#this is why we shouldn’t stop speaking up about palestine | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nobodysprincess · 6 months

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“This is how colonialism works. It convinces us that the fallout from resistance is entirely our fault, that the immoral choice is resistance itself rather than the circumstances that demanded it.” — R.F Kuang, Babel

Resistance does not happen in a vacuum.

Resistance, rebellion, protests, marches, demonstrations, and boycotts all happen in response to injustice.

When you know the context, your humanity should pull you to come out in full support of the Palestinians.

If, after reading this whole post, or even half of it, if you are not emotionally moved or heartbroken by the oppression … I don’t even know what to say.

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When Native Americans fought for their land, the white people called them “savages” while the emigrating thieves were “civilized” and considered themselves “victims.”

Mandela’s ANC (African National Congress, a liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid) was considered a terrorist organization by the oppressors.

The Philippines were colonized by the Spanish for 300 years, then by Americans and then the Japanese. Their historical liberation movement was called “terrorism.” (And the League of Filipino Students stand with Palestine.)

The Hawaiians’ land was stolen. It’s a resort. Whenever you see it in stories (movies, tv shows, books), it’s for when the characters go there on vacation; and their culture gets warped, exaggerated, mocked, purposefully misunderstood, and also sexualized. But in reality, even til this day, indigenous children are punished for speaking their native language in school. Their language and culture is nearly extinct. All Hawaiians should be able to speak their language, not just a percentage of them. Even if you can’t relate, at least you can dig and bring up your compassion and empathy to the surface. Is it wrong to be angry about this? Is it wrong to fight back against colonialism and imperialism and capitalism?

Korea had their own independence movement and liberation army. It lasted decades. Yes, they used violent attacks. You wouldn’t have all those beautiful K-dramas to watch on Netflix, if they didn’t literally fight for their freedom.

India, too.

When Palestinians fight back against the oppression, they’re called “terrorists.”

These people are subjugated. It permeates every waking moment of their life. The Israeli colonizers who would call themselves ‘victims’ are the same people who “control the most simple and basic elements” of Palestinian life.

Read that again.

“We basically control the most simple and basic elements of life.” — Ori Givati, former Israeli soldier, speaking up about the occupation of Palestine.

With context, it’s a thousand times more chilling. But even without it, especially if you can relate to being controlled over everything by a bigger but terrible person while growing up, that sentence alone is heartbreaking.

But it shouldn’t take that sentence for people to realize that that’s what it’s been all along since 1948. You just need to open your eyes and see how they, the Palestinians, are treated.

The Palestinians’ water wells were cemented by Israeli soldiers, to stop them from getting clean water. So, forget the Israeli government turning on a simple switch to allow water from their pipes – ‘cause the Palestinians can’t even get fresh water on the only strip of land they have!

How can anyone defend or justify that?

Also, the millions of olive trees that had lived through generations (and it takes years for a new olive tree to produce anything) were destroyed by the Israel occupation since 1948. Now why would Israel destroy olive trees? Olive trees have a very special significance throughout the Middle East. Olive trees are important to Palestinian culture and heritage.

But Israel still continues to burn or destroy agriculture (aside from the bombs destroying it), they never stopped.

Gazan fishermen cannot even fish freely, there have been limits to how far out in the water they could go.

From the words of a Palestinian woman who works in a border school affiliated with the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, established in 1949), translated to English:

“Fishermen are hunted at sea and they're falsely accused of getting close to the border. The fishing area keeps shrinking that they now have a tiny area from which they can make a living.”

Full post is here. For heaven’s sake, it takes a year to even get an item that they order from the Internet finally delivered, and even then it’s not a guarantee. The Israeli soldiers won’t give it to the purchaser if it’s dual-use.

Diving goggles are classified as dual-use, so the woman (who wrote the post I just linked) wasn’t able to get them. DIVING GOGGLES!

Where is your humanity?

If you are so desensitized to the gravity of this happening to 2 million people in the year 2023, and if you see all the deaths as just a number, and these numbers are just a statistic to you … I don’t know what I could say to make you understand.

How about the words of a Native American who visited Palestine in the past, and said it reminded him of his home in the U.S reservations? The United States government stole native land hundreds of years ago, and life in reservations are still so bad that this person felt at home in Palestine. THINK ABOUT THAT!

Go ahead, try and tell me Israel isn’t an apartheid that’s even worse than Nazi Germany, or the U.S. genocide of Native Americans.

This occupation has been going on since 1948! Gazans need a permit to enter West Bank (which is often denied to them), and there are checkpoints on every street. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Even when you finish reading this post, it doesn’t showcase half of how much oppression there is.

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The Israeli government “control the most simple and basic elements of life” there. That was a quote from one former Israeli soldier.

Here’s another former Israeli soldier, speaking up against the occupation, (Eran Efrati):

“I was broken. I felt like I was the terrorist. And my job was literally to scare people so they cannot think about acting against the Israeli settlers.”

“Very early on, I understood that the rights that the Jewish settlers have are not the rights that the Palestinians have.”

“I understood that I cannot touch a Jewish settler if he is attacking a Palestinian.”

“So (these) Jewish settlers that live in Hebron are living under the same rights that I live in, in Jerusalem. But the Palestinians next to them, next house over, next building over, or sometimes next apartment over, lives under my rule, my military rule.”

“And I can do whatever I want with him.”

By the way, this is Stage 3 of the 10 stages of genocide: Discrimination. The Stage 2 is Classification, and Palestinians are a separated group under Israeli law.

Here’s the link to the video.

And a former Israeli Air Force pilot, Yonatan Shapira, said this:

“I was a captain in Israeli Air Force, I was a helicopter pilot and I realized during the 2nd Intifada what Israeli Air Force and Israeli military doing is war crime, terrorizing population of millions of Palestinians.”

“As a child in Israel, you are being brought up in very strong Zionist militaristic education. You don’t know almost anything about Palestine, you don’t know about the Nakba, 1948, you don’t know anything about ongoing oppression.”

Here’s the link to the video.

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As of October 30, 2023, Israel has wiped out 881 families. Lineages. Bloodlines. This means 30 to 80 persons in EACH FAMILY.

On October 17, that number was only 47 bloodlines.

« Gaza, Oct. 29 (Petra) - The death toll from the war on Gaza has reached 8,005, including 3,324 children, 2,062 women, 460 elderly people, while 1,870 people were reported missing, including 1,020 children, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.

The ministry spokesman said the Israeli occupation has carried out 56 massacres in the last several hours, killing 302 Palestinians. Most of the victims were moved to the southern parts of the Gaza Strip, which Israel claims are safe zones.

He added that 116 medical staff were killed, 25 ambulances were destroyed, and 57 health facilities were targeted, pointing out that 881 families were lost as a result of the occupation's purposeful targeting of them. »

And if you don’t believe these numbers, because you’d rather believe Israel – guess what? Israel is keeping score, and published it on their Channel 14 news channel with rising numbers. Israel are genocidal maniacs. It’s not my fault you refuse to believe what your eyes can see.

UPDATE

As of November 25 of 2023, the number of deaths reached 20,000. The number of children among them are 8,176.

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“We must learn that passively to accept an unjust system is to cooperate with that system, and thereby to become a participant in its evil.” — Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbors were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.” — Naomi Shulman

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And along with Israel bombing the Palestinians using the internationally-banned white phosphorus—!

It is so violent in its destruction, and, I repeat, it is prohibited under international law! Of course, you’d think that violating the Geneva Convention would result in heavy consequences, but imperialist governments not caring and getting away with anything is a different topic.

It is so wicked, I can’t—

Even if you don’t care about a massive loss of human life, the phosphorus effect on agricultural lands are devastating and lasts for years. It still makes people sick and nauseous with no apparent signs of injury on the plants.

And all the mushroom clouds after those CONSTANT bombs drop on Gaza!

Even if you don’t care about the loss of human life, do you have a speck of humanity in you to care about all the pollution? At the very least?

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How many times does the Israeli government have to be caught lying or admit to lying, before you realize they can never be trusted because they’re liars? They have a long history of it, too!

OPEN YOUR EYES!

When the people had a funeral for American-Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, the Israeli police kicked and beat the mourners who were carrying the casket.

Is it any wonder that there are former Israeli soldiers and pilots who stopped supporting their government because they felt like terrorists, and realized it is Israel who are the terrorists?

Look at this!

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It is also NEVER a normal time to say “I’m a little bit fascist,” whether it’s 2000 or 2023…but the video in the tweet below is from 2009. This is an Israeli woman saying, “I’m a little bit fascist.”

Imagine thinking this is normal to talk that way. Imagine thinking fascism is, in any way, good or beneficial.

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The Palestinians in the Gaza Strip do not have basic human rights.

If you value having your human rights, do not turn a blind eye to Palestine.

Their access to the outside world, via WiFi and the Internet, is the one and only way they can spread awareness of what’s going on.

No government should have the power to turn off water and cut electricity and telecommunications.

Collective punishment is a war crime under international law, a crime on humanity that could easily be done to you. You think you’re safe in your country? Every protest and demonstration or march (on any topic, really) is met with the same brutal police treatment. What’s to stop them from going all out, the moment they get the government’s green light? I remember military vehicles coming out in force during the BLM protests. Many people are permanently blind and/or disabled from the tear gassing and the rubber bullets.

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You cannot justify indiscriminate bombing on a densely populated SMALL area. It’s never right, but think about this…

The Gaza Strip is 139 square miles.

Detroit, Michigan is also 139 square miles.

Detroit only has less than six hundred thousand people in their population. The Gaza Strip has two MILLION.

Religious buildings, universities, hospitals … bombed, all under the excuse that “terrorists” were hiding there.

The same exact excuse Israel used to justify bombing a school in Egypt in 1970, it is not new and not exclusive to Gaza. They always use the same tactics.

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What I’m sharing here is pretty much everything I’ve shared (and then some) about the occupation and genocide against Palestinians. So, pardon me if it’s not cohesive, because it’s not really meant to be. I shared most of this just one time with somebody, and I still got hit back by that heartless lunatic threatening me to watch and “enjoy Israeli retribution.”

It’s bad enough seeing it in the comment sections on YouTube or Twitter; it’s even more mind-boggling to have it spoken in direct response to me in my attempt to appeal to what little speck of humanity they have left, so I don’t make a habit of speaking up.

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Palestinians are Arabs. Arabs are Semites.

If, for some asinine reason, you support Israel on the genocide they’re committing right now against Gaza, and you still want to call me an anti-Semite … then you should know that a former Israeli minister of education said (nonchalantly) back in 2002 that they always use that label as a trick on anyone who criticizes the Israeli government.

And a former Israeli Mossad agent, in 1995, said that labeling someone an anti-Semite is one of the ways he silenced critics. They know you’re not an anti-Semite, but they will label you as such to discredit you.

Victor Ostrovsky: « But I know what they do ‘cause I used to ask them to do it. When I was in the Mossad and we had a guy that gave us problems in the U.S., and he was speaking out and he was talking like people talk once and said, “Israel is bombing Lebanon with cluster bombs,” we say, “Hey, who’s that guy?” you know? ‘Pete Macockey,’ we used to call him. Yeah, which is Pete the Cockroach, ‘cause he makes a lot of noise and you can’t get rid of him. So, what you do is you get in touch with a guy in the station in New York or in the station in Washington and tell the guys in B’nai B’rith to label him. And, of course, the campaign starts, and before you know it, the guy is labeled. And he’s ‘an anti-Semite’ because that’s what we say he is. It shames me as a Jew to tell you that. But that’s the fact and it’s wrong. »

It SHAMED him as a Jew to say that this is what his government does. This is what Israel does!

The same thing happened in Nazi Germany – it was illegal to even mock Adolf Hitler, or talk badly about the Nazi regime. It’s the same thing regarding CPC, Chinese citizens will have their online posts deleted if they criticize China. And it’s the same with North Korea, it’s actually worse than China – they cannot even consume foreign entertainment if it’s not sanctioned by their government.

If you criticize Israel, their government will silence you by slapping on the “anti-Semitic” label onto you.

As Shulamit Aloni said, “It’s a trick, we always use it.” Thank you for exposing yourselves!

If you’ve reached all the way down to this part of the post, and anything I’ve typed out hasn’t moved you emotionally at all, you should stop calling yourself pro-climate and pro-life.

And look!

It’s there for all to see.

We don’t even have to expose Israel’s black hearts, they’re doing that all on their own.

We literally just have to point this out. The rest is up to you.

Imagine Russians doing this about Ukrainians!

Is this who you want to defend? “God’s chosen people” mocking cultural attire, comparing Palestinians to dogs, dehumanizing them, degrading their deaths, laughing at mothers losing their children.

Is this the hill you want to die on? IS THIS YOU?!

The depravity!

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“Words and terminology are crucial," said Hussam Zomlot, the Palestinian Head of Mission in the United Kingdom. "From the beginning, Israel wanted to link the Palestinian people to Hamas. And then they linked Hamas to ISIS. That’s linking ISIS to what? The Palestinians.”

Article by Lemma Shehadi • October 17, 2023

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[A thread by Dr_MianUmair1 on Twitter]

There seems to be a lot of confusion regarding the distinction between Hamas and ISIS. It is important to clarify that these are two distinct entities with different goals, ideologies, and methods.

Hamas is a Palestinian political and military organization that was established in 1987. Its primary objective is the liberation of Palestine, Hamas engages in political and social activities, as well as armed resistance against Israeli occupation.

On the other hand, ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) is a radical Islamist extremist group that emerged in the early 2000s. Their goal was to establish a caliphate in Iraq and Syria, imposing their version of Sharia law and carrying out acts of terrorism worldwide.

While both organizations have been classified as terrorist groups by various countries, it is crucial to note that their motivations, strategies, and geographical focuses are vastly different.

Hamas primarily operates in the Palestinian territories, with a particular focus on the Gaza Strip; while ISIS was primarily active in Iraq and Syria, although their influence has significantly diminished in recent years.

Hamas, despite being a designated terrorist organization by some countries, also has a political wing that participates in democratic processes and provides social services to the Palestinian people (A reason why they love Hamas)

In conclusion, Hamas and ISIS may share the label of "terrorist organization," but they are not the same. Understanding their distinctions is essential for informed discussions about the region. 🌍🤝

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But, now, what if I told you that Israel (and the U.S., “indirectly and directly”) created Hamas?

U.S. Congressman, Ron Paul, in 2009:

“If you look at the history, you’ll find out that Hamas was encouraged and really started by Israel because they wanted Hamas to counteract Yassir Arafat [chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO].”

“So, then, we as Americans say, ‘Well, we have such a good system, we’re going to impose this on the world, we’re gonna invade Iraq and teach people how to be democrats.’ We want free elections, so we encourage the Palestinians to have a free election, they do and they elect Hamas.”

“So, we [the United States] first indirectly and directly, through Israel, help establish Hamas, then we have election that Hamas becomes dominant, so we have to kill them.”

Hmm, so Israel-U.S help establish Hamas, playing them against each other until they get their dominance, just so Israel can justify killing Hamas and every single Palestinian? That, coupled with the former Israeli politician saying that they slap the ‘antisemitism’ label on critics to justify killing the Palestinians? Wow, Israel and the U.S. sure do sound like the evil villains here. It almost sounds like…they always planned to commit genocide! Look at my shocked face > ö

But anyway…

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Painting Hamas with the ISIS brush has implications for how Israel is expected to fight its war with the Palestinian militant group, experts told The National.

“There is a danger in comparing Hamas to ISIS, which can indirectly legitimise disproportionate use of violence on civilians in Gaza, under the pretence of fighting terrorism,” Ms Khatib said.

Experts highlighted the US-led coalition’s war with ISIS in 2014, during which Iraqi and Syrian cities were razed, killing up to 11,000 civilians in Iraq alone and displacing hundreds of thousands more.

“The US government labelled its campaign in Syria and Iraq as 'a campaign of annihilation', so for Secretary Austin to be suggesting Hamas is the same or worse is doing little more than encouraging Israel to assume a similarly brutal approach in Gaza,” said Charles Lister, director of the US-based Middle East Institute’s Syria programme.

The 6,000 bombs dropped on Gaza in the first six days, as claimed by the Israeli air force, had already exceeded the rate of US bombing of ISIS in Syria and Iraq, which averaged 2,500 per month across 46,000 square miles," he added.

NOTE: This article is from October 17. There, Israel wiped out 47 bloodlines (which means 30 to 80 persons EACH family name.) As of October 30, 2023, that number has risen to 881 families taken off the civilian registry. Whole bloodlines, gone.

As of November 25? 20,000 were killed in total. And 8,176 of them are children.

Don’t talk to me if you support Israel, even after everything you’ve read in this post.

FREE PALESTINE 🇵🇸

A focus on fighting terror would also obscure the “root causes” of the conflict.

“The narrative will be totally overwhelmed by terrorism and security. Whenever these things happen between Israel and Palestine, there is never a root discussion of settler colonialism, of occupation or dispossession,” said Chris Gunness, a former spokesman for the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees.

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This BBC documentary takes place in 1982, years before Hamas existed. What was Israel’s excuse, then, for their massacre of Palestinians and Lebanese Shias that took place after this?

Israel bombs Lebanon and Syria. Two completely different countries. There are no Hamas there. What’s the excuse?

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They’ve committed all the stages of genocide, and all you have to do is open your eyes.

Israel are the terrorists!

A giant with all the advantages of their size (and a world power like the U.S, the biggest, backing them and funding them) is NOT the victim.

Israel isn’t even scared of the United Nations. Think about that! Nearly five dozen U.N staff members, as of October 30, were killed in Gaza because of Israel’s bombs. And all the U.N can do is hold a service for their colleagues??? Acting as if this is normal?

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This is Palestine, BEFORE the Israeli occupation:

Where is your humanity?

Resistance does not happen in a vacuum.

Support Palestinians. Save Gaza. Free Palestine!

You don’t need to be religious. You don’t need to be a Muslim, Christian, or Jew. You just have to be human.

#palestine #genocide #free palestine #israel is a terrorist state #israel is an apartheid state #israel is committing genocide #gaza strip #palestinians #save gaza #spread awareness #ceasefire #white phosphorus #nearly a thousand lineages were wiped out by Israeli bombs which are 30 to 80 persons per family line #this is not a war IT IS GENOCIDE #free gaza #i stand with palestine #anti imperialism #save palestine #long post

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stvharrngton · 2 months

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Can I ask a genuine question?

I have shared stuff on here, but my friend hasn't because she uses this as an escape from the real world. She has shared on her other social media. Isnt that ok?

I keep seeing this issue pop up in the Fandom. Maybe i have a different way of looking at it, but if you have for example a sideblog where you only reblog fanfiction or one solely for nsfw things, it would feel weird and almost disenguineois to share something once. Like you're scrolling through smut and then there is just a random post? It feels almost like you are just sharing it to say you did, at least in my mind?

And now people are being attacked for supposedly not saying anything. I got a nasty message from an anonymous and I HAVE shared things before (I also only have like 15 followers so it probably wouldn't be hard to figure out who did it).

I understand the creators of the show are shitty people, and people can call that out and should, but are we also not allowed to live in a Fandom space? I know that is very privileged of me to say, but can we stop sending hate and bashing those who may or may not have shared about what is going on because I fear it's going to have the opposite effect.

Like for me getting that bad message...I ignored it but it also made me disgruntled. Like, im still going to share stuff and be vocal cause my blog has been for other things in the past and this is more important. But if it annoyed me and made me want to not say anything out of spite, how many others who run solely Fandom blogs? If that makes sense?

it does make sense what you’re saying and i do understand your point.

for me, and this is my personal opinion, it doesn’t really matter whether you are solely a fandom blog or not? this is a side blog for me to post my fanfiction and reblog any steve/stranger things related content and yet i will still post things relating to palestine and those within the show who are zionists because i believe it is an extremely important belief to express and whether you like it or not, it relates to stranger things and the fandom itself, in my view, and by not saying anything or believing you shouldn’t have to say anything is condoning their behaviour. its genocide at the end of the day and when it comes to an issue of human rights i don’t believe it should matter whether it fits in with your blog or not, or whether it would be perceived as weird to be scrolling through fanfiction and to then see a random post about something else i truly don’t think it should matter? i know i wouldn’t find it weird or disingenuous. but then again i am just one person and like i said thats just my opinion really

i totally understand the want to escape from the real world and why people may use their blogs and fanfiction to do this and this is a valid response as we all have lives beyond on our blogs and stuff going on personally but like you said it is privileged and i do believe we should all acknowledge that. the images are graphic and what is happening is extremely upsetting but in my opinion that is no reason to simply ignore what is happening. i don’t have an issue with people necessarily being silent (i don’t really have the time to trawl through people’s blogs to check if they have posted or not!) although i don’t agree with it, i would never try to police how people use their blogs or try and police their activism but my issue is specifically with people who are asking the question as to why they should bother saying anything if that makes sense? because for me it comes off extremely shitty and privileged that people seem to not be bothered about what’s happening because it’s not happening to them. i do believe everyone has a responsibility to condone a genocide that many of our governments (my own included) are funding and supporting

whether people want to believe it or not some people in the fandom do have a certain amount of influence due to their large following and i’m not saying it’s their duty to speak up on every single issue but i do believe it should be acknowledged but personally for me it doesn’t matter how many followers i have on either blog if it’s important i’m going to post about it and it’s a shame that others don’t share that view. i don’t know if it’s because im extremely political and have no issue articulating or expressing my beliefs? but i know others are not the same as me.

i don’t condone anyone getting hate asks, having been on receiving end of those, it isn’t nice. no one should be on the end of those no matter what the subject is. i don’t think it has any place in fandom at all and it’s such a shame that it seems to be so rife in the stranger things fandom. but i do believe in debate and a civilised discussion of politics and world issues in fandom spaces ESPECIALLY when it is directly linked to certain members of the cast and the show

#Anonymous #asks #anon isn’t supposed to be on lol #but i will answer this #this is just my opinion i do not want to be involved in any drama or negativity please

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thefamiliarstrangers100 · 6 months

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While I have a strong desire to address this topic aggressively, scream at the top of my lungs, because what I’m trying to convey/have been conveying for a while now, should be common knowledge to anyone who is right in their mind. It’s a matter of COMMON SENSE.

I’m seething with rage, but I’ll refrain from acting upon it. I don’t want to divert your attention from the actual cause.

I know many of us are tired and emotionally battered, starting with myself, from witnessing such horrific events unfold in front of our eyes. And I’m not trying to downplay your feelings or add to your sorrow, but when compared to the butchery the Palestinians are enduring at the hands of the occupying state, our exhaustion is nothing. It pales in comparison to the horrors they are being put through.

Just think about how drained they must be, experiencing it firsthand.

Supporting the Palestinian cause is not about religion, nationality, or politics. It’s about standing for the basic fucking principles of equality. Human rights. And freedom. It’s about taking a bold stance against oppression IN ALL ITS FORMS, regardless of where it occurs. And I think we all should know that by now.

If you don’t, educate yourself or leave my page. I don’t have the energy to argue with a brain the size of a pea.

The Palestinian RESISTANCE to Isr-el APARTHEID is not just a distant issue. Again, it’s not limited to a specific religion, or ethnicity, it’s an offense to all of humanity. It’s a test of our moral compass, our commitment to justice, and our unshakable belief in the dignity of every human being, regardless of religion, race, gender, or age.

Speaking to myself first, it’s easy to lose hope during times like this, to give up on everything in the face of adversity. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed, exhausted, and battered. But let me remind you and myself that history is filled with the stories of those who stood up against oppression, and refused to bow to tyranny.

We will draw strength from them, and stand united in their legacy.

Our solidarity with Palestinians shouldn’t be an act of charity; it is an act of justice.

For years, Palestinians have been diligent in documenting their experiences, from being trapped in a literal ext3rmination camp, to children getting sl-ught3red by arm3d military forces consisting of GROWN MEN.

Just know that Isr-el is manipulating the media at a global scale, attempting to describe their cr!m3s as defensive measures while executing a literal g3nocidal plan. It’s a DELIBERATE effort to erase Palestinian history and their identity, please try to fit this into your conservative mind. This is what 3thnic cleansing looks like. And I can’t believe it’s taking place in 2023, in front of our literal eyes. They’re doing it in our faces.

*Pro-Isr*elis please recognize that nothing you see is accidental; it’s a planned strategy. Try to understand how and why they’re portraying Palestinians negatively in the media, all the while sl-ught3ring innocent civilians of Palestine and Gaza, the majority of which are CHILDREN, in the worst possible ways in broad daylight.*

Ask yourself how the propaganda is influencing you.

Ask yourself how and why the mainstream media has manipulated you into believing that unarm3d civilians trapped in an ext3rmination camp, with no one to back them, are a thr3at to a SIGNIFICANTLY POWERFUL REGIME backed by the likes of the U-S and the U-K with no one to hold them accountable.

Reflect on how and why they’re portraying PALESTINIAN RESISTANCE to an ONGOING G3NOCIDE by BARBARIC OCCUPIERS KNOWN AS ISR-EL as T3RRORISM.

Palestine is a COUNTRY. Which is currently OCCUPIED by THE ISR-ELI S3TTLERS.

EDUCATE YOURSELF. EDUCATE YOURSELF. EDUCATE YOURSELF.

I beg you to understand the detrimental effects of propaganda on the Palestinians. How the media outlets are nullifying the injustice, trauma, and cr!mes they’re being put through by the Isr-eli occupiers/settlers. Settler colonialism is very much real. Stop letting the media and N3tànyahu toy with your sense of morality. Please.

We’re an educated and smart generation, we do have the power to inspire others. We do have the power to reveal the truth and advocate for what is right. The majority doesn’t always hold the moral high ground. Get it already.

Why does Isr-el, with such a powerful regiment, require aid? Who benefits from supporting Isr-el and why do the ‘Stat3s’, historically isolationist, strongly back them? Please remember that EVERYTHING IN POLITICS IS CALCULATED.

Do not let them condition you to the ongoing bloodbath of innocent people. Do not welcome the Palestinian massacre with open arms.

#I Stand With Palestine #Palestine #Gaza #Free Palestine #Free Gaza #Palestinian Cause

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palestudenttoadbailiff · 3 years

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Muslim Lives Matter TOO

An issue, no it is world crises that never gets mentioned, that does not even cross anyone's mind and it happens on a daily basis it has been happening for years, even before civilization. The violence that is unleashed upon Muslims every single day is unbearable, unacceptable and unprecedented but does anyone speak up against the monsters who tortures, murders and rapes innocent Muslim children and women, the answer is no. NO not a single person does a thing to stop this, why because the rest of the world thinks we deserve it but in reality nobody deserves this kind of treatment it has to come to an end.

As the world defends Asian people for the hate crimes acted upon them which is good people need to defend those who can not do it themselves, but we have also seemed to forget that the same Asians we are protecting are also keeping millions of Muslim people in concentration camps. A sad truth is that the Muslim people of Palestine has been in war since 1948 and it is still ongoing lets face it this is a one way war but if we stand up we might just have the power to stop it. These people have no weapons to defend themselves so many innocent lives being lost and for just some political ploy that the people who are in power oversee, do you not see this is part of a much bigger plan the people in power are trying to everyone against each other. Just like black lives matter campaign and the all lives matter campaign, shouldn't Muslim lives fall under the category of “All lives matter” because we are just as much part of “ all lives” like the rest of the world is. But yet we choose to be silent about this , why? Look at China and how they are trying to ban Islam in their country, authorities are removing crescents from the mosques because according to them Islam is an extremist religion. The Imam and the boy responsible for the call to prayer from a local mosque without any reason at all got arrested. On one occasion the Chinese authorities beat an elderly Muslim lady for wearing hijab, for representing what she believes in she got beat mercilessly. People do not even respect the elderly Muslims. The authorities even went as far as confiscating prayer mats and many copies of the Quran. What is even more sad is that Muslims are not even allowed to wear the clothing that represents our religion, they are not allowed to have long beards and women are not allowed to wear veils or anything that is viewed as “extremist” attire according to the Chinese authorities. Even the children are not even allowed to be educated about Islam even in the comfort of their own homes. These people are having their human rights violated and nothing is done about it.

A variety of repressive tactics are used on an unprecedented scale.Muslims in China are being monitored on a daily basis and their have their privacy invaded without cause. Each and everyday they are questioned about anything that could be seen as “extremism” in the eyes of Chinese laws.Islam is basically outlawed in China.Having a Muslim family member is enough to get you interrogated in an inhumane way. Now for the bigger issue, about the Muslim people who are disappearing in China on a vast scale, where are they you might wonder, oh they are just being held in so called” political education camps” until they are deemed qualified to reside in the country, they have no freedom of movement they have to qualify in order ot moves around from town to town. And proving my point once again there has been little to no international outrage over what may be the world's most draconian and comprehensive control over Muslim life throughout history.

What do you imagine when you hear the word “terrorist” you would imagine a man in a long thobe with a beard right? Preferably a Muslim man but my question is why do we associate Islam with terrorism. First of all you should know the correct meaning of terrorism. According to the United States government Terrorism is: the unlawful forceful violence against persons or property to intermediate for political or social objections. Now listen to this in 2013 a Caucasian Christian male killed three Muslim students known as a hate crime. Did he use an unlawful forceful violence yes he did, was it targeted at against persons or property yes it was, did he want to intermediate for a political or social segments yes he wanted to because it was a hate crime. So i ask this question why was this not considered an act of terrorism it clearly fits the description, was it because he was white i think so. We need to stop associating terrorism with Islam because there is a major difference because anyone could be a terrorist not just Muslims. 9/11 was when the world hated Muslims even more than they did because 15 Arabs hijacked one plane why should the rest of the 1.8 billion Muslims suffer their consequences. Within every religion there exist a spectrum of attitudes and behavior and extremism is not unique to one particular belief system. There are people who view themselves as Muslims who have committed these horrible crimes in the name of Islam but they do not represent the rest of us, they are a minority within Islam and have the wrong interpretation of what Islam is. A vast majority of Muslims around the world reject their violence. Terrorism is not what Islam is check your facts.

Why is it so easy to stand up for every other injustice in the world, but when it comes to Islam everyone goes silent. Its incredibly sad to see that the how war ridden Palestine is and what is the rest of the world?And its a one way war because all those innocent people have no physical weapons to retaliate, lives are being lost as we live our lives and nothing is done to stop it. Yes i agree all lives matter but when are we going to realise that Muslim lives should matter as well. The same Asians that we are protecting is holding our Muslim brother and sisters in concentration camps raping Muslim women, killing our babies , physically and mentally abusing them day in and day out. And yet we are silent standing up for Muslims should not only be on social media platforms for two days, it is something that should never fade and what is more sad is that our own Muslim brothers and sister are afraid to speak up against these wrong doings, because we fear offending the Christian friend we have or the Jewish friends we have and so on. But we forget that Allah has told us” to not take the enemy of Allah as a friend and do not take the friend of Allah as ur enemy”. We want to the live the modern lifestyle and i am not speaking of everyone , i myself have not done my part. So many Muslims are not allowed to walk in the streets because they will be exposed to attacks threats and discrimination and we are mocked for our religion. So i will ask again why, why all of the hate that turns into violence , so many innocent lives lost and for what , what could these people possibly gain. ALL this violence is just wrong we are all human we all have our own beliefs so you tell me what is wrong with Islam its a religion based on peace how can you not see that. Everyone who is not Muslim ask yourselves would you want this to happen to your religion, would you want to be killed like dogs in the streets , no you would not so why is is okay for it to happen to a Muslim, ponder about that. More Muslims will stand up and fight for what is right as they should, and this, this is only the beginning, not all of us can be strong that is why we are an Ummah

Written by: Imraan Hardien With help from Yusriyyah Latief

#muslim lives matter #islam #stop the hate #stop the violence

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fullhalalalchemist · 3 years

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Black muslims endure a lot of racism and sometimes are ignored by the muslim community. I absolutely agree with what you're saying. After all we are all humans when we see such injustices occurring we should stand up for each other and for each other's rights.

I feel people who are saying how people arent coming together for palestine as they did for blm don't mean to target blm activists and those who spoke up about this and continue to do this despite being ignored so much. I feel they are instead targeting the media who yes were very slow on covering blm and also displayed racism when reporting injustices against the black community but I remember for some time the media were covering the issue (though in many cases misinformation was being spread about protestors being violent when this was not the case). Some of the news coverage where I am from reported the protests more truthfully and people were interviewed about blm and their experiences. However big media outlets in my country havent spoken about Palestine and given a voice to people who have studied the situation and are on the ground witnessing atrocities. When they do report Palestine again like the blm a lot of misinformation is spread and we need people to speak up about this. Through the blm movement some white people came to understand how their silence is harmful and stood with the black community. Whilst people of different backgrounds and faiths have been standing up for Palestine I have also witnessed a reluctance to do so as they believe the situation to be about a religious war or typical middle eastern terrorism and dont educate themselves. Some of those who educated themselves about the struggles black people face are silent now. Perhaps they arent aware of the situation and with the social media like instagram deleting/hiding the coverage etc maybe they havent seen what has been going on.

Just like blm was viewed a controversial topic to discuss (which is a load of bs) some are reluctant to talk about Palestine or even reblog posts as its viewed as siding with muslims and being antisemitic. There was a recent election in my home country and the outcome of the liberal party was bad due to many reasons and yet I frequently saw people on twitter saying it was because the party asked people about their views on Palestine when talking to the public and being obsessed with Palestine was a problem. As well as this celebrities who did a good thing by raising awareness of blm and also about stopping asian hate are silent now. As you said we should be supporting each other. All these issues are important to me as people are being treated unjusticely and cruely without a valid reason. This is why its upsetting to see those who say they advocate for all rights aren't saying anything about Palestine. Each issue is important and we must fight against all racism and hate so that is why I am slightly critical of those who seem to be activists in a performative way and who are silent now. At the end of the day I pray all those suffering from hardship and injustice are relieved from their suffering, finally get their long overdue human rights and be treated fairly and equally and find peace.

I apologise for the long ask. I do not mean to be rude or patronising. I agree that we should supporting each others movements after all muslims are diverse and there are black arab muslims too, instead of degrading one cause as being unimportant. I also feel that even with the blm many people were performative activists and are silent on Palestine. Have a good day.

you’re fine for the long ask!!! sorry it took me so long to get to it. thank you for your perspective. my original post was mostly targeted towards people online who are targeting other people online for their silence on palestine and using how they spoke up on blm as some sort of exchange, which i think isn’t fair and is patronizing to both movements. i haven’t really seen much in terms of asking the media to cover it.

but you are right, a lot of people are hesitant because they think it’s a religious war or your average everyday middle eastern terrorism, which also is an issue but that’s for another day. people don’t really know how deep zionism goes in the west and how much the propaganda works. that’s why spreading it on social media is the most important because western media outlets will NEVER cover this honestly. people have to see the dead bodies and destroyed buildings and grieving families to understand that the violence from israel is real and is colonial and is all one-sided. but to spread that online you shouldn’t have an ego and be entitled and say things like “oh you guys were loud for blm where are you for xyz issue??” like many poc do for their own home countries. like why target blm? why not target the white people or influencers who have large platforms? why single out this movement that will almost always stand with oppressed people everywhere anyway?? that was my thing that annoyed me most

#palestine #blm #zionism #asks #anonymous #Anonymous

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twatd · 6 years

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6000 Years of Murder – Part Three: Gettin’ Bronzed

Tim: The Wicked + The Divine #36 finally gave us a definitive list of every damn Recurrence that has occurred since Ananke first started exploding heads, so we thought we’d take a walk through the annals of history and provide some context for what was happening at the time. Welcome to 6,000 Years of Murder.

In entry three, we take the focus off of Northern China and Egypt for a while, and head off on another global tour as the Bronze Age starts to kick in around the world, climate change claims some victims, and we find out what looks were considered on fleek in Middle Kingdom Egypt.

2391BC – Harappa After a long time spent almost purely in Egypt and Northern China, we’re turning our gaze back to some of the other burgeoning river valley civilisations. You may remember the name Harappa from our last trip to the Indus Valley, back in 3219BC. Over a millennia later, and both the city and the society are still going strong. The civilisation that exists here is now in its ‘mature’ phase, when it enjoys stable, well-planned settlements and dinner parties, rather than going out all night, developing pictographic language. Archaeological evidence even suggests relative egalitarianism between mixing ethnic groups and classes.

New cities have also been built – like Mohenjo-daro, a metropolis to the south-west around the size of San Francisco, with a population of 50,000 at its height. Harappa and Mohenjo-daro were the two centres of culture, but many other cities existed, with a strong trade network both within and outside the Indus Valley Civilisation. The culture also had a strong focus on hygiene; Mohenjo-daro’s most well-known ruin is a giant public bath, and homes in Harappa even had toilets that flushed using water. Take that, Europe in 3,000 years’ time.

2299BC – Akkad Having dropped in on the Indus Valley Civilisation, let’s see what’s going on over in Mesopotamia. While we’ve been gone, all manner of cultures have sprung up, based on regional and religious differences, and often they’ve gone to war, in a period of turmoil known as the Early Dynastic period. However, war often drives progress, so Mesopotamia is looking pretty advanced, even if your average citizen’s life expectancy isn’t much better than a member of the Pantheon.

Specifically, we’re in Akkad, capital of the Akkadian Empire (funny that), the first empire in the region to speak a Semitic language (which will go on to include Babylonian, Assyrian, Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic) and, according to some, the first empire anywhere. The founder, Sargon, is still kicking around at this point, conquering vast swathes of Mesopotamia, the Levant and even spreading into the Arabian Peninsula, while Akkad will soon overtake Memphis as the largest city in the world. Akkad was typically rich in food and poor in other resources, so trade was common, while innovations included a regular postal service.

2207BC – The British Isles Akkad’s got postal workers. Harappa’s got a sewage system. What’s Britain got to show off? Well, we stood these rocks up for you. That’s right, after about 900 years of saying “this field is important”, the ancient Britons have made Stonehenge to show off that fact. Based on radiocarbon dating of the first bluestones that were raised, construction is put between 2400 -2200BC, so if Ananke wanted a World Heritage Site to do some killing at, she picked the right time to show up in Wiltshire.

What else is going on in the UK at this point? Well, there’s some disagreement over when the Bronze Age exactly hits the UK, so let’s call it the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age for safety. It’s basically this sketch from That Mitchell & Webb Look. We’re also at the tail end of Beaker culture in the UK, a common Late Neolithic culture from across Europe which is sadly not based on the Muppet, but on a period of high trade among various European tribes and a focus on pottery with inlaid metalwork. There are other commonalities, including shared cultural and religious ideas, burial traditions and the development of archery, but sadly no written records from this time to give us more info.

2115BC – Canaan If you’re a Christian or grew up in that world, the name Canaan probably holds some associations. Also known as the Levant or, in certain circles, the Holy Land, it encompasses modern-day Israel, Palestine and bordering countries. In the Book of Joshua, the Canaanites were a rival tribe to the Israelites listed for extermination, but they’ve barely emerged at this point in time. The Akkadian Empire has just collapsed (more on that in a second) and while cities including Hazor and Jerusalem have been established, the ‘proto-Canaanites’ are returning to farming villages and semi-nomadic herding for a while.

Why did Akkad’s mighty empire collapse? Remember back in our first entry, the 5.9 Kiloyear event dried out the Sahara and pushed people towards the Nile Valley, kicking off what would eventually become Egypt? Well, its crappy sequel the 4.2 Kiloyear event is here. This massive global drought lasted throughout the 22nd century BC, and probably collapsed the Old Kingdom of Egypt, the Liangzhu culture in China and possibly the whole Indus Valley civilisation, as well as Akkad. Climate change is a dick, yo.

2024BC – Northern China We know that the Liangzhu culture in the lower Yangtze River area isn’t faring too well right about now, but what about our old pal Northern China? The Longshan culture that was just getting started the last time we visited is basically over, and is breaking into several distinct subcultures, like a cohort of 11 year olds moving up to high school. While it wasn’t quite as devastated by climate change as the more southerly cultures, it still took a hit, and many large population centres were abandoned, with people heading to the Yi and Luo rivers of central Henan, where Erlitou culture will soon emerge.

Erlitou culture centred on the city of the same name, supposedly the home of the Xia dynasty. This royal lineage was, according to folklore, established by the last of the Five Emperors, and is possibly apocryphal, but Erlitou the city was certainly impressive, boasting a large central palace, thick walls and bronze foundries. While we’re in such an impressive locale, let’s stop and consider the passage of time – you right now, reading this on your phone or computer, are about as far from 0AD as the Erlitou culture was, just in the other direction.

1932BC – Australasia As evident in the big empty field where Ananke is doing her killing this time, indigenous Australians weren’t big into the city building game at this point. With a harsh climate and no handy river valleys to centre around, the traditional markers of ‘civilisation’ hadn’t really come to Australia yet. However, we shouldn’t get all Eurocentric in our views here - Australians at this point had complex tribal social structures and a strong oral tradition which has helped preserve history well into our time without the need for written records. Those on the northern coast traded with tribes from modern-day New Guinea, and in the most fertile and populous areas, agriculture including fish farming was practiced.

The oral traditions are work in Australia are worth examining further. The Pama-Nyungan language family is the most widespread of language families among indigenous Australians, containing around 300 languages and spreading across the entire nation, enabling stories, ideas and songs to pass from tribe to tribe relatively easily. Songs and dances were main items of trade, and folktales weaved complex ideas about nature, geography, ecology and astronomy together, alongside traditional tales of comedy, tragedy, religion and history. It’s sort of a surprise Ananke wasn’t here more.

1840BC – Egypt So, the Old Kingdom is over, but what does that mean for Egypt? We’re into the Middle Kingdom, which groups together the 11th and 12th Dynasties (and sometimes a little further), and despite the some hiccups, Egypt continues to be a shining beacon of progress when it comes to ancient civilisations. As near as we can tell for the given date, Pharaoh Amenemhat III is ruling as part of the 12th Dynasty. Egyptian literature is really kicking off, economic prosperity is high and conflicts with nearby Nubia are winding down for a while. All in all, it’s a swell time in ol’ Egypt.

Amenemhat III oversaw an expansion of mining camps in the Sinai and maintained a strong bureaucracy; at the end of the Old Kingdom, a lot of control had lapsed back to regional governors, but the 11th Dynasty reunified Egypt under a strong central administration. Block statues are all the rage when it comes to sculpture, and gender equality is relatively high, although if you’re looking to follow Middle Kingdom beauty norms, you’ll want small breasts and big ears. Unfortunately, all this prosperity can’t last: Amenemhat’s successor will bungle his reign and crop failures destabilise the dynasty, ending the Middle Kingdom and leading to the Second Intermediate Period in Egypt.

1748BC – Babylon With Egypt heading into a gully, it’s Babylon’s time to shine. Emerging from the receding Akkadian culture, Babylon is under the reign of Hammurabi, who is in the process of conquering neighbouring city-states and bringing almost all of Mesopotamia under his rule. And what a rule - this Babylonian beefcake is best remembered for the Code of Hammurabi, one of the oldest deciphered writings of length in the world, and one of the best preserved ancient codes of law.

While almost half the code is concerned with contract and property law (including concepts like liability, divorce and inheritance) it is best known for its strict stance on physical punishment. Heard the phrase “an eye for an eye”? That’s Hammurabi (or Shamash, the Babylonian god of justice via King H, according to him). With well-established laws and his conquests providing regional stability, Babylon will quickly overtake Thebes as the biggest city in the world. While his empire barely outlived him, Hammurabi’s Babylon left a big cultural footprint on the world, and it’s no surprise there was a Recurrence here, and a Persephone that fought back against Ananke.

Like what we do, and want to help us make more of it? Visit patreon.com/timplusalex

#WicDiv #The Wicked and The Divine #The Wicked + The Divine #TWATD #6000 Years of Murder

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channelnewswire-blog · 5 years

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Donald Trump, President of the United States of Hate?

There was already significant tension in the overwhelmingly Democratic-voting U.S. Jewish community when Trump won the 2016 election. Since then, there have been a series of events, watershed moments, that have triggered intense debate within the Jewish community about whether the Trump presidency presents a threat to its well-being and safety.

Mourners visit the memorial to the 11 congregants killed in a mass shooting inside the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. October 31, 2018 AFP

From the shocking images of Charlottesville and Trump's morally hazardous comments, to the atrocity in a Pittsburgh synagogue, the same questions are being asked: Is the president consciously inciting against minorities and immigrants? Are we framing anti-Semitism in America solely, and wrongly, as a phenomenon of the Trump era? What is the relationship between xenophobia and hostility to American Muslims and refugees - and anti-Semitism? What activism best answers the needs of these times?

And - a debate that intensifies every day - what is the relationship between Trump's exploitation of racist tropes and a president who loudly proclaims his support for Israel, the Jewish state, and - to the plaudits of not only the Israeli government, but many U.S. Jews as well - moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem?

As Israelis proudly identify as the world's outliers in expressing their confidence in the Trump presidency, echoing Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu's highly vocal warmth towards the president, how solid is the 'special relationship' between the two countries?

Has the Trump administration - by cancelling the Iran nuclear deal and aid to the Palestinians - proven its allyship with Jerusalem, or has it endangered its safety? Is the administration laying the ground for an 'ultimate' peace deal or an ethno-nationalist, annexationist Israel? How does the Israel-U.S. relationship fit into the rise of right-wing populist governments around the world? How reliable is a president as transactional and mercurial as Trump?

Over the last two years, Haaretz has covered these burning issues intensively from a broad range of viewpoints. I invite you to take a deep dive into my pick of the opinion pieces that explore and illuminate these topics from a range of writers distinguished by their diversity, clarity and sometimes passionate engagement.

Anti-Semitism Rises

FILE PHOTO: A Pittsburgh Police officer walks past a memorial for the victims of a shooting in the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh on October 28, 2018Gene J. Puskar,AP

The massacre in a Pittsburgh synagogue is the result of Trump’s constant endorsement of hate against the other, a fear-mongering which has brought America to a very dark place

Keep your facile words. Instead, show us some balls. Stand up, don't cozy up, to the purveyors of hate, to the NRA, to the cowardly politicians who legitimized the synagogue shooter's sentiments

We know where bigoted, autocratic, indecent and parochial views like those of Donald Trump lead. U.S. Jews should be praying for every Democratic candidate canvasser to succeed: the American Jewish future depends on it

After his "fine people" comment about Charlottesville's neo-Nazis, there’s nowhere left to hide. Trump is an aider and abettor of Nazis, anti-Semites and racists. He is their hero. There are no two ways about it.

A pro-Kremlin website's sudden 'conversion' to hardcore anti-Semitism provided fuel for an alliance with America's far right, part of Moscow's strategy to provoke further polarization in the U.S.

Why did CPAC love Lapierre's anti-Semitic and anti-minority dog-whistling so much? Because his message - that they're the vanguard of 'real' Americans - resonates with the European-style ethno-nationalism many U.S. conservatives have adopted

Americans who protested Nazism too loudly, including Americans Jews, were criticized for their 'discourtesy': Our fear of incivility appeased Nazism. We can't go there again

White nationalists carry torches on the grounds of the University of Virginia, on the eve of a planned Unite The Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia on August 11, 2017. STRINGER/ REUTERS

As one of Trump’s court of sycophants, Dinesh D'Souza's noxious libels will likely be his most successful piece of agitprop yet. His migration of foolish, extremist ideas to mainstream audiences should trouble every American

When Richard Grenell praises the 'resurgence' of Europe's 'anti-establishment' populists, in a country where the virulently anti-Semitic, populist far right has returned to parliament, he puts German Jews and democracy in danger

Speaking in Israel's parliament, the U.S. vice president came to praise the Jewish people. But his speech actually repudiated Jewish tradition, echoed tropes used to persecute Jews, and cast us as a mere tools for the salvation of Christians

The Jew haters are celebrating. And Jews – from Jared Kushner to Sheldon Adelson – helped it happen

I’ve never felt less American and more Jewish. I hear my grandmother's voice in my ear: As Jews, we know history doesn't always march forward toward a better day.

U.S. Jews Were Once Strangers, Refugees, Immigrants

Over 100 rabbis and Jewish activists, including prominent Reform leaders, demonstrate in support of DACA at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, January 2018Ralph Alswang

It is an earlier incarnation of Auschwitz, a place of indefinite detention for a vilified minority, that we saw on our border this week. The president's executive order offers no evidence this will change

In resisting the abuse of the vulnerable, prompted by President Trump’s Executive Order, do all American Jews now have a religious duty of civil disobedience?

Only nativist mediocrities shun the competition of new challengers and seek to restrict immigration

From D.C. to Jerusalem: U.S.- Israel relations under Trump

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on September 26, 2018 in New York on the sidelines of the UN General AssemblyAFP

Trump’s two year Mideast policy scorecard is a mixed picture: Partial success stories and incomplete policies. But an unleashed president could have an explosive effect on the region

Israelis shouldn't celebrate the Trump administration's decision to slash funds for the Palestinians. It's a radicalizing gift for terrorists - and a ticking time bomb for Israel's security

He wanted to rehabilitate an image tarnished by accusations of anti-Semitism. But the U.S. president's 'spiritual grand tour' stop in Israel was an absurd series of empty gestures

Given his complex relationship with Putin - for all that anyone knows, given his debtor relationship with Putin - would Trump even be capable of intervening in a meaningful way?

Punctuated by Trump’s cartoonish Mideast policy, Israel's 70th anniversary is a melancholy milestone for U.S.-Israel relations, marking the deterioration of the ethics and ideals that once bound them together

An 'Ultimate' Peace Plan - Without the Palestinians

US President's envoy to the Middle East Jason Greenblatt meets with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah on May 25, 2017.ABBAS MOMANI/AFP

The inaccurate, unhelpful and false rhetoric of Palestinian leaders like chief negotiator Erekat have not brought peace, and never will. It’s time to hear different Palestinian voices with the courage to seize peace

In dozens of meetings, Mr. Greenblatt refused to discuss substance: borders, settlements, even the two-state solution. This White House can't come remotely close to facilitating a just and lasting Mideast peace

Trump's Mideast team, unlike the rest of his administration, has been transparent and consistent: Palestinians have no right to a state; Israel doesn't need to answer for its human rights abuses. But there's a Democratic backlash - and a future political windfall for the Palestinians

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip burning posters depicting Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu during a protest against the U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital, December 6, 2017.Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters

Trump’s ego wouldn’t allow him to refrain from boasting about the very steps that pushed the Palestinians away from negotiations in the first place

John Bolton dismisses the efforts of the 'so-called State of Palestine' to legally challenge Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital; Palestinian leaders believe international law is key to their fight back against hostile U.S. policy. But what are their chances of success?

He's 83, with no successor and no state. But Palestinian President Abbas consoles himself, in the twilight of his lifetime, with the belief that after two years of Trump, he's come out on top

I've believed in the two-state solution for over 40 years, but I fear it's fast becoming an illusion. Israelis and Palestinians are careening towards a one-state reality that carries extremely dangerous risks for both sides

No Israeli-Palestinian deal sullied by Donald Trump's fingerprints can be trusted, because the man himself can’t be trusted and neither can his word

Trump moves the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem

U.S. President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka, and White House senior adviser Jared Kushner attend the opening ceremony of the new U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem, Monday, May 14, 2018Sebastian Scheiner/AP

Trump isn't destroying his own peace efforts but grounding them in reality: Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. And he’s reacted to Arab and Palestinian ‘predictions’ (read: threats) of violence with the contempt they deserve

Along with many other U.S. Jews, I wanted to feel pride at the opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem. But amid the carnage in Gaza, I felt nausea

Palestinians run for cover from tear gas during clashes with Israeli security forces near Gaza border, May 14, 2018MOHAMMED ABED/AFP

U.S. 'pro-Israel' evangelicals who declare the president enacted God's will, by moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, may want to consider the terrible historical cost of a selective and literalist use of the Bible

'But I gave them Jerusalem!' A recent report warned of a 'growing frustration' in the White House for U.S. Jews' lack of appreciation for his policies toward Israel. Perhaps because they're too grown up, and informed, to supply such unfounded adulation

Uneasy allies: Trump, Israel and threats from the Mideast - Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin SalmanCliff Owen/AP

The grisly hit-job on Khashoggi has implications far beyond its exposure of the Saudi Crown Prince as brutal and reckless. In Jerusalem and D.C., they’re mourning their whole strategic concept for the Mideast - not least, for countering Iran

Obama thought Syria would be Russia’s Vietnam: in fact, the Mideast has become Putin’s playground. Thanks to diplomacy, arms sales and nuclear reactors - and Trump’s policy chaos - Russia is back, big time

Netanyahu has convinced Trump that leaving the Iran deal protects Israel. But the U.S. walk out means a full-on Israel-Iran war in Syria now becomes far more likely

FILE PHOTO: A man walks past an anti-U.S. mural in Tehran, Iran October 13, 2017. \ Reuters Photographer/ REUTERS

Netanyahu always tells us Trump has Israel’s back on Iran. But the president won't confront tyrants, intent as he is on unraveling America’s commitments abroad. If Tehran races to nuclear capability, Israel will pay the price - alone

Israeli and American officials think Iran is trying to ‘wait out’ Trump's first term, and is banking on the wounded nuclear deal to shield it from a military strike until then

Israel is going nowhere, and we in the Arab world have to deal with it. That means offering Israelis prosperity, security and friendship; all Israel needs to do is overcome their prejudices and give Palestinians their rights

Esther Solomon is the Opinion Editor of Haaretz English

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theconservativebrief · 6 years

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez isn’t just a House hopeful, but an emerging Democratic star whose been barnstorming the country with Sen. Bernie Sanders for progressive candidates since she defeated an establishment congressman earlier this year.

Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez are both self-described socialists. They both energize the left. And they both rocketed out of obscurity to the center of the political debate. But there’s a difference between how the Washington establishment treats them. Sanders skeptics attack his ideas; they challenge him. Ocasio-Cortez’s critics not only critique her words, but question whether she should have a voice in the public debate at all.

“This is a person not ready for prime time, certainly not ready for Congress,” the ever-quoted voice of the Washington establishment Norm Ornstein tweeted in response to her answer on a question about Israel. “She should stop campaigning & do a crash course on basics, including economics and foreign policy. Otherwise, she will stumble badly out of the blocks and do major damage. Early impressions hard to erase.”

Writing in the Daily Beast, Matt Lewis offered the “telegenic it girl of the left” some advice: “You have the potential for a very bright future. Don’t blow it. Take your time. Avoid overexposure. Bone up on the issues. Do the hard work. There’s no reason to be in a rush.”

Ocasio-Cortez pulled off an incredible political achievement, she’s been courted by candidates nationwide who want her endorsement, and her résumé stacks up against the men her age in Congress — but that’s not good enough.

Research in science, business, and many other fields has shown again and again that when women go for a job, they’re held to a higher standard than the men around them. Ocasio-Cortez’s critics are acting out the same story in politics. In a town where male politicians are allowed to get policy facts wrong without losing credibility, Ocasio-Cortez’s mistakes are held up as evidence that she’s not up to the task.

The Washington Post’s Fact Checker columnist Glenn Kessler wrote a robust listicle that’s become the foundation of Ocasio-Cortez skepticism. Kessler unpacks statements that she’s made in recent months, concluding that quite a few are “false.”

In one example, Ocasio-Cortez calls an Obamacare premium a tax, which it’s not. “This appears to be an example of not understanding policy nuances,” Kessler wrote.

Ocasio-Cortez has been criticized for a variety of comments — on Israel and Palestine, on the cost of Medicare-for-all, and on a remark about what it costs when people die without health care. Her answers aren’t all great; she misspeaks, or she just gets things wrong.

Many politicians do the same. “The average member of Congress might easily make many bloopers over the course of so many live interviews,” Kessler writes. The difference is what happens next. No one demands those politicians go back to school, or shut their mouth for a few years until they’re more seasoned. The standard in Washington allows politicians to say things that are untrue without harming their reputation as a serious policy thinker and political operator.

For example, Paul Ryan’s been fact-checked for years and he’s still considered an ideas man. Politifact has collected some of Ryan’s “pants on fire” claims, like:

No one saw these statements and said Ryan is unfit to serve in Congress. No one told him to go put training wheels back on. No one told him he wasn’t ready for prime-time.

His legacy as a smart policy thinker is secure. Even in a farewell piece in the New York Times Magazine, Mark Leibovich describes listening as Ryan took a call from the president, who wanted to compliment him on a Fox News appearance. Ryan, Leibovich wrote, “used the opportunity to steer the conversation to the subject of trade policy.”

This isn’t an argument to hold members of Congress to a lower standard. We should scrutinize their ideas and their plans and question whether they should represent us. But we shouldn’t use that standard for some candidates like Ocasio-Cortez and give men a pass who we think look the part of a politician, like tall, blue-eyed Paul Ryan.

Ocasio-Cortez is experiencing a phenomenon that’s been well documented across fields: Women are held to a higher standard than their male peers.

In a study, researchers at Yale University found that even when résumés were identical except for the name, in this case, John or Jennifer, “science faculty members were more likely to perceive John as competent and select him for a hypothetical lab manager position.”

Another study by researchers at Columbia University, Northwestern University, and the University of Chicago found in a hiring exercise that women’s math skills were underestimated compared with men’s. The result: Participants chose lower-performing men over higher-performing women for mathematical work.

In corporate America, meanwhile, women are way underrepresented on company boards. Those who have made it onto boards “had to be more qualified than men to be considered for directorships,” concluded Deborah Bell, a data scientist, and Boris Groysberg of Harvard Business School.

Ocasio-Cortez has faced subtle digs about her background that wouldn’t normally be an issue. Michael Graham, writing for CBS, quipped that “there’s a lot to like about the bold, outspoken battler from the Bronx who, until just a few months ago was still tending bar.” (Graham also noted that she’s “enthusiastic” and “attractive,” before getting to her economics degree from Boston University.)

What he left out: Her bartending career began seven years ago when she had just graduated from college and was trying to help her family stave off eviction. She’s also started her own publishing house for children’s books, she was an education researcher, she worked on the Bernie Sanders campaign, and she became involved in high-profile nationwide activism.

The bartending (and waitressing in a taqueria, which also gets frequent mentions) is a tax on her. Similar situations are a boon for men, showing their “authenticity.” Former House Speaker John Boehner used to sweep the floor of his father’s bar, a story told about him with affection and admiration when he was in office. Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s scrappy upbringing was similarly considered an asset.

Her résumé is pretty similar to that of the bulk of members of Congress. Most members are elected after serving in another office, working in politics or policy, or working for a politician. Business, law, and education are the next most common fields. Ocasio-Cortez is no less qualified. She’s just perceived that way.

Women in Congress make a difference.

As my colleague Sarah Kliff has reported:

Political science research has found this over and over again: Women legislators are more likely to introduce legislation that specifically benefits women. They’re better at bringing funding back to their home districts. And, to put it bluntly, they just get more shit done: A woman legislator, on average, passed twice as many bills as a male legislator in one recent session of Congress.

Kliff cites the work of Michele Swers, a political scientist at Georgetown University, whose research shows that women in Congress focus on bills and policies that relate to women specifically — such as increasing paid leave or prosecuting violence against women.

This is even true among men and women of similar ideologies. One of Swers’s papers found that liberal female legislators co-sponsored an average of 10.6 bills related to women’s health — an average of 5.3 more than their liberal male colleagues.

Sarah Anzia, a political scientist, wrote a paper that also found female Congress members outperform men on multiple dimensions. Anzia found that women bring home, on average, 9 percent more federal funding to their districts, and that they sponsor and co-sponsor significantly more bills than their male colleagues.

Her hypothesis as to why speaks directly to the experience of Ocasio-Cortez.

”If women … underestimate their qualifications for office, then only the most qualified, politically ambitious females will emerge as candidates,” Anzia wrote. “The women who are elected to office will perform better, on average, than their male counterparts.”

The solution isn’t to lower the floor. The goal isn’t to get less qualified women into the halls of Congress to match their male counterparts. The goal is to encourage a diverse pool of people to run for office, to bring their experiences, smarts, and talents with them. But to do it, we have to acknowledge what happens to women in leadership positions across fields. They face bias that holds them back. And it’s holding the country back too.

Original Source -> Critics say Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez can’t hang with the intellectual heavy weights … in Congress

via The Conservative Brief

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