Dissident Veteran For Peace: Open Letter: Pluto Press Under Attack by Israel Lobby

Dissident Veteran For Peace

"I know of no country in which there is so little independence of mind and real freedom of discussion as in America." —Alexis de Tocquevile. Democracy in America, Book I, Chapter XV.

With a nod to the Most Rev. Dom Helder Camara: When I support Palestinians some call me an 'anti-Semite', when I try to explain why I stand in solidarity with Palestinians they call me a Nazi.

"WAR is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives." —Major General Smedley Butler, USMC (ret.)

"... no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means; it is an end." —character of O'Brien in 1984, part 3, ch. 3 by George Orwell.

"Every prophet has realized that nobody loves you for being the enemy of their illusions. Every prophet has realized that most of us want peace at any price as long as the peace is ours and somebody else pays the price. That is why the prophet Jeremiah said, ' "Peace, peace," they say, when there is no peace,' ..." —The Rev. William Sloane Coffin. "Not to Bring Peace, But a Sword."

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Open Letter: Pluto Press Under Attack by Israel Lobby

Published yesterday by the Palestine Chronicle:

The vitriolic attack questioned the University's relationship with Pluto generally and denigrated Overcoming Zionism.

By Roger van Zwanenberg
PalestineChronicle.com

About three weeks ago Pluto books and the University of Michigan Press - our US distributor - came under attack by Stand With Us (a Zionist lobby group) who were objecting to the publication of Overcoming Zionism by Joel Kovel which resulted in the book being withdrawn in the US. The vitriolic attack questioned the University's relationship with Pluto generally and denigrated Overcoming Zionism.

Since then the Executive Board of the University has considered the matter and issued a public statement. Joel's book has now been reinstated but they plan to review the ongoing relationship between Pluto and UMP in October.

Pluto Press's importance and presence in the US is under threat.

Joel is setting up a network to rally support for Pluto as we are determined to defend ourselves. We hope you will help and support our efforts in the US by writing to Joel and Kathy who are co-ordinating the campaign jskovel@gmail.com and Ellajaja@aol.com.

If you have your own networks, please first go through Joel and Kathy, as they are co-ordinating the campaign

In the meantime we intend to get the UK media to take notice of these events.

Warmly

Roger van Zwanenberg (Dr)
Chair & Commissioning Editor www.plutobooks.com
Pluto Press
345 Archway Road
London N6 5AA
Tel 020 8374 2192 ( Direct line)
0044 20 8374 2192 from Outside UK
Company No 4770976

For other posts on this ongoing story click here and then scroll down.

Labels: censorship, hasbara, Joel Kovel, Pluto Press, thoughtcrime, Zionism

# posted by VFPDissident @ 9/25/2007 05:03:00 PM

Comments:

Thoughtcrime! Censorship? you complain of the very things you are guilty of, I've been waiting for a week or so to see my additional comment posted on your last post as well as a response from you to my new comment, and you have done neither. The great threat isn't Pluto Press but people like you who try to deem what is legitimate or illegitimate in the "market place of ideas." If you want to implement freedom of speech maybe you should start with your own blog before crying wolf about the University.

Sane Patriot

# posted by

Anonymous : Thursday, September 27, 2007 2:22:00 PM

Community group Anti-Racist Action has been conducting a divestment campaign at Wayne State University for over a year now. Recently, they have begun reading the Kovel book in solidarity with the struggle against censorship.

ARA's blog is struggleforpalestine.blogspot.com

# posted by

WSU ARA : Monday, October 01, 2007 10:38:00 AM

San, this is a private blog.. the owner is under no obligation to print all comments, any more than a newspaper is required to print all "letters to the editor". The U of M is a publicly (ie taxpayer) funded institution, and thus has different obligations... among them being ensuring freedom of intellectual expression and maintaining an environment of diverse ideas and concepts. Your accusations are spurious at best. One might also question the "target" of your "Sane Patriotism".

Jeannie

# posted by

Anonymous : Tuesday, October 09, 2007 4:11:00 AM