Tag: palestine

Liberty on Trial

Posted on by josuter

Liberty on Trial – Hearings on the USS Liberty                                       by josuter

This is the time for Congress to hold hearings around the attack on the USS Liberty by Israeli war planes in 1967. It may be a small bit of justice for those Americans killed, but more importantly, it will be a realization that Israel is willing to kill Americans in a white flag operation if needed to help pull the US further into the war with Iran. This is not out of the question. Hearings should be done soon. If Congress is cowed by the Zionist Lobby, there are many other places around the country where this issue can be discussed and debated.

Is it any wonder that Trump is an incessant liar? Mainstream media has ignored and covered up so much in the last decades. Mainstream media print whatever they are told. Truth-seeking media will persist in asking questions. The benefits of being an incessant liar allows Trump to lie to those power brokers around him: “I was told these were bunker-busting bombs.”

Diplomats complain that Trump does not do diplomacy in the normal way, and Trump does not read the daily intelligence briefings. Reagan and Gorbachev, meeting in Helsinki, both wanted to get rid of nuclear weapons but when they left the room the dark suits entered and nullified the intentions of their leaders. Why would Trump or Witkoff surround themselves with a group of people that cannot be trusted?

Tim Harford (“Adapt”) makes a case that new communication technology should allow more decisions to be made at the lowest level consistent with their ability to find useful information. This is in contradistinction to the man Netanyahu sitting in front of a big screen with a white cat sitting on his lap giving commands to everyone, including to Donald Strangelove.  

President Trump, either intentionally or unintentionally, is giving us a window of time to reclaim democracy. If Congress is unable or unwilling to decide on what is Anti-Semitic, this question could be decided at the institutional level, including universities and civic institutions, answering the specific question “What is Anti-Semitism?”. We know there is real Anti-Semitism and then there is the stuff that common sense simply rules out. If we cannot do this, then let’s hang up our boots.

Donald Trump, as the captain of the ship, may be willing to go down with it, taking neocons and Zionists with him. It will be a radical, but maybe necessary change to the Story of Democracy that is not just For the People, but Of and By the People.

A Story to End Israel

Posted on by josuter

Stories can be created by anyone, but stories that create a culture mostly come from people above us in the social hierarchy – people like politicians, religious leaders, parents, teachers, and older siblings.  Time-tested stories provide a structure to help guide beliefs and behavior.  When reality changes, however, the story must also change to match reality.  That is not the case with Israel.  Enemies of Israel, frustrated for decades, are setting a trap to destroy Israel.  Using a known martial arts technique, they are using the force of the opponent turned against the opponent themselves.     

Zionist Christians and Jews in United States, the largest and most powerful country, are force feeding the Zionist war machine with financial and military support.  With war as the primary mode of foreign policy, the coffers of the leaders in Israel are overflowing from well-meaning Jewish and Christian Zionists who are mostly ignorant about what is happening.  

What is happening?  Younger brother has grown up.  Younger brother has developed supersonic missiles with ranges of thousands of kilometers and using pinpoint accuracy from advanced guidance systems.  These missiles have already evaded the Iron Dome to strike military bases within Israel.  Yet Zionists are kept in the dark about this due to censorship and misinformation by government, mainstream media, and local religious leaders.  

Is there a way out?   Maybe.  First, it must be understood that God and Government are not the same.  Secondly, pressure must force better choices by the warring parties.  This pressure can come from leaders in other countries but the pressure itself can be started anywhere at any level.  Leaders must be pushed to find or create alternative pathways.  A Dynamic Democracy could allow significant input by any minority in a new government.  Grassroots people, who primarily want stability and predictability, will also have input in a Dynamic Democracy process. 

Realizing the bad blood between United States and Iran stemming from the 1979 overthrow of the Shah, third parties can host public hearings on why the Iranians felt strongly about charting their own course and their need for a change in government.  This may help to clear the air.  

Writers of the Old Testament, knowing the types of people whose minds were closed, may have been led to write about their demise.  Stories of Armageddon in the Bible may have been written specifically about the end of the Nation of Israel.  Zionists today remain unaware of the impending destruction of the land they say God has given them.  Even if nuclear weapons are used in a war between the US and Iran, Israel will be merely a footnote.  

The Old Stories will not work in a new time and new environment.  Ignorant about what is happening on the ground, Israel is going out on a limb soon to be cut off.  Ten of the Twelve Tribes of Israel are already gone.  The last two are headed for a buzz saw.  This is sad for those of us who want Israel to survive.  Tens of Thousands of Zionist supporters within the United States could rise up and demand a change in the government of Israel – but will we?  Can we imagine another future?  

Changing the Story for Israel

Posted on by josuter

Goliath got up on the wrong side of bed.  It would be a difficult day for him.  People of the Jewish faith must thank him for doing it however, since it was Goliath who provided the reason that a shepherd boy David would rise to become King.  It was not surprising that David had skill with his slingshot, having practiced daily to keep the wolves away from the sheep.  He could hit a tin can at 50 paces – or something like that. 

This is a cherished story of Judaism, yet one can imagine another chapter to the story.  Goliath, whose first name was Garth, had a younger sister Billie who had seen the whole incident.  Billie made note of the fact that Garth had not worn is helmet like his mother told him.  Billie was not going to make the same mistake.  Sure enough, on the second meeting with David, Billie was victorious and went on to become Queen of the Philistines. 

Stories can certainly be inspirational, but to be really useful they must touch reality at some point.  Fast forward to Israel today where the Iron Dome is said to keep out all the missiles. . . except they don’t.  The story of the Iron Dome has holes in it, allowing both Iran and Yemen to fire missiles into Israel. This is a problem. Once the enemy has equal or superior military force, the story must change if Israel is to survive. It does not have to be a new Story, but it must change directions and follow a new path. 

Up to this point, Israel’s solution is to “kill the enemy first” before they have a chance to strike, following a strategy conceived by the early Zionist leader Ze’ev Jabotinsky.   That might have worked during the time of Abraham and Isaac, but that was long ago.  At that time, a “nation” was a group of related tribes with no geographic boundaries.  The earth was flat and one might see only 50 miles from the top of the nearby mountain. This was their story, and it remains precious, but will it guide us today?  

We must now think not only about who the enemy is, but about who we are.  Are we an older sibling – or are we really an enemy?  This self-concept can make a difference.  Is the God we worship the God of all – or only a God for us?

Then how does one change a story?  It is not a group effort except maybe a consensus to trim a bit here and there like a hairdresser might do. It should grow from a seed from ideas of one or two people, then be compared with another story, then chosen by a third party judge who makes a “decision” (meaning “cut off”), and the process repeated. 

What can Christians do about the war in Gaza?  Christians know both the stories of Abraham and the current direction of Israel.  And we like stories.  We can help to start a new story or at least a change in the current story, and with just a few people, re-iterate the process, invite some outsiders, maybe some Jews, maybe Muslims or others. They can participate but cannot take over the process. If those invited refuse, then we develop the Story alone.  Others may eventually join in to create a new pathway ahead. 

Israel Palestine Solution

Posted on by josuter

A nation-state is not a person or a living being.  It is an agreement among leaders about rules and boundaries.  It is whatever can be agreed on and written into a constitution.  This is good news and may allow democracy to evolve.  It may also allow a solution to Israel’s dilemma.  With this dynamic form of democracy, PM Netanyahu can declare victory.  He could say “The war is over.  We have extracted an eye for an eye, ten times over.  Israel has won and now it is time for peace.”  Such a declared victory would be more Biblical than a war without end.   *(Ecclesiastes 3:3 – A time to kill and a time to heal.) 

Israel-Palestine will remain a single state, but because of external threats, the military will remain under Jewish control, even if the Jewish population becomes a minority.  That can be written into the constitution.  Regional leaders within Israel-Palestine will maintain peace in their areas, but they can be removed by a referendum of 80% vote of any minority within that region, or by a 60% of the general population vote within that region. This can also be written into a constitution and allows political leverage by minorities to allow some control over their own lives.  This dynamic democracy is somewhere between one-person-one-vote and one-group-one-vote.  It can work if leaders agree.  

Let the food aid into Gaza.   Palestinians can leave Gaza (with help and transportation) and establish many enclaves around the whole of the state of Israel-Palestine.  Enclaves on both sides can have their own small arms but only to be used defensively.  Any attempt to use them offensively will result in the small arms being taken from that enclave. Declare that the war has been won, but do not go back to the status quo.  The walls of Gaza must come down.  Anyone can live anywhere in Israel-Palestine.   

It may be that PM Netanyahu is the only one who can carry this out.  The role of religious leaders will be key in helping to guide The Story toward a positive future for all involved.  Third party peacekeepers and communicators may be required for some years and will be allowed to carry arms to defend themselves.  This plan is not simply a way of keeping enemies close but gives people a chance to heal.  Claims on geography are important but not in the same way as in the past, and there is no current court of justice that parties will listen to.  The healing must come from within.