Gilad Atzmon – Anatomy of an Unresolved Conflict

According to Hegel, attaining ‘self-consciousness’ is a process that necessarily involves the other. How am I to become conscious of myself in general? It is simply through desire or anger, for example. Unlike animals that overcome biological needs by destroying another organic entity, human desire is a desire for recognition.

In Hegelian terms, recognition is accomplished by directing oneself towards non-being, that is, towards another desire, another emptiness, another ‘I’. It is something that can never be fully accomplished. “The man who desires a thing humanly acts not so much to possess the thing as to make another recognise his right. It is only desire of such recognition, it is only the action that flows from such desire, that creates, realizes and reveals a human, non biological I.” (Kojeve A., Introduction to the Reading of Hegel, 1947, Cornell Univ. Press, 1993, p. 40). Following this Hegelian line of thinking, we can deduce that in order to develop self-consciousness, one must face the other. While the biological entity will fight for its biological continuity, a human being fights for recognition.

In order to understand the practical implications of this idea, let us turn to the ‘Master-Slave Dialectic’. The Master is called the Master because he strives to prove his superiority over nature and over the slave who is forced to recognize him as a master.

At first glance, it looks as if the master has reached the peak of human existence but as we shall see, this is not the case. As has just been stated, it is recognition that humans fight for. The master is recognised by the slave as a master but the slave’s recognition has little value. The master wants to be recognised by another man, but a slave is not a man. The master wants recognition by a master, but another master cannot allow another superior human being in his world. “In short, the master never succeeds in realising his end, the end for which he risks his very life.” So the master faces a dead-end. But what about the slave? The slave is in the process of transforming himself since, unlike the master who cannot go any further, the slave has everything to aspire to. The slave is at the vanguard of the transformation of the social conditions in which he lives. The slave is the embodiment of history. He is the essence of progress.

A Lesson in Mastery

Let us now try to apply the Hegelian Master-Slave Dialectic to the notion of Jewish ‘chosenness’ and exclusivity. While the Hegelian ‘Master’ risks his biological existence to become a master, the newborn Jewish infant risks his foreskin. The chosen infant is born into the realm of mastery and excellence without (yet) excelling at anything. The other awards the chosen baby his prestigious status without the requirement of facing any process of recognition. And in fact, the ‘chosen’ title is given to Jews by themselves (allegedly God) rather than by others.

If, for instance, we try to analyse the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the Hegelian mechanism of recognition, we realise the impossibility of any dialogue between the two parties. While it is more than clear that the Palestinian people are fighting for recognition, which they declare at every possible opportunity, the Israelis avoid the whole recognition issue altogether. They are convinced that they are already fully recognised in the first place. They know who they are – they are born masters who happen to live on their ‘promised land’. Israelis refuse to join the dialectic ‘meaning transformation’ game and instead divert all their intellectual, political and military efforts into demolishing any sense of Palestinian recognition. The battle for Israeli society is to suppress any Palestinian symbol or desire, whether material, spiritual or cultural.

Strangely enough, the Palestinians are managing quite well in their fight for recognition. More and more people out there are now beginning to understand the just nature of the Palestinian cause and the level of inhumanity entangled with the entire concept of Zionism and Jewish politics in general. More and more people out there find the Palestinian people and their spokesmen very easy to empathise with. Even the Hamas who were despised by most Western political institutions are now managing to get their message across. The Israelis, on the other hand, are falling behind in such manoeuvres. The average Western listener finds them almost impossible to sympathise with. While a Palestinian will call you to share his pain and misery, talking straight to your heart, the Israeli spokesman will demand that you to accept his views. He will insist on selling you a ready-made fantastic historical narrative; a repetitive tale that starts somewhere around Biblical Abraham, continues with a series of Holocausts and leads eventually towards more current bloodshed. It seems as if the Israelis, the masters, always present the same faceless story. Can Abraham and the Holocaust justify Israeli inhuman behaviour in Gaza? Not really, and the reason is simple, Abraham and the Holocaust and historical narratives in general do not evoke genuine emotional feelings. And indeed, the Jewish political world is so desperate to maintain its narrative that the last Holocaust has now been transformed into a legal narrative. The message is as follows: “beware, if you doubt my narrative you will end up behind bars.” This is obviously an act of desperation.

Following Hegel, we learn that recognition is a dynamic process; it is a type of understanding that grows in you. While the Palestinians will use all their available, yet limited, resources to make you look at their faces, in their eyes, to carry you into a dynamic process of mutual recognition, the Israelis would expect you to accept their narrative blindly. They would expect you to turn a blind eye to the clear fact that as far as the Middle East is concerned Israel is an aggressor like no other. Israel is an occupying regional super power, a tiny State heavily engaged in exploring different nuclear, biological and chemical arsenals. It is a racially orientated apartheid state that bullies and abuses its minorities on a daily basis. Yes, the Israelis and their supportive Jewish lobbies around the world want you to ignore these facts. They insist upon being the victims, they want you to approve their inhuman policies referring to Jews endless suffering.

How is it that Jewish politics has become aggressive like no other? It is simply the fact that from a Jewish political perspective, there is ‘no other’. The so-called other for them is nothing but a vehicle rather than an equal human subject. Israeli foreign affairs and Jewish political activity should be comprehended in the light of a severe lack of a ‘recognition mechanism’. Israeli and Jewish politics, left right and centre, is grounded on locking and fixing of meaning. They would refuse to regard history as a flux, as a dynamic process, as a journey towards ‘oneself’ or self-realisation. Israel and Israelis view themselves as if they are external to history. They do not progress toward self-realisation because they have a given, fixed identity to maintain. Once they encounter a complex situation with the surrounding world, they would then create a model that adapts the external world into their chauvinist self-loving value system. This is what Neo-conservatism is all about; this is what the fantasmic yet sickening newly emerging Judeo-Christian discourse is all about.

As sad as it may sound, people who are not trained to recognise the other are unable to let them be recognised. The Jewish tribal mindset: left, centre and right, sets Jews aside of humanity. It does not equip the followers of the tribal mindset with the mental mechanism needed to recognise the other. Why should they do it? They have done so well for many years without having to do so. Lacking a notion of an other, indeed transcends one far beyond any recognised form of true humanist thought. It takes one far beyond ethical thinking or moral awareness.

Instead of morality, every debate is reduced into a mere political struggle with some concrete material and practical achievements to aim for.

Hegel may throw some further light on the entire saga. If indeed one becomes aware of oneself via the other, then the ‘Chosen subject’ is self-aware to start with. He is born into mastery. Accordingly, Israelis are not practicing any form of dialogue with the surrounding human environment since they are born masters. In order to be fair to the Israelis, I have to admit that their lack of a recognition mechanism has nothing to do with their anti-Palestinian feelings. As a matter of fact, they cannot even recognise each other – Israel and Israelis have a long history of discrimination against its own people (Jews of non-European descent such as Sephardim Jews are discriminated against by the Jewish elite, those of Western descent). But are progressive Jews any different? Not really. Like the Israelis and similar to any other form of tribal chauvinist ideology, they are continuously withdrawing into self-centred segregated discourse that has very little to engage or grab the interest of anyone besides themselves. Consequently, like the Israelis who surround themselves with walls, the Jewish progressive cells have already set themselves into cyber ghettos that are becoming increasingly hostile to the rest of humanity and those who supposed to be their comrades.

Historic Materialism

If one cannot establish relationships with one’s neighbour based upon recognition of the other, there must be another way of establishing a dialogue. If one cannot form a dialogue based upon empathy with the other and the rights of the other, one must pursue another mode of communication. It seems as if the alternative ‘chosen’ dialogical method reduces any form of communication into a materialistic language. Almost any form of human activity, including love and aesthetic pleasure, can be reduced to a material value. The Chosen political activists are well practised in using this method of communication.

Recently the Israeli ultra-Zionist author A B Yehoshua has managed to upset many American Jewish Ethnic leaders at the American Jewish Committee conference by saying: “You [Jews in the Diaspora] are changing jackets … you are changing countries like changing jackets.” Indeed, Yehoshua came under a lot of pressure following his remark, he was very quick to regret his statement. However, Yehoshua’s insight, while far from being original, is rather painfully truthful.

It is quite apparent that some politically orientated Diaspora Jews are engaged in an extremely fruitful dialogue with any possible core of hegemony. Yehoshoua’s criticism was fairly spot on. Following Yehoshua, once it is clear that a new country is becoming a leading world super power, it won’t take long before a wave of liberated assimilated Jews would try to infiltrate into its governing elite. “If China ever became the world’s foremost super power,” he warned, “American Jews would migrate there to assimilate rather than in the US.” (http://www.amin.org/eng/uncat/2006/june/june30-1.html).

A decade ago, at the peak of the legal battle between major Jewish institutions and the Swiss Bank, Norman Finkelstein stood up and said that very little remains of the Jewish Holocaust apart from various industrial forms of financial bargaining for compensation. According to Finkelstein, it was all about profit-making. Without any criticism intended by me about financial compensation, it appears as if some people are quick to translate their pain into gold. (It is important to mention that pain as well as being transformed into gold, can be transformed into other values such as moral or aesthetic ones). However, the possibility of transforming pain and blood into cash stands at the heart of the Israeli false dream – that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, especially the refugee problem, is resolvable. Now we know where this assumption originates. The Israelis, as well as Jewish leading institutions, are fully convinced that if they were happy to come to a financial settlement with the Germans (or the Swiss for the matter), the Palestinians would be equally happy to sell their lands and dignity. How do the Israelis arrive at such a strange conviction? Because they must know better than the Palestinians what the Palestinians really want. How? Because the Israelis are brilliant, they are the Chosen People. Moreover, the chosen subject doesn’t even try to engage with the human in the other. Sixty years after the Nakba, the mass the expulsion of the indigenous Palestinians, the vast majority of Israelis and world Jewry do not even start to acknowledge the Palestinian cause, let alone do they show any form of empathy.

When you talk to Israelis about the conflict, one of their most frequently used arguments is the following: “When we (the Jews) came here (to Palestine), they (the Arabs) had nothing. Now they have electricity, work, cars, health services, etc.” This is obviously a failure to recognise the other. It is typical of the chauvinist colonialist to impose one’s own value system on the other. In other words, the Israelis expect the Palestinians to share the importance they attach to the acquisition of material wealth. “Why should the other share my values? Because I know what is good. Why do I know what is Good? Because I am the best.” This arrogant and completely materialistic approach obviously lies at the heart of the Israeli vision of peace. The Israeli military calls it ‘the stick and the carrot’. Seemingly, when referring to Palestinians they actually have rabbits in their minds. But, as bizarre or even tragic as it may sound, the Israeli born, ultra-left Mazpen movement was not categorically different. They obviously had some revolutionary dreams of secularisation for the Arab world. They obviously knew what was good for the Arabs. Why did they know? Shall I let you guess? Because they were exclusively and chauvinistically clever. They were the Marxists of the chosen type. Hence, I wasn’t overwhelmingly surprised that as time went by, the legendary ‘revolutionary’ Mazpen and the despised neo-conservatism actually united into a single catastrophic message: “We know better what is good for you than you yourselves do.”

Both Zionists and Jewish leftists have a “New Middle East dream”. In Peres’s old fantasy the region turns into a financial paradise in which Israel would stand at the very centre. The Palestinians (as well as other Arab States) would supply Israeli industries (representing the West) with the low cost labour they need. In turn, they, the Arabs, would earn money and spend it buying Israeli (Western) goods. In the Judeo progressive dream the Arabs leaves Islam behind, they become Marxist cosmopolitan progressives (East European Jews) and join the journey towards a world revolution. As much as Peres’s dream is sad, the Judeo Marxist version is almost funny.

As it seems, within the Zionist dream, Israel would establish a dual coexistence in the region where the Palestinian people would be the eternal slaves and the Israelis their masters. Within the Judeo progressive cosmopolitan dream, Red Palestine will establish a dual coexistence in the region where the Palestinian people would be the eternal slaves of a remote Euro-centric ideology. If there is a big categorical difference between the two Judeo centric ideologies, I just fail to see it.

However, according to Hegel, it is the slave that moves history forward. It is the slave that struggles towards his freedom. It is the slave who transforms himself and it is the master who eventually vanishes. Following Hegel, we have good reason to believe that the future of the region belongs to the Palestinians, the Iraqis and nation Islam in general. One way of explaining why Israel ignores this understanding of history relates to the conditional detachment of the exclusive ‘chosen’ state of mind.

Welcome to Cuckoo land

Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian doctor who lives and works in the occupied West Bank, referred to Israel as “trying to be David and Goliath at the same time” (Dr. Barghouti was speaking at a debate at the House of Commons, 22 Nov. 2000). According to Dr. Barghouti, this is impossible. He also claimed that “Israel is probably the only State that bombs a territory it occupies.” He found this very strange and even bizarre. Is it really strange to be David and Goliath simultaneously? Is it really strange to destroy your own property? Not if you are insane. The lack of mirroring (again, seeing oneself through the other) can lead people, as well as nations, into strange dark corners. The lack of a framework which would allow you to discern your own image through the other, the lack of a corrective mechanism, appears to be a very dangerous state of affairs.

The first generation of Israeli leaders (Ben-Gurion, Eshkol, Meir, Peres, Begin) grew up in the Diaspora, mainly in Eastern Europe. Being a Jew living in a non-Jewish environment forces one to develop a sharpened self-awareness and imposes a certain kind of mirroring. Moreover, early Zionism is slightly more developed than other forms of Jewish tribal politics for the simple reason that Zionism is there to transform the Jews into ‘people like other people’. Such a realisation involves a certain amount of necessary mirroring. However, this was not enough to restrain Israeli aggressive acts (e.g., Deir-Yassin, Nakba, Kafer Kasem, the ’67 war, etc.) but it was more than enough to teach them a lesson in diplomacy. Since 1996, young leaders who were born there have led Israel into the state of ‘chosenness’ (Rabin, Netanyahu, Sharon, Barak, Olmert). Whilst in their earlier years they were imbued with an intense traditional Jewish anxiety, as they grew up this was overtaken by the legacy of the 1967 ‘miracle’, an event that turned some of the ‘chosen’ ideologies into a messianic extravaganza. This fixation with absolute power exacerbated by Jewish anxiety coupled with ignorance of the ‘other’ leads to epidemic collective schizophrenia, both of mood and action; a severe loss of contact with reality that gives way to the use of excessive force. The recent “Second Lebanon War” was an obvious example for that matter. Israel retaliates with machine guns in response to children throwing stones, with artillery and missiles against civilian targets following a sporadic uprising, and with a total war to a minor border incident. This behaviour should not be explained by using political, materialist or sociological analytical tools. Much greater understanding could be gained by situating the conflict within a philosophical framework, which allows a better understanding of the origins of paranoia and schizophrenia.

The Israeli Prime Minister, representing both ‘David and Goliath’, can talk about the vulnerability of Israel, Jewish pain and Jewish misery in one breath and about launching a massive military offensive against the whole region in the next. Such behaviour can only be explained by seeing it as a form of mental illness. The funny/sad side of it is that most Israelis do not even realise that something is going terribly wrong. Being a born master leads to the absence of a ‘recognition mechanism’. Inevitably it leads toward blindness. This lack of a recognition mechanism results in a split psyche, being both ‘David and Goliath’ at one and the same time. It seems that neither Israel nor Israelis can any longer be partners in any meaningful dialogue.

PALESTINE THINK TANK IS BORN!!

Haitham Sabbah, Mary Rizzo and Gilad Atzmon are very pleased to announce their new site. Palestine Think Tank. It is a site containing news, analysis, art and more to further the cause of justice for Palestinians. It concentrates on many aspects of the resistance, but also focuses on the issues affecting the entire Middle East. Please visit us at www.palestinethinktank.com, share this news with those who might be interested, and if you have a blog or site, consider linking to us. We also have a forum for those interested in interactive communication.

Together with us are some of the most insightful and talented writers, activists and artists around. Contributors include Khalid Amayreh, Ramzy Baroud, Adib Kawar, Ernesto Paramo, Wael Al Saad, Nadia Hasan, Iqbal Tamimi, Richard Jones, Nahida Izzat, Razan Al Ghazzawi, Khaled Islaih, Steve Amsel, Ben Heine and many more. www.palestinethinktank.com contains both original material and material from other sources that we believe deserves to be considered.

We are people from different backgrounds who live in different countries. We speak different languages and believe in different religions, or even believe in no religion at all.

These differences are not a problem to any of us.

Differences are what makes the world a wonderful place because everyone is unique. It allows us the possibility to learn more about the world and gain insights we would never have access to otherwise.

Celebrating our differences, we understand that there is a belief that unites us and unites all the people involved in creating this website. It is the belief that Zionism is wrong. Zionism is racism. For Zionism to happen, it means the ethnic cleansing of the indigenous people of the land of Palestine. We accept nothing about Zionism as being positive, yet we believe there are some people who don’t know exactly what Zionism is, and therefore assume it is something different than an ideology, and therefore, is beyond criticism.

We wish to educate those who don’t know what Zionism is so that they are able to see how damaging it is and how it is a just cause to stop it. We hope www.palestinethinktank.com will be a space for free discussion and wide-ranging analysis.

We believe that the just struggle of the Palestinian people is the greatest liberation struggle of our times, and we aim to render service to their cause through presenting as many aspects of their history, culture and struggle as we can. We intend to give space to many Arab voices as well, since the full realisation of the potential of people in the entire Arab world has been hindered for far too long by the “International Community”. It is far easier to promote an idea of “the Arab” that cleanses Israel and the West from all responsibility for the instability and lack of progress that in some cases is evident than to listen to the complex arguments and reasoning that people from these countries and who understand the history of the Arab World are able to present.

We hope to be able to provide a site full of valid content that is at the service of the Palestinian people especially. Their steadfastness is an inspiration to all mankind, and to those of us in particular who feel close to their cause or are Palestinian, it is a message of love, hope and humanity that we hope we are worthy of.

Content of www.palestinethinktank.com is intellectual property of the authors. All material that does not appear in this site as the original source will always be credited for authors and source.

The material here may be reproduced elsewhere, but we request that you kindly cite our source and post a link to the page on www.palestinethinktank.com from where it was taken. We will also build up our links and community as time develops, so that we can all work towards our goal with the energy and imagination required.

www.palestinethinktank.com contains a forum, which is a space to discuss arguments related to the Middle East. We hope that it will allow all of us to broaden our horizons, engage in constructive debate and present a social network that will be useful to all of us.

www.palestinethinktank.com will be in two languages, in English predominantly, and Arabic.

We accept original articles as well as suggestions for material published elsewhere.

Gilad Atzmon – Anthony Julius and a journey to the dark Zionist world

Anthony Julius is a prominent British lawyer and academic, best known for his actions on behalf of academic Nazi hunter Deborah Lipstadt. It was Julius who perpetrated the destruction of history revisionist David Irving’s career.

However, Anthony Julius is far more than just an academic and a lawyer. He is also a devoted Zionist who has established a reputation for his opposition to ‘new anti-Semitism’. Adding to the list of his accomplishments, he is also a founding member of Engage, the notorious British Zionist smear operator. On top of that he is also founder member of the UK based Neo-con think tank known as the Euston Manifesto.

A few days ago I came across a two part paper named ‘Jewish Anti-Zionism Unravelled: The Morality of Vanity’[1]. Apparently, it is a study made by Anthony Julius. It didn’t take me long to gather that Julius’s text should be read and understood. It must be scrutinised not because it is an important informative text, but because it serves as an invaluable document.

As one may guess, Julius is far from being stupid. He is by far more sophisticated, educated and eloquent than the average Zionist operators we come across on a daily basis. Thus, it is rather depressing to admit that his deconstruction of some large sectors of the Jewish political and ideological left is more than valid. As bizarre as it may sound, in places his criticism of his dissident anti-Zionists brothers and sisters is not far at all from the discomfort expressed rather often by Palestinians and Palestinian solidarity activists concerning Jewish anti-Zionism.

However, it should be mentioned that as much as Julius succeeds in exposing some serious inconsistency as well as a fundamental lack of integrity within the Jewish left discourse, his own study suffers badly due to his own lack of understanding of the intellectual foundation of anti-Zionist debate and the people who happen to carry this emerging discourse forwards.

From Politics to Humanism

The author’s biggest failure lies at the very premise of his study. Initially Julius tries to grasp the shift between the ‘modern’ and the ‘contemporary’ Jewish political anti-Zionism assuming that political anti-Zionism is still in place. Julius apparently fails to see the very obvious. Though pre WWII Jewish anti-Zionism had been largely politically orchestrated and ideologically orientated, contemporary anti-Zionism and Jewish anti-Zionism in particular is not at all politically leaning. If Julius would take a deep breath and view the list of ‘contemporary’ voices he himself had chosen to quote within his study (me included), he would notice that none of them are political activists. Neither Jacqueline Rose nor Tony Judt nor Ilan Pappe nor Oren Ben-Dor, nor Uri Davis nor myself are operating as politicians or within political cells. We all act as humanists, academics and artists. We write, we offer some critical thoughts, we compose music we make films and so forth.

The question that comes to mind is how is it that a prominent lawyer and an intellectual such as Julius fails to recognise such an obvious fact. The explanation is shockingly simple. It is actually called projection. Zionism is a form of blindness and Julius is apparently imbued in it. Julius is doomed to interpret his subject of research while employing his own tribal Judeocentric worldview. Because Zionist Jews operate constantly and solely within politically and racially orientated cells, they tend to believe that their dissident brothers must be operating within very similar settings.

Thus, rather than reading Julius’s study as academic scholarship, at times we should endorse some sceptical approach and take his different insights as a glimpse into the Zionist mindset. Julius’s paper is actually a glance or even a journey into the dark Zionist world.

Tribal vs. Universal

Once we manage to transcend ourselves beyond Julius’s Ziocentric limitations, we are left with a very interesting reading and eloquent exposure of some the fallacy entangled within Jewish anti-Zionism.

“Jewish anti-Zionism,” says Julius, “inaugurates a return for many Jews to some kind of Jewish identity.” But then what does he mean by Jewish identity? Who are the Jews, are they a racial group? Are they a cultural group?

In order to address the issue Julius elaborates and scrutinises the ideological message behind “Independent Jewish Voices” (IJV).

The IJV was launched on February 5 2007 by 150 prominent British Jews such as Nobel laureate Harold Pinter, historian Eric Hobsbawm, lawyer Sir Geoffrey Bindman and others. The organisation was there to refute “the widespread misconception that British Jews speak with one voice – and that this voice supports the Israeli government’s policies.” The IJV was there to shake the hegemony of the Zionist Board of Deputies of British Jews.

Though the IJV attracted a lot of media attention in early February 2007, it died soon after. A quick glance at the IJV website and its news page reveals the embarrassing fact that the IJV last news update happened on February 12 2007, just a week after its bombastic launch. In other words, the IJV is a dead political entity. It was set to create a media impression of Jewish dissidence and Jewish liberal pluralism. But as it seems, as far as the IJV is concerned, its dissidence is rather fictional.

I tend to believe that Julius is fully aware of the fact that the IJV is not active, however for some reason he decided to elaborate on the IJV’s message and its ideological teaching aiming at the exposure of the fallacy within Jewish anti-Zionism.

Julius cited the IJV opening document:

The “Independent Jewish Voices” (IJV) opening statement endeavoured to ‘reclaim the tradition of Jewish support for universal freedoms, human rights and social justice.’ ‘Judaism,’ it continued, “means nothing if it does not mean social justice And Moses’ instruction to Israel was cited, “Justice, justice shall you pursue” (Deuteronomy 16:20).

I assume that there is something both the IJV as well as Anthony Julius prefer to be very secretive about.

First, there is NO “Jewish tradition of universal freedoms”. Indeed, in the cathedra of the history of humanism more than just one Jew occupied a prominent seat. More than just one Jew taught us universalism and brotherhood, whether it was Christ, Spinoza, Marx or Simon Weil. But as sad as it may be, these provocative beings were brutally expelled and ostracised by their brothers.

Second, Moses’ reference to ‘Justice perusing’ (Deuteronomy 16:20) could have established a major ethical argument in favour of Jewish universal tradition. Yet this was the same Moses who just a few chapters earlier vowed to bring his people to the Promised Land where they are allowed to rob and loot the indigenous people. “A land with large, fine cities you did not build, houses filled with choice things you did not accumulate, hewn out cisterns you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant – and you eat your fill.” (Deuteronomy: Six 10-11). Seemingly, the IJV’s Moses, who was presented as an icon of universal humanism, is in fact a (very) early Zionist invader as well as the mastermind behind the Israelite collective looting culture.

Anyhow, Julius truly notices that the myth of Jewish universalism and profound ethics is repeated by many of the IJV signatories. “As a Jew,” says one, “I feel a particular duty to oppose the injustice that is done to Palestinians.”

“The anti-Zionist,” says Julius, “is not just a Jew like other Jews; his dissent from normative Zionist loyalties makes him a better Jew. He restores Judaism’s good name; to be a good Jew one has to be an anti-Zionist.”

Though Julius is sharp enough to trace the obvious righteousness within the IJV call, he happens to miss a further severe logical flaw here. When a so-called ‘better’ Jew refers to himself as a ‘Jew’, what is it that he refers to? Is it his racial belonging? Is it biological determinism in play? Is it the ethnic identity or is it again the collective belief in the comforting qualities of chicken soup? It is clear that statements such as: “As a Jew I feel a particular duty” or in general, “as a Jew I feel X, Y or Z” exposes the IJV in a very non-flattering light. It bluntly and foolishly admits a certain level of Jewish dogmatic homogenous collectivism that defies the initial claim of independence.

It is therefore not very surprising that the IJV died a week or two after its launch. Intellectually it couldn’t hold more than a week or two. It failed to bridge the gap between Athens and Jerusalem or rather, between the universal and the tribal. It failed simply because this gap may be unbridgeable. Once a secular Jew insists upon operating as an ‘independent’ humanist, he becomes an ordinary human being leaving behind all traces of tribal particularities and privileges.

Julius continues, “There is the objection (to Zionism) ‘in the name of universalism’. The Jewish anti-Zionist would argue that the national project has debased the Jewish character by making it ordinary.” Seemingly, Julius himself fails to see how deep is the logical absurdity in such a statement. If there is indeed a ‘Jewish Character’ with some cosmopolitan characteristics as opposed to ‘ordinary’ nationalist traits, then gravely, we would have to admit that Jews can never join humanity as equals. Jews can never intermingle with the ‘ordinary’. As bizarre as it may sound, once again we notice that Jewish universalism appears to operate as a maintenance project of Jewish chauvinism and tribalism.

Julius continues, “the Jewish anti-Zionist says ‘Jewish particularism’ of every kind must be rejected; Jews should not cut themselves off from their fellow students, workmates, and neighbours. Jews should seek a ‘Jewishness not sealed behind walls of conviction’, but open to the infinite possibilities of tomorrow.” Again, the absurdity behind such a statement is mind blowing. On the one end it refers to Jews as an ideal lucid homogenous collective, yet in the same breath it insists upon making this collective characterless. The truth of the matter must be said here. As long as Jews regard themselves as a homogenous collective and operate as a collective they happen to install a barrier between themselves and the rest of humanity. False calls for humanism and employment of Marxist jargon can’t and won’t cover it up.

Though I am totally convinced that the majority of the IJV signatures are well meaning and genuine peace lovers, the philosophy they happened to succumb to is rather embarrassingly lame. However, this is not big news. This flaw at the heart of the IJV’s declaration failed in every form of Jewish tribal left thinking for over a century. It is this very basic fault that made ‘Jewish anti-Zionists’ (JAZ), the Bund and IJV look like the ‘Best universalists amongst tribalists’ or alternatively ‘the ultimate tribalists amongst the universalists.’

“In the IJV’s principles,” cites Julius, one of its foundations includes “putting human rights first; repudiating all forms of racism; and giving equal priority to Palestinians and Israelis in their quest for a better future… (these are) principles that unite people of goodwill…group or ethnic loyalty, by contrast, is not a principle – or not a worthy one, at least.” “It must be,” answers Julius with scorn, that it is “Jewish quality to have no qualities at all.” It is very sad to admit, but Julius has a point here. As much as I would prefer to support the well-intentioned IJV agenda, I have to confess that the cosmopolitan attitude expressed above is totally irrelevant and even counter-effective as far as the Palestinian national struggle is concerned. As much as Julius insists upon the right of Jews to celebrate their symptoms as Jews, it is the humanist duty to insist upon a similar right of Palestinians to celebrate their ‘group or ethnic loyalty’. It is rather shocking to admit that Zionist and Palestinian criticism of Jewish anti-Zionism is almost similar.

The Moraliser

At this point, Julius is ready to pour a rain of contempt over his dissident brothers. “These Jewish anti-Zionists claim to speak as the moral conscience of the Jewish people. They no longer assert, as their revolutionary forebears once did…they play the part of scourges of the Jewish State.” ‘The scourge’, explains Julius, is a kind of “moraliser, that is, a public person who prides himself on the ability to discern the good and the evil. The moraliser makes judgments on others, and profits by so doing; he puts himself on the right side of the fence. Moralising provides the moraliser with recognition of his own existence and confirmation of his own value.”

But Julius doesn’t stop just there, he continues, “a moraliser has a good conscience and is satisfied by his own self-righteousness. He is not a self-hater; he is enfolded in self-admiration. He is in step with the best opinion. He holds that the truth is to be arrived at by inverting the “us = good” and “other = bad” binarism.

Julius should have grasped that ‘self-loving’ and ‘binary opposition’ settings are exactly that which set any form of Jewish tribal left within the ever-growing rabbinical tradition. The real meaning of secularism within the Jewish tribal left discourse means the replacement of ‘God-loving’ with ‘self-loving’, The modern Jewish tribal leftist believes in himself. And the binary formula he adopts should be read as Us = kosher / Other = taref.

However, if Julius would spend some time looking in the mirror while contemplating over the issues of ‘binarism’ and ‘self-loving’ he may find out that he is falling into the exact same trap. The Euston neo-conservative think tank he himself founded is intellectually premised on the exact same parameters. It is based on white liberal ‘self-loving’ and ‘binary opposition setting’ in the shape of us/them, kosher/taref, West/the rest.

Once again we notice, that Julius’s study is fuelled by projection. Once again we see that as much as it is interesting to read what Julius has to say, it is far more interesting to ask why he says what he says. Every insight Julius provides us with stands as a revelation concerning the Zionist project and the Zionist mindset.

The Crypto Zionist’s Role

Only in the last part of his study, Julius reveals his true motivation. Apparently the British Zionist academic has some Judeocentric conspiratorial expectations from his fellow dissident brothers. He would like to see them fighting the anti-Semites in the Palestinian solidarity discourse. He would like to see them operating as Sayanim.

The development of his argument is rather interesting.

According to Julius, the Jewish anti-Zionist “wrongly assumes that group loyalty is inconsistent with the ethical life, and that universalist moral foundations cannot sustain a version of nationalism.”

This is indeed reassuring to see that Julius asserts the most radical form of right wing views. Seemingly, the man learned a lot from the revisionist historian he managed to defeat in court. However, the truth must be said. Julius is absolutely correct here. There is NO contradiction between group loyalty and the ethical life. Torah Jews prove it beyond doubt. This is why Torah Jews are far more popular amongst Palestinian solidarity campaigner than any other Jewish collective. Julius is also correct to argue that there is no contradiction between universalist moral foundations and nationalism. Again this insight is no different to the Palestinian critiques of the cosmopolitan Jew. A Palestinian would rightly say: ‘If you are a cosmopolitan Jew who opposes nationalism, how exactly do you plan to support my Palestinian national struggle?’

Julius correctly suggests that anti-Zionist Jews fall into contradiction when they hold that while dispersion is good for the Jews, it is bad for the Palestinians, and when they demand of the Jews that they disavow ‘nationalism,’ while valuing the Palestinians’ “continuing struggle for justice;” Julius obviously hit here on some severe level of lack of integrity within the Jewish left discourse.

In short, it seems as if Julius manages to establish a profound criticism of Jewish anti-Zionism. Seemingly, Jewish anti-Zionism is inconsistent to the bone. Due to the impossibility to bridge the gap between the tribal and the universal, Jewish anti-Zionism is doomed to fall either into inconsistency or lack of integrity.

But here is where Julius comes with some clear suggestions regarding the Jewish role within the left. Trotsky, according to Julius, wasn’t operating as a Jew, yet he could “smell anti-Semitism in others”. But Julius doesn’t stop just there. “Contemporary Jewish anti-Zionists,” he says, “have lost the sense for it.” It is clear beyond doubt that Julius expects his dissident brothers to keep up day and night tracing and fighting the anti-Semites. He expects the Jewish anti-Zionists to operate as Sayanim, people who are motivated to operate as Zionist agents due to Jewish tribal brotherhood.

As funny as it may sound, Anthony Julius describes here the exact role taken by the discredited UK JAZ group who for a while worked day and night fighting, smearing and lobbying against those whom they regard as anti-Semites. Bearing in mind that Julius is a Zionist who calls the anti-Zionists to fight anti-Semitism , it is impossible not to see JAZ (http://azvsas.blogspot.com/) as an integral part of the Zionist plot on the verge of Sayanim.

Julius continues, “Jewish anti-Zionist contributions to anti-Semitically inflected positions taken by non-Jewish anti-Zionists consist of the following: (a) to give cover to the holders of such positions by endorsing them ‘as Jews’ (b) to endorse those positions as true, with the all the authority of an ‘insider’ or ‘expert’.”

It is very clear that as far as Julius is concerned, anti-Zionist Jews are not exactly ordinary human beings. They are primarily Jews and must serve their tribal interests first. At large, Julius’s expectations from his fellow brothers fall short of fulfilment. Not a single prominent Jewish anti-Zionist has ever joined the Zionist hunting expedition. They obviously have far better things to do. Those who were and still are foolish enough to follow Julius’s instructions and become hunters of anti-Semites have managed to marginalise themselves within the anti-Zionist movement beyond repair. If they were acting as double agents at some stage, they are now exposed in a very unflattering light.

The reason is simple. Every genuine anti-Zionist realises that if Israel is the Jewish State and the crimes committed by this State are committed in the name of the Jewish people then we are bound to ask, ‘who are the Jews? What is Judaism? And what is Jewishness?’ There is no alternative than to question the Jewish lobby and the role of Jewish media. These are the parameters of contemporary anti-Zionism, this is what anti-Zionism is all about, and if this is what new anti-Semitism is all about, we have nothing left to admit to the hunters than being anti-Zionists means we are going to be hunted sooner or later.

Interestingly enough, the IJV collapsed because independent, assimilated intellectuals tend to operate independently, they do not and could not succumb to tribal concerns. Prominent independent voices could never operate in an atmosphere of a synagogue. The IJV collapsed because its prominent members were too independent to operate as a fig leaf for the Jewish national project.

Sadly, we would have to admit that as much as the Jewish left is inconsistent to the bone, as much as it loses its way between Athens and Jerusalem, Zionism is unfortunately a success story. It is consistent, it knows exactly where Athens is but it prefers the road to Jerusalem. Zionism is a proud tribal project, it gives a new dynamic contemporary meaning to Jewish existence. Unfortunately this meaning is oppressive and murderous on the verge of genocidal. Since Zionism is a monolithic voice of the Jewish people, the future of anti-Zionist discourse will inevitably address a scope of issues to do with the Jewish question.

As much as I do not agree with Julius’s prime agenda, I tend to agree with many points raised by him. Jewish anti-Zionism is a futile project. It leads nowhere, it is there to make Jews look nice and to dismantle a real debate about Zionism and Jewish nationalism in general. If secular Jews intend to resist Zionism genuinely rather than just gather a momentary sympathy to their cause, then the only way to do it is to join the human family and to act as ordinary people. Such an act would give the French revolution and emancipation a real new meaning.

(1) part one: http://www.z-word.com/z-word-essays/jewish-anti-zionism-unravelled%253A–the-morality-of-vanity-%2528part-1%2529.html
part 2 http://www.z-word.com/z-word-essays/jewish-anti-zionism-unravelled%253A-questioning-antisemitism-%2528part-2%2529.html

Related post: https://peacepalestine.wordpress.com/2008/04/22/auntie-ziona-here-comes-trouble/

Internet censorship – the ballad of Gilad and PePa

http://machetera.wordpress.com/2008/04/05/internet-censorship-part-3-an-inconvenient-mirror/ from the divine Machetera. At the bottom, a small commentary by me.

Not long after posting an article about Tony Greenstein’s obsessive and unsuccessful efforts to shut down the peacepalestine blog, the blog’s editor Mary Rizzo reported that her blog access (though not Machetera’s) had been shut down once more, this time on the basis of the false accusation that she was running a “spam blog.” Rather than delve into definitions of what constitutes a spam blog and why someone would run one, for now Machetera will simply make the following observations:

1. peacepalestine is not a spam blog,

2. Blogger does appear to have a shoot first, ask questions later approach;

3. Machetera does not have enough information at the present time to say whether WordPress has a less trigger-happy temper, although being somewhat self-interested she will hope for the best;

4. The timing of the latest shutdown for peacepalestine is certainly curious, coming as it did on the heels of Machetera’s recent post on the subject, although Machetera does not claim credit nor would she want to, and finally,

5. Something very curious is going on in what Gilad Atzmon would call the Zionist/crypto-Zionist world. Translation (since that is Machetera’s specialty): the opinions expressed by Gilad Atzmon and Mary Rizzo are upsetting enough to certain people, to try to block their internet publishing.

It won’t work. The example of peacepalestine demonstrates pretty clearly that this form of internet silencing is at best, a short term endeavor, because the internet is like water; by design it is meant to follow the path of least resistance, and it’s impossible to plug all the leaks all the time. As Machetera has already pointed out, for really effective internet censorship you need to operate with an iron hand, preferably through the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control. Even then it’s a slippery beast, even for those who invented it. Shut down peacepalestine in one manifestation, and it will flower in a thousand other places.

What is it that disturbs these particular censors so? Well, nobody likes thinking of themselves as a racist, but Atzmon posits that secular Jewishness is a form of racism, so settling for being an anti-Zionist is not enough – Manuel Talens spoke to him about it some years back:

Talens: Now tell me why you argue that secular Jewishness is a mere form of racism. There are so many millions of honest people of Jewish extraction who are not religious at all and nevertheless feel and consider themselves Jews that such an assertion surprises me. Could you explain it? And by the same token do not forget to put in plain words what Zionism is: keep in mind that you are dialoguing with Western Gentiles, whose cultural genes – the so-called memes – are Christian and who quite often feel baffled when confronted with notions such as Zionism, Semitism or their antonyms anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism.

Atzmon: OK a clarification is needed here. It is not the Jewish origin that makes one into a racist but rather the endorsement of a Jewish secular identity that “may” do so. As I mentioned before, once you remove the religious content from Jewishness you are left with the concept of Jewish blood. Zionism is in fact a nationalist perception that connotes Jewishness to race rather than to a religious belief. As such, Zionism is the belief that Zion (Palestine) is the national homeland of the Jewish people. This strange belief is basically grounded on a Biblical promise. In other words, the Zionists transform the spiritual text (the Bible) into a mere land registry. But then one may ask, who are the Jewish people? From a Zionist perspective, Jews are those who happen to be racially Jewish. In fact, Zionism predates Nazism. Early Zionists spoke about Jewish blood and racial eugenics when Hitler was still in nappies. The problem is that while Zionism started as a marginal esoteric political movement and was highly criticised by most Jewish ideological and religious schools of thought, it is now touted as the official voice of the Jewish people. I tend to argue that many Jews, and this would include even the so called “Jewish anti-Zionists”, are in fact nothing but crypto-Zionists.

In one of my latest papers I contend that those who call themselves Jews could be divided into three main categories: 1. Those who follow Judaism; 2. Those who regard themselves as human beings that happen to be of Jewish origin; and 3. Those who put their Jewishness over and above all of their other traits. Obviously, I have no problem with the two first categories, but the 3rd one is rather problematic. The 3rd category Jew is for instance: a Jew who lives in America (rather than an American who happens to be of Jewish descent), a Jew who plays the saxophone (rather than a saxophonist who happens to be Jewish), a Jewish anti-Zionist (rather than an anti-Zionist who happens to be Jewish). For the 3rd category Jew, the racial belonging is a primary qulity and this is, in fact, the very essence of Zionism. Thus, to be born a Jew is innocent indeed, but to be a Jew isn’t necessarily innocent. It all depends on the category one happens to endorse. Unless one falls into the first 2 categories, one isn’t necessarily innocent.

MT: Excuse my doggedness, but I want you to be extremely precise. To me this “one isn’t necessarily innocent” you have just mentioned suggests that it is still possible to belong to the 3rd category without being a racist. Is that what you mean?

GA: This is just because I am really trying to be polite.

MT: I insist: Are you ready to accept that these Jewish anti-Zionists who according to you are nothing but crypto-Zionists could still be wonderful human beings, not racists after all?

GA: You see, we are all “racially aware” but then being a “racist” is a different condition altogether. I will be very clear about the subject. To be a secular Jew and yet to make your Jewishness into a primary quality is a clear manifestation of a racist tendency. Many amongst the anti-Zionist Jews are simply unaware of the problems entangled with their racial approach. This is the reason why I have attempted to dialogue with them and try to push them towards a further realisation of their mistaken racial agenda. I call them to leave behind their racially exclusive anti-Zionist approach and to join a universal call instead. Needless to say, many Jews realise it by themselves. I argue that if Zionism is categorically wrong, then to those fighting it, one’s racial or ethnic belonging is irrelevant.

As Atzmon himself admits, this is “a serious challenge of the Jewish identity.” But he also points out, “I have seen many things written about me and yet I have never come across a sufficient counter argument. I start to wonder whether there is any argument as such.”

Atzmon’s thought provoking views are amply published (for now) at peacepalestine here or here, at his own website, and Machetera looks forward to publishing excerpts here in future as well.

And that was Machetera’s post. I’d like to advise those who have been faithful readers of Peacepalestine for 3 and a half years now, to understand that while it may look as if we are defeated into believing that the story ends here, it hasn’t. WordPress at the moment is “a parking space”… It may remain the main blog (If someone thought they were going to stop me from blogging, they were wrong), but then again, things are still in motion. YET… there are some things that must be said. Blogger acted fine once regarding me. This time, NO! And, more than that, they have blocked other political blogs for no reason. That should have been a red flag, but moving a blog with 800 posts is not something one really looks forward to doing, so the signs were not taken into due consideration and now we see a stream of attempts to close down Peacepalestine. Who is really responsible? I think we know the answer to that one, but as the Wicked Witch of the West might say…”All in due time, my pretty, all in DUE time!”

The red flag: Blogger spammed Steve of Desert Peace off. That should have been a warning to me as clear as this screen in front of me. Not only Steve a VERY popular blogger, he endorses a two-State solution, he is someone who, living in Israel, actually engages in fruitful dialogue and is an example of THE blog to salvage. Blogger didn’t care. I have no real illusions that it will be different this time, however… in the meantime, a few friends have been advised, and Blogger is being monitored as to how it will act. Not only that, but a few wrote letters. This one from Edna really says it all:

Dear Blogger

 

I am writing to complain in the strongest possible terms about what seems to be a targeting of pro-Palestinian sites by Blogger, one in particular:

http://peacepalestine.blogspot.com/

 

This blog was closed down unfairly about a month ago, and then reinstated, and has in the last few days been shut down again, the lastest reason given is that it is being regarded as SPAM.  This is insane!!

 

Are you aware of the huge readership this blog has, and how many people use it as a resource every day??  There is no SPAM there at all, only thought-provoking posts and very good quality writing about Palestine, which is also published at many other sites on the net.

 

What is Blogger’s real agenda here, one has to ask? Why is Peacepalestine being repeatedly targeted, while sites which are truly LIBELLOUS continue to be hosted by Blogger?

 

I find this one extremely offensive, with no real content except for the endless smearing of 2 well-known Palestinian activists:

http://azvsas.blogspot.com/  Why is this site being hosted at all by Blogger?

 

Would very much appreciate a letter back from Blogger.  If you are targeting Palestinian sites and anything anti-Israel, then wouldn’t it make more sense to stipulate that very clearly in your guidelines, so that progresive blogs can simply AVOID using Blogger at ALL, and instead rather be hosted by servers who genuinely support freedom of speech, such as WordPress.  The only freedom of speech Blogger seems to support is LIBEL.

 

Will appreciate an answer please.

 

Thanks (signed) 

I thank Edna for this, and I encourage others who are against censorship and who have supported Pepa to write to blogger support@blogger.com and to let them know we are watching and we aren’t going to take it sitting down. Not only are some bloggers and sites ready to expose the whole messy story, just as Machetera and Haitham have done, which isn’t going to leave Blogger looking too good at least in some sectors of activism, but it might just be time to leave the blog format (which I love) and go the route of a domain site. At any rate, just as much as we fight racism, we fight censorship, and we aren’t going to be silenced.

NEW! the letter Ma Chetera wrote to Blogger:

Hello,

I am a journalist who reads the peacepalestine blog on a regular basis 

and who has become aware that the blog’s editor has been denied access 

to her own blog because it has been flagged as a spam blog.

I can assure you that peacepalestine is not a spam blog, and surely 

all you have to do is look at the site to understand that immediately.

Fortunately, although the editor cannot post to her blog, I can still 

access its content, but if the lockout continues it would appear that 

Blogger means to encourage peacepalestine’s editor to move her blog 

elsewhere, since a blog which cannot accept new content is of limited 

use.

Is this indeed Blogger’s aim?

What procedure does Blogger follow when a site is flagged, as 

peacepalestine appears to have been?  Do you investigate and determine 

whether it is a malicious flagging or simply shut the site down 

immediately no matter what, pending an internal investigation? If blog 

access is denied pending such an investigation, how long might one 

reasonably expect such an investigation to take?

I would be very interested in Blogger’s response to these questions.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Ma. Chetera

Gilad Atzmon – Swindler’s List

It is a common trend amongst rabid Zionists and notorious Islamophobes to quote some isolated and mistranslated verses from the Qur’an for the purpose of collectively libeling Muslims and presenting Islam as a regressive and violent belief system.

Needless to say, so far, such repetitive attempts have been found futile if not actually counter-effective. Not a single Western politician, Zionist campaigner or Neocon think tank has managed to establish a comprehensive case against Islam. The reason is rather simple, in spite of the clear fact that some devastating atrocities have been committed in the name of Islam and in the name of Jihad, these acts were performed by sporadic radicalized and isolated cells. As at it seems, in the eyes of the Western masses, it takes more than just a few random acts of a very few to undermine a humanist universal belief system and implicate its one billion followers.

In order to incriminate Islam and to discredit its believers, a broad argument is needed, a conclusive undeniable proof that would establish a continuum between a given immoral religious text, a religious infrastructure and mass following movement of worshipers who behave immorally and accordingly. For the matter, a CIA-created mysterious character who allegedly hides in a cave for 7 years is not nearly enough. What we really want to see is a continuation between a so-called ‘Islamic satanic Verses’ and an Organic active collective set of worshipers who are tempted to follow the very verses and perform horrifically. Somehow, such a conclusive and comprehensive link is always missing in the Zionists’ and Islamophobes’ call for action. A radical Imam in London is not enough, a deliberate mistranslation of Ahmadinejad speeches won’t do either. Even repetitive images of the twin towers being chewed by airliners would not provide the goods. Seemingly, time after time the ZioCon’s defamation campaigns backlash. Instead of incriminating Islam and Muslims, ZioCons manage to marginalise themselves revealing their genuine faces. Time after time Zionists and Neocons are exposed marching along, side-by-side, with the most radical xenophobe bigots who happen to dwell amongst us in the West. 

Since the collective incrimination of Muslims stands at the premise of the Neocon philosophy as well as global Zionism, and since both Zionists and their Neocon twins are doing poorly on that front, I have decided to dedicate this paper to a pedagogic cause and try to help them out. I will give here a crash course in rhetoric. I will try to enlighten our foes and show them, step by step, how to establish a case based on continuum between the Holy Scripture and merciless collective barbarism.

Assuming that Zionists (both Jews and Christians) as well as Neocons are rather familiar with the Old Testament (as much as they are unfamiliar with the Qur’an), I will point at a relatively very short extract from the Torah. For that purpose I picked up a small biblical extract that will help us to explore the current ZioCon plundering culture in the light of the Judaic teaching and God’s promise. The following verses are a part of an oratory made by Moses to his people while on their way to their ‘promised land’:

“Listen, Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! You must love the Lord your God with your whole mind, your whole being, and all your strength.” Deuteronomy chapter six: 4-5  http://www.bible.org/netbible/index.htm?deu6.htm

Considering the vast amount of beings around who are engaged in some relentless love seeking, I wouldn’t dare criticise the Judaic God for doing the same. The Judaic God is entitled to demand the love of his chosen people.  However, the Israelites’ God is at least kind enough to give something in return:

“Then when the Lord your God brings you to the land he promised your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you – a land with large, fine cities you did not build, houses filled with choice things you did not accumulate, hewn out cisterns you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant – and you eat your fill.” (Deuteronomy:  Six 10 -11).

On the face of it, the Old Testament verses above could stand as the most simplistic yet valid and solid proof for the existence of God.  As we know, at least according to the Bible, God indeed managed to live up to his promise. He clearly brought his chosen people to the land of milk and honey and made them live in cities they didn’t build and drink their water from wells they didn’t dig.  Clearly, the Lord did not abandon his people.  A few millenniums later, the Judaic God capitalised on his might and brought the nations on their knees so they saw the light and willingly voted for the 1947 UN partition resolution. A fatal error that made it legal (rather than moral) for the new Israelite to live in cities he didn’t build and drink from wells he didn’t dig.  Indeed, if there is a question regarding the existence of the Judaic God, the above should be enough to prove his existence. 

However, it is rather obvious and very embarrassing to admit that the Judaic God, as portrayed by Moses in Deuteronomy 6:10 is an immoral evil God. It is a God who leads his people to plunder, robbery and theft.  Yet, there are many ways to deal with this negative image of the almighty.  On the literary level one can suggest that the given verses are not more than just two isolated lines in a gigantic text that is well meaning and offers some fundamental universal thoughts. On the contextual level, one may suggest that it wasn’t actually God himself who was talking to his chosen people but rather Moses who failed to deliver the true message of God. In other words, Moses may have ‘gotten it wrong’ or even ‘made it up’.  In fact, there are many other ways to save the Judaic God from being the logos behind contemporary Israeli plundering, yet, it is not that easy to save the Israelites from being presented as robbers and plunders, especially in the light of their spiritual, cultural and religious heritage. In short, it is actually impossible not to see the continuum between Deuteronomy 6:10 and the crime against the Palestinian people that is committed by the Jewish State in the name of the Jewish people.

Seemingly, Moses, his contemporaries and their current Zionist followers were and are rather excited about the possibilities laid ahead for them in the Land of Milk and Honey. Israel, the Jewish State, had been following Moses’ call to the elements. The ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people in 1948 makes Deuteronomy 6:10 look like a prophecy has come true. On a daily basis the Israelis rob the indigenous Palestinians of their land, cities, villages, fields, orchards and wells. In fact this robbery has never stopped for over a century.   

For the last sixty years, Moses’ call for theft is put into a legal praxis.  The Israeli looting of Palestinian cities, homes, fields and wells found its way into the Israeli legal system. Already in 1950-51 Israel legislators approved the ‘Absentee Property Law’, a racially orientated law that is there to prevent Palestinians from returning to their lands, cities and villages. A law that is there to allow the new Israelites to live in houses and cities they didn’t build.  

The never-ending robbery of Palestine by Israel in the name of the Jewish people establishes a devastating spiritual, ideological, cultural and obviously, practical continuum between the Judaic bible and the Zionist project. The crux of the matter is simple yet disturbing: Israel and Zionism are both successful political systems that put into devastating practice the plunder promised by the Judaic God in the Judaic holy scriptures. 

It seems obvious: Zionist and Neocon repetitive failure tendency to defame Islam and Muslims is actually nothing more than a banal projection.  Zionists and Neocons are well familiar with the different immoral teaching within the Judaic spiritual and religious heritage that matured into a Zionist looting. Foolishly, they try to project it on Islam and Muslims. After reading Moses’ oratory we may have to confess, the Jewish nationalist project that is supported by the vast majority of Jewish institutions around the world is an attempt aiming at robbery of the indigenous Palestinians following a cultural and religious heritage that is overwhelmingly documented in the Judaic Bible. 

Yet we must never forget that not all Jews follow the Bible. Some are not even aware of the biblical text or its content. Some may even suggest to us that we must never forget the Bund and its progressive, secular and cosmopolitan heritage that is currently maintained by a half a dozen enthusiast Jewish Marxists around the world. Indeed, we have to admit that out of the very few Bundists who didn’t immigrate to Israel after the war, half a dozen do not agree with Israel, Zionism and the robbery of Palestine. This is certainly a reason to be cheerful. However, Bundists believe that instead of robbing Palestinians we should all get together and rob who is considered to be the rich, the wealthy and the strong in the name of working class revolution. Here is the Bund’s call for action taken from ‘The Vow’ the Bund’s anthem  (http://www.anu.edu.au/polsci/marx/int/shvue/shvue.htm):  

We swear our stalwart hate persists,
Of those who rob and kill the poor:
The Tsar, the masters, capitalists.
Our vengeance will be swift and sure.
So swear together to live or die! 

On the face of it, robbing the rich, confiscating their homes and grabbing their wealth is seen as an ethical act within the progressive discourse. As a young revolutionary I myself took part in some righteous parades.  I was ready to grab my sword and to join the hunt for a Tsar, a capitalist or any other enemy who may cross my way. But then, the inevitable happened, I grew up. I realised that such a vengeance towards an entire class of wealthy goyim is not more than an extension of Moses’ oratory of Deuteronomy Six.  

Robbery cannot be the way forwards. Whether it is Palestinians, Iraqis, world banking or even the Tsar himself. Robbing involves a categorical dismissal of the other. Hence, it must be premised on some inherent self-righteousness. Robbery and plunder doesn’t live in peace with a deep understanding of the notion of human equality.  Sadly we have to admit that hate-ridden plunder of other people’s possessions made it into the Jewish political discourse both on the left and right. The Jewish nationalist would rob Palestine in the name of the right of self-determination, the Jewish progressive is there to rob the ruling class and even international capital in the name of world working class revolution. I better stay out of it.

Conclusion: It must be stated that if Neocons and Zionists are really interested in defaming Islam and Muslims, all they have to do is to provide us with a similar analogous extensive reading of Islam in which an alleged satanic verse is translated into an unethical praxis performed by a substantial organised collective.

However, bearing in mind the increasing influence of the Old Testament within the American political discourse due to the rise of popularity of Christian fundamentalism in America, the notion of the plundering God may help us to understand the American current conduct in Iraq and in Afghanistan. In other words, the growing popularity of Old Testament teachings may help us to grasp the predatory philosophy encouraged by the perpetrators of the notorious ‘New American Century’ (http://www.newamericancentury.org).

Most importantly, within such a problematic reading of the Judaic God as presented in Deuteronomy 6:10 and its total dismissal of the Other, Jesus’ call to love one’s neighbour comes into life. This is the exact ingredient some of us miss in Moses’ oratory as reflected in Jewish political discourse and praxis. It is love to one’s neighbour that we lack in contemporary Anglo-American affairs.  Human brotherhood is what we miss in Jewish nationalism both right and left. Would the Zionists be open to the notion of brotherhood, they would be empathic to the Palestinian right of return. Would the Jewish Marxists and cosmopolitans be open to the notion of Brotherhood, they would give up on their unique exclusive banners and become ordinary human beings like the rest of us.

Try to censor peacepalestine? It’s Tony wot done it.

Yes, dear friends and readers. You have been following the saga of Tony vs Gilad Atzmon and peacepalestine (or Mary Rizzo, since he seems to blur the distinction). Yes, you have signed an open letter for Tony to stop the defamation and harassment and let us continue our work of exposing Israeli crimes, Western complicity and in asking us to assume our responsibilities towards the Palestinian people and the other people oppressed by Zionism, and that includes you and me and all of us who want justice and rule of law. Rather than reflect and see that he is on the margin of the margin and no one wants him to dictate to Palestinians or activists for their rights what the discourse is supposed to be, who should be silenced and smeared and to mismanage every single campaign he works on. He is out to destroy and “target” all those who oppose him, and he doesn’t care about what “the movement” says and requests.

In the past day, we have seen this blog go down. Without any warning, it simply vanished. Thinking it was a technical glitch, I had contacted Google. I thought it would be a long wait, since this company is big and has millions of sites and blogs to think about. MUCH to Google’s credit, they immediately informed me that there was legal action being taken against my site and sent me court documents. Actually, it was not against my site, but as I was already aware of, Tony Greenstein is suing Gilad Atzmon, although, on his friendly sites, he tells the 18 readers that he is being himself sued!!! Tony hates Gilad more than anything. More than Zionists. (Ask yourself why…) He never touches Zionist sites, seems to think my parody of Gilad Shalit campaign is horrors, but ignores the actual campaign, which he seems to have no qualms with. He only tries to bring down one of the most widely read Palestinian blogs, many hardworking and committed pro-Palestinian groups such as Redress and DYR, as well as now deciding that the list of signatories will comprise his new battles for justice. Yes, the activists in Palestinian activism don’t only get insulted and called collaborators, now they will be targeted! Great Tony, glad to see you are consistent in your abuse, going only in the direction of those who engage in total solidarity with the righteous cause of the Palestinians!

So, I saw the suit, where he gives Google an ultimatum to take my blog down because HE SAYS SO. I ask you to read the PDF. It is quite interesting!

There are several interesting contradictions between it and the content of the Claim, which I am only reprinting the first page, although Google sent it all to me. (I can’t believe how good Google was in all of this, and I intend upon sending them a thank you note as well as encouraging all of us to support them when they make these decisions). Read both items carefully (clicking on them enlarges them), and you will note some very odd things. There is a serious contradiction there, and I know all of you can see it. The letter practically contradicts the allegations of the claim itself!! This should not escape the attentive eye and it makes one wonder what the claim is even supposed to be about if not just stopping Gilad Atzmon and trying to squeeze money out of him based on the hope that others are inattentive. But let’s examine still more: Yes, Tony is suing Gilad and yes, Tony claims, without any evidence, just his good name (sic) that “There is no truth in these allegations but they are, nonetheless, highly defamatory. The blog itself purports to be supportive of the Palestinians but is in fact deeply anti-Semitic”.

So, besides the immediate huge support from my friends and fellow activists who already had it up to their eyeballs with his games, they nevertheless dropped what they were doing and went into action in a matter of moments, and were planning other actions – thinking, as I was, that this would be a long struggle, and they were going to fight to the bitter end. We were creating new blogs, saving content from archived material, sharing stuff on computers so that we all had backups…. these are the best friends in the world, as well as the greatest activists I have ever known… During this time I wrote twice to Google asking them to actually investigate the claim by Tony. These are my letters:

Dear Sirs,
If you read the pdf you sent, it is clear that there is no suit filed against me. Nor have I received any calls to alter or to delete information from anyone.

You may be aware that you have made a judgment yourself based on the comments of a person who has been repeatedly harassing in numerous ways over the course of years a great number of activists. As a matter of fact, he has been using the terminology to smear and defame others as his political tool. There has been no evidence provided in the claim he makes in the Pdf: “The blog itself purports to be supportive of Palestinians but is in fact deeply anti-Semitic.”

IN fact, the claim is not against me, but against another person, who also has not been demonstrated to be anti-Semitic, despite the claims this individual uses to smear us. Read the Pdf, and you can see for yourself what the content is, and my blog should NOT have been pulled without warning, especially since it is one of the most widely circulated and trusted blogs on the subject of Palestinian rights, Human rights, Activism and Anti-War.

As a matter of fact, my blog is in no way racist or anti-Semitic. In fact, his “evidence” is that I have in the past sought to deter others from engaging in smear campaigns and rather do political work. This to him, especially when he operates to smear and damage activists, is defined as racist and anti-Semitic. I am not affiliated with anti-semites or neo-Nazis and he knows this. And, as a matter of fact, the BLOG is only composed of posts I have set up. There is not a single anti-Semitic post on it, and he has never been able to find one, yet continues in the harassment.

This harassment was requested also to be stopped by a large number of anti-racist activists, including a Holocaust survivor. In addition, being of Jewish origin myself, it is a strange claim to make on his part.

If that were not enough, I was actively involved in the campaign to extradite Michael Seifert, an SS officer in the Bolzano Camp to Italy to face his punishment. As a matter of fact, just a few days ago, the official news dispatch service that furnishes all the newpapers with their content released this: http://www.adnkronos.com/IGN/Esteri/?id=1.0.1880767965

It is in Italian, but it is clear enough. I was a protagonist in the capture of a Nazi criminal in hiding.

It is the dispatch, including my name TWICE, once in bold text, highlighting my involvement in the discovery and bringing to justice of this Nazi. I wonder just how many friends of Neo-Nazis, anti-Semites and Holocaust Deniers or Apologists have played an active part in such work. This is evidence, as if any other were needed, that this individual invents his charges and seeks to damage humanists who work for the Palestinian cause. I need to consult my blog. I ask you to reinstate it at least for my own personal use as I wish to archive all the information. My blog is very popular, and Google may not like repercussions coming from complaints from readers.

SECOND LETTER, (a few hours later)
I have requested that you reinstate the blog for my personal use (at the very least), as there has been no judgment against my blog, and you have yourselves decided to judge it, without any evidence that the person bringing legal action to another individual is justified in his claims.

I request that you examine the blog and you demonstrate where it is anti-Semitic if this is the decision you have made, as indeed you have made a decision and have passed judgment based on an arbitrary claim. I ask you to look up my own person history, or even just the dispatch linked to you from last week’s Italian News Service dispatch Adnkronos, which supplies all the Italian media with their news feed, and you will see that I am a well-known activist and have an excellent track record FIGHTING hate crimes, and not supporting them.

I further request that since the material on the blog is intellectual property and contains not simply words, but the writing of many individuals as compiled by myself, almost all of these persons, if not the entirety, involved for many years in Human rights activism, and well-known persons, have been insulted and smeared as well by having their content removed from your server, and therefore, the net, and for this reason, out of respect for them, who work using their own names, I also that you identify yourselves also by name – not Blogger Team – so that I am allowed to know which human beings have made this decision.

I may not need to remind you that on the Social Rank rating (the currently most popular one for blogs) my blog is always among the top 3 Palestinian blogs. It has extensive readership, and its absence from your server is not going unnoticed.
Awaiting your quick reply
Mary Rizzo

THIS IS BLOGGER’S REPLY

From: “Blogger Help”
To: “mary rizzo” Cc: “mary rizzo” Subject: Re: [#246323120] [Spam?] Blog termporarily suspended due to lawsuit

Hello Mary,
After reviewing your blog and the suit filed against Mr. Atzmon, and the Claimant’s alleged claim against you or your blog is unclear, we have reinstated your blog. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this temporary suspension has caused you and your readers.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support.
Sincerely,
The Blogger Team

Justice will prevail! Thanks Google, Thanks Blogger, and thanks to all the wonderful people who believed that we have to fight the Zionists, no matter what they call themselves. Tony says all the time… if it quacks like a duck….

There Will Always Be A Palestine!!

Gilad Atzmon – Send Them To Gaza: Gimmicks and Education

The Tory leader David Cameron seems to be struggling these days. After calling government funding for school visits to the former Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz a ‘gimmick’, he’s facing demands for an apology.

In a speech on Friday, Cameron accused Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s government of being “obsessed with short-term gimmicks”, including a recommendation for schools to make “trips to Poland”.

The British government announced this month it would give 4.65 million pounds to the Holocaust Educational Trust set up in 1988 to educate young people about the Holocaust. It wouldn’t take a genius to guess that the Jewish political institutions in Britain were very quick to tear Cameron apart for his comment.

Henry Grunwald, the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews said: “The Board of Deputies does not get involved in party politics, but we are surprised and disappointed that David Cameron should in any way have used the word ‘gimmick’ in connection with visits to Auschwitz.”

Karen Pollock, the Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said, “We do not want to be involved in party politics. But you should not use visits to Auschwitz to score political points.”

Seemingly, both Pollock and Grunwald do not like to get involved in ‘party politics’. For that purpose they have some very dedicated agents such as Lord Levy, David Abrahams, the Tory Friends of Israel and the Labour Friends of Israel.

The Conservative party was very quick to understand the message. It immediately surrendered to the ‘non-political’ pressure. Within hours, the Tory spokesman said: “School trips to Auschwitz are a brilliant idea.”

Trying to quell the storm, the Conservative spokesman said, “Cameron was not criticising the visits, but rather the fact that the government funding did not cover their entire cost.”

Very much like Grunwald and Pollock, I would refrain from interfering with British politics, yet I may suggest that Cameron was absolutely correct. The trips to Auschwitz are indeed a gimmick. As far as I can see, the educational value of these trips is counter-effective.
Unlike Karen Pollock from the Holocaust Educational Trust, who said, “Students use their experience to raise awareness of the lessons of the Holocaust in their schools and local communities, challenging prejudice and racism today,” I am convinced that trips to Auschwitz are there to divert the attention from crimes that are committed on a daily basis in before our very eyes and in our names. The trips to Auschwitz are there to silence ethical awareness. They are there to shutter the possibility of self-reflection.

It is indeed rather easy for the British government to spend some money trying to teach young students how bad the Nazis were 63 years ago. Yet, it is far more challenging for the British government and British educational institutes to confront British wrongdoing in the past and in the present.

Instead of sending British youngsters to Auschwitz, I would suggest spending governmental funds on student trips to Gaza concentration camp. This would have a far greater educational value in so as far as challenging ‘racism and prejudice’. Clearly it is in Gaza where millions of Palestinians are starved by the Jewish state while the West keeps silent.

Britain bears some direct responsibility for the Palestinian tragedy. Firstly, the Palestinian disaster was set by the British Empire. It may have started with the Balfour Declaration, but it matured into devastating ethnic cleansing in 1948, three years after the liberation of Auschwitz. Secondly, whichever way we decide to look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Palestinians are the last victims of Hitler and the genocide in Gaza is a Shoah in the making.

If Karen Pollock is truly concerned with ‘racism and prejudice’, Gaza is the place to send the British kids to, so they can come home and ask their grandparents: ‘Grandpa, what did you do when it all happened 60 years ago?’ We have to send our kids to Gaza so they can come home and ask their parents: ‘Mum, what can we do to help the Palestinians?’

If Karen Pollock still wants to increase our kids’ ethical awareness, yet she might not be convinced that Gaza is the place to do so, she may also want to consider sending our youth to Basra or Baghdad. At the end of the day, the genocide of the Iraqi people, in which one and a half million Iraqis have died so far, is a war crime committed also by the current British Government.

But on second thought, there is no point in sending young British students to Baghdad; they can go there as soon they finish school. They can then participate and contribute to this very contemporary Holocaust that is being committed by Britain and America in the name of democracy and neo-conservative ideology, all they have to do is just join the British armed forces.

Fact Checking on Greenstein, Mission: Impossible

My article published on AMIN (Arabic Media Internet Network) http://www.amin.org/look/amin/en.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=7&NrArticle=44670&NrIssue=1&NrSection=3 By the way, there are many comments that have been sent, and they will be posted in a few days! Busy over here!! BUT, thanks to everyone who signed. It is greatly appreciated!!!

Fact checking on Greenstein, Mission: impossible

By: Mary Rizzo

One would think that if there were an article with my name in it, I would be more than a little interested in reading it. But, to be honest, it’s been happening on a daily basis, and by one author alone, one Mr Tony Greenstein, that I can’t bring myself to do anything more than give it a gliss reading, my “vanity” hasn’t gotten to extreme levels yet, and I have better things to be doing. But, considering the author, even by virtue of a skim, it is impossible not to constantly bang into a thick wall of lies so big that they quite simply jump straight out.

Not wanting to belabour anyone much longer, because 200 names, including some who have activist history spanning decades, academics, writers, bloggers, philosophers, editors, people from every continent and many religious, political, ethnic and economic backgrounds and yes… even a survivor of Holocaust, have signed their names to an open letter, http://peacepalestine.blogspot.com/2008/02/petition-for-two-activists-that-you.html calling for Tony Greenstein to stop abusing his “air time” by engaging in character assassination of two activists for Palestine, especially by use of distortion and fabrication. Rather than accept their plea, or listen to them, he has decided to increase his daily output and actually double it. So far, his echo chamber has been an obscure blog in the UK with maybe 50 readers, and one that’s been created ad hoc for it, judging by the comments, maybe it has two. It seems that it’s important for him to focus on three names he doesn’t like, but quite ignores that all the top bloggers are there. I wonder why this is? But now, Amin has published his reply to the article in question. Amin has quite a few more readers, so I believe it is essential to at least address some of the content within, given that I am called in cause. I do apologise, but I simply cannot bear to read the entire article, so I am not focusing on deconstructing the entire sandcastle that it obviously is. I will only focus on several key points that I am especially qualified to respond to.

Number 1) Greenstein writes:
“Rooij uses the adjective vile no less than four times. Ive written a vile article about him and made vile accusations of anti-Semitism against Atzmon and Rizzo [AR].”

Answer: What is so glaring here is that De Rooij does not once mention my name in the piece! How can we believe the rest of this paper the author simply is incapable of identifying who is involved? Yet, I already failed to mention that he gets the name of the author wrong as well. Last week, he said he had never heard of the chap. Strange… for a man who claims to be very active (and I have no doubt that he is, for all the time he spends on line) to never have encountered even one of the writings of Paul De Rooij. I remember widely circulating his Dictionary of the Occupation, almost every activist I know has read and greatly appreciated it. It was on Counterpunch, not some obscure UK socialist blog that mostly Zionists contribute to. Greenstein is simply doing a knee-jerk act of smear campaigning.

Number 2) Greenstein writes:
“But again, what has this to do with the Palestinians? Atzmon distributes Eisens pamphlets and now signs up to all the above nonsense. Read Gilad Atzmon Now an Open Holocaust Denier.”

Answer: Calling other people’s writing pamphlets can be overlooked, but then again, are they pamphlets because of their political orientation? If that is true, the very article Greenstein cites, another of his Socialist Unity smearfests, takes its information from two sources that are far from objective news sources, The Adelaide Institute, (a Holocaust Revisionist site), and Press TV, an Iranian site that seems to quite frequently print news that is inaccurate or outright disinformation, according to journalists who fact check their material. Once it had been established that Tony’s sources (which make HIM a distributor of material from a Revisionist site) had actually used misquotes and disinformation, taken information from one trial and shifted it to another that had nothing to do with it, this did not cause him to wonder if his haste was not to be in some way suspect, and his opinion amended. No, he does not take any of this into account, and is still, on this date, distributing false material as if it were accurate! Another reason vile is an appropriate word to describe the attacks. And why is it vile? To quote Tony Greenstein: What has this to do with the Palestinians?

Number 3) Greenstein writes:
“Rooij describes me on the Cork PSC article as close to the anti-boycott Engage. But that is ironic since I have campaigned ceaselessly to support boycott. Unison, the second largest union in Britain voted to support boycott last summer. I spoke in favour of that position, as a Jewish member of the union, and it was passed by at least 80%. For that I am some form of racial segregationist?!! Get real Rooij.”

Answer: The fact that Greenstein still circulates the lie that I am against the boycott, when he himself encouraged me to break it, is quite rich. But, let me mention another item that sticks out at me, UNISON. As a matter of fact, given that Redress, a UK site dedicated to the Palestinian cause, managed by Palestinians, had published the open letter, was cause for Tony to write this:

“Yes an excellent idea this petition. I’m so glad you included the following paragraph: We also take the opportunity to condemn the strangling siege that is being imposed over the Gaza Strip in particular and the West Bank and the rest of the Palestinian Arab people in general to complete their ethnic cleansing from their historic homeland.

It’s quite important you know, pity that it was an afterthought to the ‘defend Mary Rizzo and Gilad Atzmon’ campaign because of course they are the people who matter most.

http://redressnewsblog.blogspot.com/2008/02/petition-in-support-of-pro-palestinian.html

Since it is published on redress I am asking my own union UNISON to remove all references to Redress from its sites and I will contact the TUC and SERTUC, of which I am a trades council delegate, to ask that they contact all unions and ask them to have nothing to do with Redress on their websites or any similar anti-semitic web site since it is clear that they are part of this.

Perhaps you could ask Atzmon what he means by this statement?

‘I do not wish to enter the debate regarding the truth of the Holocaust’. Does he believe there is a debate about the ‘truth’ of the holocaust? And about whether the earth is flat?

http://www.redress.btinternet.co.uk/gatzmon29.htm

It seems Atzmon’s lies are catching him out now that we all know that he has signed up as a holocaust denier.

It would appear that those whom the gods seek to destroy they first drive mad.

Tony Greenstein”

He proudly announces that they have done so. This is lobbying ad personam. The unions do his personal bidding, and he expects them to.

Number 4) Greenstein writes:
“Ironically, at the same time, Atzmon was denouncing the academic boycott as book burning (and here).”

Answer: This famous misrepresentation and distortion of the opinion of someone is PURE MacCarthyism. What did Gilad Atzmon say to me in the interview? Let’s look (and to avoid any accusations of manipulative editing, I am quoting the response in full):

“Gilad: Boycott is a real complicated issue. For years we’ve been arguing in favour of divestment and boycott. At the time I supported any form of boycott in Israel, its products and its culture.

There are some elements in the boycott that are obviously very welcome. For instance, the fact that UK unions are standing up against Zionist evil is a major shift in the very right direction. The Boycott is certainly bad news for Israel and this is wonderful news in itself. Yesterday, I went to a reading of a play, it was actually a theatrical adaptation my latest book. The producer is Jewish, and at a certain stage when we were discussing the meaning of the play he stood up and said. You see, we had a Jewish State, it is now sixty years later, and it is a very horrible place, it is so horrible that it has now been boycotted. And this is there to make us think, where did it go wrong? This is the most positive impact of the boycott. It makes people reflect.

Yet, I have some serious reservations, which I am inclined to mention. One, I see a tremendous difference between banning an avocado and a book. I would welcome any form of financial restrictions on Israel and its supportive bodies yet, I truly believe in freedom of speech and oppose any form of Maccarthyism or intellectual censorship of any sort. Thus, interfering with academic freedom isnt exactly something I can blindly advocate. Unlike some of my best enlightened friends, I am against any form of gatekeeping or book burning. But it goes further, I actually want to hear what Israelis and Zionists have to say. I want to read their books. I want to confront their academics. If justice is on our side we should be able to confront them.

Mary: Of course, they wont stop writing or proposing their ideas, and actually, they might become more reactionary in the process.

Gilad: Actually, I do not think that they can become any more reactionary. The second point is, to impose a boycott is to employ a boycotter. When it comes to an academic boycott I would expect the inquisitor in charge to be a scholar of great esteem. This isn’t the case obviously. The reason is simple. As it naturally happens, major intellectuals are engaged in scholarship rather than in union politics, working class and proletarian activity. Seemingly, it isn’t the leading minds in British academic life and ethical thinking who are leading the Boycott. In fact it is the other way around, the boycott is led by some minor academics with very little to say about ethics and even less to say about the specific conflict. This fact is actually repeatedly exposed in televised debates. The anti-Zionist movement in Britain has yet to find the appropriate eloquent answer to the Dershowitzes of this world.

Three, when it comes to the Palestinian solidarity discourse I can identify two modes of discussion: the ethical and political. The ethical mode is obviously evoked by a natural humanist reaction to the endless flood of images of Israeli criminal activity. The political discourse, on the other hand, is pretty much autonomous and detached from the conflict. It has a lot to do with maintenance of some particular decaying old-school socialists within the fading progressive Western discourse. It has very little to do with Palestine and the transitions within the Palestinian struggle. When it comes to the current boycott we are unfortunately operating within a political mode rather than an ethical one. I say unfortunately, because Palestinian reality is neither an isolated event in history nor it is isolated in the region. Had the academics been ethically orientated, they would have to ask themselves what they, their unions and Universities have been doing to stop the ongoing slaughter in Iraq. What do they do to oppose the British Government that is engaged in crimes not different from Israel’s? What are the British academics doing now to stop the British value system from a total collapse? I am very sad and ashamed to say that as far as State terrorism is concerned Blair and Olmert are pretty much an equal match. If this isn’t enough, Brown Launch is not very promising either. Yet, British academics expect the Israelis to do something they fail to do.

However, as I said before, I am in favour of any form of restrictions on Israel, on its financial sectors, yet, by behaving politically while avoiding an ethical debate we are actually losing to the Israelis and to their lobbies.

Most importantly, if we decide to go for an academic Boycott, if we decide to burn books or to silence other peoples thoughts, then I really want to know why do we stop with Israeli academics or institutes? Shouldn’t we really ban any possible contact with any Zionists, people and institutes who openly support the idea of a racist State? As you certainly realise, unlike South Africa, Zionism, the ideological core behind Israel, is a global movement. Shouldn’t we ban as well any form of racially orientated activity? Shouldn’t we stop academic as well as smear campaigner David Hirsh and his racially orientated cohorts and then later continue with Jewish Socialists (being a racially oriented progressive group)? Where do we draw the line? I do not know the answers, instead I believe that the best way around it is to support freedom of speech categorically, whether it is David Irving, David Hirsh or even Tony Greenstein.

Mary: OK, so you fully support any kind of instrument that puts pressure and pulls the economic rug out from under Israel, but you have some reservations about the academic boycott against Israeli universities, because of the nature of the boycott being restricting academic freedom.

Gilad: I would even just call it intellectual freedom. I do love diversity. To impose a single narrative is in itself a Talmudic approach and I have to resist it. Being trained as a continental philosopher, I know very well that the proponents of the most enlightening ideas in the late 19th century and pre WWII 20th century were not exactly progressive. How to say it, Heidegger was a Nazi at least for a while and as it seems, both Levinas and Leo Strauss were courageous enough to admit that the man may be the greatest thinker of our millennium.”

I myself would add that if Tony Greenstein actually articulated an argument, rather than smear and engage strictly in character assassination, I would not have to waste so much time exposing some of his lies, and mind, I am ignoring the bulk of the others due to time constrictions. But it seems he does not produce anything but texts using character assassination, not against Zionists, but against people who denounce Zionism on a constant and daily basis, and therefore, I believe that the letter Palestinians and activists wrote is a step in the right direction. If he wants to participate in the discourse, he should, and as a matter of fact, while he is calling for us to be excluded and silenced, based on a series of smears and distortions, we are calling on him to focus on Palestinians rather than on two European Palestinian activists who are quite well-circulated. But rather than address the content in any meaningful way of the material others write and distribute, he comes out with a lie and distortion to smear the author. It is just what Dershowitz does.

Number 5) Greenstein writes:
“The one semi-sensible question Rooij asks is what in American society produces support for Zionism. But the only answer his friends provide is the Jews. Apart from ignoring the much more numerous Christians for Zionism they totally fail to even begin to answer it. Yet it is not difficult to understand why the USA projects its power in the way it does economic, military, imperial reasons oil for example. But this means having an analysis of class society and imperialism, something Atzmon and friends explicitly reject.”

Answer: Now, this in itself is quite interesting. On my blog, I have dozens of articles denouncing Christian Zionists. I have never seen a single thing written or circulated on the argument by Greenstein, ever. I have, on the other hand, seen him say he is “thrilled” that Zunes “demolished Walt and Mearsheimer”. You see, differently from almost all the major scholars and researchers, not to mention activists, Tony doesn’t think there’s a lobby. And, where does he get the idea Atzmon and his friends reject the discussion of class society and imperialism!? Again, Atzmon rejects imperialism quite often in his writing. He may not be quoting Gramsci, but his thesis is about hegemony and consensus by the super powers in order to restrict the narrative and allow the powers to maintain dominance. I myself have so many articles against imperialism on the blog alone, I can’t begin to see where he finds a rejection of this concept.

Number 6) Greenstein writes:
“There are a number of errors in Rooijs article, eg. That I sent defamatory letters to the venue where Atzmon was due to speak. Not true. I sent no letters. It was an article in the local press that alerted them to the meeting. Nor was it a church hall. But it is this attention to detail that marks out Rooij as the quality journalist that he is.”

Answer: No, he may not have sent defamatory letters. He merely plastered the walls with flyers. Indeed, the venue was a church. This is a letter the organiser wrote to Tony, which was published on my blog:

“The immediate reason that I withdrew from the Brighthelm, Tony, was that you had, without permission, started pasting notices on the premises opposing the meeting and this notice included a copy of the Calder article. These notices were bound to be a major embarrassment to the church. Moreover by the manner in which you acted, the manager was bound to deduce that further such behaviour was likely. Indeed you were announcing your picket. To say, therefore, that you did not put pressure on the Brighthelm is disingenuous. It is ironic that you take me to task for damaging the Palestine solidarity movement in holding this meeting when your actions do precisely that – and I, of course do not accept that the Gilad Meeting does anyway. I do not believe for a moment that you thought it unfortunate that the manager of the Centre caught you in the act of putting up these posters. Certainly he was affected by the grossly distorted view of Gilad Atzmon given in the article – that was precisely your intention. He hadn’t got the time to investigate what, at your instigation I’m sure, Jean Calder had written. When he called me to discuss the matter I relieved him of any further embarrassment by withdrawing.”

Cheers,
Francis

Number 7) Greenstein writes:
“Yes Sue Blackwell, who led the academic boycott is my comrade. But surprising as it may seem, I am not responsible for her web site! This is what is usually called guilt by association. McCarthyism in other words.”

Answer: It is strange he says this! I am held responsible for things that I have not written, and for websites I have nothing to do with. As a matter of fact, by way of his accusations, Greenstein habitually quotes commenters from my blog posts. Not my own comments, and he attributes them to me. He also is now going through the names with a nit comb (as if my friend who has compiled and thought of the list is supposed to filter people who sign, we are in a free society, still, aren’t we? And, I wonder, has petitions he has signed had only names he knows and swears bonafides on?) This is usually called guilt by association. MacCarthyism, in other words.” If the mirror fits….. Oh, not to mention, I keep getting harassed now to chop this name or that name off the list. Well, that will still leave a few hundred people who said “enough”. There are many other inaccuracies and insinuations from Tony that are not verified, as well as his opinion bandied as fact and truth. I don’t care to address them now. I am sure that just this small sampling is sufficient to give an idea of who we are dealing with. And, to close, I would like to mention that the top Palestinian bloggers, well-known and respected activists and writers have signed the open letter, many with comments stating their total solidarity with Gilad and I, and stating that his campaigns were obscene and must end. In five days, 200 people have signed. In five days, I have not seen a single Palestinian, or anyone else, for that matter, come out in solidarity or defence of Tony Greenstein. He himself has to write his own harangue and defence, while spamming sites and even my own inbox with more bald-faced lies that he is unable to substantiate. These are the people and groups that have asked for him to stop it.

Adib S. Kawar, Nazareth, Palestine – Beirut, Lebanon, Activist, writer and translator
Walid Halabi, France-Italy
Arab Abdel-Hadi PMWATCH, Ansar Al-Quds. LEBANONVIEW, Free Palestine and others
Malak Abdel-Hadi, Palestinian living in Dubai
Shahira Mehrez, Egyptian living in Cairo, Egypt
Paola Pisi, Italy, http://uruknet.info/
Ismail Zayid, Canada, http://izayid.tripod.com/
Nizar Issa, London, UK , Musician
Nadia Hasan, Chile, http://palestinaresiste2.blogspot.com/
Dr Sadek Pharaon MD, Syria
Oren Ben Dor, UK
Manuel Talens, Spain, http://www.manueltalens.com/
Dima Hamdan, London, UK, Journalist
Iqbal Tamimi, Exiled Journalist Network UK, A Palestinian journalist and poet, http://palestinian.ning.com/
Samir Daoud – Akka Palestine – residence: Beirut Lebanon
Nadia Daoud – Akka Palestine – Residence: Beirut Lebanon
Hala Kawar Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut Lebanon
Wajih Freij Jerusalem, Palestine – Residence: Beirut Lebanon
Lamia Kawar Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Ibrahim Kawar Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Fausto Giudice, Zapatist Alliance for Social Liberation, France, http://azls.blogspot.com/
Ginette Hess Skandrani, Zapatist Alliance for Social Liberation, France, http://azls.blogspot.com/
Wael Al Saad, Dusseldorf-Germany. PYN Coordinator-Germany Palestinian Community Dusseldorf Board, http://www.anis-online.de/1/rooms/wael/
Dr Hajo G. Meyer, Heiloo, the Netherlands, survivor of Auschwitz, writer, physicist, lute maker
Mauro Manno, Italy , professor, writer, translator
Manuela Vittorelli, Italy, http://mirumir.blogspot.com/
Diego Traversa, Italy, writer, translator
Vicente Romano, Spain, writer
Carlos Sanchis, Spain
Nancy Harb Almendras, United States, Germany http://www.umkahlil.blogspot.com/
Zuhair Nafa, Palestine
Raja Chemayel, The Hague, Netherlands, http://frustratedarabdiary.blogspot.com/
Theodore D. Turner, Brooklyn, New York
Kristoffer Larsson, Sweden, http://altahrir.blogspot.com/
Ellen Rohlfs, Germany, German-Palestinian Society and Gush Shalom
Hergen Matussik, Germany
Benedetta Scardovi-Mounier, USA/Italy
Cristina Santos, London, UK
Rocio Anguiano, Spain
Sigge Andersson, pre-med student, Sweden
Guenter Schenk, France/Germany, Aktionsbndnis fr einen gerechten Frieden in Palstina
LanceThruster, LA, CA, USA
Mary Sparrowdancer, Tallahassee, FL, USA, http://www.sparrowdancer.com/
Birgit Jdahl, Sweden
Miguel Martinz, Florence, Italy, http://kelebek.splinder.com/
Susanne Scheidt, Al-Awda Italia
Jean-Marie Flemal, writer and translator, WPB (Workers’ Party of Belgium), Charleroi, Belgium
Edna Spennato, South Africa-Brazil, Earth Heal Geoharmonic Research Project
Abdullah Husain, Palestine by birth, KSA, India by life accident
Wendy Campbell, California, USA, MarWen Media, http://www.marwenmedia.com/
Peter Brooke, UK, www.peterbrooke.org.uk
Daniel McGowan, Geneva, NY, Exec. Director, Deir Yassin Remembered, http://www.deiryassin.org/
Debbie Brown, Hacienda Heights, California USA
Kenneth Rasmusson, Sweden
Redress Information & Analysis, London, UK
Schuyler Ebbets, USA, http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/
Ragnar B. Johannessen, Norway, http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/
Annie Selden Annab, USA, http://annies-letters.blogspot.com/
Jim Leven, UK, PSC member
Javier Fernndez Retenaga, Spain
Shaukat Khawja, Toronto, Canada Profession: Engineer
Volker M., Canada
Lina Abu Baker, London, UK, Poet
Brenda Heard, UK, Friends of Lebanon, http://www.friendsoflebanon.org/
Letizia Tessicini, Orte, Italy
Simon R-Levin, Manchester, UK
Paloma Valverde, Spain, member of CEOSI
Sarah Stevens, UK
Ralph Pinner, UK
Inge Soder, Germany
Sarah Gillespie, London, UK, musician
Raja Ibrahim, Pistoia, Italy, ASSOCIAZIONE AMICIZIA ITALO – PALESTINESE, www.amiciziaitalo-palestinese.org/
Adriano Mencarelli, Roma – Italy
Diego Ianiro – Caserta, Italy, of Khalas Napoli – khalasnews.splinder.com
Francesca Longhi- Bergamo, Italia
Antonio Corraine – Aosta, Italy
Stuart Cary Welch – USA
Haitham Sabbah, Tulkarm, Palestine/Bahrain, blogger, http://sabbah.biz/
Latuff, Rio De Janiero, Brazil, Cartoonist, http://latuff.blogspot.com/
Nureddin Sabir, London, UK, Editor of Redress Information & Analysis
Steve Amsel, Jerusalem-Al Quds, blogger, http://desertpeace.wordpress.com/
Lasse Wilhelmson, Sweden
Richard Jones, Swansea, Wales, http://a-fistful-of-poetry.blogspot.com/
Einar Schlereth, Sweden, Journalist
Karaiskos Kostas, Komotini, Greece, ANTIFONITIS director, http://www26.brinkster.com/karaiskos/
Adeline Rec, N/A
Alex Tarradellas, Catalonia
Nuria lvarez, Spain
Guillermo F. Parodi, Paraguay, Universitary Professor
Dennis Zackrisson, Uppsala, Sweden
Mark Roland, Eugene Oregon, USA
Robert Wagner, Italy
Graham Derrick, West Yorkshire, UK
Gabriele Repaci, Milano, university student
Emmanuel St John, London, UK
Sami Joseph, UK
Ernesto Paramo, Mexico/UK
Muhammad Idrees Ahmad, Glasgow, Scotland, blogger, http://fanonite.org/
Jeffrey Blankfort, California, USA
David Baldinger, USA, Cartoonist, http://www.dbaldinger.com/
Olivia Zémor, Paris, France, cofounder CAPJPO (Coordination des Appels pour une Paix Juste au Proche-Orient)
Ana Cleja, France
John W. Blalock, N/A
Maryam Husain and Children, Displaced Palestinian/KSA/Italy/India currently
Emanuela Borrelli, Italy
Rachel Bridgeland, UK
Maria Ingrosso, Lecce, Italy
Riccardo Di Vito, Roma, Italia – Campo Antimperialista, http://www.antiimperialista.org/
Wilhelm Langthaler, Vienna, Austria, Anti-imperalist Camp, http://www.antiimperialista.org
Camilla Rahm, Gothenburg, Sweden
Nahida Izzat,Palestine/ Jerusalem Poetry for Palestine, http://poetryforpalestine.spaces.live.com/
Maurizio Neri, Rome, Italy, Editor Magazine of Politics and Philosophy, “Comunismo e Comunit”
Nicolas A. Sayegh – Laval, Quebec, Canada, Columnist
Asad Khan, Manchester, UK: doctor and blogger, http://chestdocinpalestine.blogspot.com/
Ali Mallah, Canadian Peace Alliance, Canadian Arab Federation, http://www.caf.ca/HomePage.aspx
Khaled Mouammar, Toronto, Canada, National President, Canadian Arab Federation, http://www.caf.ca/HomePage.aspx
Gonzalo Barona, Caceres, Espana
Nicole Hille-Priebe, Germany
Randa Farah, Canada
Felisa Sastre, Espana
Caty R., Spain
Christine Mihil Sharp – London, UK; www.Red-DesertProductions.com
Emanuela Di Piramo, Italia
Dr Raymond Deane, Dublin, Ireland
Katherine Eilbeck, Glais, Swansea, Wales
Katie Murphy, UK
Samira Rantisi, Italy
Sergio I. Moya Mena, Costa Rica, http://wiphala.org/
Paul Eisen – Director (UK) Deir Yassin Remembered
Akram Awad, Palestinian blogger in the UK, www.akramawad.com/
Daniel Alba, writer/musician, USA http://detainthis.wordpress.com
Gunvant Govindjee, South Africa
Agustin Velloso, Madrid – Spain
William Buttrey, Southern California, USA
Gilberto Jordan, Professsor de Histria, Brazil
Mireille RUMEAU, from ISM-France
Colin Pritchard, UK
kim petersen, korea, co-editor, http://www.dissidentvoice.org
Juan-Antonio Julin, Bruselas
Mahmud Said Hamad – Italy
Arlene L. Johnson, Publisher/Author http://www.truedemocracy.net
Jeff Spencer, Bristol, UK, Musician
Agostino Sanfratello, Beyrouth, Lebanon
Karin Maria Friedemann, Boston, Massachusetts,Editor, World View News Service, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvns/
Gianfranco La Grassa, Conegliano, Italy, Economist
Mondher Sfar, Collectif de la Communaut Tunisienne en Europe, Paris, France
Mireille Delamarre http://www.planetenonviolence.org/
Ann El Khoury; Sydney, Australia, http://peoplesgeography.com/
Razan Ghazzawi, Damascus, Syria, blogger of Decentering Damascus, http://www.ya-ashrafe-nnas.blogspot.com/ member of Free Tariq Campaign
Maher Osseiran, Arab-American investigative reporter, http://www.mydemocracy.net/
Marion SOLITAIRE, Firminy, France
Hala Abou-Zaki, Paris, France
Khadidja ATTOU, Montpellier-France
Joe Fallisi, Baranzate (Milano), Italy, Tenor, http://www.nelvento.net/
Antonia Cilla Ortega, Spain
Djamal BENMERAD, Bruxelles, Journaliste, écrivain (Journalist, writer)
Abdelfattah Abu-Srour, PhD. Director of Alrowwad Cultural and Theatre Training Center, Bethlehem – Palestine, http://alrowwad.virtualactivism.net/
Aymen JEMNI, Engineer and PhD Student – Barcelona – Spain
Chafik HBILA, doctorant en sociologie, France
Atenea Acevedo, Interpreter, translator, activist, Active member of Babels, Tlaxcala and Rebelin, Mexico City, Mexico http://mujerypalabra.com/ http://my.opera.com/mujerypalabra/blog
Sandrine Corten, Bruxelles, Bloggeuse : http://acteursdeterrain.canalblog.com/
Charles Beillard, France, http://www.enfantsdepalestine.org/
Alan ‘Masher1’ Reid, USA, Wake up from your Slumbers Blog, Melted238
Nadjiam Saoudi, France
Ada KRONFLI, Adhrente ; 1. Association France Palestine Solidarit, ( France), 2. Association des Palestiniens en France (France), 3. CAPJPO- EURO PALESTINE ( France)Catherine de Crombrugghe, Charleroi, Belgium Djanet Mokrani, France
Anika Persiani, Firenze, biologa, “Sumud”
Frédric Herr, Strasbourg, France, etudiant
Dr Francis Clark-Lowes, founder and organiser of Invitation to Learn, member and ex-chair of Palestine Solidarity Campaign and member United National Association (UK)
Sami Sabaana, Switzerland
Safia FARHAT, TUNISIE
Boualem SNAOUI, Paris France
Paul de Rooij, writer/economist, London
Sarah Marshall, N/A
Thomas Bischoff, Strasbourg, France www.thomasbischoff.fr
Saidi Nordine, Mouvement Citoyen Palestine, Bruxelles – Belgique, http://mcpalestine.canalblog.com/
William Ross, Canada
Snorre Lindquist, Architect, Sweden
Ben Heine http://www.benjaminheine.blogspot.com/
Franck Hirsbein, France http://groups.google.com/group/lesamisdelaroutedelissa
Sabina Paolini, Abruzzo, Italy
Moura Nouara, Caen (FRANCE), association Kultures
Elisa Davinca – Vienna/Austria – http://anotherworldispossiblenow.blogspot.com/ – http://refusetokill.blogspot.com/
Leonardo Mazzei, Italy, Gaza Vivrà www.gazavive.com
veronique roudil, marseille, france
Nadim Mahjoub, London, http://middleeastpanorama.blogspot.com/
Rubén Kotler – Historiador, San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, De Igual A Igual http://www.deigualaigual.net/
Simone Maggiolo, Italy
Julieta Obedman, Argentina
Palestinian Refugee Portal http://palref.net/
Dr Yassar NAFA, Doctor, UK
Lydia Lauks, political communication officer, UK
Keny Arkana, Marseille – France, Collectif AASV
Omar Khamoun, New Zealand
Raymond Richa, France
Toni Solo, Nicaragua
Reham Alhelsi, Jerusalem, Palestine
David Nir, Israel
Maria Grazia Da Costa Lucca, Italy, Campo Antimperialista

this Petition is also on:Rebelion Redress, Uruknet here and here, Arab News, Friends of Lebanon
Tlaxcala, Kelebek, The People’s Voice Sabbah’s Blog Desert Peace Umma, Asherah’s Journal, Palestine Blogs “The Gazette”, Window into Palestine , Detain ThisAlterinfo (in French)Basta!

Petition: for two activists… that you know well

NEW! Version in French at the bottom. NEW! Tlaxcala Gallery English, Arabic, French, Spanish, Italian appeals. More news: in spite of this call to end the attacks, Tony has increased them. He is insulting everyone who signed it. At any rate, he has “Succeeded” in removing Redress from his union, you see, this is a normal way to operate. This gives me more reason to believe that everyone who signed this is truly an honourable person, risking even “Tony’s wrath”. Thank you for your support and solidarity!

COMMENTS WILL BE PUBLISHED TOMORROW or the day after!! There is an individual on an activist list insisting that people did not read the letter and only signed because of the last paragraph. It is clear by the tone of almost all the comments that the signers are CERTAINLY aware that this petition is a call for Tony Greenstein to stop the ad hominem attacks against Gilad and myself. It is also in the title of the petition!!! It is in the title that almost everyone gave to their emails.
We thank everyone who signed!!! The person who is compiling the list and forwarding to me is very busy and wants to thank everyone himself, which he will do as soon as he can. He didn’t know it would be such a long list! When they started coming in, I told him I thought there would be 30 or 40, and now that there are over 150, he is glad, but has a bit more work that he wants to do!

To all the friends of the freedom of speech and opponents of racism: (Names Updated regularly) (thanks Rebelion, for your constant support!)
AMIN (ARAB MEDIA INFORMATION CENTRE) HAS PUBLISHED A MUST SEE ARTICLE BY PAUL DE ROOIJ ON THIS ISSUE: “BEWARE OF SNAKES IN THE GRASS”
http://www.amin.org/look/amin/en.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=7&NrArticle=44553&NrIssue=1&NrSection=3

We are a group of Palestinians and other activists for the Palestinian cause of various nationalities and affiliations, and believe that unity and persistence is important to confront the injustice our people had suffered in the past and still at present, probably in the unforeseeable future by Zionist and colonialist powers.

Zionism has damaged us from the first day when they started implementing their colonialist project to colonize all of Palestine, and when the opportunity comes, extend it beyond the borders of historic Palestine, damaging other Arabs. From the first day, they had been resorting to physical, psychological, moral and propaganda terror against all sorts of resistance whether it is in armed self-defense, and even against the power of the word by Palestinians and their supporters. They had been resorting to personal and communal targeted assassination, terrorizing Palestinians and their supporters all round the world in order to shut up all sorts of resistance. They try to break us apart, because they know our unity is dangerous to their colonialist and racist plans. They had been trying to control and shut the free and honest media, and political activism by financial bribery and blackmailing when running for any sort of political offices at all levels, especially against those who call for the liberation of Palestine and the Right of Return of Palestinians to their homes and land and want them to live under a democratic, sovereign and free state under the rule of law.

Among those free fighters against Zionism are two non-Arab supporters of the Palestinian cause, two outstanding personalities who are also great fighters for the implementation of freedom and liberty to all the subjugated peoples of the world, Gilad Atzmon, the ex-Zionist London-based musician and writer, and Mary Rizzo, the Italy-based blogger of Peacepalestine http://peacepalestine.blogspot.com/. They have been attacked by Zionists for a long time, but they are also being attacked by certain other people who are in the movement for Palestine.

Almost no day goes past when Tony Greenstein is not waging a war against Gilad Atzmon and Mary Rizzo, and we believe his actions have overstepped all limits. We have watched as he tries to smear them as racists, and we are saddened that his attempts increase as our own situation becomes more and more dramatic. These useless and pointless defamation campaigns are intolerable, as he circulates falsity against these activists. His attempts to do this only hurt our cause and waste our energy, not the least, they distract from the important issues, and go against the very idea of unity that we value.

We, Palestinians and activists for Palestine, express our solidarity with Gilad Atzmon and Mary Rizzo, who when they realized the tragedies Palestinians and other Arabs suffered, especially ethnically cleansed from their ancestral homeland, at the hands racist colonialist Zionism decided to fight for the rightful Palestinian cause. Atzmon willingly liberated himself from this inhuman and destructive project, by choosing the road of self-imposed exile and public exposure of what the Zionist project is all about. Tony Greenstein created among his usual lies that some Palestinians attack and defame the two dedicated supporters of the Palestinian cause, Atzmon and Rizzo. We declare that he does not speak for us or in our names when he attacks these and other activists.

We also take the opportunity to condemn the strangling siege that is being imposed over the Gaza Strip in particular and the West Bank and the rest of the Palestinian Arab people in general to complete their ethnic cleansing from their historic homeland. We urge all peace loving supporters of the freedom of thought, against all racism and Zionism and dedicated to the just Palestinian Arab cause as well as Iraq and all occupied Arab lands, to sign the petition calling for an end to the defamation campaign and a focus on the issues that are important to our people. Add you name, location and organization or group you are part of if you wish. Send it to palestinesomoud@yahoo.fr. A list will be made public.

Initial Signatories: other names will be added and comments that have been sent will be compiled and published.
Adib S. Kawar, Nazareth, Palestine – Beirut, Lebanon, Activist, writer and translator
Walid Halabi, France-Italy
Arab Abdel-Hadi PMWATCH, Ansar Al-Quds. LEBANONVIEW, Free Palestine and others
Malak Abdel-Hadi, Palestinian living in Dubai
Shahira Mehrez, Egyptian living in Cairo, Egypt
Paola Pisi, Italy, http://uruknet.info/
Ismail Zayid, Canada, http://izayid.tripod.com/
Nizar Issa, London, UK , Musician
Nadia Hasan, Chile, http://palestinaresiste2.blogspot.com/
Dr Sadek Pharaon MD, Syria
Oren Ben Dor, UK
Manuel Talens, Spain, http://www.manueltalens.com/
Dima Hamdan, London, UK, Journalist
Iqbal Tamimi, Exiled Journalist Network – UK, A Palestinian journalist and poet, http://palestinian.ning.com/
Samir Daoud – Akka Palestine – residence: Beirut – Lebanon
Nadia Daoud – Akka Palestine – Residence: Beirut – Lebanon
Hala Kawar – Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Wajih Freij – Jerusalem, Palestine – Residence: Beirut – Lebanon
Lamia Kawar – Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Ibrahim Kawar – Nazareth, Palestine – Residence – Beirut – Lebanon
Fausto Giudice, Zapatist Alliance for Social Liberation, France, http://azls.blogspot.com/
Ginette Hess Skandrani, Zapatist Alliance for Social Liberation, France, http://azls.blogspot.com/
Wael Al Saad, Düsseldorf-Germany. PYN Coordinator-Germany Palestinian Community Düsseldorf Board, http://www.anis-online.de/1/rooms/wael/
Dr Hajo G. Meyer, Heiloo, the Netherlands, survivor of Auschwitz , writer, physicist, lute maker
Mauro Manno, Italy , professor, writer, translator
Manuela Vittorelli, Italy, http://mirumir.blogspot.com/
Diego Traversa, Italy, writer, translator
Vicente Romano, Spain, writer
Carlos Sanchis, Spain
Nancy Harb Almendras, United States, Germany http://www.umkahlil.blogspot.com/
Zuhair Nafa, Palestine
Raja Chemayel, The Hague, Netherlands, http://frustratedarabdiary.blogspot.com/
Theodore D. Turner, Brooklyn, New York
Kristoffer Larsson, Sweden, http://altahrir.blogspot.com/
Ellen Rohlfs, Germany, German-Palestinian Society and Gush Shalom
Hergen Matussik, Germany
Benedetta Scardovi-Mounier, USA/Italy
Cristina Santos, London, UK
Rocío Anguiano, Spain
Sigge Andersson, pre-med student, Sweden
Guenter Schenk, France/Germany, Aktionsbündnis für einen gerechten Frieden in Palästina
LanceThruster, LA, CA, USA,
Mary Sparrowdancer, Tallahassee, FL, USA, http://www.sparrowdancer.com/
Birgit Jödahl, Sweden
Miguel Martinéz, Florence, Italy, http://kelebek.splinder.com/
Susanne Scheidt, Al-Awda Italia
Jean-Marie Flémal, writer and translator, WPB (Workers’ Party of Belgium), Charleroi, Belgium.
Edna Spennato, South Africa-Brazil, Earth Heal Geoharmonic Research Project
Abdullah Husain, Palestine by birth, KSA, India by life accident
Wendy Campbell, California, USA, MarWen Media, http://www.marwenmedia.com/
Peter Brooke, UK, www.peterbrooke.org.uk
Daniel McGowan, Geneva, NY, Exec. Director, Deir Yassin Remembered, http://www.deiryassin.org/
Debbie Brown, Hacienda Heights, California USA
Kenneth Rasmusson, Sweden
Redress Information & Analysis, London, UK
Schuyler Ebbets, USA, http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/
Ragnar B. Johannessen, Norway, http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/
Annie Selden Annab, USA, http://annies-letters.blogspot.com/
Jim Leven, UK, PSC member
Javier Fernández Retenaga, Spain
Shaukat Khawja, Toronto, Canada Profession: Engineer
Volker M., Canada
Lina Abu Baker, London, UK, Poet
Brenda Heard, UK, Friends of Lebanon, http://www.friendsoflebanon.org/
Letizia Tessicini, Orte, Italy
Simon R-Levin, Manchester, UK
Paloma Valverde, Spain, member of CEOSI
Sarah Stevens, UK
Ralph Pinner, UK
Inge Soder, Germany
Sarah Gillespie, London, UK, musician
Raja Ibrahim, Pistoia, Italy, ASSOCIAZIONE AMICIZIA ITALO – PALESTINESE, www.amiciziaitalo-palestinese.org/
Adriano Mencarelli, Roma – Italy
Diego Ianiro – Caserta, Italy, of Khalas Napoli – khalasnews.splinder.com
Francesca Longhi- Bergamo, Italia
Antonio Corraine – Aosta, Italy
Stuart Cary Welch – USA
Haitham Sabbah, Tulkarm, Palestine/Bahrain, blogger, http://sabbah.biz/
Latuff, Rio De Janiero, Brazil, Cartoonist, http://latuff.blogspot.com/
Nureddin Sabir, London, UK, Editor of Redress Information & Analysis
Steve Amsel, Jerusalem-Al Quds, blogger, http://desertpeace.wordpress.com/
Lasse Wilhelmson, Sweden
Richard Jones, Swansea, Wales, http://a-fistful-of-poetry.blogspot.com/
Einar Schlereth, Sweden, Journalist
Karaiskos Kostas, Komotini, Greece, ANTIFONITIS director, http://www26.brinkster.com/karaiskos/
Adeline Rec, N/A
Àlex Tarradellas, Catalonia
Nuria Álvarez, Spain
Guillermo F. Parodi, Paraguay, Universitary Professor
Dennis Zackrisson, Uppsala, Sweden
Mark Roland, Eugene Oregon, USA
Robert Wagner, Italy
Graham Derrick, West Yorkshire, UK
Gabriele Rèpaci, Milano, university student
Emmanuel St John, London, UK
Sami Joseph, UK
Ernesto Paramo, Mexico/UK
Muhammad Idrees Ahmad, Glasgow, Scotland, blogger, http://fanonite.org/
Jeffrey Blankfort, California, USA
David Baldinger, USA, Cartoonist, http://www.dbaldinger.com/
Olivia Zémor, Paris, France, cofounder CAPJPO (Coordination des Appels pour une Paix Juste au Proche-Orient)
Ana Cleja, France
John W. Blalock, N/A
Maryam Husain and Children, Displaced Palestinian/KSA/Italy/India currently
Emanuela Borrelli, Italy
Rachel Bridgeland, UK
Maria Ingrosso, Lecce, Italy
Riccardo Di Vito, Roma, Italia – Campo Antimperialista, http://www.antiimperialista.org/
Wilhelm Langthaler, Vienna, Austria, Anti-imperalist Camp, http://www.antiimperialista.org
Camilla Rahm, Gothenburg, Sweden
Nahida Izzat,Palestine/ Jerusalem Poetry for Palestine, http://poetryforpalestine.spaces.live.com/
Maurizio Neri, Rome, Italy, Editor Magazine of Politics and Philosophy, “Comunismo e Comunità”
Nicolas A. Sayegh – Laval, Quebec, Canada, Columnist
Asad Khan, Manchester, UK: doctor and blogger, http://chestdocinpalestine.blogspot.com/
Ali Mallah, Canadian Peace Alliance, Canadian Arab Federation, http://www.caf.ca/HomePage.aspx
Khaled Mouammar, Toronto, Canada, National President, Canadian Arab Federation, http://www.caf.ca/HomePage.aspx
Gonzalo Barona, Cáceres, España
Nicole Hille-Priebe, Germany
Randa Farah, Canada
Felisa Sastre, España
Caty R., Spain
Christine Mihil Sharp – London, UK; www.Red-DesertProductions.com
Emanuela Di Piramo, Italia
Dr Raymond Deane, Dublin, Ireland
Katherine Eilbeck, Glais, Swansea, Wales
Katie Murphy, UK
Samira Rantisi, Italy
Sergio I. Moya Mena, Costa Rica, http://wiphala.org/
Paul Eisen – Director (UK) Deir Yassin Remembered
Akram Awad, Palestinian blogger in the UK, www.akramawad.com/
Daniel Alba, writer/musician, USA http://detainthis.wordpress.com
Gunvant Govindjee, South Africa
Agustin Velloso, Madrid – Spain
William Buttrey, Southern California, USA
Gilberto Jordan, Professsor de História, Brazil
Mireille RUMEAU, from ISM-France
Colin Pritchard, UK
kim petersen, korea, co-editor, http://www.dissidentvoice.org
Juan-Antonio Julián, Bruselas
Mahmud Said Hamad – Italy
Arlene L. Johnson, Publisher/Author http://www.truedemocracy.net
Jeff Spencer, Bristol, UK, Musician
Agostino Sanfratello, Beyrouth, Lebanon
Karin Maria Friedemann, Boston, Massachusetts,Editor, World View News Service, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvns/
Gianfranco La Grassa, Conegliano, Italy, Economist
Mondher Sfar, Collectif de la Communauté Tunisienne en Europe, Paris, France
Mireille Delamarre http://www.planetenonviolence.org/
Ann El Khoury; Sydney, Australia, http://peoplesgeography.com/
Razan Ghazzawi, Damascus, Syria, blogger of Decentering Damascus, http://www.ya-ashrafe-nnas.blogspot.com/ member of Free Tariq Campaign
Maher Osseiran, Arab-American investigative reporter, http://www.mydemocracy.net/
Marion SOLITAIRE, Firminy, France
Hala Abou-Zaki, Paris, France
Khadidja ATTOU, Montpellier-France
Joe Fallisi, Baranzate (Milano), Italy, Tenor, http://www.nelvento.net/
Antonia Cilla Ortega, Spain
Djamal BENMERAD, Bruxelles, Journaliste, écrivain (Journalist, writer)
Abdelfattah Abu-Srour, PhD. Director of Alrowwad Cultural and Theatre Training Center, Bethlehem – Palestine, http://alrowwad.virtualactivism.net/
Aymen JEMNI, Engineer and PhD Student – Barcelona – Spain
Chafik HBILA, doctorant en sociologie, France
Atenea Acevedo, Interpreter, translator, activist, Active member of Babels, Tlaxcala and Rebelión,Mexico City, Mexico http://mujerypalabra.com/ http://my.opera.com/mujerypalabra/blog
Sandrine Corten, Bruxelles, Bloggeuse : http://acteursdeterrain.canalblog.com/
Charles Beillard, France, http://www.enfantsdepalestine.org/
Alan ‘Masher1’ Reid, USA, Wake up from your Slumbers Blog, Melted238
Nadjiam Saoudi, France
Aïda KRONFLI, Adhérente à; 1. Association France Palestine Solidarité, ( France), 2. Association des Palestiniens en France (France), 3. CAPJPO- EURO PALESTINE ( France)
Catherine de Crombrugghe, Charleroi, Belgium
Djanet Mokrani, France
Anika Persiani, Firenze, biologa, “Sumud”
Frédéric Herr, Strasbourg, France, etudiant
Dr Francis Clark-Lowes, founder and organiser of Invitation to Learn, member and ex-chair of Palestine Solidarity Campaign and member United National Association (UK)
Sami Sabaana, Switzerland
Safia FARHAT, TUNISIE
Boualem SNAOUI, Paris France
Paul de Rooij, writer/economist, London
Sarah Marshall, N/A
Thomas Bischoff, Strasbourg, France www.thomasbischoff.fr
Saidi Nordine, Mouvement Citoyen Palestine, Bruxelles – Belgique, http://mcpalestine.canalblog.com/
William Ross, Canada
Snorre Lindquist, Architect, Sweden
Ben Heine http://www.benjaminheine.blogspot.com/
Franck Hirsbein, France http://groups.google.com/group/lesamisdelaroutedelissa
Sabina Paolini, Abruzzo, Italy
Moura Nouara, Caen (FRANCE), association Kultures
Elisa Davinca – Vienna/Austria – http://anotherworldispossiblenow.blogspot.com/ – http://refusetokill.blogspot.com/
Leonardo Mazzei, Italy, Gaza Vivrà www.gazavive.com
veronique roudil, marseille, france
Nadim Mahjoub, London, http://middleeastpanorama.blogspot.com/
Rubén Kotler – Historiador, San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, De Igual A Igual http://www.deigualaigual.net/
Simone Maggiolo, Italy
Julieta Obedman, Argentina
Palestinian Refugee Portal http://palref.net/
Dr Yassar NAFA, Doctor , UK
Lydia Lauks, political communication officer, UK
Keny Arkana, Marseille – France, Collectif AASV
Omar Khamoun, New Zealand
Raymond Richa, France
Toni Solo, Nicaragua
Reham Alhelsi, Jerusalem, Palestine
David Nir, Israel
Maria Grazia Da Costa Lucca, Italy, Campo Antimperialista


this Petition is also on:Rebelion Redress, Uruknet here and here, Arab News, Friends of Lebanon
Tlaxcala, Kelebek, The People’s Voice Sabbah’s Blog Desert Peace
Umma, Asherah’s Journal, Palestine Blogs “The Gazette”, Window into Palestine , Detain This
Alterinfo (in French)

عريضة

إلى جميع أصدقاء حرية التعبير عن النفس ومناهضو العنصرية

نحن مجموعة من الفلسطينيين والناشطين في مجال حقوق الإنسان، نؤمن بأن الاتحاد والمثابرة أمران في غاية الأهمية لمواجهة الظلم الذي عاناه وما زال يعانيه شعبنا في الماضي والحاضر ومن المنتظر أن يبقى يعانيه في المستقبل غير المنظور من قبل القوى الصهيونية والاستعمارية.

لقد آذتنا الصهيونية منذ البداية منذ أن بدأت بتنفيذ مشروعها لاستعمار فلسطين بالكامل. وعندما واتتها الظروف، توسعت إلى ما وراء
الحدود الفلسطينية التاريخية. ملحقة الأذى بأراض عربية مجاورة. منذ اليوم الأول بدأوا باستخدام العنف والإرهاب النفسي والأخلاقي ولجأووا إلى استخدام الأساليب الدعائية ضد جميع أشكال المقاومة. إلى درجة انهم قاوموا اساليب التعبير بالكلمة بين الفلسطينيين ومؤازريهم حول العالم من أجل القضاء على جميع أشكال المقاومة. حاولوا لأنهم يعلمون جيداً أن وحدتنا تشكل خطرا\ص على مشاريعهم الاستعمارية والعنصرية. حاولوا السيطرة على الإعلام الحر وإخراسه، والقضاء على النشاط السياسي من خلال تقديم الرشاوي واستخدام أساليب الابتزاز عند كل انتخابات تؤدي إلى منصب فاعل على جميع المستويات. خصوصا ضد المنادين بتحرير فلسطين والمدافعين عن حق عودة الفلسطينيين إلى وطنهم وأراضيهم والتمتع بالديمقراطية والسيادة في دولة حرة يحكمها القانون.

من ضمن هؤلاء الناشطين الأحرار الرافضين للصهيونية والدعمين للقضية الفلسطينية شخصيتان متميزتان غير عربيتين، كرسّا جل وقتيهما وحياتهما للعمل والدفاع عن قضايانا المحقة، شخصيتين بارزتين ومناضلتين كبيرتين لا يكلان في الدفاع عن حرية واستقلال جميع الشعوب المغلوبة على أمرها والمستعمرة أراضيها والمشتتة شعوبها وتعيش في دنيا اللجوء والعوز، هما جيلاد أتزمون، الكاتب والموسيقار الذي كان صهيوني سابقاً ويعيش حالياً في لندن. وماري ريزو، المدونة المقيمة في إيطاليا والناشطة في موقع سلام فلسطين المخصص للدفاع عن القضية الفلسطينية. وكلاهما تعرضا لهجمات وسائل الاعلام الصهيونية على امتداد فترة طويلة، كما تعرضا لهجمة من قبل بعض الناشطين في سبيل القضية الفلسطينية أيضاَ!

لا يمر يوم إلا ويتنطح المدعو توني جرينشتاين بشن حرب مسعورة على الصديقين الحرين جيلاد أتزمون وماري ريزو، ونعتقد بأن أعماله قد جاوزت حدودها إلى أبعد مدى. راقبنا جرينشتاين وهو يحاول تلطيخ سمعتهما وإلصاق تهمة العنصرية عليهما علما أن أعمالهما أبعد ما تكون عن العنصرية كونهما يحاربان العنصرية الصهيونية الموجهة ضد العرب أجمعين. المؤسف جداً أن محاولاته تتكاثف بينما هما يبذلان كل جهدهما في مواجهة العنصرية الصهيونية. حملات تشويه السمعة العديمة الجدوى والغير مقبولة، التي يقوم بها عن طريق نشر الأكاذيب ضد هذين الناشطين الشريفين المخلصين للقضايا العربية، وهذا طبعاً هو هدف حملاته المسعورة ضدهما. وكل ما يقوم به جرينشتاين وأمثاله هو الإساءة إلى قضيتنا وتشتيت جهودنا، وليس أقل من إبعادنا عن قضايانا الأهم، وضد الوحدة التي نقدس.

نحن الناشطون في سبيل القضية الفلسطينية العربية، نعرب عن تآزرنا مع هذين الناشطين في سبيل قضيتنا الأولى، جيلاد أتزمون وماري ريزو، الذين عندما وعيا مدى المصائب والنكبات التي تعرض لها الفلسطينيون وغيرهم من أبناء الأمة العربية، وبشكل خاص عملية التصفية العنصرية التي لا يزال العدو الصهيوني ينفذها لطردهم والحلول مكانهم في وطنهم التاريخي وبيوتهم، فإن أتزمون بكل اندفاع ذاتي حرر نفسه من الأيديولوجية العنصرية الصهيونية التي تتعارض مع القيم الإنسانية جمعاء ومشاريعها المدمرة للسلم والاستقرار الوطني والعالمي، وماري ريزو التي لم تكن صهيونية، قررا الدفاع عن والعمل في سبيل القضية الفلسطينية المحقة، نحن نعلن بأن لا علاقة لنا بتوني جرينشتاين وبحملته الهادفة جملة وتفصيلاً للإساءة إلى سمعة هذين المناضلين. جرينشتاين لا يتكلم باسمنا أو بالنيابة عنا عندما يشن حملاته عليهما وعلى غيرهما من الناشطين في سبيل قضيتنا القومية العربية وفي قلبها فلسطين.

ونحن نغتنم الفرصة لاستنكار الحصار الخانق المفروض على الشعب العربي الفلسطيني في قطاع غزة بشكل خاص والضفة الغربية وبقية فلسطين بشكل عام، ومحاولات السير حتى آخر الطريق بتصفيتهم عرقياً من كامل أرضهم التاريخية، فلسطين العربية.
نحن نناشد كل الداعين ومحبي السلام وحرية التعبير، ضد كل أصناف العنصرية الصهيونية والاستعمارية والداعمين للقضية الفلسطينية كما تحرير العراق وغيره من الأراضي العربية المحتلة لتوقيع هذه العريضة الداعية لإنهاء حملة التشهير والتركيز على الأكثر أهمية لقضيتنا ولشعبنا العربي.
الرجاء إضافة أسمك وموقعك ومكان اقامتك والمجموعة التي تنتمي إليها إذا أردت ذلك. وأرسلها إلى http://us.f398.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=palestinesomoud@yahoo.fr. ستنشر لائحة على العموم.

Petizione: in Italian

A tutti gli amici della libertà di parola e a tutti coloro che si oppongono al razzismo:Noi siamo un gruppo di palestinesi e di attivisti a sostegno della Palestina. Crediamo che l’unità e la costanza siano importanti per affrontare l’ingiustizia che il nostro popolo ha subito in passato, subisce ancora oggi e probabilmente subirà nel futuro prevedibile, per mano dei sionisti e delle potenze colonialiste.

Il sionismo ci ha danneggiati sin dal primo giorno in cui ha cominciato ad attuare il suo progetto di colonizzare tutta la Palestina e, quando se ne avrà l’occasione, anche di estendere il proprio dominio oltre le frontiere della Palestina storica, danneggiando altri arabi. Dal primo giorno, ha fatto ricorso alla violenza fisica, psicologica e morale e al terrorismo propagandistico contro ogni sorta di resistenza, che si tratti dell’autodifesa armata o dell’uso della parola da parte dei palestinesi e dei loro sostenitori. Hanno fatto ricorso all’omicidio mirato, sia individuale che collettivo, terrorizzando i palestinesi e i loro sostenitori in tutto il mondo per mettere a tacere ogni forma di resistenza. Cercano di dividerci, perché sanno quanto la nostra unità sia pericolosa per i loro progetti colonialisti e razzisti.

Cercano di controllare e di mettere a tacere i media liberi e onesti e la militanza politica, corrompendo e ricattando coloro che si candidano a incarichi politici di qualunque livello, in particolare coloro che chiedono la liberazione della Palestina e il Diritto di Ritorno dei palestinesi alle loro case e alle loro terre, e che vogliono che essi possano vivere in uno stato di diritto, democratico, sovrano e libero. Tra gli spiriti liberi che combattono contro il sionismo, ci sono due sostenitori non arabi della causa palestinese, due straordinarie personalità che sono anche grandi combattenti per la libertà di tutti i popoli oppressi del mondo, Gilad Atzmon, musicista e scrittore ex-sionista che vive a Londra, e Mary Rizzo, che dall’Italia cura il blog http://peacepalestine.blogspot.com/ Peacepalestine. Da molto tempo, entrambi sono il bersaglio di attacchi da parte dei sionisti, ma adesso vengono attaccati anche da alcune persone interne al movimento per la Palestina.

Quasi tutti i giorni, Tony Greenstein conduce una guerra contro Gilad Atzmon e Mary Rizzo, e adesso crediamo che le sue attività abbiano superato tutti i limiti. Lo abbiamo visto all’opera mentre cercava di diffamarli come razzisti, e siamo rattristati dal fatto che lui moltiplichi gli sforzi, proprio mentre la nostra situazione diventa sempre più drammatica. Queste inutili e futili campagne diffamatorie sono intollerabili, mentre lui diffonde affermazioni false sul conto di questi attivisti. I suoi tentativi non solo danneggiano la nostra causa e disperdono le nostre energie: non ultimo, ci distolgono dalle questioni veramente importanti, e contrastano la stessa idea di unità che noi apprezziamo.

Noi palestinesi e attivisti a favore della Palestina esprimiamo la nostra solidarietà a Gilad Atzmon e Mary Rizzo , che hanno scelto di battersi per la giusta causa palestinese, quando si sono resi conto delle tragedie sofferte dai palestinesi e da altri arabi, oggetto di una pulizia etnica per mano del sionismo razzista e colonialista che li ha espulsi dalla loro patria ancestrale. Atzmon ha scelto di liberarsi da questo progetto disumano e distruttivo, percorrendo la via dell’esilio autoimposto e del pubblico smascheramento del progetto sionista. Noi ci dissociamo da Tony Greenstein e dalle sue campagne diffamatorie. Lui non parla né per conto né a nome nostro, né parla a nome della nostra lotta, quando attacca questi e altri attivisti.

Cogliamo inoltre l’occasione per condannare l’assedio soffocante che viene imposto alla Striscia di Gaza in particolare, ma anche alla Cisgiordania e al resto del popolo arabo palestinese, allo scopo di completare la pulizia etnica della loro storica terra. Invitiamo tutti gli amanti della pace, i sostenitori della libertà di pensiero, contrari a ogni forma di razzismo e al sionismo e impegnati nella giusta causa araba palestinese, a firmare questa petizione che chiede di porre fine a questa campagna di diffamazione e di concentrarsi sulle questioni che sono importanti per il nostro popolo.

Scrivete il vostro nome, il luogo di residenza e l’organizzazione o gruppo di cui fate parte, se volete. Mandate il tutto a palestinesomoud@yahoo.fr. La lista dei firmatari sarà resa pubblica.


Spanish:
Ante los ataques contra Gilad Atzmon y Mary Rizzo Petición por dos activistas que conocéis bien
Rebelión
A todos los amantes de la libertad de expresión que se oponen al racismo:

Somos un grupo de palestinos y otros activistas por la causa palestina de varias nacionalidades y afiliaciones que creemos que la unión y la persistencia son fundamentales para hacer frente a la injusticia que nuestro pueblo ha sufrido en el pasado, sigue sufriendo en el presente y posiblemente seguirá padeciendo en el impredecible futuro por culpa de las potencias coloniales y sionistas.

El sionismo nos ha perjudicado desde el primer día, cuando comenzó a poner en práctica su proyecto para colonizar toda Palestina y, cuando tuviera oportunidad, extenderlo más allá de las fronteras de la Palestina histórica, en perjuicio de otros pueblos árabes. Desde el primer día han utilizado el terror físico, psicológico, moral y propagandístico contra cualquier clase de resistencia, ya fuera la resistencia armada en defensa propia o incluso contra otras fuerzas del mundo a favor de los palestinos y sus partidarios. Han recurrido a asesinatos selectivos en privado y en público aterrorizando a los palestinos y a sus defensores en todo el mundo para acallar cualquier tipo de resistencia. Han tratado de dividirnos y disgregarnos porque saben que nuestra unión es peligrosa para sus planes coloniales y racistas. Han tratado de controlar y silenciar a los medios de comunicación libres e íntegros y a los activistas políticos mediante sobornos y chantajes económicos presentándose en toda clase de despachos políticos en todos los ámbitos, especialmente contra aquellos que exigen la liberación de Palestina y el Derecho de Retorno de los palestinos a sus casas y tierras, y que quieren vivir en un estado de derecho soberano, libre y democrático.
Entre los luchadores independientes contra el sionismo hay dos grandes defensores, no árabes, de la causa palestina; dos destacadas personalidades que son asimismo grandes combatientes por la libertad y la emancipación de todos los pueblos sometidos del mundo: Gilad Atzmon, el músico y escritor ex sionista afincado en Londres, y Mary Rizzo, que vive en Italia y dirige el blog Peacepalestine http://peacepalestine.blogspot.com/. Ambos han recibido ataques de los sionistas durante mucho tiempo y también de determinadas personas que están en el movimiento por Palestina.

Casi todos los días Tony Greenstein renueva su guerra contra Gilad Atzmon y Mary Rizzo y consideramos que sus actuaciones ya han rebasado todos los límites. Hemos observado como trata de vilipendiarlos como racistas y nos entristece que estos intentos sigan aumentando mientras nuestra situación se vuelve cada vez más dramática. Estas campañas inútiles e injustificadas son intolerables, puesto que Greenstein hace circular mentiras sobre estos activistas. Sus intentos, lo único que consiguen es dañar nuestra causa y malgastar nuestras energías: como mínimo, distrae de los asuntos importantes y va dirigido contra la propia idea de unión que tanto valoramos.

Nosotros, palestinos y activistas por Palestina, expresamos nuestra solidaridad con Gilad Atzmon y Mary Rizzo, quienes cuando se dieron cuenta de las tragedias que sufren los palestinos y otros árabes, especialmente la limpieza étnica de su patria ancestral a manos del sionismo racista y colonial, decidieron luchar por la legítima causa palestina. Atzmon se autoexcluyó voluntariamente de ese proyecto inhumano y destructivo eligiendo el camino del exilio y la tarea de explicar qué significa el proyecto sionista. Tony Greenstein incluyó entre sus mentiras cotidianas la de que algunos palestinos atacaron y difamaron a los dos defensores dedicados a la causa palestina, Atzmon y Rizzo. Declaramos que no habla por nosotros ni en nuestro nombre cuando ataca a estos u otros activistas.

También aprovechamos la oportunidad para condenar el asfixiante asedio que se ha impuesto a la Franja de Gaza en particular y a Cisjordania y al resto de la población árabe palestina en general para completar la limpieza étnica de su patria histórica. Urgimos a todos los amantes y defensores de la paz y a quienes quieren y defienden la libertad de pensamiento y están en contra del sionismo y de cualquier otro tipo de racismo contra la justa causa árabe, también en Iraq y en todos los países árabes ocupados, para que firmen esta petición pidiendo el cese de la campaña de difamación y un enfoque en los asuntos que son importantes para nuestro pueblo.
Añade tu nombre, localidad y organización o grupo del que formas parte, si lo deseas, y envíala a palestinesomoud@yahoo.fr. Se incluirá en la lista pública.

Pétition pour deux militants connus: Gilad Atzmon et Mary Rizzo

Nous sommes un groupe de Palestiniens et d’autres militants pour la cause palestinienne de différentes nationalités et appartenances, et nous pensons que l’unité et la persistance sont importantes pour faire face à l’injustice dont notre peuple a souffert et continuera de souffrir, probablement encore pour une durée imprévisible, de la part des puissances sioniste et colonialistes.

Le sionisme nous a fait tort dès le premier jour où il a commencé à mettre en Suvre son projet colonialiste de coloniser toute la Palestine, et saisissant chaque occasion de l’étendre au-delà des frontières de la Palestine historique, faisant du tort à d’autres Arabes.

Dès le premier jour, ils ont eu recours à la terreur physique, psychologique, morales et propagandiste contre toutes sortes de résistance, que ce soit l’autodéfense armée ou même contre le pouvoir de la parole, par des Palestiniens et de leurs partisans. Ils avaient eu recours à des assassinats ciblés contre des personnes et des communautés, terrorisant les Palestiniens et leurs sympathisants dans le monde entier afin de taire toutes sortes de résistance.

Ils essaient de nous diviser, car ils savent que notre unité est dangereuse pour leurs plans colonialistes et racistes. Ils ont essayé de contrôler et de fermer les médias libres et honnêtes, et de bloquer l’activisme politique par la corruption et le chantage financiers contre les candidats à des fonctions politiques à tous les niveaux, en particulier contre ceux qui appellent à la libération de la Palestine et au droit au retour des Palestiniens dans leurs maisons et leurs terres et veulent qu’ils vivent dans un État libre, démocratique et souverain, dans la primauté du droit.

Parmi les libres combattants contre le sionisme se trouvent deux partisans non-arabes de la cause palestinienne, deux éminentes personnalités qui sont aussi des grands combattants pour la liberté de tous les peuples dominés du monde, Gilad Atzmon, l’ex-sioniste musicien et écrivain basé à Londres et Mary Rizzo, la blogueuse de Peacepalestine basée en Italie.
Ils ont été attaqués par des sionistes depuis longtemps, mais ils sont aussi l’objet d’attaques de certaines autres personnes qui sont dans le mouvement pour la Palestine.

Il ne se passe presque pas un seul jour où Tony Greenstein ne mène sa guerre contre Gilad Atzmon et Mary Rizzo, et nous pensons que ses actions ont outrepassé toutes les limites.

Nous avons observé comment il tente de les calomnier comme des racistes, et nous sommes attristés que ses tentatives augmentent au fur et à mesure que notre propre situation devient plus dramatique. Ces campagnes inutiles et vaines de diffamation sont intolérables, car il diffuse des mensonges sur ces militants.

Ses tentatives ne font que nuire à notre cause et gaspillent notre énergie, et surtout, ils détournent de questions importantes, et vont à l’encontre de l’idée même d’unité à laquelle nous sommes attachés.

Nous, Palestiniens et militants pour la Palestine, exprimons notre solidarité avec Gilad Atzmon et Mary Rizzo, qui, quand ils ont réalisé les tragédies endurées par les Palestiniens et les autres Arabes, en particulier le nettoyage ethnique de leur patrie ancestrale, de la part du sionisme raciste et colonialiste, ont décidé de se battre pour la juste cause palestinienne.

Atzmon s’est volontairement libéré lui-même de ce projet destructeur et inhumain, en choisissant le chemin de l’exil volontaire et de la dénonciation publique de ce que le projet sioniste est en réalité.

Tony Greenstein a amené par ses mensonges habituels certains Palestiniens à attaquer et diffamer ces deux partisans dévoués de la cause palestinienne que sont Atzmon et Rizzo.

Nous déclarons qu’il ne parle pas pour nous ou en notre nom quand il attaque ces militants et d’autres activistes. Nous saisissons également cette occasion pour condamner l’étranglement imposé par le siège de la bande de Gaza en particulier et de la Cisjordanie et du reste du peuple arabe palestinien en général pour achever leur nettoyage ethnique de leur patrie historique.

Nous exhortons tous les partisans de la liberté de pensée épris de paix, engagés contre le racisme et le sionisme et dédiée à la cause juste des Palestiniens arabes ainsi que de l’Iraq et de tous les territoires arabes occupés, à signer cette pétition demandant la fin de la campagne de diffamation et le retour à une focalisation sur les questions qui sont importantes pour notre peuple. Ajoutez votre nom, votre lieu de résidence et l’organisation ou le groupe dont vous faites partie de si vous le souhaitez.

Envoyez votre signature à palestinesomoud@yahoo.fr .
La liste des signataires sera rendue publique.

Gilad Atzmon – Two Jewish Jokes (and a Hain in the Middle)

A story is told of a Londoner, a Jewish man who was riding on the London Underground reading an Arab newspaper. A friend of his, who happened to be riding in the same underground car, noticed this strange phenomenon. Very upset, he approached the newspaper reader.

“Moishe, have you lost your mind? Why are you reading an Arab newspaper?” Moishe replied, “I used to read the Jewish newspaper, but what did I find? Jews being persecuted, Israel being attacked, Jews disappearing through assimilation and intermarriage, Jews living in poverty. So I switched to the Arab newspaper. Now what do I find? Jews own all the banks, Jews control the media, Jews are all rich and powerful, Jews rule the world. The news is so much better!”

Truth must be said, Moishe, is telling the truth here. The Jewish press in Britain is panicking lately and they have good reason, too. While the British papers are filling their mouths with water hiding the real story behind the huge Labour donation sleaze, the UK Jewish press is overwhelmingly concerned with the unveiling saga. We have already learned about Lord ‘cash machine’ Levy who acted as ‘No 1 Labour fund raiser’. We have learned recently about David Abrahams who donated his money to the party by proxy. Both Levy and Abrahams were overwhelmingly active at the time Britain was taken into an illegal war by the Labour government. David Abrahams already admitted in an interview to the Jewish Chronicle that he donated money by proxy to “to quell conspiracy fears”.

Interestingly enough, the ‘Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 ’ introduces some clear regulations concerning donation to political parties in Britain. According to the 2000 Act, donators have to report donations worth more than £1,000 from permitted donors (individuals on the UK electoral register, or UK-registered companies) and donations worth more than £200 from unidentified or impermissible donors. The 2000 act is there to protect Britain’s political world from being subject to any criminal or foreign interests. The act is there to protect Britain from conspiracy or anything that may even look like a conspiracy.

Levy and Abrahams were prominent activists in the ‘Labour Friends of Israel’ and ‘Jewish Labour’. They both operate as Israeli lobbyists. It is more than possible that their interests as openly rabid Zionists do not exactly match the British interests. I am not here to suggest that this is indeed the case. However, Abrahams’s confession to the JC is there to suggest that at least Abrahams himself thought that his donation to the Labour party could be interpreted as a conspiracy.

Yesterday, Peter Hain, a senior British Cabinet minister resigned. Once again following a row over political donations and guess what, once again it is Zionist donators who put money into his campaign by proxy.

Hain, who served as Work and Pensions Secretary said he was leaving to clear his name after electoral authorities referred questions to the police about the funding of his unsuccessful campaign to become deputy Labor Party leader. Clearly, the British press avoids questioning the identity of the donators, and more crucially there is the disturbing question: what was it that they tried to buy? But as Moishe confesses in the joke above, Jewish newspapers are there to spread the depressive news.

Last week Jewish Chronicle’s report on the Hain affair is indeed very revealing yet concerning.
“International diamond broker Willie Nagel, 83 — one of two Jewish benefactors to Mr Hain’s campaign through the Progressive Policies Forum — told the JC he had donated and loaned money to PPF and had “no objection that this money [had been] used to support Peter Hain’s campaign”.

Seemingly, Mr. Nagel changes league quite easily. As much as was happy to donate to Labour candidates in power, he was delighted to donate to the Tories at the time when they ran this country.

Here is the JC report:

“Mr Nagel, a member of St John’s Wood Synagogue, was also known to be close to the Conservatives during the premierships of Baroness Thatcher and John Major. He reportedly donated to Mr Major’s Huntingdon constituency, giving rise to reports in the media that he had attempted to interest the then-prime minister in Israeli-made unmanned aircraft at a time when the UK maintained an arms embargo on Israel.”

Clearly, Mr Nagel operates here as a foreign lobbyist for Israeli interests and even military interests. As much as Peter Hain was happy to receive Mr Nagel’s money, it does raise big questions as to whether Mr. Nagel was a ‘permissible’ donator. Though, he is a UK citizen, he clearly represent some foreign interests.

The JC continues. Mr Nagel “has been a vice-chairman of Israel Bonds UK, and played a major role in the Balfour Diamond Jubilee Trust and the British Overseas Trade Group for Israel. He is also a life-long supporter of both the Labour and Conservative Friends of Israel and appears regularly in the JC “Guest List” pages alongside leading Israeli and communal figures.”

Clearly Mr Nagel was there to buy Israeli interests and it is NO coincidence that Peter Hain ‘forgot’ to report of his voluntary contribution. I ask myself whether there are many donators in this country who openly send money to the two rival parties. I guess the answer is no. There are not many, there are just very few.

However, Mr Hain’s other benefactor is another prominent Zionist named Isaac Kaye. Mr Kaye is a South African-born multi-millionaire who was known for his support of the South African Apartheid regime.

Mr Kaye, 78 year old a man with dubious past “is the former chairman of Norton Healthcare, which was investigated by police looking into an alleged £400 million price-rigging of pharmaceuticals sold to the NHS.” Mr Kaye is obviously a rabid Zionist and a major Israeli Lobbyist. Again the JC report that Mr Kaye “has backed the Community Security Trust, UJIA and other Jewish and pro-Israel organisations. He is on the board of Bicom, the Britain-Israel Communications and Research Centre, and is a governor and major benefactor of the Hebrew University, where he has endowed the Kaye Research Awards.”

Interestingly enough, the Tories here do not do much to expose the identity of the Labour proxy donators. The reason is simple, they are backed by the very same people. We have read about Mr Nagel swinging between the two parties. Recently Parliament’s sleaze watchdog has launched an inquiry into complaints made against shadow chancellor George Osborne. Mr Osborne allegedly received money from some of the wealthiest people in Britain, including banking heiress Lady Serena Rothschild, believed to have donated £190,000 to Mr Osborne.

Moishe is correct, the JC report is very concerning. The truth of Israeli lobbying in Britain is totally revealed in the Jewish Chronicle paper, God bless them. Interestingly enough, the British press wouldn’t touch the crux of the matter yet.

From Moishe’s point of view, the Guardian and the Independent are not a major concern for the time being. This might be the biggest asset of Britain and its tolerant culture. However, bearing in mind the genocide in Iraq, Britain has been led into its most devastating colonial phase ever by the Labour party. At a certain stage the question will be raised and it won’t be too long before the names Levy, Abrahams, Kaye, Nagel and a few others to pop up. This is very depressing and may even be very worrying as far as Moishe is concerned. I understand Moishe’s concerns and even feel for him.

However, since we have launched this article with Moishe’s joke it would be rather appropriate to end it with just another very short one,

A Jewish Telegram:
‘Begin worrying, details to follow.’