118 ABSENCE OF DEBATE

Ten years ago the Iraq war broke out and from then on there was a lively intensive debate in these columns about the rights and wrongs of that war. For many years after I used to be a regular contributor to that debate on the Iraq war with more than sixty letters published. Also during the Vietnam war there used to be lively lengthy debates and discussions going on in the media. I had even more letters published then, very long letters with references and lengthy quotes from relevant sources. Writing about geo-political issues in particular in the Middle East to-day is taboo, so one may wonder what is going on ? A vicious proxy war is being waged in Syria to-day, started and fomented by the US/NATO/Israel alliance, supplying outside forces with sophisticated weaponry via their client states of Qatar and Saudi Arabia.  A war that may well lead to a nuclear war eventually. Mankind stands at a cross road to-day, yet no word whatsoever in New Zealand news media or in their letters to the editor columns. It is becoming more obvious by the day that western corporate media are Zionist dominated and controlled and as your cartoonist so aptly expresses it in yesterday's Press (20/03) "The next manufactured conflict". How right he is.
21st March 2013 

117 ANTI SEMITISM QUESTIONED

 I bet my bottom dollar that the British Peer Lord Ahmed (Press 16/03) never blamed or used the word 'Jews' during his talk about the Israeli oppression of the Palestinians in the West Bank. He blamed Zionism which is quite distinct from anti-Semitism. Not all Jews are Zionists and some Christians are Zionist. Many Jewish people abhor Zionism. Lord Ahmed is quite right when he states that the western mainstream media are Zionist controlled. That is not a 'conspiracy', it is verifiable fact. A little bit of research will confirm that fact. Scores of books and commentaries - even by Jewish authors - have been published underscoring that fact. Even browsing through our own New Zealand news papers and our own Christchurch Press one cannot fail to notice the absence of any criticism on Israeli criminal behaviour towards Palestinians, either in the letter columns or articles. (most of them from 'TheTimes'). This particular article with its old trite, stereotyped 'conspiracy' theory cliche is in itself in fact already a piece Zionist propaganda.
16 March 2013

116 JUST FOR THE RECORD

So Mr. Netanyahu wants us to believe that Israel is an 'exemplary' democracy. Nothing however is further from the truth. An exclusively 'Jewish' state and at the same time claiming to be a 'democracy' is a contradiction in terms and by definition such a country could never be a democracy. However, in order to give Israel some semblance of a 'democratic' state it is often being argued that there is an Arab party sitting in the Knesset representing the Arab population. This is sheer window dressing, because these so called Arab parties are not included in any key-decision making committees as is the case in a real democracy. In a democracy no one is forced to sign a declaration of allegiance to the state; in a democracy people of different faith and ethnic origins can marry each other. In Israel an Arab cannot marry a Jew or visa versa. In order to preserve the Jewish identity of the sate the Jewish/Arab population ratios are artificially kept at respectively 80/20%. Israel to all intents and purposes is a fake democracy and for that reason would never be accepted as a member of the European Union or for that matter become the 51st state of the United States of America.
19 February 2013

115 WHO IS TALKING /

May I remind your correspondent Paul O'Donnell (Press 16/02) that in the name of Christianity over the last decennia or so, far and far more innocent people have been killed and are still being killed in similar gruesome manner as described in his letter - although by different advanced killing technologies - than by Muslims and Islam. Perhaps if he had ever been given a chance to visit the battle fields of Europe during WW 1 and 2; of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia or had visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki, he may well have come to a different opinion. And for that matter we may even go further back into history and consider the extermination of the North and South American natives by Christian nations. So who is talking ?
16 February 2013

114 ISLAMOPHOBIA

Richard Prosser (NZ Parliamentarian) may have apologized for his inflammatory islamohobic remarks, but the damage has already been done and he knows that too well. The question is how sincere are his apologies ? Such irresponsible racial remarks do invariably appeal a a small and ignorant section of the general public. Islamophobia is just as repugnant and unacceptable as anti-Semitism and should be condemned outright by all right thinking people. Mr. Winston Peters (leader NZ First party) should realize that individuals such as Richard Prosser are not fit to rep[resent a constituency and take a seat in a supposedly democratic parliament. It is to be hoped that his remarks will back fire on him at the next general elections.
14 February 2013

113 DRONE WARFARE

In light of the on-going killings of innocent people resulting from American drone strikes (Press 7/02 'World') in the Islamic world and our subservient alliance with US foreign policy, it is imperative to have our military alliance with that country publicly debated, as US foreign policy is bound top have serious repercussions for New Zealand as well. Obama claims that the use of drones are 'morally and ethically' defensible, because they kill with surgical precision. That is an unacceptable deceptive excuse, for it is not its claimed precision, but the ordnance used; small rockets which explode on impact and kill innocent bystanders in the immediate vicinity of the targeted suspect being often women and children. (e.g. during a funeral or wedding celebration). If we consider the widespread use of torture (CIA rendition to countries notorious for their human rights violations, Guantanamo Bay, the spying on US citizens, the almost daily murders in the US itself) as well as America's enormous economic and financial problems, increasing unemployment and poverty, than there can be no doubt that the US is morally, socially and ethically in sharp decline.
8 February 2013

112 CARTOON

There is no need to apologize for the cartoon (Press 30/01 'World') in the Sunday Times recently as it accurately, precisely and truthfully depicts Netanyahu's pernicious policies in the illegally Israeli occupied West Bank. It shows once again the enormous power the Zionist lobbies are wielding over our corporate news media accusing critiques of 'anti-Semitism', demanding apologies from the editor in their efforts to defend their reprehensible actions against defenceless, innocent people. The Israeli Human Rights Movement B"Tselem recently reported 56 Palestinian stone throwers being killed, mostly young boys still in their teen. Over the last 45 years many thousands of Palestinians have been killed in this way. Anti-Semitism is often wrongly confused with anti-Zionism; they are completely different things. Criticizing NAZI Germany does not mean hating Germans, although may of them - same as Israelis to-day and beyond - were caught up in the Nazi propaganda web. Personally I have great respect for the many Jewish people opposing Zionism.
30 January 2013