Wars
of the Laptop Bombers
Today's
Stories
February 28,
2005
Diana Johnstone
Censorship
and the Empire
February 26
/ 27, 2005
Alexander Cockburn
An
American Jew Laments Decline in Jewish Influence
Noam Chomsky
Nuclear
Terror at Home
Rev. William E. Alberts
Rhetoric in the Air; Reality on the Ground
Fred Gardner
AARP Gets Pot-Baited
Gary Leupp
Bush and Camus on Freedom
Saul Landau
An Interview with Cuban VP Ricardo Alarcon (Part 3): the Miami
Mafia
Robin Philpot
Second Thoughts on the Hotel Rwanda
Yitkhak Laor
In Praise of the Facts
Ben Tripp
Out of Sight; Out of Mind
Justin Taylor
Zizek Seen Over the Handlebars
Jack Random
The Wounds from Wounded Knee
Rafael Renteria
Ward Churchill and White America
Jim B.
Reflections on the Eve of Fatherhood
Seth DeLong
Land Reform in Venezuela: More Like Lincoln Than Lenin
John Chuckman
A Season of Depressing Political Reruns
Alison Weir
Relativity, LA Times Style
Richard Oxman
Political Solitude: From Garcia Marquez to Maria Full of Grace
Dr. Susan Block
It Always Rains in California: All About Female Ejaculation
Poets' Basement
Landau, Lowell, Louise, Davies, Soderstrom, Norris & Albert
February 25,
2005
Roger Burbach
Murder
in the Amazon
Behzad Yaghmaian
Iranian Distrust of America: 50 Years in the Making
Kurt Nimmo
Conclave of the Brats
Joshua Frank
Diagnosing the Green Party
John Farley
How to Stop the War in Iraq: Punish Pro-War Politicians
Lawrence Reichard
The D'Aubuisson Memorial: Flowers of Evil
Pratyush Chandra
The Royal Coup in Nepal and Global Imperialist Designs
David Smith-Ferri
When
the Battlefield has No Borders
Website of
the Day
The 2005 Election in 3-D
February 24,
2005
Omar Waraich
The
Galloway Saga: Smearing an Anti-War Politician
Brian Cloughley
Bribing and Twisting Amerian Journalists: Valerie Plame &
30 Pieces of Silver
Tom Wright
Torture Nation: Abu Ghraib, a Year Later
Sharon Smith
The Anti-War Movement After Kerry: Learning All the Wrong Lessons
Dave Lindorff
Do These Roosting Chickens Have Flu?
Fred Feldman
Lynching Ward Churchill
James Reiss
On Hearing About a Plot to Assassinate President Bush
Diane Christian
Bad
Blood: Ritual & Sexual Torture in Iraq
Website of
the Day
The Gray Line
February 23,
2005
Werther
The
Poisoned Well: What the CIA's Nazi Files Can Tell Us About Iraq
W. John Green
A Salvador Option for Iraq? How Negroponte Changes the Ground
Rules
James Petras
A New Face to Bush Foreign Policy?
Conn Hallinan
Cornering the Dragon: the Return of the China Lobby
Joe Pietri
Cannabis: the Goose that Lays Golden Eggs (For Consumers and
Cops)
Louis Proyect
Hunter Thompson and the "New" Journalism
Alexander Cockburn
Hunter
S. Thompson and Gonzo
Website of
the Day
Did You Make the Blacklist? Why Not?
February 22,
2005
Naseer Aruri
The
Politics of the Hariri Assassination: Remapping the Middle East
Richard Manning
The
Economy of Hunger: Starvation is Part of the Economic Plan
William A.
Cook
Righteous
Racism Running Rampant
Paul Craig Roberts
The Agents of Instability
Ken Krayeske
Dr. Thompson is Out
Dave Zirin
How the Owners Destroyed the NHL
Kirkpatrick
Sale
Imperial
Entropy: the Collapse of the American Empire
February 21,
2005
Hunter S. Thompson
"He
Was A Crook"
John Ross
Mexico:
the Pentagon's Proxy Army in Iraq
Ward Churchill
What Did I Really Say? Why Did
I Say It?
Dr. Teresa
Whitehurst
Military Recruiting on Channel One: Geometry 101, Brought to
You by the US Navy
David Swanson
Fighting for a Living Wage, State by State
Dave Lindorff
All the News That's Fit to Fake
Stew Albert
Fear and Loathing: HST
Michael Neumann
Strategies
in Palestine: a Shrinking Pie in the Sky
February 19
/ 20, 2005
Alexander Cockburn
Back
to Salem: Paul Shanley and the Return of "Recovered Memory"
Kathleen Christison
Struggling
for Justice in Palestine
Ted Honderich
On Being Persona Non Grata
Gary Leupp
Self-Hating Gays: Welcome to the White House & Welcome to
Commit Suicide
Don Santina
Reparations for the Blues
Jennifer Roesch
John Negroponte: Dirty Warrior
Scott Richard
Lyons
Ward
Churchill and the Identity Police
Chris Clarke
Ward Churchill and Liberal Outrage
George Beres
Censorship in the Land of Wayne Morse: Gagging W. Churchill in
Oregon
Harry Browne
The Belfast Heist: the Plot Unravels
Manuel García,
Jr.
Who Killed Rafik Hariri?
Mark Scaramella
Lessons from the Hidden Afghan War
Michael Donnelly
Whatever Happened to John Edwards?
John Pilger
First, They Attack the Past
Norman Madarasz
Death Wish for Reform in Brazil?
Surendra Devkota
The Monarchy in Nepal
Deborah Rich
How Anti-GMO Ballot Measures May Miss the Mark
Fred Gardner
When Dr. Tod Met Merle Haggard
CounterPunch
News Service
About King Mswati: Political Developments in Swaziland
Richard Oxman
CounterPunching Arthur Miller
Poets' Basement
Albert, Giebel, Tripp, Engel and Orkin
February 18,
2005
Ben Moxham
In
East Timor, the Nightmare Continues
Dave Lindorff
The
Scum Also Rises: the Bloody Career of John Negroponte
Larry Birns
Negroponte: a Resume of Death Squads, Deceptions and Bribery
Gregory Elich
N, Korea's Phantom Nukes and the US's Subversion of Diplomacy
Samuel Logan / John Meyers
The Future of Colombia's Paramilitary Death Squads
Nicole Colson
Shock and Awe on Civil Liberties: From Lynne Stewart to Ward
Churchill
Suzan Mazur
Whose National Security Are We Talking About?
Mickey Z.
"One
Man Has Stopped Killing"
February 17,
2005
Joshua Frank
Hogtying
of the Deaniacs
Paul Craig
Roberts
Bush's
Willing Sychophants: the Conservative Media
Robert Fisk
Under
the Shadow of Death in Lebanon
Christopher
Brauchli
Where
Time Stands Still: Kinsey and Darwin in Cobb County, GA
Dr. Teresa
Whitehurst
Military
Recruitment TV: Why Send Them to College, When Your Kid Can be
Cannon Fodder?
Alison Weir
Russia, Israel and Media Omissions
Ahrar Ahmad
A Review of Shahid Alam's "Is There an Islamic Problem?"
Saul Landau
An
Interview with Cuban VP Ricardo Alarcon: "The US Tramples
the Laws It Wrote"
Website of the Day
Petition to Support Ward Churchill
February 16,
2005
Robert Fisk
Lebanon:
a Battlefield for the Wars of Others
Kevin Zeese
Creating a Real Ownership Society: Share the Wealth; Protect
Retirement
Gary Leupp
Meanwhile, in Nepal...
Ron Jacobs
Why the Iranian Opposition Should Not Trust the Bush Administration
Jessica Leight
Oil-Flush Chavez Begins to Strut His Stuff
Greg Moses
Houston, You've Got a Problem: Documenting Voting Irregularities
in Texas
Mark Engler
The Last Porto Alegre
Jack McCarthy
Where's the Outrage About Pat? Buchanan Does a Churchill
Bill Christison
US
Foreign Policy Dangerously Slanted Toward Israel
Website of the Day
The
World is Melting: a Photo Survey by Gary Braasch
February 15,
2005
CounterPunch
News Service
Dean
a "Safe" Moderate, Says NYT Citing CounterPunch
Robert Fisk
The
Killing of Mr. Lebanon
Uri Avnery
"Sharm-al-Sheikh,
We Have Come Back Again"
Stan Cox
Fighting Big Pharma in Little Digwal
Mickey Z.
Radio
Active North of the Border: an Interview with Chris Cook
Dave Zirin
Bashing Bush: Jose Canseco Comes Clean
Nadia Martinez
Ending
World Poverty? Opening at the World Bank, Apply Now
Lila Rajiva
"Little Eichmanns" and the 'Harijan': the Danger of
Magical Thinking in Politics
Paul Craig
Roberts
The
American Job Sell Out
February 14,
2005
Robert Jensen
Ward
Churchill: Right to Speak Out; Right About 9/11
Brian Cloughley
Kuwait's Freedom, Bush-style
Patrick Cockburn
Outcome
of the Iraqi Elections: Shortages, Corruption, Guerrilla War
Gary Leupp
Post-election Iraq: What Next?
Michael Donnelly
Sacred Nature: Just Another Commodity?
Dave Lindorff
When Bush Came to My Neighborhood
Elaine Cassel
The
Lynne Stewart Verdict
February 12
/ 13, 2005
Alexander Cockburn
Ward
Churchill's Genes
Saul Landau
Alarcon
Speaks: an Interview with the Vice President of Cuba
Paul Craig
Roberts
Nothing
to Fear But Bush Himself
Patrick Cockburn
Two Years After the Fall of Saddam, the Resistance Controls All
Major Roads into Baghdad
John Feffer
Bush
v. N. Korea: Round Two
Mickey Z.
Right to Remain Silent; Duty to Speak
Kurt Nimmo
Viva la Cucaracha!
Fred Gardner
Waiting for Raich
Dave Zirin
Fighting the New Republic(ans)
John Chuckman
Hiroshima, Mon Amour
Ben Tripp
A Leftist on the Bush Payroll
Carol Norris
"Buddy, Can You Spare a Dwarf?"
Robert Fisk
No Middle East Peace Without Justice
Frank / Chowkwanyun
Muzzled Activist in an Age of Terror: the Case of Sherman Austin
Mike Whitney
Condi's Euro Tour
Deborah Frisch
A Psychologist's Defense of Ward Churchill
Niranjan Ramakrishnan
Reading Khomeini in Colorado
Christine TenBarge
What's So Special About Ward?
Ron Jacobs
Curtis Mayfield's Train to Jordan
Dr. Susan Block
Chemistry of Love: a Valentine's Greeting
Poets' Basement
Louise, Smith-Ferri, Ford and Albert
Website of the Weekend
Free Sherman
February 11,
20055
Manuel Garcia,
Jr
The
Eight Percent War
Kurt Nimmo
Ann
Coulter's Racism: Where's Geronimo When You Really Need
Him?
Dave Lindorff
Guckert
or Gannon? The Perfect Plant; He Fit Right In
Larry Birns
War is Peace; Slavery is Freedom: Democracy According to Elliott
Abrams
Bill Quigley
Twenty Questions: a Social Justice Quiz
Tom Barry
Bush's State of Delusion
Jennifer Van
Bergen
Lynne
Stewart's Conviction Hurts Us All
February 10,
2005
Dave Lindorff
What
Academic Freedom?
Christopher Brauchli
The Love of Slaughter: From Rwanda to Iraq
Patrick Cockburn
In Baghdad, It's Easy to Get Killed
Nicole Colson
Have the Democrats Surrendered on Abortion Rights?
Suzan Mazur
More
on the Assassination of Lumumba from Mr. Garsin of Kinshasha
Michael Donnelly
Salvaging an Opposition
Mike Stark
Driving Ossie Davis: "Give Them a Little Truth, a Little
Hope"
Greg Moses
Taking
Jesus Back from the Hijackers
Website of
the Day
The Missionary Positions
February 9,
2005
Jeffrey St.
Clair
Duck
and Cover Redux: Bunker Busters and City Levellers
Mickey Z.
What Ward Churchill Didn't Say
John Ross
Hecho
en Mexico: the Iraqi Election
Tom Barry
Ambassador of Lies: Elliott Abrams, the Neocon's Neocon
Conn Hallinan
The
Coup in Nepal: Nursing the Pinion
Patrick Cockburn
Sistani's Vision for Iraq: Cricket is Fine, But Chess is "Absolutely
Forbidden"
Steen Sohn
Danish PM Says It's OK for Israel to Violate UN Resolutions
Tim Wise
Reflections on Empire and Uppity Indians
Website of
the Day
Support Antiwar.com
February 8,
2005
Patrick Cockburn
Shia/Kurd
Coalition to Dominate New Iraqi Govt.: "It's an Electoral
Pact, Not a Party"
Brian Cloughley
Out
of the Mouths of Generals: "It's Fun to Shoot Some People"
Steve Breyman
Against the Selfishness of the "Ownership Society"
Harry Browne
"Don't
Get on that Plane!": Soldiers Seek Asylum in Ireland
Doug Giebel
"We Love Free Speech in America": the People, the President
and Ward Churchill
Nate Collins
The Censorship of Ward Churchill and Dancehall Reggae: It's the
Same Beast
Dave Lindorff
It's Time for a Labor-Oriented Newspaper
David Smith-Ferri
Sanctions and the Health Crisis in Iraq
February 7,
2005
Paul Craig
Roberts
Bush's
War on Jobs
Carolyn Baker
The New McCarthyism on Campus: Churchill and the Attack on Higher
Ed
Joshua Frank
Marc Cooper's Hit List: First Mumia; Now Ward Churchill
Mickey Z.
Warning: More Hate Speech from W. Churchill
Patrick Cockburn
The
Kidnapping Gangs of Iraq
Mike Whitney
Tom Friedman: Scribe for New Age Imperialism
Stacie Jonas
Pinochet: Fit to be Tried
Dave Zirin
A Miserable Super Sunday: Clinton, Bush and the FBI
Tariq Ali
Imperial
Delusions
February 5
/ 6, 2005
Alexander Cockburn
Ward
Churchill and the Mad Dogs
Kurt Nimmo
A Ward Churchill Kind of Day
Joshua Frank
Liberals Trash Ward Churchill
P. Sainath
Mumbai's Man-Made Tsunami
Patrick Cockburn
Sistani's Triumph; Allawi's Bust
Laura Carlsen
Bush, Rice and Latin America
Dave Lindorff
How the NYT Killed the Bush Bulge Story
Pamela Olson
West Bank Story
Behzad Yaghmaian
The Future of Sudanese Refugees in the West
Saul Landau / Farrah Hassen
A Threatened UN in King George's Court
Roger Burbach
World Social Forum: a Tale of Two Presidents
Robert Fisk
History by Laptop
David Swanson
James Forman and the Liberal-Labor Syndrome
Justin E.H. Smith
Gay Marriage: a Report from Canada
Cacie Hart
The "State" of the Union: More War and a Ban on Love
Ron Jacobs
Chairman Bob Avakian: a Revolutionary Life
Mickey Z.
Viewing America from the Outside
Ben Tripp
Republican Heroes: a New Breed of Good Guy
Ben Sonnenberg
France at the End of the Devil's Decade: Renoir's Rules of the
Game
Poets' Basement
Smith-Ferri, Davies, Collins, & Albert
Website of
the Weekend
John Trudell: How to Earn a 17,000 Page FBI File
February 4,
2005
Brian Cloughley
The
Army Symphonist: "Sometimes the Only Way to Change the Behavior
of Someone Like That is to Kill Them"
Bill Christison
Election
Parallels: Vietnam, 1967; Iraq, 2005
Elaine Cassel
Did Zoloft Make Him Do It?
Jacob Levich
Chomsky and the Draft
Kanak Mani Dixit
Return of the Royalists in Nepal
Ron Jacobs
The
Downward Spiral in Iraq
February 3,
2005
Ward Churchill
On
the Injustice of Getting Smeared: a Campaign of Fabrications
and Gross Distortions
Sharon Smith
Resisting
Soldiers Need Our Support
Mickey Z.
Leslie
Gelb Asks Iraq: Who's Your Daddy?
Mike Whitney
President of Alienation: a Desperate State of the Union
Jenna Orkin
9/11 the Sequel: the Toxic State of Lower Manhattan
Saul Landau
Elections Won't Prevent Civil War in Iraq
Yitzhak Laor
Strange is the Silence
Dave Lindorff
The
Assault on Social Security: a New Campaign of Lies
February 2,
2005
David Domke
/ Kevin Coe
Bush's
Brand of Christianity
Noam Chomsky
Iraq
After the Elections
M. Shahid Alam
O'Reilly's
Fatwah on "Un-American" Professors: FoxNews Puts Me
in Its Crosshairs
Richard Oxman
Ringing in 1984 with Ward Churchill and Derrick Jensen
Joshua Frank
The Suckering of Howard Dean
Dave Lindorff
A History Lesson from the NYT
Nina Hartley
Feminists for Porn
Website of the Day
War is a Racket
February 1,
2005
Joshua L. Dratel
The
Torture Memos
Patrick Cockburn
New Doubts About Allawi
Robert Fisk
"The Only Decent Food We Get is at Funerals"
Uri Avnery
The Stalemate
Col. Dan Smith
"W" Stands for Withdrawal
Alison Weir
Making America as "Secure" as Israel
Alan Farago
Heaven and Hell in the Everglades
Ray Hanania
Low Voter Turnout of Iraqi Expatriates: Less Than 10% of Qualified
Voters
Paul Craig
Roberts
American
Police State
Website of the Day
Statisticians Refute Official Rationale for Exit Poll Errors
December 22,
2004
James Petras
An
Open Letter to Saramago: Nobel Laureate Suffers from a Bizarre
Historical Amnesia
Omar Barghouti
The Case for Boycotting Israel
Patrick Cockburn / Jeremy Redmond
They Were Waiting on Chicken Tenders When the Rounds Hit
Harry Browne
Northern Ireland: No Postcards from the Edge
Richard Oxman
On the Seventh Column
Kathleen Christison
Imagining
Palestine
Website of the Day
FBI Torture Memos
December 21,
2004
Greg Moses
The
New Zeus on the Block: Unplugging Al-Manar TV
Dave Lindorff
Losing
It in America: Bunker of the Skittish
Chad Nagle
The View from Donetsk
Dragon Pierces
Truth*
Concrete
Colossus vs. the River Dragon: Dislocation and Three Gorges Dam
Patrick Cockburn
"Things Always Get Worse"
Seth DeLong
Aiding Oppression in Haiti
Ahmad Faruqui
Pakistan and the 9/11 Commission's Report
Paul Craig
Roberts
America
Locked Up: a System of Injustice
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Alexander Cockburn
Behold,
the Head of a Neo-Con!
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Marcos
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Norman Finkelstein
Hitchens
as Model Apostate
Steve Niva
Israel's
Assassination Policy: the Trigger for Suicide Bombings?
Dardagan,
Slobodo and Williams
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20,000 Wounded Iraqi Civilians
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J.B.
Prison Bitch
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True Lies: the Use of Propaganda
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Here for More Stories.
|
February 28, 2005
Straw Men and Wild Fires
Why
Ted Honderich is Wrong on All Counts
By
PAUL de ROOIJ
Professor Ted Honderich concludes his
recent CounterPunch article ["On Being Persona Non Grata to Palestinians, Too", CounterPunch, Feb. 19, 2005] with:
"A summary then: (1) In
1948 Zionism was right. (2) In 2005, given history since 1948,
the existence of the state of Israel within its original borders
requires our moral defence, as does its secure future. (3) Also
from the perspective of 2005, the founding of the state of Israel
in Palestine was wrong, on account of the reality of the Palestinians
as a people, proved thereafter. (4) Neo-Zionism is obviously
viciously wrong. The importance of the third proposition, the
judgement now on 1948, is that it contributes to the foundation
of something else. That is (5) that the Palestinians have had
a moral right to their terrorism against the enlarging of Israel.
No change in thinking there."
Wrong on
all counts
Honderich states that "Zionism
was right in 1948". However, any nationalism calling for
an exclusive homeland requiring the expulsion of the "natives"
was as evil in 1948 as it is today. The foundation of the State
of Israel was an historical mistake, and this crime was made
possible thanks to the British imposition of the Jewish migration
to Palestine. As Tanya Reinhart, an Israeli Jew herself, admitted
in her book How to End the War of 1948, Israel was born
in original sin. If Honderich insists on referring to moral
arguments, then he should note that although the United Nations
may have approved the formation of the state, that doesn't make
it morally right, given that it was imposed at the cost of the
local population. It is also not surprising that Palestinians
will reject this aspect of his stance.
The second "conclusion",
about "the existence of the state of Israel within its original
borders requir[ing] our moral defense", depends on the validity
of the previous conclusion. If, as argued here, the creation
of the state of Israel was morally reprehensible, then the current
manifestation of that state is, likewise, morally flawed. The
fact that most Israeli cities were built on the destroyed Palestinian
villages attests to the moral bankruptcy of this enterprise.
Honderich throws in that one should defend its "secure
future". This language is reminiscent of what the Zionists
themselves use: security at the expense of justice. Certainly,
Honderich should recognize that there is a moral problem with
such an outcome.
Honderich also suggests that
Israel is acceptable within its "current" borders.
Israel is unique in that it doesn't have defined or recognized
borders, and perhaps he could elucidate which borders he is referring
to. Israel has always been a country with creeping borders
it has an insatiable urge to expand, and thus further dispossess
the native population. On May 14, 1948, the day he proclaimed
the new state without specifying its borders, Ben Gurion wrote
in his diary: "Take the American Declaration of Independence
for instance. It contains no mention of the territorial limits"
[1]. A few years later, Ben-Gurion wrote: "To maintain
the status quo will not do. We have to set up a dynamic state
bent upon expansion" [2]. The current construction of the
land-grab wall is merely the latest manifestation of these expansionist
proclivities.
The third "conclusion"
regarding "from the perspective of 2005, the founding of
the state of Israel in Palestine was wrong", doesn't provide
a useful insight. That is, if the founding of the state was
wrong in 1948, then it is still wrong now -- after all, the refugees
still languish in the refugee camps all over the region. Much
has been written by Zionists suggesting that time will improve
the acceptability of the state and that the original sin will
be slowly vanish. However, some of these Zionists recognize
the initial criminal act against the Palestinians and now argue
that the acceptability of the current state improves over time
[3]. Honderich's argument goes in the opposite direction! That
is, he accepts the creation of this state in 1948, but then finds
that Israel crossed a line after which this is suddenly wrong.
The line that was crossed is itself problematic given that it
was imposed by force and conquest, so to suggest that breaching
this magical line suddenly makes something wrong is problematic.
Honderich makes an odd distinction
about two types of Zionism when he states:
"The first consists in
the rightful founding of the state of Israel in 1948 after the
Holocaust and also its continued and peaceful existence now within
the borders it had in 1967. The second thing is the expansion
of Israel since 1967, the further violation of Palestine and
the Palestinian people. The first thing is Zionism. The second
is neo-Zionism." (Honderich, ibid.)
If Honderich were to differentiate
among the strands of Zionism that are generally recognized, then
one could possibly engage in a meaningful discussion. The actual
political manifestations of Zionism in 1948 through 2005, of
the varieties that currently are labeled as Likud or Labor, all
agree on the appropriation of all of Palestine, they all agree
with the expulsions of 1948 and thereafter; they differ merely
on the relative merits of being forthright or devious in conducting
them. The "left" Zionists oversaw a major expansion
of the settlement blocs even in the middle of Hebron, a
major Palestinian city. Zionism didn't stop at the Green Line
just as it didn't stop at the line marked by UN Resolution 181.
Many Zionists thought that Ben Gurion committed a mistake by
not appropriating all of Palestine in 1948 and expelling all
the population. This was discussed then as it is now, and Sharon
and his ilk think they are finishing the 1948 war, and Tanya
Reinhart chose this as the title of her book to highlight this
fact.
Honderich suggests that the
Green Line somehow forms the basis between legitimate and illegitimate
Zionism/Israel, but the choice of this border is troublesome
too. UNGA 181 defined the borders of the proposed Jewish state
but, on all fronts, the Israelis overran this border. In early
May 1948, after the Israelis had already expelled over 380,000
Palestinians but before the Arab states sent their troops into
Palestine, Ben-Gurion wrote: "[T]he Arabs did not accept
[UNGA 181]. They are preparing to make war on us. If we defeat
them and capture western Galilee or territory on both sides of
the road to Jerusalem, these areas will become part of the state.
Why should we obligate ourselves to accept boundaries that in
any case the Arabs don't accept?" [4] The Green Line is
not a legitimate border; it is merely where the conquest temporarily
halted. The only thing that would render this border legitimate
is a negotiated settlement with the Palestinians in a way that
it will provide a modicum of justice. Similarly, Honderich ignores
the conditions and rights of the Palestinians living in what
now is considered Israel. Is it in his view legitimate that
they are third class citizens living in a de facto apartheid
state, and facing the risk of further ethnic cleansing?
If Honderich acknowledges that
"neo"-Zionism is "viciously wrong", then
the same argument must be leveled at the Zionism of 1948, the
Zionism of Menachem Begin, Ben Gurion, et al. The wave of ethnic
cleansing and the destruction of hundreds of villages in 1948
can only be deemed as vicious; maybe the thoughtful philosopher
can address why this event doesn't tarnish Zionism or Israel
in 1948.
Straw men
should not venture close to the fire
Honderich must consider that
for his contribution to have contemporary relevance it should
be grounded in history and an understanding of political discourse.
It is of limited use to define one's own terminology and then
apply it to a contested ideological scene where those terms have
a different meaning, or the terms don't exist at all. Honderich's
distinction between old/neo Zionisms isn't legitimate, and the
arguments he raises about this distinction is of negligible use.
Similarly, Honderich defines the meaning of "terrorism"
and then proceeds to build an edifice justifying Palestinian
"terrorism". The word "terrorism" is perhaps
the most ideologically contested word in contemporary discourse.
It is difficult to pin down its meaning or the implications
of defining it in a certain way. And here comes Honderich defining
terrorism and then building the moral arguments to justify it.
This is not useful. The Palestinians have a right to resist
their dispossession and expulsion; the legitimacy of this resistance
is generally accorded to a population subject to colonial oppression.
If the violence required to resist is legitimate, then there
is very little need to "justify" the right to use terrorism
as a separate category.
The justification for the use
of "terrorism" is also counterproductive in contemporary
discourse. Bush/Sharon don't waste an opportunity to malign
any violence as "terrorism" and to demonize the "terrorists".
It is therefore not surprising that Honderich receives a cool
reception when presenting his papers on this topic. The Zionists
and most media will attack suggestions that "terrorism"
is ever justified, and the Palestinians don't want to have the
entirety of the violence of their resistance labeled as "terrorism".
One thing is to build constructs that prove debating points
in an academic environment, but it is another if such edifice
is relevant in a hotly contested ideological arena. Straw men
should not venture too close to the fire.
Is Honderich
a Zionist?
Honderich acknowledges that
his background of the history of Palestine/Israel and Zionism
is limited. The consequence of this is evident by the statements
that he has made in his latest article. He goes so far as to
state that he is a "Zionist" (hopefully of the vegetarian
variety, emasculated to remain within the Green Line). Unfortunately,
one suspects that Honderich isn't aware of the sordid history
of this movement or he might not be so quick to label himself
thus. Furthermore, post-World War II, it was clear that any
nationalist ideology requiring the dispossession of others has
been discredited and roundly rejected. After this war, the world
attempted to adopt a more humanist approach to the conception
of the nation state where the constitution of the state would
be determined by all of its citizens, and to limit the state's
recourse to violence; the state would itself almost become an
anachronism. On this basis, Zionism should have been rejected
in 1948 -- the year Honderich uses for many of his arguments.
Similarly, we should reject Zionism today because it is an anachronism
and one can no longer tolerate its imperative to create an "exclusive"
state on the land stolen from others with genocidal implications.
Given the renewed expansionist predisposition of Israel and
the United States, there is again a need to emphasize the rejection
of states based on bankrupt and exclusivist ideologies, and Zionism
should be no exception.
There is a simple explanation
for why Zionists and Palestinians will reject or take issue with
Honderich's arguments or his portrayal of the issues. It has
to do with the limited use of a moral philosophical edifice that
is not firmly grounded in an understanding of history or an understanding
of a hotly contested political discourse. One can also understand
why others reject Honderich if he just happens to be simply wrong.
Paul de Rooij is a writer living in London. He
can be reached at proox@hotmail.com
(NB: all emails with attachments will be automatically deleted.)
Paul de Rooij © 2004
Endnotes
[1] Michael Bar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion:
The Armed Prophet, 1967, p. 157.
[2] David Ben-Gurion, Rebirth
and Destiny of Israel, New York: Philosophical Library in
New York, 1954.
[3] See for example the writings
on this topic by Elias Baumgarten, a philosophy professor at
Univ. of Michigan-Dearborn.
[4] Elli Wohlgelertner, "One
day that shook the world", Jerusalem Post, May 2002.
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