Articles archives 08-05-02

Cover Story: Jules Rabin’s conscience
By Steven Wallach, Vermont Sunday Magazine, August 3, 2002
From a small Jewish community in Vermont, a plea for an end to violence against Palestinians
Jules Rabin is one of those rare individuals whom Goddard College brought to Vermont years ago to give it substance, depth and personality. Now in his late 70s, he lives on a back road in Marshfield with his wife, Helen. They have a huge vegetable garden and an outbuilding in the back that houses a big masonry oven. For their living, they bake a delicious sourdough peasant bread there that has a large and loyal local following. Jules himself is a scholar-teacher, an arguably successful entrepreneur, and the father of two high-achieving women. He has been a social activist for many years and a vocal critic of American foreign policy, particularly as it pertained to Central America. There never was a question where Jules stood on an issue. He is unwaveringly to the left of center and full of empathy for whomever he perceives as the underdog.

There Are No Settlers in Palestine
By Larry Hurlock, Palestine Chronicle, August 02 2002
Not today, not yesterday, and not tomorrow. And that is very, very important. Why are there no "settlers"? Because there is no "territory" to settle.
A territory is by definition land for settlement. When a sovereign nation discovers land peopled by indigenous people powerless to resist, they sometimes allow their own citizens to immigrate.

Indict the Murderers of Oslo
By Uri Avnery, Palestine Chronicle, August 02 2002
Among the Palestinians, the agreement caused immense euphoria. I was an eyewitness to the explosion of joy on the day of signing. Attacks in Israel stopped for a long time. The Palestinians were convinced that in return for their major concessions the Palestinian state would soon come into being in all the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem. When I hear right-wing Israelis shout “Indict the Oslo Criminals!” I shudder. Not because of the inherent falsification, but because of the sound of the words. This slogan is a virtual (and perhaps conscious) copy of the slogan used by the Nazis in their successful campaign to undermine the Weimar republic. Their throats were hoarse from shouting “Indict the November Criminals!”

Israel's War For Terrorism
By Ran HaCohen, Dissident Voice, August 3, 2002
It is high time to reiterate the favourite media question – "Is Arafat Unable, or Rather Unwilling to Stop Terrorism" – but with a different protagonist. Prime Minister Sharon has now been in office for about 15 months. He has been enjoying total and unprecedented freedom, both nationally and internationally, to fight Palestinian terrorism however he likes, using all measures at hand and blatantly ignoring all moral and legal considerations. In spite of that, Palestinian terrorism is alive and killing.

Deadly 'home court' advantage
By Lorenzo Cremonesi, Ha'aretz, August 04, 2002
The declarations by Ariel Sharon's government to the effect that the civilian casualties incurred during the assassination of Salah Shehadeh were a mistake are not convincing. Even less persuasive is the pathetic comparison with American bombings in Afghanistan. I remember the bombings there last November, December and January quite well; for a good part of that period, I was in Tora Bora. In the early days of the offensive, the B-29s bombarded the mountains south of Jalalabad from an altitude of 10,000 meters. They hit Agam, a peasant village. With a number of other journalists, I went to see the destroyed houses and the children who had lost arms and legs at the Jalalabad hospital. The villagers estimated the number of dead to be 120. The Americans said that there had been a mistake.

The long term strategy of Israel and how it affects the U.S.
By Raff Ellis, YellowTimes, August 03, 2002
(YellowTimes.org) – Often times, while reading the headlines or watching the news, one has to ask, "What could the Israelis be thinking?" What could possibly be the point of the seemingly indiscriminate carnage and destruction? Rooting out the terrorists or revenge is often the official explanation. But tiny babies are not terrorists yet they are killed by the dozens. Olive trees are not terrorists yet they are uprooted by the hundreds. Homes are not terrorists but they are destroyed by the thousands. Buildings and factories are labeled bomb factories and are shelled into oblivion. One need only examine these actions to discern the overall strategy of the country that is behind them.

Abdullah, the king on a mission to prevent war
By Robert Fisk, The Independent, August 3, 2002
It may be a bluff, but Saddam's offer can be turned to our advantage. It's the accent that does it. Middle-English, upper middle- class, a touch of Oxford and Sandhurst, both of which he attended. If only, some Jordanians say, their king spoke Arabic as well as he does English. But King Abdullah of Jordan is improving his fluency in his native language just as he is able to touch the heart of the House of Commons or even a slightly more difficult undertaking, the heart of Tony Blair.

Saddam and Arafat, Sharon and Golda
By Akiva Eldar, Ha'aretz, August 05, 2002
The political and military establishment in Israel, like its counterpart in the U.S., is convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that its problems begin with one bad person whose removal will solve those problems. After September 11, the prime minster quickly drew a straight line between Osama bin Laden and Yasser Arafat. That line proved to be an effective defense against American pressure to get out of the territories and move on to the political track.

Killing Americans For Oil And Israel
By Edward W. Miller, Coastal Post Online, July 2002
The media is full these days of accusations, recriminations, congressional hearings and much political jazz, aimed at either deflecting criticism from Washington's failure to warn us of September 11th or suggestions regarding revamping our so-called Intelligence Establishment. While the embarrassed CIA and FBI sit as humbly as possible through endless "hearings" our bubble-head President is erecting a Department of "National Security" which will, he promises, bind together over 100 Federal offices with their personnel and expertise thus guaranteeing that in the future, every bit of intelligence information which may drift into this monolith will receive its proper scrutiny and dispatch.

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