Meeting Colgate's Congressman

With the 2014 Midterm Elections gone by us now, I have been reminiscing and pondering different questions related to the subject. Where do I fit into it all? As a twenty-one year old student, does my voice matter? Are my capabilities limited to just the box I check off in a voting booth?

I am brought back to an awesome opportunity I had earlier this semester a few months ago. As a result of different lobbying ventures, beginning in 2013 at my first AIPAC Policy Conference and then at the following year’s conference, fellow Colgate students and I developed a line of communication with legislative staff members from our Colgate U.S. Congressman’s office. What began with email correspondences with Representative Hanna’s Legislative Assistant, soon formed into a relationship that most recently offered myself and two other students the opportunity to have a meeting with the Congressman himself.

Traveling with me were Colgate first-years Abe Benghiat and Ben Ringel, two students who are also very well versed in Israeli and Middle Eastern affairs. Our conversation lasted for over an hour and we covered a multitude of topics, ranging from the Islamic State, Iran’s nuclear program, Gaza reconstruction, and the roles of other regional players such as Turkey and Qatar. Congressman Hanna is very educated on the region, so it was quite the experience for the three of us Colgate students to be able to have a conversation with him as he is directly involved in legislation relating to it. In addition, Abe, Ben, and I have all spent much time in Israel so the Congressman was delighted to hear our thoughts and opinions on the people and land of Israel. Representative Hanna has preliminary plans of making his first trip to country, so there was plenty of time for us to share our favorite Falafel spots and Tel Aviv beaches!

With all this in mind, I am reminded that in this great democracy we have in the United States of America, our ability to share our voice is not limited to the one day in the year that we vote.  Our elected representatives have multiple offices within their respective districts for the purpose of meeting with their constituents. I am truly grateful for the advice and opportunities provided to me by AIPAC and other organizations, which enabled me to have the confidence and knowledge in our meeting with Representative Hanna. Congressman Richard Hanna ran unopposed in this year's Midterms, and we look forward to him continue to represent Colgate students in the future! 

Hearing it from The Man himself: Shimon Peres visits Colgate

Last Saturday October, 25th, here at Colgate we were incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to hear Shimon Peres come and speak to members of the Colgate community. As it was family weekend, quite the crowd was on hand at Sanford Field House to hear the former President of Israel interviewed by ABC World News Co-anchor and Colgate Alum Bob Woodruff. 

The Interview was itself very broad in the scope of topics discussed, ranging from Peres' view on ISIS and extremism in the Middle East to the Kibbutz movement. When asked about ISIS should be dealt with Peres said that, "We have to fight the reasons, not just the people." This type of answer underscored the overall message that Peres was trying to get across, which is that the landscape in the Middle East has shifted quite dramatically over the course of his time in politics, dating back to the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. and how now enemies are no longer just armies on a battlefield, but the ideology that drives the army in the first place.  The overall message of the lecture was that the path to peace is not easy but the developments in Israel and the region over the last few years demonstrate that the right steps are being taken.  President Peres specially cited the technological revolution that even though it has not reached all corners of the World yet ,has helped to bring about peaceful cultural revolutions by connecting people and strengthening the bonds of friendship between people,across cultures and social divides.

Additionally, I was fortunate enough to the opportunity to have a question that I recorded before the lecture played and answered by President Peres. My question was, what position do you think was most influential during your political career? To which President Peres responded that it is not the position that matters so much as the drive and will of the person in the position that determines if you will be successful and influential in what ever it is that you do. I was personally honored with this opportunity and the whole Colgate community was more than thrilled to be able to host such a well respected and well known leader who was willing to share many of the insights that he has learned during his long and storied career.

The highlight of the interview was when Peres directly addressed the students in attendance  when he said that, “Each of you possess more potential than you think. You have to invest in it — it doesn’t fall from heaven,” he said. “You can make the world a better place but you have to have the courage to dream. Use your imagination. Use your brains. Use your talents. Learn.” Having Shimon Peres directly address us as students here not only made me feel proud to be here at Colgate but also left me with a sense of enthusiasm for the future as seeing that someone who has been so successful and influential in the arena of politics in one of the most complicated and treacherous regions on the planet who at 91 is still full of hope and tied to the same ideals that have been his source of inspiration throughout his life, demonstrated that is possible to follow your dreams, whether they be to graduate from college and be successful or to help attain lasting peace in the Middle East, no dream is too small and no goal is unattainable.

Max Kurzner

Obama and Netanyahu sit down in Washington: The Status Quo in Gaza cannot continue

   Here at the 'gate the leaves are beginning to change as fall rolls into Hamilton. As summer ends and fall begins it is only fitting that during a recent meeting between Benjamin Netanyahu and Barack Obama, the president was quoted as saying that Israeli and Palestinian leaders must "find ways to change the status quo so that both Israel citizens are safe in their own homes, and schoolchildren in their schools, from the possibility of rocket fire but also that we don't have the tragedy of Palestinian children being killed as well".  
    
While there has been relative quiet since the end of Operation Protective Edge, the tensions remaining between Israel and Hamas remain quite tangible to the point where it is only a matter of time before there is some sort of incident. Netanyahu and the Israeli government completely understand this as the Prime Minister was quoted as saying that in terms of how to proceed towards a lasting peace with the Palestinians there is a need to "think outside the box."  Also on the agenda in the discussion between Netanyahu and Obama was ensuring that Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon.  

This discussion between the two leaders comes only days after Netanyahu gave a very impassioned speech at the United Nations, which drew some criticism from the United States as Netanyahu drew a link between Hamas and ISIS. According to the Obama administration, another point of this meeting was to try and discuss how they are completely separate issues in the eyes of the United States as the rapidly spreading power and terror of ISIS is priority number one right now in the Middle East. Netanyahu also wanted to ensure that Obama remembers the grave dangers posed by a nuclear Iran and why it is imperative to get them to agree to a deal that causes them to dismantle their nuclear program. Obama seemed to underscore the point that the unresolved problem of peace between the Palestinians and Israel, while not of importance at the moment has the potential to blow up again at some point in the future, possibly leading to even more conflicts and an even more volatile region. In the upcoming weeks look to see what ideas are put into place by the United States in Israel in order to assure that the idea of Middle East Peace does not take a complete backseat to ISIS and the threat of extremism in the region.

Targeting Terrorism with Legal Tactics

With the increasing power of different terrorist organizations around the world, many people wonder how to best weaken them. Countries like Israel, the United States, and others that have fallen victim to despicable attacks often resort to military and legal tactics. However, we have found it incredibly difficult to pinpoint the exact locations of terrorist cells, so military strategy has not been as helpful as we would typically like. Additionally, prosecutions of terrorists only target a very small quantity, and thus have not been very successful in deterring terrorism.

This latter point does not suggest that we should dismiss legal tactics all together, though. Instead, we need to find a new, more effective target. In order to assess whom countries like Israel and the United States should be targeting, we should first determine terrorist organizations’ most powerful resource. It is not particular members, for they can always recruit more, which is why trials targeting these individuals have not been very helpful. Instead, their most powerful resources is the incredible vast of wealth they have accumulated that permits them to have such a sophisticated organizational structure and weaponry to attack innocent people.

But how can we harm these terrorist organizations’ finances with legal tactics? Who should be the target? On September 22, a federal jury in New York City found Arab Bank, the largest financial institution in Jordan, to be liable for knowingly supporting terrorist operations connected to 24 attacks in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank from 2001 to 2004 during the Second Intifada. This is who should be the target of fierce prosecution: worldwide banks that provide financial assistance to terrorist organizations. If we bring down these banks, we can cut off the cash flow. If we cut off the cash flow, we take away the capabilities to harm innocent people. In essence, we extinguish terrorism.

The case in New York City, Linde v. Arab Bank, was the first civil trial against a bank under the Anti-Terrorism Act. The plaintiffs in this case included about 300 victims of terrorist attacks that had been orchestrated by Hamas. They alleged that Arab Bank handled transfers and payments for this Gaza-based terrorist group, but Arab Bank insisted that it had abided by compliance procedures. In order to prove guilt, the plaintiffs had to show that Hamas held responsibility for the terrorist attacks and that Arab Bank’s assistance to Hamas was the “proximate cause” of these attacks. They also had to prove their injuries were “reasonably foreseeable” due to the bank’s involvement.

The trial lasted five weeks and the jury deliberated for two days, leading to the ultimate finding that the bank was indeed liable. This was not the first time Arab Bank has faced legal repercussions for terrorism – related incidents. In 2005, it made a settlement with regulators after the discovery that its New York branch lacked an appropriate program to notice money laundering and terrorist financing. It paid a $24 million civil penalty and has since been required to maintain at least $420 million in assets in the U.S. This time around, Arab Bank’s wrongdoing was indeed much worse.

And the point here is: we caught them. Thanks to the efforts of the legal system in the United States, Arab Bank may never fund a terrorist organization and thus assist in financing attacks again. However, we cannot stop here. If Arab Bank is from now on unwilling to support Hamas or any other terrorist organization, these groups will just go elsewhere to fund their operations. Thus, we must expand efforts to ensure all of the large banks and financial institutions have absolutely no involvement with terrorist organizations worldwide. We can do this by mandating stricter programs to locate sources of terrorism financing, as well as more prosecutions. The United States cannot be the only country to adopt these measures; Israel and all other freedom-loving countries must enact them too. This way, we can move forward in addressing the very serious, worldwide terrorism that threatens our security and livelihood.

Buckle Up: Another Extended Campaign Into The Middle East

[response to] September 16th's Middle East Forum with the International Relations Council

Earlier this week, our club (known off-the-web as the Israeli Culture Club) hosted its second installment in our 2014 Spring Middle East Forum Series, this time with cosponsorship by the International Relations Council. The IR Council is similar to our pro-Israel group in that we are relatively new to Colgate’s campus, and we both strive to analyze and interact with the global political sphere that often does not otherwise reach Hamilton, New York.

The layout of our discussion on Tuesday was very relaxed and open to any direction, and as a result it was interesting and telling to see what current events and themes emerged after 60 minutes of deliberation.

The first point of focus was in regards to President Obama’s decision to employ airstrikes as a key strategy in combatting the Islamic State. While most event attendees agreed that these US-led airstrikes were indeed appropriate and essential in stopping the immediate spread of ISIS, many also expressed concern that these airstrikes will be counter-productive in the long-term in that they will only play into the narrative that America and the West is the undeniable adversary to all Arabs. The propaganda war, both in print and online, is fundamental to this debate.

Take this tweet for example:

The propaganda war is very much alive and active, and therefore in this context (as many argued on Tuesday), the implemented strategies and policies the United States and Its allies undertake simply do not matter. The only way for America to effectively combat the Arab Narrative of Western "imperialism" would be to simply vacate involvement in the region....which our conversation ventured into next and where I will go into detail below.

The question of "How to fix the Middle East?" was presented to Tuesday's participants. The conversation was not as generic as one may think, in that those of us breaking down the answer attempted to get to the true roots of the conflicts. My opinion is that at this juncture in time, it is impossible to justly and impartially allow for the many different ethnicities of the Middle East to determine their own political futures, isolated from foreign involvement. In a utopian world, we would (a) be able to go back in time and reverse the many short-term political maneuvers of the British and French during/post WWI that have resulted in this chaos, or (b) be able to withdraw all Western involvement in the region and allow for a natural and untainted process of [hopefully] democratization of the region.

Since I do not think a time machine has been built yet (although I wouldn't doubt that the Technion is close), and the other option of abandoning the Middle East would simply result in a political vacuum only to be filled by extremist groups like ISIS or superpowers like Russia or China, I will have to echo this post's predecessor in Max Kurzner by stating that the United States and the Free World have no other option but to confront the Islamic State militarily and politically. 

I would hope that in my next post, I will be able to discuss other Middle Eastern topics besides ISIS, but we may as well call this what it is: war. And we may as well distinguish that the threat from ISIS will not be easily fought and won. The American public should buckle up and be prepared for another extended campaign in the region.

Until next time Blogosphere,

AB

ISIS and the U.S: Is there any other choice but to go on the offensive?

     In recent months ISIS has made headlines around the world with its campaign of ruthless brutality in Iraq and Syria. The Obama Administration has debated on what course of action the United States should take in order to roll back the immense gains that ISIS has made. Many have speculated on what choice would be best given a war weary American public, and escalating crises the world over. An interesting opinion article which I found, argues that ISIS left the United States with no other choice but to go on the offensive. If you interested in reading the article I will put a link to it at the bottom of this post.
      The fight against ISIS is just the latest in a string of conflicts that the Obama administration has had to deal with, from winding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to Libya and now action in Iraq and Syria. No single administration or policy can be blamed for the emergence of ISIS. However, it is clear that no other course of action will stem the tide of extremists in the Middle East other than swift and decisive action. Coordinating and conducting airstrikes with our close allies will allow for the United States to avoid a direct ground war akin to those in Iraq and Afghanistan while driving back ISIS. No other alternatives would be plausible at the current juncture as any further inaction would only strengthen the argument of those that already think that the United States is being too weak and timid in its foreign policy, and any stronger action would alienate a large chunk of the democratic party and make the distinction between Obama and Bush even smaller as he brings the country into another war.
  At the end of the day, one must realize the sheer complexity of the Middle East and how ISIS is just the latest non-state actor to emerge as a threat to Israel and the region. The weeks and months ahead will test the resolve of the United States and its allies by seeing if ISIS can be extinguished and if other extremist elements can be squashed out before becoming a regional powerhouse, which ISIS is threatening to be, if left unchecked. It may leave a bitter taste in peoples mouths but like it or not, ISIS is a problem that must and will be dealt with.

Here is a link to the article

The World’s Premier Democracy: Reflections from My Summer in Washington DC

It is only natural for the reflection of recent experiences from this summer, as I currently make the drive up to the hills and valleys of Madison County, New York, where lays the most beautiful campus in America. It will take some time to get used to the drastic differences in general political and worldly awareness at Colgate University when compared to the Washington DC vibe I grew accustomed to over the past 9 weeks. 

CUFI's Night to Honor Israel

This summer I had the great opportunity of being a Diamond Summer Intern with the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in Washington DC. There were dozens of other Colgate undergrads interning in the Capitol with me, and speaking just for myself I would highly recommend putting in the effort of getting an internship or some sort of experience living and working in DC prior to graduation. It is truly a magical city with so much to offer.

I personally worked on the production and implementation of AIPAC’s 2014 Summer Seminar Series, which was a 3-part public series that included panels of experts and analysts, as well as multiple Congressmen discussing the current status of the Middle East and U.S.-Israel relations. While I invited my friends to attend my events, scores of other organizations sponsored their own political gatherings and events that served to only broaden my understanding of other issues and realms of the international arena.

POLITICO sponsored a luncheon with former Vice President Dick Cheney where I was able to hear a Conservative perspective on domestic political issues as well as U.S. foreign policy as a whole. The Atlantic Council hosted Dr. Salam Fayyad, former Prime Minister of Palestinian Authority, who spoke about the conflicting Palestinian political factions and the need for state-building. Christians United For Israel held their annual “Night to Honor Israel” in which thousands of Americans convened at the Convention Center for an evening of distinguished speakers including Senator Lindsey Graham and Ambassador Ron Dermer.

Salam Fayyad speaking at the Atlantic Council

The diverse array of briefings and panels taking place each week in our nation’s capital all circle back to one concept: the unwavering and relentless democracy that underlies American society. Spending these past two months eating and breathing DC enabled me to develop a renewed sense of patriotism and pride in my country: the United States of America, the world’s premier democracy.

A day does not go by in which you cannot find some instance of media censorship or politically-targeted violence around the world. As I write this, dozens of reports are coming out of Gaza chronicling the Hamas-sanctioned executions of Palestinians who were allegedly aiding Israeli intelligence. It is worth noting that the crisis in Iraq and Syria involving the expanding Islamic State stemmed, at least in part, from the lack of political representation and true democratic ideals in Iraq.

But I am reminded that multiple times this summer, I visited dozens of Congressional offices of members of the the House of Representatives and the Senate, lobbying and meeting with our elected members of Congress.

It is vital to not take for granted these democratic rights and opportunities we all share in America. Forces like the Islamic State, Hamas, and Hezbollah threaten not only our great democratic ally in Israel, but democracies all around the globe. Countries that partner and fund these terror groups, such as Qatar and Turkey, are clearly not catalysts for democracy, and they should be labeled and distinguished as the anti-democracy forces that they are.

The work of organizations like AIPAC or POLITICO or the Atlantic Council, all are clear examples of our great democracy at work as they seek to provide accuracy, opportunity, and clarity on issues affecting the United States. I am proud and honored to have been able to experience a DC summer while working for AIPAC, and I look to continue my direct involvement in the American political arena moving forward.

The Absolutely Fascinating- and Unnerving- Middle East

We are witnessing the newest chapter in the saga of the Middle East, and the light at the end of the tunnel lies in our own American history.

Where to start, where to begin? The Middle East is an awfully fascinating region to study and understand, and the more one does so, the easier it becomes to feel overwhelmed by senses of wariness and pessimism. With seemingly unorganized and unfocused foreign policies by Western governments, and constant news of explosive and infectious extremist political entities, the only natural solution one may feel is to curl up in a ball and perhaps build a nuclear bunker hundreds of feet underground… Don’t worry, this blog post will become optimistic eventually, I hope.

A common assumption many in the West and in America make is the dangerous notion that Arab and Middle Eastern countries are inherently unable to construct democratically free societies and to live in peace amongst each other. I get it, and it’s easy to fall back on this. It is only human to perceive one’s own perspective as the truest reality, and thus engage in an ethnocentric viewpoint in which everything that is different is ultimately inferior and incomparable to one’s own experience. Reading Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff’s This Time is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly, which chronicles the lucid resemblances between financial collapses throughout human history, and how these trends constantly get ignored by contemporary “experts”, is a great example of this ethnocentricity and I believe its same underlying principles relate to Western perspectives on the Middle East. What is happening across the Middle East happened to us in the West.

It is true that the current Middle East is largely no nursery for democracies with Israel being the lone flower in the region.  However, when looking at European and American history, did democracy simply sprout up with the snap of ones fingers and “poof”, it become the great human force it currently is today? No, the great democracy I find myself in today (the United States of America) was constantly being built and restructured, often with periods of intense instability and gloomy outlooks on the horizon. Our democracy is founded and grounded in our history, constantly being amended and adapted as the times change. So when I look at the Middle East, I battle the urge to want to label it a failed garden project. I remind myself that my great nation was once thought to be an unrealistic and unattainable dream. Periods of struggle led to our progress towards a brighter future- thanks to our forefathers who shared a similar vision.

With all that said, there are an awful lot of forces in the region that are not pointing in the direction of freedom and democracy. With the rise of the Islamic State gruesomely conquering city after city, and the continuous Syrian civil war causing immense suffering internally and in neighboring countries, the need for Western leadership has never been more apparent. The United States must continue its support of forces for good in the region. Those who vehemently speak out against the very existence of Israel, and thus American support of Her, simply are not grasping the bigger picture at play. Democracy is not only in America’s best interests, but the world’s. The free world must water the seeds of democracy so that they may grow and be fruitful.