Posted on Wednesday, 22 October, 2008 By yours truly | TOOLS:Talk or Share
Settlers continue expanding their outposts in the West Bank
I used to have this blog, “This Much I Can Say is True.” I created it just before going to Palestine in 2005 to work with the International Solidarity Movement. Down the sidebar I ran a few quotes from proud, flag-waving patriotic zionists.
As I was blogging about things going on at the time I wanted to include a more over-arching historical perspective. It’s easy to get mired into the notion that the conflict is mired in an irrational cycle of violence. Perusing these provides some perspective on the source.
As time went on and I’ve gone on to focus on other things I’ve made my blog more of a clearinghouse for whatever it is I’m interested in. Now and again, though, I get an email asking about those quotes, so here they are. On occasion I’ll add more as I come across them. I’ve also seperated them into categories here.
Posted on Wednesday, 8 October, 2008 By yours truly | TOOLS:Talk or Share
WHY THIS IS HERE: I used to have this blog, “This Much I Can Say is True.” I created it just before going to Palestine in 2005 to work with the International Solidarity Movement. Down the sidebar I ran a few quotes from proud, flag-waving patriotic zionists. Later on I added the far more creepy christian zionist quotes. As I was blogging about things going on at the time I wanted to include a more over-arching historical perspective. It’s easy to get mired into the notion that the conflict is mired in an irrational cycle of violence. Perusing these provides some perspective on the source.
As time went on and I’ve gone on to focus on other things I’ve made my blog more of a clearinghouse for whatever it is I’m interested in. Now and again, though, I get an email asking about those quotes, so here they are. On occasion I’ll add more as I come across them. I’ve also seperated them into categories here. If you have one worth adding, send it here.
Zionist quotes
“We must expel Arabs and take their places.” — David Ben Gurion, 1937, Ben Gurion and the Palestine Arabs, Oxford University Press, 1985.
“Let the British or anyone talk about Zionism and they can use our terminolgy, but we know what the meaning of it is. It has one meaning to us, one meaning to Gentiles.” — Chaim Weizmann, as the president of World Zionist movement
“You must remove the Arabs and Palestinians in order to have an exclusivistic Jewish people.” — Theodor Herzl, Father of modern Zionism
“How can we return the occupied territories? There is nobody to return them to.” — Golda Meir, March 8, 1969.
There is not a single place built in this country that did not have a former Arab population.” — David Ben Gurion, quoted in The Jewish Paradox, by Nahum Goldmann, Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1978
“Everybody has to move, run and grab as many hilltops as they can to enlarge the settlements because everything we take now will stay ours… Everything we don’t grab will go to them.” — Ariel Sharon, Israeli Foreign Minister, addressing a meeting of militants from the extreme right-wing Tsomet Party, Agence France Presse, November 15, 1998
“There has been Anti-Semitism, the Nazis, Hitler, Auschwitz, but was that their (the Palestinians) fault? They see but one thing: we have come and we have stolen their country. Why would they accept that?” — David Ben Gurion, quoted by Nahum Goldmann in Le Paraddoxe Juif (The Jewish Paradox), pp. 121-122.
“It is the duty of Israeli leaders to explain to public opinion, clearly and courageously, a certain number of facts that are forgotten with time. The first of these is that there is no Zionism, colonialization, or Jewish State without the eviction of the Arabs and the expropriation of their lands.” — Ariel Sharon, Israeli Foreign Minister, addressing a meeting of militants from the extreme right-wing Tsomet Party, November 15, 1998
“[The Palestinians] are beasts walking on two legs.” — Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, speech to the Knesset, quoted in The New Statesman, June 25, 1982
“If I knew that it was possible to save all the children of Germany by transporting them to England, and only half by transferring them to the Land of Israel, I would choose the latter, for before us lies not only the numbers of these children but the historical reckoning of the people of Israel.” — David Ben-Gurion, quoted on pp 855-56 in Shabtai Teveth’s Ben-Gurion
“The settlement of the Land of Israel is the essence of Zionism. Without settlement, we will not fulfill Zionism. It’s that simple.” — Yitzhak Shamir, Maariv, February 21, 1997
“Israel may have the right to put others on trial, but certainly no one has the right to put the Jewish people and the State of Israel on trial.” — Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, 25 March, 2001 quoted in BBC News Online
“There is no such thing as a Palestinian people… It is not as if we came and threw them out and took their country. They didn’t exist.” — Golda Meir, statement to The Sunday Times, 15 June, 1969.
“Israel should have exploited the repression of the demonstrations in China, when world attention focused on that country, to carry out mass expulsions among the Arabs of the territories.” — Benyamin Netanyahu, then Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister, former Prime Minister of Israel, speaking to students at Bar Ilan University on November 24, 1989.
“The past leaders of our movement left us a clear message to keep Eretz Israel from the Sea to the River Jordan for future generations, for the mass aliya, and for the Jewish people, all of whom will be gathered into this country.” — Former Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, speech at a Tel Aviv memorial service for former Likud leaders, November 1990
“We walked outside, Ben-Gurion accompanying us. Allon repeated his question, What is to be done with the Palestinian population?’ Ben-Gurion waved his hand in a gesture which said ‘Drive them out!” — Yitzhak Rabin, leaked censored version of Rabin memoirs, published in the New York Times, 23 October 1979
“We shall reduce the Arab population to a community of woodcutters and waiters.” — David Ben Gurion, first Prime Minister of Israel, 1949
“The Partition of Palestine is illegal. It will never be recognized …. Jerusalem was and will for ever be our capital. Eretz Israel will be restored to the people of Israel. All of it. And for Ever.” — Menachem Begin, the day after the U.N. vote to partition Palestine.
“(The Palestinians) would be crushed like grasshoppers … heads smashed against the boulders and walls.” — Isreali Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, in a speech to Jewish settlers New York Times April 1, 1988
“Any one who speaks in favor of bringing the Arab refugees back must also say how he expects to take the responsibility for it, if he is interested in the state of Israel. It is better that things are stated clearly and plainly: We shall not let this happen.” — Golda Meir, 1961, in a speech to the Knesset, reported in Ner, October 1961
“[Israel will] create in the course of the next 10 or 20 years conditions which would attract natural and voluntary migration of the refugees from the Gaza Strip and the west Bank to Jordan. To achieve this we have to come to agreement with King Hussein and not with Yasser Arafat.” — Yitzhak Rabin, explaining his method of ethnically cleansing the occupied land without stirring a world outcry, quoted in the New York Times on April 4, 1983
“Let us not ignore the truth among ourselves … politically we are the aggressors and they defend themselves… The country is theirs, because they inhabit it, whereas we want to come here and settle down, and in their view we want to take away from them their country.” — David Ben Gurion, in a a 1938 speech.
“This country exists as the fulfillment of a promise made by God Himself. It would be ridiculous to ask it to account for its legitimacy.” — Golda Meir, Le Monde, 15 October 1971
“We declare openly that the Arabs have no right to settle on even one centimeter of Eretz Israel… Force is all they do or ever will understand. We shall use the ultimate force until the Palestinians come crawling to us on all fours.” — Rafael Eitan, Chief of Staff of the Israeli Defense Forces – Gad Becker, Yediot Ahronot 13 April 1983, New York Times 14 April 1983
“The Oslo agreement is very important for the Palestinians since it is the only official agreed-upon document they got. We have another document, a much older one … the Bible.”
— Ariel Sharon, speaking at a Washington symposium, 8 May 1998
“The antisemites will beomce our most loyal friends, the antisemites nations will become our allies.” — Theodor Herzl (One Palestine Complete, p. 47)
“The parameters of a unilateral solution are: To maximize the number of Jews; to minimize the number of Palestinians; not to withdraw to the 1967 border and not to divide Jerusalem.” — Ehud Olmert (Haaretz)
“You are to be pure and holy people and not to be contaminated by contact with Gentiles. Therefore, you should cast out all the inhabitants that are there and make it a jewish state.” — Paraphrased from Deut. 7:1-6; Joshua 6:17, 8:21, 10:33, and I Samuel 15:18.
Christian zionism
“The Bible Belt is Israel’s safety net in the US.” — Jerry Falwell, preacher
“Whoever sits in the confines of Washington, and suggests to the people of Israel that they have to give up more land in exchange for peace, that’s an obscenity.” — Gary Bauer, former US Presidential candidate and a co-founder of Stand for Israel
“The dots are there to be connected and it is not some big thing called terrorism. It is Islamic fascism… all of the various things and forces that we’ve seen around the world are not merely hot spots but they are all part of a theme — a war against western civilisation.” — Rev. John C. Hagee, Texas evangelist and pastor of the 18,000-member Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas and the author of “Jerusalem Countdown,” July, 2006
Christian Zionists see “the modern state of the country-region Israel as the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy and thus deserving of political, financial, and religious support.”* — Rev. Dr. Donald Wagner, a professor at North Park University in Chicago and a founding member of the Institute for the Study of Christian Zionism
“When the Jewish people, after nearly 2,000 years of exile, under relentless persecution, became a nation again on 14 May 1948 the ‘fig tree’ put forth its first leaves. Jesus said that this would indicate that He was ‘at the door,’ ready to return.” — Hal Lindsey, Christian Zionist and dispensationalist author
“But the Palestinians have never owned the land. I want you to hear this very clearly. The Land of Israel was given to Abraham, Issac and Jacob and their seed in an eternal covenant. It is recorded in the book of Genesis. The boundaries are there in the Bible. And that land belongs to the Jewish people today, tomorrow and forever because it is their covenant by the word of God.” — Rev. John C. Hagee, at Christians United For Israel event
“We’re living in times of fulfillment of what the Bible said will come in the last days. And we’re living in those times. We’re seeing that fulfilled before our eyes literally. And the things that are happening in Israel, around Israel are just part of what the Bible said would happen.” — Tyrone Morgan, member of Christians United for Israel
“My opinion of Christian Zionists? They’re scum. But don’t tell them that. We need all the useful idiots we can get right now.” — Benyamin Netanyahu, at the time a former prime minister
“But there needs to be a focused, coalition effort in the region against peace — I mean, against terror for peace.” — George W. Bush, Crawford, Texas, Mar. 30, 2002
Interesting quotes
“People that bite the hand that protects them, the hand of police officers and soldiers, cannot be considered balanced or normal people … Whoever does not evacuate the Jews from there is bringing danger on himself, not just in the territories, but in the entire region.” — Yossi Sarid, Meretz chairman, in a statement on why the Israeli settlers in Hebron should be evacuated, 2001
“The most accurate way to describe Israel today is an apartheid state.” — Neve Gordon, a Jewish political professor teaching in an Israeli university
“I would have joined a terrorist organization.” — Ehud Barak, in response to Gideon Levy, a columnist for the Ha’aretz newspaper, when Barak was asked what he would have done if he had been born a Palestinian
“The tragedy of the people of Palestine is that their country was “given” by a foreign power to another people for the creation of a new state. The result was that many hundreds of thousands of innocent people were made permanently homeless. With every new conflict their numbers increased. How much longer is the world willing to endure this spectacle of wanton cruelty? It is abundantly clear that the refugees have every right to the homeland from which they were driven, and the denial of this right is at the heart of the continuing conflict. No people anywhere in the world would accept being expelled en masse from their own country; how can anyone require the people of Palestine to accept a punishment which nobody else would tolerate? A permanent just settlement of the refugees in their homeland is an essential ingredient of any genuine settlement in the Middle East. We are frequently told that we must sympathise with Israel because of the suffering of the Jews in Europe at the hands of the Nazis. … What Israel is doing today cannot be condoned, and to invoke the horrors of the past to justify those of the present is gross hypocrisy.”
—Bertrand Russell, 31 January 1970. This was Russell’s final political statement or act. It was read out at the International Conference of Parliamentarians in Cairo on 3 February 1970, the day after his death.
Honorary mention
“(I am saying) what no previous Israeli leader has ever said: we should withdraw from almost all of the territories, including in east Jerusalem and in the Golan Heights.” — Ehud Olmert, lame duck prime minister in exit interview, September 2008
Other perspectives, notes, videos, etc.
FOOTNOTES:
* In the context of this quote, Rev. Dr. Wagner is speaking critically of christian zionism. However, being that he is essentially synopsizing the thesis of the ideology, it belongs in its current category rather than in “interesting quotes,” which is where the more rational stuff goes. Suffice to say, as of this writing the good Rev. Wagner can be considered rational and has said many other rational things.
Posted on Monday, 12 March, 2007 By yours truly | TOOLS:Talk or Share
From Brit Tzedek v’Shalom
Senators Bill Nelson (D-FL) and John Ensign (R-NV) are circulating a deeply problematic sign-on letter to Secretary Rice (see full text below) that asks her to promote a policy of banning ALL contact with Palestinian moderates such as President Mahmoud Abbas, if the new unity government does not explicitly agree to all of the Quartet’s requirements. Senators will be faced with intense pressure to sign the letter early this week, leaving little time to consider its repercussions. Call your Senators NOW and urge them NOT TO SIGN the Nelson-Ensign letter to Rice!
This so-called “pro-Israel” letter suggests that the U.S., Israel, and the international community prohibit contact with ALL members of the Palestinian Authority if it does not meet the Quartet requirements: recognize Israel, renounce violence, and abide by previous agreements. This would prevent diplomatic engagement with moderate Palestinians who seek peace with Israel, such as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who remains the key Palestinian negotiator in any unity government, and other Fatah and independent members of the Palestinian Authority.
At a time when the U.S. should be supporting forces of moderation among the Palestinians, this letter weakens those forces and demonstrates to the Palestinian people that moderation brings them nothing.
Moreover, this letter is in direct opposition to the wait-and-see approach taken by Israel and the United States. Israeli Prime Minister Olmert met with President Abbas on Sunday and plans to meet him again , and Secretary Rice is actively trying to reinvigorate the peace process. This is not the time to shut down critically needed diplomatic engagement.
Posted on Monday, 5 March, 2007 By yours truly | TOOLS:Talk or Share
Amana, the settlement arm of Gush Emunim, is sponsoring a tour or settlers to canvas the United States in search of funding to continue construction of colonies on stolen Palestinian Land, outside of Israel’s internationally recognized borders.
As part of their sales pitch, Amana representatives say that government subsidy cuts have made purchasing homes in the area increasingly costly, so that young families can no longer afford to buy there. They have warned of a potential “population freeze,” which they say could jeopardize the settlement movement.
“It is within your power to help this Zionist powerhouse remain steadfast in its ascent – to create a positive trend where no political party in Israel has succeeded through policy or politics, and to leave your thumbprint on the destiny of Israel,” the promotional material reads.
Ah, you to can make a quick buck Middle East Real Estate and help bring fund some ethnic cleansing. U.S. Embassy spokesman Stewart Tuttle described the investment prospect as a “huge risk.” So much for American policy on Messionistic property speculaton. — Link
Posted on Thursday, 1 March, 2007 By yours truly | TOOLS:Talk or Share
Here the Rebuilding Alliance responds to some of the idiotic ravings from the lunatic fringe’s lead scribe:
Dear Friends of the Rebuilding Alliance,
As a fast update, exterior construction on the Gaza home Rachel Corrie sought to protect is now signed off. Interior finishing will move forward soon, and we’ll be inviting everyone to join housewarming teleconferences when the family in Gaza moves in. A planning committee formed to raise funds so Combatants for Peace can build a playground in East Jerusalem, and soon, we’ll let you know how you can help. In May, the Rebuilding Alliance will bring Mr. Husam El Nounou from Gaza Community Mental Health Program and Rabbi Jeremy Milgrom from Jerusalem to the U.S. to speak. That tour will launch the rebuilding of the next home in the Rachel Corrie Rebuilding Campaign in Gaza.
Right now, I am writing to you because a derogatory article has been written about our work. The Board of Directors and Staff (including myself) believe it prudent to ask your help. www.Muzzlewatch.org has reposted the offensive article. The author, Mr. Lee Kaplan (- yes, the same man who was investigated by House Counsel when he impersonated a congressional staffer on our Contact Congress Telecon and was put on notice by Counsel for the U.S. House of Representatives that his actions were illegal) has a history of attacking peace and human rights groups. See the www.SourceWatch.org wikipedia for a list of Mr. Kaplan’s ravings.
Most of what Mr. Kaplan writes about the Rebuilding Alliance does not even merit a response (although he does cite one thing that is entirely true: Cindy Corrie is indeed on our board). However, we do wish to respond to his allegation about our right to organize Contact Congress Teleconferences, and I’ve included details below.
As you know, the Rebuilding Alliance launches rebuilding projects with heart and works to change American policy, all in full accordance with 501(c)(3) and 501(h) regulations. Because the board of the Rebuilding Alliance has guided us well, TRA will stand up to scrutiny. Still, we are a tiny organization – and our response to this attack may be costly and time consuming (for example, Mr. Kaplan’s previous accusations against two other groups caused them to be audited by the IRS).
Thus, we, the board and staff of the Rebuilding Alliance, ask your help. Please take a moment to endorse our work and give what you can to help us pay for an independent audit and cover administrative costs.
Hamad claims that articles contained at FrontPageMag and other websites run by those named in the suit contain “allegations [that] are absolute lies, false, unsubstantiated and published with intentional disregard for the truth and reality to harm Plaintiff and damage his name and business interests.”
But there’s one defendent who has gone missing. Hamad writes:
Militantislammonitor.org is one of the defendants and we have not served yet. They list a telephone number belonging to the Illinois Adult Corrections facilities and the address of a medical services company in Perioria, Illinois. We have just discovered that the owner of Militantislammonitor.org is none other than Beila Rabinowitz, who writes frequently with Joe Kaufman in Frontpagemag.org. The phone number there is (323) 556-2550 and I suspect that she lives in the northeast somewhere. We have less than a month to serve her and the website militantislam monitor.org. Any support is appreicated.
If anyone out there knows where this person is, contact Hamad through the PCWF website. You can also send such information through this website via email or the comments area. Anyone who sends sometihng to this blog that actually leads to Belia getting served will get a prize. If anyone has a photo, forward it here as well.
Take the neocons to court. It’s the one place they’re afraid of as, unlike in their websites, truth, fact and evidence are what matter.
“SEO is a form of Google-Kremlinology in which firms attempt to figure out how to game search engines’ ranking algorithms, rather than trying to create the best, most interesting website they can and assuming that the engines will figure out how to highly rank their material.” — Cory Doctorow
“SEO is a form of Google-Kremlinology in which firms attempt to figure out how to game search engines’ ranking algorithms, rather than trying to create the best, most interesting website they can and assuming that the engines will figure out how to highly rank their material.”