What is Spannos' point?  Spannos cites someone who appears to be a lone nut and another who has been arrested for his statements.  That he has to resort to these as the ilustration seems to prove the opposite of what I think was the point.

I've received a dispatch from April 2006 and thought Z-Net should be the first to hear about it. April 1, 2006. AP - New York -- In response to a series of offensive cartoons published in an Iranian newspaper and subsequently printed in every newspaper around the globe, including many which had refused to publish the now-forgotten "anti-Muslim" cartoons last winter, the "Jewish street" erupted. At Brandeis University, a course on Lesbian motifs in Yiddish literature was briefly interrupted as students asked their professor what he thought about the controversy. In Washington D.C. a flurry of letters to the editor and press releases poured out of Jewish organizations. In New York, Commentary magazine -- a leading organ of the "neoconservative" Jewish Right -- announced it would run three articles on Iran in its next issue as well as an extensive letters section. "This is excessive, of course; but it had to be expected," thundered a furious Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League on a longer-than-normal appearance on MSNBC's "Hardball with Chris Matthews." Elsewhere Jewish tempers weren't running so hot. At Artie's Delicatessen on the Upper West Side of New York, Josh Greenberg ate a pastrami sandwich with a friend, Abe Kolman, hoping to avoid all the furor in the Jewish street. "Zabar's is a mad house today," Greenberg observed. When asked about the Iranian newspaper controversy, Greenberg said "What are you going to do?" Kolman, an orthodontist, added "I'd stop eating Iranian pistachios, I guess." The White House continued to plead with Jews across America to stay calm.

Layla, you ask: "Has anyone cited evidence of Christian Palestinian violence towards Israelis?" George Habash, Christian Orthodox and "Marxist" founder of the PFLP, was responsible for a string of terrorist acts against Israeli and other civilians all through the seventies, as was the leader of a breakaway group from the PFLP, the DFLP led by Greek Orthodox Na'if Hawatmeh (who began his terrorist career in another group known as the ANM (Arab Nationalist Movement). Among the notable acts of the PFLP was the 1970 bombing in mid-flight of Swiss Air flight 330 headed for Tel Aviv, killing all passengers and crew (47 dead), the 1972 attack on Lod Airport near Tel Aviv (27 dead), the hijacking of TWA, BOAC, and Pan-Am airplanes in 1970 (leading to "Black September" and the expulsion of the PLO from Jordan); the joint hijacking (in collaboration with Baader-Meinhof) of an Air France plane bound for Tel Aviv, ending up in Entebbe where the Jewish and non-Jewish passengers were separated by the hijackers before a dramatic Israeli army rescue; the DFLP similarly "distinguished" itself with attacks against Israeli civilians, e.g. the 1974 terrorist attack on an Israeli school in Ma'alot, killing 26 (21 children) and an attack on Beit Shan (killing 4). Other Christian terrorists have taken part in Fatah and other PLO factions. In recent years the spread of Islamic fundamentalism throughout Palestine has led to extreme harassment of Christian Palestinians by Muslims. Bethlehem has been transformed within a short span from 80% Christian to 80% Muslim. Many of these Christians prefer, astonishingly enough to some people, to move to Israel proper (within the Green Line) where they are protected from the fundamentalists. A few Christians have responded by trying to be more "anti-Zionist" than the fundamentalists themselves. For instance, your namesake Leila, a blogger with Z-Net, a Christian Palestinian from Nazareth, calls for the "dissolution" of the borders of Israel (this in the 21st century)and does not condemn Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorism. Since she is "anti-Zionist" she is apparently considered a "progressive" worthy of her own blog on this forum.

It may be helpful to see this rabbis comment about Arabs in another context. These are extreme orthodox Jews who do not limit their hatred to Arabs; they cheerfully extend it to other Jews as well. I am not talking only about secular Jews, but about Conservative (the religious, not political variety) and Reform Jews. In fact, many do not consider such Jews as Jews. They would be just as fiercely opposed to having a Conservative synagogue (where services are close to Orthodox) in their neighborhood as they would Arabs.

Not too long ago they were responsible for the death of a Jewish artist in Safed because,  to force people to observe the sabbath, they stretched a chain across a main road. They left it without a light, and at night the artist on his motorcycle ran into it. They were not apologetic.  These are deeply intolerant people, and direct their fury at anyone, Jew or Arab, who differs from them.  This is not to say that all Orthodox Jews share such views. It is certainly not to excuse them in any way. But it does, I think, modify the notion that they are anti Arab as such; they are anti everybody !!!

layla , how come when hezbollah attack it is called "terrorism" but when it is Israel whom attack, Israel always make it look like it is retaliation ? Can the retaliation lie be believed again ?

Simply put, If Israel and the US does not negotiate with elected Hamas, Israel deny itself its own right to exist.. The US and Isreal will not succeed by killing more palestinians, It has to negotiate *Observing one minute of silence for Yasser Arafat for the simple reason that he had the generosity to "give" Israel a right to exist..

Layla, I think you are abusing the generosity of the palestinian people. I find it amazing that the poorest and the most repressed people have the intelligence to stand up against opression. Hamas being elected in Palestine is a very indicative clue of the failure of the US to implement Israel with continuous repression.. 1) It failed because the plan was idiot from the beginning 2) Because you killed the only guy that give Israel the right to exist.. I don't know it is better you negotiate peace with Hamas palestinians.. at the very least Hamas is legitimate, it is even elected.. ( note hamas in my eyes is a lesser terrorist organization that the US pentagon, it does not have the same funding)

Layla (and Rudy) the subject of this blog (as I see it) is to highlight the filtering out (see Chomsky's Propaganda Model) of extreme Israeli/Jewish voices so as to maintain the manufactured illusion in the West that Israel is simply the just avenger reacting to Islamic extremism.

Layla's comment, "the Pals didn't fight a fair resistance and have lost" (just to cite one gross example) fails to tell us how the Palestinians can fight 'fair' against US-supplied jets, tanks, helicopter gunships, artillery, intelligence, armoured bulldozers, billions of dollars and walls (the latter involving more thieving of Palestinian land).

Hopefully Chris will follow this productive blog up with some more 'mainstream' Israeli/Jewish voices that betray the culture of neo-colonial, racist, dehumanisation, which is the necessary mindset to maintain and progressively extend the violent occupation of Palestinian land.

 

 

 

 

 

Has anyone cited evidence of Christian Palestinian violence towards Israelis?  I'm sure there must be some as they were displaced as much as the muslim population was.  Here in Lebanon, the Xtian Pals were given citizenship and preferential treatment by the mostly Phalangist supporters at that time (Gemayel's admin).  To give the muslim Pals citizenship would have the dual outcome of 1)recognizing Israel's right to exist and 2)thrusting an imbalance on the relative calm between the Sunni/Shia population here (as Pals are majority Sunni muslims).

 This blogger's (Leila is it?) POV is that because she is a Xtian she can somehow escape responsibility but I have deep suspicions over any minority declaring that they are secularists in the Arab world...here there are tribes, not secularities.  Perhaps she is arreligious or anti-religious but her tribe (if indeed she has actually spent some time in Palestine or has family there) is most definitely attached to a religious entity and agenda whether she prefers to believe it or not.  We might say in the "Koranic" sense that she is doing what she found her father and grandfathers doing (or mother for chrissakes) and if not wholly adhering to the Xtian orthodoxy then identifying with them for one of two reasons 1)fear of reprisals from her tribe 2)fear of being labelled muslim. 

 To give her the benefit of the doubt however, it is a sticky wicket and one loaded with both ignorance and denial on the part of so many of the key players, her group as well.  You could compare the Xtian Pals to the Druze in Lebanon....siding with the strong party in any conflict and generally denying responsibility (as Joumblatt is now doing with the Hariri assassination while simultaneously forgetting his genocide against Christian Lebanese).  US wants you to hate Hezbollah so as a minority, you abandon any connection as Xtian Pals might seemingly have "no opinion" about the massive Palestinian displacement in the forties or anything whatsoever to do with the Palestinian violence and manslaughter towards their hosts, the Lebanese during the Civil War.

 It is impossible to declare a rabbi unequally responsible when in fact, Jews cannot even live in Saudi Arabia nor can Xtian Phillipinos import a Bible.  This was the case with the Koran flushing at Guantanamo ..... in fact they stamp on Bibles and burn them at KKIA...I've knowledge of it personally.  So....this is a non topic really and not very helpful to the ongoing Sunni/Shia confrontation which makes the Israeli situation pale in comparison.  What is boiling in Iraq has far more potential for governing the future.  Israel is already in Israeli hands and that was always the goal...it isn't an occupation anymore (nor ever was it).  Minorities such as Leila's have to eat their bread butter side up if you know what I mean and lay low.  As she is doing.  I hardly doubt she would support a public call for the transfer of Jews any more than this rabbi would retract what his opinion is...it is merely that...an opinion of one with strong tribal ties.

 The more logical question is perhaps "Does Leila or this poster (Chris is it?) support a one state or two state solution?"  That is the more telling and politically correct question...not that it has any value because it is clear that Israel recognizes the one state solution as suicidal and it is no longer (if it ever was) a solution.  In my most humble opinion, the Pals didn't fight a fair resistance and have lost and must try to maintain any small gains they have attained or lose them entirely OR....keep the terrorist card playing and commit more atrocities against civilians which is never in ANYONE's favor be they Jews or Muslims or Bible thumping neocons. 

 

 

 

 

http://carmenisacat.blogspot.com/

On the otherhand, when the Egyptian government televises the Protocols of Zion, or the Iran government calls for the destruction calls for the destruction of Israel, there is no backlash in the muslim world.

How do you know, from reading the newspapers? From sitting in the cafes and discussing these things with Muslims? Read Leila Mouammar's response to someone about Hamas to see why such blanket statements about whole societies don't make any sense...

As the article states, there is a backlash towards the rabbi's comments. On the otherhand, when the Egyptian government televises the Protocols of Zion, or the Iran government calls for the destruction calls for the destruction of Israel, there is no backlash in the muslim world. So What's your point Chris, that every society has bigots? What's more important is how the society reacts to the bigots. Israeli society reacts strongly to bigots saying 'We don't want you.' As a historical example, remember, Meyer Khane's (sp) political group was outlawed. That cannot be said for their Arab/muslim counterparts. Again, I question your motives for this post.