Re: “Israel cleaned from co-op shelves” (TNT, 7-21).
The Olympia Food Co-op boycott of Israeli products is a way to “compel Israel to follow international law and respect Palestinian human rights.” That reasoning twists reality and rewrites history and facts to reverse the conditions as they exist.
Regarding human rights, the answer to the following questions is – in all cases – “yes” for Israel; usually “no” and sometimes “minimal” or “limited” but never “yes” for Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, the Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia and Syria:
• Is there free speech and assembly?
• Are there fair and open trials?
• Is religious freedom protected or tolerated?
• Can females travel without their husband’s consent?
• Is there legal protection for gays from discrimination and hate crimes?
• Are honor killings outlawed?
• Are there free and fair elections?
• Are opposition parties legal?
• Is there minority participation in government?
Israelis are far more lenient in punishing convicted felons. There is no beheading, no stoning to death. In fact, Israel has no death penalty.
The blatant hypocrisy of the co-op in ignoring the true abuse of human rights throughout the Muslim world and many other well-documented countries is typical of the hate and violence being fostered by the pro-Palestinian community as it seeks to destroy the legitimacy of Israel and the country itself.
Thanks for attempting to shed some light on this, Mr. Warnick, but you have to understand that the folks running the co-op are no doubt operating on the limited information they get from party-line sources and aren’t interested in critical thinking on the matter.
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Well put Jack. Don’t hold your breath tho, it will not change the double standard.
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Hey O.F.C – I’ll bet everything I own against everything you can produce and sell that one CAN build and operate a mosque, church, dance hall, swim-suit competition, movie cineplex or bingo parlor in our Israel……try doing ANY of THAT in Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, the so-called Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia and Syria, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Somalia, Chad, India, Maylasia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Sudan or Bangla Desh.
Let’s boycott Olympia Food Co-op . I love tomatoes from Haifa…
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larsman – no more shopping at the bigots store of radical thinking!!
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Israel just convicted an Israeli Arab of rape for having consensual sex with a Jewish woman – 18 months in prison. Not exactly freedom of religion.
Israel also has been actively prosecuting its citizens for expressions of dissent. Not exactly freedom of speech.
Oh, and then there is that whole bit with their militaristic imperialism….
It isn’t about religion. It is about a rogue state. One that refuses to sign onto the Nuclear Proliferation treaty. One that consistently violates U.N. sanctions. One that kills American citizens with impunity.
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Now there you go again, bB, cherry picking, taking facts out of context, and saying stuff that’s just not true.
Just wondering, how many Americans have Israelis killed with impunity?
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Links beerboy, links.
Where do these people come from?
The letter writer remains unrefuted.
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Beerboy, the United States convicts young adults of child rape when the was consensual and the age was just a bit to far apart if the parents push it…
But more to the point, will this store also condem each and every country that has human rights violations? Or commits such attrocities?
If so, can they truly accept anything from the United States in light of its recent wars on/in other countries?
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Bb- don’t forget # 2 on the list…Persia…where they bury women up to their shoulders and do a rock concert on their head.
Your bigoted ignorance of the history (prior to 1967 even….prior to 1948 U.N. even, prior to 1922 League of Nations, 1917 Balfour, 73 Masada, 70 Diaspora,
Maccabees Revolt , before Alexander, Nebuchadnezzar,Jacob, Isaac, Abraham
(there is not or never was an”allah” that Abraham ever prayed to, that invention was 2600 years later), and into the realm of the Melchizedek Priest/King) of the real estate concentric from Mount Moriah is called Jerusalem and was unconditionally given to Abraham through Isaac. God is so much bigger than tiny you embarrassing yourself grasping for crooked anti-Semitic/Zion quotes from Farrakhan, Wright or Hitler. You getting you info from “Salon” or nation of islam?
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no doubt operating on the limited information they get from party-line sources and aren’t interested in critical thinking on the matter.
The hypocrisy of some people is breath taking, it really is.
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That’s not an example of hypocrisy, sumner. Look it up.
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In your case it is, a clear cut text book example.
If you knew the meaning of the word, you would agree.
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Hey folks,
We can all agree that life is pretty good for many Israelis, particularly Jewish Israelis. The problem is what life is like for Arab Palestinians, and Israel’s perpetration of abhorrent crimes against that people. For each point you make about how life is better for Israelis than Palestinians, I can say that I basically agree, and that is an excellent argument for why Israel’s crimes in Palestine must end.
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Here is a partial list of the thousands of people who have signed on to the petition of support for the Olympia Food Co-op’s Boycott of Israeli goods:
Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu
Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb, one of Washington Post’s 50 Top Rabbis in the US
Naomi Klein, award-winning journalist, and author of The Shock Doctrine
Richard Falk, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and UN Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Territories
Anthony Arnove, co-author of Voices of a People’s History of the United States, and author of Iraq: The Logic of Withdrawal
Paul Kivel, violence prevention educator
Ann Wright, US Army colonel (retired ready reserve), former State Dept. official, recipient of the State Dept. Award for Heroism, survivor of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla
Cindy Corrie, founder of Rachel Corrie Foundation, and mother of slain Palestine peace activist Rachel Corrie
Roger Waters of Pink Floyd
Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CODE PINK and Global Exchange
Joel Kovel, psychiatrist and writer
Cindy Sheehan, peace activist, and mother of Private Casey K.I.A. in Iraq
Rabbi Alyssa Wise
Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace Prize laureate
John Berger, author of G and Ways of Seeing, and Booker Prize winner
Yonatan Shapira, Israeli Air Force Captain and co-founder of Combatants for Peace
Tariq Ali, writer, filmmaker, commentator, editor of New Left Review
Iraq Veterans Against the War, Fort Lewis
Iraq Veterans Against the War, National
International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, Los Angeles
Jews Say No!, New York
American Jews for a Just Peace
Women in Black, Los Angeles
Working Group on the Middle East of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Coalition of Women for Peace, Israel
International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, Toronto
Women in Solidarity with Palestine, Toronto
Not In Our Name (NION) Jews Opposing Zionism, Canada
Jews for Boycotting Israeli Goods, United Kingdom
Jews Against Zionism, London
Not in our Name, Argentina
Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Near East, Austria
Rete ECO: The Italian network of Jews against the Occupation, Italy
French Jewish Union for Peace, France
Industrial Workers of the World, Olympia Chapter
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2. Israel is committing crimes against humanity in its ongoing, illegal occupation of Palestinian lands and perpetuation of an apartheid system. Massive Israeli violence against civilians has only increased in recent years. International pressure has proven insufficient to change Israeli policies.
3. Boycott is a moral, nonviolent strategy for change. It is a campaign in which ordinary citizens throughout the world can make their voices heard.
4. It is not effective to boycott only Israeli products from the illegal settlements in Palestinian territories, as the Israeli and settlement economies are completely integrated, and crimes against Palestinians occur within Israel as well as within the occupied territories.
5. Boycott is not a form of punishment of the Israeli Jewish population; rather, it is consumers’ organized refusal to support the Israeli economy as long as Palestinians, both in Israel and the Occupied Territories, are subject to an all-encompassing system of discrimination.
6. Include parts of your testimony from the 8/12 forum at the Olympia Center.
7. If you are Jewish it is especially important to challenge the assumption of Tacoma News Tribune and The Olympian that certain groups speaks for the South Sound Jewish Community. It’s actually very diverse and does not hold a monolithic view on Palestine and Israel or the boycott.
8. Make a reference to the resources on the Olympia BDS site, such as the video statement by Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb in support of the boycott, and the letter from Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Reference Phan Nguyen’s oped in The News Tribune.
9. From Rochelle Gause’s email prior to the Olympia Center event:
“The co-op has a specific boycott policy that we have been following to the tee for 2 years, a policy designed to help the co-op remain true to its mission statement of encouraging economic and social justice. Human rights abuses are happening daily, there are no words for the reality on the ground and we truly are responsible with our tax dollars, at the price tag of $940,000 from Olympia alone to Israel each year… The boards decision has not prevented any discussion, in fact, I believe it has started a much needed dialogue in our community.
“Boycott has proven successful in so many situations in the past, from the Montgomery Bus boycott for civil rights, to the Grape boycott for farmworkers rights. And recently a South African delegation traveled to Palestine and returned calling for boycott of Israel saying some of the conditions they saw were worse than under South African apartheid. It is time to act!”
Additional information
* The Olympia BDS website
* Why Boycott? From the Co-op website.
* Steve Niva’s article about the co-op boycott.
* Linda Frank’s letter to the editor in support of the boycott.
* More letters on the subject
* FAQ about boycott from IMEU, The Institute for Middle East Understanding
* 2-page Olympia BDS flyer about boycott
* And the Palestine Solidarity Seattle website page on boycott
Additional Reminders in Regards to Letters to the Editor
* Please write even if you only have time for a brief note. Numbers count. If you are not published, you will be helping someone with a similar viewpoint get into print.
* The word limit for letters that are intended for publication is 250. Shorter letters are generally easier for papers to publish.
* Begin your letter with a reference to the title and date of the article or opinion piece to which you are responding. Example: “Re: Olympia co-op boycott debate cordial, passionate”
* Personal experiences and/or qualifications, when relevant, can be helpful in establishing your authority. However, you can also establish your authority by writing factual, logical, respectful letters. When possible, include a reference to your source, such as, “according to the Israeli human rights organization, B’Tselem,…”
* Don’t try to respond to every problem with the piece in question. Just pick one or two points to concentrate on.
* Don’t forget to include your full name, street address and contact phone numbers. The paper needs these to verify that you are actually the author. Only your name and city will appear in print.
* Please be courteous.
Thanks for all your support, and thanks for listening!
Olympia BDS
http://www.olympiabds.org
contact@olympiabds.org
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Ali Abunimah on… “Boycott: A Nonviolent Technology for Peace and Justice in Palestine/Israel”
Tuesday, August 31, 7-9 pm, The Olympia Center, 222 Columbia NW
For all the dialogues, discussions, and debates around the Olympia Food Co-op’s recent boycott of Israeli goods, one party’s voice has been shamefully excluded — that of Palestinians. Ali Abunimah, co-founder of the Electronic Intifada, is one of the most prominent Palestinian-American commentators on the Israel/Palestine conflict. He is coming to Olympia to explain why boycott is an important component for peace and justice for Palestine and Israel.Ali Abunimah has published articles in the newspapers such as the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, and the Los Angeles Times, and has appeared as a commentator on CNN, MSNBC, Al-Jazeera, NPR, Democracy Now!, and other news programs. Abunimah was born to a refugee mother from the eradicated Palestinian village of Lifta and a father from Battir in the currently occupied West Bank. “My parents taught me the importance of standing up for your rights but doing so in a way that is not tribal,” says Abunimah. “The Palestinian issue is about universal rights and about equality for everyone.”
“But it’s precisely because of this sort of ignorance that BDS efforts are needed: to educate the public that the situation in Palestine/Israel is not about “Arab or Muslim vs. Jew” nor even about “Palestinians vs. Israelis.” It is a struggle against a system of oppression and apartheid that privileges Israeli Jews at the expense of Palestinians, violating Palestinians’ most fundamental rights. The premise of the BDS movement is that the key to ending the conflict is for Israel to respect the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people and comply with international law. BDS is a tactic, not an end in itself. The goal is to get to justice, human rights, and equality for all.
Indeed, the Palestinian civil society’s BDS call makes clear this is a universalist movement that sees anyone who supports universal human rights as a potential ally. Thus it explicitly invites “conscientious Israelis to support this Call, for the sake of justice and genuine peace.” And some courageous Israelis, have already done so, launching Boycott From Within.” Ali Abunimah, co-founder of the Electronic Intifada, is one of the most prominent Palestinian-American commentators on the Israel/Palestine conflict. He is coming to Olympia to explain why boycott is an important component for peace and justice for Palestine and Israel. Ali Abunimah has published articles in the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, and the Los Angeles Times, and has appeared as a commentator on CNN, MSNBC, Al-Jazeera and other television news programs. Abunimah was born to a refugee mother from the eradicated Palestinian village of Lifta and a father from Battir in the currently occupied West Bank.
SPECIAL NOTE: For those of you who have attempted to derail previous BDS-related events, please don’t try to get this event canceled through threats and intimidation. The plane ticket has already been bought. We work really hard on this stuff, and it’s not nice of you to try to ruin it. We don’t try to cancel your events.
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