The Honorable Senator Chuck Hagel
U.S. Senate
Washington D.C.
Dear Senator Hagel:
I have long admired your courage of heart and mind, your wise independence, and rational approach to our national interest first and foremost. Our nation needs your foresight and thus my hope that you’d run for President.
Sir; you’re thoroughly familiar with the history of our MidEast Policy that for domestic purposes has implanted and supported an artificially created "Jewish" only state in Palestine. To create a Jewish only state necessitated expelling the native Palestinians who for 60 years have lived as marginalized refugees neglected by the world out of deference to Jewish suffering and the Holocaust in Europe; although recently the intimidating label of “Anti-Semitism” has become the weapon of mass destruction, ironically the same label utilized brilliantly by Zionists to establish Israel. With our unlimited political, financial, military, and Veto support, Israel has ensured that Palestinian suffering, lives and livelihood are taboo subjects in the West even when massacred, expelled, homes and farms demolished, imprisoned by the thousands, movement restricted, living under curfews and bombs, starved from food, water, health services and an education, thereby creating a hopeless, helpless, angry and frustrated generations, living under "Apartheid" conditions as President Carter recently wrote.
The entire world is against our blind support of Israel’s policies and against Israel’s inhumane treatment of an entire population to achieve Zionistic goals unrelated to Judaism. Since the Kingdoms of David and Solomon, Israelites never had a state or owned a majority of Palestine’s land until 1949 when by war they conquered 78% of Palestine despite U.N. and U.S. protests. Throughout their Diaspora Jews preferred living outside of the "Promised Land", even till this day. Between 1880 -1920, over 2 Million Russian and East European Jews preferred migrating to the U.S. rather than join the few thousand who went to Palestine. Under 1,300 years of Muslim rule in Palestine Jews were always welcome to come to Palestine, though few ever did. The famed Jewish theologian Moses Maimonides preferred living in Egypt as Saladin’s Counselor and Physician than going to Palestine.
America’s support of Israel, especially by Congress, has allowed Israel to dismiss all peace plans, including many American plans like the latest Quartet Plan proclaimed dead by Sharon, Bush’s man of peace. (You may wish to read Ambassador Mark Etheridge’s account of the 1949 Lausanne Conference where Israel thumbed its nose at President Truman and refused to relinquish conquered land or allow return of Palestinian refugees. Israel’s rejection of U.N. Resolution 273 that demanded Israel accept the U.N. Partition Plan and allow return of refugees as a pre-condition of its admittance to the U.N. legally means Israel is not an accepted member of the U.N.).
Now America, following the Pro Israel Neocons, is akin to Israel, an occupying force in Iraq guilty of similar abusive Israeli policies against the Palestinians. Both Israel and America are in denial of their disastrous occupations and failed policies.
Bush and Cheney’s trip to the MidEast this week prompted Olmert to accept a "ceasefire" with the Palestinians to give both men some breathing room to enlist "moderate" Arab-American dictators to save our skin and give us a face saving way out of Iraq. They’re sharing a preview of the Baker-Hamilton report and indirectly negotiating with Syria and Iran for assistance.
Ironic, isn’t it, that Bush who dismissed the world with such arrogance and planned to change the Middle East to suit Israel and American hegemony and reform its violent, primitive religion “Islam”, now humbly requests the Arab/Muslim world to extricate his legacy of war and destruction.
America has avoided an honest debate on Israel for decades out of fear, intimidation, generous campaign donations and selective media support. The entire world is against Israeli policies and our blind support of such a state. Only in America does one find a simple majority supporting Israel; more out of ignorance and media indoctrination than true belief and understanding.
Sir, for how long must we and the world suffer from such a foreign domination of our foreign policy? How many Americans must die and trillions spent from our children’s future before America screams for its independence from Israel’s and its Beltway influence? Who, Sir, benefits from a "clash of civilizations" between the West and the Muslim world? Prior to Israel’s creation there was no such clash, only a relationship of mutual advantage according to Former Secretary of State John Foster Dulles. Israel has succeeded in demonizing Islam, Arabs, and Muslims in our psyche and brilliantly built a "separation wall" between us and one fourth of the world’s population.
Sir, the core issue, the issue that tears at every Muslim’s heart are Jerusalem and Palestine, a nation that lived in peace for 1,300 years under Islamic rule where all three Abrahamic faiths lived in harmony.
Only Palestinian independence can ensure Arab/Muslim support and involvement in Iraq to extricate America’s youth from the Bush-Cheney-Neocon disaster. Only Muslims can influence other Muslims, but only after America finds its courage to stand up to the small nation of Israel with powerful long tentacles into all our branches of government, especially Congress. Bush demands the world to fight his “war on terrorism”; yet he’s oblivious that his support of Israel, right or wrong, as evidenced in the latest Israeli devastation of Lebanon is the underlying root for such terrorism. He once stated he wouldn’t like to be occupied but yet he supports Israel’s occupation and now occupies Iraq.
I can assure you that every Arab and Muslim will pour into the streets with joy, tears of happiness and enormous relief if Israel ends its illegal occupation of Palestinians according to the U.S. supported 1967 UNSCR 242 (2 nations 4 two peoples). America can have it all, cheap oil, a large Muslim market, friendly governments and populace, freedom from fear and terrorism, regain its world credibility and save its economic future if ever it can tell Israel to abandon its occupation that serves no purpose for Israel or America. Muslims desire good relations with America, but Israel’s domination of our foreign policy chokes their hearts and gives support to further militancy.
Ending Israel’s brutal occupation of an entire people, now surrounded and starved, serving as a shooting gallery for Israeli soldiers experimenting with America’s latest weaponry, will bring permanent peace to the MidEast, our most vital strategic region. The Israel lobby has long denied this fact and tragically they’ve not been challenged. That’s why they fear the appearance of Al Jazeera English in the U.S. Americans are a fair people and once they see and understand injustice they react justly.
If America avoids confronting Israel’s militancy and expansionism, America will leave an Iraq in anarchy and civil war with many American dead and costly debts, our moderate "friends" will be overthrown, Iran will dominate the Persian Gulf, militants will burn the oil pipes rather than allow us access thereby also hurting Europe, Japan, China, and India (giving Russia more oil politics), Israel will re-occupy Lebanon (for water and revenge); more central banks will adopt the Euro; the dollar will collapse; Latin America will continue its leftward politics; and our future will indeed be jeopardized. Why? Because our government fears the A.D.L.’s Abraham Foxman, AIPAC, Z.O.A; Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations; and most importantly, the mainstream media, the same media that cheered for our current failure in Iraq.
Sharon once said: “The Arabs may have the oil, but we have the matches.”
Israel’s policies toward the Arabs since its foundation has been divide and conquer while serving as the “arsonist” to ensure a weakened destabilized region.
"I have learned that the state of Israel cannot be ruled in our generation without deceit and adventurism. These are historical facts that cannot be altered.”
— Former Israeli P.M. Moshe Sharett, (Simha Flapan, p. 52-53)
It’s not nice to challenge the Israel Lobby with its Armageddon loving Evangelists who seek the annihilation of Jews, Muslims, Hindus, others, and all Christians unlike themselves, who prefer life, peace, and harmony in this world.
It is the Zionist and Evangelistic Fundamentalists who threaten our nation, not Islam, Arabs, or Muslims.
Senator Hagel, you will find that many Congressmen share this view in private but are too intimidated to speak publicly. In numbers, our Congress (not Israel’s) can save our nation from what the late Undersecretary of State George Ball called our “Passionate Attachment” to Israel, quoting President George Washington’s warning that such a foreign attachment is detrimental to our national interests.
America needs you and our leaders. It’s the Occupation, Sir, that’s the core of our MidEast quagmire and failed policies.
Solve that and America’s future of peace and prosperity is assured.
God Bless: Peace, Shalom, and Salaam
