Solidarity
These two satellite images provided by GeoEye show the same area of Beirut, Lebanon before and after Israeli bombardment. The image on the left was taken Wednesday July 12, 2006, and the image on the right was taken Monday July 31, 2006. (AP Photo/GeoEye)
There is a fantastic article on antiwar.com by Jonathan Cook entitled Suddenly, I'm an 'Islamic Fascist'. A brave and compassionate piece that should be mandatory reading for all of us.
"One does not need to be a psychologist to understand that those with no legitimate way to vent their rage, even to have it recognized as valid, become consumed by it instead. They seek explanations and purifying ideologies. They need heroes and strategies. And in the end they crave revenge. If their voice is not heard, they will speak without words.
So I find myself standing with Bush's "Islamic fascists" in the hope that – just possibly – my solidarity and that of others may dissipate the rage, may give it meaning and offer it another, better route to victory." - Jonathan Cook
I find myself agreeing wholeheartedly with Mr. Cook. We need to pull those ideas back from the misapplied label of "Islamic Facism" and into the spectrum of acceptable discourse for reasonable adults.
This is especially true given that the Financial Times reports that:
"Observers say Mr Bush is motivated by two instincts in guiding America’s diplomatic approach.
The first is the president’s visceral instinct to support Israel against its enemies, which he sees in terms of democracy versus totalitarianism. “People should not underestimate just how strongly the president feels in support of Israel and in his anger towards Iran and Syria [because of their sponsorship of Hizbollah],” said Reuel Marc Gerecht, a former senior official at the Central Intelligence Agency and now at the conservative American Enterprise Institute in Washington.
The second is Mr Bush’s belief that the fighting between Israel and Hizbollah is a proxy war between the US and Iran’s theocratic regime..."
The U.S. Government is clearly chomping at the bit to turn the entire Middle East into a bloodbath of Arabs and the American poor, with Iran as the excuse. When I look at all the pieces of the puzzle lying openly in front of us, how can I not believe that the U.S. Government is eager to instigate an Arab genocide? In the famous document from the Project for a New American Century (PNAC) entitled "Rebuilding America's Defenses" there are two terrifying quotes:
1 - "...the process of transformation, even if it brings revolutionary change, is likely to be a long one, absent some catastrophic and catalyzing event – like a new Pearl Harbor. Domestic politics and industrial policy will shape the pace and content of transformation as much as the requirements of current missions."
2 - "...advanced forms of biological warfare that can “target” specific genotypes may transform biological warfare from the realm of terror to a politically useful tool."
Biological warfare that can "target" specific genotypes!!! What the hell is that? Race-based bio-warfare; a germ that kills only Arabs? Tell me I'm wrong to worry about the possibility of an upcoming genocide, please!
Keep in mind that this document was published in September of 2000 (a year before the event that Bush called the "worst attack on our home since Pearl Harbor"), and was drafted and signed by such famous names as: John Bolton, William Kristol, I. Lewis Libby, Paul Wolfowitz, and Dov Zakheim. Members of PNAC have included: Jeb Bush, Dick Cheney, Steve Forbes, Dan Quayle, and Donald Rumsfeld. "Rebuilding America's Defenses" is the clearly stated foreign policy opinion of the most influential wing of the U.S. power structure.
Solidarity with the Arab, Persian and Muslim folks in our communities is more important now than ever. Especially those who are politically isolated. Jonathan Cook should be applauded for publicly taking this stance. I am happy to publicly recognize my own internal "Islamic Facist" too. How about you?
posted by Gnostic Rocket @ 1:26 p.m.
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