Another look at the century old and ongoing, lethal aftermath of the way Britain and France carved up the Middle East following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire post WWI. It’s a topic addressed here in several posts, the most recent just yesterday. We’re now witnessing the walls, built by
Continue readingTag: Middle East
Dead Wild Roses: The Speech We Didn’t Hear from Obama in Israel.
Wouldn’t it be nice if this is what Obama actually said? Quotes taken from the Counterpunch article by Uri Avnery “No nation, great or small, can prosper for long without peace. War is the curse of mankind. It coarsens our spirit, consumes our resources, spreads death and destruction. In our
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Arundhati Roy: Iraq and the ‘psychosis’ of U.S. foreign policy
This month marks the tenth anniversary of the Iraq invasion. The occasion is upon us with barely a whisper from Washington. Hardly surprising… the legacy of the U.S. invasion has been an Iraq in ongoing crisis. The truth of what is really going down doesn’t get anything close to adequate
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Rachel Corrie’s parents speak on 10th anniversary of her death (VIDEO)
By: Obert Madondo | The Canadian Progressive: Rachel Corrie, a US peace activist, was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in the Gaza Strip as she tried to block the demolition of a Palestinian home. Her parents, Craig and Cindy, speak on the 10th anniversary of the killing of their daughter. WATCH: This
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Thoughts on the New Israeli Government
On the same day that the world erupted in joyous, teary-eyed celebration following the selection of a new pope, a slightly less climactic breakthrough was reached thousands of kilometres away as four Israeli political parties, nearly two months after elections, quietly decided to form a coalition government. Right away, the
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Western Backed Dictatorships – Our Energy Bread and Butter
Noam Chomsky is considered a rogue commentator in the United States. His critiques of power illustrates the gross realpolitik that runs the US government and its foreign policy. Traditionally, we tend to think of ourselves as the “good guys”. In reality though, we seldom have that role. A look
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Human Rights Watch World Report 2013 (VIDEO)
Video available on YouTube The Canadian Progressive recommends: Human Rights Watch: Challenges for Rights After Arab Spring Canada’s Human Rights Reputation is Fast Becoming a Myth Cornel West Is Upset Obama Was Sworn In On Martin Luther King’s Bible U.S. pressuring Bradley Manning to implicate Julian Assange (VIDEO) The Young
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Human Rights Watch: Challenges for Rights After Arab Spring
The willingness of new governments to respect rights will determine whether those uprisings give birth to genuine democracy or simply spawn authoritarianism in new forms.
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: UNICEF appeals to Canadians to support Syrian children
by UNICEF Canada | Jan 16, 2013: TORONTO – UNICEF is urging Canadians to support its emergency appeal for Syrian children as extreme weather conditions including heavy rain, snow and freezing temperatures has greatly worsened the situation for millions of Syrian children and their families. “The region has recorded the
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Canadian warships should get out of the Middle East: Peace activist
by Guest Blogger | Jan 25, 2013: Halifax – A local peace activist is denouncing the deployment of the HMCS Toronto on Monday. The Canadian frigate left the Halifax port for a 6-month deployment to the Persian Gulf. “There should be no Canadian warships in the Middle East,” says Tamara Lorincz, a
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: In Tehran, A Creepy New Anti-Obama Billboard (PHOTO)
Photo credit: asriran.com A new billboard in downtown Tehran has U.S. President Barack Obama side by side with Shmer, a seventh-century villain in Shia Islam. Obama is sort of leaning on the scary-looking Shmer, who is handing the viewer a scroll or something. Phot credit: asriran.com Iran is certainly sending the White House another
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Israel’s Election Results and the Prospects for Peace
Yair Lapid Well, that wasn’t quite as bad as I thought. Sadly, Benjamin Netanyahu will almost certainly remain prime minister of Israel after his Likud party and its electoral partner Yisrael Beiteinu won a plurality of seats in Knesset elections today. But their share has gone down sharply since the
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Fanatics, Zealots, Warmongers, and Peaceniks: Israel’s Crowded Electoral Landscape
Haneen Zoabi Due perhaps to my Jewish identity and my family’s history, Israel tends to be the country whose politics I follow most closely apart from Canada’s and the United States’. Nevertheless, there is a giant gulf separating numbers one and two from number three. My understanding of Israeli parties,
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: “Stability” – You’d be surpirsed what it trumps.
Democracy, human rights, humanitarian intervention all fall at the wayside when it comes to the West supporting “stability” in the Middle East. We wonder why the residents are so pissed off at us and cheer when bad things happen to the West. I’m guessing it has a little something
Continue readingCanadian Dimension Feed: Awaiting ‘Generation C’
Nearly three weeks has passed, marking an unprecedented day in the battle against global injustice. This particular victory, slight yet all the same substantial; a stepping stone for the Indigenous populations who habitat a region so focal and divine to the Abrahamic faiths, in their strive for self-determination and justice,
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: REPUGNANT: Syrian rebel propaganda video stars children with AK47s
A recent report on the Syrian conflict by Human Rights Watch accused the Free Syria Army rebels of using children as young as 14 as child fighters. Now another rebel group, the Syria Justice and Freedom, recent posted a propaganda video YouTube featuring AK-47-totting children. If you think using a 14-year old as a fighter is disgusting, imagine
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Two-State Twilight
For many years, I have felt that, to paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the death of the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict were an exaggeration. Yes, Israel has been unyielding in its expansion of settlements in the West Bank in clear violation of international law, effectively dividing the already-slight
Continue readingPolitics and Entertainment: Harper Regime Has Lost All Credibility on Foreign Affairs Period, Not Just the Middle East
“…Israel’s announcement on the settlements was widely criticized by Canada’s European allies, and even the United States, which voted with Canada and Israel against the motion to grant non-voting observer state status to the Palestinians, urged Israel to “reconsider” its decision on the settlements on Monday. Baird did not comment
Continue readingCanadian Progressive: “Israel is demolishing hope”
Israel’s Haaretz newspaper is one of my favorite global publications. That’s because, on both domestic and global issues, it’s editorial policy is centre-left and refreshingly progressive. Haaretz is the place to go for an Israeli voice that’s against the apartheid-style occupation of Palestinian land and inhuman treatment of Arab citizens. Consider this title for an […]
Continue readingCanadian Progressive: Jewish human rights group condemns Harper government’s UN vote on Palestine
by Independent Jewish Voices | December 3, 2012 A Canadian Jewish human rights group is condemning the Harper government’s opposition to giving Palestine non-member observer state status at the United Nations. In a vote taken this week by the General Assembly, 138 countries voted to grant Palestine this status. “Once again the Harper government has embarrassed […]
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