Are you Oppressed or an Oppressor?

Generations of kids have been raised on a world view of Oppressed versus Oppressor by teaching a counter narrative that casts Israel (and America) as Oppressors.

In contrast, we grew up learning in school that America and Israel are beacons of freedom and democracy in the world.

We were appalled after downloading a one-sided lesson on the Israel-Gaza war from our youngest son’s Freshman Ethnic Studies class last November. This slide doesn’t mention Hamas is a terrorist organization, declared by both the U.S. and E.U.

The slides don’t mention Israel fought for its survival in 1948, 1967 and 1973, and on the 50th anniversary of the 1973 Yom Kippur War - Hamas attacked Israel

I watched as Black September terrorists took Israeli athletes hostage at the 1972 Munich summer olympics, and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) highjacked commercial airliners every few months. On Oct 6, 1973, I was on a camping trip to Yosemite Valley when Egypt and Syria surprise attacked Israel during the Yom Kippur holiday, exactly 50 years before Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023. They say history repeats itself.

Nor do they mention the Camp David, Oslo and Abraham peace agreements Israel has reached with its Arab neighbors.

Nor do the slides mention Iran, Hezbollah or Houthi

I watched for over a year as Iranian students took 53 Americans hostage in 1979-80 in Tehran as Ayotollah Khomeni arrived from exile. 50 years later, the repressive Iranian theocracy and Revolutionary Guard still chants, “Death to America/Death to Israel” and in 2022, its morality police killed Mahsa Amini for not wearing her hijab properly. Iran is the true bully in the Middle East equipping Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthis. On April 13, the Iranians fired 300 rockets and missiles toward Israel.

The news media doesn’t report that Hezbollah killed 240 U.S. Marines in Beirut on a peace keeping mission in 1983 during the Lebanese civil war

I remember Al Qaeda’s attacks on our African embassies, the U.S.S. Cole bombing while in the Yemeni port of Aden, and finally on America itself on Sept. 11, 2001. In Ramadi, Iraq, American forces convinced local sheiks in 2006, known as the Anbar Awakening to reject Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), who would later evolve into ISIS. It took until 2019 for our coalition to defeat ISIS in Syria.

7,000 American soldiers died fighting the War on Terror and 3,000 died on 9/11 - and now we want to negotiate with terrorists?

Oct. 7, 2022 - Hamas attacked and murdered 1200 Israeli civilians, and took over 200 hostages to Gaza. Pro-Palestinian protestors in the U.S. carry signs “By all means necessary” meaning this heinous act of terrorism is morally acceptable, and “From the river to the sea” means the elimination of Israel from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea. It’s horrible that 40,000 Palestinians have died, of which 15,000 are estimated militants. Since Oct 7, Hezbollah has been firing rockets into northern Israel, including killing 12 Israeli children playing soccer on July 28.

Palestinian children are taught in schools to hate Jews and blame Israel for their misery.

Hamas uses Palestinian families as human shields, and many Palestinians willingly hide Hamas fighters, and even hold hostages. Until the Palestinian people renounce the destruction of Israel and reject Hamas leadership, can a two-state solution be realistic.

Palo Alto Daily Post question to Congressional candidates: How do you think the United States government should respond to the war in Gaza?

For our national security, we must stand by Israel against Iran-backed terrorists. History shows this conflict is part of a much broader conflict between Iran, who funds and equips Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthi terrorist armies, all determined to eliminate Israel. The U.S. must act as a deterrent to Iran and Hezbollah to prevent this war from escalating throughout the Middle East.

There’s no question that Israeli and Palestinian casualties are a tragedy. But for a two-state solution to work, Hamas must be replaced with a democratic government in Gaza willing to recognize Israel’s right to exist.

We want teachers to teach controversial issues, but we want them to teach our kids HOW to think, not WHAT to think. The teacher did not follow clear District policy stating both sides are to be taught on contentious topics. The ethnic studies lesson wound up in a 45-minute documentary Killing America about the loss of meritocracy in our high schools.

CGYWHAE - Common ground you won’t hear anywhere else.