Anti-AIPAC Peace Activists, AIPAC Supporters Demonstrate Outside Radisson Sacramento

Some interesting signs, though I don't get the one with the picture of the menorah.

Usually, the "persectued" victims aren't the ones with more power, more money and more weapons (as in the case of Israel vs. Palestine).
This is the propaganda that the rabid right wing pro-israel folks would have us believe.

22 Arab Islamic Nations.
800 times times the land
50 times the people
Extensive oil reserves.
So much money they built ski resorts in the desert, and create their own islands

One itty bitty little Jewish state.

What were you saying again?

To you, all brown people in the Middle East are Arab Muslims who have the same traditions and cultures. The Palestinians are not the same as other peoples in the region. For example, the Iranians are primarily Persians, not Arabs. To say, that the Palestinians don't deserve a state because some other people that look like them already have states is racist. Israel is a racist state, and your stupid comment provides more evidence of that fact.

I think this was the first time ever that AIPAC came to Sacramento and faced a contingency of people who are opposed to its promotion of hatred throughout the Middle East. This is a wonderful sign that people are finally waking up to AIPAC's and Israel's detrimental effects upon the peace and security of the planet.

Over the last several years, while the entire international community repeatedly condemned Israel for it's flagrant human rights violations and violations of international law, Americans have been silent, kept in the dark, and misinformed by our government and Congress. This was the work of AIPAC. To learn more, read "The Power of Israel in the United States" (Clarity Press), by Jim Petras.

This man is advocating hate crimes against Muslims. There was a police car present the entire time to do surveillance on peace groups. Why didn't the cops make him put down this sign?

If I had shown up with a sign saying "Destroy Zionism" I would have been physically attacked by the AIPAC supporters.

Rush Lumbaugh recently stated he thought our military should bomb Iraq to smithereens so only rubble and dust would be left - thats how he wants to solve the problem..........sounds like Hitlers "Final Solution".

Zionists and Facists worked together during WWII - Mussolini and Zionist groups were partners.
This man and his vitriolic sign prove that Zionism is Racism. I've met many Jewish people who don't think Gentiles and Jews should even be allowed to socialize together in public. Because Jews are "Chosen People" and the rest of us are subhuman.

Methinks the extremists were most likely AIPAC plants, meant to:

1. Garnish sympathy for their cause
2. Discredit a large, well respected, well established peace movement.

Has anyone considered that possibilty? It is precisely the type of move we should expect from AIPAC.

I'm taking about the ones with the Hamas and Hezbolah flags- AIPAC is the only party that benefits from a display like that- it detracts from JVPs strong and cohesive message, and attracts sympathy for the Zionist cause.

Too many people in the "well established peace movement" you mentioned already know us (me and my wife) well enough to rule out your suggestion. You could make the same claim about us hanging the soldier display on our house. You could say that we did it to "discredit" the peace movement. A few unenlightend lefties actually have said that before. But most people know better.

Right wingers routinely claim that we discredit ourselves just by standing on the street corners with "no war" signs. The "discrediting message" argument is a slippery slope. People like me, who prefer not to use tame messages, will always be accused of "discrediting the movement." But I think I'm helping it, so I just keep doing what I do and ignore the detractors.

So you think that flying the flags of resistance organizations makes AIPAC look good? Are you nuts? Sounds like you're a disgruntled JVPer that doesn't like to associate your Jewish-only messages with messages of resistance by Palestinians or Lebanese. Hmmm . . . seems elitest, if not racist, to me.

If AIPAC were to plant a spy in the group, they wouldn't pick a white dude that white America would identify with (which is maybe why you really don't like the white dude's message). They'd pick an Arab looking person who goes around fanatically waving the flag and chanting racial slurs.

You don't think the white dude's message provides support to AIPAC. You fear that it might actually cause Americans to question their government (as they always should) about whether Hamas and Hezbollah are the evil organizations that the Zionists claim.

Flying the Hamas and Hezbollah flags only serve to provide credit and support to the resistance. Sheepishly calling for peace, as the JVPers did at this protest, only serves to provide support for Israel and AIPAC.

If you're there to oppose AIPAC, how does holding a picture of a menorah help convey that? What was this guy thinking? If there's a connection, it must be much more tenuous than any I've considered...

The Maccabees were living in a country occupied by Europeans and engaged in guerilla warfare to help gain the freedom of their people. The Maccabees engaged in fairly brutal actions towards those seen as Greek sympathizers. The situation of the Jewish people in Judea at the time of the Maccabees were a lot like the Palestinians today and the Maccabees were a lot like Hamas of Islamic Jihad.

Personally I would prefer a secular society in both Israel and Palestine and prefer the PFLP to Hamas or even Fatah, but figured I would point out that Hamas has many similarities to the Maccabees and those Jews willing to fight back against the foreign occupiers as is celebrated during Hanukkah.

Not sure why the protester had the menorahsign but I guess it could be seen as a miltant symbol of resistance to European colonialism?

See, do you support the little guy trying to resist tyranny, aggression, oppression? If so, then you support those who resist U.S. and Israeli state sponsored terror.

I'm sorry but I have to question the "editorial judgment" of whoever selectively disappeared more than thirty comments from this thread. If all the early ones had been deleted and only the most recent left that would be one thing, but since that isn't what was done, I'm left wondering what criteria were used. And suspecting that political motivations may have played a part?

No, it is NOT that my little two cents was deleted that bothers me. What bums me the most is that the Indybay "editors" or moderators didn't recognize that the long post about the Famous Zionist Quotes and the FAQ's was a valuable resource for anyone with an interest in the topic of AIPAC, pro, con or straddling the fence. If I'd have known it was going to be deleted, I'd have copied it to save the URLs in a handy place.

Another thing: it was v. encouraging to see how many people posted items critical of AIPAC & "The Lobby". I need to meet more people -- online or f2f -- who think along the lines expressed by Colleen W before her words got axed. I wouldn't mind getting together for coffee etc, or just exchanging email with like minded persons; if you're so inclined, send me an email? cuibono [at] rcip.com? Thanks,

Dan