COMMENTARY NOVEMBER 23, 2023 Volume 31, Number 14
PUBLISHER: Francis Zankowski
E DIT ORIAL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Shay Castle ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR: Jezy J. Gray REPORTERS: Kaylee Harter, Will Matuska FOOD EDITOR: John Lehndorff INTERN: Lily Fletcher CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Dave Anderson, Will Brendza, Rob Brezsny, Michael J. Casey, Ari LeVaux, Dan Savage, Bart Schaneman, Alan Sculley, Toni Tresca, Gregory Wakeman Sarah Luterman
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THE ANDERSON FILES
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BOULDER WEEKLY
SOLIDARITY FOR ALL Slain activist preached peace — not just pretty words — for Palestinians and Israelis BY DAVE ANDERSON
T
he mainstream narratives of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have lacked nuance. Barack Obama’s comments about the current war were a little different. He supported President Joe Biden but added that people should acknowledge that “Palestinians have also lived in disputed territories for generations; that many of them were not only displaced when Israel was formed but continue to be forcibly displaced by a settler movement that too often has received tacit or explic-
it support from the Israeli government; that Palestinian leaders who’ve been willing to make concessions for a two-state solution have often had little to show for their efforts; and that it is possible for people of good will to champion Palestinian rights and oppose certain Israeli government policies in the West Bank and Gaza without being anti-semitic.’’ Obama didn’t mention that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a pain in the ass when Obama
was president. While he was vice president, Biden acted as a mediator between the two heads of state. After the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, Biden gave Netanyahu a bear hug. News outlets reported that the administration privately expressed concern about civilian casualties and, very early on, said that Israel should not re-occupy Gaza. As progressives started to protest while watching Gaza City being flattened on TV, Anderson continued on page 8
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