Netherstray's Other Things

"I disagree with Kamala's position on the war in Gaza. How can I vote for her?" by US Senator Bernie Sanders

“I understand that there are millions of Americans who disagree with President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on the terrible war in Gaza.

I am one of them.

While Israel had a right to defend itself against the horrific Hamas terrorist attack of October 7th, which killed 1,200 innocent people and took 250 hostages, it did not have a right to wage an all-out war against the entire Palestinian people.

It did not have the right to kill 42,000 Palestinians, two thirds of whom were children, women and the elderly, or injure over 100,000 people in Gaza.

It did not have the right to destroy Gaza's infrastructure, housing, and healthcare system. It did not have the right to bomb every one of Gaza's 12 universities.

It did not have the right to block humanitarian aid, causing massive malnutrition in children and, in fact, starvation.

And that is why I am doing everything I can to block U.S. military aid and offensive weapon sales to the right-wing extremist Netanyahu government in Israel. And I know that many of you share those feelings, and some of you are saying,

"How can I vote for Kamala Harris if she is supporting this terrible war?"

And that is a very fair question. And let me give you my best answer. And that is that even on this issue, Donald Trump and his right-wing friends are worse. In the Senate, in Congress, the Republicans have worked overtime to block humanitarian aid to the starving children in Gaza. The President and Vice President both support getting as much humanitarian aid into Gaza as soon as possible.

Trump has said Netanyahu is "doing a good job", and has said Biden is "holding him back". He has suggested the Gaza strip would make excellent beachfront property for development. And it is no wonder Netanyahu prefers to have Donald Trump in office.

But even more importantly - and this I promise you - after Kamala wins, we will together do everything that we can to change U.S. policy toward Netanyahu. An immediate ceasefire, the return of all hostages, a surge of massive humanitarian aid, the stopping of settler attacks on the West Bank, and the rebuilding of Gaza for the Palestinian people.

And let me be clear. We will have, in my view, a much better chance of changing U.S. policy with Kamala than with Trump, who is extremely close to Netanyahu and sees him as a like-minded, right-wing extremist ally.

But let me also say this - and I deal with this every single day as a U.S. Senator - as important as Gaza is, and as strongly as many of us feel about this issue, it is not the only issue at stake in this election.

If Trump wins, women in this country will suffer an enormous setback and lose the ability to control their own bodies. That is not acceptable.

If Trump wins, to be honest with you, the struggle against climate change is over. While virtually every scientist who has studied the issue understands that climate change is real, and an existential threat to our country and the world, Trump believes it is a "hoax". And if the United States, the largest economy in the world, stops transforming our energy system away from fossil fuel, every other country - China, Europe, all over the world - they will do exactly the same thing. And God only knows the kind of planet we will leave to our kids and future generations.

If Trump wins, at a time of massive income and wealth inequality, he will demand even more tax breaks for the very richest people in our country while cutting back on programs that working families desperately need. The rich will only get richer while the minimum wage will remain at $7.25 an hour and millions of our fellow workers will continue to earn starvation wages.

Did you all see the recent Trump rally at Madison Square Gardens? Well, I did. And what I can tell you is that, as a nation, as all of you know, we have struggled for years, against impossible odds, to overcome all forms of bigotry - whether it's racism, whether it's sexism, whether it's homophobia, whether it's xenophobia, you name it. We have tried to fight against bigotry. But that is exactly what we saw on display at that unbelievable Trump rally. It was not a question of speakers getting up there, disagreeing with Kamala Harris on the issue. That wasn't the issue at all. They were attacking her simply because she was a woman, and a woman of colour. Extreme, vulgar sexism and racism.

Is that really the kind of America that we can allow?

So let me conclude by saying this: this is the most consequential election in our lifetimes. Many of you have differences of opinion with Kamala Harris on Gaza. So do I.

But we cannot sit this election out. Trump has got to be defeated. Let's do everything we can in the next week to make sure that Kamala Harris is our next president.

Save Youssef and Nour

This is Nour, a seven-year-old girl from Gaza. Before the genocide, she was like any other girl her age. Her first year of school was about to begin. She was excited; her parents had just bought her a brand-new backpack and she couldn't wait to show it off!

Just two weeks into her first school year, Israel launched its genocidal offensive on Gaza. Nour's education, along with her childhood, came to an abrupt end.

This is how Nour, and her brother Youssef (12), are living now:

Despite months of campaigning, Youssef and Nour's parents have only managed to raise a little over €7,000. With temperatures already dropping, they're increasingly worried about how they will survive another winter in Gaza. The tent they're living in leaks when it rains, and Salah, the father of the family, has been struggling to secure medicine for his epilepsy.

Initially, the family started the fundraiser with hopes of rebuilding. However, after multiple displacements and several near-death experiences, they’ve made the difficult decision to begin saving for an evacuation.

If you can, please consider donating so that Youssef and Nour may have some small semblance of security again!

[Vetting info / Art by @virfujiwara]

- Donation link (GFM)

Devon Rex cats are better for people with allergies (less shed fur + less Fel d1 protein in their saliva), so on February 16, 2024, I went the breeder route and put down a deposit! before Belphie even opened his eyes, he was mine.

every Friday, the breeder sent me a new photo. I had a broken leg, and was basically rotting in bed at that point, so it was the best part of my week. then, at 12 weeks old, I BROUGHT HIM HOME!

at first, he was so alive. like a wind-up monkey that never shut off. he dangled from the wall-hangings, savaged my feet as I walked, and used my elderly cats as jumping poles to do cool acrobatics over. but this all gradually faded.

first, he stopped playing. then he stopped climbing. then he stopped moving much at all. my vet ran tests on him and found multiple pathogens (calcivrius + mycoplasma), but the medication didn't help - he kept declining.

on September 17th, I woke up to find him swollen like a balloon. we finally had an answer: he had Feline infectious Peritonitis, aka FIP. before 2017, this would've been a death sentence. he would've kept bloating until he drowned in his own fluids. and before 2024, I would've been forced to inject him with black market drugs. but thankfully, South Tower Animal Hospital in Fergus, Ontario was doing a study on the oral medication! we drove two hours, enrolled him, and left with the GS-441524 pills.

and he went from those photos above.....to this:

I thought Belphie would die as a kitten. I'd accepted that he would never grow up. but now he gets to LIVE!

and all for the low cost of $7,553.....ahhhahaha........god.

that + a recent home disaster has wiped out my savings, but I still need to pay for Belphie's medication. to remain in this study, I need to do bloodwork monthly until Feb 2025, and he'll need daily pills until March 2025.

🇵🇸 From BDS - What to Boycott:

Fruits, vegetables and wines from Israel are often wrongly labelled as “Produce in Israel” when they come from stolen Palestinian land. Boycott all produce from Israel in your supermarket and demand they are removed from shelves.

thank you @leandra-winchester for making the graphic above! if any of you are active on other social platforms, you have her permission to use the image however you want (no credit required)

In the EU, US and Canada, produce is required to have a label/sticker that cites its origin. (I believe UK as well)

If you're in the US, some of these produce (especially avocado) are not very likely to come from Israel, however, in the EU they can. Most avocados still come from Middle/South America, but I remember buying some a few years ago and only seeing the "produce of Israel" sticker at home. Unlikely doesn't mean never though. Always check the labels!

Dried fruits or in any way processed fruits, veggies and crops are more likely to be imported into North America. There should also be a "made/produced/manufactured in" line on the packaging.

As a rule of thumb, the closer to Israel you are - i.e. Europe - the more likely you'll find Israeli produce in your supermarkets, particularly produce that grows in a warm subtropical climate.

Produce isn't all that Israel is exporting. Here's a list of imports into the US by product groups. https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/imports/israel So it's worth checking any manufacturing labels on products you want to buy. The same goes for the EU and the UK of course.

PRIVATE BOYCOTTS ARE NOT ILLEGAL! There are laws in the US and other places that prohibit or sanction BDS measures against Israel, but that only goes for public persons and companies who openly participate in BDS. As a company, you can still say "We got a better offer for this product from country XY", but you're not allowed to say you are deliberately doing this because you want to boycott Israel. As a private person, however, nobody can force you to buy anything or even control what you buy or refuse to buy in the first place. So don't worry about that.

@heritageposts Would you mind reblogging this again as you have a far greater reach than I?

Think about the bastardly* boss-worker attitude of THAT.

Nelson Mandela addressing Palestinians in Gaza: