a Coligação “8 de Março”, é integrada pelo Partido Hezbolláh, pela Frente Patriótica do general cristão Michel Aoun, pelo grupo xiita Amal e do Partido Comunista Libanês. No campo situacionista, os sunitas de diversas colorações e cristãos da Falange, mais à direita.

A mídia ocidental proclamou aos quatro ventos que estas eleições são as “mais democráticas” em todo o Oriente Médio. É como Bobbio disse em um de seus livros. A burguesia preocupa-se com a forma e nunca com o conteúdo, com o que se aprova no parlamento, com o caráter e as tarefas de um determinado governo. Enfim, talvez seja fato que sejam eleições dita democrática, mas são realizadas nos moldes ocidentais, ou seja, vale o poder da comunicação, o poder do dinheiro.

Nesse contexto, dificilmente a oposição teria chances de vencer. Não é possível concorrer com os bilhões de dólares que foram despejados no Líbano tanto pela própria elite do país, temerária de vitória do Hezbolláh, como pelo próprio governo americano.

O Líbano, pela sua história mais recente, pela sua colonização europeia sempre viveu sob imensa influência ocidental. Há uma universidade em Beirute que se proclama “americana”. Mulheres jovens, que buscam padrões de vestimenta e mesmo de comportamento, aproximam-se da típica jovem estadunidense, ditas patricinhas. Usam e abusam das calças jeans, mesmo professando o islamismo nunca usam veus e veem no ocidente um modelo em que gostariam que o seu Líbano fosse. Algumas delas, criadas mesmo nos Estados Unidos ou na França, sequer falam a língua árabe de seus pais. Assim é o Líbano.

Quando Samuel Huntington publicou o seu famoso Crash of Civilization na Foreing Office do verão de 1995 – e eu apresentei logo à época uma monografia sobre esse trabalho em curso de Política Internacional que realizava – chamou-me a atenção sobre o que ele falava da Turquia. Um país que vivia um conflito. Um dia ela teria que se decidir se optava em ficar com a Ásia, o Oriente, o Islã ou se voltava suas costas para seu passado e se aliava ao Ocidente, à Europa, à União Europeia e mesmo ingressava no Tratado da OTAN.

Parece-me que o Líbano vive esse dilema hoje. É país árabe há quase 1,4 mil anos, fala a língua árabe, possui vizinhos árabes com quem mantém relações seculares, mas possui ao mesmo tempo olhos voltados para o Ocidente. Muitos dos eleitores que votaram no domingo passado vieram de muitos países exclusivamente para exercerem seu voto, visitarem algum familiar e retornam para outros países. Como disse, na esmagadora maioria dessas pessoas, nascidas no Líbano, mas que migraram para o Ocidente, sequer conseguem falar o árabe. Registro que a situação gastou milhões de dólares em passagens para trazer esses eleitores ocidentais para votar na coligação “14 de Março”, liderada por Saad Hariri, filho do ex-primeiro Ministro Hafic Hariri, assassinado em 2005.

De fato, a coligação de Hariri era apoiada pelos Estados Unidos. Nos poucos meses de campanha eleitoral, esteve em Beirute a secretaria de Estado americana Hilary Clinton. Depois disso, Obama despachou seu vice, Joe Biden para o Líbano. Biden reuniu-se com a coligação de Hariri e fez duras críticas à oposição. Os Estados Unidos, como sabemos, classifica o Hezbolláh como “terrorista”. A coligação moderada teve apoio – financeiro inclusive – da rica e moderada Arábia Saudita. Claro, no campo oposto, a imprensa dava como sendo a coligação “8 de Março" apoiada pela Síria e pelo Irã, justamente países tidos como apoiadores do “terrorismo”. Mesmo em vésperas das eleições, o subsecretário de Estado dos EUA, e ex-embaixador no Líbano, Jeffrey Feltman, em entrevista aos jornais locais, defendeu abertamente à coligação de Hariri.

Considerações sobre os resultados

Há que se ver aqui os interesses de Israel. É claro que a coligação apoiada pelos americanos não poderá jamais dizer que vê Israel com bons olhos. Isso lhes tiraria votos. Mas, o governo fascista de Israel torceu o tempo todo, ainda que calado, para a vitória do grupo de Hariri. Nunca nos esqueçamos dos 33 dias de bombardeios realizados por Israel em Beirute e no Sul do Líbano em julho e agosto de 2006, onde morreram quase dois mil libaneses. A o governo moderado e sunita de Siniora pouco ou nada fez. Quem resistiu de armas em punho foram os guerrilheiros do Hezbolláh e do PC Libanês, entre outros.

Quanto aos resultados propriamente ditos, nada vai se alterar. A oposição – com poder de veto no governo – aumentou de 56 para 57 cadeiras e a situação diminuiu de 69 para 68 cadeiras, sendo que três são independentes. No limite, ficou 71 a 57 votos (44%). A força oposicionista segue grande, mas insuficiente para governar o país. Terá que fazer composição.

Aqui não podemos arriscar palpites, pois as coisas são muito delicadas, frágeis e voláteis na verdade. Podem ser alteradas com rapidez. Mas, fala-se com ênfase na imprensa árabe que é possível que um governo de coalizão nacional seja formado. Aqui se levanta ainda a questão do Hezbolláh seguir tanto com poder de veto no governo como continuar com direito a possuir armas, atuando enquanto grupo de milicianos armados no país. Funcionam como se fossem um exército paralelo.

Se haverá consenso ou não, os próximos dias – talvez semanas e meses – serão decisivos. Até um possível novo primeiro Ministro já se fala. Diversos analistas libaneses indicam o nome de Najib Mikati, sunita – como determinam os acordos de Taif de 1990 que pôs fim à guerra civil. O sistema eleitoral libanês, fruto desse acordo, divide o parlamento em cotas para todas as confissões religiosas. Coisas de mais ou menos metade para cristãos e metade para muçulmanos. Dentro dessas metades, tem quase uma dezena de ramificações. Grosso modo, os cristãos têm 64 cadeiras e os muçulmanos outras 64. A divisão entre cristãos é assim acordada: 34 maronitas; 14 gregos ortodoxos; 8 gregos católicos; 5 armênios ortodoxos; e um para armênios católicos, protestantes e outros cristãos. Entre os muçulmanos, são 27 para xiitas e sunitas, 8 para drusos e 2 para alauitas.

Mas não devemos nos iludir que o problema libanês é religioso. Como nunca foi o conflito entre palestinos e israelenses, como tenho me batido sempre neste espaço. É um conflito eminentemente político, por vezes até ideológico. Os sunitas libaneses, mais ligados aos americanos, sem capacidade de enfrentar Israel frontalmente, no Iraque são os que resistem à invasão americana. E vice-versa com relação aos xiitas. No Líbano estes dão combate à Israel e aos americanos e no Iraque eles governam com o apoio dos Estados Unidos. Entre cristãos, existem os de extrema direita como a Falange, de Jumblat, como do mencionado general patriota Aoun. Até cristãos armênios integraram a coligação mais avançada.

Aqui um fator novo entrou em cena. Chama-se Barak Hussein Obama, presidente dos Estados Unidos. Este tem feito um discurso de mão estendida para o Irã, para o mundo muçulmano e tem enfatizado a solução de dois estados para o conflito na Palestina. Ou seja, tem conseguido ganhar consciências desde a campanha, usando o trunfo de primeiro negro a governar os Estados Unidos, como tem ganhado consciências com suas propostas, em alguns aspectos progressistas, se compararmos à era Bush.

Nesse contexto, estar mais próximo dos Estados Unidos não seria tão ruim assim como em passado recente. Na sua primeira entrevista dada depois do anúncio dos resultados eleitorais, Saad Hariri, falando ao Financial Times adota de pronto, tom conciliador. Coloca-se à disposição para ser primeiro Ministro, mas não fará disso um “cavalo de batalha”. Não toca nos assuntos nevrálgicos que são o desarmamento do Hezbolláh e o seu poder de veto nas decisões de governo. Fala genericamente em governo de União Nacional.

Esse é um contexto que os grupos progressistas devem saber navegar, ver contradições mesmo no campo dos adversários, procurar ganhar aliados para as propostas mais avançadas e que recoloquem o Líbano nas mãos dos libaneses que reforcem a vocação árabe desse importante e estratégico país do Oriente Médio. Virar as costas para o Oriente e voltar-se para o Ocidente não será, seguramente, a melhor política a ser adotada.

Comemoração

Comemora-se aniversários quando se completam anos e geralmente festas se fazem com números redondos (cinco anos, dez anos). Completamos em 28 de março passado, 7 anos de coluna. Não é um ano “redondo” a ser festejado. Mas, esta coluna é de número 350. Uma marco a ser comemorado. Agradeço aos meus leitores e leitoras fieis nesses anos todos.

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*Lejeune Mirhan, Presidente do Sindicato dos Sociólogos do Estado de São Paulo, Escritor, Arabista e Professor Membro da Academia de Altos Estudos Ibero-Árabe de Lisboa, Membro da International Sociological

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* Opiniões aqui expressas não refletem, necessariamente, a opinião do site.

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Mossad still stalking malls near U.S. military bases using cells of young Israeli intelligence operatives

Cells of young Israeli intelligence operatives continue to openly solicit relationships with U.S. military personnel from shopping mall kiosks, according to an informed source. WMR has learned that one such kiosk operates at the MacArthur Center Mall in Norfolk, Virginia where a number of U.S. Navy personnel from the nearby naval bases are regularly confronted by aggressive young Israelis selling Dead Sea cosmetic products who inquire about where the personnel are stationed and the nature of their jobs. Young Israeli women working at the kiosk also appear to want to strike up a closer relationship with some of the naval personnel.

The use of young Israelis, many of whom continue to serve in a reserve status with the Israel Defense force, as intelligence agents, has changed somewhat over the past decade. Young Israeli "art students" first conducted unsolicited visits to the homes and offices of federal and military employees trying to sell cheap Chinese-made bogus Israeli art work while casing neighborhoods and office buildings.

Israeli-operated mall kiosks have transitioned from selling toys to cosmetics.

On August 7, 2005, WMR reported: In November 2001, the INS arrested several Israelis, including some with military backgrounds, selling Puzzle Car and Zoom Copter toys from shopping mall kiosks and vending carts. Many of the malls were located near U.S. government facilities, including the Pentagon and CIA. A majority of the Israelis, arrested for visa violations instead of espionage, worked for a Florida-based company called Quality Sales. A spokesman for the company admitted the company hired vacationing Israeli students but they had the wrong visas. The spokesman also revealed the Israelis were deemed “special interest” cases by INS – a new government designation applied to terrorism suspects in the wake of 911. Federal authorities suspect the Israelis were using the kiosks as intelligence fronts in the same manner that Israelis were using door-to-door art sales as covers. The National Counterintelligence Center (NCIX) stated in a report issued in March 2001 that, “In the past six weeks, employees in federal office buildings located throughout the United States have reported suspicious activities connected with individuals representing themselves as foreign students selling or delivering artwork. Employees have observed both males and females attempting to bypass facility security and enter federal buildings.” The report was temporarily removed from the NCIX web site.

One of the malls where the Israeli “toy sellers” based their operations was the Pentagon City Mall, just across Interstate 395 from the Pentagon. In July 2004, the mall served as the rendezvous point for alleged Israeli Pentagon spy Larry Franklin and Keith Weissman, an AIPAC official. Franklin warned Weissman that Iranian agents were going to start attacking American soldiers and Israeli agents in Iraq. Weissman then went to brief the account of the meeting to Steve Rosen, another senior AIPAC official. They both informed the Israeli embassy in Washington and Glenn Kessler, a reporter for The Washington Post. Those phone calls were being wiretapped by the FBI as part of its investigation of a major Israeli spy ring in the United States, an investigation that had been going on since before the 911 attacks. The FBI was also monitoring meetings between Franklin, Weissman, and Rosen, including one held in February 2003 at the Arlington, Virginia Ritz-Carlton hotel, which adjoins the Pentagon City Mall.

In February 2005, an Israeli man named Ohad Cohen was deported, along with four other Israelis, from Omaha, Nebraska. In what was becoming a common occurrence in the United States, a total of ten Israelis, who were working at shopping mall kiosks in the Omaha and Lincoln areas, were deported by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials for illegally working in the United States on tourist visas. The Israelis operated out of Omaha’s Oak View Mall and Lincoln’s Gateway Westfield Mall. The Federal government probe was reported to be part of a wider probe of Israeli shopping mall kiosk activity throughout the Midwest. In December 2004, FBI and immigration officers arrested 15 Israelis in Minnesota and three operating from a mall kiosk in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Omaha is also the headquarters of the U.S. Air Force Strategic Air Command (SAC).

On January 13, 2009, WMR reported: WMR has also learned of other Israeli mall kiosks around the country that hired aggressive Israeli young men and women who badger customers and ask personal questions. Israeli mall kiosks engaged in the aggressive sales practices have been set at the North Shore Mall in Peabody, Massachusetts and Northeast Mall in Hurst, Texas, a Dallas suburb. The mall kiosks in Peabody sell Israeli hand cream and nail files. The kiosk in Hurst has a male overseer, about 45 years old, who lives in the Bahamas.

Many of the Israeli mall vendors claim ignorance when told by customers that Israeli mall kiosks were identified as Mossad front operations in a Fox News report. More incredibly, some Israelis feign ignorance when the term "911" is used. They claim not to know what the term means.

In the same report, WMR reported: Last month, police in New South Wales, Australia arrested the leader of an Israeli "art student" ring who was selling mass-produced paintings from China as valuable art work from Israel. The Israeli man arrested, age 23, fit the profile of a number of Israeli "art students" rounded up, detained, and deported by U.S. authorities in the months prior to 9/11. The "art students" were casing federal offices, military installations, and the homes of federal agents and officials.

The Israeli was arrested by police in Wamberal on Australia's eastern central coast. Fifty Chinese-made oil paintings were found in the Israeli's Mitsubishi station wagon. He was attempting to sell the paintings for between 500 and 1,000 Australian dollars. The Israelis in Australia visited a number of homes and claimed they were university students from Israel. The Israeli arrested lived in Sydney's Bondi Beach neighborhood.

Recently, there was yet another story about the use of Israeli mall kiosk operators as intelligence agents. In the most recent case in Perth, Australia, an Australian man was arrested and charged with violation of an Australian hate crime law for exposing the activities of Israeli-run mall kiosks owned by an Israeli firm in Melbourne whose products are called "Seacret - Minerals From The Dead Sea." The president of the Australian Union of Jewish Students lodged a criminal complaint against the investigator who maintained that Israeli nationals were attempting to obtain classified information on the Royal Australian Navy's Collins class submarine as well as other defense programs.

Gilad Atzmon - Yearning for a Minyan

By Gilad Atzmon • Jun 16th, 2009 at 22:42 • Category: Gilad Atzmon, Grassroots Activism, Interviews, Newswire, Palestine, Podcast, Religion, War, Zionism

America is a very interesting place at the moment, especially for Palestinian solidarity activists. The emerging conflict between the current Administration and the Israeli government is not exactly a secret anymore. The images of Israeli youngsters calling Obama ‘F**k Head’, ‘S**t Head’ and ‘Ni**er’ are rather effective PR materials at the hands of the friends of Palestine and it seems as if the Israelis are aware of it. Haaretz reported the other day that Netanyahu is convinced that “Obama seeks a clash with Israel to appease Arabs”. Palestinian activists in America know also that AIPAC and the Jewish lobby is in a state of confusion. The Lobby is not really used to being pushed to the corner, at the end of the day, after spending so much money on American politicians (Obama included) they really expected to run the show.

In my trip to America last week, I visited Texas, Colorado and California. I found out that talking about Palestine and the Middle East conflict in America was a very different experience to the one I am used to in the UK. As far as I could see, in America, or at least in the cities I visited, there was an openness about discussing issues that are largely regarded as a taboo in Britain [1]. Unlike Britain where solidarity activism is largely run by older activists who happen to be affiliated with some decaying Eurocentric ideologies, something that alienates many Palestinians, in America, exiled Palestinians and vibrant Arab students are highly involved in every possible level and aspect of activism. Rather than following a watery agenda that is there to appease a few Zionist tribal infiltrators into the movement, in America, activism is largely free of 19^th century Ideological indoctrination. Instead, it is set around some basic human right issues and a general notion of justice. It is mostly about ‘right vs wrong’ rather than ‘right vs left’. More than often it is grassroots human right activists who together with fully dedicated Palestinian exiles and students setting the tone. Somehow Palestinians and Arabs happen to know something about Palestine others may fail to grasp.

In each city, after my talks, I hung out with local activists (many of them from the Middle East) till the small hours. As much as I was there to throw some light on issues to do with Jewish and Israeli identity, I actually happened to learn a lot from the local Palestinian community of activists. For the obvious reasons it is crucial to learn from Palestinians themselves: what is their cause, what do they care about, what they want to achieve and what do they think they can achieve.

Americans love their radio and they have a lot of it. Independent radio is a very powerful tool, it is capable of delivering instant unmediated information. In Houston for instance, I was a guest of Said Fattouh who runs a radio show bringing Arab news to 150,000 listeners (you can hear the link here by clicking on the podcast at the bottom). In San Francisco I did the same with Khalil Bendib’s Voices of the Middle East and North Africa at KPFA. In each city I visited at least one or two radio stations. Independent Radio has a tremendous impact, something we really miss in Britain and Europe.

In America, everything has a price tag or a market value. Bearing that fact in mind, the involvement of a highly successful Palestinian businessmen introduces a new realm of functionality that is hardly seen in European activism. Businesspeople tend to follow business models. They know how to set targets but more importantly, they know how to set a strategic plan to achieve those targets. This level of focus marketing is something I hardly see in Europe. While pure political activism may fail to unite the spirit and the matter, focused economic mindset seems to provide the spirit with the necessary material backing. Here, in Britain I saw only one focused successful Palestinian campaign, it was the Deir Yassin Remembered. It was an epic gathering of many Palestinians together with British solidarity activists. As it happened, UK Jewish groups within the movement went out of their way to dismantle this important commemoration and information group (Here is one example).

Cash For Honour

Talking about market value and campaigning, I may as well suggest that not many people realise that in Western capitals, observant Jews are actually paying hard cash to secure their seats in their synagogues. Bearing this astonishing fact in mind, it is not very surprising that a cult that attaches a market value to God-loving produces a political lobby that turns Jewish power into a commodity.

I’ve been following AIPAC activity for years, I read about its far reaching influence but I have never learned about its operational methods within the Jewish communities. Interestingly enough, in America, I held an AIPAC document in my hands for the first time. My Colorado host left me with a bunch of Zionist brochures when he dropped me at Denver Airport. He probably assumed that I needed some light entertainment for the duration of my next local flight. While most of these brochures repeated the usual Israeli lies, the AIPAC one was fascinating - for it was selling cash for honour in broad daylight. Without trying to hide anything, it basically offered American Jews the opportunity to buy membership in an exclusive club that would introduce them to some influential politicians.

AIPAC’s business model is very simple: the ‘more you pay, the more you get’. It is all about buying your way in. I obviously realised that this was how it worked, and yet, I assumed that Jewish lobbyists would be slightly more discreet about it.

As I learned from the brochure, the lowest level AIPAC club is The Washington Club (minimum annual contribution of $1,500). The “Club members are invited to exclusive events in their communities featuring leading members of Congress and other policymakers, key Israeli diplomats and top political pundits.” The richest Jews on the planet can save themselves from wasting time on the local governor or the Sheriff’s assistant, they are invited to join ‘The Minyan Club’ (minimum annual contribution of $100,000) and “to peer behind” no less than “the scenes of America’s foreign policy”. As a Minyan member, you will join an elite circle of only several hundred of AIPAC’s most dedicated members “who get to know the personalities behind the politics…. Minyan members receive an unparalleled chance to peer behind the scenes of America’s foreign policy. Members have had their picture taken and mingled with leaders such as President Bill Clinton, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice…”

Seemingly you don’t have to be an elder in order to join the Zionist lobby. All you need is just a bit of extra cash. This is indeed tempting, I thought that once I land in London, I should talk to my financial adviser. As one may gather, a photo with Condy could really help my musical career. I wonder whether they accept proud self-haters into their exclusive Minyan[2].

The Minyan members are not just interested in American hegemony. Their influence is worldwide. Someone in AIPAC obviously realises that in order to secure the ‘promised land’, they better as well Zionise the entire planet. For just over $100,000 a year Israel lovers are invited to “explore new corners of the world poised to affect Israel’s future and America’s policies in the Middle East. Minyan members who take part in AIPAC’s semi-annual Missions have seen India through the lens of its evolving strategic relationship with the Jewish State and have debated Europe’s Middle East policies with the people who shape them in Brussels…”

As far as I can recall, AIPAC says in its defence that America is a ‘Lobby orientated society’, and this is how lobbies work. However, let’s face it, not many Lobbies in America try to push for a global conflict and nuclear assault against Iran all in the name of a foreign country with a peculiar racist agenda and a devastating record of crimes against humanity.

Thinking about AIPAC’s successful business model I thought to myself that I wouldn’t like to see the Palestinian solidarity movement becoming a money making machine. Besides, it seems that in spite of AIPAC’s triumphant attempt to penetrate into the hub of the American political system and its success at enslaving the entire American political system, the resentment towards Israel amongst the masses is growing all the time. The loathing towards AIPAC and its tactics is not a secret either. The failure of AIPAC to reach the masses is very easy to explain. While you can buy political support with money, real empathy is a different animal altogether, for empathy is the capacity to put oneself in the place of the other. In the world’s current affairs, ethical beings tend to empathise with Palestinian suffering, with people who are locked behind barbed wire and starved by the Jewish state. AIPAC knows how to intermingle with local and world leaders, yet, this doesn’t translate into general approval of Israel by the general crowd. Quite the opposite, people out there are tired of the continuous murderous tactics practiced by the Jewish state. People out there are weary of the obnoxious and relentless Jewish institutional lobbying in favour of Israel and its murderous practices.

Let them Expose Themselves

I ended my tour talking at the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists Church, an event that was sponsored by ISM and Free Gaza. This is where I met my Zionist opponents who picketed me in the street. Already before I left for America I saw the usual clichés originally collected by the so-called ‘Jewish Anti Zionists’.[3] This time my words were circulated on the net by rabid Zionists. Once again it was a failed attempt to stop me from sharing and telling the Zionist devastating truth to the public.

The local promoter of my California talks was rather happy with the Zionist campaign. He rightly said, they have the money and the means to promote your views in America, we better let them do it. It reminded me that years ago it was the ‘Jewish anti Zionist’ campaign against me that brought my views to the attention of many Palestinian solidarity activists. By the time the crypto Zionist infiltrators realised that they were shooting themselves in the foot, it was too late. My views were rather accepted in wide circles. As it happened, it was actually the crypto Zionist tribal activists within the movement who had become marginalised. Interestingly enough, the same happened to my Zionist foes in Berkeley, California. It was their voice rather than mine that was silenced.

I do want Zionist tribal activists to expose their symptoms. I want them to shout and to point their finger at every person whom they suspect to be an anti-Semite. By doing so, all they achieve in practice is admitting who they are. They are pointing their finger at themselves saying, “we are Zionists, we are a racist rightwingers, we are loud, proud and as you can see we are openly promoting our tribal interests.”

I told my audience in Berkeley that the bunch of noisy people whom they met in the entrance were crucial for the understanding of Zionism and its violence. The people out there were exactly the same people as the Israelis, they were motivated by the same supremacist ideas. They were using exactly the same intimidating tactics. They just lacked the means to put us all behind barbed wire, to starve us or to spread white phosphorus over our heads. The picketers in Berkeley were waving the Israeli flag and carried placards, they were foreign to the calm evening scene as much as their settler brothers are foreign to the hills of Judea and Samaria. They basically brought Israeli ugliness to an innocent Californian street. Funnily enough from a light PA system they brought along they played some horrible Israeli folk music, they probably didn’t realise that I could recognise my saxophone and clarinet on most of these badly played and horribly arranged songs.

A young Palestinian man who stood near to me asked the picketers, “why do you insist upon living on my land?” A blue flag waver turned to him, he had a massive star of David hanging on his chest. Here is what he said, “because, Israel is our promised land, we were waiting for 2000 years…. And don’t forget the holocaust”. As stupid as it may sound, this is basically what the Zionist argument is all about: the promise, the bible, the yearning and then of course the holocaust. Add to this Zionist lethal dish a lot of American weapons and Western backing and you have a ‘Jewish only state’ pushing for a global war. Israel got away with all of it for too many years. But after Gaza, the tide is changing. People out there see it all. The resentment towards Israel is growing by the day. This is something that I see in my concerts and talks around the world. I could see it again in Berkeley, in spite of all the pressure those Zionist operators mounted on the church for weeks, the event went ahead according to plan. The night was a great success.

The voice of Palestinian plight is now noticed, the Israeli barbarism is well observed. Western politicians may continue, for a while, to bathe in the gold poured at them by Minyan club members and Lord Cashpoints, but sooner or later they will have to listen to us. Unlike Karl Popper who was concerned with the battle between the ‘Open Society and its Enemies’ the real battle here is between ‘Humanity and its Relentless Enemies’, namely Zionists. In this battle we must win and we will.

[1] I am aware of contradicting reports that suggest that gatekeepers are actually on the rise. However, since I hardly visited America in the last 8 years, I can only refer to America in comparison with my European experience.
[2] Refers to the Quorum required for certain Judaic religious obligations. The traditional minyan for most cases consists of ten Jewish men.
[3] As far as tactics are concerned, there is not much difference in methods and operational practices between Rabid Zionists and Jewish anti Zionists. They are somehow primarily interested in chasing anti-Semites, even if they have to invent them.
Gilad Atzmon interviewed on Arab Voices. The host of the radio show is Said Fattouh.

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Tagged as: AIPAC, arab voices, Interview, Israel, Jewish Identity Politics, Jewish lobbies, Palestine, Podcast, Zionism, Zionist

Gilad Atzmon is a jazz musician, composer, producer and writer.
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Gilad Atzmon - Yearning for a Minyan

By Gilad Atzmon • Jun 16th, 2009 at 22:42 • Category: Gilad Atzmon, Grassroots Activism, Interviews, Newswire, Palestine, Podcast, Religion, War, Zionism

America is a very interesting place at the moment, especially for Palestinian solidarity activists. The emerging conflict between the current Administration and the Israeli government is not exactly a secret anymore. The images of Israeli youngsters calling Obama ‘F**k Head’, ‘S**t Head’ and ‘Ni**er’ are rather effective PR materials at the hands of the friends of Palestine and it seems as if the Israelis are aware of it. Haaretz reported the other day that Netanyahu is convinced that “Obama seeks a clash with Israel to appease Arabs”. Palestinian activists in America know also that AIPAC and the Jewish lobby is in a state of confusion. The Lobby is not really used to being pushed to the corner, at the end of the day, after spending so much money on American politicians (Obama included) they really expected to run the show.

In my trip to America last week, I visited Texas, Colorado and California. I found out that talking about Palestine and the Middle East conflict in America was a very different experience to the one I am used to in the UK. As far as I could see, in America, or at least in the cities I visited, there was an openness about discussing issues that are largely regarded as a taboo in Britain [1]. Unlike Britain where solidarity activism is largely run by older activists who happen to be affiliated with some decaying Eurocentric ideologies, something that alienates many Palestinians, in America, exiled Palestinians and vibrant Arab students are highly involved in every possible level and aspect of activism. Rather than following a watery agenda that is there to appease a few Zionist tribal infiltrators into the movement, in America, activism is largely free of 19^th century Ideological indoctrination. Instead, it is set around some basic human right issues and a general notion of justice. It is mostly about ‘right vs wrong’ rather than ‘right vs left’. More than often it is grassroots human right activists who together with fully dedicated Palestinian exiles and students setting the tone. Somehow Palestinians and Arabs happen to know something about Palestine others may fail to grasp.

In each city, after my talks, I hung out with local activists (many of them from the Middle East) till the small hours. As much as I was there to throw some light on issues to do with Jewish and Israeli identity, I actually happened to learn a lot from the local Palestinian community of activists. For the obvious reasons it is crucial to learn from Palestinians themselves: what is their cause, what do they care about, what they want to achieve and what do they think they can achieve.

Americans love their radio and they have a lot of it. Independent radio is a very powerful tool, it is capable of delivering instant unmediated information. In Houston for instance, I was a guest of Said Fattouh who runs a radio show bringing Arab news to 150,000 listeners (you can hear the link here by clicking on the podcast at the bottom). In San Francisco I did the same with Khalil Bendib’s Voices of the Middle East and North Africa at KPFA. In each city I visited at least one or two radio stations. Independent Radio has a tremendous impact, something we really miss in Britain and Europe.

In America, everything has a price tag or a market value. Bearing that fact in mind, the involvement of a highly successful Palestinian businessmen introduces a new realm of functionality that is hardly seen in European activism. Businesspeople tend to follow business models. They know how to set targets but more importantly, they know how to set a strategic plan to achieve those targets. This level of focus marketing is something I hardly see in Europe. While pure political activism may fail to unite the spirit and the matter, focused economic mindset seems to provide the spirit with the necessary material backing. Here, in Britain I saw only one focused successful Palestinian campaign, it was the Deir Yassin Remembered. It was an epic gathering of many Palestinians together with British solidarity activists. As it happened, UK Jewish groups within the movement went out of their way to dismantle this important commemoration and information group (Here is one example).

Cash For Honour

Talking about market value and campaigning, I may as well suggest that not many people realise that in Western capitals, observant Jews are actually paying hard cash to secure their seats in their synagogues. Bearing this astonishing fact in mind, it is not very surprising that a cult that attaches a market value to God-loving produces a political lobby that turns Jewish power into a commodity.

I’ve been following AIPAC activity for years, I read about its far reaching influence but I have never learned about its operational methods within the Jewish communities. Interestingly enough, in America, I held an AIPAC document in my hands for the first time. My Colorado host left me with a bunch of Zionist brochures when he dropped me at Denver Airport. He probably assumed that I needed some light entertainment for the duration of my next local flight. While most of these brochures repeated the usual Israeli lies, the AIPAC one was fascinating - for it was selling cash for honour in broad daylight. Without trying to hide anything, it basically offered American Jews the opportunity to buy membership in an exclusive club that would introduce them to some influential politicians.

AIPAC’s business model is very simple: the ‘more you pay, the more you get’. It is all about buying your way in. I obviously realised that this was how it worked, and yet, I assumed that Jewish lobbyists would be slightly more discreet about it.

As I learned from the brochure, the lowest level AIPAC club is The Washington Club (minimum annual contribution of $1,500). The “Club members are invited to exclusive events in their communities featuring leading members of Congress and other policymakers, key Israeli diplomats and top political pundits.” The richest Jews on the planet can save themselves from wasting time on the local governor or the Sheriff’s assistant, they are invited to join ‘The Minyan Club’ (minimum annual contribution of $100,000) and “to peer behind” no less than “the scenes of America’s foreign policy”. As a Minyan member, you will join an elite circle of only several hundred of AIPAC’s most dedicated members “who get to know the personalities behind the politics…. Minyan members receive an unparalleled chance to peer behind the scenes of America’s foreign policy. Members have had their picture taken and mingled with leaders such as President Bill Clinton, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice…”

Seemingly you don’t have to be an elder in order to join the Zionist lobby. All you need is just a bit of extra cash. This is indeed tempting, I thought that once I land in London, I should talk to my financial adviser. As one may gather, a photo with Condy could really help my musical career. I wonder whether they accept proud self-haters into their exclusive Minyan[2].

The Minyan members are not just interested in American hegemony. Their influence is worldwide. Someone in AIPAC obviously realises that in order to secure the ‘promised land’, they better as well Zionise the entire planet. For just over $100,000 a year Israel lovers are invited to “explore new corners of the world poised to affect Israel’s future and America’s policies in the Middle East. Minyan members who take part in AIPAC’s semi-annual Missions have seen India through the lens of its evolving strategic relationship with the Jewish State and have debated Europe’s Middle East policies with the people who shape them in Brussels…”

As far as I can recall, AIPAC says in its defence that America is a ‘Lobby orientated society’, and this is how lobbies work. However, let’s face it, not many Lobbies in America try to push for a global conflict and nuclear assault against Iran all in the name of a foreign country with a peculiar racist agenda and a devastating record of crimes against humanity.

Thinking about AIPAC’s successful business model I thought to myself that I wouldn’t like to see the Palestinian solidarity movement becoming a money making machine. Besides, it seems that in spite of AIPAC’s triumphant attempt to penetrate into the hub of the American political system and its success at enslaving the entire American political system, the resentment towards Israel amongst the masses is growing all the time. The loathing towards AIPAC and its tactics is not a secret either. The failure of AIPAC to reach the masses is very easy to explain. While you can buy political support with money, real empathy is a different animal altogether, for empathy is the capacity to put oneself in the place of the other. In the world’s current affairs, ethical beings tend to empathise with Palestinian suffering, with people who are locked behind barbed wire and starved by the Jewish state. AIPAC knows how to intermingle with local and world leaders, yet, this doesn’t translate into general approval of Israel by the general crowd. Quite the opposite, people out there are tired of the continuous murderous tactics practiced by the Jewish state. People out there are weary of the obnoxious and relentless Jewish institutional lobbying in favour of Israel and its murderous practices.

Let them Expose Themselves

I ended my tour talking at the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists Church, an event that was sponsored by ISM and Free Gaza. This is where I met my Zionist opponents who picketed me in the street. Already before I left for America I saw the usual clichés originally collected by the so-called ‘Jewish Anti Zionists’.[3] This time my words were circulated on the net by rabid Zionists. Once again it was a failed attempt to stop me from sharing and telling the Zionist devastating truth to the public.

The local promoter of my California talks was rather happy with the Zionist campaign. He rightly said, they have the money and the means to promote your views in America, we better let them do it. It reminded me that years ago it was the ‘Jewish anti Zionist’ campaign against me that brought my views to the attention of many Palestinian solidarity activists. By the time the crypto Zionist infiltrators realised that they were shooting themselves in the foot, it was too late. My views were rather accepted in wide circles. As it happened, it was actually the crypto Zionist tribal activists within the movement who had become marginalised. Interestingly enough, the same happened to my Zionist foes in Berkeley, California. It was their voice rather than mine that was silenced.

I do want Zionist tribal activists to expose their symptoms. I want them to shout and to point their finger at every person whom they suspect to be an anti-Semite. By doing so, all they achieve in practice is admitting who they are. They are pointing their finger at themselves saying, “we are Zionists, we are a racist rightwingers, we are loud, proud and as you can see we are openly promoting our tribal interests.”

I told my audience in Berkeley that the bunch of noisy people whom they met in the entrance were crucial for the understanding of Zionism and its violence. The people out there were exactly the same people as the Israelis, they were motivated by the same supremacist ideas. They were using exactly the same intimidating tactics. They just lacked the means to put us all behind barbed wire, to starve us or to spread white phosphorus over our heads. The picketers in Berkeley were waving the Israeli flag and carried placards, they were foreign to the calm evening scene as much as their settler brothers are foreign to the hills of Judea and Samaria. They basically brought Israeli ugliness to an innocent Californian street. Funnily enough from a light PA system they brought along they played some horrible Israeli folk music, they probably didn’t realise that I could recognise my saxophone and clarinet on most of these badly played and horribly arranged songs.

A young Palestinian man who stood near to me asked the picketers, “why do you insist upon living on my land?” A blue flag waver turned to him, he had a massive star of David hanging on his chest. Here is what he said, “because, Israel is our promised land, we were waiting for 2000 years…. And don’t forget the holocaust”. As stupid as it may sound, this is basically what the Zionist argument is all about: the promise, the bible, the yearning and then of course the holocaust. Add to this Zionist lethal dish a lot of American weapons and Western backing and you have a ‘Jewish only state’ pushing for a global war. Israel got away with all of it for too many years. But after Gaza, the tide is changing. People out there see it all. The resentment towards Israel is growing by the day. This is something that I see in my concerts and talks around the world. I could see it again in Berkeley, in spite of all the pressure those Zionist operators mounted on the church for weeks, the event went ahead according to plan. The night was a great success.

The voice of Palestinian plight is now noticed, the Israeli barbarism is well observed. Western politicians may continue, for a while, to bathe in the gold poured at them by Minyan club members and Lord Cashpoints, but sooner or later they will have to listen to us. Unlike Karl Popper who was concerned with the battle between the ‘Open Society and its Enemies’ the real battle here is between ‘Humanity and its Relentless Enemies’, namely Zionists. In this battle we must win and we will.

[1] I am aware of contradicting reports that suggest that gatekeepers are actually on the rise. However, since I hardly visited America in the last 8 years, I can only refer to America in comparison with my European experience.
[2] Refers to the Quorum required for certain Judaic religious obligations. The traditional minyan for most cases consists of ten Jewish men.
[3] As far as tactics are concerned, there is not much difference in methods and operational practices between Rabid Zionists and Jewish anti Zionists. They are somehow primarily interested in chasing anti-Semites, even if they have to invent them.
Gilad Atzmon interviewed on Arab Voices. The host of the radio show is Said Fattouh.

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Tagged as: AIPAC, arab voices, Interview, Israel, Jewish Identity Politics, Jewish lobbies, Palestine, Podcast, Zionism, Zionist

Gilad Atzmon is a jazz musician, composer, producer and writer.
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