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Conference taveng::bagels

Title:BAGELS and other things of Jewish interest
Notice:1.0 policy, 280.0 directory, 32.0 registration
Moderator:SMURF::FENSTER
Created:Mon Feb 03 1986
Last Modified:Thu Jun 05 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1524
Total number of notes:18709

419.0. "a fifth column?" by KYOA::MAGNES () Fri Dec 25 1987 01:01

    there has been much discussion about the unrest in the w.b and gaza,
    and how arab and jew need to sit down with each other, and learn
    how to co-exist.
    
    it seems to me that this is all dangerous wishful thinking...
    
    ...in light of the fact that it was not only w.b and gaza
    arabs that reacted against the state, but israels' very own 
    "loyal" arab citizens inside the green line, were guilty of the same
    treasonous acts. according to news reports "loyal" israeli arab ciizens
    rioted right in the heart of israel stoning buses in jaffa a suburb of
    tel-aviv, rioting was also reported in lod, nazareth, and other areas
    in the galil. the n.y times reported that tear gas was needed
    to disperse israeli arabs who were trying to block the main highway
    between tel-aviv and jerusalem.

    we have finaly seen the israeli arab brazenly strip away any pretense
    of being a loyal citizen. in essense the arab citzen has defiantely
    shown his true colors. he not only sympathizes with his brethren
    in the w.b and gaza by calling for  mass strikes, but to further
    show his solidarity the israeli arab citizen resorts to riots and
    violence against "his" own state.
    
    it is hard situation to face. but the simple fact is the the arabs
    whether in the e. bank or w. bank or what ever bank have never
    supported a jewish state. the very notion of a jewish state run
    counter to what the arab belives.
    
    there were many so called "progressive" jews, who of course believed
    in pluralism and democracy. these jews pointed with naive pride
    when mohamed massawra,an arab was appointed as general secretary
    of the israeli consulate in atlanta. as representative of the jewish
    state, i wonder if he supports and actively promotes aliyah, do
    you think he really wants to see more jews in israel. i imagine
    he might resent the fact that israeli representatives and schlichem
    supported by the gov't promote jewish aliyah but not arab. i wonder
    how he feels about the law of return, he might, as an arab feel upset
    that jews are given automatic citizenship and arabs are even
    discouraged from visting the state. or imagine his sense of pride
    of seeing his nat'l flag, the star of david, flying proudly in atlanta.
    how can this representative of a jewish state feel when his nat'l
    anthem speaks of the "soul of the jew yearning to be in zion," and
    what of his holidays,which take a back step to officaily celebrated
    jewish holidays. at the risk of going on with further examples the
    conclusion seems obvious.
    
    if some noters do have doubts about mr. massawra allegiance, i don't
    think we have to stretch our imagination to see how the arab
    population,in general whether in the w.b or tel-aviv might feel to
    these questions.
                                        
    if some noters are insensed at my stand. iwould only counter that
    if real democracy and pluralism is wanted for the arab let's stop
    this mere tokenism and appoint mr massawra as ambasador to the un.
    and lets start putting arabs in large numbers in areas dealing with
    nat'l security as for example  an arab could be appointed to head the
    mossad.minister of defense would be another real step forward for
    real democracy. if we are really true "progressive" liberals, let's not play
    games let's go all the way.
          
    some jews think that arabs can be bought. they feel that the arab
    only needs to have abetter standard of living to be happy, and with
    better educational opportunies the arab will be able to fully assimilate
    as aloyal arab citizens. but arabs do not live on bread alone. indoor
    plumbing does not gain loyality. this type of thinking could even
    be considered patronizing.
    
    as far as educational opportunities making a difference, it must
    be remembered that it is precisely in the universities where unrest
    and violence are instigated. indeed, it is in the schools where the hotbed
    of plo propaganda is spewed. one such school is hebrew university 
    not on the w.b but in jerusalem, h.u. is famous for its'
    enlightenment of the arab,it can boast to many famous alumni. sabri
    jiryis, reieved an m.a. in communications, is minister of info for the plo,
    amad ahakur, is advisor on israeli affairs for arafat,salem abdul
    jani, the london spokesman of the plo, has doctorate from h.u.
                                                  
    for those jews who want to get rid of the w.b and gaza so israel
    can rid itself of its' arab problem, in demographic terms ,since
    jews in the galut are not making aliyah but rather do a better job as
    spectators and commentators(i think i know that person!),the problem
    would only be postponed, in terms of the unrest and violence,
    what is to be done when arabs in the galil, riot and demand their own
    state, and what of e. jerusalem, should that be given up to
    placate arab demands.                           
    
    i think the only way to really make arabs on both banks happy,is for all
    jews in israel to packup and leave.
                                                                     
    IF IT WALKS LIKE A FIFTH COLUMN AND TALKS LIKE A FIFTH COLUMN........
                                                    
    
T.RTitleUserPersonal
Name
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419.1familiar rhetoricAIM::GOLDSTEINBaba ROM DOSMon Dec 28 1987 12:2054
.0 sounded a bit familiar... 
    <begin ever-so-slightly-edited-quote>
                              -< a fifth column? >-

    there has been much discussion about the unrest in the w.b and gaza,
    and how arab and jew need to sit down with each other, and learn
    how to co-exist.
    
    it seems to me that this is all dangerous wishful thinking...
    
    ...in light of the fact that it was not only Polish Jews that reacted
    against the state, but Germany's very own "loyal" Jewish citizens
    inside the third reich, were guilty of the same treasonous acts.

    we have finaly seen the German Jews brazenly strip away any pretense
    of being a loyal citizen. in essense the Jewish citzen has defiantely
    shown his true colors. he not only sympathizes with his brethren
    in russia and poland by calling for  mass strikes, but to further
    show his solidarity the jew resorts to riots and
    violence against "his" own state.
    
    it is hard situation to face. but the simple fact is the the jews
    whether in the germany or poland or what ever country have never
    supported a german state. the very notion of a german state run
    counter to what the jew belives.
    
    there were many so called "progressive" Germans, who of course believed
    in pluralism and democracy...    

    some germans think that jews can be bought. they feel that the jew
    only needs to have abetter standard of living to be happy, and with
    better educational opportunies the jew will be able to fully assimilate
    as aloyal german citizens. but jews do not live on bread alone. indoor
    plumbing does not gain loyality. this type of thinking could even
    be considered patronizing.
    
    as far as educational opportunities making a difference, it must
    be remembered that it is precisely in the universities where unrest
    and violence are instigated. indeed, it is in the schools where the hotbed
    of zionist propaganda is spewed. 
                                                      
    for those germans who want to get rid of poland so germany 
    can rid itself of its' jewish problem, in demographic terms...
    would only be postponed, in terms of the unrest and violence,
    what is to be done when jews in germany riot and demand their own
    state, and what of Berlin, should that be given up to
    placate jewish demands.                           
    
    i think the only way to really make jews on both banks happy,is for all
    germans in germany to packup and leave.
                                                                     
    IF IT WALKS LIKE A FIFTH COLUMN AND TALKS LIKE A FIFTH COLUMN........
                                                    
<end slightly modified extract>    
419.2Won't workYOUNG::YOUNGMon Dec 28 1987 12:278
    Would the Jews leaving really make the Arabs happy?  I'll bet there
    would be a war between the Arabs about who got which "spoils" and
    who got to govern where.
    
    Is that the best solution you can come up with?
    
    				Paul
    
419.3CURIE::FEINBERGDon FeinbergMon Dec 28 1987 13:3527
re:  .-1
>	(1) Would the Jews leaving really make the Arabs happy?  
>
>	(2) I'll bet there would be a war between the Arabs about who 
>	got which "spoils" and who got to govern where.
>    
	These two statements are somewhat disconnected.

	The answer to (1) is: YES, from the point of view that the Arabs
	would finally get rid of the Jews in Israel. The Qoran insists its
	believers NOT live peacefully under any non-Islamic government. 
	[Actually, not ALL the Jews would have to leave.  There's a proposal 
	making the rounds in Israel lately that "only" the Jews who came since 
	'48 would have to leave, as a condition that the Arab states would 
	then recognize Israel as a joint Arab/Jewish state.  Of course, then 
	there'd be 1.5 million Arabs (the 1987 population) and 0.4 million 
	Jews (the 1948 population) in "Israel".]

	Will that make the Arabs truly _happy_?  I don't know. I think
	that "happiness" in this context is somewhat difficult to speak of.
	The stated (and in-practice) goal is nothing more, nor less than 
	the removal of the Jews from Israel, by whatever means necessary.

	And (2): Maybe. Probably. Maybe not. Does it matter (to Jews), 
	if the Jews were to have lost their country again?

/don feinberg
419.4CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Mon Dec 28 1987 14:1622
    Re: .0
    
    Well, about tear gas being needed to disperse the Israeli Arabs
    who were demonstrating, there was film on tv last night about tear
    gas being used on the Israeli Jews who were demonstrating for peace.
    (The tear gas companies must be making a fortune.)
    
    There have also been many comments from the older generation of
    Palestinians about their realization that "The state of Israel is
    not going to go away" and "We must live in coexistence with it."
     It's the young kids who know Israelis only in the role of security
    interrogators who are more polarized.  Time to come to an agreement
    now, while there are still moderate forces left to deal with, I
    think.  There's a whole article on this aspect in this morning's
    N.Y. Times.
    
    It's been a couple of generations since my grandfather come to the
    U.S. from Denmark, but you can bet if some analogous situation existed
    between the U.S. and Denmark, I'd be protesting in the streets.
    Does protesting a government policy or having a special emotional
    attachment to another country make one a disloyal citizen?
    
419.5KYOA::MAGNESMon Dec 28 1987 22:4080
re:.1 
    a clever response,though stretching the pt.
    
    it seems to me,that your analogy of arabs living in israel,and the
    jews of germany, is so basicaly flawed that the subject is difficult
    to discuss given your perceived viewpoint. are you actually comparing
    nazi germany to the vast amount of israeli jews, who recognize the
    arab problem for what it is?
    
    contrary to your point, german jews were famous for their assimilation
    and identification with the "fatherland." most german jews considered
    themselves true german patriots,indeed many served with distinction
    in ww1. in comparrison the israeli arab does not even serve in "his"
    army. the notion that the german jew, who was considered anything but
    violent  posed any threat to germany is ridiculious.given the fact that
    german jews made up such a tiny percentage of the total population, 
    they would still have posed no threat, even if they were a violent
    people and seeked a jihad against germany. nor was germany in the
    same situation, with respect to its' jewish citizens, as israel is today
    in its relationship to its' arab "brethren." as we well remember
    germany was not surrounded by hostile jewish countries seeking 
    its' destruction. nor were german jews ever supporting an equivalent
    of the plo (jlo) as israeli arabs do,according to opinion polls
    taken inside israel proper. when israeli arabs come out and support
    that piece of garbage called the plo, they are making a bold statement
    to all jews.
    
    if we don't recognize the threat from the arab citizen when they
    riot in the heart of israel jaffa a suburb of tel-aviv, when will
    we? do we need bigger riots a few more murders perhaps. 
    
    since you really didn't address the questions in my base note, let
    me ask you straight out, if as a progressive person which i perceive
    you to be, believe that israeli arabs are loyal citizens and deserve
    equal treatment, how would you feel about having arabs in greater
    numbers involved  in israeli security. to be very fair a sort of
    affirmative action plan could be implemented to right the wrongs
    of the past. an arab as head of the mossad would be a giant step
    towards real pluralism. no more tokenism let's go for the gusto.
    if their equal, so be it, let's go all the way. arabs could be in
    the defense ministry or the shin bet, better helping israeli's
    protect themselves from hostile arab countries. they  could probably
    be also a real plus when it came to dealing with security on the w.b.
    and gaza. i'm sure they would look out for jewish interests, that
    junk about suppoting the plo is probably only talk nothing to worry
    about. i have some other ideas with regards to REAL pluaralism.
    if israel really wants to be democratic the first step has got to
    be to repeal the law of return. i'm sure u must favor an arab law
    of return. what are your feelings when the israeli gov't officially
    promotes jewish aliyah, but not arab. truly racist, the nat'l anthem
    that speaks of jews yearining for their homeland could also be changed
    to include verses that deal with arab aspirations. there are many
    more  obvious contradictory examples,but i think you get the pt. its'
    funny even left of center parties who wouldn't ever claim a bad thing
    against the israeli arab, worrily speaks about the arabization of galilee.
    these left of center jews also are promoting jewish not arab settlement in
    these areas. it all sounds pretty racist to me. 
    
    if you have any doubts about REAL democracy as we want for all
    minorities in the states, then maybey you have seen the light. if
    not then maybey your ideas are influenced by the fact that you and
    i for that matter are a long way from the problem and can afford
    to be so "progressive." 
    
    i am not presenting any solutions here. i think at the very least
    we have to identify a problem for what it is. in light of the fact
    that the arab birthrate is much higher than the jewish birthrate,
    and diaspora zionism is just that, the problem is only going to
    get worse.
    
    the one analogy to war time germany, though a little out of leftfield
    is that of neville chamberlin who also couldn't see the writing
    on the wall. he felt as i perceive you to feel, that by not recognizing
    a problem tough decisions can be avoided until its' to late, and
    options are limited. it is not hard to conceive that with the high
    arab birthrate there could be an arab party with 20 seats in the
    not to distant future if not 20 years then 50 years but someday
    they will reach equality in terms of population and representation.
    but since israeli arabs are loyal and support a jewish state, let
    them grow and prosper.
419.6CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Mon Dec 28 1987 23:487
    re: .3  "The Quran insists its believers not live peacefully under any
    non-Islamic government." 
    
    My recollection is that this passage requires the government officials
    to also be religious officials.  Too bad for Saudi Arabia, Algeria,
    etc.  I guess they are in big trouble.
    
419.7not so fast....CURIE::FEINBERGDon FeinbergTue Dec 29 1987 09:2219
reply to < Note 419.6 by CIRCUS::KOLLING "Karen, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif." >

>    re: .3  "The Quran insists its believers not live peacefully under any
>    non-Islamic government." 
>    
>    My recollection is that this passage requires the government officials
>    to also be religious officials.  Too bad for Saudi Arabia, Algeria,
>    etc.  I guess they are in big trouble.

	I understand here that you mean this sarcastically. (It's kind of
	hard to hear your tone of voice via NOTES). Now, assuming this:

	I think that that sarcasm is terribly inappropriate. 
	In fact, the Saudi regime's major domestic problem is _exactly_ 
	this. It is a major issue in other Muslim countries, such as Egypt 
	(and others).  They ARE in trouble over this. And it IS unfortunate 
	for them.

/don feinberg
419.8tell people they're scum and expect friendship?AIM::GOLDSTEINBaba ROM DOSTue Dec 29 1987 11:0820
    re:.5
    Once again you rely on "reducto ad absurdum" to argue the usual
    Kach-falange points.
    
    As many of us have pointed out (especially in that rather lengthy
    topic about the unrest, above), there are alternatives.  Establishing
    a dual-state region (Israel, a demilitarized Arab Palestine) would
    go a long way towards reducing the tensions.  And in the absence
    of tensions, Israeli Arabs (who would be a distinct minority) might
    have a much better time fitting in.  And yes, then (after a peace
    settlement) they could be proportionately represented in the security
    forces, government, etc.
    
    But while the government is practicing blatant racism and early-Kipling
    territorial expansionism, it's pretty hard to imagine Arabs wanting
    to participate in any big way.  Jews didn't have to be explicitly
    refused admission to Hitler's SS, either.

    Of course if you figger Ay-rabbs to be just a bunch of savage natives
    (injuns, etc.) things get tougher.
419.9CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Tue Dec 29 1987 15:2910
    Re: .7 and the question of "non-Islamic governments"
    
    No, I wasn't trying to be sarcastic.  Mildly humorous perhaps. 
    My understanding is that extremist elements ranging from small to
    not so small exist in various countries and have raised this issue.
    My point is that a jillion Muslims currently live under governments
    that don't conform to this restriction, and (everywhere but Iran?)
    the majority of them do not seem to feel that it is an issue, so
    I question the assertion that it applies in any significant sense to
    Israeli Arabs.  Sorry if I seemed insensitive.
419.10KYOA::MAGNESWed Dec 30 1987 17:5450
    RE:.8
    first of all you are making a an assumption, that i agree with the
    kach party. all i did was state a problem, which is recognized by
    many areas of israeli society not only the kach party.
    
    you have proven youself to be indeed a progressive person, in favoring
    arabs taking a larger part in gov't. but i think you qualified that
    arab participation, by suggesting that arabs will have to wait in
    the sidelines until there is a peaceful solution. i sort of notices
    a little hesitation.
    
    i also noticed that you carefull seemed to aviod my other pts. again.
    that is,  are you in favor of repealing the law of return
    are you in favor of promoting arab aliyah by israeli representatives?
    what about hte nat'l anthem? if not and you any doubt as i said
    before then you youself may not see arabs and jews as being equal.
    you may by your own standards not be as progressive as you like to
    think of yourself. if you are in favor of these measures then you
    surely would not be supporting a jewish state. do you honestly believe
    that arabs in gov't would be promoting aliyah bringing more jews
    into the state. please address these pts. a little more directly.
    
    does it occur to you that there are no arabs with your type of
    conviction when it comes to goodwill and accepting a jewish country.
    in light of the fact that arabs inside the green line support the
    plo. does that at all raise any doubt in your mind. the plo as i
    am sure your are aware, do not just want the w.b. they want tel-aviv
    haifa ect..they themselves say this in their charter. what else
    do you need, to at the very least to put some doubt in your mind
    of arab loyality. again as i said before arabs have killed jews
    long before there was an israel. the simple fact is they don't want
    a jewish state. why is that so hard to accept or let's put it it
    this way what makes you think that israeli arabs can accept a jewish
    state.
    
    you also said that israel is an expansionst state, you really do
    let the adjectives fly.i hope you don't mind, but if i seem to take
    the kach line which i never said i did, you seem to be taking the
    typical arab line. the idea of israel being an expansionst country
    really does not even deserve a response. where are your facts to
    back this absurd statement. whose jurisdiction is sinai uner now!
    wasn't the w.b. captured after israel was attacked after it was
    occupied by jordan. the only reason the w.b. is under israeli control
    is because there have been noone for the israelis' to talk with,
    unless you support the plo as representable partner
                
    in your quest for righteousness dont't let naivety and guilt get
    in your way. i doubt if arabs care half as much for jews as you
    do for arabs. it doesn't pay to be blindly ideastic, jews aren't
    going to go to heaven any faster than non jews.
419.11CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Wed Dec 30 1987 18:5211
    Re: .10
    
    About what evidence exists that the PLO and Israeli Arabs can accept
    a Jewish state:  I refer you to my replies in the parallel topic
    -- 406.48 and the first paragraph of 406.44;  it seems wasteful
    of disk space to copy them again.
    
    Possibly the reason not all of your points are replied to is that
    your messages are somewhat difficult to read;  don't you have an
    uppercase key?
    
419.12KYOA::MAGNESWed Dec 30 1987 20:231
    actually its' broke and plus i know it aggravates certain people
419.13KYOA::MAGNESWed Dec 30 1987 22:1347
    re:.11
    i do want to respond to your notion of "moderate" elements in
    the plo. what is your definition of moderate, and can you identify
    any of these "moderate" elements.
    
    as far as i know the only moderate arabs that speak out on the w.b
    are instantly murdered. the w.b has a long history of dead moderate
    arabs.
    
    according to opinion polls taken in the w.b.arabs not only support
    the plo, as their couterparts the "loyal" israeli arabs do, but
    overwhelmingly upwards of 95% support armed struggle against jews
    to obtain their goals.
    
    if you mean by moderate, yassar arafat and his thugs. i have a little
    info for you. three arabs associated with al fatah, a gang headed
    by that "moderate" murderer, arafat, were caught infiltrating into
    israel earlier  this week. the automatic weapons and grenades they
    had in their possession, could hardly be considered conducive to
    setting up an atmosphere of peaceful negotation. the moderate arafat
    as he labeled by the media, has neve renounced his desire to destroy
    israel nor has any so called "moderate" arab ever called  for a
    change in the plo charter. the plo charter still states that they
    will not stop their "armed struggle" until all of israel tel-aviv
    haifa, ect. is under their occupation.
    
    arafat knows what he wants, he boldly says so, its' just a shame
    jews don't. iknow it is hard to accept the fact that some people
    have no respect for democracy or peace. at the risk of sounding  
    patronizing, there are in the real world people who just don't want
    peace.
    
    as an example of peaceful coexistence one has only to look north
    to lebanon. at one time the christians were a majority and a dominant
    force, and lebanon was considered the paris of the middle east.
    with the high birthrate of the muslim population muslims started
    contending for power and the situstion deteriorated. christians
    and muslims ended up massacring each other, and civil war soon
    followed. with the inclusion of the plo and the syrians, lebanon
    as a state, virtually ceased to exist. 
    
    if arab christian and arab muslim get along this well. what do you
    suppose would happen with so called arab jewish coexistence.
    
    come on, let's be realistic. let's see the world as it really is
    not the way we wish it could be. 
    
419.14CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Wed Dec 30 1987 22:4312
    Re: .13
    
    Have you read any of the replies in the parallel note (406)?  I've
    discussed a great deal of this there and I don't want to type it
    all in again (and I know no one who's already read it there wants
    to read it here again).  An example of a moderate Palestinian is
    someone like Edward Said (see his book "The Question of Palestine"),
    who wants coexistent Israeli and Palestinian states, or Mubarak
    Awad, who advocates the application of Ghandi's philosophy of
    non-violent resistance to attain that goal.
    
    
419.15KYOA::MAGNESWed Dec 30 1987 23:1717
    re:.13
    in your reference to edward said, who i believe teaches at
    columbia u., is also a supporter of the plo. if he supports the
    plo how can he be a follower of ghandi. i think we have to be 
    careful of so called moderates, who speak out of both sides of their
    mouth. as i said before the only moderate arabs have already been
    murdered  by so called "moderate" arabs in the w.b. and if they are
    not dead they sure ain't talking.
    
    if you believe there are moderate elements in the plo. then you
    probably believe there were moderate elements in the s.s. in germany.                         
             
    the fact is arabs on both side sof the green line support the plo.
    a simple fact. and the plo regardless of where they are supported,
    syria,iraq,libya are nothing but a gang of mutants who seek terror
    to gain their objectives. a simple fact hard to accept, but a fact
    never the less.
419.16KYOA::MAGNESWed Dec 30 1987 23:2413
    by the way i almost forgot mr. awad is also a self proclaimed supporter
    of the plo. if these people are so peace loving, then their most
    obvious step is to renounce the plo as simple terrorist organization.
    
    mr. awad has also called for mass strikes by arabs in his quest.
    for a so called homeland. not a very positive approach to bring to a 
    negotiating table.
    
    it seems to me that mr. awad is very smart he has generated interst
    in israel. he knows how to use the media to his advantage.
    
    he still supports the plo, and therefore we have to question his
    true agenda.
419.17What should Israel do, KYOA::MAGNES?YOUNG::YOUNGThu Dec 31 1987 10:2917
    Re: .-1, etc
    
    You (KYOA::MAGNES) sound to me like you are saying that peace between
    the Jewish Israelis and the Arabs both within and outside of Israel
    is impossible.  If that is the case, I can only think of two
    alternatives for Israel:
    
    1.  Kill all the Arabs, both inside and outside of Israel.
    
    2.  Given that there are far more Arabs than Israelis, and their
        birthrate is higher, expect that eventually Israel will be
        overwhelmed. 
    
    Do you have another alternative?
    
    				Paul
    
419.18CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Thu Dec 31 1987 14:3830
    Re: last few from magnes
    
    The difference between our views seems to be that you see the PLO
    as totally uniform in its views and actions, comprised entirely
    of "terrorists", while I see it as now having some extremist members
    but in addition having many members whose views have
    evolved significantly over the past couple of decades, to the point
    where they accept the idea of two coexistent states, Israel and
    Palestine.  I believe that Said and Awad are in the later category.
    Both deplore the use of violence, and both support recognition of
    the PLO as the spokesbody(?) for the Palestinians.  The latter should
    be understood in terms of the Israeli/U.S. positions with regard
    to Jordan, etc., which are viewed by the Palestinians as a further
    denial of Palestinian national rights.
    
    Said lives in the U.S., Awad in the occupied territories.
    
    Awad's calling for strikes to make things sufficiently uncomfortable
    for the Israeli leadership so that they might start to negotiate
    would certainly be consistent with a non-violent approach.
    I wish I thought it would work.
    
    I'd also like to say that I do understand the Israeli desire that
    Israel be a "Jewish state" as opposed to a democracy, because of
    the special need for protection that the Jewish people understandably
    feel.  I support this, provided that Palestine exists also.  I also
    don't think that it is incompatible with having Israeli Arab citizens
    as long as everyone is pragmatic.
    
                                                             
419.19PARVAX::MAGNESSun Jan 03 1988 21:4247
    re:.18                                                   
    awad and said are both americans,awad left israel years ago. neither
    one of them can negotiate for anyone. at the risk of beating a dead
    horse to death, isay again that moderation and the plo are a
    contradiction in terms. have you ever wondered why the overwhelming
    majority of israeli jews have that same opinion. the only truly
    moderate arabs are either murderd by the plo or forced to keep their
    mouth shut. if the plo is the only group that the arabs want as
    their representative, then let the arabs suck wind. how peace loving
    can these arabs be, to support such an organization.
    
    i mentioned this earlier, would you have considered the s.s. in
    germany to have had moderate elements? if they didn't hate the jews
    or believe all their nazi propaganda, then they wouldn't have been
    in the s.s. 
                                                       
    
    you refer to the w.b. as occupied territories, we should stop being
    brain washed by propaganda. we have to remember that this land was
    liberated after jordan had occupied and annexed for 20 yrs starting
    in 1948. it was only after jordan attacked israel in 1967 that israel
    libertated this area. i wish we could all get our history straight
    and then we wouldn't get confused by these negative connotations.
    what the hell, liberated territories is a good enough term as any.
    as far as the term palestinian, if one want to use that description
    then israeli jews are as much palestinian as their arab "brethren".
    
    i very rarely hear jordan mentioned as a homeland for these arabs.
    since it makes up  about 85% of what was the original british mandate.
    its' population is made up of these so called palestinain arabs. looks
    to me as if it wouldn't be a bad place at all for the arabs of the
    w.b to call their homeland, since that is wha it is. but again the
    plo is not interested in real pragmatic solutions. during 20 years
    of jordanian occupation, in conditions that were truly horrendous,
    there was no one yelling or cying out for a so called homeland.
    only when israel found itself in control of the w.b., did we all
    of a sudden hear the noise. we only have to look a little deeper
    than what we hear in the news to see that there is  a different
    agenda and it has nothing to do with peaceful co-existence. 
    
    it seems that arafat knows what he wants, he say so. we only have
    to pay attention to his words and deeds and take alook at the plo
    charter to get past the confusion. if arafat knows and says what he
    wants, then maybey we should all take off our blinders an listen.
    
    again if you can tell me of any plo moderates, i would be appreciative
    it.
419.20CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Mon Jan 04 1988 14:1411
    Re: .19
    
    Awad lives in the occupied territories, although Israel is trying
    to deport him.  He was born there.  He feels that U.S. citizenship
    ahould no more cause him to lose the right to live there than it
    would cause an Israeli Jew, many of whom have U.S. citizenship,
    to lose the right to live in Israel.
    
    I hope some folks got to see David Brinkley's program yesterday,
    on which Said appeared.
    
419.21IOSG::LEVYQA BloodhoundTue Jan 05 1988 14:137
    Re: PLO Charter
    
    Would you mind quoting this so we all know what it says?
    
    Malcolm

    
419.22Arabs are also the descendants of Adam.30207::ASHRAFMuhammad - &quot;Here today, gone tomorrow&quot;Thu Jan 07 1988 17:0361
	I have been reading this conference to get a better understanding 
	of the Jewish religion and culture.  I have found it very 
	interesting in general.


	Unfortunately, this particular topic started out in .0 with
	bashing and expressions of hatred against "all" arabs,
	exactly the same type of behavior that the author of .0 has 
	accused the arabs of!!!  The proof is in the pudding.
	It is tragic that this attitude pervades the leadership on 
    	both sides of the fence in that area, and has become a way of
    	life for a lot of people there.  The super-powers are not
    	making it any easier either, since for them it is but a 
    	game of international chess.


	No claims have been made that arab states are democracies, but 
	if I were to belong to a nation that indulges in injustices 
	against a certain segment of the population, that I accuse 
	others of, then I don't have a right to call that nation a 
	democracy, no matter what other nations in the area do. 
	If I don't like that behavior, then, in a democracy, I have a 
	right to express myself, without being labelled a traitor 
	no matter what my race, color, creed, caste, or religion is.  
	Remember, Nazi party and KKK could not be banned in the US, no 
	matter how unpleasant that may be for most of the populace
	(Presumption of innocence, until proven guilty).


	Who has said that democracy comes easy?  A price has to be 
	paid for that.  But that is a smaller price to pay than what
	might be paid for suppression and domination.


	Anyway, the primary reason I am writing this note is re: .3


>	would finally get rid of the Jews in Israel. The Qoran insists its
>  	believers NOT live peacefully under any non-Islamic government. 


	I have been reading the Qur'an for many years, and many times over.
	I have not come across any single verse extolling the followers 
	to do what is quoted above.  The statement seems to have been based 
	on either misunderstanding or distortion of the facts related to 
	Jihad (struggle against injustices), which has nothing to do with 
	either Islamic or non-Islamic government.  The war in Afghanistan 
	would fall under this category, where the government is supposed 
    	to be "Islamic".


	There are more non-arab muslims in the world than there are arab 
	muslims.  Also, a fair percentage of arabs (including Palestinians) 
	are non-muslims.  About 80% or so of all refugees in the world are
    	muslims, if that means anything.  The dispute here is not about 
    	living peacefully under Islamic or non-Islamic government but
    	that of claims to the territory of Palestine.  As a result, I 
    	don't see any relationship between the quoted verse from the
    	Qur'an and the context being discussed.
              
419.23You're mistakenFSLENG::CHERSONand what&#039;s your raison d&#039;etre?!Thu Jan 07 1988 17:579
    re:-1
    
    Muhammed, I think you were reading the earlier responses wrong.
    No one ever stated hatred of Arabs.  You can search every note in
    this conference, but you'll never find one statement of hatred (Our
    moderator monitors such things:-).  I think that you are confusing
    criticism of Arab governments and political organizations with racism.
    
    David
419.24No, he isn't.CIRCUS::KOLLINGKaren, Sweetie, Holly; in Calif.Thu Jan 07 1988 18:246
    Re: .23
    
    Well, I don't think we should spend more than 30 seconds on this
    point, but I got the same impression as Muhammed.  I mean, "a gang
    of mutants"?  "that piece of garbage"?
    
419.25DIEHRD::MAHLERMordecai ben MosheFri Jan 08 1988 11:084
    Please curtail this "yes he is"/"no he isn't" dreck.  If the guy
    feels that way, so be it.

419.26A RetractionFSLENG::CHERSONand what&#039;s your raison d&#039;etre?!Fri Jan 08 1988 11:557
    I think that I'd like to retract .23, as I replied to this note
    thinking it was 406 (not too many neurons working!).  
    
    I would like to state that outside of this note, I have never seen
    an instance of hatred towards any other people written.
    
    David
419.27Is it me or you? Who?GNMRCI::ASHRAFMuhammad - &quot;Here today, gone tomorrow&quot;Fri Jan 08 1988 13:0525
re: .23

David, as I said earlier, I have found this conference to be very 
informative in understanding the Jewish religion and culture.  In
particular, it is interesting to know how people in this country are 
maintaining their culture, and be able to gather for worship.


If you go back and read .22, you will find that I was alluding to
just the topic that started in 419.0, and the discussion that ensued
here, not the conference in general. (Though I have since found a 
couple more topics in the same vein.  But still I don't contend that to 
be in any way typical for the conference).  Even incorrect passages 
were quoted from the Qur'an to lay blame.  Since the people on the
West Bank and in Gaza don't have an Arab government or a political
organization within that area to speak of, I don't see how these could 
be the targets of criticism?


Again, I would like to STRESS that I am not characterizing the whole 
conference as such.  I read some sensible responses even under 419.*
(Thank G-d)!!!  My purpose here is to get a better understanding,
not to criticize across-the-board, so I'll just move away from this
topic, as others have done.             (|:-))  ============>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> bye