Ashamed to be an American....Part II
Palestinian deaths are considered collateral damage by the Israelis and receive no condemnation from the White House, except in passing, even when the victims are children or defenseless civilians. Israeli deaths, on the other hand, bring about a wave of Israeli retribution against a whole population and draw swift denunciation from the White House as an example of Palestinian terrorism and superfluous violence.
I don't expect ordinary Americans who were born and raised in this country to understand my viewpoint. They have no memories of a childhood marred by oppression and scenes of occupation. Their families live in relative peace and tranquility. If they call other family members, the conversation probably doesn't revolve around who was shot today, or arrested today, or maimed today, or displaced today. The media footage Americans receive from the Middle East hardly portrays the Israeli brutality, but does accentuate the suicide bombings committed by Palestinians against Israeli civilians.
Israel cannot buy its security with Palestinian blood. Subsequent American administrations have either failed to realize that fact, or have been pressured to ignore it. The United States has the moral responsibility to put an end to the Israeli military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, not because the United States is the only remaining superpower, but because this occupation is being funded and aided by American money.
Israelis have the right to lead peaceful and secure lives without fear of suicide bombings in their buses and open markets. Palestinians also have the right to draw their own destiny free from an oppressive occupation that has devastated their existence for 35 years. We have to realize that neither of these objectives can be achieved without the other.
Unfortunately, the White House seems flagrantly indifferent to the plight of the Palestinians. As we watch yet another massacre unfolding in yet another Palestinian refugee camp, we hear no condemnation and no criticism, but statements of guarded understanding from the Bush administration toward the Israeli actions.
I am ashamed to be an American, and I can't help it.
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