a sign of the times

and that sign read "end us-israeli state terrorism in gaza." i held it at yet another small emergency gathering of progressives. we apparently believe that by holding signs on busy street corners, that we will soon overthrow the goverment. but then, what else are we to do? i suppose one could fight back, but that would mean fighting, and i haven't won a fight since bush the elder was in office, and that was against a 4 foot girl in middle school. so, i hold signs. cars race by. a few people honk their horns, an act even more pathetic than holding the sign in the first place. one guy honked, and then gave me the middle finger. a woman yelled something at the top of lungs that sounded like something out of a nature show. on the flip wilson side, at least i expressed my disgust with the us-israel assault on the people of gaza. every bomb that is dropped on gaza is a bomb that was produced by the united states. it is like giving a gun to a person with a record of criminality; of course they will use the gun to commit more criminal acts. therefore, both the governments of israel and america are currently guilty of war crimes in gaza.

also on the positive side, i ran into someone i went to high school with. it was exciting to see her, and to know that she was raising her voice against what is happening to the people of gaza. this person was always smart and ready with an opinion, and that certainly hasn't changed. usually, i see the same old guys that i always see at protest actions, so it was cool that something different happened this time.

this is taken from today's boston globe...

"in gaza yesterday, officials said medical services, stretched to the breaking point after 18 months of israeli sanctions, were on the verge of collapse as they struggled to care for the more than 600 wounded in the past two days."

there is something key in that line..."18 months of israeli sanctions." why is the state of israel sanctioning the poor and deprived people of gaza? the 1.5 million gazans need more medicine, not less. such sanctions are war crimes just as the current bombings are. they tell us that this israeli assault is "retaliation" for hamas firing rockets into israel. if this is so, then why has israel been sanctioning gaza for the last 18 months? it seems to me that the rockets are more of a retaliation (whether we agree with them or not) and israeli's attacks, which include sanctions, expulsion of human rights activists, and war, are more of an offensive.

also from the globe...

"at shifa hospital in gaza city, women wailed as they searched for relatives among bodies that lay strewn on the hospital floor. one doctor said that given the dearth of facilities, not much could be done for the seriously wounded, and that it was "better to be brought in dead."

i would like to point out that israel started bombing at the exact time that children were being let out of school. they claim that they were targeting hamas and policemen, and blamed hamas for civilian deaths because they put their buildings in "civilian areas." but aren't all buildings in civilian areas? should they put them in places where only zebras and monkeys can get to them? of course police stations are going to be in civilian areas! look around you; where are all the police stations, fire departments, and even army career centers? they are all in civilian areas. a few months ago, i went to a roller skating rink to celebrate my girlfriend's nephew's birthday; on the street there was a police station. does that mean, if a country were bombing us, that me, and everyone else who was at the skating rink, should be killed? and if we were, should i believe that the blame lied with the boston police department for putting their station in a "civilian area?" of course not. rather, the blame lies with the people doing the bombing. i would think this was common sense, but as twain once said "common sense is very uncommon."

as citizens and residents of the united states we have a lot to be angry and ashamed about. we need to start with acknowledging the role that the u.s plays in the world. sometimes, when i close my eyes, i imagine what it would be like to have a government that would represent all the people of the world. we would need to revolutionize our thinking, we would need to alter our ways of interacting, change our culture, our values, and so much else. every once in a while, i pull out a william blum book called "freeing the world to death." on the back of it, blum imagines that he is president, and makes a speech that he believes could end terrorism and help to lead to a more peaceful world. i leave you with that speech.

"if i were the president, i could stop terrorist attacks against the united states in a few days. permanently. i would first apologize, very publicly and very sincerely, to all the widows and orphans, the impoverished and tortured, and all the many millions of other victims of american imperialism. then i would announce to every corner of the world that america's global military interventions have come to an end. i would then inform israel that it is no longer the 51st state of the union but, oddly enough, a foreign country. then i would reduce the military budget by at least 90% and use the savings to pay reparations to the victims and repair the damage from the many american bombings, invasions, and sanctions. there would be more than enough money. one year's military budget in the united states is equal to more than $20,000 per hour for every hour since jesus christ was born. that's one year.

that's what i'd do on my first three days in the white house. on the fourth day, i'd be assassinated."