Saturday, November 28, 2009

Misguided Anti-Israel Protest at Mountain Equipment Co-op stores

According to the Calgary Herald today (Saturday November 28), it's time to
Ignore boycott, it's time to BUYcott Israel
With the Aryan Guard in Calgary disbanding, it's good riddance to one bunch of anti-Semites.
Now, if only another bunch would disperse, as well. The misguided members of this particular group plan to picket at Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) stores today to protest the retailer's selling of Israeli-made products.
MEC management should ignore them and continue selling made-in-Israel goods.
I went over there to see what was going on and to buy something made in Israel.

There were a few picketers handing out leaflets condemning Israel, quite polite and peaceful in their behaviour, but I find their message odious. They slander MEC with their headline in their pamphlet: "Tell MEC to stop supporting Israel's was crimes". There were a few of the obligatory Yassar Arrafat scarves - quite the fashion statement on campus these days.



Of course there has to be the stupid naming of Israel as an apartheid state; they quote the egregiously misleading Goldstone report, as well as the warped opinion of the US' worst president, that big embarrassment to the United States - Jimmy Carter.

More from the Herald - this excellent comment:
Anyone who wants to boycott merchandise made in a democracy because of the despicable belief that this democracy has no right to defend itself against attacks by terrorists determined to wipe it out should be dismissed with the contempt merited.
Israel is the only country in the world that suffers condemnation for fighting back when attacked--and that bespeaks loudly of anti-Semitism, for no other reason is discernible.
One useful aspect of their pamphlet is they list the names of  brands of goods at MEC which are made in Israel; this made it easier for me to find items to purchase that are from Israel.
Thanks to the protesters for their pamphlet with the comprehensive list of goods made in  Israeli to buy when you visit at MEC.
But you can get a list here without soiling your hands taking their grubby little pamphlet.

I mentioned to every shop assistant that I talked to that I was looking for items made in Israel and they all seemed pleased.

The lady at the check out gave me an encouraging word for my support and her antipathy towards the protesters and invited me to return tomorrow (Sunday) for the pro-Israel demonstration. When she saw my Israel flag she asked me if I was Jewish, and when I said not but just a supporter of Israel she gave me an encouraging: "good for you."

The report I got from Toronto is that the pro-Israel people were more in evidence in Toronto than the pro-Hamas brigade, supported by the pictures ...


A short while ago we had the odious Sid Ryan of CUPE trying to initiate a boycott of Israeli academics, and this is the same kind of besmirching of Israel.

MEC is a co-operative and therefore it's members have a voice at the annual general meeting;the UJA Federation explains:
Become a MEC member by December 19, 2009. It costs only $5 and it gives you a say in how MEC is run at the company's Annual General Meeting.
... they  posted more information on their website - take a look if you this type of protest is repugnant to you and you would like to do something tangible to counteract it.



Gurth Whitaker
Calgary

4 comments:

  1. There was no protest planned in Toronto so the JDL was left outside the MEC with their dicks swinging in the wind.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The "offical" BUYcott Israel site was developed by the Canada-Israel Committee (funded by UJA Fed). Visit http://www.buycottisrael.ca and sign up for our BUYcott Alerts and get the scoop on pro-Israel initiatives.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well anonymous I went down to the Toronto MEC and bought some stuff from a store that I don't usually shop at. It was really busy in there. "JDL types left outside with their dicks swinging in the wind" certainly does not hurt business as far as the MEC is concerned.

    Can I make a request to the boycott Israel crowd to demonstrate outside of a store that I need some stuff from next time or one that is publicly traded so I can become a shareholder before you do? I need some new shoes, how about you hit the Cole Haan store on Bloor? I know Shoppers Drug Mart is listed on the stock exchage, give me a week's notice and I'll buy some shares in advance of the next demo.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks to BUYcott Israel for visiting, clarifying, and providing the link to the official site.

    Note, I am not connected to BUYcott Israel, I wrote this post because I support the principle of exposing and countering leftist anti-Israel ideologies.

    ReplyDelete