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Patricia Pustell's avatar

Very eloquent in your request that people apologize. The critics should respond because as time has past Jimmy Carter has shown actions speak louder then words. These critics don’t have a lot of time to respond and I hope they do.

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Peter Beinart's avatar

here's the zoom link: https://journalism-cuny.zoom.us/j/94234983104?pwd=eWVxSmlDRDRpSEF0UVBqbEpIRC9sZz09

we always send it at 6 on Fridays

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Peter Beinart's avatar

Thank you, Siham. I appreciate it very much

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Peter Beinart's avatar

Thanks for those beautiful stories

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Peter Beinart's avatar

i think you're absolutely right about his Christian biblical perspective. at one point he supposedly asked Golda Meir if she worried that in the Bible the Jews were constantly being punished for their sins and that this might happen again and she looked at him like he was from Mars.

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milx's avatar

amazing that you recount this anecdote and still don't realize there's something deeply disturbing about his relationship to jews and judaism.

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Peter Beinart's avatar

Thanks Shirley. I really miss his writing too

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Ruskay, John's avatar

Peter: Well crafted post. While the book was indeed flawed, as you and others pointed out, if you read the book it was from my perch at its core a plea for a two state solution. But my experience was that few in the Jewish community read the book: most were appalled by “apartheid” being in the title and dismissed it without reading. For all the reasons, your call for an apology could not be more timely and appropriate.

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Sherman Hesselgrave's avatar

Archbishop Desmond Tutu said that the situation in Israel was WORSE than Apartheid, because in South Africa, the blacks and coloured had to travel to and from their townships for work. Palestinians in Israel do not have even that freedom. I heard a journalist from Ramallah tell about a young woman had never been to the beach (the Mediterranean) because she couldn't get a travel pass!

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Raja Khouri's avatar

Sadly, the reactions to the “apartheid” reports by human rights organizations you mention were greeted similarly to Carter’s book by mainstream America.

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Carol Barac's avatar

I agree with Peter’s comments about Jimmy Carter. I am South African and when I visited Israel in 1975 I could see the similarities to Apartheid.

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Jini's avatar

Thank you for considering such a civilized action as an apology now. I rarely come across such calls for in today’s world.

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Shirley Segev's avatar

I don’t recall looking forward this much to an invited quest as to Sayed Kashua. Please ask him how he and his family are doing. When he stopped writing in Israeli media, it was the end of an era, the beginning of the loss of hope. It will be so meaningful to hear from him how he sees now history unfolding.

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Jude Folly's avatar

a friendly reminder that both former israeli prime ministers named ehud have plied the "apartheid" label to the jewish state....

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Anonymous's avatar

This is not true but okay.

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Anonymous's avatar

Where in that are the proof behind what you said?

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Laurence Edwards's avatar

The Central Conference of American Rabbis cancelled a planned visit to the Carter Center during their 2007 convention in Atlanta. CCAR might apologize too.

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Josh's avatar

It's as if the American Jewish establishment is in its own little fantasy world, because the reality (that they may or may not have fully confronted) is simply too painful for them.

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Josh's avatar

I'm so tired of uncritical support of Israel coming from URJ and CCAR. The strong and unqualified condemnation of the Amnesty report and right of return in particular was so embarrassing.

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Nasser Chourbagi's avatar

Thank you for your words on President Jimmy Carter. He dedicated his life, after leaving the presidency, to just causes, human rights not only for the Palestinians but across the globe. Yes, he was brave in speaking out for these causes even if it went against the powerhouses in the U.S. Bless him, bless his soul and may he be an example to those who fight for justice without fear.

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Siham Karami's avatar

“There is no former President in the United States, maybe no other national politician, who was shown as much courage as Jimmy Carter.” And I might at to that, no more undeservedly maligned President. His treatment speaks to the willingness of our leaders to choose the path of least resistance, the path of cowards and ppl with their fingers in their ears whenever truth comes out.

I can’t overstate my gratitude for your speaking truth to power, also in your NYT piece, really got to the heart of the matter. Is not that, too, a Jewish tradition? In any case, there is no more noble profession than speaking the truth, especially when it rocks the boat of injustice.

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