Comments on: Why Do Howard Dean & Democratic Party March in Lockstep with AIPAC? http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2005/09/15/why-do-howard-dean-democratic-party-march-in-lockstep-with-aipac/ Essays on politics, culture and ideas about Israeli-Arab peace and world music Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:52:28 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.1 By: Richard Silverstein http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2005/09/15/why-do-howard-dean-democratic-party-march-in-lockstep-with-aipac/#comment-1315 Richard Silverstein Sat, 17 Sep 2005 00:00:02 +0000 http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/?p=881#comment-1315 Freddie: Your comment is basically beside the point. I never said that Dean should not visit Israel (in fact I said just the opposite). Nor did I say Dean and the Democrats shouldn't be friends with Israel or shouldn't support Israel. The question is how they express that friendship & support. Focussing only on Israel's security at the expense of focussing on peace does no service to Israel. It just reinforces all the bad mistakes Israel has made (excluding the recent Gaza disengagement) in perpetuating the Occupation & other policies which have forced peace to recede into the far distance. Security with no vision of how peace will be won is an empty exercise which leads to more bloodshed. The whole "Israel is a democracy which you can't say for any other state in the Middle East" is also irrelevant to this discussion. This is such an old & tired defense of Israel's "special relationship" with the U.S. Besides if Israel is a democracy which occupies, oppresses and decimates the Palestinians (& to a lesser extent Israeli Arabs), then what value does this vaunted democracy serve? Oppression is oppression whether it comes at the hands of a democracy or an authoritarian regime. Freddie: Your comment is basically beside the point. I never said that Dean should not visit Israel (in fact I said just the opposite). Nor did I say Dean and the Democrats shouldn’t be friends with Israel or shouldn’t support Israel. The question is how they express that friendship & support. Focussing only on Israel’s security at the expense of focussing on peace does no service to Israel. It just reinforces all the bad mistakes Israel has made (excluding the recent Gaza disengagement) in perpetuating the Occupation & other policies which have forced peace to recede into the far distance. Security with no vision of how peace will be won is an empty exercise which leads to more bloodshed.

The whole “Israel is a democracy which you can’t say for any other state in the Middle East” is also irrelevant to this discussion. This is such an old & tired defense of Israel’s “special relationship” with the U.S. Besides if Israel is a democracy which occupies, oppresses and decimates the Palestinians (& to a lesser extent Israeli Arabs), then what value does this vaunted democracy serve? Oppression is oppression whether it comes at the hands of a democracy or an authoritarian regime.

]]> By: freddie http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2005/09/15/why-do-howard-dean-democratic-party-march-in-lockstep-with-aipac/#comment-1314 freddie Fri, 16 Sep 2005 20:21:56 +0000 http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/?p=881#comment-1314 There has long been a friendship between Amera and Israel. The Democrats under Truman helped establish (via UN) the state of Israel. Why shouldn't Dean, a Democrat, be friendly with Israel etc. After all Israel is a democracy, which you can not say for any other state in the Middle East...stop nit picking: Dean or any other American has every right to maintain a friendship that is both long standing and solid.--you support those you prefer and go your way There has long been a friendship between Amera and Israel. The Democrats under Truman helped establish (via UN) the state of Israel. Why shouldn’t Dean, a Democrat, be friendly with Israel etc. After all Israel is a democracy, which you can not say for any other state in the Middle East…stop nit picking: Dean or any other American has every right to maintain a friendship that is both long standing and solid.–you support those you prefer and go your way

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