What a shocker!

Time is not on Israel’s side. The predicted recession in the US may persuade some and firm the stance of others towards an agressive and worthless regime in Israel.

Seth Friedman is a good read on what goes on (find him on CiF). My favourite has always been Dilip Hiro.

Is that supposed to be helpful?

Surely just as unhelpful as describing Hamas as “terrorists”?

*sigh*

b’shalom

bananabrain

Analogy: The New Americans conquered the Native Americans. During this process the Native Americans were handed the “bad lands” and some desert expecting to give thanks for it (“trail of tears”). It took a few hundred years before the plight between the New Americans and the Native Americans became what it is today (Still horrible… ever been on an Indian reservation?). Israel and Palestine have been at it for what? 50 years? Give them some time.

By the way… ask your average Israeli Kid what they think of Palestinians… Negative Images are ingrained in Israeli school kids just the same.

In the past , serving US Presidents have acted the part, and as such are at the whim of their popularity back home.

Jimmy Carter is an ex – President and has no such worries or suspisions that he is also having to look after US interests. He has one deal under his belt already and with that comes some sort of prestige and experiance and a lack of a need to prove himself.

Now – what does a broker do exactly – he does not negotiate for each of the parties, merely facilitates where there is a will, or perhaps where a silent majority is being brow beaten into silence by a misguided loyalty to their vocal compatriots (on both sides).

If there is no actual ‘will’ on either side that is in the majority, then its game on as usual. The ‘broker’ will have mis-read the state of mind of the two populations. Now Jimmy might have totally misunderstood the majority of Isrealis desires to find a settlement, then he is wasting his time, but perhaps he hasn’t. Similarly on the Palistinian side, he might have mistaken the mood. Well he is doubly wasting his time then, but he is at least offering himself as someone who can facilitate that first move without people losing face. Of course one can throw as much mud as one likes at him from both sides, but why? Is it to try and taint the people who decide to actually talk to him.

justforfun

The Israelis will assist and recognise a Palestinian state, it has been offered several times. Concessions need to be made as in “we recognise Israel as a legitimate country so that we can have our own country and live in peace”

It is IMPOSSIBLE until the Palestinian government, people, and society resign themselves to the fact that they will not ever rid the area of Jews, and that Israel will remain.

Once it is agreed that Israel does exist and is not going to disappear, then and only then can there be peace.

You can’t even have a two state solution if the Palestinian side does not recognise Israel.

on one hand, i think he …..

on the other hand, camp david…..

Thats what I meant by both sides and both at the extreme – where was the nuance there? And at only comment #3 without Anas to wind you up

I suppose I have a soft spot for Jimmy Carter, but then unlike our friend Leo , I happen to appreciate the “Habitat for Humanity” sort of stuff and am not at all surprised to see that he is not with Bush and Clinton in their fund raising junkets – he probably does not have the ‘goods’ on all the low life tyrants they know around the world, and has to keep his strength up for try his best in the Middle east – he is afterall 83. He will be gone soon and who is there left that might be a broker.

If you understood the man more, you might realise he is the best man, for all his faults, that Isreal is going to get.

justforfun

Bananabrain, unfair of you. There is more nuance on PP threads than most blogs I could mention. If “nuance” means uncritically and fawningly towing the Palestinian or Israeli line, or to look away when Israel or Palestine are the perpetrators of some abuse or another, then there are certainly other blogs who do “nuance” better than it is here.

b’shalom

bananabrain

You damn him for one thing, and forgive him all for another and so ask Isrealis to understand him and have patience , but yourself – you have dismissed him as not an honest broker?

- whats going on?

Personally, if Isrealis need ‘an honest broker’ to make them pause from digging and throw a rope into the hole they have spent 40 years digging, then I think Carter is the best they can expect. No other brokers around at the moment.

….Or Isrealis can wait another 20 years and let a future Chaiman of the Chinese Communist Party broker a deal for them.

Seriously – in the next decade the world and (West in particular) will have alot of problems to face on the environmental and economic front that will disrupt, and may overturn, the past way of doing things. The West will not have the time or inclination to indulge Isreal for long. Carter may be the last ‘broker’ that is at all interested in actually getting ‘peace’.

justforfun