Born in America, I was taught from kindergarten to high school, through my teachers and the books we read in their classes, that America stand for liberty, freedom, human rights. A phrase that has come into general conversation, "the pursuit of happiness" was born with the will smith film "Pursuit of Happyness" that was extremely successful in the box office. My point is that, pretty much everywhere and anywhere you are, there probably might be some sort of landmark, slogan, or some sort of thing that reminds you of America's dedication to the individual's rights.
Now, I'm not going to say America does not follow through with its platform, if we were to compare it to a political candidate, but I will say, it sure does make an effort, and successfully to, to keep its deplorable actions hidden. Its true, there are many organizations, and many Americans for that matter, that work to help others. Homeless people are fed daily, poverty-stricken families can get clothes donated by families, and many other issues are tackled, selflessly and persistently throughout the year. My concern is the contribution Americans make to a situation in a foreign land, unknowingly after paying taxes.
The Middle East, as we all, I'm sure, are well aware, is a region that has been devastated within the past few years. Many Americans despise our government's attack on Iraq, the number of troops coming home with injuries, or not coming home at all has been a catastrophic result from our War on Terror. Now, assuming you have heard a decent share of opinions about Iraq and Iran and probably even Afghanistan, I would like to introduce to you a situation that many are not aware of in the Middle East, and that mostly has to do with media coverage of this ongoing event. And many of you, or at least those of you who pay taxes, have been supporting this without even knowing that you are providing the Israeli military with enough ammunition to continue its occupation of Palestine.
I'd like to provide you with facts and hard hitting evidence, but sometimes scares people away from politcally-embedded issues that are actually pretty simple and absolutely horrific that need to be addressed. So if you're still reading, I'll give you a little information on the topic, what little I do know, I am still learning and there's no such thing as knowing everything about something.
After WWII, yes this has been going on for a while, Palestine, a land that was mistakenly reported as dead and in need of some citizens, was created into Israel, or at least certain parts were designated for each country. Today, a region that used to be largely Palestine has become largely Israeli. Now there are many reasons for this transition and I'll provide you with a few: America's undying support for Israel (oil? maybe), the rise of Zionism in Israel, conflicts between muslim states, increasing donations of American tax money to the Israeli military, and the inability of the UN to enforce human rights laws because of the US stance on this whole issue.
This may seem like an odd list, or maybe simply seem quite unbelievable, but I don't think that people would put the time and effort to investigate and report on this issue if it were not true.
I will provide a list of sources from which I will be presenting information in future entries, so that if you would like to see the information and updates for yourself you may do so. I have met several people who can be found in these sites, and I have yet to meet many more. I would just like to make one thing clear, I will not make this a religious issue, a political issue, or any other kind of issue that just seems one-sided. I was born in America and I was raised with the belief that "all people are created equal" and everybody should be given the equal opportunity to succeed. When I learned that my government, the same source from which I gathered these beliefs, was involved in an occupation that denies the essential rights of humans, starves them to death, and blindly shoots at living, breathing targets, I felt this should be revealed to the people whose money was being spent to finance the ammunition. If you would like to know more about this, or any statement that I have made in this blog, here are some sources to acquaint yourself with the topic:
http://www.ifamericansknew.org/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/default.stm
http://www.democracynow.org/
http://www.hrw.org/doc/?t=mideast
http://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/
http://www.un.org/unrwa/english.html
http://www.endtheoccupation.org/index.php
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Here's another source for you to look at: http://www.middleeastfacts.com/index.php
*is from Israel and finds this sort of post extremely ignorant and offensive*
I know the government may not be entirely truthful at all times..but haven't you ever heard that ignorance is bliss...the government is trying to protect us..which is part of their job...do you have any idea how much worse things could've been for our country and all of us if they told us the truth about everything?
...the phrase "The pursuit of Happiness" was not born with a Will Smith film. It actually dates back to the founding of the country I believe. Thomas Jefferson wrote, in the Declaration of Independence, that "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness" were inalienable rights given to each and every individual.
Now, in regards to the rest of your blog... It may not be correct for one to provide another with means of harm. However, Israel is one of our allies and as such has the right to our assistance. This is not, I know, justification for what's occurring, but from a political and economic standpoint it is much more beneficial for the U.S. to continue funding Israel and keep them as our allies, instead of cutting off ties which would tarnish our reputation within the global community. And I'd like to ask you (because, while I appreciate you giving sources, I don't exactly have time to go through them all, I apologize, and hope you would know) how exactly are we assisting Israel? Are we merely throwing money at them, or is this actually a transaction? Some sort of purchase?
Personally I'd say it's a purpose. Israel is the only democracy in the middle-east and the US's only real ally in the middle-east. It is also the most powerful military power in the middle-east and has proved that many times, the US would be wise to keep it as an ally.
We love Israel. Primarily because of the amount of Jewish people running this nation.
+mspin
