No media was present today during the Afghanistan War debate in Congress, a debate that went on for 3 hours and is ending as I write this, in a vote to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, or not. Most of Congress did not bother to show up either, because war has now become so automatic and ho-hum that few in government think it even needs to be debated any more. It’s been labeled as “the good war” even though it most certainly is not. See below for more on that.
Our media does not care about important issues of war and peace, but they sure do care if some obscure, obnoxious Congressman has been groping people or getting drunk at weddings. That is hugely important to our brain-dead media. (And I include progressive media in that description). Seriously, that NY Congressman is all MSNBC and other networks have talked about for about 2 days now. Meanwhile, the press does not care about whether or not Congress wants to end the war in Afghanistan. They barely care that Israel is building more and more new settlements and further throwing a wrench into the so-called peace process.
Discussions of war and peace make us wonder — what would make America more safe as a country? Many people think ending our wars, ending the “war on terror”, and closing GITMO and the 700 military bases we have all over the world would greatly improve our safety, and I agree. Our alliance with Israel clearly makes us less safe — our overly “friendly” and forgiving association with the one violent country that threatens Palestine and Lebanon and others the most. The country that announced new settlements the same day Vice President Biden arrived, as if to stick it in his face and challenge us to stop sending them billions in weapons and aid every year. Everyone knows this too-close and too-helpful association is the root of Middle Eastern problems with the United States. The U.S. should call Israel’s bluff on the new settlements anouncement and immediately cut off all money, weapons, protection and aid. With friends like these . . . .
Israel Okays New West Bank Settler Homes Despite Moratorium
“JERUSALEM — Hours after Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. vowed unyielding American support for Israel’s security here on Tuesday, Israel’s Interior Ministry announced 1,600 new housing units for Jews in East Jerusalem. Mr. Biden condemned the move as “precisely the kind of step that undermines the trust we need right now.”
Now that is a big “F- you” to the Vice President and President, isn’t it? Why do we put up with this? Maybe because wars keep the unemployment numbers from rising into the stratosphere, so we need to keep up this charade of being a peace-loving country while waging wars all over the place. After all, Iran is acting up and we don’t like countries that don’t do what we tell them, do we? There might be a new war to support soon, in this lovely relationship, yet again. Israel starts a war with Iran, and the narrative says that we would have their backs, in every way. Of course, many voices are calling for war with Iran.
To get the ball rolling, Israel needs to continue to anger everyone around them.
“Israel has given the green light for the building of 112 new homes in a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank despite a partial moratorium on such construction, a minister said on Monday.
The news surfaced as US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in the region, a day after the Palestinians agreed to hold indirect talks with Israel while warning that further settlement growth would threaten the entire peace process.
Israeli Environment Minister Gilad Erdan said the project in the Beitar Illit settlement near Bethlehem was an exception to a partial halt of settlement activity announced in November.
“At the end of last year, the government decided to freeze construction, but this decision provided for exceptions in cases of safety problems for infrastructure projects started before the freeze,” he told army radio.
Israel’s continued expansion of settlements is one of the biggest obstacles to the resumption of peace talks with the Palestinians, now suspended for more than a year despite months of US-led shuttle diplomacy.
The Palestinians, who had refused to resume peace talks until a freeze on settlements, condemned the latest move and called on the United States to intervene to halt settlement activity in the West Bank and east Jerusalem.
“This was the first item on the president’s agenda,” chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said after a meeting between US Middle East envoy George Mitchell and Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank.”
PEACE?
We need to pursue peace more seriously as a country and as individuals. There are too few peace actions lately, too few demands for peace across the country. Where have all the anti-war protesters gone? The Tea Bagger loudmouths never shut up just because it was winter and too cold outside. We need to be a little bit more like the tea baggers — annoying as hell, maybe a little disruptive, something to tell the media we’re still out here. And we are still waiting for peace.
Congressman Dennis Kucinich has introduced legislation to withdraw troops from Afghanistan.
- H. Con. Res. 248:
- . . . . directing the President, pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers Resolution, to remove the United States Armed Forces from Afghanistan
This War Powers Resolution offered by Dennis Kucinich is currently being voted on in the Congress as I write this. There are hardly any Congressman present to vote on the measure. It’s a very sad day in America when our representatives don’t even show up to vote on peace. However, there has been 3 hours of debate on the resolution, and you can see some of that on CSPAN. Patrick Kennedy argued, for example, that we can’t control the war, even though he’s not against the war in philosophy.
Congressman Kennedy also pointed out that there was NO PRESS PRESENT DURING THIS DEBATE, the most significant issue of national importance in our country right now.
We will have no success in the future as a country when we don’t have peace as a priority without our government and right now, we don’t. In fact, it’s the belief of many people that our government is currently considering war with Iran. This is not CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN.
Change would be real peace.
Current vote:
LATER IN the afternoon, Congress actually showed up to vote on the War Resolution. The current vote is 52 Yea and 311 Nay.
Obviously, the bill will not pass. We will be in Afghanistan another 10-20 years or maybe longer, and spending billions and billions and billions.
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