Agree to disagree… and let people live their lives.

Arab Christian Bedouin woman from the town of Al-Karak, Ottoman Empire, 1898... before WWII shaped Western imposed borders & bigotry that ended freedom & respect for Arabs in The Holy Land

Arab Christian Bedouin woman from the town of Al-Karak, Ottoman Empire, 1898.

1946, Jerusalem, Palestine: Janette Mikhael with teachers and students of the Girl Scout Leaders at Horsh al-Qubaybeh located west of Jerusalem.

1946, Jerusalem, Palestine: Janette Mikhael with teachers and students of the Girl Scout Leaders at Horsh al-Qubaybeh located west of Jerusalem.  @palsofnations

Girl Scout Promise

On my honor, I will try:
To serve God* and my country,
To help people at all times,
And to live by the Girl Scout Law.

^{*Members may substitute for the word God
in accordance with their own spiritual beliefs.}

Girl Scout Law

I will do my best to be
honest and fair,
friendly and helpful,
considerate and caring,
courageous and strong,
and responsible for what I say and do,
and to respect myself and others,
respect authority,
use resources wisely,
make the world a better place,
and be a sister to every Girl Scout.   

 https://www.girlscouts.org/en/discover/about-us/what-girl-scouts-do/promise-and-law.html

https://www.wagggs.org/en/about-us/our-history/original-promise-and-law/

The water fountain is called a sabil [in Arabic], a word that originally meant path. Later, it came to mean path to God. Sabils were widespread in the Muslim world until the early 20th century. They were charitable water fountains refilled by water carriers at specific times of the day

 Jerusalem-  Naqshbandi Zawiya-  a historical little mosque built from about 300 years ago and also used as Islamic information center offers a free rest station for tourist free Islamic books free drinks and give an intro about Islam

Bukhari Mosque in Jerusalem

Arabs in Pictures   The water fountain is called a sabil, a word that originally meant path. Later, it came to mean path to God.

Sabils were widespread in the Muslim world until the early 20th century. They were charitable water fountains refilled by water carriers at specific times of the day. 

"I want my taxes to help children, not kill them. I want my taxes to feed children, not starve them. I want to build a better world, not bomb it." Ms Rachel

The dehumanization is so painful.” As Gaza’s war rages, Ms. Rachel — beloved by millions of toddlers — has been outspoken for Palestinian children. She says she’s shocked by how deeply they’re dehumanized, and while the backlash has been painful, the support has been greater.

Instagram Repost - @msrachelforlittles

msrachelforlittles

 "“I was in a lot of pain, because I just didn’t understand. And now I am definitely speaking out, saying — if you care deeply about one group of kids, it does not mean that you don’t care about other groups of kids. That’s not fair, and it’s not right to say that.”

She didn’t stop posting about Gaza; she also continued to make statements condemning antisemitism and expressing grief for Israeli families whose children and loved ones were taken hostage by Hamas. “I just felt led to keep going,” she says. “I have this platform. Kids gave me this platform, and I want to use this platform for kids.”"     https://www.washingtonpost.com/parenting/interactive/2025/ms-rachel-childrens-media/?itid=sr_0_b963bb7d-4f70-4d9e-960a-8b7e83553a10

Ms. Rachel grew up on Mister Rogers. Now she’s carrying on his legacy.

The YouTube star wants her audiences — adults and children alike — to see the humanity of all people.

By Caitlin Gibson

July 31, 2025 in The Washington Post

 

 AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine, or at least fair and just laws and policies]

For 80 years, the United Nations has served as the essential, one-of-a-kind meeting ground to advance peace, prosperity and human rights. Amid the profound challenges facing our world today, these solutions and global solidarity are needed more than ever.

Global Goals

@GlobalGoalsUN

For 80 years, the @UN has served as the essential, one-of-a-kind meeting ground to advance peace, prosperity and human rights. Amid the profound challenges facing our world today, these solutions and global solidarity are needed more than ever.

 

The United Nations emblem.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the United Nations.

Born out of the ashes of the Second World War, the organization was the result of a global commitment to “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”

The founding of the UN also signaled a commitment to an entirely new level of international cooperation grounded in international law and the UN Charter.

Eight decades later, one can draw a direct line between the creation of the United Nations and the prevention of a third world war.

Today, the United Nations remains the essential, one-of-a-kind meeting ground to advance peace, prosperity and human rights.

The UN works tirelessly to support countries as they tackle poverty, hunger and disease, while also supporting people in need during times of conflict and disaster.

The organization has advanced justice and fairness through international law and respect for human rights, while also pushing for peace through dialogue, debate, diplomacy and consensus-building.

Multilateral cooperation is the beating heart of the United Nations, but multilateralism is only as strong as each and every country’s commitment to it.

And because we believe in the singular value and purpose of the United Nations, we always strive to improve the institution and the way we work.

Amid the profound challenges facing our world today, global solidarity and solutions are needed more than ever

Adapted from the remarks of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to the Security Council on 18 February 2025.

 The United Nations Charter was drafted during the United Nations Conference on International Organization, which began on April 25, 1945, and it was signed on June 26, 1945. It officially came into force on October 24, 1945.

The United Nations Charter.

On June 26, 1945, in San Francisco, the United Nations was formally established with the signing of the UN Charter.

The United Nations was established after World War II in an attempt to maintain international peace and security and to achieve cooperation among nations on economic, social, and humanitarian problems.

Find the full text of the UN Charter, or read about the history of its making. Listen to a reading of the Preamble.    https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter

“The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognizing this may be incapable of morality.” ― James Baldwin

“Anyone who has ever struggled with poverty knows how extremely expensive it is to be poor.”

― James Baldwin 

 

“If the concept of God has any validity or any use, it can only be to make us larger, freer, and more loving. If God cannot do this, then it is time we got rid of Him.”
― James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time  

 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin 

 

“It is certain, in any case, that ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have.”
― James Baldwin 

 

“The victim who is able to articulate the situation of the victim has ceased to be a victim: he or she has become a threat.”
― James Baldwin  

 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin?page=2

 

“Those who say it can't be done are usually interrupted by others doing it.”
― James Baldwin  

 

“The poet or the revolutionary is there to articulate the necessity, but until the people themselves apprehend it, nothing can happen ... Perhaps it can't be done without the poet, but it certainly can't be done without the people. The poet and the people get on generally very badly, and yet they need each other. The poet knows it sooner than the people do. The people usually know it after the poet is dead; but that's all right. The point is to get your work done, and your work is to change the world.”
― James Baldwin 

 

“The impossible is the least that one can demand.”
― James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time: Mcdougal Littell Literature Connections  

 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin?page=3

  

“No man is a devil in his own mind.”
― James Baldwin  

 

“Those kids aren't dumb. But the people who run these schools want to make sure they don't get smart: they are really teaching the kids to be slaves.”
― James Baldwin, If Beale Street Could Talk  

 

“It comes as a great shock…to discover that the flag to which you have pledged allegiance…has not pledged allegiance to you. It comes as a great shock to see Gary Cooper killing off the Indians, and although you are rooting for Gary Cooper, that the Indians are you.”
― James Baldwin  

 

 https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin?page=4

 

“Education is indoctrination if you're white - subjugation if you're black.”
― James Baldwin  

 

“American history is longer, larger, more various, more beautiful, and more terrible than anything anyone has ever said about it.”
― James Baldwin  

 

“History is not a procession of illustrious people. It's about what happens to a people. Millions of anonymous people is what history is about.”
― James Baldwin  

 

“I am what time, circumstance, history, have made of me, certainly, but I am also so much more than that. So are we all.”
― James Baldwin  

 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin?page=5

 

“For these are all our children, we will all profit by or pay for what they become.”
― James Baldwin  

 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin?page=6

 

“Artists are here to disturb the peace.”
― James Baldwin  

 

“Don’t let it make you bitter. Try to understand. Try to understand. The world’s already bitter enough, we got to try to be better than the world.”
― James Baldwin, Another Country  

 

“I imagine that one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, that they will be forced to deal with pain.”
― James Baldwin, Notes of a Native Son

 

 “Talent is insignificant. I know a lot of talented ruins. Beyond talent lie all the usual words: discipline, love, luck, but, most of all, endurance.”
― James Baldwin 

 

“The longer I live, the more deeply I learn that love — whether we call it friendship or family or romance — is the work of mirroring and magnifying each other's light.”
― James Baldwin, Nothing Personal  

 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10427.James_Baldwin?page=7

The UN emblem is a symbol of hope, peace and unity around the world. As the UN turns 80, we remain committed to advancing peace, dignity and equality for all on a healthy planet.

If you ever feel heavy because you care deeply about injustice, suffering and ecological destruction, remember that a trillion dollar propaganda machine was built to make you numb AND IT DIDN'T WORK ON YOU

Our Sacred Duty

 

WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS DETERMINED to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of life....

WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS DETERMINED

to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and

to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and

to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and

to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

AND FOR THESE ENDS

to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, and

to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and

to ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and

to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples,

HAVE RESOLVED TO COMBINE OUR EFFORTS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE AIMS.

Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their full powers found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an international organization to be known as the United Nations.

Chapter I: Purposes and Principles

Article 1

The Purposes of the United Nations are:

1. To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;
2. To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace;
3. To achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion; and...READ MORE  https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter/full-text
   

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine, or at least fair and just laws and policies]

Thank you NPR, for the compassionate listen into Palestinian life, trauma, and suffering that I heard on my car radio Saturday May 31, 2025 on WITF radio in Central Pennsylvania

Dear NPR,

 

Thank you NPR, for the compassionate listen into Palestinian life, trauma, and suffering that I heard on my car radio yesterday (Saturday May 31st 2025) on WITF radio.

 

"Group Chat Conversations across a divide: Palestinians who are outside Gaza check in with family, friends, and strangers inside" was beautifully produced, empowering Palestinians to tell their own story.    https://www.thisamericanlife.org/861/group-chat

 

It has been horrifying to know about the plight of the Palestinians but to hear so little on our American news that has not been spun by Zionist news writers and outsiders who seek to excuse and/or ignore Israel’s crimes against humanity.

America should not be funding and arming Israel’s war on Palestinians, nor should we be helping Israel undermine and destroy UNWRA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East. 

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

Laurel Hills, Pennsylvania USA

 

https://www.thisamericanlife.org/861/group-chat

 

Note: The internet version of this episode contains un-beeped curse words. BEEPED VERSION.

• 
  

Prologue

Prologue

The Hammash family’s group chat unfolds over texts, starting before the war. (8 minutes)

• 
  

Act One

I’m Fine, Don’t Worry

When Yousef Hammash left Gaza a year ago, his sisters decided to stay behind. We hear about the toll that separation has taken on Yousef and the sister he’s closest to, Aseel. (30 minutes)

By Chana Joffe-Walt; Produced by Nancy Updike

• 
  

Act Two

Week Eleven

Mohammed Mhawish, a reporter who left Gaza a year ago with his family, talks to a young woman in Gaza about how she manages her hunger. Israel blockaded all food from Gaza for more than two months. (15 minutes)

Mohammed Mhawish is a contributing writer for The Nation, which is where we first read about his experiences with hunger in "What It Feels Like to Starve."

By Mohammed Mhawish; Produced by Diane Wu

• 
  

Coda

Banias

Chana gives a short update about Banias, a 9-year-old girl in Gaza she's been speaking with for months. (4 minutes)

Song:

“Person Person” by Mirah

 

Dear America- Tragedies abound here on planet earth, but at least we can try to make our world a better, more fair, just and secure place for more people.

Non-Violence, also known as The Knotted Gun, is a bronze sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd of an oversized Colt Python .357 Magnum revolver with its barrel tied in a knot. It is located at the United Nations headquarters in New York City.

 
Dear America,

Tragedies abound here on planet earth, but at least we can try to make our world a better, more fair, just and secure place for more people.

I grieve for the young Israeli couple murdered in Washington DC this week, and I have been grieving and will continue to grieve for all the many Palestinian men, women, and children being tormented and killed- murdered by Israeli soldiers and settlers.

Scorn violence please, set the right example:  Stop arming and supporting Israel as frankly Israel as it is today drives people crazy with its racist violence and injustice, and its genocidal destruction of Gaza.

Follow the lead of folks wiser and more educated and informed; folks more aware of the crucial importance of diplomacy and the rule of fair and just laws.  Follow the lead of the United Nations- and UNWRA- and The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Stealing land is wrong. Destroying people's homes and livelihoods is cruel- and wrong. Starving children is wrong. Blocking vital aid from reaching families in need is wrong.  Racist hate is evil and insane: Please stop fueling and funding racist Israeli crimes against humanity.

Jewish people, Muslim people, Christian People, Buddhist people, Hindu people, Taoist people, Shinto people, Sikh people, Confucius people, Fairy people, Agnostic people, Atheist people, pretty people, ugly people, smart people, dumb people, ALL people need true equality and respect. 

Invest in goodness and the rule of fair and just laws, and invest in help for those in need. Invest in America and invest in peace- NOT ISRAEL.

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

NOTES https://anniesnewletters.blogspot.com/search/label/Notes

The NAKBA... The Question of Palestine

YouTube Star Ms Rachel Sings with 3 Year Old Double Amputee From Gaza

The REAL Situation in Gaza My 30 Days of Coverage by Bisan of Gaza, Palestinian journalist, activist, and filmmaker, best known for social media videos documenting her experiences during the Gaza Genocide.

Mosab Abu Toha: Israel murdered an artist yesterday. Elham al-Boddi, 33, from Beit Lahia. Her husband was killed months ago.

 

FOLLOW HIM!!!  

https://x.com/MosabAbuToha

 https://www.facebook.com/mosab.abutoha

https://www.instagram.com/mosab_abutoha/

 

ALSO FOLLOW

Assal Rad

@AssalRad

“Permanently relocate” You misspelled ETHNICALLY CLEANSE.

United Nations

@UN

Official account of the United Nations. For peace, dignity & equality on a healthy planet.

& UNWRA

 https://x.com/UNRWA

"We remember everything" 2025 Keys to Return painting by Palestinian artist Irina Naji

Brilliant Engineering Graduate Ceremony Student Speech by Palestinian American Leena Ghrayeb- University of Michigan 2025

Palestinians from Jaffa city enjoy a seaside cafe on the seashore of their city circa 1895 (- 1916) during the Ottoman era.

Some Symbols of Palestine (love not hate): The keffiyeh, Olive Trees, Tatreez Embroidery, Watermelons, Flags, Handala, Mahmoud Darwish, Ismail Shammout, Tamam Al-Akhal, Sliman Mansour, The Holy Family, The Dome of the Rock, Maps, Food, & KEYS

Israeli forces have now dropped more explosives in Gaza than fell on London, Dresden, and Hamburg during the Second World War. The region’s hospitals have not been spared; most are no longer functional. Clayton Dalton writes about the devastation in The New Yorker .

"“They were shouting at me, threatening to rape me, chanting ‘death to Arabs’. I thought the police would protect me from the mob, but they did nothing to intervene,” she said."

UNWRA Aid is ready to be brought into Gaza, just waiting for the crossings to reopen. Basic supplies meant for people in need are expiring while on the other side starvation deepens. UNRWA has nearly 3,000 trucks of lifesaving aid waiting. The siege imposed by the Israeli authorities must be lifted.

UN Expert, Francesca Albanese, Urges Immediate End to Arms Sales to Israeli Occupation & UNRWA's Philippe Lazzarini Explains That Gaza’s Children Are Starving Under Deliberate and Brutal Blockade Imposed by Israeli Forces: This is not the result of a natural disaster or logistical failure,” he wrote on the X platform. “It is a man-made catastrophe, driven by clear political motives.”

"Yes, we reject what happened on October 7 and wish it had never happened. But we also reject the monstrous crimes being committed now against a defenseless people, trapped in a dirty war meant to crush their cause. Those who stay silent, who conspire, or who support the aggression on Gaza bear deep responsibility—for decades they failed to help free the Palestinian land and people from occupation, so that they too might live with dignity and freedom like the rest of the world.” Archbishop Atallah Hanna Friday, April 25, 2025

Born out of the ashes of the Second World War, the United Nations was the result of a global commitment to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.

A nation behind bars: Why has Israel imprisoned 10,000 Palestinians? ... For every Palestinian Israel freed in the ceasefire deal, it apprehended 15 more. The number of political prisoners in its jails has doubled since the war began.

A martyr is a person who is killed or made to suffer because of their religious or other beliefs ... Talented artist Deem Zurub [Dina Khaled Mohammed Zaarab] drew pictures of people who died in Gaza- MARTYRs who died in Israel's war against the indigenous people of Palestine. Deem Zurub, a Palestinian refugee living in a tent, was killed by Israeli airstrike April 14th, 2025

"At an exhibition in Amsterdam, a long poster lists the names of Palestinian journalists killed in Gaza. Standing before it is heartbreaking. Every loss hurts deeply." Samar Abu Elouf

Seder Plate [2006] poem by Susan Eisenberg

More than 2.1 million people are trapped in Gaza, they are starved and bombed and starved and bombed and bombed again and again and again. Men, women and children are starving and dying, while at crossing points food, medicine, fuel, and shelter supplies are piling up .... The siege must be lifted, crossings must re-open for a steady flow of aid, and the #ceasefire must be renewed.

Gaza has the most child amputees in history... An estimated ten children are amputated every hour in Gaza, most without anaesthesia, sedation or even pain medication.

My more recent Letters

Racist times created hell on earth for "others" then, we really should know better now...

Dear America- Funding religious extremists and charlatans is a recipe for disaster.

Dear America- Please do not let this tragic situation became a reason for more people to be treated more unequally, with more Palestinians and Palestinian Americans being doxed, destroyed, and displaced.

Life is not a video game. These are real human beings and American made weaponry has been creating a Holocaust with The Rule of Lawlessness in the Holy Land.

Taxpayers' money should not be shoring up greed, corporate corruption, injustice, and war.

Please, let Golden Rule thinking and the rule of fair and just laws guide US all towards a better way forward.

State sponsored violence is not the way to convince vulnerable people to veer away from arming religious tyranny and terrorism.

Hate crimes are escalating here in America with people primed by to think, say and do horrible things...

Slavery, Segregation and Forced Displacement are wrong. Wrong then and wrong now

"Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world..."   https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights