World


UU Social Justice Israel and Palestine

UU Social Justice UU Wausau 504 Grant Street, Wausau Wednesday, December 13, 2023 at 6 PM Israel and Palestine   In this time of great turmoil in the Middle East, do you feel as though you are not getting the whole story, maybe not even the correct story at all? We hope you can join us for this evening of deep conversation with our presenters Carolyn Michalski, Claudette Harring, and Professor Edgar Francis. Our voices in support of Palestine are important. The recent violence and tragic loss of life in southern Israel and Gaza is truly unprecedented. We mourn ...

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An Ounce of Prevention…

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It is much easier – and cheaper – to prevent problems than to suffer the consequences or clean up the mess later. Too often this common sense adage is ignored. We could have taken steps to mitigate or prevent many environmental problems including climate change. We could have a sensible, less expensive, national health program instead of a bureaucratic for-profit mess. Similarly, wars – like the latest tragedy in Palestine – could be prevented. But this requires taking action before hostilities begin. Often ...

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UU Social Justice

UU Social Justice UU Wausau 504 Grant Street, Wausau Wednesday, December 13, 2023 at 6 PM Israel and Palestine   In this time of great turmoil in the Middle East, do you feel as though you are not getting the whole story, maybe not even the correct story at all? We hope you can join us for this evening of deep conversation with our presenters Carolyn Michalski and Claudette Harring, and others.  We believe you will see why our voices in support of Palestine are important. The recent violence and tragic loss of life in southern Israel and Gaza is truly ...

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WHITE HATS

Never look at history. It can confuse a person with the facts. Life is prettier without history. We wear white hats, they wear black. We’re good, they’re bad. Simple. Let it go. I thought long and hard before assembling this article. There is a fine line between constructive and counterproductive criticism, and I lack certainty about its location. But given the ongoing mass murders being committed in Gaza with American support, and the absolute and unethical failure of western print and broadcast media to present anything resembling the truth, whether in Gaza, or ...

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Israel and Palestine – My Two Cents

The utter absurdity of the current situation in Israel/Palestine could have been predicted for the last 75 years. Did anyone really believe that you could move into a man’s house and “give” him the hall closet to live in and he would accept it? Yes, I understand that the Jews had suffered horribly under Hitler’s attempt to eradicate them. And long before that, the history of their horrific treatment deserves understanding and condemnation. But why did anyone think that what existed in Palestine could be rearranged like chess pieces and no one would care? Je...

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UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

It was to be the “American Century.” Ordained by the Universe and God Himself. America, the “exceptional nation,” was destined to rule the world. At long last, Mackinder’s Heartland, Ukraine, would be brought into the American orbit. Russia would fall, be broken into pieces, its resources opened for plunder. China would be next – Taiwan the sacrificial puppet. It was to be the “American Century.” It would also be the greatest moment of imperial hubris in human history. Rather than allowing Ukraine and Western Europe to live peacefully, with mutually ...

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Repeating Past Mistakes in Palestine

The United States is, once again, exacerbating the conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians. Once again we are rushing to support military actions by Israel that will not resolve the animosities that have festered for over 100 years. Once again we are part of the problem and not the solution. How many times do we have to repeat the mistakes of the past before we get a clue? President Biden has expressed unconditional support for Israel and their military response to the Hamas attack on October 7th. Biden said “In this moment, we must be crystal clear: we stand ...

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THE LONG MEMORY

In 1958 the musical film “South Pacific” hit the big screen. Elders remember well the beautiful movie based on the work of author James Mitchner that left us with such lovely music as “Some Enchanted Evening.”  The film was set on a South Pacific island and though the major theme was about the World War II conflict between the US and Japan, the film was really about people trying to understand one another. One of the sub-plots in “South Pacific” was about a young American naval officer who had fallen in love with a young Polynesian woman, and how he ...

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NO HISTORY ALLOWED

“Stories of the Nakba still harrow us and live in us, giving us hope of return. Palestinian Nakba survivors have not forgotten their homeland 73 years on.” “Our village resisted the Jewish militias with what little we had. But the well-armed Zionist gangs were singling out unarmed civilians and butchering them in hundreds.”  -  Omar Abedelal, 82, was only 9 years old when he, along with his family members and neighbors, was displaced from his village, Burayr.   Every year on May 15th, millions of Palestinians around the world commemorate the Nakba, the ...

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Update on the Golden Rule Voyage

In September 2022, Duluth was the kickoff of an extraordinary voyage for peace and the abolition of nuclear weapons. Three members the Golden Rule crew came to Duluth to hold the first public events in an 11,000 mile journey to raise awareness of the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The trip began in Minneapolis and ended on September 17, 2023 in Chicago. The Golden Rule is a 34 foot sailboat which, in 1958, attempted to sail to the South Pacific to oppose U.S. nuclear weapons testing. The voyage was unsuccessful (the crew members were ...

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