[lit-ideas] Trying again Re: Assassination, etc.

Hi,
I don't know what happened to my posts on this matter.  <sigh>

I hope this time they will come through! (The NYTimes article follows my 
thoughts...)

Warmly
Marlena in Missouri

Re Primarily: the Assassination and the little boy in Palestine/Israel

Dear All,
Please know that I find each one of your posts
equally full of information and that I definitely
appreciate the varying points of view that I read.

I have not been able to post for a while as my
home computer has major problems and work is too
busy to do more than print out posts and read them
later...<sigh>  

But, I have been thinking many things, lately...

1. I wondered about one of Omar's statements in
one of his posts regarding the assassination of
Yassin and then in a related post by someone else
regarding the role of Arafat:  Is it possible that
Israel assassinated Yassin in order to erode
Arafat's ability to be seen as a leader who is
trying to find some sort of common ground? (
should it be "further erode" as, even though the
thought in the post I read stated that he was
elected by the Palestinians, there has been much
controversy by the [growing?] fringe groups
towards his trying to work within means other than
violence--?)   They have tried to get rid of
Arafat before, but maybe this is another method of
doing so--and one which, potentially, is more
feasible as they can then say 'see, no one can
control 'these people'--and so they will then be
more able to do whatever they want to do in the
areas in which they are expanding...Just a
thought...and I have not read it anywhere but it
made sense to me [it is what I would do if I was
Israel and task-oriented rather than
world-oriented...<wry look>...I have both the dark
and light sides within me, I freely admit...<g>]

2. The child who was caught with the bomb (I
include, at the end of my thoughts, an article
from the NYTimes which has an interview with the
mom...)

We talked once upon a time on a list far far away
about the concept of 'bullying' or disenfranchised
children.  While the discussion of the child who
was caught carrying the bomb has been intriguing,
no one has really looked this in this regard...and
I wondered how it might have an impact on this
situation... (other than the article which
mentioned both his brother's comment that the boy
was 'slow' and the fact that the boy was promised
that his mom would get paid money ... )

I have been thinking of bullying, again, as it is
affecting friends in Illinois, my son's school
district, and, in particular, in another school
district in my area, they recently picked up a
12-year old boy walking down the street carrying a
couple of guns, a couple of knives, etc.   He was,
fortunately for himself, totally silent on the
matter.  However, he had left a note to his
parents saying he 'could not take it any longer
and was going to do something about it'.  Now, no
one knows if he was running away to live off the
land [common in this area if you cannot take it
any more] or if he was heading to the school to
take care of the bullies which had been
persecuting him for some time.   [This is a school
district which has a bad reputation in regards to
dealing with bullies--and this child and his
parents had tried to work within the system for a
long time and had gotten little/no results. This
is the same district which the high school
daughter of a co-worker had attended--and whose
grade-A daughter was also the target of much
bullying. The district, after ignoring the
situation for a long time, finally suggested that
she move her daughter to another school
district--which my co-worker did.)   

My friend in Illinois said her son came home and
told her that his brain almost exploded at school
because of the teasing he had gotten that day. 
The school there has been very uncooperative in
regards to dealing with the kids doing the
teasing...

SO...

The boy in this situation (in this article) states
how he has been teased--could it be that the
fringe elements have captivated him because they
gave him a sense of belonging that no other group
(he is the youngest of six children--and if his
own brother refers to him as 'slow', one wonders
about the sibling connection...or was it an
excuse?)   The family has, actually, more $$ than
most--though the mom does state that it IS a big
jail that they are living in...(maybe hereby lies
the point that Sue was making regarding the
Iraqis--for the sake of freedom, not only should
someone be willing to sacrifice their children
[and think of the babies being born in Iraq
because of the US bullets that were used...think
of the Gulf War Syndrome from the first war and
the stuff never cleaned up from there and then
think of the same materials being used in THIS war
and how not only was the price of freedom more
deformed babies to be born in Iraq but more
deformed babies being born in the USA because of
the altered genetic makeup of returning soldiers
<sigh>...)   But, if it is OKAY to sacrifice
unborn children for the sake of freedom in Iraq,
than what about sacrificing living children for
the sake of freedom in Palestine?  (just musing
<wry look>...please don't think I think that it is
okay to have deformed babies in Iraq OR dead
babies in EITHER Palestine or Israel--I think
there are trap doors available in MOST untenable
situations so that violence of any sort can be
found if one just seeks enough...though I have
used the 'price of freedom' concept that Sue uses
in talking to one of my sisters regarding some
choices she has made in her life...)

3. My views are that, even though many in my area
equate Israel going over their legally-given
boundaries to how the USA took over Native
American land (and they have no problem with
it--the USA was stronger, after all...of course,
they also supported the Iraqi war and any other
imperialism that the USA will come up with...<wry
look>...really), I would like to see a two-state
solution (though will be pondering what Omar
mentioned in terms of bi-governing council of
sorts...)   I strongly support the Nation of
Israel's right to exist and protect itself, but I
also do think that if they were going to build a
wall, it ought to have been done within the
original borders...  

I think of Hedy Epstein (who will be speaking in
KC on her trip to Palestine) and how she has
stated that she was not allowed to speak at some
conference because she was 'not radical enough' as
she completely abhors the suicide bombings being
done by Palestinians towards Israel citizens.  
She advocates non-violence so strongly...and while
she is definitely pro-Israel, she does seem to be
pro-Palestinian, as well (and gets criticized by
both sides, it would seem...)  

Maybe one can be pro-people or pro-peace?

4. I wonder what would happen if nonviolent
protests became greater and greater in Palesting? 
Would the nation of Israel respond with
thoughtfulness as to its actions or would it
merely think of the Palestinians as weak and
believe that they can continue with the taking
over other land...?

5.  My biggest thought, which was what triggered
this post, is in response to the concept that we
have no control over the situation...

So so much has changed in the world because of ONE
person.  Sometimes it takes a while, and sometimes
you have to be patient--but the creativity of one
person can make changes.  (Think of the inventions
that have changed our lives...<g>)

Sometimes it is working within the system and
exploiting the weaknesses of the people 'in power'
(as did the woman who started the Hospice movement
in this country--the 'good' was to allow people to
die, in dignity, in their own homes.  The thought
took off and acquired financial assistance because
those in charge decided that it cost less to have
someone die at home than to have them die in a
hospital or care center and have insurance/federal
funds pick up the tab...Did the people making the
decisions really care one way or the other about
the individuals in a death-dying situation?   No. 
But, did they care about the $$?  Yes.  Did the
people involved in the hospice movement figure out
how to communicate to the people in power in order
to move along the movement a bit faster? Yes. [It
probably would have moved along, anyway, as it was
an idea which the regular person was embracing,
but it made it more feasible and easier...and
thus, faster, to catch on to the nation's power
and PR structure...]

Your thoughts and opinions DO matter--even if they
are discussed only on this list.  

Life is ALL about change.  And we are all involved
in Life...

Warmly,
Marlena in Missouri

After Teenage Boy Carries a Bomb, Palestinians
Protest March 26, 2004, NYTimes By GREG MYRE

NABLUS, West Bank, March 25 - In this ragged city,
which has dispatched many suicide bombers into
Israel, Palestinian residents on Thursday
delivered a rare rebuke to militant factions: stop
sending teenagers as human bombs.

Palestinians have strongly supported suicide
attacks in the current Mideast fighting, and the
backing is particularly strong in Nablus, one of
the most radicalized and lawless West Bank cities.

But an aborted suicide attack Wednesday by Hussam
Abdo, a 16-year-old Nablus resident, provoked a
chorus of condemnations, led by his parents from
their comfortable, middle-class apartment in one
of the city's better neighborhoods.

"No one the age of my son should be used to commit
such acts. This was a total shock to me," said
Tamam Abdo, 50. Hussam is the youngest of her six
children.

Previously, two 16-year-old Palestinians had
carried out suicide attacks, including one from
Nablus. But those bombings did little to stir
Palestinian debate.

Hussam reached the Hawara Checkpoint on the
southern fringe of the city, where he surrendered
after being confronted by Israeli troops. The
episode, which was captured on television and in
photographs, provoked a very public discussion on
an issue that Palestinians normally prefer to
debate privately.

In another development, 60 prominent Palestinians
took out a half-page advertisement in a leading
Palestinian newspaper, Al Ayyam, saying that the
Palestinians should not respond with violence to
Israel's killing on Monday of Sheik Ahmed Yassin.
The sheik was the leader of Hamas, the group
responsible for the largest number of suicide
bombings against Israel.

The ad represents a minority opinion, and it comes
at a time when the Palestinian factions have been
promising major retaliatory strikes. In Nablus,
fresh graffiti along the city's main thoroughfare
read, "The response is coming, no doubt."

Mrs. Abdo, in a view echoed by many others, made
clear that she opposed only those suicide attacks
carried out by under age bombers. "Maybe if he is
20, then perhaps I could understand," she said of
her own son. "At that age, they know what they are
doing, they are fighting for their homeland."

She added: "We are living in a big jail, and some
people are pushed to do this. We don't have any
other means to defend ourselves."

The clusters of young men who gathered in the
street outside the family home expressed the same
sentiment. "I don't think anyone here opposes
these attacks because of the situation the
Israelis have put us in," said Muhammad Zeidal,
20, a university student. "But to use someone his
age is very, very wrong."

The Abdo family said that three students who
attended school with Hussam were arrested
overnight. Israel said Hussam remained in custody,
while authorities investigate who was responsible
for sending him. Israeli authorities would not say
whether he would be charged, although other,
equally young Palestinians have been jailed on
lesser charges.

No Palestinian group has claimed responsibility
for the attempted attack, though all the leading
factions have a strong presence in Nablus.

The Israelis detained an 11-year-old boy last week
at the same checkpoint when they discovered a bomb
hidden in a bag he was carrying. But Israel said
he was unaware of the bomb, which had been given
to him by an adult, and he was freed within hours.
"The latest case is different, because the boy
knew what he was doing," said Maj. Sharon
Feingold, a military spokeswoman.

At the Abdo home, Hussam's parents described him
as an immature teenager manipulated by others.

Asked what she would do if Hussam returned, Mrs.
Abdo said, "I would punish him." She waved her
hand back and forth in front of her face to
deliver a mock slapping. During an interview,
relatives presented Mrs. Abdo with a copy of the
Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot, with a large
picture of Hussam on the front. She pulled the
photo to her face and kissed it, then burst into
tears.

The newspaper interviewed Hussam in custody, and
he said other students made fun of him because he
was quite short. "They hurt me so much that I
wanted to kill myself," Hussam was quoted as
saying.

When he spoke briefly to journalists on Wednesday
after his arrest, he claimed he was 14. But
documents provided by the family showed he turned
16 last December.

Hussam's father Muhammad, who owns a grocery
store, said the family was well-off financially.
He said that Hussam spent hours on the family
computer, and liked to play soccer, but was an
indifferent student.

Meanwhile, Hanan Ashrawi, a prominent Palestinian
lawmaker who was among the signers of Thursday's
newspaper advertisement, said there was growing
support for peaceful protests among Palestinians.
The contentious separation barrier that Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon's government is building in
the West Bank has generated a wave of
demonstrations, she said.

"We need to take the initiative with nonviolent
resistance and not let Sharon control the agenda,"
she said. "I believe this is resonating among many
more Palestinians now."

The Israeli military said it shot dead three armed
Palestinians late Thursday night as they
approached the Jewish settlement of Tel Katifa in
the southern Gaza Strip. The gunmen were shot on
land, but the settlement is on the Mediterranean
coast, and the military said it was investigating
the possibility that they reached the area by sea.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/26/international/mi
ddleeast/26BOY.html?ex=1081352606&ei=1&en=3f0fb7d4
3c06ff0b










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