Last updated on July 24th, 2014 at 03:58 pm
Every American knows intrinsically there are two mortal sins that are not in any legal statute, the United States Constitution, or federal legislation, but violating them is tantamount to burning the American flag and committing crimes against humanity. One is questioning, or uttering a negative comment about, Christian fundamentalists imposing religious tyranny on the nation. The other is questioning, or failing to praise, the nation of Israel that brings accusations of anti-Semitism, throwing Israel under the proverbial bus, or supporting extremist Muslim terrorists.
Supporting Israel unconditionally has become the hallmark of American patriotism, and questioning anything it does is of the Devil, treason, attacking god, anti-Semitic, assaulting the holy bible, and an affront to Christianity. So be it. But one would rather be a pariah than sit idly by while America’s protégé wages war against innocent Palestinian civilians who were herded onto a Native American-like reservation under threat of annihilation, or tricked into going there with a false promise of being granted a homeland. A promise Israel, and American conservatives, will spend eternity seeing never comes to pass.
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The current Israeli invasion of Gaza, an area basically the size of Detroit, where two-million Palestinians are sequestered with no means of escape, was allegedly reprisal for a criminal act that resulted in the killing of three Israeli students. It is precisely the same situation that George W. Bush took advantage of to launch two wars against Muslim nations whose people or governments had nothing whatsoever to do with the Bush’s Saudi friends flying commercial airliners into American buildings.
According to Israel, the altruists were “minding their own business” and seeking a peaceful resolution with Palestinians when Hamas launched rockets into the Jewish state. First and foremost, like its partner in crime under Republican administrations, Israel never minds its own business; it minds the business of aggression against Arabs whether in Gaza, the West Bank, or Iran.
Regarding the kidnappings, Israel blamed Hamas but never produced an ounce of credible evidence, so fundamentalist Jews kidnapped and killed a Palestinian child according to the Old Testament’s “eye for an eye” legal statute. However, the kidnappings on either side are not the reason for Hamas allegedly firing missiles into Israel any more than Israel invading Gaza and killing hundreds of Palestinians is about exacting retribution on Hamas over the kidnappings. It is a continuation of Israel’s land grab of a promised Palestinian homeland with increasing Israeli occupations and settlements that are squeezing the Palestinian people into an ever-shrinking interment camp.
Gaza is small in area, isolated geo-politically, and surrounded by fences and mines to keep the Palestinian people on the reservation. It is related to the conditions in the West Bank where America and Israel promised a Palestinian state, but despite attempts by America, some sincere, to find a peaceful and reasonable resolution Israel reliably finds a reason to scuttle negotiations. All the while, new Israeli settlements creep deeper into the West Bank that “effectively dismember not only the West Bank,” but any hope whatsoever of the promised unified and sustainable Palestinian state.
It is noteworthy that the West Bank land captured during the 1967 Israeli-Arab war was promised as a homeland for Palestinians as part of an ever-elusive two-state solution. But over the past three years the number of Israeli settlements more than doubled during 2013. In March, President Obama said in an interview that, “If you see no peace deal and continued aggressive settlement construction — and we have seen more aggressive settlement construction over the last couple of years, Palestinians will come to believe that the possibility of a contiguous sovereign Palestinian state is no longer within reach, then our ability to manage the international fallout is going to be limited.”
Unfortunately, there has not been any fallout, particularly in America, where the President is perpetually accused of throwing Israel under some kind of bus and not supporting their theft of a promised Palestinian homeland. To be fair, one understands Israeli outrage at rockets being fired into Israel, but they have done nothing but antagonize and exacerbate the conditions Palestinians continue being subjected to. The Palestinian people deserve exactly what Israel was granted by America and England; a homeland. And no, captured land is not Israeli land because they won a war in 1967 any more than Japan is not America’s because Japan was defeated in World War II.
Decent Americans are damn sick to death of Christians, Republicans, and conservatives beholden to Benjamin Netanyahu condemning President Obama of serving a “pro-Muslim agenda,” throwing Israel under the bus, and despicable assertion he is undermining Israel. Under Obama, American taxpayers are funding 22% of Israel’s military, never enough for Republicans, while this nation’s war Veterans cannot get Republicans to fund hospitals and medical care after fighting in Bush-Republicans two wars of aggression against Muslim nations. It is little wonder Republicans support Israel’s invasion of Gaza over a criminal act that claimed the lives of three Israelis. George W. Bush invaded two sovereign Muslim nations over a criminal act committed by Saudi terrorists that claimed American lives. Israel is simply following its big brother’s model for dealing with criminals and launching a war for land resources.
No doubt there will be a fair amount of criticism for condemning an Israeli war of aggression over land, and against innocent civilians herded onto an ever-shrinking reservation as treason against America, an assault on the bible, or anti-Semitic. It is none of those things; it is humanitarian. Innocent Palestinians are being massacred by Israeli aggression and it is not over kidnapping or rockets; it is a land grab and precisely what Israel’s big brother did to Native Americans; herd them onto reservations and seize their land.
If Israel would negotiate and keep its promise to give Palestinians what America and England provided for Israel, a homeland, and stop ever-increasing occupation and incursions to build permanent Israeli settlements, then it is highly likely Arab animus against the Jewish state would subside. If anyone should understand what it is like to be herded into a small fenced reservation, and face dehumanizing conditions, it should be Israel. But with a constant supply of Americans’ tax dollars propping up its military, and a Republican Party emboldening Israeli incursions into land promised as a Palestinian homeland, there is precious little hope for an Israeli-Palestinian resolution. Sadly, that appears to be the American right and Israeli goal and the Palestinian humanitarian crisis will continue into perpetuity, or until they are driven into the sea.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed are solely those of the author.
Audio engineer and instructor for SAE. Writes op/ed commentary supporting Secular Humanist causes, and exposing suppression of women, the poor, and minorities. An advocate for freedom of religion and particularly, freedom of NO religion.
Born in the South, raised in the Mid-West and California for a well-rounded view of America; it doesn’t look good.
Former minister, lifelong musician, Mahayana Zen-Buddhist.
