Today, is the day South Africans honor Madiba on the date of his birthday ………… I was humming this one of my fave Mandela songs ……. Mandela Day made by The Simple Minds …………. then I was looking at coverage of the Israeli war against Hamas ……. The beginning of the ground incursion into Gaza depressing ……. I was thinking how much the Palestinians need a Mandela ……….. Someone who commands the respect of enemies and friends alike …….. Someone whose vision and example can bring peace…………..
Viva Mandela …….. Amandla !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cheers Jez XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
[ 14 ] comments
- Could do with someone like him in the Ukraine too :((
Shamil Basayev xx @ July 18, 2014, 8:48 am
- Too right……….. decent leadership with an emphasis on justice and peace …… yeah they certainly need it …… if only :-/Cheers Jez XXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 18, 2014, 10:43 am
- Saw your good lady on TV earlier, talking about photographs in a certain newspaper, said they reminded her of her husbands work?..Not sure about that meself,I never saw a single yellow cab in any of them!!! Hope allis good Bro xx
PaulS @ July 20, 2014, 12:01 pm
- hehehehe……….. :-))))))))))))))Wot no yellow cab …….. ???
Can’t be right ????
Cheers bro Jez XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 20, 2014, 12:34 pm
- Ah yes the Elephants by Dave Chancellor …… mighty set of pics …. gotta hand it to him 2 years work incredible stuff …… I’ve known him a long time he is such a disciplined guy ……… certainly worth stepping out and picking up a copy of the Sunday Times Magazine :-)))))))))))) XXXXXXXCheers bro Jez XXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 20, 2014, 12:56 pm
- Hamas want an end to the blockade & release of the (rearrested) prisoners… doesn’t seem completely unreasonable, Mandela would have approved.
John Harris @ July 21, 2014, 3:24 pm
- Yes …… unfortunately they also think from the river to the sea is Islamic land ……. not too much rainbow nation in that.Cheers Jez XXXXXXXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 21, 2014, 4:23 pm
- Oh well Israel is perfectly justified then! I thought your South African analogy was rather apposite. cheers JH
John Harris @ July 21, 2014, 6:00 pm
- I am not saying Israel is perfectly justified…… those are your words…… but it is completely fair to say the leadership and the platform of the ANC was very very different from the leadership and platform of an islamic fundamentalist organization like Hamas ……. the leadership and platform of the corrupt Fatah on the West Bank is hardly a thing to inspire any hope but Hamas is an organization to peddle full nihilism …… of course it does not compare to the mighty and inspiring leaders of the apartheid days ANC how could it ? …… but the Hamas leadership has led the people of Gaza down a depressingly totally nihilist route …… the issues facing the Palestinian people are of course similar to the issues facing the people of SA under apartheid …… they faced a similar oppression ….. but the people of SA were fortunate enough to be led by Mandela and to organize primarily through a forward thinking radical equality organization…… the ANC ……. sadly the culture and leadership of Hamas and the ongoing rise of islamic fundamentalism has not helped any steps on the road to an honorable decent settlement for the Palestinian people ……. Israel needs to compromise…… otherwise how can there be any peace ?? ……. But there will be no compramise from or with an organization that has in its founding charter full on anti-semitism ……. it’s depressing to know with this Israeli leadership and this Palestinian leadership the slaughter will go on………..Cheers Jez XXXXXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 21, 2014, 7:43 pm
- My words were sarcastic as I think you understood my dear. That , a priori as it where, “no compromise is possible” is of course the Israeli rightwing justification (and Hamas is just the foe they want from that perspective). That Hamas & the PA had begun to find common ground against this particular brand of apartheid may be the real reason for the latest slaughter. Anyway apart from a bit of rather over done hand wringing here and elsewhere Israel will be backed up to the hilt as usual despite public opinion, for now at least. As for The Great Mandela – always the American CEO’s absolute favourite “terrorist” ever – to see his actual roll in defeating the high hopes of the Freedom Charter and ushering in the familiar “greed is good” corruption you would have to remove those rose tinted shades mate… but hey it’s a well worn groove.. cheers JH
John Harris @ July 22, 2014, 5:35 am
- Come on Mandela brought some important change without massive horrific violence …… of course there was more than enough …….. but his willingness to make common ground with his enemies saved SA from a full on civil war ……… in which as he was clear the majority population would suffer the most …….. Mandela brought dignity and hope…… Hamas are the opposite they ensure their own people suffer beyond measure …… their rockets their suicide bombings bring dispropotionate suffering on their own people not the Israeli’s …….. the Palestinians suffering has been immense throughout their oppression ………. but Hamas has brought a new level of oppression from their enemies and from their own state and culture ……… this kind of nihlism brings not only suffering and violence but total despair……. No I stick to what I said originally nobody needs a Mandela…. some one to bring the chance of justice and dignity ….. a way out …… to a suffering oppressed people more than the Palestinians cheers bro Jez XXXXXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 22, 2014, 12:23 pm
- Odd that Israel is so very keen on increasing the support for Hamas, some hope would do more to get away from “nihilism”. Israel has become a dysfunctional racist if not now fascist state… but you are not alone in blaming the Palestinians for Israel’s war crimes! Neat trick but you can’t fool all the people all of the time bro.. cheers John
John Harris @ July 23, 2014, 9:12 am
- I’m not blaming Palestinians for Israeli crimes. I am saying Hamas actions are likely to result in Palestinian deaths and suffering. The rain of rockets on Israeli cities leaves the Israeli population sitting in bomb shelters night after night but the people who die are Palestinians. The Hamas leadership is happy enough with that result and the Israelis deliver it. All criticism of the killing of innocents is of course absolutely correct, all killing of children and civilians is a war crime. Aiming to kill civilians is a war crime. The targeting of Israeli cities is a war crime as well as targeting palestinian families. An observer should criticize Israel should characterize their government however they like but the pretense that Hamas or Islamic Jihad or the rise of ISIS types has no bearing on the situation is plainly wrong. Like I say characterize the Israeli government however you like…… but how do you characterize Hamas and its system of rule in Gaza? In New York I know a gay man who makes in conversation, like you, common cause with Hamas. In fact there are gay organizations in NYC that make common cause with Hamas. I find this odd. Its fine of course if you take no account of what Hamas is, people are right to support the Palestinians and their right to live without oppression. Its also true that Hamas, does not allow homosexuality, they have the death sentence for people being openly gay. I don’t think criticism of Israel and support for Palestinian rights does need to be support for Hamas, someone like him and you in my opinion should make the distinction between supporting The Palestinians in their quest for rights and dignity and supporting Hamas. I want rights for Palestinians, You of all people should know I support the human rights of Palestinians. Hamas and other Islamist organizations have no interest in human rights theirs is a religious and racist war.Cheers Jez XXXXXXXX
Jezblog ATL :-)))))))) XXXXXXX @ July 23, 2014, 11:46 am
- Of course such a distinction is obvious. I suppose I could ask you how these rights are to be achieved?
I’m not a moralist but I can’t easily equate Israel state terrorism with the resistance in Gaza- though some contortionists do somehow manage it! I do think you care Bro but you get stuck on your fear of Islam every time. I’m not religious myself but unfortunately quite a lot of people are in that part of the world are, so tend – perhaps not entirely unexpectedly – to interpret their shit-uation in those terms. Add to that misery and death, mix in the hopelessness and despair of facing an overbearing unbeatable foe and the results are not going to be pretty… Hamas is popular for its resistance, however out of date their 20yr old charter, reactionary their ideology or inaccurate their rockets.Maybe we need to remind ourselves how Apartheid was removed (and it wasn’t by Mandela – he was in prison for terrorism BTW and was released only after doing the dirty deal with big money, before you start gushing again), resistance – some of it armed and often rather unpleasant, international condemnation & economic & cultural boycott…. If you want another historic example maybe the Warsaw Ghetto uprising? Suicidal resistance by religious persons hemmed into a small area, who choose to die on their feet rather than go quietly, with tunnels, small arms and home made bombs they pitted themselves against the overwhelming military force and criminality of a brutal oppressor itself animated by a poisonous ideology of racial purity and authoritarian supremacy….. sound familiar? cheers Johnx
John @ July 25, 2014, 9:36 am
