Alessandro Tinonga writes: The war against Lebanon is absolutely shocking. According to the BBC, the number of Lebanese casualties may be as high as 900 after nearly four weeks of fighting. Almost one third of the dead are children under the age of 12. Latest UN estimates for displaced people in Lebanon put the figure at between 700,000 and 800,000.

The U.S. shares the responsibility of this aggressive war, because they give Israel nearly $3 billion every year. In 2007, the annual assistance package to Israel is comprised of USD 2.34 billion in military aid, in addition to USD 120 million in standard economic aid. Further, the U.S. government gives political backing it needs to appear ‘legitimate’. Not only do they receive unanimous support form the Republican Party, but nearly the same amount of support from the Democrats including ‘anti-war’ politicians like Howard Dean.

For those of us in the anti-war movement, we must take a stand against the violence being perpetrated against the Lebanese and the Palestinian people. However, there is a clear point of division amongst the anti-war movement: how to address the issue of national liberation. This division manifests itself in many ways ranging from a political statements from major anti-war organizations like United for Peace and Justice, or the hesitancy of some elements of the Santa Cruz anti-war movement to have a united demonstration last Friday against the war. Read more

On August 10th, a teach-in about the war against Gaza and Lebanon took place at the Louden Nelson Community Center in Santa Cruz.

On August 12th, people gathered for a rally at 11am at Civic Center in San Francisco, at Polk and Grove Streets. There was a march through downtown San Francisco, which returned to Civic Center for a closing rally with speakers, entertainment, and cultural performances.

see also: A Letter condeming the Good Times support of Israel || Open Letter to the Good Times Concerning Pro-Israeli Full Page Advertisement