December 28, 2005, - 2:57 pm
“Pro”-Israel Group AIPAC Refuses to Condemn “Munich”
By
Why won’t AIPAC–the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the self-styled pro-Israel lobby in America, take a stand against “” or even take any stand at all?
You would think a group that claims to be pro-Israel and also claims to be American would have two reasons to denounce this fictional movie that morally equivocates terrorists and victims and denounces the war on terror: 1) as Americans AND 2) as supporters of Israel. But you would be wrong.
AIPAC refuses to make a statement about “Munich.” It’s an outrage that a group that markets itself, using a New York Times description of it as “The most important organization affecting America’s relationship with Israel,” won’t condemn this movie, when even the government of Israel did denounce the film. AIPAC’s silence on this is deafening and outrageous.
Read this exchange sent to me by a justifiably upset AIPAC member (whose name and e-mail have been removed to protect his identity):
Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2005 13:13:31 -0600
From: [Name and e-mail address redacted]
To: Debbie Schlussel
Subject: Silence on Munich from AIPAC
Debbie,
I just can’t figure out how an org like AIPAC that claims to advance
Israel’s interest in America stays silent on such a damaging movie (see below).
Any ideas?
[Name redacted]
*********
From: Membership Membership@aipac.org
Date: Dec 28, 2005 12:57 PM
Subject: munich
To: [E-mail address redacted]
Mr. [Name redacted]
AIPAC is not issuing a statement on the movie.
Thank you
***********
From: [Name and e-mail address redacted]
Posted At: Monday, December 26, 2005 10:35 AM
Posted To: AIPAC Update
Conversation: Munich
Subject: Munich
Dear AIPAC representative,
I would like to know if AIPAC will be issuing a statement about Steven
Spielberg’s new movie, Munich, which deals with Israel’s fight against terrorism.
Thank you in advance for your response.
[Name redacted]
For those of us who know the real AIPAC, we know that the group is dominated by liberals who want Israel to give every last inch for “peace” (piece of paper). AIPAC was behind the disastrous Oslo Accords, Wye Accords, Gaza pull-out, and, behind the scenes, a total pull-out from the West Bank (including suburban Jerusalem, and ultimately “East” Jerusalem. AIPAC supported a Palestinian state early on and actively joined lobbying forces with the lobbyist hired by Arafat’s Palestinian Authority in meetings with Members of Congress. On college campuses, especially of late, left-wing AIPAC student groups at the University of Michigan, Duke, and Princeton, have repeatedly opposed other students who’ve opposed Islamic terrorism.
AIPAC really stands for the Appeasement forced on Israel (by liberal American naifs) Public Affairs Committee. Those of us who know AIPAC know that it is actually no surprise at all that this organization won’t come out against Spielberg’s fiction equivocating terrorists and their victims and arguing against responding to terrorists. In fact, AIPAC’s view is a lot closer to Spielberg’s than it’s membership realizes.
But any group of real Americans–whether Americans supporting Israel, or just plain Americans–who are truly against terrorism, wouldn’t take even a New York second in pontificating over whether or not to make a statement against this film.
It would have come out against it immediately. Well, at least, “Munich” has done one good service associated with truth–albeit too late. It has shown blind supporters of AIPAC, the organization’s true colors.
Tags: America, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Arafat, Arafat's Palestinian Authority, Congress, Debbie Schlussel Why, East, Gaza, Israel, Jerusalem, lobbyist, Michigan, Munich, New York, New York Times, Palestinian Authority, Public Affairs Committee, Steven Spielberg, The University of Michigan, West Bank
You don’t sound like you know AIPAC at all. I am very active and will be at policy conference again in March (will you be there?) and the reason they don’t respond to this is because they don’t take stands on things in the media — that’s not what they’re about. They have to meet with senators and congresspeople and the administration. They don’t want to sully their reps by responding to something that in the big picture doesn’t matter (unlike good ol’ Abe Foxman, who came out SUPPORTING the movie).
The reason they supported Oslo, etc, is because AIPAC supports whatever the Israeli government is doing. They supported them with regard to the Gaza Withdrawl but not the Gaza Withdrawl (like ADL) in and of itself. That way, if the Israeli government decided not to do it, they wouldn’t have looked as stupid as the ADL cause they were only supporting the govt’s decision.
Also, if you really knew AIPAC you would know it’s neither democrat or republican because if you act that way, then when the other group is in office, you and your support for Israel hits the back burner for at least 4 years. Israel is for eveyone. The Dems and Ruplicans don’t agree on anything — except Israel. And if you go to policy conference, you will just as many Republicans as you do Democrats — what greater proof is there that they do not have any agenda other than supporting the US/Israel relationship?
Esther on December 31, 2005 at 7:06 pm