Making Sense of the Israel/Palestine Conflict

When the headlines don’t make sense, turn to your library. We have dozens of books and access to hundreds more written by experts that will help you sort out the causes of conflict and remedies for peace in the Middle East. Your library strives to provide information vital to your daily life. Call or stop in today to reserve any of these books or DVDs.
Palestine : peace not apartheid / Jimmy Carter."The bottom line is this," Carter writes in an online excerpt posted by his publisher." "Peace will come to Israel and the Middle East only when the Israeli government is willing to comply with international law, with the Roadmap for Peace, with official American policy, with the wishes of a majority of its own citizens -- and honor its own previous commitments -- by accepting its legal borders. All Arab neighbors must pledge to honor Israel's right to live in peace under these conditions." (Washington Post)
Perilous power : the Middle East & U.S. foreign policy : dialogues on terror, democracy, war, and justice / Noam Chomsky
Perilous Power, is based on 14 hours of dialogue between Comsky, an MIT poilitcal activist and Gilbert Achcar, a Lebanese-French academic, author, social activist, Middle East expert and professor of politics and international relations at the University of Paris. It covers US foreign policy in the most volatile and turbulent region in the world, the Middle East, and discusses the wars in Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon and Afghanistan as well as such key issues as terrorism, fundamentalism, oil, democracy, possible war against Iran and much more. (Stephen Lendman)
The much too promised land : America's elusive search for Arab-Israeli peace / Aaron David Miller.
For nearly twenty years, Aaron David Miller has played a central role in U.S. efforts to broker Arab-Israeli peace. His position as an advisor to presidents, secretaries of state, and national security advisors has given him a unique perspective on a problem that American leaders have wrestled with for more than half a century. Why has the world’s greatest superpower failed to broker, or impose, a solution in the Middle East? (Random House)
The Israel lobby and U.S. foreign policy / John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt.
The Israel Lobby,” by John J. Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago and Stephen M. Walt of Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, was one of the most controversial articles in recent memory. Originally published in the London Review of Books in March 2006, it provoked both howls of outrage and cheers of gratitude for challenging what had been a taboo issue in America: the impact of the Israel lobby on U.S. foreign policy. Now in a work of major importance, Mearsheimer and Walt deepen and expand their argument and confront recent developments in Lebanon and Iran. (Macmillan)

The missing peace : the inside story of the fight for Middle East peace / Dennis Ross.
A Ziegler distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Ross was the chief Middle East peace negotiator in the first Bush administration and under President Bill Clinton. He personifies the enormous attention the Israeli-Palestinian conflict received under presidents of both parties. (Mother Jones)
Six days in June: the war that redefined the Middle East (DVD)For Israel, the 1967 war was a military success. But it also redrew the map of the Middle East and mired the region in a never-ending cycle of occupation, terrorism and reprisal.

LIBRARY OFFERING MORE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES IN 2009

It’s a fact. When the economy sours, people turn to their free public libraries more than ever for job help, computer access, information and entertainment. While public library use goes up, many libraries respond to funding shortages by cutting services. This week, the Free Public Library of Philadelphia announced they would close 11 of 54 branches. Fortunately, the Wilkinson Public Library, despite no projected growth in revenues, is prepared to offer even more programs and services in 2009. By expanding partnerships, aggressively seeking regional and national grants, and practicing sound fiscal management, your library is pulling together a slate of programs and services to inform and entertain you.
Here’s what you can look forward to in 2009:

• GO Green! Watch as the library’s roof gets fitted with solar panels and attend educational events to help you understand how renewable energy works. Through a partnership with The New Community Coalition, WPL will offer year round classes on what the library is doing to reduce its carbon footprint and how you, too, can GO Green!
• Meet world renowned mountain climber Jeff Evans as he brings his stories to Telluride in January, thanks to a partnership between the Telluride Adaptive Ski Program and WPL. Evans most notably leads blind climbers up Everest.
• Join a film discussion group. In cooperation with the Telluride Film Festival, WPL will offer its first Independent Film Festival, a free series of films and film discussions with a kickoff appearance by NPR commentator Howie Movshovitz.
• Enjoy free live music. Wilkinson Café, a free monthly series of live musical performances, will showcase our local talent.
• Get inspired and bring the kids to our first Children’s Literature Festival.
• Discover the link between literature and film. Writers in the Sky literary festival, an annual Telluride event, returns in September, featuring screenwriters and their films.
• Solve community problems. Community Conversations, a series of roundtable discussions, will bring the Telluride region together to find the answers to local challenges. The series will kick off with film and discussion on our deteriorating public works systems and continue year round with support from a grant through the Gates Foundation.
  
  For the latest news and events, check the library’s website at www.telluridelibrary.org.
  See you in 2009!
  
  

WORRIED ABOUT THE ECONOMY? REDISCOVER YOUR PUBLIC LIBRARY

When times get hard, the public library gets busy. It's a fact proven time and time again. Here at the Wilkinson Public Library, we're ready to get you through tough economic times with plenty of free programs, books, music, and movies to entertain and enlighten. Need to learn how to do those household repairs yourself? We can help. Need a fun night out? We have plenty of fascinating programs on the horizon for all ages. Join us for free holiday programs and activities for children or lectures from experts on Middle East affairs, an evening with Everest climber Jeff Evans or an afternoon perfecting songwriting with Nashville producer and music industry author Gabriel Farago. Use our Creation Station to enhance your business promotion, or explore our Non-profit Resource Center to make your grant application the best it can be. Our friendly staff is here to help with all your information needs. Hope to see you soon!