Arab leaders frustrate me

Often Split, Arab Leaders Unite for Sudan’s Chief

Remember when I was really naive?

Oh, hope. It tends to take a beating.

But it's also a stubborn mother f-er.

a (belated but favorite) picture from Barcelona

and a few feet away...

Israel Disputes Soldiers’ Accounts of Gaza Abuses

An article today counteracts the media whirlwind of accustions that Israel acted wrongfully in the Gaza conflict.

“When we entered houses, we actually cleaned up the place,” said Yishai Goldflam, 32, a religiously observant film student in Jerusalem whose open letter to the Palestinian owners of the house he occupied for some days was published in the newspaper Maariv. “There are always idiots who do immoral things. But they don’t represent the majority. I remember once when a soldier wanted to take a Coke from a store, and he was stopped by his fellow soldiers because it was the wrong thing to do.”

Yaron Ezrahi, a political theorist who lectures military commanders, said they rejected the notion of willful abuse by their troops. But the commanders say more civilians died than should have and attribute it to two factors: faulty intelligence that led to attacking the wrong houses, and a failure, after warning Palestinians to leave, to provide safe escape routes.

Personally, I can't say that I believe there is a a systematic effort by Israel to destroy Palestinians. But I don't doubt that there are some Israelis who would believe in such a thing; I don't like the attitudes from a lot of Israelis commenting on message boards in the wake of accusations that IDF acted wrongfully. The unwillingness to believe anything other than "IDF is the most moral army in the world", to do anything but revere the Israeli talking points, frustrates me. Of course...all of these things can be said, really, about any society; like the quote above says, there are always immoral idiots. I guess the hope is that people would realize that, and instead of trying to defend the idiots, try to understand how others might feel now because of those idiots, and try to understand all of the different biases going in from themselves and others, and try to focus as much on useful dialogue as on defending their own original stances.

Here is the open letter that Yishai Goldflam wrote: I am the soldier who slept in your home.

I am convinced that you hate me with unbridled hatred, and you do not have even the tiniest desire to hear what I have to say. At the same time, it is important for me to say the following in the hope that there is even the minutest chance that you will hear me.

Palestinians Serenade Survivors in Israel

There is not just hate and violence.

DREAM Act being reintroduced this week

by Sen. Richard Durbin and Sen. Richard Lugar.

From Citizen Orange.

Also, here is Citizen Orange's argument in favor of the DREAM Act.

Turkey's Sudan decision

As a temporary member of the United Nations' Security Council, which might vote on a motion to defer the ICC's warrant, Turkey may soon find itself having to take a definitive position on the issue. According to an article by Hurriyet's Barcin Yinanc, Ankara is leaning towards voting in favor of a deferral, something that could become a sticking point between it and Washington, which opposes putting off the warrant.

From Instanbul Calling.