"When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle." ~ 
Any world is an illusion, but within illusion, another world, a better world, seems possible. In the material world, the one we think is real, the divide between the 'left' and 'right' is an artificial one. This divide serves to keep us separate from each other and prevents us from seeing clearly that we in fact have shared interests and a common enemy. A better way to approach economy, politics, culture and society would be to take note of the ways in which our societies are divided horizontally: the interests of the few (the elite) and the many (ordinary people). The elite wants to oppress and exploit the rest of us. In a material sense, they are our enemy. They are working to establish a One World Company, aka a totalitarian New World Order. World government is the last thing ordinary people need. We need free and open communities with equal rights for everyone and a profound respect for the many differences between us. We want freedom rather than security. We want peace, not war. Above all else, we want truth, dignity and justice. ~ The Editor
XML FeedsIsrael’s Water Wars
Jason Godesky
Toby's People
Israeli bulldozer detroys water canal built on Palestinian land.
The stated rationale for Israel’s invasion of Lebanon was nonsense. Ostensibly, Israel invaded Lebanon because Hizb’allah captured two IDF soldiers that violated the Lebanese border.1 Later reports in Western media were changed so that Hizb’allah was entering Israel in an unprovoked attack; this is the generally understood scenario in the West, though it conflicts with the original reports and Lebanese police. Hizb’allah asked for a prisoner exchange—like the exchanges Israel has engaged in before2—but instead, Israel’s Kadima PM Ehud Olmert promised a “very painful and far-reaching response.” Israel’s army chief of staff, General Dan Halutz, said the war would “turn back the clock in Lebanon by 20 years.”
Gerald Steinberg, a professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University, said, “Of all of Israel’s wars since 1948, this was the one for which Israel was most prepared. In a sense, the preparation began in May 2000, immediately after the Israeli withdrawal, when it became clear the international community was not going to prevent Hezbollah from stockpiling missiles and attacking Israel. By 2004, the military campaign scheduled to last about three weeks that we’re seeing now had already been blocked out and, in the last year or two, it’s been simulated and rehearsed across the board.”3 Western commentators have tried to turn the issue into one of Israel’s self-defence from Hizb’allah, but prior to 12 July 2006, Hizb’allah rockets had killed a total of 6 Israeli civilians since 20004—including one struck by a falling anti-aircraft round fired at an Israeli jet violating Lebanese air space, while another “civilian” was in fact an IDF officer.5 By comparison, at least four Lebanese civilians were killed by IDF or SLA fighters just during the withdrawal from southern Lebanon, 22-23 May 2000.6 In 34 days of fighting, Hizb’allah killed 108 IDF soldiers and wounded 9, while some 4,000 Katyusha rocket attacks killed 41 Israeli civilians. In the same timespan, the IDF has claimed over 400 Hizb’allah fighters dead, and 1,130 Lebanese civilians killed, 3,600 wounded, and a million displaced.7
