Subsidies for Israel, sanctions for Iran
President Barack Obama's fiscal year 2010 budget request for $2.775 billion in military aid to Israel is proceeding smoothly through the Congress. On June 17 the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs held a markup session on the budget. The subcommittee came under pressure from an antiwar...
Democratic principles selectively applied
June 27th, 20090 Knowing things with metaphysical certainty when most of the world is operating under carefully constructed myths is painful. Why? Knowing things that others do not fosters a sense of existential loneliness and makes polite conversation about many important things all but impossible. Supporters of Iranian protesters hold a...Netanyahu offers a state and a half
Could Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu become the Richard Nixon of the Middle East, as Barack Obama invited him to do? Could he break with his hard-line past and reach out to the Palestinians the way Nixon did with the Chinese? Or will he pay lip service to peace even as he does everything he can to keep the Palestinians from...AIPAC wall beginning to crack
For years, AIPAC (The American Israel Public Affairs Committee) has helped to stonewall the Middle East peace process by building a solid wall around the Israeli government, protecting it from criticism in the U.S. Senators and representatives have feared the wrath of AIPAC come Election Day, even in states and districts where the...ACLU seeks reports of electronic device searches at borders, airports
In an effort to gather information about possible civil liberties abuses at U.S. borders, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan is looking to speak with individuals who have had a laptop, PDA, BlackBerry, iPod or other electronic device holding large amounts of data taken or searched by agents at any of the state's borders...The lesson of the housekeeper
It is well known that for the past several months, ADC Michigan has been coping with tremendous financial challenges. Similar to other non-profit organizations serving the community, ADC Michigan continues to struggle to survive amidst a frail economy. ADC Michigan is one of the few organizations that does not receive government...The day of the dead
Cindy Sheehan I was on an airplane flying to Orange County from Sacramento to attend the al-Awda Conference, which is a Palestinian Right's Conference (al-Awda translates to "The Returning"), when the pilot's voice filled the cabin to make an announcement that I think went unnoticed by most of my fellow passengers, but I...
Obama defends Guantanamo closure, Cheney defends torture
May 23rd, 20090 NEW YORK — President Barack Obama cautiously minced his way Thursday through a political minefield filled with imminent explosions from human rights advocates, national security hawks, and a Congress terrified by the potential political backlash of any move to bring Guantanamo Bay prisoners to the U.S. for trial or...Yemen on the brink of war?
On May 3, the US Embassy in Sana'a issued a statement on the political violence in South Yemen that claimed eight lives last week. The United States stressed that "Yemen's unity depends on its ability to guarantee every citizen equal treatment under the law." What the Yemeni government calls unity, the protesters call...
The question of our time
May 9th, 20090 Why does Israel have a right to exist, but Palestine doesn't? A Palestinian protester runs from incoming tear gas fired by Israeli security forces during a protest against the construction of the controversial Israeli separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin near Ramallah May 8, 2009. REUTERS/Darren Whiteside This is...Obama faces Israel’s angst
"Could the Taliban get the bomb before Iran does?" read the headline in my favorite Israeli newspaper, Haaretz. The columnist, Bradley Burston, was joining Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in thinking the unthinkable, that the Taliban in Pakistan might soon have their hands on what the country's former President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto...Israel is more a liability than an asset to the U.S.
The Zionist Lobby (AIPAC), which is a tiny segment of the U.S. population, has gained an outrageously disproportionate and dangerous influence over our political machinery and as a result our country is on a foreign policy path that is counter to its best interests. The power of the Israeli lobby has brought about a situation in...
Do you have your organ donor sticker?
April 18th, 20090 There are approximately 3,000 of our family members, friends and neighbors in Michigan currently awaiting an organ transplant—and the miracle of a second chance at life. For some, the wait for a donor organ may take years. For others, the phone call announcing that one has been found may never come. The difference a lifesaving...Obama’s trip a success
U.S. President Barack Obama participates in a town hall meeting with university students at the Tophane Cultural Center in Istanbul April 7, 2009. REUTERS/Jason Reed The Obamas' European Odyssey was a success — despite the predictable complaints of some U.S. critics. The president and first lady took the continent by storm,...ADC addresses immigration reform on the Hill
Each week, ADC receives numerous inquiries about how and when comprehensive immigration reform will be passed. The Obama administration has indicated that the president will publicly address the issue in May, with hopes of having reform a reality before 2010. ADC has been addressing the issue of reform with Congressional members and......
Intifada: A third chapter?
March 28th, 20090 Israeli border police officers detain a Palestinian woman in east Jerusalem March 23, 2009, during an event marking Jerusalem's tenure as the Arab League's "capital of Arab culture" for 2009. According to an Israeli police spokesperson, several activists were detained as the police dispersed an illegal gathering. REUTERS/Ammar...America must find courage to stand up to Israel, injustice
During a recent visit to Washington, I met with several members of Congress to discuss the prospects for Palestinian and Israeli peace. This included a marvelous, unexpected introduction to Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), the courageous civil rights advocate. The Palestinian National Initiative, which I head, works to emulate the nonviolent......
Obama rides the same old policies in Palestine
President Obama has ridden in on the winds of change, promising diplomacy rather than belligerence as U.S. foreign policy; but he has yet to speak clearly against the policy of underdevelopment and "removal" Israel deploys against Palestinians living under occupation. Unfortunately, Obama's voice overseas, Secretary of State Hillary...The United Nations is a useless, toothless organization
I used to think the U.N., both in principle and in practice, was the closest thing we'd have to a world government, coming together to tackle the challenges faced by all humanity. Now I feel that the U.N. is an utterly useless organization when it comes to protecting human rights and enforcing security. U.S. President Barack...FBI losing partnership with Arab, Muslim communities
The revelation this week that the FBI used paid informants and agents provocateur in U.S. mosques who have participated in law enforcement outreach efforts undermines the decade-long relationship that Arab Americans and American Muslims have built with law enforcement. This news sends a devastating message to community leaders and imams...Why we must boycott Starbucks
The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against apartheid Israel is gaining momentum around the world. The boycott of Starbucks is Michigan's modest contribution to the worldwide movement. Here are a few other examples: • South African dock workers refused to unload Israeli ships (Feb. 3rd 2009) • Church of......
Please, no more charades
James AbourezkAbe Foxman, head of the "Anti-Defamation League," claims that George Mitchell is too fair to be a broker between Israel and the Palestinians. I guess that Foxman, in denouncing the choice of Mitchell for Middle East negotiator, shows that he is accustomed to such impartial mediators as Dennis Ross, who, when he...
The horror of Gaza witnessed
February 7th, 20090 A Palestinian girl carries her sister in front of a destroyed house in Jabalya, in the northern Gaza Strip, February 4, 2009. Thousands of Palestinians are living in tented camps after Israel's three-week assault on the Gaza Strip, hoping for a swift end to Israel's blockade so they can rebuild their homes. Reuters Over the......
After Gaza genocide, what next?
January 30th, 20090 Palestinian students study at the yard of al-Fadilah Islamic school in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip January 26, 2009. The school was destroyed in an Israeli air strike during Israel's 22-day offensive in the Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa The recent tentative ceasefire may have halted Israel's military thrashing of...Not to remain silent
I write simply not to remain silent in the face of U.S. and Israeli aggression against the Palestinian population in general, and the Gaza population in particular. A Palestinian woman sits amongst the ruins of her destroyed house in Jabalya in the northern Gaza Strip January 20, 2009. Israel planned to complete a troop pullout......