Just got this through my mail box:

Dear sir or madam,

Petition to President Richard Brodhead to deny use of the Duke University Campus to Supporters of Terrorism.

I would be extremely grateful if you could make your readers aware of the following petition. Palestine Solidarity Movement--the American student wing of the International Solidarity Movement--is attempting to hold its National Conference at Duke University on October 15-17, 2004. We do not want this group, which supports destruction of Israel "by any means necessary," to be given the privilege of using our campus. We are therefore sending a petition to our new president, Richard Brodhead, asking him to keep ISM out.

Sincerely,
Andrew Gerst
Duke University junior
Newton, MA

I don't know if the ISM supports the destruction of the State of Israel, as this person says, but I feel that they are actively contributing towards this end in their actions. I feel very strongly that if they were truly interested in peace in this land, they would be doing something about stopping terrorism and promoting dialogue. Instead they are aggressively supporting one side of the conflict, and by doing so, they are encouraging that one side to continue pursuing violence, a large portion of which is aimed at non-combatants, some of them from their own side.

I would like to point out that I have not signed this petition. I am not an American and I feel that what happens in American campuses is really none of my business, even if it can cause harm to my people, my family, and myself. I thought it was important to bring the petition to your attention, that's all.
posted by Imshin 21:57

So here we have it:
I’m extremely busy doing fun things. I’m creating strange pieces of – ahum - art (Bish says that things that look like they’ve been dragged from the garbage can are not exactly, erm, his, erm ... oh never mind); I’m running; I’m spinning; I’m taking Youngest to swimming (I’m also a very bad poet it seems); I’m riding the wonderful, shiny new bike that R.T. helped me buy; I’m obsessing about things that are happening at work; and I’m trying to keep up with Bish’s new career as an interviewee on Israeli media (four interviews on radio, five on TV (one in Russian -not Israeli Russian, real Russian from Russia, would you believe it?), and quite a few mentions in newspapers, all in the last three weeks, but we reckon it’ll taper off now) – it’s not about the bill, it’s about an aspect of his profession (although not him personally) being connected to one of the big affairs happening in Israel lately, and the media people have discovered that Bish is intelligent, eloquent, and that he looks and sounds quite good (that's my Bish), so he’s being interviewed as a representative of his profession and as an expert, blah blah.

If all that isn’t enough, it is also hot and humid, and even with the air-conditioning it’s difficult to do anything that requires any sort of mental activity.

I have some great photos of Shoosha, but I can’t post them yet for technical reasons (Bish’s laptop died, it’s a long, sad story, I’ll spare you).

By the way, I was reading up about biking and came across this lady. Not only is she sporty, she is also a very witty and amusing writer, and I like her name.

posted by Imshin 08:22

You talking to me?!
Dave from Israellycool gives us some excellent examples of polite French diplomacy.
posted by Imshin 21:28

Swastika carved on Jewish girl / French urban legends
Yael has found the story I was talking about. She remembers it too. I’d begun to think I was hallucinating. This is from April 2004:

Also in Paris, a 12-year-old girl coming out of a Jewish school was attacked by two men. They beat her, held her down and slashed her face with a box cutter. They carved a swastika into her face and walked away. Her parents have filed a police report.

Yael says she tried to interest bloggers in this at the time, to no avail.
posted by Imshin 19:36

Four more years!
No not Bush - Arafat. That's what he got out of this Terror War.

I'm no expert, but I can distinctly remember a lot of rumbling and grumbling among Palestinians about Arafat's corrupt regime, just before hostilities "broke out" in the autumn of 2000, and I mean a lot. And there was talk of his days as despot nearing their end. But he showed them. Typical to local dictators, Arafat skillfully manuevered things so that growing disatisfaction and opposition to his regime was soon directed towards the nearest and most convenient common enemy - us - with disastrous consequences for his people.

Well, the rumbling and grumbling are getting louder again, much louder.

As the Arabs say: 'cool calb biji youmo'. Every dog's day comes. Only this dog’s day is a long time coming.

posted by Imshin 19:09

According to the UN: Israel is the best place to live in this part of the world, while the Palestinian territories are not the worst! Un-effing believable.

Very well put by Yael.
posted by Imshin 06:12

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