Monday, July 26, 2010

The chimera of a "two-state solution."

It is often forgotten that the "problem" which needs a "solution" is that of peace in the Mideast, not the establishment of yet another Arab state, the demand for which never existed until Yasser Arafat cleverly created it. As often happens, a way-station on the road to a much more important goal is transformed into a goal itself, even one that is antithetical to the original one.

The reductio ad absurdum of this flawed viewpoint was certainly the unilateral withdrawal from Gaza. Rather than demonstrate that the goal of independence was the actual one,or even important, and a demonstration project for how this could solve all the problems, it has become a festering sore that has detracted from the original goal of peace. Of course, the goal of peace assumes that all sides ( and there are clearly more than two: the Israeli side, to be sure, but alao Fatah, Hamas, Hezbollah, non-Muslim Arabs of different nationalist flavors and all Muslims who are affronted by hegemony by non-Muslims over land that once, however briefly, was Muslim. One might even add in myriad others who don't like Israelis or Jews in general.)All profess to have interests in the situation, making a solution to the "peace problem" impossible until hate disappears from the scene and new generations are raised without it. It will likely, at a minimum, take three generations after the hate has stopped and it has not yet started to stop.
The basic, necessary but not sufficient, requirements of a two-state solution are such as to make it an unlikely prospect for the foreseeable future but here is an analysis:
http://tinyurl.com/2bx6vwx
Prerequisites for a two-state solution
By Mort Zuckerman
Will the world applaud Israel's just-announced decision to restrict its military forces by imposing even more stringent rules to avoid accidental civilian casualties? Don't bet on it. The world remained silent as Israel endured hundreds of Palestinian suicide bombers, stabbings, drive-by shootings, and kidnappings. No censure or demands for a cease-fire impeded Hezbollah in the north and Hamas from the south as they rained thousands of missiles on almost 40 percent of the Israeli population...

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