The Elephant In The Room

While you were shopping, bombs were dropping... on Gaza.

Toledo area peace activists took a tour of a local shopping mall sharing their concerns over the genocide happening in Gaza. You can see their march here:

https://www.facebook.com/bbop.toledo/videos/1074727953942628 

The holidays aren't supposed to be about death and destruction, but this year that's what's happening to the Palestinian people. It's difficult to remain quiet and talk about children's toys and games when a child is killed in Gaza every ten minutes. An innocent child who will never be able to celebrate a birthday or holiday ever again.

Sometimes, you have to face up to reality and discuss the "elephant" in the room...

The Elephant In The Room

 by C.A. Matthews

 

On a snowy December evening, a twenty-something couple park their small sedan in a crowded, long driveway of a large suburban home somewhere in the American Midwest. Cheerful holiday lights and decorations adorn the front of the house. As they get out of the car and stroll toward the front door, she explains the situation to her date that he is about to encounter.

Kayla: Remember Kev, if at any time you feel uncomfortable around any of my family members, and you want to bail, just give me that look of yours with the rolling eyes and nod. I'll rescue you from the conversation and get you into a safe place like the laundry room or pantry. Okay?

Kevin: No problem! I'm sure I'm going to love your family if they're anything as special as you. (He gives her a kiss on the cheek as they step up to the front porch and head toward the door.) Ready to introduce the new boyfriend to the clan?

Kayla: Well, ready or not, here we come--or should I say my cousin Emily has already spotted us.

Emily: (Laughing as she opens the door and invites them in.) Welcome! Come in, come in! You must be Kevin. Kayla has told us absolutely nothing about you.

Kayla: Ha ha. Very funny, Em.  Here, take our jackets.

Emily: (Winking at Kevin.) She just doesn't want me to flirt with you right off the bat. I can take a hint. (Emily takes their coats and whisks them away to another room.)

Kayla: Now you see what I mean about my extended family being a bit too...forward. I hear the crowd partying in the den, so let's go on in and face the music. (She leads him through a large foyer and down a long hallway.)

Kevin: So far, so good. I don't know why you're so worried about introducing me to your family. Your parents seemed very nice when I talked to them last month at homecoming.

Kayla: You only chatted with them for a few minutes in the middle of a crowded college football stadium. When my family is in their own "habitat" things can be quite different. For instance, beware of Uncle Bill. Just keep him away from the spiked eggnog and the rum punch.

Kevin: (Nodding.) Oh, I see. I understand what you mean. In spite of his...problems, I'm sure he's a great guy.

Kayla: Only when he's sober. And then there's my two male cousins who got caught peddling drugs at rock concerts--don't bring them up around my mom. She really gets upset about them. They're the current black sheep of the family. Fortunately, they're not able to attend this year since they didn't get early parole.

Kevin: (Flashing a concerned look.) I didn't realize the drinking and drug use sort of runs in your family. I'll be careful not to bring it up.

Kayla: Thanks. It's not uncommon nowadays, but it is a...touchy subject around the holidays. And then there's my crazy Great-Aunt Sally. We've just got to stay as far away from her as we can help it.

Kevin: Understood. Sort of like Uncle Bill?

 

Kayla: Worse!

They reach the large family room crowded with people drinking, snacking, and loudly chatting over festive holiday music while a roaring fire blazes in the fireplace. Kayla nudges her boyfriend over to the smorgasbord where they fill their plates.

Uncle Bill: Hey, it's my little Kayla all grown up! My favorite niece! (He throws an arm around her and then notices Kevin.) Is this the new man in your life?

Kayla: (Flinching from his breath.) Yes, it is. Seems like you started celebrating early, Uncle Bill. Why don't you go and sit by the fire and enjoy your liquid supper?

Bill frowns but takes the hint and moves away. Kayla guides Kevin to a quiet place in the corner with a couple of chairs behind a huge Christmas tree so they can eat in peace.

Kayla: Whew! We'll be safe here. My parents seem to be busy talking with some distant relations who flew in from the Bahamas, so we'll have a chance to eat and relax a little before the interrogations begin.

Kevin: You really have to stop downing your family, Kayla. They're not all that bad. You need to meet mine sometime.

Kayla: I will. I promise. It's just not been convenient to get into the city... Oh, dear. Here comes Aunt Sally. Don't make eye contact--don't make eye contact! 

 

A woman in a brightly colored tie-dyed caftan approaches and smiles widely.

Sally: Hello there, Miss Kayla! (They hug.) You're so grown up now. A senior in college, right? And this young man is...?

Kayla: This is Kevin. He's my boyfriend. Now, if you'll excuse us we need to go speak with--

Sally: Say, Kevin, would you like a button? I made them myself, and I'm giving them out as gifts in the spirit of the season. 

 

Kevin: Sure, thanks.

 

Sally reaches into a tie-dyed bag and pulls out a printed badge and hands it to him.

 

Sally: How about I give you this one: "All I want for Christmas is for Israel to stop bombing babies."  And here's one for Kayla. (She reaches in and retrieves another badge.) "Peace on Earth for ALL Humankind Not Just The Rich with Guns." I thought you might like that one, being a business major and all.

Kayla: Oh, yeah, thanks a lot, Aunt Sally. We've gotta go and--

Sally: (Interrupting.) What do you think about your button, Kevin? Do you agree with it?

Kevin: It's...very interesting. I mean, why should Israel be bombing babies? Isn't Christmas about the birth of a baby there long ago who would bring peace to the entire world?

Sally: You are so right! That's why the carpet bombing of Gaza and the slaughter of thousands of innocent Palestinian children is such an abhorrent act. A child is killed in Gaza every ten minutes on average. And they've turned off the water and electricity so illnesses and infections from wounds caused by these bombs are made even worse. Can you imagine a toddler having to have all his limbs amputated because there's no antibiotics, and it's the only way to save his life?

Kevin: A friend showed me some photos and videos from there on his TikTok account. It's horrible. It's downright criminal.

Kayla: (Pulling on his arm.) Come on, Kev, we've got to move along now and--

Sally: So, would you two be interested in attending our "Peace in Palestine Caroling Event" tomorrow night since you both are in town? We'll be singing familiar carols with an emphasis on peace and a permanent ceasefire in that part of the world. What do you think?

Kevin: The caroling sounds really nice. We don't have anything else on our schedule tomorrow, do we, Kayla?

Kayla: (Sighing.) No, we don't, but--

Sally: Great! I'll give you the details. Want a flyer? I put them over there by the cheese balls, let's go check it out...

Kevin follows Sally over to the food table, smiling and chatting animatedly about the caroling. Kayla crosses her arms and frowns. Emily approaches.

Emily: Seems Great-Aunt Sally has stolen your boyfriend away, cousin. That's two for two at these holiday get-togethers, isn't it?

Kayla: Yeah, I don't know how she does it, but she has a talent for hooking people into her crazy causes and getting them to do stupid things with her. At Christmastime, no less! (She shakes her head sadly.) Kevin and I should be out and about drinking and eating and shopping like normal folks, and here Aunt Sally has roped him in to sing carols for peace in some backwards part of the world. Sheesh!

Emily: (Nodding.) Well, at least she didn't get him going with the "People, Planet and Peace" of the Green Party schtick like she did with your last boyfriend. I remember how excited he was to learn that Greens believe in free college tuition and reparations. He dropped you faster than a hot potato after he spotted the Biden/Harris sticker on your car bumper on campus, didn't he?

Kayla: Don't remind me. Damn! Why do I keep picking these overly sensitive types? 

 

Emily: (Checking out Kevin talking with Sally and others.) Well, if it's any consolation, he is kind of cute. 

Kayla: Yeah, but I keep picking guys who believe dumb brown kids in the Middle East are worth saving. Next thing I know, Kevin will want our families' stock portfolios to tank by divesting from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, General Dynamics, and Raytheon. And both our families have been making good money recently on those bombs Aunt Sally gets all in a huff about falling on top of poor people.

Emily: That's Aunt Sally for you. Such a bleeding heart she has.

 

Kayla: For sure. She has an "Eat the Rich" sticker on her electric car. You can't get anymore loser than that, caring about others more than your own family.

 

Emily: (Glancing over at the food table.) It seems Kevin and her are getting on like a house on fire.  Still, it's better to find out about what he's really like now before your parents' big mimosa brunch on New Year's Day for the County Democratic Party candidates' fund. He just wouldn't fit in with that crowd. At all.

Kayla: (Sighing.) No, he wouldn't. I suppose I'll have to let him down gently tonight.

Emily: Yeah, or just drop a bomb on him like Israel does to the Palestinians. Shuts those complainers right up after they've been buried under tons of rubble. It's probably the easiest way to solve your problems. A peaceful world only works for those who have the biggest bombs, right?

Kayla: (Smiling wanly as she takes her cousin's arm.) You're right. Let's go get some of that punch before Uncle Bill drains the punch bowl dry.

 

The Nativity Scene at Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem

 

 As the US vetoes a United Nations Security Council resolution for a ceasefire...

... The global charity Save the Children warned that at least 7,685 children under age five in Gaza are now so malnourished—a result of Israel's total blockade of the enclave that began in October and the delivery of just a small fraction of the aid that is needed—that they require "urgent medical treatment to avoid death."

"The repeated failure of the international community to act signifies a death knell to children," said Jason Lee, country director for Save the Children. "I've seen children and families roaming the streets of what hasn't been flattened in Gaza, with no food, nowhere to go, and nothing to survive on. Even the internationally-funded humanitarian aid response—Gaza's last lifeline—has been choked by Israeli-imposed restrictions."

"Gaza's children are being condemned to further bombardment, starvation, and disease," said Lee. "We must heed the lessons from the past and must immediately prevent 'atrocity crimes' from unfolding."

The intensifying opposition to Israel's U.S.- and U.K.-backed bombardment of Gaza was made apparent by an estimated 15,000-20,000 people who marched through London on Saturday to demand a cease-fire. --from

'Moral Insanity': Biden Admin Bypasses Congress to Rush Tank Shells to Israel

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Seen on X/Twitter:

https://twitter.com/MalghaniNudrat/status/1733182242544107928

 

https://twitter.com/DrJillStein/status/1729609886441312668

How Do We Live With Ourselves?

 

In Lak'ech Ala K'in. "I am you and you are me. What I do to you, I do to myself." —Mayan Saying

How Do We Live With Ourselves?

by C.A. Matthews

In this season of supposed “Peace on Earth! Goodwill to All Humankind!” one would hope to see—and experience—some of this peace and goodwill for oneself.

But, of course, that’s not possible in December 2023 because there’s a genocide going on in Palestine, both in Gaza and the West Bank. There are also other genocides occurring elsewhere on the planet—such as in the Congo—but they’re not making the news cycle much, like the one in Rwanda a few years back didn’t. Africans are invisible to Western media outlets. The stacks of dead bodies of black people don’t register on their cameras or consciousnesses.

Criminal, isn’t it?

The fact that Netanyahu and Biden have teamed up to slaughter tens of thousands of Palestinians, including little children, babies in incubators, and the elderly, has caused many Americans to simply shut down emotionally and intellectually. That’s the only explanation I can give to explain the lack of responses I’ve received whenever I post an article, a video, or photo detailing what’s happening in Gaza on my Facebook page. I’m lucky to get one or two likes or comments from the same one or two persons, but mostly I receive zero responses. Crickets.

Even to a video that shows the destruction of Gaza that US tax dollars have paid for (Don't you feel proud?): https://youtu.be/k0pOaRsfxYc?si=CaOByrRvvMFpsJrR

I know it’s foolish of me to even think it’s worth my time posting anything on Facebook, but I feel that the public has the right to hear the whole story and not only the sanitized and twisted narrative the status quo puts out in the mainstream media. I keep hoping some of these posts will get through the blocks and shadowbans. I know a lot of what I’ve posted on X/Twitter has been censored as well, but enough of my X posts must get through because I do receive plentiful responses from online friends and strangers alike.

Of course, the strangers are often accusing me of being “antisemitic” because I voice that I am strongly anti-Zionist/anti-genocide. Somehow people are confusing these two radically different concepts, Semitism and Zionism. Semitic peoples are simply people originally from the part of the world that makes up Gaza/Palestine and the modern state of Israel and speak similar languages. That’s all it really means.

And I’ll admit that I’m very much for Semitic people living and thriving and not being crushed to death in the rubble of their homes while being bombed by the Israeli air force, bombs courtesy of the US military-industrial complex. I’m very much for tiny babies in incubators in hospitals in the Gaza strip to have access to electricity and clean water and to not be left to die alone in the cold and dark because Israeli soldiers forced their doctors and nurses out of the hospitals. I’m very much for Israeli civilians not being burned to death in their cars by missiles shot from Apache helicopters piloted by Israeli Air Force pilots who believe in the “Hannibal Directive”.

I simply want all signatories to the United Nations Convention on Human Rights to follow the rules. I don’t want them to commit war crimes. That’s not too much to ask now, is it?

So, obviously I’m far from being “antisemitic” by the textbook definition. As far as the political ideology of Zionism goes? Nah, I can’t get behind it since it has led to the creation of a horrible ethnostate that has slaughtered the indigenous peoples for decades now without mercy because the Zionists want to steal the natives’ land and natural resources. Any political ideology that supports anything like the 1948 Nakba, apartheid, second class citizenship for native peoples, carpet bombing, and outright genocide isn’t an ideology I can support in good conscience.

And that’s where the problem lies for me. My conscience tells me that genocide is wrong, and that I, as a professing Christian, must do all that I can to “Love my neighbor as myself.” I cannot simply turn a blind eye to the horrors happening to Palestinians since they are my “neighbor.” I  must “Do for others as I would like them to do for me.” I must walk a mile in their moccasins and learn what it’s like to be oppressed, to feel the pain of what is happening to them, and then do something about it. I don’t have a choice. It’s what I as a Christian must do.

My conscience says that if I simply ignore others being killed and injured with US provided military armaments then I, as an American citizen/taxpayer, am every bit as culpable as the party to whom we provided the weapons to that is actively doing the killing.

We Americans don’t get a free pass on this. We don’t get to deny that we’re causing untold suffering and agony to our fellow human beings just because we made a private deal with another country that wants to use our military aid to commit a genocide. We must accept the blame and take action to rectify the nightmarish situation before it gets even worse—although it’s already gotten worse, hasn’t it?

I can’t imagine a worse scenario than 1.8 million displaced, 7,000 dead children, 20,000 civilians dead or crushed under the rubble of Gaza, murdered simply for the crime of being born Palestinian.  Once the "temporary pause" was lifted, over 700 Palestinians were killed within the first 24 hour period by IDF bombing. It bothers my conscience. It hurts my heart greatly. I can’t sleep sometimes. I remember my youngest daughter spending her first week of life in an incubator. How would I feel if she had been left to die alone or buried under a ton of rubble because Zionists wanted her dead?

But nobody wants to hear about my PTSD triggers. This strange concept of having a conscience isn’t going over very well with some Americans I’ve encountered, unfortunately. Here is my recent tale that illustrates this problem:

I was sharing information from one group to another group online, because I thought maybe a few people (not all, just a few) in the second group might be interested in using their musical skills to help out the folks in the first group. So I copied and pasted a request from the first group and sent it along in a group email to the second group. Honestly, I didn’t think it would be that big of a deal. I was in a hurry, and I didn’t edit the paragraph I’d received from the first group because I didn’t want to add words or take away anything from what they were trying to ask help for.

Imagine my surprise (shock, really) the next day when I’m totally blindsided by a heated response posted in the second group that I emailed. Only two persons emailed back on the loop, but their accusations of my “antisemitism” and the “legal ramifications” of assisting the first group this holiday season pretty much told me that they weren’t the decent human beings I’d thought they were. (And the rest of those on the email loop? They’ve remained silent—in agreement? In fear they could be attacked next? Who knows?)

Now here's the real kicker: the second group is a church group, and I’d assumed they were professing Christians as well as musicians. Wouldn’t they as Christians want to stop a genocide being committed with the help of our tax dollars? Don’t their consciences bother them about the genocide going on against the relatives of the first group? Are my friends in the first group seen as being less than somehow because not all of them are the same kind of Christians or aren’t seen as American as the persons in the second group?

I’ll never know the answer to these questions. My emails asking for clarification (and maybe some words of comfort?) from the church's pastor were never answered. And I was apparently dropped from the church music group’s email loop as well.

Being ghosted by your pastor and others who you thought were your friends really sucks—especially during the Christmas season. I’ve always sung in church praise bands, choirs, and chorales. My favorite activity in December is going Christmas caroling. It’s the highlight of the year for me. It makes the cold and damp and the darkness of early winter bearable. Now it's ruined for me because I’m not welcome to sing with this second group because… Because I have a conscience? Because I don't support genocide?

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to put my conscience to sleep—ever—even if I end up friendless. How could I live with myself knowing that I didn’t at least try to help others who are hurting? Why should I become a soulless sociopath just to fit in with present-day, bloodthirsty mainstream American society or a mainline American church denomination that backs those immoral values?

Since I've always followed the teachings of a radical Palestinian of the first century A.D. who preaches the Golden Rule, I think I’ll just walk on water and get the hell away from these hypocrites ASAP.  

I doubt I’ll ever be able to forget this upsetting experience or the unkind things my former church associates implied about the Palestinian Americans with whom I associate with through the local activism scene. I enjoy my current work with immigrants as a paralegal and have enjoyed my work as an ESL tutor and citizenship teacher for many years. I don’t see immigrants and newcomers as second class citizens or less than the people who have lived in the US all their lives. When a person or group has a reasonable request and asks for help, why can’t I share this ask with others without the risk of being attacked and accused of made-up charges of antisemitism?

Why are the people who actually support genocide by their actions and non-actions alike getting to call all the shots? I know—it’s because they’re capitalists, right? Money talks, especially in cash-strapped American churches. We can’t be upsetting the folks who write the big checks for the offering plate, can we?

It’s going to be a blue Christmas for yours truly. I get to suffer for putting my neck out there because I care about others. But a big thanks goes out to all those online who have supported me in the past and who will continue to support me in the future. You get me. You have a conscience. Bless you for being you.

Hey—maybe we can get together online and throw a Zoom Christmas carol party? I’ll bring the electronic cookies. (Ha-ha!)

How do we live with ourselves if we can’t even be open to showing love to our neighbor whose relatives are being wiped out in a genocide? We can’t. We die. Inside. Our consciences will be lost. Forever. And the warmongers and genocide supporters will win.

And we can’t let them win. Ever.

 

Liberationist theologian Herb Montgomery puts the whole Christmas story into a sharper perspective in A Christmas Story for the Marginalized

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/socialjesus/2019/12/a-christmas-story-for-the-marginalized

Reclaimed interpretations of the Christmas story emphasize details that we can’t afford to miss. Jesus being born into immense poverty, being announced to the socially outcast, bypassing the politically, economically, socially and religiously of the day, and his parents becoming violence-fleeing refugees for the well-being of their child—there is an entire foundation here on which to build a framework for Christians who are working toward social justice today.

 

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War Porn To A T(shirt)
https://mark192.substack.com/p/war-porn-to-a-tshirt

Jill Stein interviewed about the genocide in Gaza (first 20 minutes) https://rumble.com/v3z2eom-live-israels-secret-weapon-pres.-candidate-dr.-jill-stein.html

Documents expose Israeli conspiracy to facilitate October 7 attack https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/12/02/klox-d02.html

If I Were Going To Commit A Genocide https://www.caitlinjohnst.one /p/if-i-were-going-to-commit-a-genocide

‘A mass assassination factory’: Inside Israel’s calculated bombing of Gaza  https://www.972mag.com/mass-assassination-factory-israel-calculated-bombing-gaza/

Hamas Uses Human Shields? The Evidence https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/02/hamas-uses-human-shields-the-evidence-2/

Israel Planning for Gaza War To Last Over a Year
https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/02/israel-planning-for-gaza-war-to-last-over-a-year/

US Sent Israel 15,000 Bombs Since October 7 https://news.antiwar.com/2023/12/01/us-sent-israel-15000-bombs-since-october-7/

The Wall Street Journal published details about the White House’s secretive arms transfers to Israel since October 7. The US has provided Israel with 57,000 artillery shells and 15,000 bombs, including over 5,000 with 2,000-pound warheads.

According to a list of weapons obtained by the Journal, the US has shipped Israel “more than 5,000 Mk82 unguided or ‘dumb’ bombs, more than 5,400 Mk84 2,000-pound warhead bombs, around 1,000 GBU-39 small diameter bombs, and approximately 3,000 JDAMs.”

The US has additionally shipped 57,000 155 MM shells to Israel. NBC News previously reported in October that Washington sent Tel Aviv artillery rounds that are cluster munitions.

Ukraine’s top negotiator confirms US-UK sabotaged peace deal with Russia https://www.aaronmate.net/p/ukraines-top-negotiator-confirms

A Tale of Two Valerys: Top Russian and Ukrainian Generals Negotiate to End Ukraine War https://ohiobarbarian.substack.com/p/a-tale-of-two-valerys-top-russian

Henry Kissinger: The Declassified Obituary
https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/chile-cold-war-henry-kissinger-indonesia-southern-cone-vietnam/2023-11-29/henry

Henry Kissinger, War Criminal and World’s Biggest A**hole Dies https://youtu.be/RVGth9Qp9Sc?si=kGIFf8TxHTZBeLTI 

Your Congressmember At Work--For Israel

 

Your Congressmember At Work—For Israel

 edited by C.A. Matthews

It took over a month and a multitude of repeated attempts to contact Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur. Local activists phoned, emailed, and even held several very loud protests in front of the building where her district office in Toledo is located before they garnered her attention. The Northwest Ohio Peace Coalition formulated and submitted a letter signed by many activist groups and others asking for Rep. Kaptur to co-sponsor a ceasefire in Gaza bill in the US House of Representatives. Within a week after sending the letter, a Zoom call was set up between Kaptur and constituents to discuss the reasons behind why she isn’t open to supporting a Gaza ceasefire bill in the House. The following excerpts from the Zoom transcript reveal her attitudes toward her constituents, especially Palestinian and Arab Americans who comprise a sizable minority in the Toledo area where Kaptur was born, grew up in, and currently serves as a representative in Congress.

First, a little background information about her: Marcy Kaptur (D) is 77 years old. She serves as the US representative from Ohio's 9th congressional district, a strangely shaped, gerrymandered district which includes the western suburbs of Cleveland as well as most of the city of Toledo. Now in her 21st term, Kaptur has been a Congresswoman since 1983. She is the longest serving woman in Congress in history and presently sits on the appropriations committee.  

According to Open Secrets, the current total Political Action Committee (PAC) money accepted by Kaptur for the 2023-2024 season is $370,550 and comes primarily from business (46.21%) and ideological (39.49%) PACs. The pro-Israel “JStreetPAC” has given her $1,000 so far this year. JStreetPAC has a strong link to *AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, according to the Jewish independent publication Forward. AIPAC has been a contributor to her earlier campaigns. Kaptur has also been endorsed by the Jewish Democratic Council of America.

The following are some of the questions and answers discussed in the Zoom call with Rep. Kaptur. They have been edited slightly for punctuation and grammar, as the transcript was in a rough draft form.

Imam Farooq Aboelzahab of the Islamic Society of Toledo made these comments:

“Why has the US slept on this issue for 75 years? Kids have right to go to school, have fun, learn, live honorable lives. What do you expect after many generations of tragedy? Expect them to be tolerant and kind to the occupier? If we aren’t doing our job we cannot blame others for what they’re doing. Lack of justice anywhere is lack of justice everywhere. Badly failing for years... president after president, no one showed interest in solving it. Billions of dollars in war machines to kill more innocent people—those dollars could build a future instead. Ceasefire is needed, but not the answer—otherwise after two months or years, the bloodshed will start again.”

Kaptur’s response: “After 9/11 I came and circled around your mosque to protect it, and I sent that photo around the world.”

(Editor’s note: Apparently Marcy Kaptur is thinking more about a photo opportunity she took advantage of from more than two decades ago than the fact there is currently a genocide going on in Gaza. This was her only reply given to the Imam. Its brevity and self-centeredness are telling.)

Jasmin Abu-Hummos representing American Muslims for Palestine, Toledo chapter, provided a slideshow and made these remarks as she shared her photos and graphics with Rep. Kaptur:

“[I] met with folks last night. Here are points they want me to cover. CEASEFIRE NOW is our main plea right now. My father was expelled from Rafah in 1948... My uncle was shot and killed at age of 15 in 1989, and I never got to meet him.

Kaptur: “Where was he shot?”

Jasmin: “He was shot in Ramallah by Israeli forces for attending a funeral. That’s what brings us here today. We have similar stories and struggles. It appears that you don't have time for us, don’t care for our suffering pain. We watched you attend and mourn [at] Israeli vigils, posted in their favor, in your stories on Instagram, etc. You’ve sent statements for their events. We also mourn these lives, but we can’t help but notice your lack of regard in standing by [your] Palestinian constituents. I’m the only Palestinian on this panel today—that shows something.”

“It’s insulting, how you refuse to vote for a ceasefire. You’re enabling collective punishment and genocide. What does it take for you to call for a ceasefire? What are your criteria?”

“During the ‘ceasefire’ that (ended) in 2014, Israel was sending in Apaches, killing 3 year-olds, during your so-called ‘ceasefire.’ When it’s broken from one side, you say it’s ‘gruesome, tragic, violates all rules of modern warfare.’ You fail to call it gruesome when it’s the attacks on October 8th… These are the bombs you’re paying for, your bombs, dropped by Israel funded by US. Those bombs don’t fall on combat people, but on children. Here are their faces—here are the kids in Al-Shifa hospital.” (The slide show displays photos of dead babies lying on a stretcher and sickly premature babies in incubators. Jasmin continues.)

“How do you want these kids to evacuate the hospital? Here are gruesome images that you don't want to call ‘gruesome’. Maggots coming out of wounds.”

“These (photos) are the Israeli leaders you are so happy to back and support, saying ‘We will turn Gaza into ruins.’ (Photos of Netanyahu and others Israeli government officials with quotes that said:) ‘Focus on destruction not accuracy.’ ‘Burn Gaza now.’ This is the government you’re backing and giving the green light to. How can you be anti-genocide while backing this government?”

“Co-sponsor Cori Bush’s resolution, or write another resolution for a ceasefire, whatever you need to do. I see my family dying every day on the screen. When I was little I looked up to you… blindly voted for you. Now a disgrace to be represented by you. I remember my brother giving you a rose and a hug, and I said, ‘Marcy’s for us, she’s with us,’ but now those thoughts aren’t clear anymore. That’s what the majority of your people are also thinking.”

Kaptur’s response: 

Thank you, that took a lot of courage and depth to say that publicly. I don’t agree with some of what you said regarding my own efforts, but I respect your delivering them in such a respectful manner, and this is how you make progress. And I especially liked how you said I could make my own resolution because Cori Bush’s resolution would not pass, and we want to be much more thorough in what we’re proposing."

(Editor’s note: Marcy Kaptur seems to want to do things her own way and not work in a cooperative manner with a fellow Democrat like Cori Bush. Her response doesn’t provide any comfort to Jasmin, her constituent, or the others in the call. She doesn’t even provide a deadline as to when we could expect to see her proposed resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza. Also notice how Kaptur doesn’t deny that she is biased by her sympathetic actions toward Israelis and by her ignoring the pain of Palestinians in the past. She didn't even make a remark about the very powerful imagery of dead and dying babies from Gaza that Jasmin displayed in her slide show.

You’ll notice that Rep. Kaptur also didn’t make any comments about the lack of clean water causing death and disease in Gaza since the Israelis cut off water to Gaza. She doesn’t seem to see or acknowledge the suffering of Palestinians at all. Perhaps they are invisible to her, but she’s clearly supportive of Israel as indicated by her recent endorsement. She praises Jasmin for acting in a “respectful manner,” as if this isn't the usual way a Palestinian acts. It’s almost as if Kaptur agrees with the Israeli Defense Minister who labeled Palestinians “human animals.” Animals don't have “manners,” now do they?

The takeaway from this exchange is that Palestinians are simply not worthy of Kaptur's tears or efforts to establish a temporary ceasefire or a permanent peace. One wonders if she could even be diagnosed as a sociopath since she demonstrates a total lack of empathy toward the suffering of Palestinians and the fears and concerns of her constituents such as Jasmin.)

Adam Smidi gives his comments:

“Any taking of life is sickening. The narrative right now is that there is no such thing as an innocent Palestinian life. … One doctor, from Doctors Without Borders, said this is the ‘worst humanitarian crisis she’s ever experienced.’ These are the people we should be listening to, humanitarian people, people on the ground. An acronym was invented, ‘WCNSF,’ unique to Gaza. It stands for ‘wounded child no surviving family.’ This acronym shouldn’t exist.”

“There is a natural human impulse to protect children. Right now, that impulse is broken, and disincentivized by our representatives. Muslims in Ohio are diverse and civically engaged. We will elect those that hear us. Your legacy in the local Muslim community has been so positive, all we ask is to be brave enough to stand with us and be on the right side of history on this thing. Stop the bombing, ceasefire, ending of innocent lives lost. Two thirds of Americans agree. (…) A local family near to us, the (Abu Shaban?) family, lost 35 members, age 2 weeks to 85 years, all in one sitting.”

Kaptur’s response:

“In [the] Middle East, this war could expand. The US cannot operate alone, must have allies in region that help all of us. Keep that wider scope in mind as we look towards a solution. (...) This will take a united front, global. We need many nations on board, first to help us keep honest as a country, and second to help us heal that wounded region.”

(Editor’s note: Once again, Rep. Kaptur seems not to have heard or understood the concerns Adam voiced about the deaths of innocents and entire families and how a ceasefire could prevent further suffering. She’s focused on the US fighting in other parts of the region and making “allies” in a global conflict that would only continue the senseless and immoral killing of children and innocents. It’s like she needs a “moral hearing aid” to hear and understand that her constituents’ concern is not about war strategies and politics—it’s about saving endangered human beings and ensuring their health and safety.)

Protest outside Kaptur's district office.

A brief excerpt from the Q & A section that ended the Zoom call:

Jasmin: “As our representative, a lot of people here today understand that all that work needs to be done, to figure out a two-state or one-state or five-state solution. We don’t care about that right now. We want you as our representative to back a ceasefire immediately.”

Kaptur: “Who’s going to stop the shooting?”

Jasmin: “What do you mean?”

Kaptur: “If we pass a nonbinding resolution—and, I’ll tell you, this resolution isn’t going to pass.”

Jasmin: “We’re asking you to take that stance, and go on the record. We want to know that we feel supported by our representatives.”

Kaptur: “I can’t make it happen. I’m just a representative.”

(Editor’s note: It seems odd that Rep. Kaptur feels she is powerless. Here she has been elected to Congress over twenty times and has sat on many committees and has many connections in Washington, DC, but she has no political pull at all according to her. She says, “I can’t make it happen” when it comes to addressing a life and death issue such as genocide. “I’m just a representative,” she whines. She can’t even speak out against ethnic cleansing on the floor of Congress?

Why would any voter support a candidate with so little belief in their own agency? Is Kaptur just a puppet—not her own person—going whichever way the wind blows? Possibly it explains her long tenure in office. She’s the perfect party hack with no original thoughts or sense of morality of her own. She does as she's told by whoever pays her the most money.)

Jasmin: “You’re our representative, and we’re asking you to do this.”

Kaptur: “I’ll do what I can. And what I can do is what I am doing. And that’s strengthening our allies’ voices who are negotiating, our top advisors working with Hamas and our allies. I don’t have a voice in that, I can just encourage them. Right now, we could try to pass this resolution in Congress, but it’s not related to the future or any kind of truce to stop the killing.”

Jasmin: “What’s the harm in supporting the resolution?”

(Editor’s note: A good question. If there’s no harm in it, why not? Even a symbolic gesture to say you’re standing with the Palestinian people would be of great comfort to Jasmin and other Palestinian American voters, wouldn’t it?)

Terry Lodge, Northwest Ohio Peace Coalition: “Vote against the appropriations, cut off the weapons now. This has to stop. It’s madness and will get worse.”

Kaptur: “That bill did not move.”

Terry : “It’s only temporarily on hold, will be up again quickly.”

Kaptur: “It could be.”

Terry: “This is an emergency. I agree this will take a community to stop this, but it begins by advocating, using your voice to put on the brakes. Please put on the brakes. Please tell the rest of Congress that YOU want this to stop, take immediate steps. I remember in 2003 when you were one of the brave voices who voted against the invasion of Iraq! You’ve demonstrated courage in the past.”

(Editor’s note: Alas, Marcy Kaptur hasn’t demonstrated much courage this time around—except for courageously representing the pro-Zionist lobby. She sits on the appropriations committee, but she can’t even promise that she’ll attempt to stop the spending on the weapons of genocide. There’s so much Kaptur could do and say, but, in the end, she says and does little to nothing.)

These excerpts from the Zoom call with Rep. Kaptur aren’t meant to dissuade you from ever contacting your representatives in Congress, but they are to give you an idea of the resistance you’ll be up against. The pro-Israel, AIPAC lobbyists are very rich and very powerful. Be ready to counter each and every excuse they’ve given to your representative whenever you communicate with them. Bought-off politicians are always looking for an excuse to ignore you and, when they can’t hold you off any longer, a way to gaslight you.

Don’t let your Congressmember get away with it. There’s a genocide going on in Gaza. It’s not a picnic or a football game. There’s no time for sweet talk and niceties. Show your representative the horrific photos of dead children. Give them the numbers of deaths and wounded. Don’t let them tell you they’re powerless to affect real change. 

Anyone who can spend that much time and energy on gaslighting their constituents has enough time and power to spend on doing good things for them instead. Let your representative know you will no longer support them in their re-election bid if they won't represent you. Let them know that you know which lobbyists (PACs) are paying them off to act against their constituents' best interests. And let them know that you're not afraid to take stronger measures to re-establish democracy in the future.

*More on AIPAC from Hamas: Winning by Not Losing

AIPAC was founded in 1953 as the American Zionist Committee for Public Affairs–the lobbying division of the American Zionist Council in an effort to whitewash reports of Israeli atrocities—specifically the Qibya massacre.

In 1963, it was reconstituted as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee – AIPAC—which has had immense influence in Congress—despite being out of step with mainstream Jewish opinion. Zionism also made inroads in the media and entertainment industries. Not to mention academia.

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Gaza Newborns Are Dying From Preventable Causes Due to Israeli Siege, Oxfam Says https://truthout.org/articles/gaza-newborns-are-dying-from-preventable-causes-due-to-israeli-siege-oxfam-says/

Biden endorses Israel’s war to ‘eliminate’ Gaza  https://www.aaronmate.net/p/biden-endorses-israels-war-to-eliminate

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Israel’s Genocidal Antisemitism Against the Arab Civilians of Gaza
https://scheerpost.com/2023/11/23/israels-genocidal-antisemitism-against-the-arab-civilians-of-gaza/

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The Special Rapporteur for the UN on Palestine wrote in a recent report that “since 1967, over 800,000 Palestinians, including children as young as 12, have been arrested and detained under authoritarian rules enacted, enforced and adjudicated by the Israeli military. Palestinians are subject to long detention for expressing opinions, gathering, pronouncing unauthorised political speeches, or even merely attempting to do so, and ultimately deprived of their status of protected civilians. They are often presumed guilty without evidence, arrested without warrants, detained without charge or trial and brutalised in Israeli custody.”

Israel is holding 6,704 Palestinians, many of them arrested on the flimsiest of pretexts. The number of detainees includes over 2,000 in what it is pleased to call “administrative detention.” That is where someone is arrested and imprisoned without charges, a trial, or sentencing. Administrative detention orders have a term of one to six months, but they can be indefinitely renewed.

Moreover, Israel arrests as many as 500 minors each year, including children as young as nine and ten, keeping the bulk of them in military brigs, and about 150 in civilian prisons. They stand accused of mistreating these children while they are in custody. Most are guilty of sassing Israeli soldiers or police, though some are stone-throwers.

These people have been effectively kidnapped by the Israeli state and are hostages, not prisoners.

McCarthyite witch-hunt against actresses Melissa Barrera and Susan Sarandon for opposing Israeli genocide in Gaza https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/11/23/ptwk-n23.html

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Netanyahu Says UN Isn’t Doing Enough for Palestinians in Gaza https://news.antiwar.com/2023/11/23/netanyahu-says-un-isnt-doing-enough-for-palestinians-in-gaza/

Brics Leaders Condemn Israeli War Crimes in Gaza, Call For End of Hostilities https://scheerpost.com/2023/11/24/brics-leaders-condemn-israeli-war-crimes-in-gaza-call-for-end-of-hostilities/

Doctors Gabor Maté and Tarek Loubani Discuss Israel’s Medical Siege of Gaza https://scheerpost.com/2023/11/24/doctors-gabor-mate-and-tarek-loubani-discuss-israels-medical-siege-of-gaza/

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'Jarring Wake-Up Call': Hunger Surges in US After Food Aid Cuts https://www.commondreams.org/news/jarring-wake-up-call-hunger-surges-in-us-after-food-aid-cuts

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"Over that time period, the number of people without enough food increased from 19.7 million to 27.8 million nationwide," HFA noted, attributing the rise in hunger to the expiration of the expanded Child Tax Credit and universal school meals.

Super-Rich 1% Match Carbon Emissions of the Poorest 5 Billion People, Oxfam Report Reveals https://scheerpost.com/2023/11/20/super-rich-1-match-carbon-emissions-of-the-poorest-5-billion-people-oxfam-report-reveals/