Keith Raffel’s hit piece on mayoral candidate Mamdani ignores Israel’s genocide in Gaza, Mamdani’s principled efforts to end it

 

Keith Raffel’s hit piece on mayoral candidate Mamdani ignores Israel’s genocide in Gaza, Mamdani’s principled efforts to end it

 

In his lengthy Daily Herald op-ed, Keith Raffel makes two major rhetorical mistakes that undermine his entire premise of Mamdani’s unfitness to become New York s mayor.

 

He fails to mention the singular reason Mamdani is in solidarity with the Palestinian cause in Gaza…the Israeli genocidal ethnic cleansing of 2,300,000 Palestinians there. Raffel never mentions the genocide, strongly implying Israel and Gaza were at peace broken only by the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack. His reasoning? ”There were Israeli no troops on October 7.” But not mentioned is that Israel has controlled movement of food, medicine, indeed all life’s essentials to Gaza since the early 1990’s. This has caused thousands of needless deaths and living conditions horrible beyond imagination.

 

The October 7 attack was not unprovoked terrorism. It was ‘blowback’ made inevitable by inflicting death and destruction on 2,300,000 Palestinians degraded in the world’s largest open air prison. It was not only inevitable, it was exploited by Israel’s leaders to implement the long sought removal of all Palestinians from Gaza to expand Greater Israel.

 

That genocidal campaign has brought the following condemnation from the foreign ministers of 25 Western nations: “The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths. The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability, and deprives Gazans of human dignity. We condemn the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food. It is horrifying that over 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid. The Israeli Government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable. Israel must comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law”

 

Ignoring Israel’s life suffocating blockade before October 7, 2023, and the resulting genocide in response, undermines Raffel's entire argument Mamdani is anti-Israel and giving aid and comfort to those attacking Jews.

 

Mamdani is simply in sync with most of the civilized world, including those aforementioned 25 Western foreign ministers, who want an end to the genocide, end to life destroying blockade and finally creation of a Palestinian state. Over a third of Americans have expressed disgust with the blockade and genocide. The UN demands it end. One hundred forty-six of the UN’s 193 countries, but not America, recognize the Palestinian state being snuffed out by Israel’s ghoulish occupation and now near complete destruction.

 

Here in the western suburbs, West Suburban Peace Coalition demands an end to the genocide, end to the blockade, and serious negotiations to create long sought, long overdue Palestinian state. We would welcome Keith Raffel and everyone else of good Will in the Western suburbs to join us.

 

Walt Zlotow, West Suburban Peace Coalition, Glen Ellyn IL

 

 

Rubio AWOL from Gang of 25 condemning US enabled Israeli genocide in Gaza

 Rubio AWOL from Gang of 25 condemning US enabled Israeli genocide in Gaza

The foreign ministers of these 25 Western nations had the moral backbone to condemn Israel’s genocide in Gaza and call for its end: UK, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.

Their statement pulled no punches. “The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths. The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability, and deprives Gazans of human dignity. We condemn the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food. It is horrifying that over 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid. The Israeli Government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable. Israel must comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law,”

One prominent Western foreign minister was absent from their scathing anti genocide statement…US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. No surprise as Rubio is a ravenous supporter of the Israeli genocide which could not last a month without tens of billions in US bombs, Intel, logistics, and vetoes of UN anti genocide resolutions.

Rubio remains oblivious of the hundred or so Palestinians shot dead daily seeking a smidgeon of food trickling into Gaza due to Israel’s ghoulish food restrictions. Palestinians face a terrible choice: starve to death or dodge Israeli bullets to get a few morsels.

Rubio has supported the Israeli genocide thruout its 22 months, first as Senator, for the last 6 months as Secretary of State. He calls it “self defense”, opposing ceasefire till Hamas is wiped out. But since Israel considers every Palestinian Hamas, Rubio has sentenced all 2,300,000 Palestinians to death or removal. He’s in sync with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu that it’s better to let the remaining Israeli hostages die rather than fail to cleanse Gaza of Palestinians.

Rubio sanctioned individuals and organizations such a UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese and the International Criminal Court who accused Israel of genocide and sought action against Israeli officials through international bodies. It’s likely not lost on Rubio that the very folks, organizations he’s sanctioning could accuse him of war crimes.

Every day the shootings and starvation wastes over another hundred Palestinian lives marks another day of shame and disgrace for the man who should change his title to US Secretary of Genocide.

Trump, Zelensky, Rutte: evil leaders risking nuclear war

 Trump, Zelensky, Rutte: evil leaders risking nuclear war

When it comes to world leaders putting peoplekind at risk of nuclear annihilation, evil is an appropriate label.

That applies to US President Donald Trump, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Trump gets first prize in risking nuclear war putting the world at nuclear peril on 3 fronts: China, Middle East and Ukraine.

He’s filled his administration with China hawks preparing for war with China due to their challenging America for economic and political dominance. To Trump’s China Hawks that’s an existential threat to America justifying war preparations.

He’s obliterated international law and nuclear non-proliferation guidelines by enabling the Israeli sneak attack on Iran, then launching his own deadly attack. The potential for all out regional war that could go nuclear was narrowly avoided, but remains possible.

Worst of all he’s risked nuclear war every day of his current term by refusing to end America’s proxy war against Russia in Ukraine that one misstep, one misunderstanding, one rogue action could trigger nuclear war. From campaigning to end it he’s pivoted to supplying more weapons to keep Ukraine losing more soldiers and more land every day along with the specter of it going nuclear.

A close second to Trump is his proxy war puppet, Ukraine President Zelensky. He has spent every day of this three and a half year war destroying Ukraine trying to get the US and NATO to attack deep into Russia. That could trigger a nuclear response. Early on he claimed an errant Ukraine missile that inadvertently landed in Poland killing a Pole was fired by Russia, requiring NATO retaliation. Just this month when asked by Trump if he could hit Moscow with long range US missiles, Zelensky replied “Absolutely.” Zelensky may have a death wish but he appears oblivious he risks taking the entire world with him.

Last and least well known is NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. He’s running around NATO countries like Chicken Little. But instead of shouting ‘The sky is falling’, its ‘The Russians are coming, the Russians are coming.’ He’s demanding NATO countries, already economically distressed from the war, raise defense spending from 2% of GDP to 5% paid for by cutting social programs. His preposterous argument is that NATO must make “a quantum leap in our collective defense” to prepare for a Russian invasion within 5 years.

Rutte hit pay dirt with his NATO gig, making a cool tax free salary over €300,000 and living in a new Brussels 20 bedroom NATO residence. Rutte’s unhinged utterances may be good job security for top dog at NATO obsolete now for 34 years. But it’s not good life security for a world edging toward nuclear annihilation.

Trump, Zelensky, Rutte…3 unwise fools oblivious to the nuclear risk they impose on peoplekind every day they’re on the job.

Waiting for a Chicago Tribune editorial that would truly surprise

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Waiting for a Chicago Tribune editorial that would truly surprise

It was not surprising to see the Chicago Tribune Editorial: 'At a Coldplay concert, a kiss cam catches a cuddle and ruins lives' this morning. It's apparently what the Trib believes its readers need to become informed of the momentous issues of our time. 

What would be surprising would be to see a Trib editorial demanding the Trump administration stop enabling the Israeli genocide in Gaza that has been destroying every semblance of life for Gaza's 2,300,000 Palestinians for the past 21 months. The 2,300,000 Palestinian lives being obliterated by US bombs dropped by US planes given to Israel to complete the genocide are the ruined lives worthy of a Chicago Tribune editorial. 

Walt Zlotow, West Suburban Peace Coalition, Glen Ellyn IL