What happened to our non-violent demonstration???

I have just finished my daily read of mondoweiss, a blog by Philip Weiss, Adam Horowitz and contributing guests. I was all set to comment on Philip's experience in a peaceful demonstration which with no warning became "pandemonium". He talked about the soldiers; conversations with Palestinians, an English politician and others. There was also a post by Michael Ratner sharing his experience at Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust museum.

I was preparing to share my thoughts about their posts.....when I found two comments waiting for my approval or denial...my blog receives few comments, I wish there were comments, suggestions....anyway, these comments are quite lengthy; obviously written by the same person and signed "anonymous." The writer didn't include their name; the comments weren't in direct response to something I'd written. I question approving them. Later about that.

Philip's experience was similar my own at Al-ram in 2004.....the day was beautiful....Israelis, Palestinians and internationals joined in the demonstration...young drummers supplied the beat to unify our spirits, lead us forward....feelings of exhilaration, unity and purpose were in the air...chanting, singing...non-violence at its best!

Israeli soldiers were present..not prepared for non-violence...their jeeps, guns and equipment were ready for action. Guns weren't there "in case they might be needed"...they were front and center; ready for use; not pointing at a target; but with fingers on the triggers.
When you're part of a non-violent demonstration, especially for the first time, the soldiers, their guns and equipment seem almost funny...laughable. Why in the world are they so "prepared"? Prepared for what? We're just a group of people peacefully demonstrating ... we won't cause problems...that's not why we're here.

All of the sudden "pop" a tear gas canister is shot, hits the ground, tear gas fills the air....pop, pop, pop; a haze of tear gas surrounds us; then a horribly loud explosive boom...a sound bomb; meant to deafen you brain as well as your hearing. Next, as we run for cover, come the rubber bullets..not rubber, that's for sure! They are metal inside (very, very hard) coated on the outside with "rubber" They do not bounce or bend as rubber does; yes, they can injure and kill! so much for "rubber bullets" Thankfully, Palestinians pull us to safety in a shopping arcade. Outside the altercation continues; just as we begin to think the action had stopped, it starts again. Added to the IDF actions are tires burning in the street (making it more difficult for the soldiers to see) and stones being thrown by Palestinian youth. I wrote about them in earlier posts) The stop and start action of the soldiers continues for over an hour.

Once we are certain the action had died down permanently we venture out; heading for our bus and the ride to Ramallah.
Pop, pop, pop; deafening booms; ...no rubber bullets this time ...live ammunition is being shot over our heads! Quite frightening! We find cover behind a concrete barrier...I watch 2 soldiers beat an Israeli photographer to the ground...kicking him, hitting him...over and over again... until they were able to get his camera; the camera with the evidence! There's a scuffle in the crowd ...soldiers pull someone out and drag him away. All becomes quiet. The soldiers turn around, walk to their jeeps and ride away.....this time the quiet remains.
Out of nowhere, an ice cream vendor appears. We buy ice cream and walk to our bus.
As Phil Weiss said he didn't see or hear any demonstrator do anything that would turn a peaceful protest into a scene of IDF violence. Always, the IDF says their actions were provoked... usually they are the only ones who see this happen...strange...could they be seeing things that don't exist? It's difficult to understand what Israel expects this type action to accomplish. It certainly has not broken the spirit of the Palestinians.....in fact nothing will break their spirit. Never have I seen such a proud, determined group. They love their land, their families, their people. And they are peaceful!