From the Telegraph:
John Rose, one of the original London School of Economics (LSE) students to mount the barricades alongside Tariq Ali in 1968, spent last week giving lectures on the situation in Gaza at 12 of the occupations.
"This is something different to anything we've seen for a long time," he said. "There is genuine fury at what Israel did.
"I think it's highly likely that this year will see more student action. What's interesting is the nervousness of vice chancellors and their willingness to concede demands; it indicates this is something that could well turn into [another] '68."
Beginning with a 24-hour occupation at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) on 13 January, the sit-ins spread across the country. Now occupations have been held at the LSE, Essex, King's College London, Birmingham, Sussex, Warwick, Manchester Metropolitan, Oxford, Leeds, Cambridge, Sheffield Hallam, Bradford, Nottingham, Queen Mary, Manchester, Strathclyde, Newcastle, Kingston, Goldsmiths and Glasgow.
link to jeffreygoldberg.theatlantic.com
Americans who would occupy their colleges and universities over Israel's treatment of Palestinians and Lebaneese with US weapons would be charged with terrorism and given twenty year sentences at super max federal penitentiaries. They would be branded as potential Unibombers or ELF's who deserve the same penalty John Walker Lindh received.
I thought it was amazing that the Telegraph was covering this so I followed the link and it took me to the Independent. Ho hum.
Apparently, the disaffection is not limited to students there. I saw this AAP report today:
"A top aide to British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has been arrested after allegedly making strongly anti-semitic remarks while at a gym in London, British media reports.
The 47-year-old diplomat and Middle East expert allegedly shouted "F***ing Israelis, f***ing Jews" while watching news reports of Israel's bombardment of Gaza last month at the gym, according to the Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph.
The diplomat also reportedly said Israeli soldiers should be "wiped off the face of the Earth" and was later arrested for inciting religious hatred.
"A 47-year-old man has been arrested in connection with an incident that took place on January 27, following a complaint received by police from a member of the public," a spokesman for London's Metropolitan Police said.
"He was bailed pending further enquiries, and is due to return at the end of March to a central London police station."
In keeping with force policy, the spokesman declined to name the man arrested.
A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office meanwhile said it was "aware that a complaint has been made about an alleged incident involving a member of our staff."
However, she declined to comment further."
I better keep my windows closed next time I watch the news on the Middle East.
America's ability to force Europe into taking positions that are unpopular with her people is likely over. We can thank Bush-the-moron's policies for this. For that dark cloud this one of the silver linings. Consequently, these spontaneous actions in Europe are highly significant. They will spread, they will influence government policy and the current administration will not be able to force them to maintain their generally proIsraeli policies.
It is difficult to see how this will play out, but it is a reasonable prediction that the Europe will be the outside force that will make Israel pay for its intransigence in dealing with the Palestinians. Should Europe economically isolate Israel they will likely experience a serious decline in their standard of living. We will see then how much the average Israeli is willing to pay to keep the West Bank lands.
Europe will likely do nothing as that would have the effect of teaching the growing angry Islamic horde in europe that they can get what they want through terror.
On my campus there are Op-Eds that these protests and boycotts are the wrong approach, yet I get the feeling that those complaints are basically just to foster more inaction (we had our own campuus demonstrations and a prof pilloried for supporting the academic boycott).
As long as it's peaceful, doing something seems far better than doing nothing, even if the attempt is not perfectly conceived or orchestrated.
~
Everything you've done is imperfectly conceived and poorly orchestrated.
But what else can one expect when you are basically supporting an Islamic fascist dream of genocide?
Just to add to my analysis above. There is another potential political development in Europe that could turn out to be significant. Moslems in Europe have been politically isolated from the broader native movements. The emergence of these activist anti-Israeli movements (that so far consist primarily of the traditional left) will likely merge with Moslem political movements. This will be good for Europe in that it will help break down the barriers that have left the Moslems segregated from the larger communities. A diversity movement, if you will.
Israel will not like this, but neither they nor the US is in any position to stop it.
close bold??
One step further in the Islamization of Europe.
Some leftists think this means Euro-Muslims will assimilate and become more Europeanized…sounds like Russian roulette to me…
Moslems in the US are assimilating, I do not see why the same cannot happen in Europe. Of course, the Zionist see this as a threat since it shows assimilation and maintenance of diversity is possible. Bad news for the West Bank annexation movement.
Moslems assimilate; it is the Christian-Judeo culture that practices genocide.
Berel:
"Europe will likely do nothing …"
Guardian 14th January 2009
"Europe stalls on closer Israel links in Gaza protest
European commission moves to upgrade political and trade links with Israel on hold, diplomats say.
European plans to turn Israel into a "privileged" partner enjoying special political, diplomatic and trade links were frozen by Brussels today in protest at the Israeli onslaught in Gaza.
Senior officials and diplomats in Brussels also said Czech pressure to stage a Europe-Israel summit to launch a new "special relationship" was facing stiff resistance and would probably not take place.
Senior figures in Brussels said the European move was ordered by Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the commissioner for external relations, who instructed various departments of the European commission to suspend implementation of a policy decided last year "to upgrade" relations between Israel and the EU.
"Senior people are saying there should be a pause in close ties between Israel and the union," said a European diplomat.
…
The decision to suspend implementation comes as a blow to the Israeli foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, a month before she faces the rightwing hawk Benjamin Netanyahu in a general election.
The new European policy was in part designed to help Livni win the election and late last year she had two "tempestuous" meetings with Bernard Kouchner, the French foreign minister, demanding quicker European action to boost her poll chances. EU foreign ministers responded with a decision to push ahead with the policy.
While the practical impact of the freeze may be minimal, officials said, the political and symbolic signals are strong, controversial and unusual.
"It wouldn't surprise me if people like Fererro-Waldner were working not on an upgrade, but on a downgrade," said a third diplomat in Brussels."
…
P.S.
This announcement came a few days after a former EU-Commissioner for Foreign Affairs,the Dutchman Hans van den Broek, had in a tv program that I witnessed strongly criticised Israel for its continuous transgressions of international law, saying that Israel got away with this because the West never imposed any sanctions on it. As possible sanctions he mentioned exactly the one discussed in this article. The present EU-top shies away from the term 'sanctions' but that doesn't detract from the reality of the thing.
I've heard there are two reasons for Muslims assimilating here.
1. Much smaller demographic groups (and let's keep it like that, please!)
2. We tend to get a more educated, middle class or upper middle class Muslim population for the most part. Whereas in Europe it's the lower classes and they are discriminated against on 2 counts.
In fact, Muslims are treated much better here than they are in Europe, so the hypocritical racist Europeans should just sit down and shut up.
Muslims in America can thank the Jewish masters of the universe for allowing them to have a nicer life here than in Europe. (don't forget… JOOOOS rule the sun, the sky– and the 7 galaxies)
Muslims here know enough not to cause too much of a stink in the States. They have it good here. Real good. America treats them well.
At University of Rochester, in Rochester, New York anti-war students in the local sds chapter there also occupied a campus building last Friday in support of demands that their university divest itself of its Israeli investments and other Palestinian solidarity demands.
Suzanne:
"..the hypocritical racist Europeans…"
Gideon Levy (as quoted by Richard Silverstein):
"If there is something that typifies Israel’s current murky, hollow election campaign…it is the transformation of racism and nationalism into accepted values…Now the instigator of the new Israeli racism will apparently become the leader of a large party once again in the government. Benjamin Netanyahu has already pledged that Lieberman will be an “important minister” in his government. If someone like Lieberman were to join a government in Europe, Israel would sever ties with it… "
@Suzanne: Your racist slip is showing.
I seriously doubt Europe is going to sever ties with Israel.
Same old rehash…you've simply inserted a new date.
zzzzzzzz…
You don't have to zzzzzzzzzz us Suzanne–we can tell by your
comments you've been asleep since arriving on Phil's blog. Good thing normal Americans are not as ethnocentric-racist as you.