by havanagila » Fri Jan 27, 2006 10:30 am
I am trying to figure out something, maybe someone here has additional information or leads.<br><br>The largest foundation in Israel that keep the "progressive" community alive is called the New israel Fund (in partnership with ford foundation on some projects), a US Jewish based non profit. This fund is the sole and largest donor for anything left than goverment (women, children, peace, arabs, homosexual, poverty, etc. etc.). the new president of the NIF in DC is one Larry Gerber, formerly in USAID, member of CFR, and earlier, a lawyer in human rights watch or one of those organizations. His area of expertise in USAID was elections in all kinds of shit hole third world places. he worked in Nicaragua, panama, and PA. He was also one of the current elecetion observers in the PA, courtesy of carter institute or something like that. <br><br>My blog post was a bit of a warning to Israeli field activists not to assume that santa claus is really interested in the human rights of gays in SIrael or what not, but he is one of the many emissaries of the US interventionist "middle east" order, namely, those who brought freedom to Iraq and now strive at dropping it from the air on tehran, courtesy of the "cannon flesh" israelis.the New Israel Fund is small money in terms of Garber's previous job places, it holds some 150 million $. (this is the entire budget of progressive activities in Israel, the price of two F-16.).<br><br>Then when I dug up some more, i saw that Barry Chamish also mentions him, although in another context. don't know.<br>Anyway, I looked up the previous president of said NIF, one Norman S. Rosenberg, who is now heading an NGO for children (Parents Action), which president is Robe Reiner. Before entering the NIF, in 1990 (just before the gulf war), Rosenberg was working for Bazelon, a mental health consumer rights network. I thought it was funny that former president was moving frmo "mental health patients" via Israeli human rights TO preschoolers rights. But then, it occurred to me that on the board of that Parents actions thing, sits Cheryl Saban, the wife of Haim Saban an LA milllionnaire, one of Shimon pEres' main donors who recently bought Israeli communications company Bezeq from the goverment in a "good price". <br><br>I get an uneasy feeling that the "business" of progressive social action in Israel is being used for not so liberal/peace causes. the not funny thing about it, is most of the field activists, who work really hard up against the stream, do not know who they are actually working for. They think they are really fighting against the government, while they are being peddled by professionals from DC. Another red flag I saw, was that one of the major grantees of the New Israel Fund, an NGO representing the poor, has recently received a lot of money from pfeizer to sponser improved medical service to Ethiopian women (new immigrants)...pfeizer ? somehow the combination of Pfeizer with africans doesnt sound to well, and besides what would they do giving money to POOR PEOPLE In israel via a so called radical left org ???<br><br>If you know anything about USAID, and/or these circles, Haim Saban, Rob Reiner...feel welcome to drop a link.<br><br><br> <p></p><i></i>
