Vice President Dick Cheney giving a speech.

"If I were an Arab leader I would never make terms with Israel. That is natural: we have taken their country... we come from israel, but two thousand years ago, and what is that to them? There has been anti-semitism, the Nazis, Hitler, Auschwitz, but was that their fault? They only see one thing: we have come and stolen their country. Why should they accept that?"

-A quote from David Ben-Gurion, one of Israel's early leaders.

I have a lot to say about this article, but before I do, let me state that I feel this is only one side of the story. The content may seem outrageous and you may want to go riot in downtown Washignton D.C. right now, but keep in mind that there are always two sides to a story. That being said, this article continued the spree of eye-opening literature I've read in the class.

I'm a political science major before I'm an English major. I should be completely done with my poli sci major by the second semester of my junior year. I have a fascination for it, and that's why this article was of unparalleled interest to me in comparison to all of the things we've read this year.

Quoting for importance from the article we read: "Jewish Americans have set up an impressive aray of organisations to influence American foreign policy, of which AIPAC is the most powerful and best known. In 1997, Fortune magazine asked members of Congress and their staffs to list the most powerful lobbies in Washington. AIPAC was ranked second behind the AARP, but just ahead of the AFL-CIO and NRA. A National Journal study in March 2005 reached a similar conclusion..."

The power of interest groups and lobbies is unrivaled in politics, these days. The majority of Americans support a ban of assault rifles, not just a majority, but a super majority. In 2004, 71% Americans were proponents of an assault weapons ban. 71%! So why are assault weapons still legal and available?

The NRA. The National Rifle Association is a perpetual power in Washington, and as long as they are in our congressmen's pockets, this is something that will never change.

I have a lot to say regarding this article and it's contents, but I hope everyone found it as insightful and interesting as I did. I'm excited to hear what you all have to say.

See you soon,
Dan

Palestine: Peace, not Apartheid

A picture of our thirty-ninth President of the United States of America, Jimmy Carter.

"The bottom line is this: Peace will come to Israel and the Middle East only when the Israeli government is willing to comply with international law, with the Roadmap for Peace, with official American policy, with the wishes of a majority of its own citizens--and honor its own previous commitments--by accpting its legal borders. All Arab neighbors must pledge to honor Israel's right to live in peace under these conditions."

-Taken from Chapter 17 page 216 of Jimmy Carter's Palestine Peace Not Apartheid

I used to think that it was a matter of "good vs. evil" in the Middle East when I was growing up. After reading Jimmy Carter's book, I see that things are hardly so black and white.

First off, I just want to say thank God for the historical chronology in the first ten pages of this book. Not that I've ever truly searched for one before, but this painted a very clear picture for the points being made within the book, and it really shined some light on a situation that needed a little bit of clearing up for me.

The chapter that I got the most out of was most definitely chapter three, which was Jimmy Carter's personal recollection and account of the situation during his presidency. His accounts of all the letters and meetings were quite in-depth, and I appreciated the sense of honesty that came along with his writing. The description of the actors in chapter four was also pretty helpful in creating a better understanding of the situation.

I have to say, though, that of all the pages we were assigned to read, the most informative were the pictures of the maps. I had no idea where half of these places were in relation to each other, and now I know. Pretty neat to not be so ignorant anymore!

All of that being said, I enjoyed the reading, it was quite informative. I didn't understand what we were supposed to get from pages 176-177, but I suppose I can ask that question tomorrow.

See you all bright and early!
-Dan

"My Cousin kills a man and I carry off his daughter. Tragedy or farce?" - Taken from Sahar Khaliefh's Wild Thorns

The first time I read Wild Thorns, I didn't fully understand the character development or the little side plots that were going on throughout the novel. After reading it again, I feel much more comfortable discussing it and interpreting it.

I thought this was a pretty difficult read. There were so many characters to remember, and trying to keep the on-going stories in check was also pretty difficult. Sometimes I would get a page or two into a chapter thinking I was going to be reading about one person, but then finding that I was actually reading the story of another one of the characters. Even the first time I read this I had to reread a couple pages several times in order to fully understand the plot and characters.

My parents always used to watch the news at dinnertime, and I used to hate it. I wanted to watch Nickelodeon instead, but they weren't having that. Almost all the news I saw in regards to Israel and Palestine was a pro-Israel version of the news, and I can't say that I remember a single report done to represent Palestine or it's people that would make them proud. Coming to college and becoming a political science major, I realized during my freshman year that the situation was of course not so easy, and now reading these books I find myself more and more uneasy about the situation.

I watch the news today, and I feel like it's all the same. Israel has nuclear weapons, but it's okay, they're Israel. Iran (or any other nation in the Middle East) with nuclear weapons? That would be a catastrophic mistake! Nuclear weapons are bad!

"First, how many nuclear weapons does the US possess? "The U.S. nuclear arsenal today includes 5,400 warheads loaded on intercontinental ballistic missiles at land and sea; an additional 1,750 nuclear bombs and cruise missiles ready to be launched from B-2 and B-52 bombers; a further 1,670 nuclear weapons classified as “tactical.” And just in case, an additional 10,000 or so nuclear warheads held in bunkers around the United States as a “hedge” against future surprises." (from Newsweek, a popular US news magazine; June 25, 2001)" - http://www.peaceheroes.com/usisdevelopingnewnukes.htm

Sigh.

The persecution and punishment that some Israelis forced upon Palestinians within this novel was very much an eye-opener to me. I hope it was to others as well. I know I can't be the only person with a pre-conceived Western bias in this class.

I'm going to stop watching the news.

If you were a horse...

"Why do you wish I were a horse when you are overcome by the urge to be rid of me?"
His father suddently frowned and answered in a grave tone:
"You don't understand these things. There are situations where killing a horse is a necessary, useful action.
"But I'm not a horse."
"I know. I know. That's why I sometimes wish that God had created you a horse."

-Taken from "If You Were A Horse" by Ghassan Kanafani.

Of all the short stories we were assigned to read for today, I particularly enjoyed "If You Were A Horse" by Ghassan Kanafani. The kind of short stories I love are the short stories that hook you right in the very beginning, and the line "IF YOU WERE A HORSE I WOULD PUT A BULLET through your brain." really got my attention :).

The story is about a son and a father, and the father tells the son on a regular basis that if he were a horse, he'd kill him. The son, having heard this for his entire life, is quite confused about the whole thing and doesn't understand why his father wants to kill him, and also doesn't understand why it has to be a horse.

The story develops and the son delves into his father's past. The son discovers that the father used to love horses. People would tell the father to kill horses, but he would not. One day, a horse with a reddish-brown spot was born, and the father's boss/friend told the father to immediately kill that horse, or the foal will kill someone dear to you. The father chose to ignore the superstition. Years later, the horse with the spot was responsible for the death of the father's wife.

Turns out, the son has a birthmark that greatly resembles that spot on the horse, and the father is absolutely terrified of his son. At the midpoint of the story, the father needs to have a complex surgery, and his son (being the best doctor in the area) is about to perform surgery when his father has a fit and wouldn't allow him to do it, because he's afraid that the son will kill him. Instead, the son lets a less qualified doctor take care of it. As the son heads home, he realizes the error in his ways in letting a poor doctor take over, and runs back regardless of what his father thinks of him.

I thought it was a wonderful little story, and I'm eager to hear everyone's comments about all the other stories. See you all in class!

-Dan

Men in the Sun

"...He tried to finish climbing into the lorry, but didn't feel strong enough. He thought that his head would explode. All the exhaustion which he felt suddenly rose to his head and began to hum in it, and so he put his head in his hands and began to pull his hair to expel the thought. But it was still there, huge and resounding, unshakeable and inescapable [...] All at once he could no longer keep it within his head, and he dropped his hands to his sides and stared into the darkness with his eyes wide open.

"The thought slipped from his mind and ran onto his tongue: "Why didn't you knock on the sides of the tank? Why didn't you say anything? Why?"

The desert suddenly began to send back the echo:

"Why didn't you knock on the sides of the tank? Why didn't you bang the sides of the tank? Why? Why? Why? Why?"

-Taken from the final page of Ghassan Kanafani's Men in the Sun.

I'm sure I wasn't the only person to sit down and read this in an hour because I couldn't stop reading about halfway through it. Though the idea of smuggling and being utterly and totally poor in a barren land may be foreign to most of us in this class, the story was quite exciting, and it ended quickly and abruptly, with an echo in the dark desert nighttime sky.

I also really enjoyed the way Kanafani found a way to give each character some background, but not dwell too heavily on each, being that the story only lasts for about 60 pages. Character development was over before you knew it, and each one brought something different to the table.

One of the prevailing themes of this story was the idea of 'honor' and 'swearing on your honor'. How little it meant to the thief who could 'swear on his honor', take the person's money, and then never see them again because they would never make it out of the desert without his help (which was never coming, mind you). Even the character with seemingly the most honorable of intentions, Abul Khaizuran, ended up letting the three men die within his care. What is honor, really?

I'm excited to begin discussion on this. It was a great read, and I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as me :)

See you later!
-Dan

The Koran

A Muslim reading from the Koran.

"YUSUFALI: Say: "If any men go astray, (Allah) Most Gracious extends (the rope) to them, until, when they see the warning of Allah (being fulfilled) - either in punishment or in (the approach of) the Hour,- they will at length realise who is worst in position, and (who) weakest in forces!"

-Taken from the Koran, the depiction of Maryam.

I know a thing or two about politics in Middle Eastern countries, you know, things like economy and leadership and what not. That being said, I knew absolutely nothing about Islam or the Koran prior today's reading.

I was a taken a bit off-guard.

All of the names that I grew up with, Adam, Noah, Moses, Father Abraham, Mary, Jesus, they were all there. Of course, there was different interpretation as to how their significance (especially the importance and value of Christ). I had no idea they were a part of the Islamic religion, not even a little bit.

I used the quote above because it's a good analogy for things that we as Christians and anyone who believes in a higher power will tend to agree with. The rope is always there, there's always a way out through faith as long as you truly believe and can repent for your sins. Of course, there's a matter of what you believe, who you're praying too, and all that Jazz, but the theme of forgiveness through devotion seems to exist in both Christianity and in Islam.

I'm truly excited for the opportunity to visit a Mosque and learn a little bit more about this. Regardless of belief or idealogue, there is something to be learned from most every religion, this of course being no exception. Hopefully everyone comes with an open mind today.

See you all very soon!
-Dan

The Modern Middle East

-The cover picture for Ilan Pappe's The Modern Middle East

I'm falling in love with a class that relies so heavily on wikipedia.

No, really. Having the reading be semi-entertaining while managing to be informative and pertinent to our class discussions, that's pretty neat; could read this stuff all day long.

Being a political science major with some prior knowledge of Middle East politics and economy, I enjoyed the assessment of the history of the Middle East. I particularly enjoyed the small bits about overdependence on petroleum and the oilocracy stuff (that's research topic #1 for most nerdy political science students who are interested in Globalization.)

There's an honors class that's offered here at Western Michigan University that details genocides in the past few hundred years (excluding the Holocaust, there's a class offered just for that particular genocide on it's own). That really gave me some insight into the Young Turks (Armenian Genocide of 1914), but that's a different blog for a different day (and probably a different class).

I've said it before, but I can't describe how excited I am to be moving in a direction of reading some contemporary literature. You'll find that me not having to decipher iambic pentameter or middle English and discuss it on a Monday morning makes me happier than it does to do it, and having something to read that I don't have to reread for comprehension several times makes me a happy camper as well :)

I hope everyone is quite happy with their papers, and I look forward to a discussion tomorrow on the Modern Middle East. Hopefully we Michiganders will have a budget in the morning, but it doesn't look swell at the moment.

See you all bright and early!
Dan