One of the places I have always wanted to visit is Israel. It’s been high on the list of places I want to see before I die which includes France, Turkey and Greece.
Since I was in Bahrain and Dubai in late 90s and early 00s, traveling to Europe was considerably easier and cheaper and I did travel quite a lot. England, Italy and Amsterdam were on the list and I was able to see these beautiful countries.
But for various personal reasons was not able to visit the above listed countries.
The reason I could not visit Israel was, however, different. Since Israel is not recognised by Arab countries, I would have been hammered by the customs official upon my return to Bahrain or Dubai. This would have hampered with my job prospects and since our (me and my wife’s) future at that point was not very clear, I did not want to be “blacklisted” by overzealous custom officials. Plus my wife was really not really keen on it.
Israel and it’s history have always been fascinating to me. The culture, the people and the state of Israel seems to hold a unique position in the history of the world. From the atrocities faced by the Jewish people under the Third Reich and the setting up of the Israeli state to the atrocities now being committed by Israelis upon the Palestinians.
Which is the reason why I refuse to visit Israel.
I refuse to spend my dollars in a country that believes in disproportionately killing innocents despite it’s history of being at the receiving end. What Israelis are doing right now may not be a holocaust but it sure is a subjugation of the defenseless.
Yes. There I said it. Palestinians are defenseless. I am not talking about the 50% or so of those killed in this war who are trying to kill Israelis. I am totally for their deaths. Those murdering bastards need to face bullets, Israeli bullets.
But the other 50% (majority of whom are children) who happen to be in Israelis’ “way” while they are trying to kill Hamas murdering bastards, are my concern. And the way Israelis are tackling this war? It is downright wrong. Where is the Israeli ingenuity? Where is their counter intelligence strikes. This is brute force by a bully.
And in the end they are going to occupy Gaza and it’s back to killings of innocent Israelis and counter killing of innocent Palestinians.
And for all those assholes who think Israelis have no influence over US, here is a little tit bit for you :
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wanted to vote for a UN resolution demanding a ceasefire in Gaza – but the Israeli Prime Minister ‘shamed’ her into abstaining, he has revealed.
Ehud Olmert said the U.S. Secretary of State ‘for reasons we did not really understand wanted to vote in favour of the UN resolution’.
With just ten minutes before the vote last Thursday, he rushed to the phone to call U.S. President George Bush – who he described as an ‘unparalleled friend’ of Israel.
When told that Mr Bush was in Philadelphia making a speech, Mr Olmert said, he replied: ‘I don’t care. I have to talk to him now’.
‘They got him off the podium, brought him to another room and I spoke to him,’ he said in a speech full of political bravado last night.
‘I told him, ‘You can’t vote in favour of this resolution.’ He said, ‘Listen, I don’t know about it, I didn’t see it, I’m not familiar with the phrasing.”
Mr Olmert said he then told Mr Bush: ”I’m familiar with it. You can’t vote in favour.’
‘He gave an order to the Secretary of State and she did not vote in favour of it – a resolution she cooked up, phrased, organised and manoeuvred for.
‘She was left pretty shamed and abstained on a resolution she arranged,’ Mr Olmert said.
Desi In Toronto 