I Want To Remember You As A Nice Person…

(...but you’re making it very hard because of your support for genocide)

I Want To Remember You As A Nice Person (but you’re making it very hard because of your support for genocide)

by C.A. Matthews

Dear “Friend”:

I honestly don’t know how to address you. I apologize if you no longer consider me your friend or if you don’t want me to call you a friend, but I still care about you. I’m very concerned about you because of recent comments you made. This is why I’m writing you this letter.

I’m going to come out and admit what’s really bothering me here. No beating about the bush. No subtle hints or subtext. Just plain ol’ English. Okay, here goes… Aagh! This is going to be much harder than I thought it would be.

There should be some polite way of saying what’s driving us apart, but I can’t think of any way to put it other than the brutal truth: I don’t trust you anymore. There. I’ve said it. I can’t trust anyone who thinks that the genocide of 200,000+ human beings in Gaza is “joyful” or “not important in this election”.

You’ve used those terms about what’s happening in Gaza and the West Bank on social media platforms. You’ve taunted me and others like me there and ignored me whenever I wanted to discuss the subject further in person. You’ve even insulted my intelligence when I told you who I supported for president.

You told me that I’m “wasting” my vote by supporting an anti-genocide candidate who wants to cut the military budget in half and close down all the foreign bases which provoke conflict. Voting for someone other than who the oligarchy wants in the White House as their chosen puppet to continue their eternal wars for resource grabs isn’t a “wasted vote” by far. I think you’re throwing yours away along with your conscience.

What was it that Eugene Debs said? “I’d rather vote for what I want and not get it, than vote for what I don’t want and get it?” If everyone voted their conscience, we probably wouldn’t have these corporate owned puppets currently in office and their forever wars. We’d have Medicare For All and our predatory college loans forgiven. We would have Reparations and public housing to house the homeless. I’m happy to to want these good things for the greater good of society, not more profits for the greedy capitalists. People, planet and peace speaks to me and so many others.

At first, I was surprised by your decision to support a corporate-owned candidate because I thought you were smart enough to know better when you were being used. I thought possibly it was because you came to rely too much on the hate-filled propaganda spewing forth from the mainstream media. I thought possibly you were trying to impress a new crowd in order to land a better paying job or pick up a rich partner. Now I see things differently.

Lately, you seem to actually like the idea of bloodshed and racism. You project the image of being the Westerner who thinks he/she/they is always right because we got the big nukes and the bigger bombers. You’re singing the praises of the NATO thugs, those who field test their expensive war gadgets on indigenous peoples and sell them on to others of a like mind. Ugh.

I’m saddened you were reached through such devious means, and that you came to agree with these warmongers, not fight back against them. I’m saddened that you would use heavy-handed vote shaming tactics to guilt me and others. Trying to pressure us into making a similar deal with the devil that you made isn’t appealing. We will always vote our consciences.

Children in Gaza are being blown into tiny bits so small that their families have to collect their remains in plastic bags! How could I trust anyone who thinks the most vulnerable of humankind are fair game to be pulverized? Would you be okay with an invading power mass murdering your kids or your nephews and nieces? Is it okay because they’re not the same race or religion as you? What does that say about you if you do?

Genocide is horrific. It’s a tragedy, and it must be stopped. It shouldn’t be continued simply because your preferred politician takes in millions of lobbyist dollars from AIPAC, Lockheed-Martin, Raytheon, General Dynamics and the like and dare not shut down the War Machine.

And let’s not forget the big bucks coming from Big Oil, either. We were once on the same side of that battle—fighting hard to stop the pipelines from being built and calling attention to the industrial polluters of our waters. Now you’re supporting a candidate who actually promotes even more fracking on federal lands? Times have really changed.

What happened? Did “money talk” and you felt you have to go this route to maintain your comfortable standard of living? Why are you so willing to let others less fortunate suffer in order for you to have two super large screen TVs and a shiny new car? Will these material possessions make you happy? Happier than belonging to a group that is fighting for justice and a lasting peace in the world?

I don’t know what happened to you, or how to reach you anymore. How can I trust anyone who thinks two day old twin babies and their mother bombed into oblivion in an IOF targeted attack “got what they deserved” as you posted on X? That’s just plain sick. And the American activist who was shot in the head for the crime of being a peace activist in the West Bank…We were once young and idealistic like her. Did she really “deserve it”?

Do you really hear yourself when you say those words aloud? Maybe you only type them into the response box with your screen avatar. It’s cowardly of you not to state out loud what you really stand for with your real name beside it.

Go ahead and shout it from the rooftops: “I support genocide, and I’m willing to vote for the corporate-owned candidate who aids and abets the perpetrators of genocide. I’m also okay with a young American peace activist being shot in cold blood by the IDF.”

There. Feel better? At least you’re being honest with yourself now. You weren’t fooling anyone else.

I want to remember you as a nice person, but you’re making it very hard because of your support for genocide. This genocide in Gaza has really defined this generation, this moment in time, for good or for ill. Some are fighting hard to stop it and others are fighting to keep it going for the continued profits of the war machine. You’ve fallen into the second group, and it breaks my heart.

I can no longer have anything to do with negative people. They’ve become a drain on our country’s psyche and my own. They’ve destroyed their consciences and for what? To elect more warmongering genocide-enablers? To maintain the same corrupt status quo?

Instead, I will continue standing with others who are speaking out against all genocides and against all proxy wars and attempts to start nuclear Armageddon. I will continue to fight for a clean environment and for universal health care and other social programs that will help struggling people.

Perhaps someplace deep down in your soul you might still desire to do the same?

You are welcome to come and join us anytime. You’ve seen our online petitions and email drives. You’ve seen us on the street corners and marching in parades. You’re free to march beside me there.

No questions asked, no excuses needed. Just hop on in and pick up a sign. We could use another activist who seeks justice and peace for all standing with us.

I hope to see you someday soon.

Sincerely,

Your former and hopefully future friend

P.S. Feel free to share this letter with anyone you’re having a hard time wanting to remember as a nice person because… You know.

From the Jill Stein campaign:

Aysenur Ezgi Eygi (above) was 26 years old. She recently graduated from the University of Washington in Seattle.

She was like millions of our daughters and nieces and sisters – her whole life ahead of her. But now Aysenur Eygi is dead – murdered by Israel today in the West Bank.

I am sickened. I am heartbroken. I am disgusted and outraged. And you should be, too.

Today the Israeli Occupation Forces brutally murdered Aysenur – an American citizen and a peace activist protesting settlements in the West Bank.

Israeli forces shot her in the head. Deliberately. Just as they did Shireen Abu Akleh two years ago.

Mainstream media is already working overtime to whitewash this crime.

They’ve described Aysenur as a “Turkish-American” or “American-Turkish” in an obvious attempt to downplay her identity as a full American citizen (not that her citizenship should matter ... but to our policymakers and the public, it does).

They’ve called it “a shooting” stating that “an activist was killed” without describing how she died – or by whose hand.

Just after graduation this year, Aysenur joined a group of activists with the International Solidarity Movement, going directly to the heart of danger to hold the line as a peace activist against illegal Israeli “settlements” in the West Bank.

That’s where she was today when, unprovoked, IDF soldiers murdered her in cold blood with a killshot directly to the head.

Biden administration officials like Anthony Blinken can wring their hands and cluck their tongues and “condemn” the horrific violence playing out every single day against Palestinians and peace activists in every part of Palestine (NOT just Gaza).

But those protestations ring hollow when the same people shaking their heads with regret and dismay are rubber-stamping the latest billion-dollar-arms shipment to the murderers pointing the gun.

Aysenur Eygi was a brilliant young woman who dedicated her life to the service of others. As a fresh graduate she could have been chasing the career of her dreams. But she chose to hold the line for Palestine.

In February of this year, following the death of three American soldiers in Jordan at the suspected hands of Iranian-backed proxy rebels, Joe Biden forcefully declared: “If you harm an American, we will respond."

Well Joe. They murdered an American today. Will you finally stop arming the murderers?

The truth is Biden won’t seek justice for Aysenur because he knows that ultimately, he is responsible. By arming this fascist, murderous, apartheid regime and giving them unrestricted political cover, he may as well have loaded the gun.

Aysenur will not rest until we end our support for this violent regime.

As your president, I will terminate all arms transfers and military aid to Israel on DAY ONE of my administration. I will impose an arms embargo until the Israeli government joins the peace process as a legitimate partner and an honest broker. And I will support international arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his cabinet of thugs.

Biden called Israel’s planned assault on Rafah a “red line.” Israel ignored the United States, ignored the international community, and invaded Rafah with a devastating military assault. And nothing happened.

Now they’ve murdered an American citizen – and still nothing is happening.

It ends with us.

In solidarity,

Jill

Donate: jillstein2024.com/donate

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links

Gazan Humanitarian Access Snapshot #3 (What you can't send into Gaza--this forbidden list will make you sad.) https://www.mercycorps.org/sites/default/files/2024-08/gaza-humanitarian-access-snapshot-3.pdf

IDF KILLS American In The West Bank youtu.be/rRw6QX8_wLs

It's The Trump Party Vs The Cheney Party https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/its-the-trump-party-vs-the-cheney

Campaigning Against Genocide (w/ Dr. Jill Stein & Butch Ware) | The Chris Hedges Report https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/campaigning-against-genocide-w-dr

Popular Israeli Podcasters Crave Button to Press That Would 'Erase Every Single Living Being in Gaza' https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/israeli-podcast-gaza-genocide-button

Testing the boundaries for ethnic cleansing in the West Bank https://mondoweiss.net/2024/09/testing-the-boundaries-for-ethnic-cleansing-in-the-west-bank/

Israeli forces accused of killing their own citizens under the 'Hannibal Directive' during October 7 chaos https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-09-07/israel-hannibal-directive-kidnap-hamas-gaza-hostages-idf/104224430

Congratulations AIPAC on 500th air delivery of US weapons to kill Gazans – Day 324 https://israelpalestinenews.org/500th-air-delivery-weapons-kill-gazans-day-324/

An arms embargo on Israel is not a radical idea — it’s the law https://mondoweiss.net/2024/08/an-arms-embargo-on-israel-is-not-a-radical-idea-its-the-law/

The War on Gaza – 6.11.24 https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/the-war-on-gaza-61124

There Is No Argument For Supporting Israel That's Both Logical And Moral https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/there-is-no-argument-for-supporting

This isn’t the twelfth century. We’re not going from birth to death in tiny communities unconnected to the rest of the world. Whatever device you’re reading this on has parts from multiple foreign countries, which passed through countless foreign hands to come into yours. We all touch one another’s lives around the world from distances which used to have no relevance to the human experience of this planet.

We need to begin thinking, feeling, and living in accordance with this new reality. We cannot continue along the ecocidal, omnicidal trajectory that our small circles of compassion have made possible, or else we will go extinct.

That’s why you should care about Gaza. Because humanity’s collective failure to care about such things is driving our species further and further into misery and dystopia, and closer and closer to the precipice of eternal oblivion.

Caitlin Johnstone: "Why Should I Care About Gaza?" https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/why-should-i-care-about-gaza

You Can Measure The Health Of A Society By How It Treats Its Warmongers And Its Peacemongers https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/you-can-measure-the-health-of-a-society

US Close To Agreeing on Long-Range Cruise Missiles for Ukraine https://news.antiwar.com/2024/09/04/report-us-close-to-agreeing-on-long-range-cruise-missiles-for-ukraine/

Chalk of the Town: Professors Colorfully Protest Harvard’s New Campus Use Rules https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2024/9/4/harvard-professors-chalking-protest/

Revolution Is Now https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/revolution-is-now

US must switch from Dem-GOP war machine to Green economy https://www.gp.org/switch_from_war_machine_to_green_economy

How the Opiate Conspiracy Widened https://www.racket.news/p/how-the-opiate-conspiracy-widened

Scared of our Own Shadow https://scottritter.substack.com/p/scared-of-our-own-shadow

ICC Prosecutor Says World Leaders ‘Threatened’ Him Over Israel Arrest Warrants https://scheerpost.com/2024/09/06/icc-prosecutor-says-world-leaders-threatened-him-over-israel-arrest-warrants/

Police drop bail conditions on Sarah Wilkinson after public outcry https://www.councilestatemedia.uk/p/police-drop-bail-conditions-on-sarah

‘The world has gotten used to our blood’: Israeli massacres in Gaza continue https://mondoweiss.net/2024/09/the-world-has-gotten-used-to-our-blood-israeli-massacres-in-gaza-continue/

Student Activists Vow to Continue Pro-Palestine Protests Despite University Crackdowns https://scheerpost.com/2024/09/08/student-activists-vow-to-continue-pro-palestine-protests-despite-university-crackdowns-2/

Native Boarding Schools Were Genocidal — Healing Starts With Telling the Truth https://scheerpost.com/2024/09/08/native-boarding-schools-were-genocidal-healing-starts-with-telling-the-truth/