Resolved: People Should Support the Boycott, Divestment and Sactions Movement (BDS)

Thank you for your response. I ask Pro and the voters for some sympathy this round because I couldn't properly analyze all of Pro's points about what BDS themselves claims because their site is under maintenance. Perhaps it is to fix the mistakes I pointed out. :) I hope to address those points in the later rounds if neccessary. I am a little confused as to what is so "illogical" or "farcical" of making the point that in order for someone to actively support a boycott, there should be proof that it is effective. This was merely my point. I didn't solely just shift the burden on you Pro. I'm sure you noticed that following that statement I gave many arguments why one should not support it. This was simply an opening point to my paragraph. Even if you isolate all my other points after it, I think it is still fair to make the argument that one should not support a boycott because there isn't evidence of it being effective. Additionally, I have to say that I am a little offended that Pro is willing to lecture me about the parameters of the debate when he is planning on abandoning it entirely. Didn't the parameters say 5 rounds Pro? Again, I completely understand the situation as I agreed with Pro and that Pro has his reasons but I didn't give such a response to him when he suggested that. I just request that we keep things in perspective and just analyze the actual points made instead of getting too caught up with petty points. That aside, onto the specifics:South AfricaI understand that Pro was just using this to make the case for the effectiveness of BDS, but it is simply not being intellectually honest to compare Israel to racist South Africa who used brutal force to suppress people along racial lines within their country. I am appalled by such a comparison. Israel is the only nation in the Middle East where Arabs, and yes Palestinians, have a free and fair vote. It is absurd to single out and attack the one country in the Middle East where Arabs undeniably have it best in the region in terms of human rights. Israel is a diverse country with 1.1 Million Muslims, 130,000 Christians, and 100,000 Druze and each have equal voting rights. 14 seats in the Knesset are held by Arabs [1]. And of course all religions are welcome to pray at their holy sites in Jerusalem which I'd like to remind everyone was not the case under Arab rule. Anti-SemitismMy main argument for this point was that BDS singles out the Jewish state as oppose to all the neighboring countries where treatment is exponentially worse. If one really cared about human rights they would boycott every nation in the Middle East except Israel. You could even ignore the countries but how about treatment from the Palestinian leader themselves! Pro simply proves my point by correctly pointing out that I "distract from the issues that BDS is focused on". It is very true that BDS along with many of their supporters consider the hanging of gays in neighboring countries as a "distraction" to their agenda along with the slaughtering of a 13 year old Jewish girl. Pro did not address the point from last round regarding this 13 year old girl. If Pro really wants to emphasize that BDS represents the Palestinians themselves, he of all people should be advocating that they rather demand reforms and condemn their own leaders. Pro seems to care more about the specifics of resolution 242 from 1967 then the recent slaughter of a 13 year old girl along with Palestinian leadership, Hamas, calling for the destruction of JEWS not only in Israel but JEWS worldwide [2]. This is what one implies when they support BDS that something as trivial as the specifcs of UN resolutions are the issue but people who actually advocate for genocide are not. Pro argues that BDS represents the Palestinian people. Does Pro actually believe that the Palestinian people for the most part are not Anti-Semitic? This would be a delusional and false claim. It was found that actually 93% of Palestinians hold Anti-Semitic beliefs. [3]Even if one wants to ignore all the evidence given and still believe that BDS is not Anti-semitic, one should at least acknowledge that they will be associated with Anti-Semites who support it. One of the main groups that advocate for BDS is Students for Justice in Palestine. They are responsible for "funding organizations being staffed by people formerly working to fund Hamas" [4]. It is clear they have had associations with Hamas and the Muslim brotherhood. The founder, Hatem Bazian, headed the Muslim Brotherhood-aligned Muslim Student Association while studying at Berkeley [5]. And this man is Palestinian as well so as Pro insists that BDS represents Palestinians it really hurts his case. 79 of their members disrupted a holocaust remembrance day and were arrested. Bazian then went on to say "take a look at the type of names on the building around campus — Haas, Zellerbach — and decide who controls this university" [5]. At this point it should be a foregone conclusion that at the very least BDS is heavily associated with Anti-Semites.I want to bring up the point I made last round that Pro had a problem with. BDS claims that: “BDS is a strategy that allows people of conscience to play an effective role in the Palestinian struggle for justice”. It was a rather minor point but I was pointing out the absurdity of this statement. I was showing last round and this round how prevalent human rights violations are in Palestinian territories along with other countries within the region and BDS is coming to tell people that they have a conscience for condemning the one country that Arabs have it best in the region. And yes I think the point still stands. Pro is perhaps correct that they are not explicitly saying I don't have a conscience but there is definitely at least the implication that I don't have the conscience that they have as I said last round. Palestinian EconomyI gave clear evidence last round that the boycott harms the Palestinian Economy. Pro doesn't dispute the evidence but rather blames Israel and the occupation. While clearly ignoring the reasons behind the occupation, Pro is essentially making a preposterous case that one should harm the Palestinian economy in order to help the Palestinian economy in the future. I also gave evidence that the effects of BDS detract from peace between the Israelis and Palestinians because it stopped them from doing business together in addition to taking away Palestinian jobs and preventing them from getting them in the future. A real peaceful organization would encourage the two to work together and BDS is advocating or at least having an impact on the opposite.I look forward to your response. Sources:1. http://www.americanthinker.com......2. http://www.inquisitr.com... 3. http://www.timesofisrael.com...4. https://en.wikipedia.org...5. http://www.foxnews.com...