To Be Palestinian and To be Arrested
Joseph Dana was recently arrested for his involvement in the weekly nonviolent demonstrations in the village of Nabih Saleh. As Dana points out, the only extraordinary part of his ordeal was not that he was detained, or beaten, or harassed. The extraordinary bit was that he was Jewish and received the ‘Palestinian treatment:’ On Friday, I … Read more
I Agree With Peretz!!
If you are familiar with Martin Peretz and you read this blog, it will come as no surprise that I agree with just about none of his racist, bigoted remarks. ”Frankly, Muslim life is cheap.” ”Druze people [are] congenitally untrustworthy.” ”Arab society [is] hidebound and backwards.” “The fiendish barbarism of decapitated heads and mutilated bodies … Read more
Catch 22 and Mandate Palestine
In the novel Catch 22 by Joseph Heller, the character Major Major provides a conundrum for those he commands. A shy and easily intimidated man, Major Major implements a policy of only allowing men into his office to meet with him when he wasn’t there. Likewise, the fighter pilots in the novel could only be … Read more
Education in the Jordan Valley: Infrastructure
For the past few weeks I have been working on a project revealing the horrid conditions of Palestinian education in the Jordan Valley. There are myriad reasons why the Palestinians in the Valley receive little to no help in the development of the educational system there; however, the main obstacle is the classification of nearly … Read more
Selective Support for Nonviolent Resistance
There has not been too much inspiring news coming from the American political establishment lately. Obama throws in the towel on stopping settlements, Clinton announces to the world that the US will try nothing new, the House passes a resolution condemning unilateral Palestinian moves for recognition, and, of course, the shameful silence on the Israeli … Read more
One or Two States?
I think it would be a good idea to clarify my stance on the question of one or two states as an end solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Lately I have written extensively on the issue and pushed forward the concept of a one state solution as the most likely and just solution to the … Read more
Guest Post: Why is Donor Aid Ineffective? Part 1 – Political Purposes
“We don’t need anyone to polish our chains. We want to break the chains altogether” Archbishop Desmond Tutu. One of the major causes of ineffective and unsustainable humanitarian and development projects is the political constraints that INGOs are under. These restrictions govern the extent to which they can engage politically and explicitly oppose the Israeli … Read more
Andrew Sullivan: Two State Solution is a Zionist Dream
Andrew Sullivan is one of America’s most prominent bloggers, followed by thousands of net-users everyday. That such an influential person has turned a corner on the Israel-Palestine conflict is no small feat. Sullivan has recently moved, among other things, for the US to recognize Palestine along 1967 lines (here also) and for the US to … Read more
Guest Post: The Efficacy of International Funding to The oPt
Tom C. works at a Palestinian NGO in Ramallah. There are over 100 International Non-Governmental Organisations (INGOs) working in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (oPt), including the numerous different UN agencies. Major donors also have offices in the oPt as well, including multilateral organisations such as the World Bank and EU ECHO as well as national … Read more
Guest Post: One-Sided Right of Return
Chris Whitman is a masters student at Hebrew University. In his post he talks about the hypocrisy of allowing a Jewish Right of Return, but denying Palestinians that same right. As I have said before, the dismissal by Israelis of the Right of Return is a major reason why peace has not been made. If … Read more
