The United States should back Palestine instead of Israel.

Would save the US taxpayer a lot of money, too.

It ain't hap'nin. Never in a million years.

You know God (the Guy Bush talks to)? Heard of him?

Jesus? Holy Land? John Ashcroft? Tom DeLay?

Sorry, but....no.

Sure, backing Israel has plenty of advantages to the US. For one, when was the last time Israel tried to bomb America? Please....this is just silly...Islamic countries clearly HATE America, and the US wants to protect their interests in the Middle East oil franchise. Hence, ergo, Israel is their ally, as they need a friend in a sensitive area. Actually, there are tons of 'logical' reasons to have Israel as a US ally. The politics in the Middle East are far more complex than your question. What exactly does so-called Palestine have to offer the US, politically, monetarily, or other? Do you really think that global issues are dealt with without a nod to power, money and control? Puhhlease.....

But, that's the crux of the problem (or, at least a very large part of the problem) with global issues, cav. Nodding to power, money and control, instead of nodding to the general welfare of human beings.

1967.
Yeah you're right, it's been a while. But there have been Americans killed in Palestine by the Isreali military. And then there are the Isreali spies.
They haven't exactly been our best friend.

When was the last time Palestinians tried to bomb America? I don't see your point.

Cav

You say islamic countries CLEARLY hate america just after calling Xifar silly. Um.... do I have to point out the silliness of that.

What the USA should back is peace, freedom and justice. I thought that was what you guys were all about.

You guys?


A few people in America are about that but sorry the US Govts. are not. They are about POWER & MONEY. In America, peace, freedom and justice are become more rare as time goes on. Five more years of the Dubya thives and there won't be any of those.

Unfortunately, it's not what they are about. Money and Power is the name of their game.

The USA should not support one over the other. It should be an even handed policy which holds them all accountable at all times, not just selectively.

ye110man, I forgot about 1967. If I wasn't clear, all I was trying to say is that the USA has no vested interest in backing Palestine. As for edgarblythe's comment, I completely agree. However, that is not how things are, and I doubt that under the current administration it will change any time soon.

Personally, I don't want the US to back either Isreal or the Palestinians. I want a fair middle east policy. Right now it clearly favors Isreal.

The US interests in backing Isreal:
They are the only true tested significant democracy in the region.
The Jewish and Evanglical Christian votes (which is something like 25%).

The US interests in backing the Palestinians:
It would do a lot to help curb terrorism against the US.

Anyway, the way I see it, the US can back Isreal while at the same time pressuring it to abide by UN resolutions. There's no reason why the US should back Ireali settlements.

We should keep our goddam noses out of the Middle East -- and let them settle their problems on their own.

That is the best thing we can do for EVERYONE over there -- Jew, Arab, Israeli, Palestinian EVERYONE.

No it's not Frank. The Jews have the rights to have a homeland. They have the military power to wipe out every single Palestinian. You know what holds them back? Pressure from the US. Our diplomatic ties to Israel are very important not only to the US and Israel, but every country in the middle East. I really don't want to see the whole region involved in a full scale war, do you?

xifar


I take it from that statement you do not believe Israel has a right to exist am I correct?

Israel's existence as a bigoted, ethnocentrically motivated country whereby it's inhabitants are forced to "maintain a Jewish character" regardless of whether it's inhabitants are Jewish or not, especially in light of the fact that one of the rationalizations for its bigoted establishment was persecution at the hands of a people who tried to establish a nation with an "Arian" racial character, smacks of abject and barefaced hypocrisy.

Go hate jews somewhere else. We ain't buying here.

InfraBlue and I have agreed to disagree regarding Israel, I hope (let's try to keep it friendly) but McG makes a good point regarding the pressure on Israel to hold back from making things worse in the region coming from the USA. McG and I rarely agree on things, but in this situation, given that Israel clearly needs to be 'handled' due to a misguided leader, well...who's going to to do it besides the US?

Aside from your knee-jerk reaction, McG, how, exactly, am I hating Jews?



Does that include the right for Europeans to establish a chauvinistic ethno/religious homeland in a land that was populated with peoples of other ethnicities and religions long before their arrival in the mid-nineteenth century simply because some of their ancestors had lived there millennia ago?

cav, I apologize for the strident tone in what I write, and I'll do my utmost to maintain civility here, but I won't hold back on my opinions upon what has and is occurring in Israel, and that it is an example of duplicitous actions and rationales. How else can I describe it?

The existence of Israel provides a target far from American soil