ahhhh....such a fitting response...

Let's not lose our heads over this...

My entire problem with Chomsky is that he is foisted above pretty much every single other academic, for seemingly no good reason. He has no professional credentials in this area, yet he has taught in Harvards school of government.

Chomsky readers might be interested to find a book called memoire en defense by a man called robert faurisson. A extremely interesting tome, with the main points being holocaust denial and the labelling of anne franks diary as a "forgery". Yet chomsky was prepared to lend his acedemic reputation to Faurissons "findings" that were based on "extensive historical research" Chomsky even went so far as to write an introduction for his next book!

I have no problem at all with people voicing their opinions, in fact, i openly encourage it. However, when one mans opinion, especially when it is as perverse as chomskys often is, is foisted above everyone elses, thats what i have a problem with.

I would also think long and hard, and provide factual evidence, when you suggest that Israel is an "institutionally racist state." Admiteddly, Israel is jewish state, but in practice it is largely secular and offers complete freedom of religion to Muslims, Christians and other religions.

I assume you were also referring to Israels law of return. Of course, it seems that Israel is subjected to the usual double standard that the vast majority of people claim. Germany has a law of return, as does Russia, yet i very rarely, if ever heard these states categorised as racist.

Yet non jews are also entitled to citinship in Israel. in April 1999, Israel rescued 100 hundred albanian refugees from kosovo and invited them to live in Kibbutz Maagan Michael. Israel has also taken in many non jews from the former soviet union.

Admittedly, there is some discrimination in israel. Muslims cannot serve in the army (but the question must be posed, how many of them would fight fellow arabs?). Ona different note, in 2002, the Israeli supreme court ruled that the government may not allocate land on grounds of religion or ethinicity.

Of course, if we want to talk about "institutionally racist states" then we need look no further than the arab states, many of whom practice south african like apartheid against non muslims. Jordan is perhaps the best example, a country that has a law of return that explicity denies all jews the right to citizenship. Indeed, its law states that citizenship is open to "any person who is not jewish."

And as for "leaving islam behind." This is also the view of professor bernard lewis, arguably the western worlds most foremost scholar on Islam. Check out his book "what went wrong? western impact and middle eastern response."

Back to Israel. I would hardly call the 2001 offer at Taba a "joke" Hell, Prince Bander of Saudi Arabia called Arafats rejection of the offer as "a crime against the entire region." The offer satisfied UN resolution 242 and Israel offered to provide $30 Billion in compensation. The offer also gave Palestinian control over 97% of jerusalem, with the exception of the jewish and armenian quarters as well as control of Gaza and West Bank. One wonders what else Barak could have offered, short of the dissolution of the Israeli state.

And if this offer was so bad, how come Arafat did not even offer any form of counter proposal? EVERYONE (apart from Noam Chomsky, who, is a lecture to Harvard University on 25th November 2002 stated "Israel called off the Taba negotiations) from arab princes to george bush, blamed arafat for the collapse and the subsequent collapse of order.

Essay on the rise of international terrorism will be emailed (so i can provide full references) tomorrow. I have had to have it emailed to me as it not on this computer.

First up, I admire Chomsky’s own writing, not those he supports, or lends introductions too (I really couldn’t tell you about the Robert Faurisson link or anything). All Chomsky’s books come with detailed references, the man offers his opinion, and, as a linguist, articulates it far better than most. I’m studying engineering (which I don’t happen to like too much), and would liken Chomsky reading to reading a technical text. Exact, and concise. You are obviously not a libertarian, and so it bothers you that he is so highly recognised. Should I disregard Bernard Lewis because he is a lawyer? Chomsky is only one in a long line of writers on libertarianism, my point was that another post of yours seemed to show a blind ignorance, and yet a disdain for libertarianism.

Your line on Israel seems to be “o.k. It’s institutionally racist, but so is x.y. & Z”. Do you see me defending Jordan, or Saudi? Germany, by the way, is bounded by (at least up until this case yesterday) EU law.

Would you say that Israel’s reactionary approach to terrorism has worked? Please explain.

The law of return is an explicitly racist law. You say as much. There’s no double standard there. Why is it, that under Israeli employment law, a Jew must have a certain minimum weige, a Christian must have another, and a Muslim must have another? Sounds like straight ahead racism to me.

Have I defended Saudi? Or Jordan? Or Israel?

Why criticise Jordan, and Saudi, and not Israel? Why bomb Iraq, Afghanistan, and not Libya? Why give unqualified support to Indonesia, and North Korea?

Give me ANY of the above states, and ill gladly tell you my problem with them. Racist? Yes, some dictatorial, but, some supported by the west, while others aren’t?

Why not go into morocco? Or Saudi? If you support a reactionary “war” on terror why not start here?

Why not post back dealing with these issues, besides narking on about some writer Chomsky wrote a forward to?

As for the “Muslims being left behind in the market”, well please tell me how Mohamed al Fayed has been left behind in the market?

As is said, it’s the post colonial ,western supported dictators, and racist states that are to blame.

And as I also said, the “leaders” of the Palestinian movement represent their people in the same way the Israeli state represents the 100000 of its people that marched for peace on Saturday.

Aslo: where is Michael Mc Dermott?