Investigative journalist Philip Weiss discusses the divide between establishment foreign policy realists and neocons on Israel/Palestine issues, the Goldstone fact-finding mission’s conclusion on Israeli crimes in Gaza, the ability of narrowly focused interest groups to dominate U.S. policy and the hard reality of life in the Gaza Strip.

MP3 here. (25:37)

Philip Weiss is an investigative journalist who has written for The Nation, New York Times Magazine, The American Conservative, Jewish World Review and other publications. He is the author of American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps and writes the blog “MondoWeiss.”

Ran HaCohen, author of the “Letter From Israel” column at Antiwar.com, discusses the fascist characteristics of the Israeli state, Obama’s generous concessions on settlements that weaken U.S. leverage, the narrowly defined news spectrum that dominates Israeli media, Gaza’s permanent status as an open air prison and the unlikely prospect of Egypt or Jordan helping Israel by administering Gaza and the West Bank.

MP3 here. (28:16)

Dr. Ran HaCohen was born in the Netherlands in 1964 and grew up in Israel. He has a B.A. in computer science, an M.A. in comparative literature, and a Ph.D. in Jewish studies. He is a university teacher in Israel. He also works as a literary translator (from German, English, and Dutch). HaCohen’s work has been published widely in Israel. “Letter From Israel” appears occasionally at Antiwar.com.

Jim Lobe, Washington Bureau Chief for Inter Press Service, discusses the balance of power between different foreign policy factions, the work record of Dennis Ross from Oslo Accord negotiator to WINEP associate, the centrality of uranium refining in U.S./Iran relations, the resurgence of the Arab League and the National Intelligence Council appointment saga of Chas Freeman.

MP3 here. (62:41)

Jim Lobe is best known for his coverage of U.S. foreign policy, particularly the neo-conservative influence in the Bush administration. The Washington Bureau Chief of the international news agency Inter Press Service (IPS), Lobe has also written for Foreign Policy In Focus, Alternet, Tompaine.com, and was featured in BBC and ABC television documentaries about motivations for the US invasion of Iraq. His articles appear regularly on Antiwar.com.

Kathy Kelly, founder of Voices for Creative Non-Violence, discusses her recent visit to Gaza at the end of Israel’s incursion, the systematic damage done to civilian infrastructure, the mounting evidence that the Israelis used white phosphorus and committed war crimes, the large volume of images and reporting broadcast by Al-Jazeera in Gaza compared to the Western media’s near-blackout of coverage and the hopeful possibility that new U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell can broker a peace deal.

MP3 here. (30:37)

Kathy Kelly is the founder of Voices for Creative Non-Violence, a 3-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee and helped initiate the Voices in the Wilderness, a campaign to end the UN/US sanctions against Iraq.

Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, founder of the Minaret of Freedom Institute, discusses how the Israel/Palestine issue seen from a libertarian perspective defines the central conflict in terms of individual property rights, the difficulty in determining the motivation behind Israel’s recent – seemingly fruitless – military endeavors, the precipitous decline in non-Jewish land ownership in Israel from 1948 to the present day and the looming prospect of a democratic Jewish Israel with an Arab majority population.

MP3 here. (47:40)

Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, Ph.D. is the founder of the Minaret of Freedom Institute and an internationally known interdisciplinary scientist, author of Signs in the Heavens: A Muslim Astronomer’s Perspective on Religion and Science. He is a senior lecturer at the University of Maryland where he teaches courses on religion and progress and on religion, science and freedom. He also teaches a course on Islam, Science and Development at Georgetown University for the Center on Muslim-Christian Understanding.

Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses the Bush/Olmert plan to force Hamas to take all power in Gaza in order to try to provide an excuse for undoing the election results of 2006, how Hamas followed by and Israel broke the cease-fire of June, 2008, backlash against Bush’s capitulation to every Israeli demand, implications of Obama’s appointment of Jim Jones for National Security Advisor, the military’s push to rename all the combat forces in Iraq and stay forever and the danger of keeping Robert Gates at the DoD.

MP3 here. (60:23)

Dr. Gareth Porter is an investigative historian and journalist on U.S. national security policy. Porter is the author of four books, the latest of which is Perils of Dominance: Imbalance of Power and the Road to War in Vietnam. He has written regularly for Inter Press Service on U.S. policy toward Iraq and Iran since 2005. His articles also appear on RawStory.com and the Huffington Post.

Joshua Frank, contributor to Antiwar.com, Counterpunch and DissidentVoice, and co-editor (with Jeffery St. Clair) of Red State Rebels: Tales of Grassroots Resistance in the Heartland, discusses the continuing need for a political realignment against empire, the dangers associated with Obama’s stated intentions of saving it while many former antiwar voices are diluted by love for the new emperor.

MP3 here. (38:57)

Joshua Frank is a contributor to Antiwar.com, Counterpunch and DissidentVoice, and co-editor (with Jeffery St. Clair) of Red State Rebels: Tales of Grassroots Resistance in the Heartland.

Chris Hedges, author of War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning, discusses the anti-occupation motives of terrorists, the similarities of extremists that transcend religion and culture, how a U.S. economic collapse could usher in a popular uprising of the Christian Right, the desperate and mostly ignored situation in the Gaza Strip and the terrible consequences of a war with Iran.

MP3 here. (36:03)

Chris Hedges is a Pulitzer Prize winning reporter, senior fellow at The Nation Institute, lecturer at Princeton University and the author of War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning and American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America.

Robert Dreyfuss, author of The Dreyfuss Report blog for The Nation, discusses the policy of “hot pursuit” across international boundaries against anyone deemed an enemy, an increased military budget that encourages greater use of special forces, the prospect of a renewed UN mandate replacing a failed Iraq SOFA agreement and how it could effect the incoming U.S. administration, Iran’s decision to reduce confrontation with the U.S., how the Israeli election result will impact prospects for peace in the Middle East and the strategy behind al Qaeda’s attacks against America.

MP3 here. (44:43)

Based in Alexandria, Va., Dreyfuss been writing for Rolling Stone for at least a decade, and currently covers national security for Rolling Stone’s National Affairs section. He’s a contributing editor at The Nation, a contributing writer at Mother Jones, and a senior correspondent for The American Prospect. His articles have also appeared in The Washington Monthly, The New Republic, Newsday, Worth, California Lawyer, The Texas Observer, E, In These Times, The Detroit Metro Times, Public Citizen, Extra!, and, in Japan, in Esquire, Foresight and Nikkei Business. His blog, The Dreyfuss Report, is now at The Nation.

Daniel Levy, senior fellow and director of the Middle East Initiative at the New America Foundation, discusses the need for Israel to adopt a diplomatic foreign policy, prominent Israeli officials opposed to attacking Iran, the remaining danger of an Israeli attack, how hard-line rhetoric empowers Iran’s hawks in return, the disastrous effects any attack on Iran would have, the process for the upcoming Israeli election, the consequences of conflating all of Israel and America’s enemies and the new liberal U.S.-Israeli lobbying organization J-Street.

MP3 here. (28:48)

Daniel Levy is a senior fellow and director of the Middle East Initiative at the New America Foundation and was a negotiator in the Rabin and Barak governments in Israel.