Sign the Petition for Gaza from Avaaz.org (almost 550,000 signatures so far)
To the UN Security Council, the European Union, the Arab League and the USA:
'We urge you to act immediately to ensure a comprehensive ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, to
protect civilians on all sides, and to address the growing humanitarian crisis. Only through
robust international action and oversight can the bloodshed be stopped, the Gaza crossings
safely re-opened and real progress made toward a wider peace in 2009.'
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Sign Jewish Voice for Peace open letter to Obama asking him to lift the blockade
on Gaza and more. (If the form only accepts U.S. zip codes, you could use 11937.)
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is pursuing legal action against a Boeing subsidiary
for providing illegal support to the CIA's illegal extraordinary rendition program. (The CIA
rendition program presumably continues today.) The CIA picks up victims and has them flown to
countries that use torture to extract useless 'information' from people who, under the
circumstances, will say anything to get the pain to stop. When Obama says 'the U.S. doesn't
torture' he may (or may not) be right. They get other countries to do the dirty work for them,
instead.
Update:
Federal lawyers urged a court of appeals judge to dismiss the ACLU's lawsuit, citing
state secrets privilege, the tired excuse used repeatedly by the Bush administration now
resurrected under the Obama administration. (More on this here.) Five men sued the federal
government over their extraordinary renditions and tortures. The case was thrown out because
the government claimed state privilege to protect state secrets.
(One guy, a detainee at Guantanamo, Binyam Mohamed, had his torture described in a London
Telegraph article, with information taken from classified documents. Mohamed's testicles were
sliced with a scalpel, along with other methods so extreme that waterboarding was 'way down
the list'. British intelligence is alleged to have fed questions to his torturers.)
The ACLU asks that you to take action by signing this form letter (link, below): Senators
Kennedy, Leahy, Specter and Representative Nadler introduced legislation in 2008 to narrow
the scope of the state secrets privilege -- and open the courthouse doors to people who have
suffered real and legitimate harm by the government. Clearly, this legislation is needed now
more than ever.
Send a message using the web form to these members of Congress to let them know
you support the State Secrets Protection Act, here. You can look up your own zip code on
the web if you don't have one, or use 11937 (Long Island, N.Y.).
Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com writes about the above:
Obama fails his first test on civil liberties and accountability -- resoundingly and disgracefully;
Feb. 9, '09
(Click Greenwald's name above to read the transcript of his interview with Dr. Mustafa
Barghouti on Israel's elections.)
``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
United Nations Press Conference on the Humanitarian Situation in Gaza (Feb. 5, '09)
Highlights:
- “shameful” that Israeli politics had stranded tons of relief supplies at blocked crossing points;
situation was becoming increasingly untenable -- basic humanitarian needs were going unmet;
- Thousands of tons of aid were stuck outside Gaza, at staging areas in Egypt, Israel and
Jordan. Humanitarian agencies were left trying to push supplies “through the eye of a needle”
at Kerem Shalom crossing, which was totally inadequate to handle the volume needed, but
currently the only point open;
- UNRWA was caring for some 900,000 food‑aid recipients, but had been able to get supplies
out only at a rate of about 30,000 people a day;
- 60 per cent of the students had returned to classrooms that had no textbooks, notebooks,
supplies or even writing paper. Those items were being denied entry into Gaza...“We are being
obstructed, as far as I’m concerned, in the education of the children here,” he [Mr. Ging] said;
- “So, there is no excuse. Everyone needs to be clear about the consequences of these
decisions,” he continued, citing not only the serious humanitarian impact, but also their effect
on the mood of the people of Gaza.'
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
World Can't Wait passes on a message for friends holding an action in New York
this February 13th, and they are inviting anyone in town that day to join them:
JEWS SAY NO: NOT IN OUR NAME
WE MUST NOT BE SILENT!
In solidarity with the people of Gaza, who are being forced by the
Israeli government to live in inhuman conditions under a brutal occupation, please join us for a
24-hour street protest in front of the offices of the World Zionist Organization and the Jewish
Agency,
which promote and defend Israeli policies.
Thursday, February 12, 9 a.m. - Friday, February 13, 9 a.m.
633 Third Ave (40/41st Sts, east side of Third Ave)
IT'S NOT THE ROCKETS, IT'S THE OCCUPATION!
JEWS SAY NO TO THE MASSACRE
JEWS SAY NO TO THE BLOCKADE
JEWS SAY NO TO THE OCCUPATION
JEWS SAY YES TO JUSTICE FOR THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE
Please come for an hour, 2 hours, 4 hours, or more -- during
the day or night!
Allies are encouraged to join us.
NEVER AGAIN: NOT IN GAZA, NOT ANYWHERE
jewssayno@gmail.com
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Funny: 'Obama's Press Conference Answers Three Formal Grade-Levels Higher Than Bush's
First'; Mark Nickolas; Huffington Post; Feb. 9, '09.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Not funny: 'Why did Obama diss Helen Thomas?'; MJ Rosenberg; Huffington Post; Feb. 10, '09
Helen Thomas asked Obama at his first press conference if any Middle Eastern country had
nukes. Obama dodged it and didn't answer. As Rosenberg points out, everybody knows Israel
has nukes.
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Peace Action action:
In the American economic stimulus package is a billion dollars for the manufacture of
nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, some senators propose to cut 1.1 billion from the Head Start
educational program for young children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
Click here to tell the people you elected to say "no" to nuclear pork in the economic recovery
plan. (Don't have an American zip code? 11937 is for Long Is., N.Y.)
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Iran Offers 'Dialogue with Respect' With U.S.; By NAZILA FATHI and DAVID E. SANGER
NYT; Feb. 10, '09
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Canadians support American war resisters:
Action: Sign form letter (see link 'add your name' near bottom of the appeal to the
Canadian govt.) demanding that the government give American war resisters residing in
Canada the opportunity to apply for permanent residency rather than deporting them back to
the U.S. where they are treated like criminals.
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Category: Health
WebMD: The Heart Speaks (Are You Listening?)
Loneliness, anger, and grief can break hearts as easily as high blood pressure. To heal the
heart, feel the love; By Jeanie Lerche Davis; WebMD Feature. Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario,
MD. (Feature-length article 4 pgs.)
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
home
top of page
Gaza
Editorial:
I Blame the Rabbis
To the UN Security Council, the European Union, the Arab League and the USA:
'We urge you to act immediately to ensure a comprehensive ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, to
protect civilians on all sides, and to address the growing humanitarian crisis. Only through
robust international action and oversight can the bloodshed be stopped, the Gaza crossings
safely re-opened and real progress made toward a wider peace in 2009.'
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Sign Jewish Voice for Peace open letter to Obama asking him to lift the blockade
on Gaza and more. (If the form only accepts U.S. zip codes, you could use 11937.)
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is pursuing legal action against a Boeing subsidiary
for providing illegal support to the CIA's illegal extraordinary rendition program. (The CIA
rendition program presumably continues today.) The CIA picks up victims and has them flown to
countries that use torture to extract useless 'information' from people who, under the
circumstances, will say anything to get the pain to stop. When Obama says 'the U.S. doesn't
torture' he may (or may not) be right. They get other countries to do the dirty work for them,
instead.
Update:
Federal lawyers urged a court of appeals judge to dismiss the ACLU's lawsuit, citing
state secrets privilege, the tired excuse used repeatedly by the Bush administration now
resurrected under the Obama administration. (More on this here.) Five men sued the federal
government over their extraordinary renditions and tortures. The case was thrown out because
the government claimed state privilege to protect state secrets.
(One guy, a detainee at Guantanamo, Binyam Mohamed, had his torture described in a London
Telegraph article, with information taken from classified documents. Mohamed's testicles were
sliced with a scalpel, along with other methods so extreme that waterboarding was 'way down
the list'. British intelligence is alleged to have fed questions to his torturers.)
The ACLU asks that you to take action by signing this form letter (link, below): Senators
Kennedy, Leahy, Specter and Representative Nadler introduced legislation in 2008 to narrow
the scope of the state secrets privilege -- and open the courthouse doors to people who have
suffered real and legitimate harm by the government. Clearly, this legislation is needed now
more than ever.
Send a message using the web form to these members of Congress to let them know
you support the State Secrets Protection Act, here. You can look up your own zip code on
the web if you don't have one, or use 11937 (Long Island, N.Y.).
Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com writes about the above:
Obama fails his first test on civil liberties and accountability -- resoundingly and disgracefully;
Feb. 9, '09
(Click Greenwald's name above to read the transcript of his interview with Dr. Mustafa
Barghouti on Israel's elections.)
``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
United Nations Press Conference on the Humanitarian Situation in Gaza (Feb. 5, '09)
Highlights:
- “shameful” that Israeli politics had stranded tons of relief supplies at blocked crossing points;
situation was becoming increasingly untenable -- basic humanitarian needs were going unmet;
- Thousands of tons of aid were stuck outside Gaza, at staging areas in Egypt, Israel and
Jordan. Humanitarian agencies were left trying to push supplies “through the eye of a needle”
at Kerem Shalom crossing, which was totally inadequate to handle the volume needed, but
currently the only point open;
- UNRWA was caring for some 900,000 food‑aid recipients, but had been able to get supplies
out only at a rate of about 30,000 people a day;
- 60 per cent of the students had returned to classrooms that had no textbooks, notebooks,
supplies or even writing paper. Those items were being denied entry into Gaza...“We are being
obstructed, as far as I’m concerned, in the education of the children here,” he [Mr. Ging] said;
- “So, there is no excuse. Everyone needs to be clear about the consequences of these
decisions,” he continued, citing not only the serious humanitarian impact, but also their effect
on the mood of the people of Gaza.'
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
World Can't Wait passes on a message for friends holding an action in New York
this February 13th, and they are inviting anyone in town that day to join them:
JEWS SAY NO: NOT IN OUR NAME
WE MUST NOT BE SILENT!
In solidarity with the people of Gaza, who are being forced by the
Israeli government to live in inhuman conditions under a brutal occupation, please join us for a
24-hour street protest in front of the offices of the World Zionist Organization and the Jewish
Agency,
which promote and defend Israeli policies.
Thursday, February 12, 9 a.m. - Friday, February 13, 9 a.m.
633 Third Ave (40/41st Sts, east side of Third Ave)
IT'S NOT THE ROCKETS, IT'S THE OCCUPATION!
JEWS SAY NO TO THE MASSACRE
JEWS SAY NO TO THE BLOCKADE
JEWS SAY NO TO THE OCCUPATION
JEWS SAY YES TO JUSTICE FOR THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE
Please come for an hour, 2 hours, 4 hours, or more -- during
the day or night!
Allies are encouraged to join us.
NEVER AGAIN: NOT IN GAZA, NOT ANYWHERE
jewssayno@gmail.com
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Funny: 'Obama's Press Conference Answers Three Formal Grade-Levels Higher Than Bush's
First'; Mark Nickolas; Huffington Post; Feb. 9, '09.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Not funny: 'Why did Obama diss Helen Thomas?'; MJ Rosenberg; Huffington Post; Feb. 10, '09
Helen Thomas asked Obama at his first press conference if any Middle Eastern country had
nukes. Obama dodged it and didn't answer. As Rosenberg points out, everybody knows Israel
has nukes.
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Peace Action action:
In the American economic stimulus package is a billion dollars for the manufacture of
nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, some senators propose to cut 1.1 billion from the Head Start
educational program for young children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
Click here to tell the people you elected to say "no" to nuclear pork in the economic recovery
plan. (Don't have an American zip code? 11937 is for Long Is., N.Y.)
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Iran Offers 'Dialogue with Respect' With U.S.; By NAZILA FATHI and DAVID E. SANGER
NYT; Feb. 10, '09
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Canadians support American war resisters:
Action: Sign form letter (see link 'add your name' near bottom of the appeal to the
Canadian govt.) demanding that the government give American war resisters residing in
Canada the opportunity to apply for permanent residency rather than deporting them back to
the U.S. where they are treated like criminals.
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Category: Health
WebMD: The Heart Speaks (Are You Listening?)
Loneliness, anger, and grief can break hearts as easily as high blood pressure. To heal the
heart, feel the love; By Jeanie Lerche Davis; WebMD Feature. Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario,
MD. (Feature-length article 4 pgs.)
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
home
top of page
Gaza
Editorial:
I Blame the Rabbis
News. Information. Comment. Activism. Selections for February 04th, 2009
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Support Israel`s
young conscientious
objectors who refuse
to serve in the
Occupied Territories.
They get sent to jail.
Sign the letter of support.
young conscientious
objectors who refuse
to serve in the
Occupied Territories.
They get sent to jail.
Sign the letter of support.
