Caterpillar dropped by pension fund giant for “selling weaponised bulldozers” to Israel.
Regular readers will recall that a few months ago we jumped to the defence of JCB after the British manufacturer was accused of being complicit in war crimes in the disputed Palestinian West bank.
Now it is US equipment giant Caterpillar’s turn to face the wrath of the misguided and misinformed liberalists.
Pension fund giant TIAA-CREF has removed Caterpillar, Inc. from its Social Choice Funds portfolio. As of May 1, 2012, financial data posted on TIAA-CREF’s website valued Social Choice Funds shares in Caterpillar at $72,943,861. Today it is zero.
“We applaud this decision,” said Rabbi Alissa Wise, Director of Campaigns at Jewish Voice for Peace and National Coordinator of the We Divest Campaign. “It’s long past time that TIAA-CREF began living up to its motto of ‘Financial Services for the Greater Good’ when it comes to the people of Israel and Palestine.”
Since 2010, We Divest has been urging TIAA-CREF to drop Caterpillar and other companies profiting from and facilitating Israel’s 45-year-old military occupation and colonization of the Palestinian West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip.
“By selling weaponized bulldozers to Israel, Caterpillar is complicit in Israel’s systematic violations of Palestinian human rights,” said Rabbi Wise.
Woah! Hang on a second. Weaponized bulldozers? Since when did Caterpillar start making weaponized anything?
Yes, they are equipped with a blade and I guess that sounds like a weapon to the uninitiated. And some are offered with a ripper which probably is a bit scary when taken out of context. But weaponized? Seriously?
Sure, Caterpillar makes and sells construction and demolition equipment in virtually every country in the world, including some that are in the midst of a cross-border dispute or a war. And yes, Caterpillar equipment does occasionally find itself in the midst of a military conflict.
But to suggest that Caterpillar, JCB or any other equipment manufacturer that sells its products legitimately (and who, let’s not forget, are usually the first to send equipment aid to the world’s disaster zones) are in any way complicit in those military actions merely highlights the general ignorance of liberal do-gooders and undermines the credibility of an otherwise noble cause such as We Divest.
