Opinion
Cooperation is the answer
Eitan Gilboa
Published: 04.06.07, 22:01
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19 Talkbacks for this article
1. Are you sure it's not just 'pandering'?
Cameron ,   USA   (06.04.07)
2. I disagree..make them pay, boycott the British!
David ,   Boston, USA   (06.04.07)
While I dont think the majority of the Brtitish feel this way, those in charge of certain unions obviously do. The best way to challenge this is to stop giving them anything, stop buying from them, stop trading with them. Make hem realize they are losing out on a significant partner in academia, trade, and medicine. Encourage others to boycott these British organizations until they end this racist boycott. The best form of defense is a good attack on racists where it hurts. Sooner or later the majority in the organizations will either vote out their racist leadership and racist boycott or join it. If they join, then Israel and other western countries are better off without the British. If they end their boycotts and diminish the racist leaders, then its better for all.
3. Scientific co-operation
Simon ,   London UK   (06.05.07)
I am a Brit who works for a US technology company who has research facilities in Israel and other countries. I am also proud that my employer has a relationship with with an Isreali University where joint commercial and research takes place. To UK academics boycott if you must however WE DONT NEED YOU. The company I work for is not unique in its relationships in Israel. If you wish to be left out in the cold then so be it. But consider this whilst you implement the views of a few academic fossils.
4. WORLD JEWS UNITE! Arabs, Soviets and the Left
Steve Cohen ,   USA   (06.05.07)
conduct a GEBBELS type Anti-Semitic compane against the Israel right to exist for last 60 years. Niether Israeli Governments nor the Israeli public understands the scale of this compain, its effect and a need in a Massive World Wide Contrettack using ALL avaiable means. The treat is inormous and must be confranted with a help and participation of the World Jewry.
5. dhimmi attitude
(06.04.07)
6. HIT BACK HARD!! Here's how...
Friend of Israel   (06.05.07)
Pass along this email to everyone you know, and everyone you don't know... Dear Friend of Israel, You have received this email because you are someone who cares about the one and only Jewish State. This is not your typical urban-legend “chain email”. This is about a real political issue— the growing British boycott of Israel. The chief union of British university professors has just voted to boycott Israel and to urge its members to terminate their relations with Israeli faculty and researchers. Worse, Britain’s largest and most influential union of government employees (1.4 million members) is expected to enact its own boycott and divestment campaign later in June. Other groups, including the British Association of Journalists, the General Workers' Union, the British Association of Architects, and the British Medical Association, have implemented or are now considering their own boycotts. It is not a stretch to say that these measures amount to a nationwide boycott of Israel. Beyond symbolism, this could have significant long-term consequences for the Israeli economy, and will certainly embolden other European unions to implement their own sanctions. Developments in Britain thus threaten to set off a chain reaction that would marginalize Israel and suffocate its export-oriented economy. The British government has officially opposed these actions; however, it is not blameless in the matter. In the name of “Mideast even-handedness”, it has blocked and hindered exports of essential arms and spare parts to Israel since around 2001. It also raised a scandal upon discovering that a U.S. military cargo plane, transporting ammunition to Israel during last year’s war with Hezbollah, had used a British airfield to refuel. (It seems that nothing has changed from 60 years ago, when some British units and volunteers fought side-by-side with the Arabs to destroy Israel during its War of Independence). These are not the actions of a friendly state. It is clear that both the British government and Britain's public-sector elites are opposed to Israel’s right to self-defense, and therefore, its right to exist. However, a boycott can be a two-way street. While the State of Israel, with its tiny population and economy, cannot respond in kind, we in North America can. So until Britain changes its attitude and policies 180-degrees, please do not travel to Britain, do not partake of British products or brands (e.g. HSBC Bank, Reebok, Umbro, Burberry, French Connection, Virgin Megastores, Cadbury, Twinings, InterContinental Hotels, Amstrad, Invensys, Economist Magazine, Jane’s Information Group), do not spend money on British movies or music, do not fly on any British airline (e.g. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic), and, if this applies to you, consider limiting your business with British nationals, divesting your British assets, and/or voting against tenure for British faculty in your department. Also, please write the British Embassy or Consulates in protest, ask your Congressman for a statement on the issue, and pass along this email to as many friends of Israel (and websites and blogs) as you can. Whatever you do, please do not sit by idly. Let them know that their hateful, pro-terrorist actions have consequences, and will not be ignored on this side of the Atlantic. Together, we can hit back and convince them that to sanction Israel is not in their own best interest. Thank you, A Fellow Friend of Israel
7. COUNTER Boycott ???
ben ,   singapore   (06.05.07)
It should be Counter Espionage IDIOTS !
8. Pride in Israel and in being Jewish
Judith M. ,   USA   (06.05.07)
These boycotts and the anti-Israel demonstrations all over the world (June 9-10) have been organized by a coalition of Muslim and radical left-wing groups. Jews and Christians who support Israel must use every weapon available to respond to these Israel-haters. All the diplomacy in the world will not make them like us any better. When British companies start losing money due to our counter-boycott, you will see how quickly the unions will end their boycott. My family has already stopped buying British products.
9. A joke
Omri ,   Israel   (06.05.07)
Israel doesn't lose like the British lose from this. The Technion in Haifa topped even Oxford University in Academic Scientific Publishes according to international researches. Boycott us, we don't care. It only shows that Islamists are taking over Britain, and that should make the British worry, not us. Israel has excellent universities and colleges which produce a lot of researchers and experts known worldwide. It is not us who should worry- we really don't care. If the British want to act like children and taint the academic freedom with politics, they can feel free. After all, it's their loss.
10. #9 Omri is right - Let the UK taint their academic freedom
(06.05.07)
with politics. It absolutely THEIR LOSS. (and the majority of people don't agree with them anyway)
11. The right way to fight the boycott
Frank ,   Canada   (06.05.07)
The Jewish world must work at having these anti-Semites fired from their universities and newspapers. These kind of people must not be allowed to "teach" nor to "inform". They are a threat to the civilization.
12. It's time to face the truth - Britons are more anti-israeli
Eyal ,   Jerusalem   (06.05.07)
then the french. Please do NOT try to make excuses for those arrogant and ignorant people. It's actually kind of funny how they keep forgeting that their invasion to Iraq cost the life of more then 700,000 innocent civilians (seven times the number of the casualtys of all the Israeli-Arab wars). I say lets Boycott those murders.
13. Strengthen the center & help them to ignore crazy boycotts
Zvi   (06.05.07)
That is the best way to make this stupidity go away. It will isolate the loonies on the far left from their own union members.
14. The flight of Christian Arabs
Ben ,   Chicago   (06.05.07)
I suggest that Mr. Hannania examine more closely this matter. The number of Cheistian Arabs in Israel continue to increase. But after Oslo, when Israel transferred the control of Bethlehem to the PLO (against the objections of the Christian mayor at the time) the opposite happanned in Bethlehem. From being the vast majority of the population when the PLO took over the proportion of the christian Arabs now in Bethlehem is not much more than 20%. The process started long before the Israeli checkpoints were estblished in response to Arafat's "second Intefatha".
15. Counter Boycott
Sam Weinstein ,   USA   (06.05.07)
Maybe it might not be effective against Britain, but at least it makes you fell like something is being done unlike this goverment that only acts like a puppet to the US and EU
16. DON'T JUST SIT THERE!!!
Friend of Israel ,   North America   (06.05.07)
Pass along this email to everyone you know, and everyone you don't know... Dear Friend of Israel, You have received this email because you are someone who cares about the one and only Jewish State. This is not your typical urban-legend “chain email”. This is about a real political issue— the growing British boycott of Israel. The chief union of British university professors has just voted to boycott Israel and to urge its members to terminate their relations with Israeli faculty and researchers. Worse, Britain’s largest and most influential union of government employees (1.4 million members) is expected to enact its own boycott and divestment campaign later in June. Other groups, including the British Association of Journalists, the General Workers' Union, the British Association of Architects, and the British Medical Association, have implemented or are now considering their own boycotts. It is not a stretch to say that these measures amount to a nationwide boycott of Israel. Beyond symbolism, this could have significant long-term consequences for the Israeli economy, and will certainly embolden other European unions to implement their own sanctions. Developments in Britain thus threaten to set off a chain reaction that would marginalize Israel and suffocate its export-oriented economy. The British government has officially opposed these actions; however, it is not blameless in the matter. In the name of “Mideast even-handedness”, it has blocked and hindered exports of essential arms and spare parts to Israel since around 2001. It also raised a scandal upon discovering that a U.S. military cargo plane, transporting ammunition to Israel during last year’s war with Hezbollah, had used a British airfield to refuel. (It seems that nothing has changed from 60 years ago, when some British units and volunteers fought side-by-side with the Arabs to destroy Israel during its War of Independence). These are not the actions of a friendly state. It is clear that both the British government and Britain's public-sector elites are opposed to Israel’s right to self-defense, and therefore, its right to exist. However, a boycott can be a two-way street. While the State of Israel, with its tiny population and economy, cannot respond in kind, we in North America can. So until Britain changes its attitude and policies 180-degrees, please do not travel to Britain, do not partake of British products or brands (e.g. HSBC Bank, Reebok, Umbro, Burberry, French Connection, Virgin Megastores, Cadbury, Twinings, InterContinental Hotels, Amstrad, Invensys, Economist Magazine, Jane’s Information Group), do not spend money on British movies or music, do not fly on any British airline (e.g. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic), and, if this applies to you, consider limiting your business with British nationals, divesting your British assets, and/or voting against tenure for British faculty in your department. Also, please write the British Embassy or Consulates in protest, ask your Congressman for a statement on the issue, and pass along this email to as many friends of Israel (and websites and blogs) as you can. Whatever you do, please do not sit by idly. Let them know that their hateful, pro-terrorist actions have consequences, and will not be ignored on this side of the Atlantic. Together, we can hit back and convince them that to sanction Israel is not in their own best interest. Thank you, A Fellow Friend of Israel
17. A taste of their own medicine
Gaby Beuck ,   Germany   (06.05.07)
The Palestinians will continue to terrorise Israel until they get their own state. After all that is exactly how Israel got its own state in 1948. Through murdering the British - remember the Stern gang? More than one Israeli PM was an ex terrorist. What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander also.
18. The true cause of this - apply basic psychology
Ran ,   London   (06.06.07)
Same reason Spain left Iraq after the train station bombings - people understand there are two sides, one of which is willing to kill them if they don't submit, the other quite harmless. Hence, they make a lot of bravura noise about being on the side of the Mohammedans, in the hope that they will be passed over and be allowed to live. It's very simple really.
19. omri ... the joke is
omm rami ,   nablus   (06.06.07)
sara converted to islam .. but she did not add any thing to islam and nothing is lost from the christian
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