>Subject: If You Read One Thing Today, Make It This!
>Date: Thu, 04 Apr 2002 07:51:03 -0800
>
>
>
>
>A short, succinct article that tells a lot, written by a young
>Palestinian
>student at the University of Washington, Seattle. The paper - under
>pressure from pro-Israeli activists - had to apologize!!!
>
>I am Israel
>By Hashem Said
>The Daily - Washington State University, Feb. 25, 2002
>
>I am Israel - I came to a land without a people for a people without
>a
>land.
>Those people who happened to be here, had no right to be here, and
>my
>people
>showed them they had to leave or die, razing 480 Palestinian
>villages to
>the
>ground, erasing their history.
>
>I am Israel - some of my people committed massacres and later became
>Prime
>Ministers to represent me. In 1948, Menachem Begin was in charge of
>the
>unit
>that slaughtered the inhabitants of Deir Yassin, including 100 men,
>women,
>and children. In 1953, Ariel Sharon led the slaughter of the
>inhabitants
>of
>Qibya, and in 1982 arranged for our allies to butcher around 2,000
>in the
>refugee camps of Sabra and Shatilla.
>
>I am Israel - carved in 1948 out of 78% of the land of Palestine,
>dispossessing its inhabitants and replacing them with Jews from
>Europe
>and
>other parts of the world. While the natives whose families lived on
>this
>land for thousands of years are not allowed to return, Jews from all
>over
>the world are welcome to instant citizenship.
>
>I am Israel - in 1967, I swallowed the remaining lands of Palestine
>- the
>West Bank and Gaza - and placed their inhabitants under an
>oppressive
>military rule, controlling and humiliating every aspect of their
>daily
>lives. Eventually, they should get the message that they are not
>welcome
>to
>stay, and join the millions of Palestinian refugees in the shanty
>camps
>of
>Lebanon and Jordan.
>
>I am Israel - I have the power to control American policy. My
>American
>Israel Public Affairs Committee can make or break any politician of
>its
>choosing, and as you see, they all compete to please me. All the
>forces
>of
>the world are powerless against me, including the UN as I have the
>American
>veto to block any condemnation of my war crimes. As Sharon so
>eloquently
>phrased it, "We control America".
>
>I am Israel - I influence American mainstream media too, and you
>will
>always
>find the news tailored to my favor. I have invested millions of
>dollars
>into
>PR representation, and CNN, New York Times, and others have been
>doing an
>excellent job of promoting my propaganda. Look at other
>international
>news
>sources and you will see the difference.
>
>I am Israel - and you Palestinians want to negotiate "peace!?" But
>you
>are
>not as smart as me; I will negotiate, but will only let you have
>your
>municipalities while I control your borders, your water, your
>airspace,
>and
>anything else of importance. While we "negotiate," I will swallow
>your
>hilltops and fill them with settlements, populated by the most
>extremist
>of
>my extremists, armed to the teeth. These settlements will be
>connected
>with
>roads you cannot use, and you will be imprisoned in your little
>Bantustans
>between them, surrounded by checkpoints in every direction.
>
>I am Israel - with the fourth strongest army in the world,
>possessing
>nuclear weapons. How dare your children confront my oppression with
>stones,
>don't you know my soldiers won't hesitate to blow their heads off?
>In 17
>months, I have killed 900 of you and injured 17,000, mostly
>civilians,
>and
>have the mandate to continue since the international community
>remains
>silent. Ignore, as I do, the hundreds of Israeli soldiers who are
>now
>refusing to carry out my control over your lands and people; their
>voices
>of
>conscience will not protect you.
>
>I am Israel - and you want freedom? I have bullets, tanks, missiles,
>Apaches, and F-16's, to obliterate you. I have placed your towns
>under
>siege, confiscated your lands, uprooted your trees, demolished your
>homes,
>and you still demand freedom? Don't you get the message? You will
>never
>have
>peace or freedom, because I am Israel. |
