Washington Watch Articles From 2006
Tom Friedman, Condoleezza Rice, Virgil Goode –The Polluting Of Our National Discourse
An article by Tom Friedman, a quote from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and a letter by a Virginia Congressman hit in one day last week reminding me how tolerant our national discourse has become of bigotry toward Arabs and Muslims and how condescending policy-makers and analysts have become in their dealings with the Middle East region.
Oh! Little Town of Bethlehem…Where Art Thou?
This time of year, hundreds of millions of Christians in the West turn their attention to Bethlehem. But what they think about is not the living, breathing and suffering Palestinian city that is real, but a Bethlehem that exists in their imagination.
Revealing the Obvious
Here’s the obvious: the two principal factors accounting for this animosity are US policy toward Iraq and Palestine. In four of the five Arab countries covered in our 2006 survey (Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco and Jordan) respondents pointed to US policies in those two areas as the major reasons for their negative attitudes toward the US. Only Lebanon was different. There, of course, US policy toward this summer’s war on Lebanon was the main source of animosity.
RACHEL CORRIE’S WORDS
Three years ago Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old American peace activist was murdered. She sat down in front of a Palestinian home in Rafah attempting to stop its destruction by an Israel bulldozer. The bulldozer’s driver crushed Rachel, brutally ending her life.
US DEBATE OVER HAMAS: MAKING A BAD SITUATION WORSE
An internal debate is brewing within the Administration and Congress as to how to deal with the Hamas victory in recent Palestinian elections.
STUBBORN REALITIES AND THE PALESTINIAN ELECTIONS
While there was euphoria in some quarters and the gnashing of teeth in others, the more appropriate response to the recent Palestinian elections requires thoughtful assessment.
PALESTINIAN VOTERS: ENGAGED BUT REALISTIC
A recent poll of Palestinians establishes a clear picture of the concerns on the minds of voters in the lead up to the January 25th national parliamentary elections. Conducted on the second week of January by Zogby International, the poll found Fateh holding a lead over Hamas’ “List for Reform and Change.”
SHARON’S LAST ACT, PALESTINE’S LAST CHANCE
The situation unfolding in Gaza and the West Bank is, in some significant ways, an inevitable consequence of factors beyond the control of the Palestinians. The lawlessness, the intra-Palestinian violence and the general social unrest, were all predictable.