4A - The Michigan Daily - Monday, October 28, 2002
OP/ED
ahbe AUlicigiunltli
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NOTABLE
QUOTABLE
People realize that we
are dealing with a card-
carrying member of the
Axis of Evil."
- Doug Tietz, University alum and
chair of Young Americansfor
Freedom, explaining why YAF
supports attacking Iraq, as quoted
in yesterday's Ann Arbor News.
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The lessons of an extraordinary political life
PETER CUNNIFFE ONE FOR THE ROAD
ith this year's is more like Strom Thurmond. There are some, percent, people must want war with Iraq at any cost,
elections only a however, who have resisted this trend. Most right wing activists running the judiciary, out of
week away, all notable was Sen. Paul Wellstone, who was the control deficits and more tax cuts for the wealthy.
the political drama is only senator in a tight race to cast a politically What Wellstone was proving is that hitching
revolving around the fate of risky "no" vote on authorizing war with Iraq. yourself to what polls say is popular isn't the only
the United States Senate. While Wellstone had been in a neck and neck race way to succeed. You can also argue for something
With a one-seat majority, all year, after his defiance on Iraq, he began open- better. And the arguments are obvious. Is the
the Democrats have been ing up a lead in his race. nation better off than it was two years ago? Do we
able to blunt some of the Tragically, Sen. Wellstone died in a plane want adequate health care for the living or tax cuts
more extreme moves of the crash on Friday. His death pushed the D.C. area for the dead? Should we conserve energy and
Bush Administration over the last year and a half. sniper story and the taking of over 700 hostages in develop alternate sources or continue to depend on
But that moderating influence on an assertively Moscow into the background of news coverage terrorist funding oil-tyrannies? Should our foreign
right wing presidency now hangs on a number of that day as all the Washington press, even conser- policy be based on cooperation with other coun-
tight races around the country. vative commentators, lamented his passing. News- tries or the assumption that we'll always be so
It's strange that the Democrats could be so papers across the country ran editorials in much stronger than everyone else that we can
close to losing their majority. After all, the Bush admiration. Fellow senators broke down in tears alienate our allies and go it alone forever?
presidency can hardly be called a success. The when they tried to talk about him. Other senators Wellstone was popular with his colleagues
economy is suffering badly and even the admin- have died in recent years, but the reaction was because he was a nice guy. But his loss hit so hard
istration has stopped pretending it will get better never anything like this. across the country because he was one of the few
any time soon. The federal budget surplus has The bipartisan outpouring of sympathy and the politicians to ask these questions loudly, publicly
collapsed froi $127 billion last year into a $159 wall-to-wall coverage of his death did not happen and frequently, He was speaking for millions of
billion deficit this year. The Republicans haven't because Wellstone worked well with everyone. people who wonder these things, but feel left out
even been able to politically exploit national Frequently cited as the senate's most liberal of the debates in Washington.
security as extensively as Karl Rove had wanted. member, he fiercely battled much of the Republi- Everyone can learn something from Paul
After angry chest thumping about the possible can agenda and was frequently a headache to more Wellstone. His lifelong fight for those who
threat of Iraq, the administration's comparative consensus minded Democrats. Disregarding the weren't sharing in our national prosperity was
timidity in the face North Korea's real threat has conventional wisdom that one must be or at least inspiring and shows how much one dedicated per-
sucked much of their air out of its poll-inflating campaign as much like a moderate as possible, son can accomplish. But hopefully it is his Demo-
bellicsity, and its once promising efforts at per- Wellstone pulled off a surprising upset of an cratic colleagues who will learn the most from
suading other nations to agree to attack Iraq incumbent in 1990, won another tough race in him. The impact of this tragedy on so many
have faltered badly. 1996 and looked ready to win again this year in a should let them see that the bandwagon isn't the
Democrats have been unable to exploit these state where the only way to go and that there's an incredible
weaknesses, however, and it's easy to see why. In Democratic party has been weakening for some yearning and opportunity in this country for some-
many close contests Democrats have tied them- time. Ominously for a democracy, the dominant thing better than the same old politics and policy
selves to Bush's budget busting tax cuts. In most, political behavior these days has become bandwag- as usual.
they dutifully promise to rubber stamp the presi- oning. Going along with whatever looks most pop-
dent's national security proposals. In South Caroli- ular, most likely to win votes and avoid Peter Cunnife can be reached
na, the candidates are arguing over which of them controversy. If the president's approval rating is 67 atpcunn'fJ@umich.edu.
VIEWPOINT
Divest from hate - and boycott Ai Paul
BY RICK DORFMAN anti-Semitic writings, in which he makes a happen until you fight the Jews ... The Day of
bizarre analogy seven times between the Israeli Judgment will not happen until the trees and
A perspective on our campus - while high Defense Forces and Hitler's Nazis, as "hilarious." stones will say, 'O Muslim, there is a Jew hiding
on fighting hatred (no Vicodin necessary): Mr. Paul, you disagree with my politics, so you behind me, COME AND KILL HIM."'
I have never met Ari Paul, yet he libeled, mis- say to me "shape up or ship out." Aren't you sup- Another speaker of the conference; Mahdi
represented and lied about me in the Daily (The posed to be a liberal advocate of free speech? Bray organized a rally at which the crowd repeat-
People vs. Dorfman, 10/24/02). Paul did not even The Divestment Conference ed: "Let's all go into jihad, and throw stones at
have the decency or courage to respond to my e- My "beef' with the conference concerns the the face of the Jews." Bray spoke at another rally
mails or phone calls to discuss his baseless speakers' list, not free speech. Unequivocally, I at which masses chanted responsively in Arabic,
assault. endorse the fundamental and undeniable right to "oh Jews, the Army of Muhammad is coming for
The Lies (A select few) anyone to advocate the Palestinian perspective. you!"
Paul claims that I sued the University because This conference featured Goebbels style propa- The list of speakers goes on. The content of
the conference " ... allowed people to publicly ganda - if you tell a big enough lie, enough this conference is disturbing. The mere concept
state that Palestinians are people and that Israel times, people will start believing you. Israel is not of "divestment" is as anti-Palestinian as it is anti-
isn't perfect." an apartheid state, and being a Zionist does not Israel, as destroying the Israeli economy would
Well ... here goes (publicly): make you a racist. These charges are unjustifi- surely annihilate the Palestinian economy that is
The Palestinians are people and Israel is not able, stupid and offensive, but again, anyone has dependent on Israel to survive.
perfect. a right to make them. Israelis are not allowed tos at the conference, David Wolkiso,
In fact, I find myself criticizing Israel every- set foot in Saudi Arabia, and slavery of blacks e, under the penalty of perjury, thatdZi i soe-
day, but my issues with Israel are not the topic at runs rampant in Sudan, but this conference onsted ati "A good aiswsri adad
hand. Mr. Paul, no one believes criticizing Israel preached that the real racist is the person who swearing that on Saturday evening, a group of
is anti-Semitic. However, anti-Zionism (the belief believes the Jewish nation has a right to a home- conference participants chanted: "From the
that Jews do not have a right to a homeland) is land: chutzpah. River to the Sea - Palestine will be free;" fol-
probably rooted in anti-Jewish fervor. The University used public resources to help lowed by a "Death to the Jews" chant in Arabic.
Paul's description of the incident in the fish- rabid anti-Semites come to our campus, some The conference issue is not over yet. The
bowl is fanciful. Fadi Kiblawi has publicly writ- with links to global terrorism: Michigan Student Assembly has recommended
ten that he wants to "strap a bomb to one's chest Sami Al-Arian is currently banned from his that $5,300 be allocated to this conference, pay-
and kill," and that "The enemy is not just over- own campus, at the University of South Florida, ing even for travel expenses of Al-Arian. How-
seas, he is also among us." When Kiblawi and his because of security concerns. He is also under ever, American law allows for students to
blind followers amass in direct protest, in an current FBI surveillance. He is on videotape request a refund of their student fee ($6.69).
already tense situation, it is feasible that escala- (http://www.john-loftus.com/videoclips.htm) Come to the MSA meeting (tomorrow night at
tion may occur. I called the Department of Public being introduced as the president of Islamic Jihad 7:30 at the Union) and tell MSA to divest from
Safety to moderate an intimidating scene, not to in America. He refers to Jews as "the sons and hate - say that you would rather take your
seek "criminal proceedings." daughters of monkeys and pigs." He presided money and go to the movies than to pay for the
Mr. Paul, your motives for writing such as over a rally where $500 was solicited to Jihad for advancement of anti-Semitism.
piece are becoming clearer. You have publicly the explicit purpose of stabbing and killing a Jew.
accused Israel of intentionally targeting civilians In 1999, conference speaker Hatem Bazian at Dorfman is a founder and leader of the group
and you have referred to a facet of Fadi Kiblawi's a rally stated, "The Day of Judgment will not Michigan Student Zionists.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
0
Al-Madani and Ibrahim's
responses display an opposite
extreme to misleading ads
TO THE DAILY:
While I, too, was disappointed to see a mis-
leading ad from the "Committee for a Safe
Israel" aimed at delegitimizing the Palestinian
people; Sabir Ibrahim and Sameh Al-Madani's
letters in response (Letters, 10/25/02) represent
an opposite extreme. Ignoring the invective in
each, one still wonders what objection they
could have to the "Campus Truth" ad compar-
campaign "thetruth.org." Intellectual laziness
pisses me off. The implicit lie that because
some Israelis are extremist, Zionism is some-
how less legitimate ... don't get me started.
MICHAEL KIEVAL
Law School
Paul's column revealed his
ignorance of conference, only
meant to embarrass Dorfinn
TO THE DAILY:
In Ari Paul's column (The People vs. Doff-
also exposes your striking ignorance as to the
purpose of this conference. Paul, let me ask
you something: Were you at this conference
that you so readily recapitulate? If so, did you
suffer a lapse of narcolepsy? Would the mar-
quee "Israel Isn't So Nice" have brought hun-
dreds of pro- Palestinian from across the
country to our lovely campus? I think not.
My main problem with Paul's article is not
with his differing account from Dorfinan as to
what occurred in the fishbowl; it is that he felt it
necessary to tell the entire campus about what
he claims really happened. Dorfman didn't write
an article in the Daily about the intimidation he
felt that day. He did not attempt to publicly
humiliate any of the Arab students that he per-
i