Surasky writes,

Rebuilding Alliance issued this statement to clarify tax law:

“The Rebuilding Alliance is a wholly transparent organization that is fully compliant with U.S. tax laws and with its tax filings. As a 501(c)(3) organization, it has a board of directors whose sole purpose is to serve the public interest. As such, The Rebuilding Alliance has registered and operates in accordance with 501(h) election to Make Expenditures to Influence Legislation. Given this, we have full legal right to lobby and to hold teleconference calls with elected representatives within the boundaries established by those rules.“

If IRS agents show up at the front door of Rebuilding Alliance any time soon, it’s a pretty good bet we’ll all know who to thank. Forget investigations for impersonating Congressional staffers, maybe it’s time for a Congressional investigation into using the IRS for political purposes.

We do not question the statement, “Given this, we have full legal right to lobby and to hold teleconference calls with elected representatives within the boundaries established by those rules.” On the other hand, although we are not tax professionals, certain items on the Form 990 tax return that 501(c)(3) tax exempt entities must file seem pretty straightforward. This is what the Rebuilding Alliance told the Internal Revenue Service for July 2003 through June 2004, and July 2004 through June 2005.

It therefore looks like, yes, a 501(c)(3) tax exempt entity is allowed to engage in at least a limited amount of lobbying as described above. However, it also looks like it must report this activity to the Internal Revenue Service. The Rebuilding Alliance answered “No” to the question, “During the year, did the organization attempt to influence national, state, or local legislation, including any effort to influence public opinion on a legislative matter or referendum…” and reported zero expenditures for this purpose. Now, let’s take a look at what the Rebuilding Alliance actually did during the time period in question (July 2003 through June 2005). The following is from the Rebuilding Alliance’s own Web site, not from the bogeyman or ourselves, so A Jewish Voice for Peace’s Muzzlewatch can hardly accuse Lee Kaplan of making it up (JVP seems to think Lee Kaplan is responsible for all its problems), unless maybe Lee Kaplan also is the Rebuilding Alliance’s Webmaster.

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?p=243

Stop H.Con.Res. 371

March 10th, 2004 Donna Baranski-Walker

Oppose House Resolution on Israel’s Wall
US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation

Members of Congress are considering a resolution supporting Israel’s wall and condemning the International Court of Justice for offering an advisory opinion on it. Act now to educate your Representative about the realities of the wall and stop this resolution from passing.

ISSUE & LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

Rep. Mike Pence (IN-6) introduced on February 26 House Concurrent Resolution 371, Supporting the construction by Israel of a security fence to prevent Palestinian terrorist attacks and condemning the decision by the United Nations General Assembly to request the International Court of Justice to render an opinion on the legality of the security fence. H.Con.Res.371 was referred to the House International Relations Committee. As of March 5, the resolution had 90 cosponsors. To see if your Representative has cosponsored the resolution, see the US Campaign’s Congressional Report Card at:
http://endtheoccupation.org/article.php?list=type&type=59.
Cosponsors of this resolution have received a -1 in column 7.

The full text of the resolution can be read at: http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=108_cong_bil ls&docid=f:hc371ih.txt.pdf.

ACTION REQUESTED:

Fax, call, and/or email your Representative and ask him/her not to cosponsor House Concurrent Resolution 371 (H.Con.Res.371). If your Representative has already cosponsored this resolution, ask him/her to withdraw his/her support for it.

HOW CAN CONGRESS GET AWAY WITH RESOLUTIONS LIKE THESE?:

Congress can seriously consider such unproductive and unbalanced resolutions on Israel/Palestine policy because the vast majority of U.S. citizens who want a foreign policy based on peace, justice, human rights, and international law are silent while those who push extremist agendas are vocal. We can’t create political change if we don’t engage the political system. Join forces with the US Campaign to change U.S. policy toward Israel/Palestine. We are coordinating political efforts in more than 130 congressional districts through our Congressional District Coordinator network. Get involved and coordinate your political efforts with ours. Together we can mobilize enough grassroots pressure to change policy. For more information, please contact us at congress @ endtheoccupation.org.

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?m=20040310

Sample Letter - Please send via FAX or EMAIL

Senator or Congressperson
Address in Washington DC (http://www.congress.org)
FAX:
Attn: Senior Staff Member you spoke to by phone

Re: Security Barrier in Israel

Dear :

I’m asking you to intervene on an urgent matter. The Israeli Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on a petition regarding the Separation Wall and its effect on a cluster of ten Palestinian villages. I’m writing to ask that you speak up for the basic rights of these villagers, on my behalf.

An unusual coalition of support has arisen to save these West Bank villages from the disastrous effects of the Separation Wall. This follows weeks of non-violent protest against the Wall in the villages of Beit Suriq, Biddu and eight others, which were joined by Rabbis for Human Rights and other Israeli and international peace activists, at the villagers? request.

In a very unusual development, Israelis from the Jerusalem suburb of Mevasserat Zion have come to the defense of their neighbors - with whom they’ve co-existed peacefully for 37 years - to save their lands and livelihoods. Some 200 residents of Mevasserat Zion signed a petition submitted to the Israeli Supreme Court objecting to the damage the wall would cause Beit Suriq and the other villages. On Wednesday, March 10, a group of security experts appointed by the Israeli Peace and Security Council submitted a report declaring that the Separation Barrier harms the villagers with no security justification. Former high-ranking officers in the IDF, police and security forces signed this analysis.

As planned, the wall will:

* Separate these Palestinian villagers from 12,500 acres of mostly agricultural land
* Create an economic and humanitarian disaster for some 30,000 people
* Encircle several villages, cutting residents off from jobs, access to essential services and shopping
* Deprive them of use of all eight of their water wells, essential for summer survival.

My concern for these villages is an example of why Congress should not pass HRes 371, which pledges unconditional support for Israel’s separation wall.

I urge you to make two calls, as soon as possible, to avert this disaster:

1. To the Israeli Embassy to urge that the Wall not be allowed to abridge the human rights and livelihoods of these Palestinians.

2. To the U.S. State Department to urge Israel to reroute the wall so that it doesn?t separate these villagers from their agricultural land, nor unduly restrict their freedom of movement

To describe my involvement in this issue, I am a (please include your profession, eg. California architect> and Our group has over members in .

I am counting on your to let me know about the response of the Israeli Embassy and State Department to your calls. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Your Name
title and contact info. (phone and email)

March 10th, 2004

Urgent Action Alert

Help Unusual Coalition Save 10 Villages - Be Their Voices to US Congress

Dear Friend of The Rebuilding Alliance,

An unusual coalition of Palestinians and Israelis is speaking out to save a cluster of Palestinian towns threatened by the Separation Wall. When Congress complains, their voices and yours — will stop the Wall. Please urge your congressperson to register concern with the Israeli Embassy, on your behalf.

Palestinians from the villages of Beit Suriq, Biddu and eight other nearby villages, have been joined by Israelis from the Jerusalem suburb of Mevasseret Zion in petitioning the Israeli Supreme Court. They’ve asked the Court to reconsider the building of the Separation Wall in this area, which will cause unnecessary confiscation of Palestinian land and needless, but extreme, hardships for the residents of the affected towns.

In an extraordinary development, a group of experts appointed by the Israeli Peace and Security Council submitted a report to the court today declaring that the Separation Barrier harms the villagers in the Beit Suriq area with no security justification. Former high-ranking officers in the IDF, police and security forces signed this analysis. The Court’s ruling is expected tomorrow, Thursday, March 11.

PLEASE CALL YOUR CONGRESSPERSON. Ask to speak to the senior staffer for Middle East policy or foreign policy. Tell them that your concern for these villages is an example of why Congress should not pass HRes 371, which pledges unconditional support for Israel’s Separation Wall. (For more information on this Resolution and to find out where your congressperson stands on this issue, go to http://endtheoccupation.org)

- Ask to speak to your congress person?s senior staffer — then ask him or her to make two calls on your behalf:

1. To the US State Department to urge Israel to reconsider building this Wall and causing these villagers unnecessary hardship without any security justification.

2. To the Israeli Embassy to urge that the petition be accepted and the Wall not be allowed to abridge the human rights and livelihoods of these Palestinians.

- Ask that staffer to call you back as soon as they get through. Call and remind them if you don’t hear from them in a few days time.

- Forward this e-mail to your friends.

Talking Points:

* The wall as planned will
- separate the villagers from their agricultural lands, putting a wall between them and 50,000 dunams of land (about 12,500 acres) of which 30,000 dunams are cultivated or planted with fruit trees:
- deprive them of access to all eight of their water wells, essential for survival in summer
- completely encircle several villages, making it difficult, if not impossible for them to get to jobs, to shop or obtain essential services
* The petitioning villages are: Beit Suriq, Biddu, Qattana, Al Qubeiba, Beit Anan, Beit Lekiya, Deit Duqqu, Beit Ijza, Nebi Samual and Beit Iksa.
* The Israeli suburb of Mevasseret Zion, directly abutting these villages, wants the Wall moved.
* High Ranking Generals, 300 veterans and a group of Ex-Mayors issued an analysis stating that this wall causes excessive harm to the villagers with no security justification.
* This class action is but one example among so many. Please vote against H.Res 371.

If you can make this call today, who knows what walls will come tumbling down? For more information on the efforts to save these villages, please go to Rebuildingalliance.org.

Sincerely,
Donna Baranski-Walker, Director, The Rebuilding Alliance

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?p=46 (October 28, 2004)

Will it make a difference? Just a few months ago, the village of Al Aqabah in the West Bank finished building their kindergarten with help from The Rebuilding Alliance. Now 80 children are enrolled, and the village has electricity, phones, and a new mosque. When demolition orders were issued in December and July, the Rebuilding Alliance hired the best lawyer we could find to petition the Israeli Supreme Court for the town’s safety. So far it’s working! The Separation Wall was rerouted and the homes are safe for now. Plans are in place to alert press and Congress if need arises.

We’re encouraging Americans to take in the personal stories of Palestinian families, to invest in their future by helping them rebuild homes and schools, and to defend their rights in court. And when bulldozers are coming, we know we can save those homes and schools when citizens call Congress to intervene. By building this home in Rachel’s name, and then the next, we are building momentum to prevent what Human Rights Watch called “the planned destruction of hundreds more homes” in Gaza.

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?p=245

Sample Letter - Please send via FAX or EMAIL

March 10th, 2004 Donna Baranski-Walker

Senator or Congressperson
Address in Washington DC (http://www.congress.org)
FAX:
Attn: Senior Staff Member you spoke to by phone

Re: Security Barrier in Israel

Dear :

I’m asking you to intervene on an urgent matter. The Israeli Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on a petition regarding the Separation Wall and its effect on a cluster of ten Palestinian villages. I’m writing to ask that you speak up for the basic rights of these villagers, on my behalf.

An unusual coalition of support has arisen to save these West Bank villages from the disastrous effects of the Separation Wall. This follows weeks of non-violent protest against the Wall in the villages of Beit Suriq, Biddu and eight others, which were joined by Rabbis for Human Rights and other Israeli and international peace activists, at the villagers? request.
…To describe my involvement in this issue, I am a (please include your profession, eg. California architect> and Our group has over members in .

I am counting on your to let me know about the response of the Israeli Embassy and State Department to your calls. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Your Name
title and contact info. (phone and email)

We do not yet have the Rebuilding Alliance’s Form 990 for 2005-2006 (it is a matter of public record because the group is tax-exempt), but we will definitely compare its contents against the following:

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?p=287

Thank Reps. Opposed to Anti-Palestinian Legislation

May 24th, 2006 Anchal

With 295 co-sponsors, it comes as no surprise that the House of Representatives passed today HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006. The vote count was 361 yeas, 37 nays, 9 presents (abstentions), and 25 not voting ( Roll Call Vote No. 181)

TAKE ACTION: Send a message of thanks to all 46 Representatives who voted nay or present by clicking here

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?p=278

Medieval siege of 1.4 million souls in Gaza

May 8th, 2006 Donna Baranski-Walker

Dear Friends,

Please read the following appeal and distribute widely to your friends and mailing list and the media. You are kindly asked to contact your members of Parliaments and Congress to make them know and act to stop this catastrophe.

In addition, 501(c)(3) tax exempt organizations cannot claim to be “educational” when they post inflammatory propaganda as opposed to education.

http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/blog/?p=352

Rachel Corrie and Palestine
by Sonja Karkar
Women for Palestine
16 March 2007

Rachel’s last act of humanity

A slip of a girl faced one of Israel’s most feared war machines in the Occupied Palestinian Territories – the armed bulldozer – and died. This deliberate killing was no accident. Maybe the Israeli authorities would have preferred it not to happen because of the public relations backlash, but the driver of the bulldozer was wielding power that day. He had a mandate from his government to clear Palestinians out of their homes at a moment’s notice and he knew that he would be protected regardless of the crimes he dared to commit. Rachel Corrie was a US citizen, but even the US government closed ranks behind
Israel and the bulldozer operator. Being an American did not protect Rachel, and four years later, the US administration still refuses to investigate her death denying her American family justice and closure.

The Rebuilding Alliance has posted the statement that Rachel Corrie’s death was a “deliberate killing” and “no accident.” That is a very bad thing to say when only the International Solidarity Movement and a Hamas terrorist expressed motives for wanting the peace activist dead.

(1) http://www.standwithus.com/news_post.asp?NPI=85 “Recently, the Director of the Solidarity Movement, George Rishmawi, explained to the San Francisco Chronicle that the recruitment of American student volunteers is useful to the Palestinian Movement because “if some of these foreign volunteers get shot or even killed, then the international media will sit up and take notice.”“

(2) Joseph Smith, who was present when Corrie died and whose highest priority was apparently to take pictures, said, “”The spirit that she died for is worth a life. This idea of resistance, this spirit of resisting this brutal occupying force, is worth anything. And many, many, many Palestinians give their lives for it all the time. So the life of one international, I feel, is more than worth the spirit of resisting oppression.” Rachel Corrie’s life, of course, and not Joseph Smith’s life. Martyrdom is for naive doe-eyed peace activists and not for important key personnel like Joseph Smith.

(3) A Hamas terrorist said openly that Rachel was worth more dead than alive. “‘Her death serves me more than it served her,’ said one activist at a Hamas funeral yesterday. ‘…Her death will bring more attention than the other 2,000 martyrs.’” Making of a Martyr by Sandra Jordan, Guardian Newspapers. Since Hamas is in the business of murdering people, maybe it somehow had a hand in doing more than just wishing for something to happen to Rachel. If she hadn’t had the accident with the bulldozer, she’d probably have gotten a bullet in her back, of the same caliber as used by the IDF but fired by a Hamas sniper. After all, sacrifices have to be made for The Cause.

When you say someone has been “murdered,” it is heap bad judgment to then run around gloating about how the victim is more valuable to you dead than alive. It tends to attract the wrong kind of attention from the wrong kind of people, like homicide detectives. Maybe Congress should investigate Rachel Corrie’s death, along with the International Solidarity Movement and its alleged contacts to actual Hamas terrorists.