Ali Abu Nimah at George Mason

He delivered a stinging, well argued indightment of the "Peace Process Industry," of it's lack of concern for the Palestinians themselves, of it's use as a method of stearing the debate away from fundamental, painful issues such as ongoing expansion of settlements, the economic strangle hold which Israel would possess over any Palestinian state, and the brutal nature of the occupation itself. Instead it promises 'dialogue' on how Israellis and Palestinians can learn to 'understand' one another and systematically misleads the world at large by promoting the illusion that there is equality of power and of moral authority on both sides. He clearly articulated the need for a single democratic state in Palestine in which the rights of all people, regardless of religion, language or ethnicity, would be guaranteed. In order to achieve this, it will be necessary to hold out a vision of the future which Israelis who do not want to be part of the nightmare they have created can believe in and struggle for alongside their Palestinian neighbors. He characterised the recent election as 'rigged' in favor of 'Abbas and condemned the inability of the refugees to vote. In response to my question about his relationship with the Progressive Muslims Union of North America, he stated that he had no dealings with the organization other than, at the suggestion of a friend, offering his name for use on the advisory board list. He has not kept up with their activities and is not an active member.