Statement about Helen Thomas and Move Over AIPAC (Helen Thomas withdraws from conference)

[Douglas Carpenter]

Statement about Helen Thomas and Move Over AIPAC

On April 14, 2011, in Latest News, by Move Over AIPAC!

Over 100 organizations have come together to endorse the Move Over AIPAC gathering in DC in May during AIPAC’s annual conference. Helen Thomas was invited to speak, as a journalist who is fearless about questioning power and unnecessary wars, but because some of her comments have sparked controversy, several members of the coalition and our grassroots community had concerns about her appearance.

When Thomas was informed about this, she feared that the focus of the events might shift to her, instead of AIPAC and U.S. policy, and she gracefully withdrew her participation. “I am delighted that people are coming together for this gathering and I want to make sure that the focus stays on AIPAC and U.S. policy, not me,” she said.

Organizers of the May gathering are focused on AIPAC because they believe it is one of the great barriers to building a more just US foreign policy in Israel and Palestine based on democracy and human rights. More information about Move Over AIPAC can be found at http://www.moveoveraipac.org/


http://www.moveoveraipac.org/2011/04/life-long-journalist-helen-thomas-to-be-honored-at-move-over-aipac-summit-2/

[Douglas Carpenter]

1. speakers include Patch Adams and others.....

INDIVIDUAL ENDORSEMENTS & SPEAKERS

James Abourezk, Frmr US Senator

Ali Abunimah, Author and a Co-founder of The Electronic Intifada

Patch Adams, Clown Doctor

Anna Baltzer, National Organizer, US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation

Dalit Baum, Israeli activist and researcher

Phyllis Bennis, Analyst at the Institute for Policy Studies

Laila El Haddad, Blogger/writer

Nadia Hijab, Palestinian analyst and writer

Hedy Epstein, Holocaust survivor

Bill Fletcher, Author and union organizer

Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb, Director of Shomer Shalom

Abdeen Jabara, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

Naomi Klein, Author

John Mearsheimer, (Keynote Speaker) Prof. of Pol. Science, Univ. of Chicago

Ralph Nader, Consumer advocate

Rebecca Vilkomerson, Executive Director of Jewish Voice for Peace

Alice Walker, Author

Stephen Walt, (Keynote Speaker) Prof. of International Affairs, Harvard Univ

Ret. Col. Ann Wright

http://www.moveoveraipac.org/endorsers/


.

[shira]

5. Oh great, a "who's who" of pro-war BDS'ers will be there!

They'll fight AIPAC with their one-state solution!!!

Yippee!


=========

On the antisemitism infesting the BDS movement...
http://engageonline.wordpress.com/2010/10/24/antisemitism-and-the-boycott-david-hirsh-responds-to-ran-greenstein/

J-Street opposes the BDS anti-peace movement...
http://jstreet.org/policy/issues/the-boycott-divestment-sanctions-movement/

[Jefferson23]

2. This may have come too late, if the MSM gives

any focus to this event the commentators will remind the audience that Helen Thomas was
indeed invited and that speaks volumes about the group, blah, blah, blah. I do hope the conversation
will be broad and to involve US interests in the region and not focus exclusively on pro-Israel groups
suggesting there is only one damaging influence.

I am referring to tv land MSM coverage in particular btw.

[Douglas Carpenter]

3. This statement was released on 14 April - The Haaretz and JTA articles are dated 17 April

So it appears that the story that Helen was speaking was published and posted three days after the conference committee had already announced that she was no longer attending or speaking at the conference.

[Jefferson23]

4. Oh my goodness, and thanks for the info. n/t

[azurnoir]

7. One can only wonder what was to be gained from such

disingenuous reporting

[shira]

6. Odd as to why it was reported like that. Nevertheless...

...the anti-Israel contingent here didn't seem to have a problem with Helen speaking there.

[King_David]

8. Damage done,too bad for their conference

Guess they needed 'How to avoid PR disaster 101' book.

Or 'PR disasters for dummies'

Or when holding anti-Israel events try not to schedule speakers who get the `code` wrong.



This Conferences credibility is now SHOT !!!!

[azurnoir]

9. so that was the intention? but then it would seem that Haaretz and JTA knowingly

printed a falsehood and a slanderous one at that if indeed it was to delegitimize the conference was their intent how desperate and dishonest of them

[shira]

10. The organizers and CodePink still wanted her there, didn't they? You certainly didn't object.

CodePink still wants to reward her for her bigotry.

I suspect you don't think it's a big deal that the organizers of this event wanted Helen Thomas in a prominent role to represent them.

[azurnoir]

11. she withdrew prior to JTA's and Haaretzes article

that CodePink had initially invited her makes it no less a lie, no less dishonest

[shira]

16. It wasn't just CodePink that invited her to be THE keynote speaker of the entire conference. n/t

[azurnoir]

18. huh? she was not the keynote speaker or are you going on claims of

publications whose veracity is seriously in question?

[azurnoir]

13. Now to take on your personal attack in a separate post

I did not object I did point out there were other speakers in a post that contained her withdrawal from the conference, yet no one seemed to take note of that why? could it be for the same reasons as Haaretz and JTA?

[shira]

15. What personal attack? Are you kidding?

So why didn't you object to Helen being the keynote speaker there?

Or object to CodePink rewarding her?

[azurnoir]

17. because they did neither I felt the article(s) suspect and found

they were, in fact nothing on CodePinks site say anything about an 'award' so that could well have been an 'embellishment' by JTA and Haaretz

[shira]

19. They did neither? Here you go...

Life-Long Journalist Helen Thomas to be honored at Move Over AIPAC Summit
On April 14, 2011, in Latest News, by admin
digg
Email
We’re delighted to announce that Helen Thomas, who spent her career questioning the powerful and speaking out against war and injustice, will be joining us in DC as a keynote speaker at the Move Over AIPAC Summit on Saturday, May 21. Register today to hear Helen speak!

You can send a message to Helen online that we will hand deliver along with a pink badge of courage to her at the Summit.

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:cYlQe4sAozQJ:www.moveoveraipac.org/2011/04/life-long-journalist-helen-thomas-to-be-honored-at-move-over-aipac-summit-2/+helen+thomas+aipac+move+over&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=safari&source=www.google.com

That's from a google cache so it won't be there much longer b/c MoveOverAipac decided to replace the original article with one showing Helen will not be there. Check out the URL and you'll see the titles don't match.

http://www.moveoveraipac.org/2011/04/life-long-journalist-helen-thomas-to-be-honored-at-move-over-aipac-summit-2/

=============

As to CodePink...

If you can’t join us, send a message to Helen that we will hand deliver along with a pink badge of courage.

http://codepinkalert.org/article.php?id=5789

=============

Lastly, Mondoweiss was reporting the same thing as Haaretz on April 17th...
http://mondoweiss.net/2011/04/move-over-aipac-conference-hosts-helen-thomas.html

You see, MoveOverAipac had that on their website until the 17th.

:eyes:

So you're wrong about assigning sinister motives to Haaretz and other Jewish publications.

[azurnoir]

20. here is what your Google webcache says

Over 100 organizations have come together to endorse the Move Over AIPAC gathering in DC in May during AIPAC’s annual conference. Helen Thomas was invited to speak, as a journalist who is fearless about questioning power and unnecessary wars, but because some of her comments have sparked controversy, several members of the coalition and our grassroots community had concerns about her appearance.

When Thomas was informed about this, she feared that the focus of the events might shift to her, instead of AIPAC and U.S. policy, and she gracefully withdrew her participation. “I am delighted that people are coming together for this gathering and I want to make sure that the focus stays on AIPAC and U.S. policy, not me,” she said.

Organizers of the May gathering are focused on AIPAC because they believe it is one of the great barriers to building a more just US foreign policy in Israel and Palestine based on democracy and human rights. More information about Move Over AIPAC can be found at www.moveoveraipac.org.

and now your using Mondoweiss as proof? too funny almost as good as Press TV

[shira]

21. That's not what the webcache says. I posted 2 links.

Mondoweiss, as I wrote previously, shows that as of April 17th (just 2 days ago and the same time in which Haaretz reported) MoveOverAipac was still announcing they were having Helen Thomas as a keynote speaker.

[azurnoir]

22. total BS your first link dated 4/14/11 linked to what I posted

and what I posted was your second link dated 4/14/11

[shira]

23. The first link is the webcache with the original article that Mondoweiss C/P'd on 4/17/2011. n/t

[azurnoir]

24. so what Mondoweiss played the same shit for different reasons

the one that is most 'surprising' is Haaretz

eta when you click on the Mondoweiss link you get exactly what I posted and the date line says

On April 14, 2011, in Latest News, by Move Over AIPAC!

[shira]

25. Hard to admit the 4/14 article was up until at least 4/17? The day Haaretz reported on it? n/t

[azurnoir]

26. the 4/14 article was up on 4/14 but at least you admit Haaretz printed a falsehood

as did Mondoweiss and JTA

[shira]

27. Apparently it was up until at least 4/17 until it was replaced with the new article, right? n/t

[azurnoir]

28. The new article is dated 4/14 and was up already on 4/17

as far as HT being the 'keynote speaker the last line od the JTA article reads

Walt and Mearsheimer, scholars who wrote the 2006 book "The Israel Lobby," will deliver the keynote address.

[shira]

29. Mondoweiss linked to the original 4/14 article on 4/17 & at that time HT was still keynote speaker

Why do you think Mondoweiss would dishonestly link to a different article on 4/17?

[azurnoir]

30. no and no matter how you attempt to convolute it is quite clear

JTA, Mondoweiss, and Haaretz all engaged in 'yellow journalism Haaretz still has the story uncorrected on their front page, but Haaretz has engaged in some questionable things of late including a story about 4 Israeli Arabs arrested for sexually abusing an Israeli Jewish boy Ynet printed the same story however the 4 were released within a few hours later when the kid recanted his claims Ynet printed the retraction immediately, Haaretz took shall we say a bit longer(a couple days) and then hid it at the bottom of page while still running the uncorrected original as a most read

[shira]

31. So you have no explanation for why Mondoweiss would link to an older 4/14 article on 4/17. n/t

[azurnoir]

33. Because the olderarticle was all there was and still is

Weiss should pay more attention or perhaps like Haaretz and JTA it was as I already said 'yellow journalism' the same shit different reasons

[shira]

34. The only thing you're correct about is that Haaretz, etc.. should retract or change the story.

But it's not like they do that all the time either on stories that demonize or criticize Israel, so what do you expect?

[azurnoir]

35. well you are as I have said before entitled to your opinion

but that does not make it fact

[shira]

36. So why didn't you show concern about Helen speaking before the reversal? n/t

[azurnoir]

37. jeebus we've been over this twice already because I knew the articles were ah 'suspect' n/t

[shira]

38. Yeah, I call BS on that one. n/t

[azurnoir]

39. you call BS on what? That I knew? n/t

[azurnoir]

32. wrong place n/t

[King_David]

12. I do not generally buy into conspiracy theories nt

[azurnoir]

14. You were the one that seemed to proudly proclaim it I asked a question

about your statement if you read my comment, but perhaps poor reading cognition explains Haaretz, JTA and several posters here better what do you think?