Racist Democracy

http://zope.gush-shalom.org/home/en/channels/avnery/1243720987/

I call your attention to an article by Uri Avneri, one of the leaders of the peace movement in Israel. Yosefa and I have had the pleasure of breathing tear gas with Uri and his wife Rahel. I strongly recommend reading his comment.s

Happiness

These days I have been blogging mostly about outrage, with the exception of the donkey and sheep story. Now I want to share something much nicer with you, a blog from the New York Times. Enjoy!

http://happydays.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/25/happy-like-god/?8ty&emc=ty

Now I shall open a beer, pop some popcorn and settle down to watch the Euro Champions leaguer final. Yes David, I shall root for Manchester United to defeat Barcelona. Family loyalty holds.

Fascism at Home

A few days ago, I blogged about the problems of democracy around the world. I should have been paying more attention to what is happening at home.

Our new right wing "fascistoid" government (as defined by the late Amos Eilon who passed away this week)


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1085588.html



is proposing legislation that would make it a punishable offense to mark the Palestinian "nakhba" or national calamity which coincides with Israel Independence Day. Indeed the liberation of one people caused a calamity to another and historians argue whether the Holocaust and the subsequent effective expulsion of Jews from Europe made the events inevitable and justified in term of need. Chaim Gans has published a book on the subject (Oxford U. Press). For a review, see:

http://themagneszionist.blogspot.com/2008/07/chaim-gans-just-zionism-on-morality-of.html



In any case, the proposed legislation is a mortal blow to freedom of expression and democracy in Israel. We may expect that the courts will throw it out, but that does not mitigate the fact that a Cabinet committee approved it for parliamentary action. If it passes, one can only hope that the Labor Party will finally understand that a party that considers it self a Social-Democratic party cannot remain in the coalition government with the fascists. A strong democracy can handle such expression of nonconsensual values, such as the marking of Columbus Day as a calamity by Native Americans and the ferocious criticism of unpopular wars such as in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan in the USA. Our democracy is very fragile—in fact we are closer to a thinly disguised military dictatorship. The chief of staff and other members of his junta sit at the Cabinet table as more than equals and give orders, as in the case of the Second Lebanon War.
In the wake of 9/11, Bush managed to push through anti-democratic laws, but their implementation was problematic. I would like to refer you to an article on the subject that is thought provoking:

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dfth2zgw_2zc762phj&hl=en">

I hope to have happier blogs down the line.
Happy Shavuot and Pentecost to those who celebrate either of them.

Tough-Controversial-Funny : Your choice for today

Things have been looking so-so for the past week as far as the state of democracy in the world goes. On the one hand we saw the first ever women elected to parliament in Kuwait,

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6303565.ece

but we also saw the persecution of Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar with no relief in sight for her.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2009/05/200952534743336495.html

An interesting point of view was raised a few days ago on BBC world radio. Women who believe liberal values exploit their sexuality have something much greater to fear - the jackboot of dictatorship, says Clive James.

I refer you to his comments:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8064449.stm

Lest all seem dismal and depressing let us all have a good guffaw at what orthodox religion can do to people's brains. Indeed it appears safer to be an ass than a sheep.

http://www.jvhri.org/detail/1334.html

Tiananmen Square anniversary

On June 4 we will mark the 20th anniversary of the crushing of the pro-democracy student/worker rally in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. To this day the Chinese government has adamantly refused to investigate the massacre that took place.
As China action coordinator of the Israel Section of Amnesty Internationa, I would like to refer you to some sites that deal with the issue and the forthcoming events planned around the world. Our section has a bilingual Hebrew-English blog that you are welcome to visit:
http://tiananmen20.blogli.co.il/
You will also find there links to YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.
Amnesty sections around the world will be marking the occasion and I hope you will be involved.
Also, there are many major human rights issues in China that are worthy of attention, such as the persecution of the victims of the Sichuan earthquake whose demands for justice and accountability have aroused the ire of the regime with terrible results. Please take a look at:
http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/china
I am bugging you a lot these days, but, alas, the world is not a very nice place. Martin Luther King once wrote that he is less troubled by the evil of the bad than by the indifference of the good.

Report on Aung San Suu Kyi trial

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8058804.stm

Please go to this link to read a report on the first day of the trial

Additional sites for Myanmar protests

http://www.avaaz.org/en/free_aung_san_suu_kyi/?cl=237431026&v=3328
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/index.aspx?c=jhKPIXPCIoE&b=2590179&template=x.ascx&action=11134&ICID=I0905A01&tr=y&auid=4878808
Here are two more sites at which one can take action on the Aung San Suu Kyi case.
For Israelis who are on Facebook, the local Amnesty section has placed a site there:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=715643941&ref=name#/inbox/readmessage.php?t=1011350541276&mbox_pos=0

This is a matter of life and death and the survival of hope for the people of Myanmar.
Please Act Now!

Protest trial of Aung San Suu Kyi!

The elected president of Myanmar (Burma) Ms Aung San Suu Kyi has been held in house arrest by the military junta that annulled the results of the 1990 election for 13 years. This week she was taken from her home to the notorious Insein prison where she will be tried on May 18 for violating the conditions of her house arrest. An American swam a lake to her home and tried to enter and was arrested after she sent him away the next day. It is obvious that this trial is an excuse to extend her incarceration which is due to expire at the end of May. Ms Suu Kyi's health is poor and she is unlikely to survive a long imprisonment in Insein.
Please, dear friends, take action! I append a link to a site from which you can petition the UN. I also request that you write to your Foreign Ministers and call upon them to make it clear to the government of Myanmar that this action is unacceptable.

http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/ASSK_action.html