Comments on: There Won’t Be Peace in the Middle East Till There’s a Naqba Museum in the U.S.

By: Michael Blaine

Michael Blaine — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

"We have countless memorials to the Jewish Holocaust in this country."

And I've never understood why we don't have a museum of the horrors of slavery in our nation's capital.

Michael Blaine
http://www.rudelystamped.blogspot.com

By: TR

TR — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

Phil, it's "nakba" not "naqba". I hesitate to make such a pedantic point given the consistent generosity of spirit of your posts, but it kind of grates to see it constantly misspelled - as if in the very act of acknowledgement, it gets inadvertently misacknowledged. Arabic does have a Q but it's not used in that word. FWIW, I suspect the Q spelling is from transliteration in Hebrew - it certainly does get used by Israelis fairly often when writing in English.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

Thanks TR -- I just wanted to say the same thing. Phil, others, thanks for raising consciousness about 1948 and its aftermath -- but let's agree to use the correct transliteration of the Arabic term, Nakba.

Otherwise, as ever, an excellent posting from Phil.

By: Richard Witty

Richard Witty — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

The really first A is friendship between the Palestinian and American and Israeli peoples.

The reason that there are ANY US contributed holocaust memorials (few and mostly funded privately) is that there is kinship between US and Israel, real people's families, MANY of them. Real cultural exchange. Real economic interdependance. (Consider that Intel's and others primary research facilities are in Israel, AND include both Israeli and Palestinian colleagues working on technical research questions.)

Palestinian Americans could start a Nakba museum easily. All they need to do is raise the funds, select a designer, research team, museum display design and implementation team.

It should be done, and could be done.

The Palestinian "right of return" will NOT happen in an unlimited manner, as the previous relative safety to Jewish former residents of Arab states (in comparable numbers) will never recur in our lifetimes. There are too many "credible" fatwas and other pronouncements from "respected" Islamic clerics legitimizing the murder and/or suppression of Jews.

A limited right of return should be offered, but for Israeli citizenship, and to those that can prove prior residence.

And, direct and indirect land title claims should be perfected, mostly by compensation, as the current nature of the communities has changed.

Children of children of children have now resided in the current communities.

If you've done an unlimited title search to your new home, you'd note that at some point in the past title was conferred by legislation or colonial grant from the prior native population by force, eventually to you.

I'm sure that you regard your title as valid, and you shouldn't be forced to leave your new home because the title needs to become really clear, and not just legally clear.

By: Jim Haygood

Jim Haygood — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

A Nakba museum is a reasonable proposal, as long as it is a private effort. From the time of its authorization by Congress, which included some public funding, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has benefitted from an inappropriate level of government involvement.

It appears that the last nine members nominated to the museum's Council by President Bush are likely all Jewish.

http://tinyurl.com/338r73

Is there any other publicly-funded entity whose board is essentially an ethnic enclave? It has the appearance of impropriety. If the museum is not in fact a governmental establishment of religion, it needs more religious diversity on its board. In its own long-term interests, the U.S. Holocaust Museum ought to be fully privatized.

By: The Other Alan

The Other Alan — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

We should remember that Herzl called for the "Jewish State" to be "rampart of Europe against Asia" so it is doubtful that as long as Zionism is the accepted ideology Israel will want to be part of the Middle East, it only wants a part of the Middle East.

As for the comments concerning museums, I've been to both the US Holocaust museum and to Yad Vashem. Both are sobering and experiences and thought provoking. So too will be the one concerning the history of the Jewish people in Poland which is planned for Auschwitz. FYI- the US Congress voted $5 million to help fund the museum by a margin of 407-13 (HR 3320)

By: Charles Keating

Charles Keating — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

Where are the Roma?

By: Charles Keating

Charles Keating — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

The Holocaust Museum in DC was dedicated on rare turf in
1993. The WW2 Museum dedication for our veterans was done in 2004. What does this tell us Åmericans?

By: Charles Keating

Charles Keating — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

Not to mention, there's no museum for the fallen GIs.

By: Michael Blaine

Michael Blaine — Mon, 29 Nov 1999 23:00:00 +0000

"In its own long-term interests, the U.S. Holocaust Museum ought to be fully privatized."

Geez! I thought it was!!

Must US taxpayers fund a reminder to crimes committed by other nations (in this case, Germany)?!!!!

That's outrageous. Certainly we could fund museums of crimes that we Americans have ourselves committed, such as the genocide of Native Americans and the enslavement of Africans?!!

Michael Blaine
www.rudelystamped.blogspot.com