Approximately 20 activists protested Ricky’s yesterday evening on Montague Street, some waving Palestine flags, and holding signs encouraging boycott of an Israeli-made cosmetics company called Ahava whose products are carried by the store. Video after the jump.
The protesters appear to have included members of Code Pink, as signs reference a “Brooklyn for Peace” organization which is affiliated with the Code Pink group. BHB readers may recall that the Code Pink group orchestrated a similar protest in front of Ricky’s back in July of this year.
Approximately an equal number of pro-Israel supporters counterprotested, some waving Israeli flags, holding signs, and chanting slogans such as “Not one inch!”.
Two NYPD officers stood between the two groups to keep order, all the while typing on their smart phones (perhaps updating Facebook statuses?).
According to other news accounts, Ricky’s has refused to remove the Ahava products and when boycott protests occur, sales of the products actually increase.
See video for a glimpse at the noisy scene.
Cudos to Ricky’s for not being bamboozled by a bunch of buffoons….
This is just silly. They aren’t accomplishing anything at all. If they want to make a difference they should actively protest Ahava, not a store that carries Ahava. Am I right?
Hooray for courageous people standing up for international law and in support of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israeli policies in Gaza and the West Bank.
I should hold a rally to restore sanity.
Who has time to waste on this IN-sanity?
I was dumbfounded to see Orthodox Jews donning wigs at this event. Blue, white, Elvis. I was left to wonder if they hadn’t purchased them up the block at Ricky’s Halloween costume outlet. Whatever the thought process was behind that decision, it only diminished their protest, and any arguments supporitng it, to the outer fringes of acceptance.
Yeah Carol, let’s boycott every product that comes from an unscrupulous company. then we can walk around (because we’d have no cars or gas), naked (because the clothes we wear are all made in sweatshops), hungry (because our food comes from corporations like Monsanto and ADM), sick (because the pharmaceutical and medical insurance companies are gouging crooks) and of course cold (because we’d have no oil)…
This is America- nobody freakin cares about all that israel/palestine crap- Thats their issue to deal with over there. It’s bad enough we’ve been hearing about it our whole damn lives. It’s like watching two jealous twin sisters fighting over a dress in someone else’s house. I don’t care about Israel. I don’t care about Palestine. I hope they both blow each other off the map so we can get on with our lives and Halloween. I am gonna go to Rickys and buy some ahava brand crap whatever it may be!!!!!!
Some protests are counterproductive. If it weren’t for the idiots picketing in front of the planned parenthood on Court Street, I never would have known where to go if I need an abortion.
Seems like these protesters are giving free publicity to a product no one had ever heard of.
The sea salt is great for arthritis pain and the body wash is nice and creamy. Chag Sameach!!!
Ahava products are made in a factory in an illegal settlement in the Occupied West Bank. The company’s practices violate international law. You can read more about the growing international boycott campaign against Ahava because of its illegal practices here: http://www.stolenbeauty.org.
Uh, James, speak for yourself–as you have–but not for all.
There’s this thing about the human community nowadays: we’re all connected. It’s a global globe. Every shot is heard round the world.
Wonder why nobody is boycotting Sahadi on Atlantic!? Is it possible that part of the money that people spend there goes to support terrorism?
James and others need to know that the US has never been nuetral regarding this conflict. Billions of our tax dollars go to Israel every year to support the illegal occupation and land theft in Palestine. If you care about international law that prohibits exploitation of conquered territory, you should support the boycott of Ahava procucts.
Also, to remind our religious friends, one of the commandments is “Thou shalt not steal”,or “covet what belongs to your neighbor”
Fred
Informed Consumer and Fred-
“Illegal Settlements” and “illegal occupation”- That is not a fact, that is your opinion.
Sahadi’s owned by Christian Lebanese, not Islamic extremists.
Occupied territories …well, perhaps we should all pack up and go back to Europe so that the native Indians could get back their lands.
Hey Nancy,
The settlements are illegal under international law. The occupation was called a “belligerent occupation” by Israel’s Supreme Court. Check out http://www.whoprofits.org (a project of the Israeli Coalition of Women for Peace) for more information on settlement profiteers.
Informed Consumer, are you ready to pack up your belongings and go back to wherever you or your ancestors came from?
…no, much better to have declared war on the “natives,” driven them off their lands, interned them on reservations–done our best to eradicate them.
Shall we learn from history or not?
brooklynheightzer, That sounds like a great idea. South of France here I come!!!
There you go – we already have one volunteer.
To the blog owner: you might avail yourself of this tool known as “Google” which will inform you that Brooklyn for Peace and Code Pink are in fact different groups, with different websites.
Are people really arguing that because we committed genocide against Native Americans it’s OK for Israel to ethnically cleanse Palestine? What’s the argument? They’re bad too! That’s not an argument. That’s the complaint of a child.
Apartheid is just as wrong in Israel as it was in South Africa!
Two wrongs never made one right. Also, Israel does not give equal rights to people if they are not Jewish. There are roads for Jews only and settlements (illegle under international law). This is apartheid, and your tax money is supporting this. Ethnic cleansing and unequal treatment under the law, cannot and should not be justified, no matter what ones religion or ethnic background is.
Hey people, boycotts work!! It’s working, as the Israeli government are threatening to severely punish organisations within Israel that encourage the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. It’s having an effect! Keep it up! Apartheid Israel is circling the drain!
Boycotts put American businesses that discriminated against minorities out if business, ended Apartheid in South Africa and now will also put an end to the inhuman, vicious apartheid regime in Israel. Boycotting Ahava allows people to participate in helping to put an end to a slow-motion genocide of a people that’s being carried out by one of America’s most bloodthirsty client states.
The settlement where Ahava is manufactured IS illegal according to the fourth Geneva Convention and countless UN resolutions. Israel feels that it can ignore international law, do as it pleases and feels that it can put itself above the accountability of civilised nations.
How many of you were in Gaza or the West Bank? I’ve been there several times and saw children being shot at and arrested, families watching helplessly as their homes were bulldozed. I waited with hundreds of other Palestinians for hours to go through checkpoints where some women are even forced to give birth while Israeli soldiers laugh and joke, people being detained indefinitely, etc… I can go on and on….
I urge everyone with any conscience to boycott Ahava and Rickys, as well as keep up a regular presence demonstrating against the stolen goods that are on sale. In London, we have large demonstrations every two weeks and several times closed the Ahava shop which resulted in several of us being arrested. Do you know what? We were found ‘not guilty’ when the company refused to go to court because they did not want details of their ILLEGAL activities being disclosed in open court! For those of you who support Ahava and Rickys, is this the company whose products you want on sale in Brooklyn? Ahava takes resources from Palestinian Land without permission or compensation, which makes them illegal! DEAD SEA MUD = PALESTINIAN BLOOD. Boycott Ahava! Boycott Rickys!!
Our tax money supports a lot of states, countries and people including Bin Laden (some thirty years ago) and unwittingly other current or prospective terrorists. So I would not use “tax money” as an argument here. Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. In fact the Israeli’s democracy is why Palestinians are still there. Israel could have easily annexed the territories they occupied after they defeated Jordan and Egypt during the Six Day war launched by a group of the Arab countries.
All Jewish people did was went back to their country of original from which they were driven some two thousand years ago and later prosecuted during the rest of their history. The last major Diaspora was precipitated in 70 AC when Titus destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. WW2 and the Holocaust (yes it did happen) was a major impetus for the Jews to go back to the country of their origin. AEB, to learn from history first you should know history.
Palestinians aka beguines had two thousand years to build a civilized country there. Well we all know what they have achieved. Israelis built a vibrant democracy in some 50 years. Now the country greatly contributes to the entire world in many areas of science, medicine (why do not you people boycott Israeli pharmaceutical companies that save your lives) literature, arts etc. And by the way, Ahava is hiring a lot of Arabs and these very Palestinians that you are defending so passionately. I am not a Jew but I went to Israel and was amazed by the country they built – a true Oasis in a desert. Give this land to the Palestinians and, I think, you know what this Oasis is going to turn into…
Hey, Carl. Boycotts don’t work. Not only did Rickys sell out of Ahava again, this scene has been repeated throughout the country. In Silver Spring, Maryland, the products sold out in 2 hours. You are creating zionists where none existed before, and whats more, you are mobilizing and motivating the Jewish people and the supporters of Israel
In America, the BDS movement has been flailing and failing since its onset. Ten years of failures, Carl. Trader Joes refused to submit. The BDS day of action against Trader Joes last summer led to sold out stores throughout the country. The Davis coop, the Seattle coop, the port Townsend coop have all rejected BDS. Stores, schools, municipalties have all rejected BDS
Information from the very best website on BDS in America
http://www.divestthis.com
“During the very period when BDS was supposedly on the march, the size of Israel’s economy (as measured by GDP) nearly doubled from $110B to $190B. ”
” Israeli exports are growing rapidly and fueling the hot Israeli economy that the boycotters have spent the better part of a decade working tirelessly to bring to its knees. And as far as divestment (i.e., stopping the flow of investment dollars into Israel) goes, as has been recently documented the European venture capital markets currently invest more in Israel than they do in any single European country. In other words, even in Europe (which has been the target of even more aggressive boycott and divestment activities than the US) the BDS formula that translates investment and divestment into political support indicates overwhelming enthusiasm for the Jewish state.”
And finally…
“Yes, as it turns out, after nearly ten years of BDS-related propaganda targeting Israel’s most important ally, the United States, support for Israel has grown almost 20 percentage points.”
http://www.divestthis.com/2010/03/running-numbers.html
To the Zionist coward who doesn’t even have the courage to leave his/her own name:
I heard it all before. They said the same thing about the civil rights movement and South African apartheid. They even said the same thing about the Suffragettes.
Time is on our side. Sooner or later, the racist apartheid government/state of Israel will cease to exist if it continues on its present path. Its suffering a death of a million cuts.
Readers note how this poster tries to skirt around the human rights abuses carried out by Israel. I don’t know anyone who after reading any of the accounts of Operation Cast Lead, the use of white phosperous and the Israeli pirate actions regarding the Mavi Marmara and other ships, etc, suddendly declared themselves Zionists. Most decent humans would find abhorent a movement that puts one group of people above another.
If the BDS movement is not working and the Israeli economy is so “hot”, then why did the Israeli government threaten to severely punish organisations within Israel that promote the boycott movement?
Sounds like a democracy to me!
The “crisis” in the Middle East is really stupid. Bunch of selfish dopes on both sides arguing over a comic book. Get real people. Take off the stupid costumes and have a shot and a beer.
btw..they sell Ahava at City Chemists also
@Max: Perhaps YOU should use Google, as many Google search results exist that show the affiliation between “Brooklyn for Peace” and Code Pink.
@Carl B: You sound a lot like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. In fact some of your wording is identical to his recent speeches.
So Carl, Hamas just launched missles containing white phosphorus against Israel. Silence from the world .
The Mavi Marmara passengers were armed with knives, clubs, and after they completed their attack on the Israeli soldiers, two were in critical condition- and a half dozen others hospitalized. But the passengers knew this was the plan- they had taken martyrdom videos of themselves. They were out for blood. Amongst the “humanitraian aid” found for Gaza was night vision googles, bullet proof vests, and gas masks.
Why is the world silent when Israelis are attacked? Why was there no response when 10,000 rockets fell on the Israeli town of Sderot, well within the green line ?
So Carl, as long as you are going to tell lies and distort the truth, I’m going to go to Rickys and over-pay for hand cream. Its the least I can do to support the only democracy in the Middle East.
Carl B, I quote:
“Readers note how this poster tries to skirt around the human rights abuses carried out by Israel”.
Given the human rights abuses of their immediate neighbors, I’d say that the Israeli is pretty controlled in that respect. No public beheadings that I’km aware of.
As Americans, even we have some shameful things to account for, like Abu Giraib.
He who casts the first stone….
I feel like we’re just a few comments away from resolving this. Despite roving from skin cream to the flotilla to the rocket attacks, the issue is that the Ahava factory is outside the 1967 borders. That’s fine by me if they were willing to pay taxes to the Palestinian Authority.
Hey Joann, Publius, La Shauniqua and Nabeguy: You still haven’t answered my question as to why Israel is threatening punitive actions against groups within Israel who call for the boycott of Israeli and illegal settlement goods.
Do you know why you haven’t answered my question; it’s because you can’t!
In case you forgot, here’s what it’s all about:
http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/economy-of-the-occupation/2706-israels-anti-boycott-legislation
Apartheid is just as wrong in Israel as it was in South Africa!!!
“Given the human rights abuses of their immediate neighbors, I’d say that the Israeli is pretty controlled in that respect. No public beheadings that I’km aware of.”
I don’t find Apartheid Israel to be “pretty controlled” on anything they do!
The Ahava factory and customer service outlet is located on land stolen from the Palestinian’s by an illegal Israeli settlement. Under the Geneva Convention “occupiers” are prohibited from moving their citizens onto occupied lands and they are prohibited from taking natural resources like water, minerals and mud unless it is for the benefit of the people whose land is occupied. Unfortunately, the US is already involved in this mess because we give Israel $3 BILLION dollars a year. U.S. Generals, State Department advisors and former President’s have emphatically stated that our unilateral support for the Zionist regime endangers our troops.
Amazing how much anti-semitism there is right here in Brooklyn, of all places.
Being against Israeli policies does not equate to anti semitism. Is being against American policies anti american or anti christian?
It is, in fact Israel that is guilty of anti-gentilism, because it has roads for Jews Only and settlements for Jews Only. Isn’t it about time that Israel, Jews and the rest of the world addressed this issue?
Why do so many Jews support not giving nonJews equality in Israel? The question is not antisemitism, burt anti-gentilism in Israel.
Hey Carl B:
You’re clearly the type of guy who when losing an argument, ignores all of the points that others have discredited, and tries to focus on a small shred of what others have ignored because it’s not important.
Nice try buddy.
Carl, by relying on anti-Israel sources for your news, you get a very slanted view of the story. The proposed bill does not impose criminal penalties, but rather civil ones
The boycott bill, which will now proceed to committee, would make Israelis who “instigate,” “encourage,” or “assist” boycotts against Israel or Israeli institutions subject to fines of up to NIS 30,000 even if no damage is proved, and more if damage is proved. Foreigners or foreign entities that do the same could be barred from the country and denied the right to use Israeli banks, land, or stocks. The bill would also allow boycott damages to be deducted from Israel’s remittances to the Palestinian Authority should the latter continue promoting anti-Israel boycotts.
And frankly, don’t you think its a bit hypocritical that Omar Bhargouti, a graduate student on scholarship from Tel Aviv University is the originator of the BDS movement? He is perfectly happy attending an Israeli school and taking money from them, while he promotes an anti-Israel agenda.
Maybe Israel is too much of a democracy for its own good.
Fred is spot on, Furthermore, I think many people are reluctant to speak their mind against Israelis policies, out of fear of being labeled an “anti-Semite”.
Tina, are you for real? How can a law that severely prohibits a non violent form or protest be considered “too much of a democracy”?
@GHB, that is disappointing. You try to dodge the whole debate by accusing the accuser of some irrelevant and untrue. It so happens that I am Jewish and I still strenuously object to settlement building and endless occupation, both of which are unarguably illegal.
@Tina: Can you tell us what’s your source that Omar Bhargouti was the originator of the BDS movement? You also mention that: “Maybe Israel is too much of a democracy for its own good.” Is that a joke?
@GHB: Criticizing the government of Israel does not make me anti-semetic.
Publius still hasn’t answered my question. I’ll give him one more chance to answer my question and to try and justify the actions of the racist, apartheid policies of the state of Israel, including the illegal settlements, the use of white phosperous during Operatopn Cast Lead, the bulldozing of Palestinian homes, the mass eviction of Palestinians, shooting at and arresting Palestinian children, the anti-Palestinian Labor laws (most Israeli employers will only hire people if they served in the Israeli Army and Palestinians are prohibited from doing so), controlling the movement of Palestinians through the use of blockades and checkpoints, etc…
Can you try and justify that Publius? I bet you’ve never been outside of Brooklyn.
Ahava uses products from the Occupied Territories. Those who buy from it are no different from those who broke the boycott of Germany in 1933. Come to think of, they were Zionists too. Birds of a feather…
Carl B. = Code Pink astroturfer/ Ahmadinejad quoter.
Just wonder if Ahava is hiring the local Palestinians and in fact is contributing to the economy of the territory.
@Publius, even assuming that Carl B is a shill planted by the Ayatollah himself, nothing in his post is factually incorrect. I should point out that it is no way incumbent on Jewish Americans to blindly support the policies of the government of Israel. Netanyahu is not the Pope of Judaism. He is entirely fallible and capable of making mistakes and violating the tenets of his religion and seemingly does so on a daily basis.
Carl, Monty… Not accusing either of you of anti-semitism, but what seems to be lost on the world is that the State of Israel was established as a homeland, and the only one in the world, to which Jews were welcomed unconditionally. And yes, many of us only hear one side of the story.
La Shauniqua had it right: “Why is the world silent when Israelis are attacked? Why was there no response when 10,000 rockets fell on the Israeli town of Sderot”
Carl- the world is dominated by dictatorships, monarchies and authoritarian regimes. Why do you put such stock in “majority” opinion? The majority of Americans in the 1700′s believed in slavery. Did that make it right or moral? The Mississipi Supreme Court in the 1930s consistently voted against any kind of equality for its citizens of color. Does that make it moral?
When you put your confidence in majority- in “might” over “right”, you lose me, and all those who value justice. There are 56 Islamic nations. There is one Jewish state. Israel will always been the minority- Israel will always be suject to persecution, and I refuse your contention that because the “majority” believe it is deserved, that indeed it is.
Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians:
During the 1970′s, the West Bank and Gaza constituted the fourth fastest-growing economy in the world — ahead of such “wonders” as Singapore, Hong Kong, and Korea, and substantially ahead of Israel itself. Although GNP per capita grew somewhat more slowly, the rate was still high by international standards, with per-capita GNP expanding tenfold between 1968 and 1991 from $165 to $1,715 (compared with Jordan’s $1,050, Egypt’s $600, Turkey’s $1,630, and Tunisia’s $1,440). By 1999, Palestinian per-capita income was nearly double Syria’s, more than four times Yemen’s, and 10 percent higher than Jordan’s (one of the better off Arab states). Only the oil-rich Gulf states and Lebanon were more affluent.
Under Israeli rule, the Palestinians also made vast progress in social welfare. Perhaps most significantly, mortality rates in the West Bank and Gaza fell by more than two-thirds between 1970 and 1990, while life expectancy rose from 48 years in 1967 to 72 in 2000 (compared with an average of 68 years for all the countries of the Middle East and North Africa). Israeli medical programs reduced the infant-mortality rate of 60 per 1,000 live births in 1968 to 15 per 1,000 in 2000 (in Iraq the rate is 64, in Egypt 40, in Jordan 23, in Syria 22). And under a systematic program of inoculation, childhood diseases like polio, whooping cough, tetanus, and measles were eradicated.
No less remarkable were advances in the Palestinians’ standard of living. By 1986, 92.8 percent of the population in the West Bank and Gaza had electricity around the clock, as compared to 20.5 percent in 1967; 85 percent had running water in dwellings, as compared to 16 percent in 1967; 83.5 percent had electric or gas ranges for cooking, as compared to 4 percent in 1967; and so on for refrigerators, televisions, and cars.
Finally, and perhaps most strikingly, during the two decades preceding the intifada of the late 1980′s, the number of schoolchildren in the territories grew by 102 percent, and the number of classes by 99 percent, though the population itself had grown by only 28 percent. Even more dramatic was the progress in higher education. At the time of the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, not a single university existed in these territories. By the early 1990′s, there were seven such institutions, boasting some 16,500 students. Illiteracy rates dropped to 14 percent of adults over age 15, compared with 69 percent in Morocco, 61 percent in Egypt, 45 percent in Tunisia, and 44 percent in Syria.
http://www.aish.com/jw/me/48898917.html
To Fred: There are no “Jew” only roads. I just spent 3 months in Israel- I am a Christian missionary. At no point was I asked about my religion when driving, or entering or existing roads. In fact, in Israel, all Highway signs are in English and arabic and Hebrew, which just proves you are wrong. the question remains- are you lying delibertaely to demonize Israel, or did you just not know the truth?
BTW, Israel is full of Jews, Christians and Muslims, living together, working together and playing together. Its as diverse as Brooklyn
Most Arabs do not support a boycott of Israel. My father owns several groceries- he keeps them stocked with Israeli food. Why?
1. Kosher is similar to Halal
2. It is the food he grew up eating. He likes it and is comfortable with it
3. When Israel does well, Arabs do well.
I don’t buy Ahava becuase it is so expensive, but I buy many Israeli products. In Brooklyn, and all over America, the best places to get Israeli food are the Arab groceries!
Fatima, your post points out a cruel irony. Namely, that the very people that governments seek to separate are more than willing to co-exist with their neighbors, regardless of their backgrounds. On those grounds, I’m not a supporter of the settlements, as they are pre-fabricated neighborhoods that are the exact opposite of how a neighborhood should be defined.
Back in high school, during the early 70′s, I recall getting caught up in a school-wide debate that questioned whether Zionism equated to imperialism. In those days, my answer was no. Now, I’m not so sure.
Given the larger issues, Ahava is a blip. But some people apparently need to get a life.
Zionism is the belief that the Jewish people have the right to self determination in their ancient homeland. I am a Zionist. I also believe that the Palestinians have the right to self determination. Two states for two people will satisfy the nationalistic aspirations of both. Now if only we can get them to agree on the eventual borders!
I thought Joanns comment was funny . Wanna bet she owns the store band wants to see some boycott love come her way? Code Pink, give Rickys a break. Picket Joanns store next. She needs the business
@Z.I.S.D: Another coward who doesn’t use their name.
How can you hold your head up high admitting to Just because you believe that Israel is the Jewish people’s ancient homeland does not make it true. Palestinians were living there long before any Jews settled there.
Zionism is a hateful poilitical philosophy that has brought suffering and death to untold thousands, if not millions – and is the cause of all of the trouble in the region today. It favors one group of people (the Jews) above any others. In Israel, Jews are favored by law over others. This is akin to apartheid.
If you see a two state solution in the cards, then what will become of the Jews who illegally built settlements in the West Bank? Thanks to Israel, most of the West Bank is broken up into small Palestinian enclaves.
Yesterday, the Ahava store in London, England was successfully occupied by activists for the fourth time and closed for several hours. See report and photos here: http://www.freepalestinefortnightlydemo.wordpress.com.
Maybe we should start doing this in Brooklyn.
@ “Carl. B (actually Code Pink astroturfer), sitting behind his(?) keyboard yelling at other people that they are cowards (ROTFLMAO).
“Carl B.” let your anti-Zionist hatred flow young Skywalker. Feel the power of hate and the dark side.
Every major religion has been and is responsible for countless acts of murder, torture and oppression. Human society will never mature until we rid ourselves of religious beliefs.
Carl B, please stop calling out people for not using their own names. Your own is about a complete as your ideas. Having followed your link, I’m also left to wonder how you came up with the word “manageress” to describe the female manager of the London store. The implicit misogyny in that only betrays another side of your amentia.
Don’t be so intolerent of others “nabeguy”, in the UK that’s what a female manager is called. I know in America, you are more PC.
Glad you enjoyed the link. Identify yourself at our next demo and I’ll give you a Boycott Ahava button.
@nabeguy: You were proved wrong – again!
” Palestinians were living there long before any Jews settled there.”
Um. Carl. The Jews have been there for 3500 years. Long before the Palestinians were invented. Think Christmas story. Roughly 2,000 years ago, right? Jews. Romans. No Palestinians. No Arabs. No Muslims.
Arachaelogical evidence. Historical evidence. Linguistic evidence. DNA evidence.
What do you have? Absolutely nothing
As is typical in these type of discusions, the supposed “Anti-Zionists” parrot that collection of myths, fabrications, presumptions and tall tales called the “Palestinian narrative”, rather than actuial history. Among these presumptions is the idea that “Palestinian” is an ethnicity or tribal designation, when in fact it is an Arab poltical sub-designation assigned to the Arabs that had left pre-state Israel only in1964 by the Arab League. Actually, the ancestors of the vast majority of today’s self-identified Palestinians were economic migrants, attracted by the economic boom sparked by the early Zionists. What the Jordanians re-named “the West Bank” when they illegally invaded and annexed it in 1948, was historically “Judea and Samaria”, not “Palestine.” In fact, many of the Jewish “settlements” are on land that was purchased and farmed decades before Israel was a state, such as the Gush Etzion bloc rather than the usually parrotted myth of “stolen Palestinian land.”
“Anti-Zionism” is a political stance that opposes any political expression by the Jewish people, but only the Jewish people,of all the peoples of the world, their natural right of national self determination. Often, “Anti-Zionism” approach the natural rights of the Jewish people by denying the Jewish people their “people hood”, that is to say, denying the distinct nature of the Jewish peoples’ culture, languages, history etc. In essence, “Anti-Zionism” is distinguishable from simple Jew Hating racism or “anti-Semitism” in that rather being opposed to the Jewish people, “Anti-Zionism” opposes any assertion of political rights or political activity by Jewish people. It is a slight difference. In would ask the “Anti-Zionists” that are posting here, “if your political opinions are based on “non-facts”, then what are those opinions worth?” And, if “Anti-Zionism” requires lying about Jews and Israel, then why?
Carl-
This is my real name and I am proud to be a Zionist
Not all, not even most Palestinians are native to the land of Israel. Many are recent immigrants who arrived during Ottoman times or later. You can tell by looking at common Palestinian surnames
al-Masri – the Egyptian
al-Mughrabi – the Moroccan
al-Turki – the Turk
al-Hindi – the Indian
al-Hourani – the Syrian
al-Kurdi – the Kurd
al-Djazair – the Algerian
al-Yamani – the Yemeni
al-Afghani – the Afghan
@Nancy: Why would anyone be proud to be a racist? I would hang my head in shame if I were you! How can you say something like that?
@”Fatima”: You just gave yourself away, whatever your real name is, by saying: “…most Palestinians are native to the land of Israel”.
Methinks you are a Zio who is using a false Arabic name to give people the illusion that the satanic state has the support of a Palestinian.
See my comment to Nancy above.
Carl Bruce, I’m not clear on how I was proved wrong, but at least I shamed you into revealing your full name. Keep your button. As this thread clearly shows, they’re too easily pushed by divisive zealots like you.
”Fatima”: You just gave yourself away…
But Carl, its true. My family is an effendi family- we have been in the region since the Crusades. But many many more Palestinians came in during the Ottoman era and even after. The Syrian immigration was primarily after the Hauran famine. Also, the Brits shipped in 30,000 Syrians as stevadores. The Jews were in this land. Others were in this land as well. We are as native as they are.
Methinks you are a Zio who is using a false Arabic name to give people the illusion that the satanic state has the support of a Palestinian.
Carl, I know more about my people and my history than you do. And many many Israeli Arabs support Israel. Read the writings of Khaled abu Toameh or Ishmael khaldi
Methinks anyone who uses a term like “the satanic state” isn’t engaging in serious discussion.
@Nabeguy: You posted: “please stop calling out people for not using their own names. Your own is about a complete as your ideas”. Now look at my name nabeguy above. Answer your question?
@Fatima: When you used the term “Land of Israel”, that gave you away. Only Zionists use say that. I also know for a fact that your post was a cut and paste job from a Zionist website. Nothing wrong with that, but you should of been more original – and truthful.
@ Claude: “Not serious”? I call ‘em as I see ‘em: If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, swims like a duck, then it must be a duck.
I’ve also been arrested several times for participating in nonviolent direct actions against the satanic state. On all occassions, the Israeli companies refused to attend court (they didn’t want to air their dirty laundry in public) and the charges were dropped.
Serious enough for you?
Me thinks anyone who uses the term “satanic state” is a little coo coo for cocoa puffs.
Carl, you’re such a sucker…obviously. Done.
Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. In fact the Israeli’s democracy is the reason why the Palestinians are still there. Israel could have easily annexed the territories they occupied after they defeated Jordan and Egypt during the Six Day war launched by a group of Arab countries.
All Jewish people did was returned to their country of origin from which they were driven some two thousand years ago and later prosecuted during the rest of their history. The last major Diaspora was precipitated by the destruction of the Temple in 70 AC by Titus. WW2 and the Holocaust (yes it did happen) was a major impetus for the Jews to go back to their homeland from which they were driven from. AEB, to learn from history first you should know history.
Palestinians many of whom have come from nomadic tribes or beguines had an ample of opportunity for the past two thousand years, while the Jews were in exile, to build a prosperous country there. Israelis built a vibrant democracy in less than 50 years. Now the country greatly contributes to the entire world in so many areas of science, medicine (why do not you people boycott Israeli pharmaceutical companies that save your lives) literature, arts etc.
And by the way, Ahava is hiring Arabs and these very Palestinians that you are defending so passionately. I am not a Jew but I went to Israel and was amazed by the country they built – a true Oasis in a desert.