Four times
coaste...@yahoo.com
"Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."
Roger Cohen on Furkan Dogan
with one comment
Roger Cohen of The New York Times has written a good article on Furkan
Dogan, the 19-year-old American Turk who was shot in the head 4 times
by the Israeli commandos who boarded the Gaza-bound humanitarian aid
ship that Furkan joined as an activist. Writes Cohen in “The Forgotten
American:”
…I do find the effacement of Dogan since his death almost two months
ago at once offensive and instructive.
I have little doubt that if the American killed on those ships had
been Hedy Epstein, a St. Louis-based Holocaust survivor, or Edward
Peck, a former U.S. ambassador to Mauritania, we would have heard a
lot more. We would have read the kind of tick-tock reconstructions
that the deaths of Americans abroad in violent and disputed
circumstances tend to provoke. (Epstein had planned to be aboard the
flotilla and Peck was.)
I also have little doubt that if the incident had been different — say
a 19-year-old American student called Michael Sandler killed by a
Palestinian gunman in the West Bank when caught in a cross-fire
between Palestinians and Israelis — we would have been deluged in
stories about him.
But a chill descends when you have the combination of Israeli
commandos doing the firing, an American with a foreign-sounding Muslim
name, and the frenzied pre-emptive arguments of Israel and those among
its U.S. supporters who will brook no criticism of the Jewish state.
This chill is a bad thing. Let’s do whatever it takes to find out how
Dogan died — and the eight other victims.
Cohen should be applauded for doing what the majority of American
mainstream journalists didn’t do — call for a real investigation into
Dogan’s death, but a few additional points need to be made. First,
Cohen is right to point out that Israel would not have “eased” their
illegal blockade of Gaza without the critical international uproar
that resulted after they attacked the Mavi Marmara in international
waters — but the so-called “easing” has still not translated into any
significant change. As UNRWA spokesman John Gunness notes, the illegal
blockade needs to be lifted completely for Palestinians to be able to
live a normal life:
…what we’re seeing is the very basics allowed in, and for life for
Palestinians in Gaza to change, we have to end the blockade. And, you
know, we talk about materials going into Gaza; I want to talk about
materials coming out of Gaza, i.e. exports, because Gaza is 80 per
cent aid dependent and logically by sending in more aid you make it
more aid dependent. What we want to do is make it less aid dependent
and that means getting exports out. There is an international
agreement which foresees 400 trucks a day of exports. That’s the
direction in which we need to move. We have to get exports out of Gaza
because people in Gaza are dignified, they are entrepreneurial, they
are industrious. They can help themselves. We need to stop complaining
about all this money we throw at the Palestinians, about how aid
dependent they are, and all we need to do is get the Israelis to stop
this illegal blockade and allow exports to come out, and we can begin
to go down that road.
Secondly, while Cohen correctly explains that American MSM’s silent
treatment of Dogan has a lot to do with the fact that he was a Muslim-
American who was critical of Israeli policy, it has been proven time
and again that the Muslim-American element isn’t nearly as important
as the critical of Israeli policy element. We already have examples of
innocent Americans who were killed and harmed by Israel — Rachel
Corrie, Brian Avery and Tristan Anderson to name a few — and the
resulting response from the US government and MSM: mostly silence.
But as prominent Jewish-American journalist and blogger Philip Weiss
notes, the fact that a piece like Cohen’s is being allowed to reach
audiences as large as those of the NYT is still something to be
hopeful about.
drahcir
>P U L S E
>"Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."
>Roger Cohen on Furkan Dogan
>with one comment
>
>Roger Cohen of The New York Times has written a good article on Furkan
>Dogan, the 19-year-old American Turk who was shot in the head 4 times
>by the Israeli commandos who boarded the Gaza-bound humanitarian aid
>ship that Furkan joined as an activist. Writes Cohen in “The Forgotten
>American:”
>
>…I do find the effacement of Dogan since his death almost two months
>ago at once offensive and instructive.
>
>I have little doubt that if the American killed on those ships had
>been Hedy Epstein, a St. Louis-based Holocaust survivor,
Hmm, please do inquire to Mr Cohen as to how likely he thinks it is
that a female Holocaust survivor would have attacked the boarders with
a machete.
Zev
wrote:
> P U L S E
> "Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."
> Roger Cohen on Furkan Dogan
> with one comment
>
> Roger Cohen of The New York Times has written a good article on Furkan
> Dogan, the 19-year-old American Turk who was shot in the head 4 times
> by the Israeli commandos who boarded the Gaza-bound humanitarian aid
> ship that Furkan joined as an activist. Writes Cohen in “The Forgotten
> American:”
It's a non-issue.
View the clips.
You'll see why the second wave of soldiers came in shooting.
Doug
news:eaa9ea66-0144-4c25...@o10g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
P U L S E
"Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."
Roger Cohen on Furkan Dogan
with one comment
Roger Cohen of The New York Times has written a good article on Furkan
Dogan, the 19-year-old American Turk who was shot in the head 4 times
by the Israeli commandos who boarded the Gaza-bound humanitarian aid
ship that Furkan joined as an activist. Writes Cohen in “The Forgotten
American:”
***************************
Was Dogan wielding a metal pipe at the time? Or a firearm
of some type?
dsharavi
wrote:
> P U L S E
> "Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."
> Roger Cohen on Furkan Dogan
> with one comment
>
> Roger Cohen of The New York Times has written a good article on Furkan
> Dogan, the 19-year-old American Turk who was shot in the head 4 times
> by the Israeli commandos who boarded the Gaza-bound humanitarian aid
> ship that Furkan joined as an activist. Writes Cohen in “The Forgotten
> American:”
>
> …I do find the effacement of Dogan since his death almost two months
> ago at once offensive and instructive.
>
> I have little doubt that if the American killed on those ships had
> been Hedy Epstein, a St. Louis-based Holocaust survivor, or Edward
> Peck, a former U.S. ambassador to Mauritania, we would have heard a
> lot more. We would have read the kind of tick-tock reconstructions
> that the deaths of Americans abroad in violent and disputed
> circumstances tend to provoke. (Epstein had planned to be aboard the
> flotilla and Peck was.)
>
> I also have little doubt that if the incident had been different — say
> a 19-year-old American student called Michael Sandler killed by a
> Palestinian gunman in the West Bank when caught in a cross-fire
> between Palestinians and Israelis — we would have been deluged in
> stories about him.
Readers' comments:
Harvey Tress
Albany NY
July 27th, 2010
12:50 am
What is the source of the material in italics about how harmless he
was?
Oz
Queens, NY
July 27th, 2010
12:58 am
To use a technical term Roger, that is a bunch of bunk. The Israeli
embargo is there to prevent weapons from going to Gaza. Their policy
was and has been to search the ships, ascertain there are no weapons
or weapons making material and let every bit of real aid go through.
If it was a humanitarian mission, to simply get supplies to Gaza, the
young man and the rest of the crew should have pulled into Ashdod, get
inspected and voila, mission accomplished.
Rather than to simply deliver aid, the flotilla decided to go the
"let's goad the Israelis and see how much bad press we can generate
about the evil, apartheid, totalitarian, human rights violating, U.N.
flaunting, land stealing, theocratic, despot, hawkish, Republican tea
bagging (can't get much worse then that, right party of yessers?)
Zionist Israelis." So they did. They began beating the boarding party
with metal rods, as if it was part of the plan. In fact it was the
plan as evidenced by the many who viewed the mission as one of
martyrdom.
There is a simple legal concept called assumption of risk. If you put
yourself in a dangerous situation, you have no one to blame but
yourself for any adverse consequences. Yes he was an American. Yes
Roger painted a boo hoo picture of how the great American dream was
dashed to pieces. This young man dashed it himself. Just as Hamas, and
not the Israeli embargo, dashes the hopes and dreams of the
Palestinian people.
Mikee
Anderson, CA
July 27th, 2010
10:08 am
The so-called humanitarian aid flotilla was in fact a direct
provocation to break a blockade preventing shipments of arms and
ammunition to Gaza. All that was asked was that the vessels agree to
onboad inspection before being allowed to proceed. Instead, the
organizers chose a confrontation model and the Israeli commandos
reacted as could be predicted. Now they have their international
incident to point to and an eager press gives them credence and
praise.
Ilsa
Milan, Italy
July 27th, 2010
10:10 am
But was he really American?
Yes, he was born in America and technically he was an American
citizen. But it is a sad story of death of a youngster who despite his
superficial affiliation to the USA acted fanatically as a Turkish
representative, encouraged if not actually mandated by the Turkish
government to support the interests of a Palestinian faction declared
by the USA as a terrorist group.
Danny
Albany NY
July 27th, 2010
10:14 am
The IHH sponsor of that ship, the Turkish government, Hamas, and the
thugs and terrorists aboard who planned the armed resistance to the
IDF hijacked any humanitarian purpose to that ship. The media too is
responsible for constantly portraying a non-existent humanitarian
crisis in Gaza. Economic conditions there are not a result of Israel's
embargo, but Hamas's facist Islamist regime, its absolute hatred of
Israel and Jews, and its use of all economic and human resources
towards its aim of destroying Israel. I am so fed up with the world
that seems to act aghast every time Israel protects itself against a
huge surrounding mass of people and lands who are constantly looking
to find ways to de-legitimize and destroy its people. It is so
hypocritical.... if any of those Israel-bashers lived in Israel within
range of Hezbollah, Hamas and Iranian rockets and had their families
running for cover every day for years to avoid death and devastation,
they would be singing a different tune. THose people need to wake up
from their slumbering in the safe confines of their quiet little
American communities and find out how it is to live in a tiny country
that is surrounded by hundreds of millions of people clamoring for
"wiping you off the face of the earth". That goes for you too Roger
and your disgraceful record of writing about the Middle East. I wish
you would keep your self-serving, deceitful and misguided "sympathies"
to yourself.
dr m
chicago
July 27th, 2010
10:24 am
I think what you all need to remember is that this ship had terrorists
on it that beat soldiers with metal rods and stabbed them with knives
instantaneously upon boarding the ship. The party at fault for this
young man's life isn't the Israeli army, but the terrorists who were
on the boat that attacked the soldiers. Had they peacefully brought
the ship to port for inspection and not attacked the soldiers, not ONE
person would have been hurt.
Charles R. Gaithersburg, MD
July 27th, 2010
10:17 am
Somehow Mr. Cohen you don't seem to have the same (any?) compassion
for the kidnapped Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, who Hamas has now
held for over 4 years. Israeli's forceably removed other Israelis to
let the Palestinians have all of Gaza and have nothing to show for it,
but the hatred spewed by Hamas and taught to their children in the
guise of Mickey Mouse. Where is the Palestinian quid pro quo, Mr.
Cohen? Hamas and the other terrorist organizations need to be held to
the same standard that you hold Israel and the U.S. to, but you
apparently want to give them a pass. When you and the other
Palestinian apologists finally hold everyone to the same standard,
then I'll take your arguments more seriously.
David Simantob
Los Angeles, CA
July 27th, 2010
10:20 am
Israel allowed food into Gaza, which is more than what the US allowed
enter countries with which it was at war. So, the flotilla's and your
opposition to Israel's embargo must be the fact it made it difficult
for Hamas to rearm. So, the next time a rocket is launched at Sedorot
or the rest of Israel, the next time a Jewish child gets blown up,
think how much your words and the flotilla's actions assisted in
shedding another Jewish life. The left seems so concerned about
whether Hamas can import luxury goods that they forget that Hamas'
goal as set forth in its charter is to destroy the Jewish state. The
fact that Hamas and other Islamists have failed is not for the lack of
trying
madrona
washington
July 27th, 2010
It's a bit of a stretch to call someone an American--born to Turkish
parents, spending only two years of his life in the US, and growing up
and being educated in Turkey. Furthermore, it was crystal clear that
the ship would be in danger--its occupants had their eyes wide open--
it reminds me of Rachel Corrie standing in front of an oncoming
Israeli bulldozer and her survivors wondering why she died.
J
Chicago IL
July 27th, 2010
10:43 am
I have another problem with Mr. Cohen's approach. He speaks of Furkan
Dogan's growing up in the states and "good intentions" in joining the
flotilla. But the bottom line is Mr. Cohen doesn't actually address
exactly what happened to get Mr. Dogan killed. We're all aware now
that the "peace activists" that boarded the ship and who were
supposedly registered on board were kept separate from the core group
of terrorists that took control of the deck. And that most of those
killed on deck were those attacking Israeli soldiers with pipes that
were wrenched from the deck as the soldiers arrived. So if this is the
case could it possibly be that Mr. Dogan was one of those violent
attackers that took it upon himself to attack Israeli commandos? And
if this is so what does this say about Mr. Dogan? And what does it say
about Mr. Cohen's reporting ethics? Its all nice and grand to make
some kid a martyr because he was killed in the name of supposedly
being on a humanitarian mission, but taking events out of context and
absolving those (the IHH members on board and the Turkish government)
of all responsiblity for the results of their actions is in itself a
form of not only assent, but of collaboration.
A. Cahen
St. Louis
July 27th, 2010
10:01 am
I am usually a big fan of Roger Cohen's writing, however, I have to
admit that I find this piece quite upsetting. Indeed, ironically, I
find it populist.
The appeal to emotions here is misleading and disturbing. Dogan was an
American, no doubt. He was born in America and had an American
passport. And, indeed, had he not also been a Turkish national with a
Muslim name, it is likely that there would have been a much greater
outcry in the US than there in fact was. However, it is quite a
different thing to say that it is *because* he has a Muslim name that
no outcry was heard. And it is quite a different thing to say that
such an outcry would have been the appropriate response (even if he
were a Christian with an American sounding name instead).
Dogan may have had an American passport, but he lived his entire life
in Turkey, in an environment that has obviously led him eventually to
partake in some very dangerous activities. We don't know the exact
story behind his choices. Nor do we know the stories of the other
Turkish nationals who have lost their lives in the tragic incident. An
investigation that would shed some light on these lost souls is
necessary.
However, the absurdity of this article is the singling out of Dogan as
somehow deserving of different treatment from the other casualties, a
treatment that Americans should demand, and would have demanded had he
been a Cristian with a different name. As though the fact that he
spent his infancy in America somehow endowed him not only with a
passport, but also with an inability to do wrong. It is to this
thought that Cohen is implicitly appealing. And it is emotions tied to
coarse national prejudices that he attempts to elicit. Muslim or not,
American or not, the life story of Dogan and the eight others has led
them to do something that some would call brave, some would call
stupid, and some would call illicit or worse.
Had his name been different it would, admittedly, have been easier for
Americans to single him out as somehow deserving of special attention.
But that would be an automatic singling out based on blind
nationalistic pride, rather than on anything substantive. It would be
pure and simple prejudice. The same prejudice that Cohen supposedly
cries out against in pointing to his Muslim name. Rather, his Muslim
name simply made it simpler for Americans to understand the
circumstances underlying Dogan's story as on a par with those of the
eight others who were his de facto compatriots (both nationally and
culturally). It is *this* life story that is relevant *not* the fact
that he happened to have an American passport. It is not because he
has a Muslim sounding name that there was little outcry, but because
the relevant circumstances of his life were taken (correctly) to have
been his Turkish environment, and his American passport was taken
(correctly) to be completely irrelevant to his story (as sad and
unfortunate as it was).
So, while people's gut reaction to his Muslim name has made it easy
for the outcry to remain muffled, this gut reaction (as wrong as it is
in general) has in fact guided Americans in the right direction - to
focus on what is in fact relevant to his untimely death, that context
which he shared with the other eight people (though obviously, each
has his own personal story within that shared context). The gut
reaction which Cohen is eliciting is *equally* wrong. Had Dogan had a
Christian name American reactions would have guided them (again, for
exactly the wrong reasons) to single out his story above others... as
though the name or the passport were in any way relevant.
The lack of interest in Dogan's case is upsetting, but it is upsetting
not because he was born in America, but because he, just like the
other eight, died in suspicious circumstances that need to be
uncovered.