Haven't read AS-me broke college student. Food, Film, Fuel and Females. That's about all I have money for. As for Rise and Fall of the Third Riech, I have not read it, but will be, after I read everything else on my list. But I have actually visited Terezin-stadt, and Yad Vashem, and the museum in DC. I am quite familiar with the point you are trying to make.
Since you brought up the subject of readings dealing with dictators, may I suggest "Quotations From Chairman Mao," and "The Commisar Vanishes, the Falsification of Photographs and Art in Stalin's Russia" (David King). It's also nice to keep in perspective that both of them killed a hell of a lot more people than Hitler. "Commisar" is a really great volume on propoganda in general. Another good read is "The Ugly American," by William Lederer and Eugene Burdick-it's not an anti-American book. It is about US policy in Asia and was written in 1958. It's quite remarkable.
I honestly don't care is some Scuds get launched at Israel. I have family over there, and having been there I know it's a high risk bit of real estate. But we can not have a double standard. If one of the reasons we are contemplating war with Iraq is theri flouting of UN resolutions, then we must, at the very least publicly chastized Israel for it's behavior. I do not make the distinction that Israeli life is worth more than Iraqi life. Or an American being worth more than an Afghani. I know that this will no doubt put me at odds with myself some day, but that is for the future, people change.
I used to be a die hard, no compromise Zionist, and well, we all know how that ended up. Perhaps I am naive, but allow me to let you in on something-I'm 21 years old. I'm in college, and I don't give a shit if I am or not. Because I am young, and that's how most young people are. I'm cynical, I'm pessimistic, but at the same time I believe another world is possible, and I am going to do my part to try and make it happen. Another thing. There are at most a couple hundred people who make regular contributions to this board (admins feel free to correct me), even if all of them feel the same way you do it doesn't matter. On another board I post on (which is much bigger) the opinion ratio is reversed, and more importanlty-I walked with 300,000 people who disagree with your take on this. I have already explained how many people that really is.
This started out as me defending myself against what I percieved to be an attack on my character. You have read a lot from me, you've seen me make a complete ass out of myself, and you've seen me post facts and research. If you are set in your ideals, fine-but please, make sure they are your own. Do not set someting aside just because it does not fit with what you are told to believe. Make your own decision. I have challenged your beliefs, you have defended them with the same rightous indignation that I mustered against you. Where are we for all of that? You have your opinion, I have mine, but mine is most certainly my own. I once saw things from your perspective, then I looked arouns and saw things diferently. Maybe I'll come back to your way of thinking, maybe if you haven't tuned out everything I've said, you'll join me. Maybe not. But it's your choice. Make sure you have actually chosen the ideals you carry, so often we carry those of others without realizing that they are not ours, and maybe even harmful to us.
