October 20, 2023

It is amazing that because I made a couple of posts of concern for children, children of Gaza and children of Israel that a few people have accused me of anti-Semitism. This is absurd. I have no animosity, hatred nor anger for Jewish people, never have and I never will. What Hamas did was monstrous but the revenge killing of over a thousand children in Gaza is also monstrous. Being critical of the IDF and of the Israeli government is not anti-Semitism just as being critical of the U.S. government is not anti-American.

I now have people demanding that I choose sides, that I take a position for or against Israel or for or against Palestine. My position has always been clear. I am for Israeli children and I am for Palestinian children. That is the full extent of my “political” views on the situation in the Middle East. I am not an expert on Middle East politics, but I do understand compassion for children and for animals and I am and always have been anti-war.

There is a lot that we are not being told but there are some things that are very clear.

Apartheid is Apartheid be it South Africa or Israel. Opposing Apartheid is not anti-Semitic. The reality is that Gaza is a prison where the warden controls food, water, electricity and dictates who can leave and who cannot. It is not surprising that there are prison breaks. And why would Israel allow an unprotected concert to take place on the other side of the prison wall where it would only serve to anger the inmates? And why was the IDF not there for 6 hours especially so since Egypt had tipped Israel off that something big was about to happen? And how is it that food and water is restricted and controlled yet tens of thousands of missiles arrive in Gaza, and I can’t see that happening without Israel knowing about it? How can they stop the flow of food and water but not the flow of guns and missiles? Israel was warned by Egypt. The IDF was gone for six hours. There are things about this situation we are not being told. As one Palestinian said, “a dog does not enter the restricted area without being shot” and yet Hamas invaded and killed citizens, entire families for six hours. 

There are many suspicious things that have occurred and there is a possibility this was a manipulation to justify the destruction of the Palestinian people. I may well be wrong, but these are legitimate concerns that raise legitimate questions. And as for the USA saying this or that happened, we only have to look back to the lies over Iraq and Afghanistan and false claims of WMD to understand that the words of a President cannot always be trusted. The USA has a history of lying to back national interests going back to the genocide of indigenous peoples. The last President to have ever pressured Israel to act humanely was George Bush Sr. Since then, Israel has been allowed to do whatever Israel wants and anyone who disagrees is simply labeled anti-Semitic.

What gives me hope are the many Jewish people, especially Orthodox Jews, who see beyond the propaganda and have the courage to speak out against war, persecution, apartheid, and abuse.

I am a supporter of Jews for Peace even that has caused some critics to accuse me of being anti-Semitic.

There is no excuse, no justification for what Hamas did, absolutely none, but what they did cannot be cause for the murder of thousands of children and innocent men and women. This is not an anti-Semitic position; it is a compassionate position. 

#Israel#Palestine#JewsForPeace#nowar#GazaUnderAttack