A note about unfairness,,,
There's a great deal of misunderstanding of the 100 years old Israeli Palestinian conflict. There's a great deal of disinformation about it in iPeace today. And there's a great deal of manipulation end exploitation of the situation, some of it very cynical.
Here's part of a message I and 45 others received yesterday:
"Israel is the attacker since centuries ago - Jews dont have a land and thats a fact. and they have made protocols and through them have prepared Everything until this very day for this to happen. it doesn't happen because of a dead Israeli or a few bombs... its a plan!!! to destroy Palestinians once and for all... its been carried out in steps and they are very clear to those following the news correctly (so not from TV) and who know... this is pure denocide and it has to stop NOW."
"no one should worry about Jews! they are wealthy and free and happy - and rich and fat with their big cars and small hearts...be assured they are taken care of.
now - can we go back to poor Palestinians who are tortured and squeezed like rats in one small hole and now killed in hundreds.... evey day! thank YOU"
Needless to say that the sender is no longer with us, but there are more like her, and they influence those who don't know.
The reason that I am writing this to you is what I read on the comment wall of Noa's blog: "a letter to my Palestinian brothers in Gaza"
If I have any credibility with you, I will tell you this: There are very few fiercer and more determined peace warriors than Noa. Not Annie Lennox, not Bono and not Yoko Ono. Period. They are just more famous than her.
Noa has dedicated her life to peace activism. She is constantly taking risks to fulfill her dream of a peaceful Middle East. Many in her country think her a traitor for that. You can read about it HERE
Even a peace warrior may speak his mind. That's all what she did, in a sensitive and compassionate fashion. She said what she believes is the truth. She said what many Arab leaders say publicly.
And she got showered with comments that she does not deserve. I think that this is not the way we should treat someone who should be our hero.
She wrote you a comment in response:
"i have read some of your comments and all make me very sad, even the compassionate ones, as they are full of sorrow. sorry i share.
to those of you who claim i do not know history, i will say, unfortunately i do. i know it well. i know israel's part in establishing organizations like hamas to counter other organizations she found to be negative, i also know that things that start one way often end another. sometimes for better, sometimes for worse.
as i have said, i am a well known critic of my country. i think she has acted stupidly on countless accounts.
but i also know this: israel wants peace. israel does not want gaza. israel pulled out of gaza at great expense and dismantled its settlements there. israel wants to exist. deserves to exist.
our situation is complicated, so complicated.
once, israelis could be imprisoned for talking to the PLO. Abie Natan, founder of 'the voice of peace' radio station that we loved so much, was such a victim.
today, the PLO are as accepted as the Likud. today, everyone knows a Palestinian state will exist, it is only a matter of finalizing the deal, and all this, with MANY players with BIG interests, oil, water, power, weapons, control, religion, all the cholera you can imagine.
in the midst of all this, people die.
no, i am not comparing traumatized children to dead ones, what warped mind would assume that (chris..?)
no, i do not wish Hamas dead, i just want them to stop terrorizing gaza and israel. from my point of view, they could all go sit on the beach somewhere and have a couple of tequilas. i just want them far away from me and all peace lovers on both sides of the fence, UNLESS they choose dialogue over violence.
but most of all, MOST of all, i want us all to just STOP this madness!!
stop the killing on BOTH sides!! stop the propaganda! stop the hatred! PLEASE!!!!!!!
please...."
Here's part of a message I and 45 others received yesterday:
"Israel is the attacker since centuries ago - Jews dont have a land and thats a fact. and they have made protocols and through them have prepared Everything until this very day for this to happen. it doesn't happen because of a dead Israeli or a few bombs... its a plan!!! to destroy Palestinians once and for all... its been carried out in steps and they are very clear to those following the news correctly (so not from TV) and who know... this is pure denocide and it has to stop NOW."
"no one should worry about Jews! they are wealthy and free and happy - and rich and fat with their big cars and small hearts...be assured they are taken care of.
now - can we go back to poor Palestinians who are tortured and squeezed like rats in one small hole and now killed in hundreds.... evey day! thank YOU"
Needless to say that the sender is no longer with us, but there are more like her, and they influence those who don't know.
The reason that I am writing this to you is what I read on the comment wall of Noa's blog: "a letter to my Palestinian brothers in Gaza"
If I have any credibility with you, I will tell you this: There are very few fiercer and more determined peace warriors than Noa. Not Annie Lennox, not Bono and not Yoko Ono. Period. They are just more famous than her.
Noa has dedicated her life to peace activism. She is constantly taking risks to fulfill her dream of a peaceful Middle East. Many in her country think her a traitor for that. You can read about it HERE
Even a peace warrior may speak his mind. That's all what she did, in a sensitive and compassionate fashion. She said what she believes is the truth. She said what many Arab leaders say publicly.
And she got showered with comments that she does not deserve. I think that this is not the way we should treat someone who should be our hero.
She wrote you a comment in response:
"i have read some of your comments and all make me very sad, even the compassionate ones, as they are full of sorrow. sorry i share.
to those of you who claim i do not know history, i will say, unfortunately i do. i know it well. i know israel's part in establishing organizations like hamas to counter other organizations she found to be negative, i also know that things that start one way often end another. sometimes for better, sometimes for worse.
as i have said, i am a well known critic of my country. i think she has acted stupidly on countless accounts.
but i also know this: israel wants peace. israel does not want gaza. israel pulled out of gaza at great expense and dismantled its settlements there. israel wants to exist. deserves to exist.
our situation is complicated, so complicated.
once, israelis could be imprisoned for talking to the PLO. Abie Natan, founder of 'the voice of peace' radio station that we loved so much, was such a victim.
today, the PLO are as accepted as the Likud. today, everyone knows a Palestinian state will exist, it is only a matter of finalizing the deal, and all this, with MANY players with BIG interests, oil, water, power, weapons, control, religion, all the cholera you can imagine.
in the midst of all this, people die.
no, i am not comparing traumatized children to dead ones, what warped mind would assume that (chris..?)
no, i do not wish Hamas dead, i just want them to stop terrorizing gaza and israel. from my point of view, they could all go sit on the beach somewhere and have a couple of tequilas. i just want them far away from me and all peace lovers on both sides of the fence, UNLESS they choose dialogue over violence.
but most of all, MOST of all, i want us all to just STOP this madness!!
stop the killing on BOTH sides!! stop the propaganda! stop the hatred! PLEASE!!!!!!!
please...."
Comment
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Comment by kev riley on January 7, 2009 at 12:28am
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I think you're right Lynda.No one will win by pointing the finger.Ultimately there has to be a solution for all sides...may God take us there.
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Comment by Irit Hakim-Keller on January 7, 2009 at 12:19am
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Kohelet (Ecclesiaster) says: "that which is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is wanting cannot be numbered". my mind is busy with the question of - how can we fix the impression and rebuilt the reliability of israel, who is being now under microscope and is being condemned guilty even when it is not right. i know - i am ahead of events, there is still war and many wounded and dead people every day now, perhaps it is too early to deal with my question - but it is troubling me very much. when time arrives to negotiate peace - trust will be the main issue.
although i am very frustrated, and am losing air when listening to the news,and being horrified by events - i am full of hope and belief - now more then ever- that we shall have peace.
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Comment by dawn on January 7, 2009 at 12:12am
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"Needless to say that the sender is no longer with us"
Why/how is the sender no longer with us? What happened to him/her? no longer a member of ipeace?
Did a monitor/admin ban this person? and if so what was the reason?
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Comment by Achinoam Nini/Noa on January 7, 2009 at 12:09am
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i have made some alterations in my original letter, after reading some of your comments and after deeper thought. i am a ery impulsive and pasionate person, that is one of my reatest vices. below find my letter, second draft.
i am sorry if i have offended any of you. that was not my intention, ever.
noa
Dear Palestinian brothers,
It is with a heavy heart I write to you today.
Gaza is burning. The border with Israel is under fire. Children on both sides of the fence are terrified, traumatized for life, wounded in body and soul, dying, dead. Blood flows. Sirens wail. Pain and tears and anguish abound.
How familiar it all is, my brothers? How well we know these images, this fear clutching our throats, hope slipping away from our hearts?
Who can tell a new year has begun?
I am sitting here near my computer in the dark night, in my home by the sea. This sea that is ours, our Mediterranean sea, our culture, we the people of wandering, we the homeless, the homesick, we the fighters ,the builders, the survivors, our dreams like waves and tide, pulled by the moon and stars to eternity.
Since that fateful day in 1995 when Rabin was murdered a few feet from me, since that awful moment, I have dedicated much of my public life to singing and speaking for peace.
I have seen the peace process rise and fall and rise like the breast of a woman breathing in the night. I have seen opportunities missed, so many missed, so many chances, so much ignorance and stubbornness and bullheadedness, so much beauty trampled under the heavy boot of pride.
I have sung and I have spoken, I have argued and I have embraced, I have been moved to tears so many times, I have made the most unlikely friends….friends I would give my right arm for, friends I would run across the border under fire to protect.
And today, today I say this; we have one joint enemy, one awful joint enemy and we must all work together to eradicate it!
That enemy is fanaticism . That enemy is extremism in all its ugly reincarnations and manifestations.
That enemy is all men and women who put “god” above life, who claim “god” as their sword and shield, who claim “god” is on THEIR side.
Jews, Muslims, Christians, all share this black streak. All have fallen to this destructive, horrible fanaticism at some point in their histories and the results have been devastating.
I have often spoken out against fanaticism in my country, for I find it repulsive and unbearable. In government, in settlements, in synagogues, I am passionately against it. I have risked my career and my wellbeing for this belief.
Now I see the ugly head of fanaticism, I see it large and horrid, I see it’s black eyes and spine-chilling smile, I see blood on its hands .
You know this too, my brothers. You know this ugly monster. You know it is raping the minds of your children. You know it is educating to hatred and death. You know it is chauvinistic and violent, greedy and selfish, it feeds on your blood and screams out God’s name in vain!
I know this is true my brothers!! I know YOU know the truth!! maybe you cannot say it for fear of life so I will say it for you!! I fear nothing!! I am privileged to live in a democracy where men and women are free, where a singer can say and do as she pleases! Some of you do not have this privilege (yet…but you will, inshallah, you will…).
You, my friends, are a people destined to flourish in peace! Your majestic history is overflowing with creativity, literature science and music, endless contributions to humanity, not crippling fanaticism, yelling Jihad and Shahid! I see you sometimes, out in the streets, demonstrating, yelling ‘death to the Jews, death to Israel!! but I don’t believe you! I know where your heart is! It is just where mine is, with my children, with the earth, with the heavens, with music, with HOPE!! You want nothing of this but I guess you feel you have no choice! I see through your veil of fear my brothers, through your uncertainty and years of painful history. I embrace your hopes for they are mine!
My country has made many many mistakes over the years, I have watched it miss so many opportunities, and as a citizen of this country I am the first to admit it and criticize its foolery. I demonstrate, I vote, I speak out, I sing loud and clear.
My brothers, I cry for you. I cry for us too, yes, I cry for my fellow countrymen suffering the bombs in the south and north and everywhere, I cry for the kidnapped soldiers and the murdered ones, for their bereft families, for the innocence lost forever, but I cry especially painfully for you for I know your suffering, I feel you, I feel you!!
I can only wish for you that this monster called fantacism release you from its grip. And that these killers will find what little compassion may still exist in their hearts and STOP using you and your children as human shields for their cowardice and crimes.
And then… then , maybe, Inshallah, we will again have an opportunity..we will again pick up our broken bodies and souls and walk slowly towards each other, leaving our bloody history behind, leaving the blaming and accusations behind for we know they are endless, and reach out a tired hand, look into eyes filled with tears and with a choked voice say:
“Shalom. Salam. Enough. Enough my brother ….
Here, sit for a while…lets talk….we know the words, we know the songs, we know the road….
Shalom……
Salam……
With a broken heart still yearning to love,
Your friend,
Noa
Jan 5th, 2009
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Comment by Ernest Lopez on January 7, 2009 at 12:04am
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Thank you David Calif, and thank you Myron, The only reason I stay part of this voice is because of persons like you. It is very difficult to remove ourselves from our pain, feelings for the victims. But to imagine or pretend that there are victims on only one side is malicious. Why when the president of syria murdered the people in a syrian village, no voice was heard condeming it. The women in pakistan, afganistan...who speaks for them, the human rights advocate, a noble Iranian lady, silenced, who speaks for her? Our voices should demonstrate the love of humanity, the concern for the suffering, etc. and this is not a site dedicated to launching verbal katushas or other destructive actions. I am a lover of peace and I reject violence and cruelty. But I know the cause....it is not religion, it is not prejudice and hate..these are the property of the ingnorant; to understand revenge is to understand that the dismal state of poverty of spirit and hope is to repond with the only thing people know...mindless force. We have not done enough for the people of Gaza. The are deprived by their own fanatics. The other Muslim countries have their own battles and Gaza is a distractions...why would they help? The very best we could do is to look for ways to help pour 'oil on troubled waters'. Prayer, good thoughts of love and peace are a requirement as we can not take proper action with a heart full of hate and rancor. The prayer may or may not act on the suffering...but it acts on our own hearts and souls and empowers us to act for the good. I am an old man and i am working to connect with every race; to bond in an enbrace around the world of people of good will who will flood the UN, the US government and all other world leader with a message to condemn their complicity, to shame them for their indifference as the voice of public opinion is feared by the powers that be when IT IS LOUD ENOUGH. I am waiting for that day. Will apathy win or will we speak out where it counts? What will we have if we attack each other? Look inside, confront your motives that you who write anti-semitic opinions, hateful word against the Holy Qur'an or any other religion or person will be guided by conscious awareness and not by prejudice and hate. Save this Forum from this poison, please. A Vioce greater than ours has spoken, "From two classes of men power has been seized, kings and ecclesiastics". The power is now in the hands of the people. This is the fear of the tyrant. Love and peace.
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Comment by Hope Suggit on January 7, 2009 at 12:03am
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Thank you for stating it all so plainly, Lynda. I am ignorant of the ways of the world. All I know is Peace. I ask you all...is it enough? Isn't that what we are focused on in this group? Let us pray...
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Comment by mufeed on January 7, 2009 at 12:00am
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Israel has already learned from the Holocaust in Europe, but unfortunately, Israel has learned how to be manufactured with the innocent people
The Palestinian people did not know murder ... Britain came and made the arrival of Jews to Palestine easy
And made the Balfour Declaration
Palestinians have learned over time how to be a murderer who had killed their parents
If you want peace is simply the application of the resolutions of the United Nations pulled out of the occupied Palestinian territories
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Comment by Ben Nuttall-Smith on January 6, 2009 at 11:54pm
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Why would someone post a picture of Pope John Paul above a letter filled with hate? Totally incongruous. This letter should not be here. It does absolutely nothing to help the situation. Trying not to catch the anger. Ben
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Comment by Clicia Pavan on January 6, 2009 at 11:54pm
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Lutar pela paz ,é ter justiça com os dois lados
Tirei porque respeitei sua opinião, mas já que tocou no assunto de novo
Se você quiser mando por e-mail toda a historia dessa Guerra e a verdade
Israel fez o possivel para não fazer o que está fazendo, ser justo é ter um compromisso com a verdade
Clicia Pavan
Fighting for peace is to have justice on both sides
Because I got to respect their opinion, but that touched on the subject of new
If you want to send by e-mail throughout the history of that war and the truth
Israel did not possible to do what you're doing, be fair is to have a commitment to truth
Clicia Pavan
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Linda was not my commentary, the truth was known by a journalist and seriously, took place here is not because of aggression, but I can paste it again, the truth is, Hama is cruell and terrorist, if you want me lap again
I will tell you that warped mind compared with traumatized children dead - Click Paven, although it has withdrawn its comment letter to the latter. And I do not
blame it to remove it - it was disgusting!
Linda is only because the cruell you pasted on israel? read and see the truth of the facts, escritopor serious and people who fight for truth in the real world for peace
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Linda não foi meu comentario, foi a verdade dita por um jornalista e sério, tirei porque aqui não é lugar de agressão, mas posso colar de novo, é a verdade,Hama é cruell e terrorista, se você quiser eu colo de novo
Vou dizer-lhe que warped mente comparados com as crianças traumatizadas mortos - Clicia Paven, embora ela tenha retirado o seu comentário a esta última carta. E eu não
culpo ela para removê-lo - isso foi nojento!
Linda porque só é cruell o que você colou, sobre israel?? leia e veja a verdade dos fatos , escritopor pessoas sérias e que lutam de verdade,no mundo real pela paz
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