I got a lot of e-mails, and the ones that still stick with me, over three years later, were the ones from all over the world, saying "gee- before I visited your site, I thought all of the people in the USA were as stupid as Bush and his supporters- I didn't know there was any dissent!"

These e-mails were, and still are, heartening to me. I'm glad I could do my part in dispelling the myth that the american public is a great, monolithic exercise in groupthink, and proving that the freedoms of speech and thought are still alive in this country.

We're too often told via the pundit corps that "The Israelis think so-and-so", "the Iranians believe thus-and-so", and "The Russians come from this and that position." A classic "us-versus them" paradigm of thinking that just leads to more misunderstanding, steroetypes, and distrust.

Yes, those in power are held up as the spokesmen for predominant opion, but more often than not, this is laughably myopic. Take for example the war in Iraq- if you used solely the words and deeds of the Bush Bowl as a barometer of the American people's attitude towards the war, you'd never think that fully two-thirds of US citizens want troops out of Iraq now, and think it was a damned stupid idea to invade, in the first place.

With this in mind, let's move to the current crisis in Israel- Too many on the left are swift to denounce Israel, as a whole, in the wake of recent events. Those that do, are falling into the same "us-versus-them" simplistic idiocy that the neocons and the Bush Bowl wear as badges of honor- and dammit, I'd like to think we're a tad better than they are...

The truth of the matter is, that Israel has a strong, vibrant, and energetic anti-war movement, and they're taking to the streets, in growing numbers, every day. In the midst of the insanity we see playing out on our viewscreens, let us take a moment, to recognize and support their efforts.

Gush Shalom
Agira
B'tselenm
Bustan
ICHAD
Jews for Justice in Palestine
Kibush
Seruv
Ta'ayush
The "Other" Israel

These courageous people are being labelled as "traitors" and "terrorist sympathizers."

Sound familiar?

Give these folks some love- they are fighting the good fight, and need your support.