Norman Finkelstein

I will spare you the boring sequence of emails back and forth between Norman Finkelstein and me about BDS in the last few days.  Norman (who took time from his busy schedule as a diplomatic missionary to achieve peace between Arabs and Israeli, from what I read in the Israeli press) wants me to correct the record that he did not speak inaccurately and unfairly against BDS in his recent remarks which I commented on.  I maintain that BDS is like an umbrella organization and that it does not have a ruling politburo.  I never read their literature and don't know much of the organization until Norman informed me.  I count myself as BDS supporter, advocate, and even spokesperson but I am categorically against the existence of the State of Israel and I never argued that our stance against Israel should be predicated on international law (especially that I believe that international law--which gave Israel its birth certificate through the UNSC*--has never been respected by Israel and should be conveniently disregarded by the other side as well).  But if Norman has in mind that particular organization (that he knows much more about than I do), and a particular newsletter of which he speaks, he should say so in the future.  I know it is much easier for his polemical task that he generalizes about the movement as he does, especially when he says that it should speak explicitly against the state of Israel. But I do and I am BDS--not a card carrying member though.

*I erred here. I should have said the UN General Assembly's recommendation.
PS I am alerted that the organization for which Barghuthi speaks is called PACBI and not BDS!