A.Rahman
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American Politics for Sale: How the Israeli Lobby Corrupted Our Political System
By John Savarese
Al-Jazeerah, November 18, 2006
Is it finally the time to ask the unthinkable: Has the Israeli lobby corrupted our political system?
Is there any question now about the power of the Israeli lobby in American politics?
In July, eight world leaders met in Russia. Seven wanted to send a strongly-worded message to Israel to ask them to "show some restraint" in their bombing of Lebanon. The only dissenter was President George W. Bush.
Leaders around the world are calling for an immediate cease-fire, but one country resists -- the United States.
The Israelis need more bombs, and need them quickly. The U.S. response: Go on a fast track production of the bombs to supply Israel.
Last week President Bush and Secretary of State Rice had the following to say about the death of 56 Lebanese children: "The pain of these losses is necessary to the birth of a new Mideast."
What absolute gall to so casually write off innocent civilians on either side of this conflict.
This week, the president held his ground and promised continued, unquestioned support for Israel -- while speaking in Florida, the most fertile ground for Pro-Israeli political contributions.
This is not just a sellout by a Republican administration. In the last decade, while both parties carried out a foreign policy dictated by Israel, both parties completely ignored the slaughter of 800,000 Rwandans. How could this happen Could it simply be because Rwandans can't afford the campaign contributions needed to buy an American politician?
As an American and as someone who had a relative murdered by terrorists on Flight 103 in Lockerbie, Scotland, I don't support Osama bin Laden by any stretch of the imagination, but I'd like to provide a small portion of a speech he gave in 2004, directed to the American people. Ironically, he specifically cites U.S. support for Israel in the invasion of Lebanon in 1982 as his primary reason for masterminding 9/11:
"Thinking people, when disaster strikes, make it their priority to look for its causes, in order to prevent it happening again.
But I am amazed at you. Even though we are in the fourth year after the events of September 11th, Bush is still engaged in distortion, deception and hiding from you the real causes. And thus, reasons are still there for a repeat of what occurred.
So I shall talk to you about the story behind those events and shall tell you truthfully about the moments in which the decision was taken, for you to consider.
I say to you, Allah knows that it had never occurred to us to strike the towers. But after it became unbearable and we witnessed the oppression and tyranny of the American/Israeli coalition against our people in Palestine and Lebanon, it came to my mind.
The events that affected my soul in a direct way started in 1982 when America permitted the Israelis to invade Lebanon and the American Sixth Fleet helped them in that. This bombardment began and many were killed and injured and others were terrorized and displaced.
I couldn't forget those moving scenes, blood and severed limbs, women and children sprawled everywhere. Houses destroyed along with their occupants and high rises demolished over their residents, rockets raining down on our home without mercy."
He clearly states why he attacked us. No matter what you think of the rest of the speech, why would you doubt his stated reasons for 9/11 What purpose would there be in his giving us a false motive?
With our intellectually dishonest Mideast policy we have lost any moral high ground we enjoyed around the world. If we want the world to stop hating us, we must stop blindly supporting any one country over another; it's indefensible, it defies all logic and the rest of the world will never accept it.
There is no question, Hizbullah must be stopped. Not only Hizbullah, but other groups calling for the annihilation of Israel as well. The Israelis live in a sea of hatred and they certainly have the right to vigorously defend themselves, and with American support. But, first and foremost, it is Israel's war, not ours. Our primary mission there should be peace by fair, evenhanded diplomacy.
It can never be in America's interests to have another nation dictating our foreign policy, and our foreign policy should certainly not be for sale by our politicians, but there's strong evidence it is.
Is it time to ask our government why we should continue on this path, a path that is putting all Americans in harm's way?
Is it time to ask if Americans are dying because of our completely one-sided, unyielding support of one nation?
Is it time for Americans to have the courage to stand up and ask these questions simply because we are pro-American, with no intent to be anti-Semitic, but at peril of being labeled so?
I certainly have no gripe with the people or government of Israel. I firmly believe in the right of Israel to exist. However, that does not mean that the Israeli lobby should be buying our politicians and running our foreign policy. That can never be in America's best interest.
Before times runs out, I'd say it is time to ask the unthinkable: Has the Israeli lobby corrupted our political system?
John Savarese lives in Waltham, MA and visited the Mideast in 2005. He can be reached at jvista@rcn.com.
By John Savarese
Al-Jazeerah, November 18, 2006
Is it finally the time to ask the unthinkable: Has the Israeli lobby corrupted our political system?
Is there any question now about the power of the Israeli lobby in American politics?
In July, eight world leaders met in Russia. Seven wanted to send a strongly-worded message to Israel to ask them to "show some restraint" in their bombing of Lebanon. The only dissenter was President George W. Bush.
Leaders around the world are calling for an immediate cease-fire, but one country resists -- the United States.
The Israelis need more bombs, and need them quickly. The U.S. response: Go on a fast track production of the bombs to supply Israel.
Last week President Bush and Secretary of State Rice had the following to say about the death of 56 Lebanese children: "The pain of these losses is necessary to the birth of a new Mideast."
What absolute gall to so casually write off innocent civilians on either side of this conflict.
This week, the president held his ground and promised continued, unquestioned support for Israel -- while speaking in Florida, the most fertile ground for Pro-Israeli political contributions.
This is not just a sellout by a Republican administration. In the last decade, while both parties carried out a foreign policy dictated by Israel, both parties completely ignored the slaughter of 800,000 Rwandans. How could this happen Could it simply be because Rwandans can't afford the campaign contributions needed to buy an American politician?
As an American and as someone who had a relative murdered by terrorists on Flight 103 in Lockerbie, Scotland, I don't support Osama bin Laden by any stretch of the imagination, but I'd like to provide a small portion of a speech he gave in 2004, directed to the American people. Ironically, he specifically cites U.S. support for Israel in the invasion of Lebanon in 1982 as his primary reason for masterminding 9/11:
"Thinking people, when disaster strikes, make it their priority to look for its causes, in order to prevent it happening again.
But I am amazed at you. Even though we are in the fourth year after the events of September 11th, Bush is still engaged in distortion, deception and hiding from you the real causes. And thus, reasons are still there for a repeat of what occurred.
So I shall talk to you about the story behind those events and shall tell you truthfully about the moments in which the decision was taken, for you to consider.
I say to you, Allah knows that it had never occurred to us to strike the towers. But after it became unbearable and we witnessed the oppression and tyranny of the American/Israeli coalition against our people in Palestine and Lebanon, it came to my mind.
The events that affected my soul in a direct way started in 1982 when America permitted the Israelis to invade Lebanon and the American Sixth Fleet helped them in that. This bombardment began and many were killed and injured and others were terrorized and displaced.
I couldn't forget those moving scenes, blood and severed limbs, women and children sprawled everywhere. Houses destroyed along with their occupants and high rises demolished over their residents, rockets raining down on our home without mercy."
He clearly states why he attacked us. No matter what you think of the rest of the speech, why would you doubt his stated reasons for 9/11 What purpose would there be in his giving us a false motive?
With our intellectually dishonest Mideast policy we have lost any moral high ground we enjoyed around the world. If we want the world to stop hating us, we must stop blindly supporting any one country over another; it's indefensible, it defies all logic and the rest of the world will never accept it.
There is no question, Hizbullah must be stopped. Not only Hizbullah, but other groups calling for the annihilation of Israel as well. The Israelis live in a sea of hatred and they certainly have the right to vigorously defend themselves, and with American support. But, first and foremost, it is Israel's war, not ours. Our primary mission there should be peace by fair, evenhanded diplomacy.
It can never be in America's interests to have another nation dictating our foreign policy, and our foreign policy should certainly not be for sale by our politicians, but there's strong evidence it is.
Is it time to ask our government why we should continue on this path, a path that is putting all Americans in harm's way?
Is it time to ask if Americans are dying because of our completely one-sided, unyielding support of one nation?
Is it time for Americans to have the courage to stand up and ask these questions simply because we are pro-American, with no intent to be anti-Semitic, but at peril of being labeled so?
I certainly have no gripe with the people or government of Israel. I firmly believe in the right of Israel to exist. However, that does not mean that the Israeli lobby should be buying our politicians and running our foreign policy. That can never be in America's best interest.
Before times runs out, I'd say it is time to ask the unthinkable: Has the Israeli lobby corrupted our political system?
John Savarese lives in Waltham, MA and visited the Mideast in 2005. He can be reached at jvista@rcn.com.
