Israel's Dilemma
Since I'm already having a lousy day, I might as well post on the subject of the Middle East.
Israel just happens to be an economically advanced, democratic, liberal principled, theocratic and racist state situated among neighbors who share few of those traits, except for theocracy, and a different theocracy at that. A series of wars each started or provoked by its neighbors left it in charge of land formerly owned and occupied by followers of another theocracy. Oddly enough, the conquered and displaced resent their current status, which is miserable.
This is not an unfamiliar problem, historically speaking. The Bible is replete with examples, and God is usually pretty firm in such matters. As a cynical Bible student once said, "Genocide is God's way of resolving territorial disputes."
Sharon and other looked at the options: forced assimilation, expulsion, and extermination and found all unacceptable. That leaves some kind of coexistence as the only alternative, but with Hamas in charge of Arab Palestine, peace is not possible.
The vast disproportion of strength is a paradoxical difficulty for Israel. If the Palestinian State were strong enough to be a military threat, Israel could just smash it. It would be relatively easy for Israel to conquer and rule the Palestinians, but then what?
In the end, I guess, Israel will have to make the Palestinian State an offer it can't refuse: Make peace, recognize Israel and control your terrorists, or we will occupy you and put you into reservations (like the Native Americans), regulating every aspect of your lives - your laws, your schools, the language you speak, how you dress, your religion, and how many children you can have.
Not a pretty picture, but what are the alternatives? For the record, I think Israel can afford to offer a lot more carrot than it has so far. I'm not endorsing this particular stick either, but what are the alternatives?
Roadmaps and similar sophistries have gone nowhere so far.
Israel just happens to be an economically advanced, democratic, liberal principled, theocratic and racist state situated among neighbors who share few of those traits, except for theocracy, and a different theocracy at that. A series of wars each started or provoked by its neighbors left it in charge of land formerly owned and occupied by followers of another theocracy. Oddly enough, the conquered and displaced resent their current status, which is miserable.
This is not an unfamiliar problem, historically speaking. The Bible is replete with examples, and God is usually pretty firm in such matters. As a cynical Bible student once said, "Genocide is God's way of resolving territorial disputes."
Sharon and other looked at the options: forced assimilation, expulsion, and extermination and found all unacceptable. That leaves some kind of coexistence as the only alternative, but with Hamas in charge of Arab Palestine, peace is not possible.
The vast disproportion of strength is a paradoxical difficulty for Israel. If the Palestinian State were strong enough to be a military threat, Israel could just smash it. It would be relatively easy for Israel to conquer and rule the Palestinians, but then what?
In the end, I guess, Israel will have to make the Palestinian State an offer it can't refuse: Make peace, recognize Israel and control your terrorists, or we will occupy you and put you into reservations (like the Native Americans), regulating every aspect of your lives - your laws, your schools, the language you speak, how you dress, your religion, and how many children you can have.
Not a pretty picture, but what are the alternatives? For the record, I think Israel can afford to offer a lot more carrot than it has so far. I'm not endorsing this particular stick either, but what are the alternatives?
Roadmaps and similar sophistries have gone nowhere so far.
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