[Peace-discussion] RE: [GPUS-PAX] Re: [usgp-media] 5th draft - GP RELEASE Greens: Bush, Congress risk global stability with Mideast policies

[Joni LeViness]

Wow! 
It's truly an uphill battle, gpus needs to find 2nd gear!
Peace,
Joni
P.s. keep up the good work Aimee!
*note I've moved this to discussion untill we've a clear action to take here
as a committee. I admire your perseverence Aimee!

-----Original Message-----
From: peace-admin@lists.gp-us.org [mailto:peace-admin@lists.gp-us.org] On
Behalf Of alsmith@hvgreens.org
Sent: Tuesday, December 19, 2006 2:45 AM
To: usgp-media@gp-us.org
Cc: elizarnone@comcast.net; j.coplen@comcast.net; newtribe@hughes.net;
budd.dickinson@greens.org; scooter@guisarme.net; rebelrot@yahoo.com;
echothegreen@riseup.net; jodyhaug@hotmail.com; secretary@gp.org;
brent@gp.org; emily@gp.org; greentararaider@yahoo.com;
ann_wilcox@hotmail.com; usgp-int@gp-us.org; peace@gp-us.org
Subject: [GPUS-PAX] Re: [usgp-media] 5th draft - GP RELEASE Greens: Bush,
Congress risk global stability with Mideast policies

> There's a wide gap between acting in
> self-defense, especially against soldiers of an occupying army, and 
> murdering unarmed civilians.
> No GP press release has ever criticized anyone for using violence to 
> defend him- or herself.

I fear you categorizing is too simplistic, Scott.
As an Arab American in our local who has worked on this issue for three
decades pointed out, how do you define a civilian?  If a settler puts down
his gun, is he an unarmed civilian?  If you move your family into a war zone
onto stollen land (and you of course are heavily armed) is your family a
group of innocent civilians if they experience shelling?  And last, if you
really feel so concerned about the response of those who have been ignored
and left to be beaten, tortured and murdered for
6 decades, then at the very least have the decency to give the concern
proper perspective (which would take far too much length in a press release
- and thus should be left out for that reason as well.)  Otherwise, you end
up minimizing the violence faced by the Palestinians and can thus be
perceived as insensitive at best or worse racist or even worse intentionally
facilitating the genocide they face.

>
> If the GP ever decides that violence against unarmed civilians can be 
> justified or that we have no right to condemn it, then we should 
> discard nonviolence as one of the GP's key values.
>

Really?  Can't we start by trying to minimize our own participation in
violence?  Isn't that what us adopting these key values is all about?
And then once we succeed in wresting ourselves from this imperial conquest,
maybe then our "condemnations" would elicite more than a laugh from people
from that part of the world?
(Including several from there who work with us
locally.) You know, take the straw out of your own eye before commenting on
the spec in your neighbors?

Sincerely,
Aimee Smith
GPMI

> The press release is already way too long to introduce new paragraphs 
> discussing Israel's nukes & new weapons, which can be covered 
> elsewhere.  In fact, we've already addressed Israel's nuclear 
> capabilities in press releases.
> Here are two:
> http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2006_03_14.shtml
> http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2006_09_27.shtml
>
> Press releases don't need to be exhaustive to make their point.
>
> Scott
>
>
> --- alsmith@hvgreens.org wrote:
>
>> Links
>>
>> Olmert's statement:
>>
> http://www.zaman.com/?bl=international&alt=&hn=39179
>>
>> New weapons used on Palestinians:
>>
> http://sabbah.biz/mt/archives/2006/10/28/dime-a-new-israeli-weapon/
>>
>> And don't forget that recent woman matyred trying to kill Israeli 
>> soldiers.  Maybe we should condemn her too.
>>
>> Sadly,
>> Aimee Smith
>> GPMI
>>
>>
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> Do You Yahoo!?
> Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
> http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________
> usgp-media mailing list
> usgp-media@lists.gp-us.org
> http://lists.gp-us.org/mailman/listinfo/usgp-media
>


_______________________________________________
Peace mailing list
Peace@lists.gp-us.org
http://lists.gp-us.org/mailman/listinfo/peace