Convention Razzmatazz!

We got the two Pep Rallies on the road with all the choreographed Razzmatazz! And, of course, I teared up as I always do when I heard our Anthem and “Land of the Free, Home of the Brave!” Both the RNC (Republican National Committee) and the DNC (Democratic National Committee) pulled a made-for-television-Hollywoodish Extravaganza! The People lapped it up! The Thousands of TV Hosts and Journalists attending fawned all over the place!

I watched and listened to the RNC program. It was well done. However, I heard the same old litanies that I have been listening to since 2020! Nothing New! Nothing Original! Nothing Exciting! Only Cowardly Yes-Men  Politicians and Speakers paying homage to Trump! And, as I watched and listened and looked around, I felt that I was merely an onlooker, not a participant. In fact, I felt that what I heard of Continuous Lies, Misinformation, Disinformation and Delusions was only a worrying warning of what a dangerous and ominous precipice this country is verging on! Having said that: Is Everything Trump Utters Wrong? No, it isn’t. In fact, I agree with some of the things that he says.

Then I watched and listened to the DNC program. It was very well done! I felt one with the diversity and positive energy of the People attending. I felt excited, uplifted, even – dare I say – hopeful! I also felt part of that forty-year-old history of the United States that I had been part of since immigrating to this country. There was a Kennedy grandchild – I lived on Kennedy Street in Beirut, Lebanon which was dedicated to JFK after he was assassinated when I wept with sadness and shock – and a grandchild of Carter who has promised to stay alive until he cast his vote for Kamala and Tim. There, too, was Bernie Sanders, my Hero and the Conscience of this country, and Heroine Elizabeth Warren continuing to fight for Equality and Justice. There were the Clintons and the Obamas (I voted twice for both of them) and I attended Baracks’ rally in Virginia when my sister-in-law got us two tickets. And there was Jesse Jackson who, like Martin Luther King Jr. before him, dared to mention Palestine and Palestinians when that was Taboo in the US! A fighter and a courageous Hero for so much that he has contributed! The Speakers, the Subjects and Issues they addressed were my Issues, were what I believed in, what I espoused, and how I aspired to have this Nation evolve into: Freedom, Equality, Inclusivity, Sensibility, Justice, Democracy, Fairness! What could be better? Oh, yes, I lapped it all up, teared up, cheered and felt that I was At Home! Moreover . . .

. . . yes, Moreover, I had never seen in Any US Party Convention that many Humans wearing their Kaffiyehs! Never, ever! I had never seen either Any Pro-Palestinian Protest Demonstrations allowed at Any Convention! Never, ever! I had never seen a Panel on Palestinian Human Rights as part of the Democratic Party Platform. Never, ever! I had also Never, ever seen or heard 36 Palestinian Party Delegates allowed to attend a Convention and mingle with the crowd! Never, ever! And I had Never, ever heard so many Americans – Black, White and all Others – express so much support for the Palestinian People! And, Never, Ever, Ever have I heard a Presidential Candidate include mention of Palestine and Palestinians with as much passion and empathy as Kamala Harris did in her acceptance speech, to thunderous applause may I say! So, Yes and to repeat myself: I felt excited, uplifted, even – dare I say – hopeful!

So, yes, AIPAC, the ADL and others have spent Millions upon Millions and succeeded in defeating Jamal Bowman and Cori Bush in their Congressional Campaigns. And, yes, they had succeeded in silencing so many other voices from speaking up for the Palestinians. And, yes, too, they had succeeded in skewing the Facts, Falsifying Information and Outright Lying about the Palestinian People as the Bigoted, Racist Cowards in the Media echoed their Lies, Deceit and Propaganda. And, yes, the Israeli Government targeted and massacred numerous Palestinian Journalists in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as preventing Foreign Media from being on the ground so as to report directly on the atrocities and genocide that were taking place. But, but . . . in this day and age they could not control the narrative as much as they used to. They simply Cannot!

However, and despite all the Positive Aspects there was no room for a Palestinian voice to be on the stage and to tell our story in person to the attendees. As Jon Stewart mocked: it was only four nights, eight hours a night, so there was no time for a Palestinian Speaker! Disappointing, Discriminatory and flies in the face of Everything that Kamala Harris proclaimed! So my Hopes were dashed – not for the first time! There are still less than Seventy More Days To Go. When the US says: “Ceasefire Now” Netanyahu thumbs his nose at Complicit Biden and Worthless Blinken! Will there be a Ceasefire, or Not? Will Netanyahu derail it again as he has been for the past ten months? There is a Rumor that Trump told him not to accept a Ceasefire until he wins the Election? That wouldn’t be surprising, would it? Will there be a Regional War? Meanwhile the genocide, the devastation, the starvation, the disease, the maiming, the orphaning, the trauma continue both in Gaza and the West Bank, and US Foreign Policy as stated by Kamala in her acceptance speech will not change!! Thousands upon thousands of Innocent Humans being Grotesquely and Vengefully Punished in this manner is Inhumane to say the least! There are so many issues that beckon to me, tempt me to vote for the Democratic Ticket. The proposals by Kamala, should they happen, will ease my life, my children’s and my grandchildren’s. But I am not in the market for selfish considerations. We are talking about millions of Palestinian Humans being Occupied, Subjugated and Genocided and I cannot betray them as well as my conscience because of appeasing words and enticing promises. So, yes, so far I am still painfully and reluctantly withholding my Vote for the Democratic Ticket! Perhaps they don’t need my vote in what promises to be a very close election? Perhaps!