tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post5089838625198215726..comments2023-08-09T07:49:53.173-07:00Comments on Tales from Turkey: Mavi MarmaraBazaar Bayarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00712818121398423065noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-68241068441337844702010-06-07T09:02:00.731-07:002010-06-07T09:02:00.731-07:00Thank you Judith! Great to hear about your gatheri...Thank you Judith! Great to hear about your gathering. I have to believe there are many who think like you and I do, and we have to speak out in the hope of changing someone's mind and making a difference somehow.Bazaar Bayarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00712818121398423065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-34761922061318825482010-06-06T14:57:57.090-07:002010-06-06T14:57:57.090-07:00Dear Catherine, Thank you for posting your first p...Dear Catherine, Thank you for posting your first person account and for your bravery to voice your thoughts. I'm thankful to Anastasia for pointing at the <a href="http://tinyurl.com/2ezewh3" rel="nofollow">OpEd article by Michael Chabon</a> in the N.Y.Times I second all he writes. And I'm relieved to know I'm not the only one. Just this Friday evening I was at a Sabbath gathering of "critical" Jews led in discussion of this matter by Lawrence Bush. I felt and feel relief their thoughts and mine run along the same lines as Chabon's.Judith van Praaghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12113677919729425142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-60249951605559832262010-06-06T12:31:52.597-07:002010-06-06T12:31:52.597-07:00Thank you Kim - I hope and pray you are right!Thank you Kim - I hope and pray you are right!Bazaar Bayarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00712818121398423065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-13754189692417048222010-06-06T08:32:49.962-07:002010-06-06T08:32:49.962-07:00Very well done, Catherine. And rest assured, I th...Very well done, Catherine. And rest assured, I think here in America, people are opening their eyes to the whole Israel/Palestinian thing.Kim Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09473874623413605514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-33399590982794010212010-06-06T06:46:15.195-07:002010-06-06T06:46:15.195-07:00Appreciate your comments! 'Rayela' - your ...Appreciate your comments! 'Rayela' - your cousin correlation is exactly right. As an outsider, I can see the strong family ties between the cultures here perhaps more than those who grew up in this region, taught to not trust those 'cousins'. But within a big dysfunctional family, disagreements cut closer to the heart and take on exaggerated importance.<br /><br />Sezin, I will be following Turkish news with great interest to see what direction they decide to take. Hopefully cool heads will prevail - anger will provoke action, but let's pray it is rational. I trust it will be. As for the US, I know Obama has given some interviews I have not seen, so off to do that now. Would love to see your amazing commentary on this tragedy in print somewhere soon - courage, my dear!Bazaar Bayarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00712818121398423065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-70145097983021183052010-06-05T11:11:10.953-07:002010-06-05T11:11:10.953-07:00Thank you for your bravery, Catherine. This is suc...Thank you for your bravery, Catherine. This is such an important local perspective, and speaks to a huge rupture that has taken place in the Middle East. With Turkey further reconsidering their alleigance with Israel, I fear that Israel will be even more on the offensive than they are now. The USA and Israel do need to really look at themselves and their actions, the repercussions of bad decisions. Such a sad and strange time in the world. <br /><br />Thank you for speaking out, Catherine. I stand with you.<br /><br />Love,<br /><br />SezinSezinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01079428712043735436noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3391876261993125336.post-27885279536231185022010-06-05T09:27:56.679-07:002010-06-05T09:27:56.679-07:00I wish we would stop funding Israel. That might m...I wish we would stop funding Israel. That might make the "playing fields" more even. It's all just horrible. I think about all the kids that are growing up in such terrible conflict- Middle East, Africa, Asia, Latin America, and even in our own streets. Guns everywhere. Life is meaningless to many of them. How can they grow up into functional adults with "normal" life expectations? Yet, somehow some do.<br /><br />When I was a teenager, I read everything I could about the holocaust and lots of Jewish authors. Now, I feel that Israel is doing the same thing the Nazis did to them. Palestinians have been by no means sheep led to the slaughter, yet they have been slaughtered. The irony, to me, is that they are all "cousins", tied to the land historically. I long for the day when they become "kissing cousins".Rachel Bielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14804950102480086440noreply@blogger.com