about the boycotting of israeli products

hello friends.

below is a letter written by my sister-in-law's girlfriend, Tami Tal, to "Olympia Food co-op", a US based company who decided to ban Israeli products.
i agree with every word written here, i could have written the same myself. it is accurate and cutting straight to the heart of the matter.
please read.


Hi,

I read in an Israeli newspaper that "Olympia Food Co-op" is planning to boycott food products from Israel.

I suggest you take further steps, then:

The little chips inside your computer, at least some of them, are probably an Israeli invention. So are some of the software programs you use.
Also – your local hospital probably contains some life-saving Israeli-invented apparatus, as well as some Israeli-invented chemical compounds used in your medications.

The water distribution system in your rural vegetable and fruit fields, which I presume are abundant in your area, are also, most likely, a product of the Israeli brain.

Though tiny, Israel has contributed to the medical, scientific and technological world a substantial percentage of its inventions, intended for your nutrition, health and home comfort, relative to other countries on this planet that are much, much, bigger.

My suggestion, then, is – why don't you boycott all of these as well?.. That would make a much more thorough job on your part.

Lastly, while boycotting Horrible Israel, please consider boycotting:

Saudi Arabia – for human rights violations (who's heard of women driving??)

Iran – for human rights violations (stone the woman to death!)

Syria – for harboring terrorists (keep up the good work firing missiles at Israel boys!)

China – for human rights violations ("Government knows what's best for you"!)

Turkey – for occupying parts of Cyprus , for imprisoning anyone who only mentions the Turkish-caused Armenian Holocaust, and for oppressing the Kurdish people who seek independence.

Russia – for oppressing Chechnya (and for invading parts of Georgia )

France – for prohibiting Muslim women to wear face-veils (though I can't blame them – but, hey, freedom of expression, right??)

Switzerland – for banning the construction of minarets on mosques

And the list is long.

I can think of many, many other countries that are violating human rights right now as we speak.

And more seriously now:

Just so you know – I'm an Israeli woman, and – though you may find it odd – I belong to the Left political spectrum in Israel. I actually CAN'T WAIT for the Palestinians to have their own country. But what I don't like is people, like yourselves, who sit in your comfortable homes, thousands of miles away, and think they know better. What is happening here, in my country, is not black and white like you make it to be. There are TWO sides to the coin.

So I would greatly appreciate if you – and about 99% of all other people on this planet – stop demonizing Israel. Because despite the wrongs that Israel is doing (and there are wrongs), there is also good, and there is also our side of the story. Add to that the fact that other countries around the world are not such great saints either (including, by the way, your very own country), I would be happy if you reconsider.

Sincerely yours,

Tami Tal, Jerusalem , Israel

amen!

Noa, Israel.

a broken heart..and a hope that refuses to die

hello everybody.
it has been a while since I've written.
i am actually writing under the saddest of circumstances.
you all know Israel and Palestine are in the midst of peace talks. yes, peace talks. sounds like a joke, doesn't it? it's incredible. so many years of dreaming and waiting and here we are in the midst of direct talks: why does it all feel so dull?

well, obviously: we have been disappointed and disillusioned so many times, it seems none of us can muster even the slightest bit of enthusiasm. we have become hardened by our sad reality,our hope has reduced itself to a tiny trickle...it seems hallucinatory to think that under the existing circumstances, any progress can be made...
and yet....??
who knows?? the tiny dream naggingly persists...

one thing is for sure: the extremists on both sides will do their very best to destroy what is being built. they thrive on fear, hatred and suspicion. they are vampires, lurking the dark nights of our lives, sucking the fresh blood of hope from the bodies of our children.yes, i know that's graphic and jolting, but no understatement is in order where these monsters are concerned.
we witnessed Lieberman's bleek speech at the UN (yes, words are as destructive as bombs),the shooting of the Jewish family in the territories, the burning and defiling of mosques by settlers, we see the devilish joy in the eyes of those eager to continue the "building" in the settlements, that "building" which is actually a guise for destruction and hopelessness...and all in the name og god, of course, as always.

and now, another bitter anecdote to add to the growing list of atrocities.

i have a good friend, an amazing man. i cannot disclose his name, so a snot to endanger him forther.
he is a Palestinian peace activist who has dedicated his life to working with young people in Gaza and offering an alternative to the hate-driven terrorist organizations who suck in the youth and recruit them for acts of violence and suicide.
this man is a man of principles. a man of peace. dedicated to building bridges, to deepening understanding. a man a valour.

when hamas took over Gaza, his life was in danger. he escaped , with the help of his Israeli friends and colleagues, to ramallah, just hours before they came for him. he and his immediate family now live in ramallah, where he continues his peace activity.

but.... his brother and mother were left behind.

a few weeks ago his brother was arrested by hamas and thrown into prison.
through great efforts, a red-cross representative was allowed to visit him, and reported that he was alive, but nothing more.

a few days ago, hamas made the news public:
40 people, whose names were listed, had been arrested and imprisoned, accused of collaborating with Israel.

they are to be given a "fair trial", and executed.

my friend's brother was on the list.

since then, his mother has stopped taking her medicine, eating or drinking. she has no reason to live.
my friend is on the verge of physical and mental collapse.

he, and all of us, are helpless in the face of such cruelty, such madness, such sinister atrocity.

and all for what?
for revenge? for a public display of power? to remind Abbas whose boss?? to tamper with the Peace talks? to make sure terror continues to reign supreme???

yes, all of the above.
yes, god above, all in your name.


i am disgusted, appalled and nauseous.
i do not want to think what my friend is going through (he is not answering the phone)

if there is a god up there, (which i highly doubt), this would be a good time to show some of that merciful etc etc he or she is attributed with.

as for you, "brave" leaders of Israel and Palestine....work it out already!!!! if he is do die, let it not be in vain!!!!!!

with my deepest wish for better days,
a heartbroken Noa