Norman Finkelstein - Questions and Answers

Dr. Norman Finkelstein answers questions from the audience following his talk at the University of Alberta on January 22, 2009. Dr. Finkelstein was discussing Israel and Gaza, particularly Israel's responsibility in the slaughter of innocent women and children. Co-sponsored by the Palestine Solidarity Network, Canada Palestine Cultural Organization, Alberta Federation of Labour, U of A Muslim Students' Association, Canadian Arab News, and U of A Department of Political Science.

[@the81kid]

If there was any justice in the world, Dr. Finkelstein would get the Nobel Peace Prize.

[@j_freed]

the81kid there's nothing good about a popularity contest.

[@marilynking9283]

Yes indeed but instead they give it to Kissinger, one of the biggest terrorists on the planet WTF is that all about?

[@BobbyDazzler888]

Julian Assange

[@samlexco]

ALL GOOD HONEST PEOPLE LOVE NORMAN ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,HE STANDS FOR THE TRUTH AND JUSTICE FOR HUMANITY..............THATS WHY GOD CHOSE HIM TO SPEAK OUT FOR PEOPLE THAT CANT ,,,LONG LIVE NORMAN FINKELSTEIN,,,

[@2sridhark]

This man is very well informed. I am impressed about what he said of Gandhi. Gandhi definitely preferred violence to cowardice. What would you do when you are face to face with a cobra? An average person has 2 choices: run away and hope he/she can outpace the cobra! Or hit back and try to kill the cobra. When Gandhi was asked this question, he said: as a matter of principle, I would not retaliate against the cobra. I hate cowardice, so running away is out of question. I would be still, infusing the cobra with love from my heart and hope the cobra reciprocates and leaves me alone! He also added: I concede it would be a great challenge for me.

[@ericday4505]

God bless Norman Finklestien, truly a great man. Nobody knows the situation in Palistine better then he does. With all of that, you will absolutely never see him on mainstream media in the US, NEVER.

[@khalodico]

I love you Dr.Norman

[@joelnepomuceno4769]

Thank you for this video Paula. It's always hypnotizing to watch Finkelstein speaking.

[@tikkunolam613]

Can you imagine what an example it would set for the world if we were able to find a way to live in peace in Israel/Palestine? All the pieces of the puzzle are there: a shared monotheistic tradition, a shared land, and shared interests.We are closer to actualizing this than most people realize.Peace is in the best interest of all parties involved...it is a non-zero sum game.May G-d bless us with the wisdom to see clearly that peace is a matter of creating the conditions for mutual prosperity.

[@modo203]

Thanks for sharing! a brilliant debate.. five stars

[@SurvivalGrounds]

Thanks for filming and uploading this. Keep sharing ;)

[@JohnHardnack]

I was employed by a major jewish owned media outlet.We the employees were told to leave the subject alone.Only certain writers were allowed to comment on headlines from certain countries.If we wanted to eat,well you know the rest.

[@vaultsjan]

Well there is international small company. It is advised to non american employees not to talk with US customers about Iraq, Palestine, War on terror, Vietnam.

[@imagrandpa]

So much for free speech !! No doubt Norman Finkelstein would be eating a lot better if he jd less character .

[@Guedingen]

Brilliant as ever, many thanks.

[@HugoNewman]

Brilliant, as always.

[@barriehebb7121]

A very informative and as far as I can tell, factual accurate picture.

[@tikkunolam613]

A PRAYER FOR PALESTINE FROM A JEW:Let us help them to create something extraordinary,just as we have for ourselves-it is in our best interest to do so.Let us help them to build a home they will love with all their hearts, as we love Israel!Wouldn’t we both be foolish to risk damaging something so precious?We are both great nations…let us never forget this.Let us nurture peace with our enemies, and recognize that they are a mirror…reflecting light unto the nations.

[@faisalhok]

The best talk ever!!!!

[@TheYamcha67]

Mahatma Gandhi - "Palestine belongs to the Arabs in the same sense that England belongs to the English or France to the French. It is wrong and inhuman to impose the Jews on Arabs" Just thought I'd post that quote, because people often bring up Gandhi.

[@creemyice]

I don’t think he said that lol

[@AHANAFIMAN]

@@creemyice said that

[@julianokhoshaba1]

A life for life . He who takes life should get his life taken .

[@Munzer1977]

Thank Paula

[@samibh100]

thank you for the upload god bless Norman Finkelstein 14:35

[@JohnLions]

Amazing!

[@Mjhavok]

Great post Why can't people ask succinct questions?

[@lilymontella]

Go finkelstein! I saw his lecture at UBC his words are impressive!

[@buttag89]

@AndreHiltre I am glad to hear that. Though I am a muslim, I strongly condemn terrorism or hate in any form for I am a victim myself. They say it's not the evil that kills people but the silence of the good!

[@Bluetenstaub]

Finkelstein is amazing!! Whether you agree with him or not (and I do, strongly) you just have to be impressed by his intelligence and knowledge! I wish I had his brain!

[@MrManumona]

I am not a great sympathizer of human race (myself included) but the factthat a man like Dr.Finkelstein exists is a joy for my soul.If sometimes, knowing what the Zionist part of Israel has done to the Palestinians, resentment against the Jews began to arouse in me, the sole fact that a Jew like Dr.Finkelstein exists has prevented me to grow as an Anti-Jewish myself. 100% of support to this wonderful, fully ALIVE MAN

[@TrpleAgnt2011]

good explication of Ghandhi's non-violence thanks Norm! thx uploader!

[@tikkunolam613]

Can you imagine what an example it would set for the world if we were able to find a way to live in peace in Eretz Yisrael? All the pieces of the puzzle are there: a shared monotheistic tradition, a shared land, and shared interests. Perhaps we are closer to actualizing this goal than most people realize. May Hashem bless us with the wisdom to achieve this.

[@yaqoot75]

الله يحفظك يا Norman Finkelstein WE LOVE YA

[@83aber1]

"There is no intelligent life in Canada!" Exactly!

[@faisalbutt3298]

I LOVE THIS GUY..........

[@12carmel]

yes, I like his logic

[@YesheCholwa777barJah]

Good point. When people make for themselves a decision not based on reason but rather on emotion reason bows to that choice. This is rationalization. I am not sure whether reasoning with such people will ever alter their thinking. They need to have a flexible mind and humility in their hearts.

[@Attella1]

He is one of the most accurate and truthful intellectuals of our time...

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B Really? Where are the videos?

[@st8ed]

"...I look at some of those editorials in the Globe and Mail and its like Beat me up, there's no intelligent life in Canada, what is going on here?!" LMAO! Bless Norman, so funny and well articulated speech (as always). x

[@josephcrespo8193]

Finkelstein speaks for the One and Only.

[@1122334455667700]

@Tsidkenu not totaly convinced but tyvm for the responce. Didnt consider that option =)

[@gohvaan]

If i see this guy, I will bow down to him.

[@freenational]

Yes, this man is a legend or at least a legend in the making. And to WineBeerLover, his website is normanfinkelstein

[@JHsillypantsMcGee]

@kreplach2 What is the standard ruler for unjust occupation? How about the Warsaw Ghetto? Is that a good standard ruler to apply? Or is applying any struggle from WW2 to current day some sort of fallacy?

[@SamsungA-tq4ix]

هذا الرجل يستحق التنويه.... يستحق جائزة نوبل. احبه

[@boing3887]

fsho on iran, i mentioned iran's history as well as other historical factors to the guy you were debating

[@sameeh86]

Norman Finkelstein at Brandeis anybody who has this video plzzzzzz upload!!

[@LaVeritejusticeCtout]

Dieu protège N.Finkelstein un grand homme de vérité et de justice = UN HEROS !

[@ClarityZone]

@esh1 : Thank you and only truth seekers like you will make a difference.

[@stefanmeier7690]

Finkelstein

[@rehanajana]

Finkelstein the greatest american alive . May his life be protected and his wortk be blessed

[@zafthedon]

Great

[@jmzimmerman1984]

@JohnnyRock2000 pretty much. Actions always speak louder than words.

[@ibrahimadam2606]

This isnt about religion, but this is about humanity

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B No, you give me a link; you brought them up.

[@esh1]

I am with Finkelstein and TruthNotMedia on this.... May god bless you both Truth you mentioned something about Wikipedia linked to CIA?? I have heard of this before from a PHD, Mphil engineer, do you have anything that supports this? I am on my phone, will check your channel tomorrow.

[@saadasim]

It is abundantly clear that the [Palestinian]refugees have every right to the homeland from which they were driven, and the denial of this right is at the heart of the continuing conflict. No people anywhere in the world would accept being expelled en masse from their own country; how can anyone require the people of Palestine to accept a punishment which nobody else would tolerate? -Bertrand Russell, 31 January 1970.

[@carlo88moe]

taking all those question at the end...damn, like a chess master playing a room, check check and checkmate

[@mypoliticalchannel]

Vean la entrevista: "Norman Finkelstein y las verdaderas intenciones del movimiento palestino (BDS) con subtítulos". Recomendada. Watch the interview, Finkelstein on the BDS.

[@zobielamouche1]

finkelstein is a righteous among the jews.

[@lamber2021]

very cool man i ever seem

[@ganee6a]

i wish to get this translated in arabic =( too bad cuz i love this man

[@dada78641]

19 of Alan Dershowitz's KZbin accounts disliked this.

[@Propagandhi900]

ppl need to combine their questions and write em down. =P

[@josephcrespo8193]

FREE PUERTO RICO !!! FREE PALESTINE !!!

[@marilynking9283]

There needs to be someone referreeing here or overseeing the people asking questions. They go on and on, asking several instead of one an take so long to spit it out that i was losing the will to live. |FFS people should have their questions written down, briefly and to the point to give others a chance.

[@jason0998]

hes the best

[@GamerDudester]

This man is a legend seriously. I'm honoured to have spoken to him and shaken his hand. May you live for that day when Palestine is a country of its own and the people of Palestine can show their true virtue!

[@Grabaka80]

@mikep1738 What you fail to realize is that in the early 20th century there were no modern states to speak of anywhere in the region. Following the fall of the Ottoman empire, the victors of word war I began carving the middle east into artificial political entities. You are correct, Palestine has long been considered part of Syria, but not the modern state of Syria as we know it today. Back then Syria encompassed Palestine, Lebanon. In Arabic it is known as As-Sham.

[@NewMexico1912]

Does anyone know if they have this with hebrew subtitles or translations? My gf is Israeli and still living there for the time being, she has a very propagandized outlook on the gaza situation... It's one of the only things she and I disagree about... If someone can send me a link to a hebrew translation so she can understand it better i would REALLY appreciate it

[@Uncle99B]

@June28July . Are you on the short bus?

[@bellijklh]

no problem :)

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B I'm sure they do but this is how I do things; you brought it up, you give me the links.

[@FreddyBarbarossa]

@amarshlomo "Natural right?" Could you explain? And they don't simply "inspect" cargo they turn much of it away.

[@malakoz]

@GamerDudester your so lucky, where did you meet him

[@aviadshany]

about the link - just add haaretz com before, cause it didnt let me post this msg with it..

[@GamerDudester]

@malakoz At my school in UBC. He gave a talk about the Gaza massacre. It was sensational.

[@josephbel]

I agree with everything you wrote. Furthermore, Iran religious revolution was an internal domestic issue which did not threaten the security of any other nation. And we all know who caused it to happen.

[@coas21]

"We don't make a distinction between civilians and non-civilians... Only between Muslims and unbelievers. And the life of an unbeliever has no value." -Sheikh Omar Bakri, British Muslim cleric and career welfare recipient

[@portsanity]

@neuronfirewell "If you are fighting for self-defence purposes, you do not get to pick and choose who your opponent is." This goes for Palestine also,i am sure if they were really up for a fight they would pick on someone smaller than themselves,such is the way

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B 1. Criticism of Israeli policies is just. Helen Thomas stated Jews should leave Palestine; this was perceived as an attack on a religious group. Octavia Nasr praised a guy who supported Hezbollah, a group that is considered terrorist by many. Not saying I agree but the firing didn't occur over something like 'Israeli settlements continue' 2. Unarmed? The Gazans who fought against the Israeli military were definitely armed; AK-47s, IEDs, SA-7s, mortars. I expect you to be honest here.

[@pix5ie]

Is The Actor of Dr.Finklestein in this video yes or no

[@biginfidel]

@shams302 3) Quran (4:89) says - "They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks."

[@LSRochon]

More of Norman Finkelstein on my youtube channel user/LSRochon

[@arijitrule]

I think that is also true in case of Chomsky, Zinn and was true for Late Edward Said.........

[@mikep1738]

@Grabaka80 A few more examples chosen at random: 1947 Hafiz Assad, future Syrian president, NYTimes & Damascus Radio "Palestine is not only a part of the Arab homeland but a basic part of southern Syria. 1947 Arab Higher Committee UN representative. “Palestine was part of the Province of Syria and politically, the Arabs of Palestine were not independent in the sense of forming a separate political entity.”

[@coas21]

'Frankensteins monster' -----Maryla Husyt Finkelstein, Norman's mother On her own son

[@mikep1738]

@Grabaka80 Just a few examples: - 1919 First Congress of Muslim-Christian Associations We consider “Palestine” as part of Arab Syria, as it has never been separated from it at any time. We are connected with it (Syria) by national, religious, linguistic, natural, economic, and geographical bonds Palestine. 1937 Auni Bey Abdul-Hadi, Secretary General Istiqlal Pan-Arab Independence Party, to Peel Commission “There is no Palestine in the Bible. Our country was for centuries part of Syria”

[@gamerknown]

I like how he recommends google and wikipedia! From other videos I've watched he has gone to serious lengths to research his books, but he recognises that with a little reservation you can easily disabuse yourself of several myths by using wikipedia or google and checking the references for information or statistics. I know lecturers that hate wikipedia but that have quoted hoax emails verbatim.

[@mikep1738]

@Grabaka80 It is you who misread the argument. When Arab leadership tried to violently overturn the legal allocation of former Ottoman land for the reconstituted Jewish state, the concept of self-determination for Palestinian Arabs didn't exist & wouldn't for many years. Had they not decided to reject that allocation those same Arab institutions you mentioned would probably have grown & flourished in the state of Israel. The people considered themselves as part of the greater Arab nation.

[@LSRochon]

More on Finkelstein on my channel In conclusion, the Court considers that Israel cannot rely on a right of self-defence or on a state of necessity in order to preclude the wrongfulness of the construction of the wall. The Court accordingly finds that the construction of the wall and its associated régime are contrary to international law. -International Court of Justice in the Hague Press Release 2004/28

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B If an off-the-job Klan member worked for a major newspaper, he or she would probably get fired too. I don't know why Thomas was fired but perhaps they felt she presented a conflict of interest. Write her employers and ask them. From what I've read, Netanyahu has called for peace talks; formerly considered hawkish.

[@Propagandhi900]

You've clearly never listened to any of his speeches or debates on the subject.

[@coas21]

Read carefully, loans..

[@3bood2009]

great people always found around us so we must deal with Israel as bad thing....free for Palestine

[@Grabaka80]

@mikep1738 If that's the case then why is your opinion in such stark contrast to the scholarly discourse. Most scholars would agree that the Balfour Declaration was morally bankrupt. What right did the British government have to promise land, that it had no legal claim (it was one of pure conquest and colonization), to a third party?

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B 1. I'm sure there are plenty anti-Semites attacking Israel too but I wish for the Dr. to criticize both sides. 2. If anyone in Gaza can hold a gun, in other words, have two arms, they're capable of fighting.

[@boing3887]

@kreplach2 khameini also has had an open offer to the US to negotiate all issues of interest for the past few years, which was communicated to the US through a US-appointed swiss envoy. the US has been ignoring it. khameini's stances on many issues are also much more conservative than those of ahmadinajad, who is like an american neoconservative.

[@Antek10100]

fajnie mowi o ghandim

[@June28July]

@Uncle99B No, I'm certain the IDF has committed war crimes too. I just wish for Dr. Finkelstein to criticize the other side too.

[@shariotoflove]

@kreplach2, that didnt make any sense at all, but....thats nice.

[@coas21]

"Very soon, Allah willing, Rome will be conquered, just like Constantinople was, as was prophesied by our Prophet Muhammad...This capital of theirs will be an advanced post for the Islamic conquests, which will spread through Europe in its entirety, and then will turn to the two Americas, and even Eastern Europe." -Hamas MP and cleric, Yunis Al-Astal

[@aviadshany]

to sum it all up: - israel is more democratic than most countries in the world, and all countries sorrounding it. - israel is not filled with hateful people. we actually are more moral, and keep human rights than all of our sorrounding countries. - there has not been even one conflict, lasting such a long time, with this little breaking human rights by the 'strong' side, like israel. - most of the israeli population wants peace, though our enemies wouldn't even sit with us.

[@MujtabaSarwar]

@kreplach2 actually there are plenty of rules read just and unjust wars by micheal waltzer but you are predisposed towards a conclusion, and you are going to lean towards arguments that support it however the truth is stillthe truth peace