Well, the diea is divest from Miltary suppliers, take the matches from the hands fo the monkey. Disarm Israel, so it stops bullying Palestine, and normal people can proceed towards real peace, not what ever you guys are talking about.

"Disarm Israel, so it stops bullying Palestine..."

Yeah, but who's gonna disarm Hamas and Hezbullah? They're more of a threat to peace in the region than Israel could ever be.

puhhhhllllleeeeeeezzzzzzzz!
who has financial backing from the U.S.? It's not the Palestinians. There is clearly unbalanced power in the area. There is no denying that people will revolt when they are oppressed. It's a historical fact. I don't advocate for Hamas or Hezbollah, but I do think that these groups would not exist if Israel wasn't an occupying force in the lives of Palestinians for 57 years. It is ridiculous to think that there can be a peaceful solution to the conflict when there is such a gross imbalance of power in the area. This is why divesment is necessary.

A DIVESTMENT FROM YOUR MOM IS NECESSARY!

The TAA is nothing but a pile of monkey nuts. I can't stand that I have to pay them just because I happen to work for a professor.

"...who has financial backing from the U.S.? It's not the Palestinians. There is clearly unbalanced power in the area."

Yeah, the Palestinians have to make do with backing from the oil tyrants (although suicide bombers families are no longer rewarded by Saddam). It's clear that Israel is surrounded by enemies with far more in the way of money, population and weapons. It's a freaking miracle that they haven't been wiped out in one of the sneak attacks against them.

Besides, the Palestinians targets are un-armed men, women and children so they can get by a lot cheaper on their weapons.

"The TAA is nothing but a pile of monkey nuts. I can't stand that I have to pay them just because I happen to work for a professor."

Can I have your tuition remission?

Though I agree with many of the posters that the TAA is far from a credible organization, this article is both well written and very important to their cause. "Divestment" from Israel is not a even consideration for anyone but the most irresponsible and fringe factions in this country. The last thing the TAA would want to do is align themselves with a bunch of nutcases when they have so many legitimate concerns with their own organization.

I don't invest money in my mother. No, she gives me money to behave this way. To counteract nutcase Zionists.

Give me a break. If Palestinians has all this financial backing from 'oil tyrants' why would they be living in utter squalor? That is if you consider a 75% unemployment rate a bad thing. Oh, wait, I forgot it's because their government and other so-called Arab allies are screwing them. OR it's their fault because they are, you know, inherently terrorist-type humans. Just like all black people are lazy.

"I forgot it's because their government and other so-called Arab allies are screwing them"

Absolutely correct!

BTW, do you think that $20 million a year to Arafat's widow is the best possible use of that money.

it has nothing to do with Israel razing roads to markets, schools, etc. ? umemployment rate, I mean.

I wonder what Sharon's widow would get if he finally croaked. 200 million?

George Bush? We probably would all have to hand over our Social Security checks directly to Laura Bush if God would finally take the lousy son-of-a-bi**h!

$20 million/year? Arafat had stolen almost a billion that he hid in Swiss accounts.

This is almost as important as $9 per month for insurance - almost but not quite.

Nice folks, those Palestinians - even to their own.

***

Hamas has begun operating a "vice and virtue commando" in the Gaza Strip to safeguard Islamic values, Palestinian security officials and residents told The Jerusalem Post.
The new force, called the Anti-Corruption Unit, is believed to be behind the gruesome murder over the weekend of Yusra al-Azzami, a 22-year-old university student from the northern Gaza Strip.

Her "crime" was that she was seen in public with her fiance.

Hamas's "morality" patrolmen first spotted the young couple strolling along the beach in Gaza City, together with Azzami's younger sister. After enjoying the spectacular sunset over the sea, they got into the future husband's car and started driving towards Azzami's home.

According to eyewitness accounts, five masked gunmen who were in another car gave chase, opening fire at Azzami, who was sitting in the front seat next to her fianc . She died instantly.

The fianc and sister were later brutally beaten and moderately injured by the attackers.

The incident took place at a busy intersection in Gaza City.

What happened immediately afterwards left many passersby traumatized.

The assailants dragged the young woman's body out of the car, pouncing upon it mercilessly with clubs and iron bars.

"It was the most horrific crime I've seen in my life," said a university student who witnessed the attack. "What they did to the body while it was lying on the ground was barbaric. This does not represent Islam." The student, who asked not to be named, said he and several other people at the scene were too afraid to interfere. "We waited until the gunmen left the area before we called the police and an ambulance," he added.

Hamas initially denied any link to the murder, but later admitted that the assailants belonged to one of its groups. It also admitted that the murderers were responsible for cracking down on men and women who defy Islamic teachings by appearing in public together.

"Give me a break. If Palestinians has all this financial backing from 'oil tyrants' why would they be living in utter squalor?"

It's a propaganda coup! Israel successfully absorbed millions of Jews over the past 50 years, despite its limited wealth, land, and other resources. The only reason Arab nations haven't even attempted to absorb the Palestinian refugees is that by keeping them angry and destitute, they can make Israel out to be the bad guy AND launch proxy wars against the Jews.

"Can I have your tuition remission?"

I wish I had one. Not only do I have the injury of paying for my own tuition, I have the insult of having to pay for the TAA on top of it. Your generalization of who is required to be in the TAA is far too narrow.

No one is required to be in the TAA. Paying fair share dues doesn't make you a member. It means that the union bargains your contract.

You don't have to be a member, you're just forced to pay? Nice racket.

Yeah, and isn't that propoganda REALLY successful?! The world actually cares about Palestinians. It's widely supported and documented in the U.S. media and everyone feels really sorry for the Palestinians don't they? Those poor souls. AND everyone totally thinks that Israel is the bad guy, that's why the U.S. gives them butt-loads of money. It's like the same thing that these damn welfare mothers are doing here in the U.S. system. They're just poor to make the rest of us Americans look like big ol' meanies!! And in the end they get that big ol' welfare check! Woo-hoo free money!!

...so if you want to bargain your own contract, go ahead. I'm sure you'll get a much better deal than the crapfest the state is offering all the other TA's...and state employees.
Hey, you don't mind dedicating hundreds of hours a year to juridical and financial research, I'm sure. And it's really great that you dislike the TAA but don't bother to actually go to meetings, so that, you know, your voice could actually be heard. So much more effective to kvetch in the BH, you know.

I see the word Jews mentioned here a few times. I remember how all the "liberals" in this country would claim that they're not anti-Jewish. Well, now they've made their intentions very clear.

And to think that in a few years when they all finally graduate or drop out because of bad grades, they'll deny that they ever uttered an anti-Jewish word. Especially when they end up working for a Jewish boss.

If the TAA votes to divest, we should call to divest from the TAA. We can form a second union, one not tainted by anti-Semites, one that will accept the state's demand that members pay a very reasonable amount every month for health insurance in exchange for a reasonable salary, one that doesn't promote a far left political agenda out of misguided kneejerk instinct.

The TAA will likely oppose such a move, of course. Wouldn't that be an interesting turn, the TAA acting in opposition to a union and in favor of a monopoly? They'd look like such jackasses!

Is it true that 60 votes could take over the TAA?

"Is it true that 60 votes could take over the TAA?"

No, because the TAA isn't really democratic. It's a malevolent dictatorship.

HAAAHAAAHHAAAA!!! The state's "reasonable offer"?!
Man, hope you bought the industrial size Astroglide, you're going to need it!
Will that rate stay $9/$25 per month? Nope - state's already told us as much.
Okay, but they're not going to charge $100/month or something outrageous, right? Nope - state has explicitly refused to make premiums proportionate to pay, so if they wanted to raise it $100/month, they could (and this has already happened at other schools).
Well, yeah, but when they offered TA's the $9/25 per month payments, they gave commesurate raises, too. Nope - no raises. None. Means when you figure in the cost of living increases, your 2005 salary is worth 6-7% less than your 2003 salary.

If you think it's a good idea to not get a raise AND pay uncapped health insurance premiums, hey, more power to ya. I've got a bridge you might be interested in buying, too...

Why cannot one be critical of the Israeli government without being deemed an anti-semetic? I reviewd the responses to the article and nowhere does anyone comment on Jews. Israel and Zionism, yes, but not Jews. And why do I have to be considered 'left'? If you must know, I am a Republican and am far from failing any classes and would not mind working for a Jewish boss in the future. However, I find it incredible that a two-state solution will work and am further skeptical of Israel's claim that their military actions are entirely in self-defense. There is too much information out there directing me to think otherwise.

How much is the industrial size bottle of Astroglide?

"Hamas has begun operating a 'vice and virtue commando'"

Haha, couldn't you find a more reliable source than the Jersalem Post? It's like the Fox news of the US.

"The only reason Arab nations haven't even attempted to absorb the Palestinian refugees is that by keeping them angry and destitute..."

Why are they "refugees" in the first place? And are you trying to make a comparison: Isreal absorbed millions of Jews when they were opressed by the Nazis, and Arab nations should do the same to the Palestinians because Israel is opressing the Palestinians?

"I see the word Jews mentioned here a few times. I remember how all the "liberals" in this country would claim that they're not anti-Jewish."

For once, stop playing the "anti-semetic" card.