The Madness of Arrogance
Israel’s attack on the Gaza-bound aid flotilla on America’s Memorial Day was all too predictable, although the form it took surprised even me. And it confirms the old proverb that “Those whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad,” for the attack was the kind of madness only unbridled arrogance can assume.It wasn’t just...
Funny or not, South Park writers have rights
May 2nd, 20100 When the network Comedy Central altered an episode of South Park without consulting the writers because the previous night's show had elicited warnings from an alleged Muslim extremist group, we think they made a mistake. We also think it's time for all Muslims to recognize this: The restrictions and prohibitions in Islam are for...Why Iran won’t attack Israel
Palestinians are in Israel today because they managed to survive the depopulation of 1948, the year the Jewish state was founded (Arabs constitute about 20% of Israel's population). Ironically, while Benny Morris' scholarship suggests that the mere existence of these Palestinians in Israel — and millions more in the Occupied...Coming down the home stretch
Keep your eye on the ball! From the youngest beginners to the most seasoned veterans this short phrase is probably one of the most common pieces of advice given to athletes. The words hold so much meaning they're commonly used to remind people to stay focused, keep on task, and not lose sight of their goals. For all students, this...Letter to the Editor: Jordan’s king not very kingly
To the editor:The United States government has indicted former Blackwater president Gary Jackson for, among other things, giving gifts to the king of Jordan and then trying to cover that up. Former Blackwater president Gary JacksonThe gifts were guns, given in hope of receiving high paying contracts for Blackwater. ...Friendship and faith: The WISDOM of women creating alliances for peace
In Metro Detroit, a mostly segregated area of isolated and sometimes hostile communities, with almost every person affected by the failing economy, a devastated auto industry, sky-rocketing unemployment, an area where homes have been devalued by as much as 50%, I saw a spark of hope. A spark ignited by my friends from WISDOM (Women's...
IDF order will enable mass deportation from West Bank
April 20th, 20100 A new military order aimed at preventing infiltration will come into force this week, enabling the deportation of tens of thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank, or their indictment on charges carrying prison terms of up to seven years. Palestinians hold signs during a protest in the West Bank city of Ramallah April 13, 2010,...Time to stand up for Detroit, ourselves
Detroit Police Chief Warren Evans should be commended for the time and attention he has given to our community in the wake of recent crimes which claimed the lives of three Arab American business owners in Detroit.Evans met privately with community leaders this week and then addressed concerns at an open forum. We look forward to...The limits of ‘state secrets’
Four and half years after the Bush administration was caught eavesdropping on Americans without court approval, a federal judge in San Francisco has ratified a conclusion many Americans reached long ago: that the administration exceeded its legal authority in the war on terror. But U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker's ruling does more...Accountability needed at DHS
The Department of Homeland Security must make drastic changes in its policy and personnel. There is a crisis of leadership at the Department. The right hand doesn't know what the left is doing. How else to explain an enforcement policy memo that directly contradicts the President, the rescue of Haitian evacuees only to jail them once...Peace for Israelis and Palestinians? Not without America’s tough love.
More than 20 years ago, many Americans decided they could no longer watch as racial segregation divided South Africa. Compelled by an injustice thousands of miles away, they demanded that their communities, their colleges, their municipalities, and their government take a stand.As Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Injustice anywhere is a...Time to stand up to Israel
As I listened to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu address an animated crowd of supporters on March 22, I felt physically sick. The man has already displayed time and again a complete lack of moral sense or ethical framework in his words and actions. A protester puts a Palestinian flag on an uprooted tree during a...
Rise of right wing extremist groups cause for alarm
April 4th, 20100 The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) recently documented 34 militia groups in Michigan - a staggering number when one considers that a year earlier the SPLC found only 42 militias in the entire country. As citizen militias formed across the country during the 1990s, few states were closer to the heart of the antigovernment...Goodbye, Khalil!
AlHajal on assignment in Washington in 2009 The Arab American News reporter/editor Khalil AlHajal has accepted a position at The Flint Journal covering Flint schools and will begin work at his new job next week. AlHajal began his career at The Arab American News in December 2006 and is a graduate of the University of...
Palestinians should now declare their independence
March 19th, 20100 This week the Obama administration – which gives Israel $3bn a year, more than they dole out to any other nation on earth – made a meek and craven request for Israelis to simply have a pause in seizing even more land, and to sit down with the Palestinians. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded with a big concrete slap: the......
Welcome to Israel, Joe!
When he visited the Middle East, then Senator Barack Obama had a rude awakening. He was on the ritual visit for American presidential candidates to Israel, which usually consists of touring sites of significance to Jews and declaring support for the state of Israel. This is important for American politicians who pay homage to an...Letter to the Editor: Is Harvard happy with Kramer representation?
To the editor: There was an article published in The Arab American News on March 6 about Martin Kramer of Harvard University - (Harvard fellow calls for genocidal measure to curb Palestinian births). Kramer suggested at a conference that the United Nations halt all pro natal subsidies to the Palestinian territories in order to curb the......
Gaza’s youth not ‘superfluous’
"To cut down on gang-related crimes, policies could be put in place to curb the African-American population growth in places like Harlem and Compton. The government could consider cutting off welfare benefits for families in these urban areas to discourage births of blacks and cut down the supply of 'superfluous young men' who have...Helping Michigan’s job providers now
Michigan can again be a state with a thriving economy and abundant jobs if we reform government so it works with job providers rather than against them. There is no time to waste. Bouchard As governor, I will make one of the largest economic policy changes in decades. The majority of my focus will be on businesses already...
Communities suffering effects of climate change want U.S. to act now
February 27th, 20100 U.S. public concern about climate change has waned. The climate change summit in Copenhagen – largely viewed as a failure – did little to elevate concern over the issue among the public. Climate change is foremost among the concerns of ethnic communities, however. It is our responsibility, as the media that serve them, to call for...The new freedom agenda: Will push meet pull again?
In his June 2009 Cairo speech to the Muslim world, President Obama paid lip service to the need for greater Middle East democracy. But since then he has done very little concretely to back this up in terms of quiet pressure for democratic change on the part of allies like Egypt, Jordan or Morocco. Indeed, the administration's ramping up......
The Tea Party movement frightens me
February 20th, 20100 Last weekend, when Washington was being hit by its worst-ever snow storm, the Tea Party Movement was holding its first national meeting in Nashville, Tennessee. With nothing else to do, and unable to travel, I watched parts of their convention on television and became quite concerned by what I saw and heard. After reviewing two sets of...NY Times’ Ethan Bronner should be reassigned
The fact that the son of The New York Times' Jerusalem bureau chief Ethan Bronner is serving in the Israeli military has highlighted an issue that should have been in the spotlight long ago. Ali Abunimah makes some important points about the NYT’s coverage of the Middle East on the Mondoweiss site. Although the paper has a Palestinian......
Peaceful Palestinian resistance paying off
February 13th, 20100 For many, the idea of Palestinian resistance is synonymous with terrorism, conjuring up images of suicide bombings and rockets. This is a distortion shaped by the media and our politicians. Beyond the headlines, Palestinian resistance has always included nonviolent tactics. Today, in rural villages from Bilin and Jayyous to Nilin...54 members of Congress tell Obama: Lift Gaza seige
Last week, 54 members of the House of Representatives, led by Congressman Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Congressman Jim McDermott from Washington state, signed a letter to President Obama asking his administration to lift the blockade on Gaza. In the letter, the Representatives said "the unabated suffering of Gazan civilians highlights......
