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"You have to realize that the majority of Israelis are ignorant of their governments' real agenda. The same level of disinformation, manipulation, spins and exploitation exists within this structure, namely, against Jews/Israelis. Surely, if people were informed, they would resist."
Letter to MER
"Truly informing people of the often tragic and enraging realities in which we are all now interwoven in today's 'modern' world is indeed what MER is all about. It is a daunting difficult sometimes distasteful task. But it is oh-so-important whether we be discussing the realities in the U.S., the Arab countries, today's United Nations, the Palestinian Authority, or Israel. Indeed, we badly and urgently need a new kind of worldwide alliance among dedicated and knowledgeable and independent people of conscience and conviction, whether they be Israelis or Arabs or Americans, Jews or Muslims or Christians."
Response from MER
MER
P.O. Box 4918
Washington, DC 20008
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Letter to MER from Israel
Letter to Editors:
In general, your analysis is neglecting the fact that ISrael, as much as any other Mid Eastern country is a US pawn, namely, is being exploited by the larger force of the US to carry out its plans. The fact that this collaboration appears to be a voluntary and almost "equal" partnership is misleading. The JEwish NeoCons do not necessarily serve the best interests of ISrael by supporting this particular form of alliance. One has to go deeper into an analysis of the inner workings of the JEwish leadership, whether it is being responsible towards its own people, whether it is being truthfull to its own people, before reaching conclusions. The way your analysis is written alienates potential support in Israel to your views. You have to realize that the majority of Israelis are ignorant of their governments' real agenda. The same level of disinformation, manipulation, spins and exploitation exists within this structure, namely, against Jews/Israelis. Surely, if people were informed, they would resist. However, since most critics are all to happy to assume that all Jews and Israelis support these policies, the incentive to creat a meaningful opposition is very low. Needless to say, the brutality of oppression within the Jewish community/Israel is as bad, if not worse, as the one employed against so called enemies. This should be obvious, but is somehow excluded from most discussions of this kind. While we do not attribute the will of tyrants to their captive citizens, the same should apply - to a degree - to Israel/JEwish politics. The appearance of democracy within ISrael and more so within the JEwish world leadership, is somewhat misleading. The leadership, for instance, of Jewish NeoCons - is not achieved through democratic means. Our democracy and freedom are as tentative, almost, as those of other "made in the USA" democracies. Bear this in mind, while analysing the politics of the region.
Sincerely,
Iris Yaar Edelbaum
Jaffa - 21 June 2005
MER - MiddleEast.Org - Washington - 22 June: To some extent we agree and very much thank Ms. Edelbaum for this thoughtful and insightful letter. But even so the suggestion that Israel is just one more small Middle Eastern state being used and manipulated by the big bad Superpower USA is far too great a simpification and misrepresentation. The Israeli connection to the U.S., and the many elements of what we summarily term the Israeli-Jewish Lobby headquartered in Washington, are qualitatively and quantitatively far different than the relationships that exist between Washington and the Arab 'client-regimes', individually or collectively. Israel's proven record of intimate involvment in the making and carrying out of U.S. government policies, as well as in the manipulation and spinning of them, is uniquely considerable and seems to still growing rather than diminishing.
But this said these additional important realities of which Ms. Edelbaum writes do not change the fact that over the years many nations, and groups, have been held collectively responsible for what has been done by their leadership and in their name -- Japan and Germany and Yugoslavia all recent examples in relatively modern-day history, each with its own particular twists, nuances, and sensitivities. A few societies have managed to significantly reform on their own before it was too late - Apartheid South Africa a recent major historical example and to some extent what has taken place in Argentina and Chile.
Just when and how the Americans will be held responsible remains in future question, and the same for the Israelis who in their particular case have irrevocably implicated both 'neocon' and 'liberal' American Jewish protagonists. There are others of course who should also be called to account and either/or pushed to trial and reparations -- the Russians with Chechnya at present and the Gulags from the past, many of the Arab 'client regimes' for their brutal torturous ways, the Turks with regard to Armenians in the past and Kurds in the present. Those who held power in Rwanda and Uganda, and those who hold power in Sudan also come very easily to mind. Abit further back in history the Americans for what they so savagely and duplicitously did to the Indians, the white Australians for what they did to the Aborigines. And we could and should add quite a few others to this any comprehensive list as well.
Truly informing people of the often tragic and enraging realities in which we are all now interwoven in today's 'modern' world is indeed what MER is all about. It is a daunting difficult sometimes distasteful task. But it is oh-so-important whether we be discussing the realities in the U.S., the Arab countries, today's United Nations, the Palestinian Authority, or Israel. Indeed, we badly and urgently need a new kind of worldwide alliance among dedicated and knowledgeable and independent people of conscience and conviction, whether they be Israelis or Arabs or Americans, Jews or Muslims or Christians.
Of this very important subject we will have something very important to announce and for all of us to responsibly pursue soon.
Mark Bruzonsky
MER Publisher
Washington, D.C. - 22 June
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