Page 2 Portland Observer. August 18, 1982
LIGHTING SPECIALTIES
For Israel, what's after Beirut?
by Noam Chomsky
Pacific News Service
Noam Chom sky is professor
of m odern languages and lin
guistics at
author of nu
merous books, (including Peace
in the M iddle East and Towards a
New Cold War), and was active in
the movement against the V iet
nam War.
One question which preys on the
minds o f those who are deeply dis
turbed over Israel's invasion o f Leb
anon may be stated very sim ply:
What lies beyond Beirut?
To seek an answer, we must place
the Lebanese invasion in its broad,
historical context. I f the conclusion
we arrive at seems darkly pessimis
tic, it is nonetheless one which many
observers consider a plausible and
logical extension o f past and present
Israeli actions.
Since 1973, Israel and the United
States have been committed to re
moving Egypt from the Arab-Israeli
conflict. Only after the October war
were they willing to accept Sadat’s
o ffe r, quite e xp licit in February
1971, o f a fu ll peace treaty that
would turn Egypt into an American
client state while leaving Israel in a
position to control the bulk o f the
occupied territories.
A t the same time, it was necessary
to fend o ff annoying Arab efforts to
settle the conflict peaceably on es
sentially the terms proposed by Sad
at in 1971, but now with a Palestini
an state in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip. The U.S. was compelled to
veto a UN Security Council resolu
tion to this effect in January 1976
(the resolution, which was in tro
duced and backed by the A rab
“ c o n fro n ta tio n states’ ’ and sup
ported by the PLO, called for a two-
state settlement w ith recognized
borders and guarantees fo r the se
c u rity and te rrito ria l in te g rity o f
both states).
The Camp David agreements car
ried the arrangements further, lead
ing fin a lly to Israeli w ithdraw al
from the Sinai.
The second significant event o f
this period was the annexation (in
effect) o f the Golan Heights. And a
third was the implementation o f the
Sharon-Milson plan for suppressing
Chicago
(Continued fro m page I column 6)
Dr. Kenneth Goodman, the o u t
going president o f the International
Reading Association (IR A ) sharpie
criticized mastery learning at a na
tional convention in Chicago this
spring. Goodman, professor o f ele
mentary education at the University
o f Arizona, said mastery learning
doesn’ t teach children to read.
“ He’s an idiot academician who
doesn’ t spend his time in class
rooms,” Katims said o f Goodman.
“ The IR A as an institution should
hang its head in shame. They’ve pre
sided over declining test scores for
20 years.”
Controversy doesn’ t bother
Equalizers president Tillm an, who
has challenged school policy fo r
years. She’s been jailed for disrupt
ing meetings o f the board o f educa
tion, and was jailed again in July for
demonstrating outside o f the may
or’s residence on another issue.
The parent group is in no mood to
compromise, and appears ready to
carry out its threat o f a strike this
fall if the reading program remains
part o f the curriculum.
any form o f independent political
expression in the occupied te rrito
ries. These policies led to the harsh
and brutal repression that received
some limited attention in the U.S.
press.
The next step was the invasion o f
Lebanon, the primary aims o f which
were to destroy the social and politi
cal structures o f the PLO while
eliminating the possibility o f any re
sponse as Israel proceeds towards
more efficient control in the occu
pied territories, leading to ultimate
annexation. A further aim was to es
tablish, at leaset in the southern part
o f Lebanon, an Israeli client regime
that w ill sooner or later provide Is
rael with access to the waters o f the
Litam River, a long-standing aim o f
Israeli government policy with roots
in early Z io n ist thin kin g . As the
father o f modern Israel, David Ben-
Gurion, remarked at the time o f the
British partition proposal in 1937:
“ We shall accept a state in the
boundaries fixed today, but the
boundaries o f Zionist aspirations are
the concern o f the Jewish people
and no external factor will be able to
lim it them.”
Though the final outcome o f the
present offensive is not yet fully de
termined, it is likely that Israel will
achieve its objectives. The next steps
are easy to imagine. Israel will con
tinue to move towards annexation
o f the occupied territories, employ
ing whatever measures will be neces
sary. The logical extension o f this
process is that Jordan must be con
verted into the “ Palestinian state”
that it already is in Israeli propagan
da. Then conditions can be created
in which the Arabs o f the occupied
territories (and, who knows, per
haps those o f Israel, too) w ill “ vol
untarily emigrate" to Jordan as pro
posed years ago by the Labor Party
leadership. This “ Palestinian state”
w ill then be hostage to Israeli a t
tack, perhaps a fter such flim sy
“ provocations” as those that suf
ficed to ju s tify the Lebanon inva
sion to the American audience.
Wasting no time, Israel dissolved
the elected city councils o f Dura and
Nablus on the West Bank, replacing
the city councils o f Dura by “ five
Arab moderates,” a euphemism for
Arab collaborators.
Longer term planning is also fair
ly predictable. Syria is ruled, with
quite extraordinary brutality, by a
minority sect. Israel will work to de
stabilize it, so that Syria and Leb
anon w ill be restored to a system
rather like that o f the Ottoman Em
pire, with local dependencies o f an
ethnic-religious character dom
inated by Israel, a powerful militar
ized state serving as an American
“ strategic asset."
Similar plans are being contem
plated for Iraq, where Israel's inter
est lies in an eventual partition into
Sunni, Shi’ ite, and Kurdish states,
as observed by m ilitary commenta
tor Ze’ ev S ch iff in the daily
Ha’aretz in June. This is one motive
for Israel’ s support for Iran in the
Iran-Iraq conflict. Another motive
is that Israel perceives the possibility
o f a m ilita ry coup (perhaps post-
Khomeini) that will restore the kinds
o f Israeli-Iranian relations that ex
isted under the Shah. To this end, it
is im portant to maintain contacts
w ith the Iranian m ilita ry . Jacob
N im rodi, form erly head o f the Is
raeli secret police in Iran under the
Shah, expounded on these possibil
ities over BBC radio last February.
The long-term objective may be
an alliance o f Iran (now restored to
the West), Turkey and Israel ruling
the region in alliance w ith the
United States, the ultimate source o f
their power. “ The chance o f strate
gic understanding among Iran, Tur
key and Israel should not be ruled
out as something that can surface
again,” according to an Israeli “ ex
p e rt” quoted in the New York
Times.
Some Israeli commentators go
further still. In the official theologi
cal journal o f the World Zionist O r
ganization, Oded Yinon suggests
that “ the political goal o f Israel in
the 1980s on its Western front” is to
dismember Egypt after reconquest
o f the Sinai, overturning the “ mis
taken peace agreement” with Sadat.
He outlines, with specific detail, a
plan such as that just reviewed for
the restoration o f an Ottoman Em
pire-style arrangement fo r the re
gion, including also the A rabian
peninsula. A plausible (though un
stated) further consequence is that
Israel w ill control the region’ s en
ergy reserves.
On a still broader scale, this a lli
ance may be extended to include
South Africa, which has been the re
cipient o f direct Israeli assistance in
its own rather comparable efforts to
m uintain in s ta b ility and disorder
along its borders. According to nu
merous sources, it appears that Is
rael and South A frica are also ad
vancing towards a large-scale nu
clear weapons capacity in their joint
endeavors, including development
of neutron bombs, missile delivery
systems (that can reach targets in the
USSR), and a wide range o f strate
gic and low-yield nuclear weapons.
Israel and South A fric a have also
been reported to be engaged in joint
development o f cruise missiles with
Taiwan.
Much o f this is projection rather
than accomplished fact, but it is
within the bounds o f plausibility in
substantial measure. As long as the
United States provides Israel with
the requisite military force, there is
every reason to believe that Israel
w ill proceed along such a path, to
the extent that it is within its power.
C learly, the risks o f expanded
war, engaging the superpowers and
possibly leading to nuclear war, are
not inconsiderable—a fact which
has not gone entirely unnoticed in
Washington. Several years ago, cer
tain elements in the Pentagon began
to fear that the U.S. had created a
Frankenstein monster by flooding
Israel w ith advanced armaments.
Anthony Cordesman, who had held
a variety o f high-level adm inistra
tive and intelligence positions in the
Pentagon, wrote in the Armed
Forces Journal in 1977 that the
United States “ may now find itself
aiding an Israel which may use its
military strength to take permanent
control o f former Arab territory in
direct opposition to U.S. policy,
and be locked into an indefinite cold
war with the Arabs,” leading to “ a
major national security problem”
for the United States.
Cordesman’ s in terpreta tion o f
U.S. policy may be open to ques
tion, but his early warning was apt.
United States-backed Israeli adven
turism is creating a security problem
o f immense p ro po rtio n . The U.S.
disarmament movement dooms it
self to near irrelevance if it disre
gards this.
accurate information in town is not
presented in Willamette Week,” she
retorted.
Asked if the trial balloon to fire
Hepburn had been floated because
she feared Hepburn would emerge
from the civil service process as a
qualified candidate, Strachan stated
em phatically, “ My God, I hoped
she’ d emerge as a top-three con
tender.”
Strachan, known for her outspok
en advocacy on a wide variety o f ci
tizen and planning issues such as re
cent support o f a Police Review
Committee and efforts to keep open
and rehabilitate the Evergreen
Apartments in Northwest Portland,
stated that she made decisions based
on the good o f the city and not pop
ular choice. She does not, she said,
“ test the w in d ,” but attempts to
make sound management decisions
and informed decisions on Council.
In a related matter, Strachan said
she put no pressure to resign on Joe
Gonzales, D irector o f the CETA
program within the HRB. Gonzales,
Professional Pest
Control Supplies
For Do-it-yourself
Hom eowners
Call: 286-6252
LIGHTING & DECORATING
CONSULTANTS 226-3461
One o/ the Most
Ouhltndmg Showiooms m m» N W
«■ In I N
9 m IM
IM
IN
“THE HOUSE OF BEAUTIFUL LIGHTS’’
!<0
I
tx t.
M
L-w i b>
B lac . c n B lock
78 NW COUCHAT 1ST
PORTLAND, ORE 97?09
Free entertainment
Attend (he First Annual Ending Hunger Celebration at Waterfront Park
Sunday, August 22nd from 11 am to 3 pm. Learn how hunger is ending on
our planet. Entertainment w ill be provided by Rhythm Method, Driving
Sideways and other local bands.
For more information, please call 230-2853 or 284-2840.
JRalpffe
flo ris t
^Flcrbers ^Froin ¡Hollginoai)
I n Y A W S R estaurant
2005 N.E. 40th
Portland, OR 97212
249-1888
We Deliver
Anywhere
fe P A C IF IC N E W S S E R V IC E , 1982
Strachan responds to questioning
(Continued fro m page 1, column 6)
were too few managers in HRB at
the time.
The Observer questioned why
Mayor Ivancie's chief assistant, Jim
Kuffner, had been called with a trial
balloon floated about replacing
Hepburn. Strachan replied, “ I did
net call Ivancie’s o ffic e ." When re
minded that her ch ie f assistant,
Richard Forrester had talked to
Kuffner, according to the August 10
W illam ette Week, Strachan an
swered, “ T h a t’ s what the paper
said.”
Following discussion with Forres
ter, Kuffner reportedly called Anna
Street, an aide to Commissioner
Jordan and a close friend o f Hep
b u rn ’ s. Asked why she thought
Street had been notified, Strachan
said she “ had not talked to Anna
about it.”
Strachan said she did not know
that Charlie Graham, in the office
o f Fiscal A d m in is tra tio n under
Ivancie, had been mentioned by
Forrester as a possible temporary re
placement for Hepburn. “ The most
SINCE I960
by SAM J SPOSITO
she said, had recommended that his
position be downgraded to save
money. Gonzales and other s ta ff
have been laid o ff while some HRB
staff resigned, cutting staff costs.
Re-evaluation o f Gonzales* and
other positions will be accomplished
by September 30. Gonzales w ill
leave the bureau September 1.
Strachan preferred to call the dis
pute between her and Hepburn a
“ discussion” rather than an issue.
She agreed that the city does not
need another black-w hite issue.
Voicing concern that "in hard times
certain people are scapegoated,”
Strachan added, “ anything that
adds to that problem is bad.”
DO-IT-YOURSELFERS FIND VALUE AT
DISCOUNT APPLIANCES & PARTS. . . .
From time to time in e day ot high prtcaa and bad aarvica along comae an ambdtoua com
pany dedicated to holding down the coata to conaomara, white alwaya Improving the aar
vice Oracount AppUancaa and Parta « aoch a company The owner haa apant to yaara in
the distribution of appliance parta H i. phitowjphy - " T o aefl the beat poaeible pane at the
lowaat prlcaa " So. to do aomethmg about that, ha haa compiled a amaK catalog of the
moat often needed appliance part« that m any homeowners can replace themeeivee Any
one can order the parta they need to do their own repairs from thia conciaa illuatratad book
Concerning prices, it would be best to quote directly from the inside front cover of the cat
alog " W e urge you to compare our fantastic values against any other appliance parta ra
tailer in your area, our prices are seldom battered."
The catalog is available from:
Discount Appliances & Parts
3360 S.E. Division
Portland. Oregon 97202
To cover postage and handling there la a two dollar (92) charge.
However, thia charge Is deductible from your first order
by enclosing the coupon on page 24 of the catalog.
Or stop by our store, mention the PORTLAND OBSERVER
and get a free complimentary copy.
Professional
Preference Curl
35°°
French Curl
35 00
• Licensed Consultants
• Eliminate your pest problems like the pros
We can tell you what to use and
_____________how to use it.
We went curly
yesterday.
★ KEMI-KIL PRODUCTS ★
2030 N. Willis Blvd. (in Kenton)
_____Mon-Fri: 9-6 Sat 9-2 pm
A n ts , roaches, silverfish, m oles, gophers, rats, m i c e -
just about anything!
Advertise In the Observer
Variety Salon
4554 N.E. Union
284-6017
3516 N.E. 15th
287-5618
I