Olmert Heckled at University of Chicago

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I'm not surprised, given the two main sources of this article are the Chicago Maroon and the Chicago Tribune. For the record, 18 students were forced to leave (not 25), and only four of which were from the University of Chicago. Many other people came from all over the Chicagoland area to either hear or protest Olmert. A lot of people were shocked that the University would select such a politically-charged leader for what was meant to be a positive conference.
More importantly, Olmert not only spoke of an alleged two-state solution (which ceases to exist to this date); he went further to say such things as "Hamas throws babies out of windows," and that his Israeli counterparts were critical of him being too considerate of the Palestinian people. In fact, this type of ridiculous propaganda was the basis of his argument: the Palestinians are to blame for the violence in Gaza. Forget about Israeli blockades or extremely advanced chemical weaponry that ended up killing 1,400+ people at the beginning of 2009. The Palestinians are the reason for lack of progress and peace.
It was sad to see that people weren't actually listening to what Olmert said when he was finally able to speak (i.e. when all of the last hecklers were kicked out). Instead, many administrators and students at the university pardoned the ex-prime minister's war crime charges, concluding that he was a sweet, innocent man being attacked by those meanie protestors. UChicago may be at the top of the US News 'America's Best College' list, but my fellow colleagues will never have an ounce of common sense.

Unfortunately a UChicago Student of IL 3:38AM October 23, 2009

I would, in fact, state that most Israeli apologists have no interest in the welfare of the Israeli people seeing as how they want to silence critics of Israeli in their tracks by calling them anti-Semites because they expose Israel's wrongdoing, and want to see Israel live in peace with its neighbors unlike what it has been doing for so long, namely, being an internationally illegal occupier over the Palestinians in their own lands.
Israel apologists make a blanket slur that anyone who criticizes Israel is motivated by searing hate of Israeli and her inhabitants, and, therefore, must be an anti-Semite.
Again, it is very obvious to all that this very crude interjection is simply a standard tactic of Israel apologists to silence any one that criticizes Israel because the allusion that is made here is that this "searing hate is anti-Semitic or motivated by anti-Semitism".
It's pretty obvious to all readers that this allusion on the part of Israeli apologists is completely fabricated and doesn't stand up to scrutiny especially when people see how Israeli apologists try to casting slurs via smearing tactics on any poster criticizing Israel, and exposing its nefarious nature to the light of truth.
This is even more obvious when people read how often Israeli apologists have made this same slur and against so many people throughout so many different postings on these boards. Taking this into account, it appears that Israeli apologists have a pattern of throwing out this slur against any critics of Israel that are seen as being too effective in exposing Israel's transgressions and occupation of the Palestinians as the evil that it is.
What is sickening:
- Israel's efforts to always portray itself as the victim when in fact it is the oppressor and the victimizer of the already victimized. For example, look at how Israel and its supporters always try to present it as under siege even though it regularly puts 3.5 million Palestinians including people who are already refugees under curfew, subject to military justice, imposes checkpoints on them, practices South African style racist apartheid againt them, and all sorts of other coercive terror behaviours of a fascist state within their own lands.
- Israel's efforts to co-opt all the arguments that really apply to Palestinians to itself e.g. using the weapon of anti-Semitism against critics when in fact Israel is the biggest anti-Semite in all history when taking into fact that European Jews are not Semites but descendants of the Khazar Tribes of Eastern Europe whereas Palestinians are true Semites; another example being Israel's efforts to present the Palestinians as trying to drive Israel into the sea when, in fact, Israel the oppressor has been trying to drive the Palestinians into the sea via ethnic cleansing in their own lands through tactics such as the imposition of racist apartheid, the breakup of Palestinian lands into little Warsaw Ghettos into which Palestinian inhabitants are herded

Lance, Ottawa, Canada 10:48PM October 22, 2009

The UN Human Rights Council has taken a bold step by endorsing eminent Judge Richard Goldstone's report despite all of Israel’s efforts to smear this distinguished Jewish person of conscience. Of course, it is understood that some of the states that endorsed this Report have questionable human rights records but so what as the reality still is the same, namely, that Israel, under the so-called leadership of Ehud Olmert, has committed war crimes against th people of Gaza?
Instead of spending all their efforts trying to distract away from the war crimes that Israel has committed against Palestinian civilians but particularly children, Israel supporters do have the choice to write about other issues that they say concern them so much such as Darfur, the Congo and Iran and so on. Instead Israel supporters continuously harp about others needing to write on issues of concern to them!!!! As such, I say to Israel supporters that they do have the power to stop wasting their time defending Israel's documented war crimes against Palestinians and instead take action on those other causes that they say say "concern" them so much. That would be time better served than demanding that others do so all the while complaining about others’ efforts to bring Israel to justice for crimes against humanity.]
Since Israel’s occupation began, thousands of Palestinian civilians including children have been killed by the Israeli military.
Israel always claims that it was a “tragic accident”
The Israeli military has had thousands of so-called “tragic accidents” in which thousands of Palestinians have been killed, and tens of thousands of additional Palestinians injured These so-called “accidents” have happened over and over and over again over decades without cease.]
These so-called “accidents by the Israeli military have happened with every type of weapon platform conceivable including Merkava tanks, Apache helicopter gunships, remotely piloted drones armed with Hell-fire missiles, fighter aircraft, artillery strikes, and even snipers
The State of Israel has received hundreds of billions of dollars in military aid from western nations and yet it still keeps on having these so-called “tragic accidents” leading to one of two conclusions:
1. That the Israeli military is made up of incompetents who can’t shoot straight and upon whom billions of dollars in western aid have been wasted
OR
2. That the Israeli military and civilian leadership think that they have carte blanche to methodically murder Palestinians.]
You be the Judge!!
Moreover, Israel supporters keep on saying Hamas hides behind civilians as if this allows it to murder civilians without cease methodically as already illustrated. ]
My question though is why does Israel hide and, indeed, encourage its soldiers to eat in public cafes and restaurants, ride in public buses to go to and fro from military bases and so on.
In fact, why is the Ministry of Defence even located in the heart of the civilian population of Tel Aviv if Israel is so concerned about its civilians as it keeps on saying? Are Israeli soldiers cowards that they need to hide hide themselves among Israel's civilian population despite all the massive firepower at their disposal? Are Israeli soldiers cowards that they need to hide behind Palestinian civilians as they attacked Gaza as illustrated here:
http://lawrenceofcyberia.blogs.com/news/2006/08/hiding_behind_c.html
Just asking.....

Lance, Ottawa, Canada 10:33PM October 22, 2009

No ones saying kill off the jews, im palestinian and have several jewish friends. and zionism is evil, pure and simple. And if you knew anything about the jewish faith, they believe that they wont have a homeland until their messiah returns to earth. What their doing isnt fighting for their homeland, its pure genocide! The Palestinians were in Jerusalem first, then after WWII all of europe used the excuse that they wanted to help the jews find a homeland just to get them out of europe! And tell me, sadaam hussien attacked the kuwaitis and the kurds in northern iraq and tried to completely wipe them out. Would you not compare that to hitler? Olmert did the same exact thing, invaded lebenon, and bombed gaza, which is mainly palestinians, back to the stone age. He killed hundreds of thousands of people in his premiership, had it been anyone else, the same thing would be said about that person. And Zionism didnt start up till the late 19th century, Jews before then had no intentions of having a homeland, and i have no problem with them having one now, but you cant kill people and take their land, its not right and thats exactly what the state of israel is doing to the palestinian people now. And i lived in palestine for many years, near ramallah, the only thing on every israelis mind is how can we get these people out of here? Had you been educated on the matter youd be able to realize the similarities between olmert, and every other dictator that has tried to wipe out a race!

Alla Razeq of IL 4:18AM October 22, 2009

and you'll realize why there's no peace in the Middle East. This is anti-semitism pure and simple. One commentator compares Olmert to Hitler (no further explanation necessary). The other calls him a "zionist pig". Zionism, the idea that Jews should have the right to exist in their own country, isn't accepted by these commentators, nor the Arabs or Palestinians. Result = centuries of conflict by people who want to kill off the Jews.

David Blake of AZ 6:30PM October 21, 2009

excellent work!! why should we let a mass murderer and war criminal take centre stage...would u let hitler have his turn in the limelight...i think not!! and yes i am comparing him to Hitler...I am comparing all Zionist leaders to hitler and his hateful regime.
keep on the good work fellow comrades!

Defender of rights 5:37AM October 20, 2009

Olmert needs to be put in prison and tortured the way hes tortured so many families, hes nothing but a Zionist pig. anyone who thinks otherwise is a dumbass and Chicago might have its problems but what part of the world doesn't. every year you hear about some unprecedented crime in Israel, something barbaric. I guess its just in Israels nature to be that way. and for your information they lost the bid cause of the country as a whole, after everything the U.S has done in the past 10 years no one on the world would have voted for the Olympics to be anywhere in the states. Olmert doesnt deserve any respect this articles a joke, he doesnt want peace, Every Israeli is just as bad hitler! theyre doing the same exact thing and need to be punished!

Alla Razeq of IL 12:45AM October 20, 2009

You might know this would happen in Chicago, the city of corruption, crime, dead people voting, violence, children killing children, Obama's favority place......Do the students have no respect for people who have taken their time and money to go to their university to speak? Chicago is a terrible place and fortunately the Olympic Committee realize this fact.

A True American of IL 8:52PM October 19, 2009