There is a growing movement amongst those who see Israel as the enemy of peace and a colonizing country. This movement is known as Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions or “BDS” and was launched in 2005. A timeline of some of its “accomplishments” can be seen here. It was initiated by Palestinian Civil Society and has garnered much support from liberals, anti-Zionists and anti-Semites worldwide.
It is based on the erroneous premise that Israel is the real danger in the Middle East and that because of its apartheid approach to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, peace cannot be achieved. BDS proponents believe that boycotting Israeli products, people and corporations will force them to comply with the world’s humanitarian expectations for the Middle East. The one-sidedness of the BDS movement is proof in and of itself that anti-Semitism is at the root of it.
Nobody seems to care about reporting the facts from both sides of the conflict and the popular picture of the “Palestinian underdog” painted by liberals has been drilled in the masses for so long that the lie has now become truth with no need for fact checking of any sort.
VILIFICATION HAS REPLACED VERIFICATION!
But, like I have mentioned before, in order to be consistent with your convictions, or in other words, in order to maintain your integrity, consider refraining from the usage of the following items (or their by products) either invented or produced in Israel:
• The Cell Phone
• The USB Flash drive
• The USB Flash drive
• Instant Messaging
• Solar Water Heating
• Super Iron Battery
• Windows Software
• The DNA Computer
… and many more defense, medicine, physics and agricultural inventions! But of course the insurmountable level of inconvenience forces all to pick and choose what they really can afford to boycott. In other words, more words than deeds!
… and many more defense, medicine, physics and agricultural inventions! But of course the insurmountable level of inconvenience forces all to pick and choose what they really can afford to boycott. In other words, more words than deeds!
By now, you must be wondering why as a Jew , a supporter of Israel and promoter of the truth, I would support Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions. Well, I really don’t when it comes to the movement’s efforts to stigmatize Israel, but I do support the principle of boycotting, if only to refrain from financially sustaining a cause you can’t agree with. And this is an area where secular conservatives and evangelicals alike are failing.
In the age of Internet communication, it is not very difficult to gather information. It does require discernment to decipher truths, from lies and especially half-truths. The great theologian Charles Spurgeon summarized best when he said: Discernment is not a matter of simply telling the difference between right and wrong; rather it is telling the difference between right and almost right. So I encourage you to educate yourself on who supports Israel and who doesn’t and then decide to cease supporting them based on their one-sided ignorant bias.
Instead of continuously exposing the wrongs done by the BDS movement, we need to start showing the world that we can also use boycott to make our voices count. It goes without saying that the principle need not be taken to the extreme lest we all become hermits in the hills somewhere.
This being said where there is boycott there will be inconvenience, so we must be ready to adjust. A good place to start is with actors, singers and artists in general, since many of them choose to voice their political opinions often when not asked and seldom appropriately.
While I will not throw away music, movies or art acquired from artists in the past, I will no longer finance their art form once I have discovered that they loathe my people. By the same token, I will promote and support artists who do love my people. This of course doesn’t mean that I endorse them for everything they represent, but simply that I applaud their chutzpah in a day and age when it is most trendy to be anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian.
Some people that made it to my boycott list recently:
• Mr. Roger Waters formerly of the group Pink Floyd for displaying an inflatable pig with symbols of Nazism, dictatorships and oppression along with the star of David. Mr. Waters said that: “To peacefully protest against Israel’s racist domestic and foreign policies is NOT ANTI-SEMITIC”.
He is also the person who delivered a virulent anti-Israel speech at the United Nations in December 2012. Either ignorance, stupidity, anti-Semitism or a combination of all three can lead him to speak such words. ISN’T IT TIME TO BOYCOTT?
• Mr. Yusuf Islam formerly known as Cat Stevens before he converted to Islam has clearly supported the lies about the Palestinian people and the Israeli apartheid policies. He openly has raised money for Palestinian causes and when asked in an interview, he said that the terrorist group Hamas: “did good and charity to humankind”. Are we talking about the same Hamas that claims to desire death like the Israelis desire life? ISN’T IT TIME TO BOYCOTT?
• Carlos Santana, Elvis Costello, Annie Lennox, Stevie Wonder all succumbed under BDS pressure and cancelled various concerts and or trips to Israel. So did Basketball legend Kareem Abdul Jabbar. ISN’T IT TIME TO BOYCOTT? … Do a little research and very soon you will have compiled your own list.
On the other hand, people like Elton John, Leonard Cohen, Paul McCartney, Alicia Keys or Tom Jones have all chosen to perform in Israel in recent years. While I might not agree with some of these people philosophies and/or lifestyles, I have to praise their chutzpah and their discernment regarding the Middle East. Add actor Robert de Niro to that short list of supporters of Israel.
Another lesser-known fact is the praise given by Italian-very-Catholic-crooner Frank Sinatra to Israel. In this rare footage from 1962, He is not only shown in Israel but delivers a very heart warming commentary about the Jewish people (watch until the end, you will be blessed).
We all have different taste in music and movies but we should all have a distaste for lies and hatred. I have been challenging people to expose the BDS movement for what it is for several years now. But I think it is time for all decent people to start boycotting those who hate Israel. After all, the Bible is clear about the enemies of Israel as they are listed as the enemies of God Himself in Psalm 83:1-5: O God, do not remain quiet; Do not be silent and, O God, do not be still.
For behold, Your enemies make an uproar, And those who hate You have exalted themselves. They make shrewd plans against Your people, And conspire together against Your treasured ones. They have said, “Come, and let us wipe them out as a nation, That the name of Israel be remembered no more.” For they have conspired together with one mind. Against You they make a covenant.
ARE ANY OF US WILLING TO DO FOR THE TRUTH WHAT SO MANY HAVE BEEN DOING FOR A LIE?
It’s so true, the media has published Palestinian propaganda for so long, people start to believe it as truth. So Israel is supposed to “share” it’s land with the Palestinians? What if Mexico asked the U.S. for a big chunk of it’s southwest region? Oh, but that would be so unfair wouldn’t it? Why we would never allow that, because we’re a sovereign nation! Well Israel is a sovereign as well!
You can add Dustin Hoffman
http://www.jewishpress.com/news/dustin-hoffman-latest-jew-to-give-israel-hater-an-award/2013/04/26/
Israel’s land area and borders are clearly defined in Gen 15 and is non-negotiable!
The people who support BDS against Israel, and those who push to divide up the land of Israel, don’t realize the danger they are in. http://483years.blogspot.com/
study the Torah. what is, where is, our origin, our foundation. has this entity ever left our midst? has it ever
stopped being practiced? do you think for a second that any
of the above mentioned bozos have any power to hurt Israel or the Jewish people if we just try to do what we can as the
Torah obviates us to? G-d bless you all my brothers and sisters.