I am cross-posting a message from David Horowitz's Freedom Center regarding a plan by some left-wing pro-Palestinian group in the Pacific Northwest to put anti-Israel ads on Seattle buses in the coming days. While it is an exercise in free speech, I think it is important to respond to this move by putting it in a little perspective.
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"Dear DHFC Supporter,
The movement here at home to delegitimize Israel and wipe all Jewish people off the face of the earth just received a surprise Christmas present in Seattle, Washington.
The Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign, a local pro-Palestinian group, has purchased ads to run on the sides of 12 King County Metro buses in Seattle. The ads, which read "Israeli War Crimes: Your Tax Dollars at Work", are scheduled to begin running on December 27 -- the second anniversary of the Gaza War.
We expect this sort of attack on Israel by the left on our university campuses, where genocidal pro-Islamist groups monopolize the conversation about the Middle East. But such rancid propaganda on the streets of our major cities? It is a lie that cannot go unanswered, so the Freedom Center is fighting back.
The Freedom Center has purchased thousands of dollars of ads to counter the propaganda on 25 Seattle buses. Our ads will read "Palestinian War Crimes: Your Tax Dollars At Work" with pictures of Israeli bus passengers killed by Palestinian suicide bombers during the Second Intifada, and will also begin running during the period right after Christmas.
Will you help us fund these ads?
Your immediate tax-deductible contribution of $25, $50, $100, $250 or more will allow us to continue running these ads in Seattle and expand this pro-Israel campaign to other major U.S. cities, making sure Americans know the truth about how nearly a half a billion taxpayer dollars our government sends to Palestine each year. So please follow this link right away to give generously.
Isn't it ironic that these Seattle radicals chose to put their ads on buses, since buses carrying innocent Israelis have always been the targets of Palestinian murderers? Fortunately, the Freedom Center intends to make sure that the people of Seattle and the rest of the county know the truth about the Middle East, the pro-terror groups that are trying to bring the war against Israel home to the United States, and our own government's role in subsidizing rejectionism and terror.
So will you help me draw a line in the sand and tell these pro terror groups that their effort to spread the Big Lie here in America will not stand by raising $75,000 in the next 7 days? Please follow this link immediately to make a tax-deductible contribution of $25, $50, $100, $250 or whatever you can afford to help the Freedom Center pay for the bus ads in Seattle and other cities across the nation.
Thank you for standing with Israel, the truth and the Freedom Center in this time of need.
Sincerely,
David Horowitz
President & Founder
P.S. Help the Freedom Center counter anti-Israel bus ads in Seattle, Washington, by fund counter ads. We must raise $75,000 in the next 7 days, so please follow this link right away to make an emergency contribution of $25, $50, $100, $250 or whatever you can afford to the Freedom Center. Thank you.
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Here is some information on one of the main organizers of this Seattle bus campaign, Ed Mast:
(Hat tip to Jewish Facts From Portland)
http://jewishfactsfromportland.blogspot.com/2010/12/who-is-seattle-mideast-awareness.html
This is not some grass-roots move by a small group of peace-lovers in the Pacific Northwest; this is part of an international movement led by the International Solidarity Movement to de-legitimize Israel. If you think "de-legitimize" is an innocuous word, think again. It is the first crucial step in turning world opinion against the actual existence of the Jewish state. It is part of the worldwide Palestinian game plan.
* Late update: King County Metro has decided to reject the ads. Good news.
I will not be contributing, but Horowitz's response is the right one. Don't try to suppress someone else's speech, get your own message out there.
ReplyDeleteWhy won't I contribute? First, because I am not aware that my tax dollars are funding the bombing of Israeli buses. I would need to see solid evidence of that. Horowitz has never evidenced a particularly creative mind. He is indulging in a thoughtless reflex, when a bit of consideration might produce a more catchy, edifying, and accurate repartee.
Second, its has been a few years since Israeli buses were bombed. What has Israel suffered from lately?
Third, I AM concerned that my tax dollars are funding Israeli government policy indiscriminately. I would like our government to exercise some judgment as to whether CURRENT Israeli policy merits cutting off the spigot of funding, until, e.g., they agree to stop further construction of settlements in the west bank, divide access and sovereignty to Jerusalem, and pull their troops out of the territory of the Palestinian government.
That's not the same as abolishing Israel or driving all the Jews into the sea.
"Second, its has been a few years since Israeli buses were bombed. What has Israel suffered from lately?"
ReplyDeleteDo you know why the bombings stopped? Because Israel built that horrible wall and kept the suicide bombers out.
"I would like our government to exercise some judgment as to whether CURRENT Israeli policy merits cutting off the spigot of funding, until, e.g., they agree to stop further construction of settlements in the west bank, divide access and sovereignty to Jerusalem, and pull their troops out of the territory of the Palestinian government."
If they do all that, what is left to negotiate about? Don't you think those should be discussed in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations? Why should Palestinians negotiate if the US forces Israel to do all those things prior?
Your first point is accurate. It doesn't change my point at all.
ReplyDeleteYour second point would have merit, if only Israel were negotiating. Instead, if we assume the utmost good will on Bibi's part (dubious, but possible), the Israeli government is being held hostage to the incoherent ideologies of Shas and Beteinyu, both of which think Israel can simply sit on what it has and refuse to negotiate anything. Cutting off American funding would not wake up those two parties, but it might give the bigger parties some incentive to find other ways to form a government.
I'm not even saying Israel couldn't have unilaterally annexed the West Bank in 1967, and secured the support of the Arabic-speaking population (Christian and Muslim) at that time. Rapid prosperity would have had some appeal, compared to the empty sloganeering of the Egyptian government. But that is water under the bridge. It couldn't be done now.
This is a particullary interesting discussion, because both points are highly relevant.
ReplyDeleteThe international community, Israeli left, and now many in the US, are starting to use that same line: "What has happened recently"
They see the tangible security benefits (by the PA security forces as well as the security barrier) given to Israel, and now are waiting for Israel to respond in-kind by halting settlement construction.
I'm not going to say I agree with this logic, I agree with Siarlys that you need a positive counter-message, not a threat.
What the international community should be doing, not just the US, is offering the Israelis and Palestinians each tangible benefits to direct negotiations:
To the Palestinians, they could offer a negotiated settlement freeze, and perhaps increase economic aid for Salam Fayaad.
To the Israelis, offer a on-the-ground NATO solution for security in the Jordan Valley, and allow Israel to withdraw troops.
This is the direction I'd like to see the UN & EU take