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WHO RULES: THE ISRAEL LOBBY
OR UNCLE SAM?
The answer
at last! Uri Avnery, former Knesset member, assesses the Lobby's
power. "If the Israeli government wanted a law tomorrow
annulling the 10 Commandments, 95 U.S. Senators (at least) would
sign the bill forthwith." But, yes, in the end the dog wags
the tail.Fifty
years ago Allen Ginsberg's "Howl" blew the cobwebs
out of millions of young minds and drove a stake through the
heart of Eisenhower's America. Lenni Brenner remembers Ginsberg
in the East Village.Dr Mengele died in exile, in disguise. Dr Ishii
died rich and recognized, in his own Tokyo home. Christopher
Reed on Japanese WW2 medical tortures and how the U.S. covered
them up.CounterPunch
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Now!
Hillary Clinton is pocketing enormous
amounts of cash across the country for her reelection campaign,
from Manhattan to Hollywood. Yet, Hillary is facing what seems
to be fierce opposition from within her own party, as well as
from third parties here in New York. The main reason candidates
have signed up to challenge Hillary is her position, er, non-position
on the disgraceful "war on terror."
Hillary, in a letter to constituents
last November, expressed her belief that the war in Iraq shouldn't
be "open-ended" but was clear that she would never
"pull out of Iraq immediately." Translation: Hillary
Clinton supports a continued occupation of Iraq. Her stance on
Iran isn't much better; in fact, it may be worse. In the same
letter, Clinton hoped contingents of U.S. soldiers would remain
in the region with "quick-strike capabilities. This will
help us stabilize that new Iraqi government," she attested.
"It will send a message to Iran that they do not have a
free hand in Iraq despite their considerable influence and personal
and religious connections there."
Messages, I guess, carry more
weight when they are delivered at gunpoint. "Watch out Tehran,"
Hillary seems to be declaring, "I'll strike quick."
Such neoconish attitudes have upset antiwar activists, and now
many are rallying 'round any alternative they can find to challenge
Hillary in her bid for reelection this year.
Jonathan Tasini, who is running
against Clinton in the New York Democratic primary, is gaining
the most visible support. His position on the Iraq war is solid,
as he wants all U.S. troops home now. Tasini also believes that
democracy in Iraq is a long way from developing and argues that
there will be no such thing in Iraq's future as long as the U.S.
stays the course. "[The] invasion of Iraq has created a
theocracy," says Tasini. "The people of Iraq have the
right to decide what law they choose to follow."
The Green Party is also tossing
its antiwar weight into the ring. Sander Hicks, the founder of
Soft Skull Press and operator of indie publishing house Vox Pop,
is challenging Steve Greenfield for their party's nomination.
Both Hicks and Greenfield support bringing U.S. troops home immediately
and oppose any US involvement in Iran.
The Libertarian Party of New
York recently nominated Jeff Russell, who says he'd bring soldiers
home as soon as possible, and the Socialist Equity Party is running
Bill Van Auken, who wants to bring U.S. troops home now.
None of the antiwar third-party
candidates at this point in the campaign season have any real
name recognition or financial backing. Even so, Tasini the Democrat
does. Antiwar flyers plaster campuses throughout New York City
touting Tasini, and his campaign is being discussed on numerous
antiwar blogs and e-mail lists. Tasini's drive may soon spark
some real tension among antiwar activists in New York, however,
as many believe supporting Tasini will fail the movement against
the war.
For starters, they contend
that Tasini is still a Democrat, which means that if he doesn't
beat Hillary in September's primary election, he will most likely
endorse her campaign and hand over his antiwar funds to the pro-war
Democratic Party, much like Dennis Kucinich did during his presidential
race in 2004 when he endorsed John Kerry.
When I contacted Tasini's campaign manager, Adam Koch, he challenged
these criticisms.
"Tasini won't be endorsing
Senator Clinton after the primaries if he doesn't win,"
says Koch. "Nor will he be giving any of his money to the
Democratic Party." Koch also noted that Tasini is currently
seeking the Working Families Party line, but if that falls through
he will not be appearing on the ballot.
The Working Families Party
will be endorsing a New York senatorial candidate on June 3,
and Hillary and Tasini have been the only two candidates to seek
the party's line thus far. Hillary scored the endorsement in
2000, so it's not guaranteed to go to Tasini.
If the antiwar movement is
to truly take on Hillary this election season, we need to challenge
her all the way up to November. The majority of New Yorkers who
oppose the Iraq war aren't even Democrats and can't vote for
Tasini in New York's closed primary elections. The validity of
Tasini's campaign is now greatly dependent on whether or not
he receives the Working Families' endorsement.
Supporting another antiwar candidate or voting "none of
the above" may be the only way to hold Hillary Clinton accountable
for her depraved Iraq war stance on Election Day 2006. Until
then, let's track Hillary across the country and let her know
we don't agree with what she's offering.
Fortunately, antiwar activists
can all agree on one thing: Hillary Clinton doesn't deserve our
votes.
Joshua Frank, author of Left Out! How Liberals
Helped Reelect George W. Bush, edits http://www.BrickBurner.org
Now
Available
from CounterPunch Books!
The Case
Against Israel
By Michael Neumann
CounterPunch
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