In an ideal world, the map of Israel (and its neighbors) would look something like the map above. Israel could be the orange shaded nation in the middle, while Palestine would be tha nation shaded in gray. This is the "Two-State" solution that most people want and believe in.
With the effective annexation of the West Bank, successful negotiations could have taken place on Israel's terms, as it would control what land would have been given to Palestine for nationhood. But this was, is, and probably not be what Israel wants to do. Instead, it has placed illegal settlements in key sites in the West Bank, making it impossible for a practical two-state solution to be negotiated.
There is no way to say any one party to this inter-generational conflict is guilty or innocent. The forebears of today's Israelis were kicked out of the land by the Romans roughly 2,000 years ago. The British promised this land to both Jews and Arabs at the end of World War 1, and the aftermath of World War 2 made it necessary for Jews to establish a home in their traditional homeland.
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Recently, the US abstained from a vote condemning Israel for its illegal settlements on the West Bank. Trump went wild, saying that Obama has betrayed our national interests. But whose interests come first - USA's or Israel's? The only reason that America doesn't abandon Israel is the political support Israel gets from American Jews and Christian Fundamentalists who want a place for the Messiah's second coming. Both groups support Israel for religious reasons, and not for reasons that benefit America.
There is only one reason for America to support Israel, and that is a moral one. We should support democracies wherever they are found, and respect them even when they act in their interests, not ours. But if we did that as a policy, we'd never have had the pissing match with Iran, we'd have never have used the CIA to overthrow Salvador Allende, and we'd insisted on an official "Two-China" policy. Sadly, Israel is evolving into an Apartheid state, and none of the pro-Israel camp seems to care. Soon, demographics being what they are, there will be more disenfranchised Arabs in the lands Israel controls, and no way to allow them a voice in their lives - as that would come out as "Death to Israel!"
Time is running out for a Two-State solution, and Israel's actions are only making matters worse for that solution. Our Secretary of State has effectively said, that in a Single State solution, Israel could either be a Jewish state or a Democracy, but not both. Most people want the Two-State solution, but radicals are making this impossible. Is helping the radical element a way to make peace? I doubt it.
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Today's GOP is filled with people who would usurp the power of the presidency and invite the Prime Minister of Israel to speak to Congress, bypassing the State Department. It looks like they will give Israel everything it asks for - and then some. This is not a healthy development. It'll be like a kid in a candy store, and mistakes of excess will likely be made. Slow moving initiatives with countries such as Iran will be scuttled. Who knows what will happen then?
Every nation has a right to be secure in its borders. And every people have a right to be treated fairly in the nations in which they live. The Israel-Palestine conflict will likely be with us for generations yet to come, as both sides are taking positions only meant to stir up people for the benefit of those other than themselves. Religious zealots living in Israel have no desire to live in peace with their Muslim neighbors. The Arab side is no better, as Muslims have been taught for generations that the Infidel is their sworn enemy, and that the Infidel must be expelled from Muslim territory.
In a way, the Arab nations are right. Solve the problem of Jerusalem and you'll solve the problem of the Middle-East. Sadly, I don't see a huckster real estate promoter being up to the challenges this region will present him in the next four years....
It's a little unfair to be using the image of Hitler. But it's easy to understand Germany's acceptance of this man, given the humiliation that Germany endured after World War One. With riots in the streets, the German people could be easily seduced by any demagogue promising peace, order, and good government - none of which were delivered to the people of the Reich.
Today, we know more about how people choose authoritarians, and why people choose them. An article in Vox describes how the Trump phenomenon came about, and why he is attracting support. Sadly, all the signs of another authoritarian government coming to power are there - people who value order above freedom, people who sacrifice liberty for security, in short - people who are afraid of the future, and want to restore the glory days of the past. It is no accident that Trump's motto is "Make America Great Again." But when did it stop being great?
Trump is known for making deals that benefit only himself. Is there any evidence that his MO has changed? A Trump administration is likely to be one of the most corrupt administrations America will have ever endured, as he has used questionable business practices to build his empire. He is a con man, someone only interested in making his deal, and has no interest in seeing that the I's are dotted and T's are crossed.
Recently, on Vice TV, they documented about the squalid working conditions that "guest workers" (read, defacto slaves) live in while building the Trump International Golf Club in Dubai. Trump ignores laws that require we try to hire domestically first, and has staffed his exclusive resort, Mar-a-Lago mostly with imported labor. The man is a hypocrite and a total liar. Yet, none of his supporters give a damn.
What frightens me is that this man is so fickle. He has no consistency in pattern. He threatens to blow up any nation that doesn't bow to the power of a Trump America. Can we trust him with "the Button?" I doubt it. I'm afraid that America will make the same mistake in the 2010's that Germany made in the 1930's - with the same disastrous results.
How will we know this is happening? Let's look at what happened in Germany. In the 1930's they first rounded up the Homosexuals and Political Dissidents. Of course, we can not forget how many Jews were persecuted. Within 2 years of Hitler taking power, these people were persecuted. If we change the nation to America, go after Homosexuals, Transgenders, Socialists, and Muslims, we'd have the same situation as Germany had roughly 80 years before. We have already herded Indians onto reservations, and put Japanese Americans into internment camps, and lynched Blacks. It's not such a big step, given the size of our prison system (which incarcerates over 1.25% of our population, the highest percentage in the world) to expand it further to hold "undesirables". And it would not be inconceivable to make the new prisoners engage in hard labor. Does "Arbeit Macht Frei?" I doubt it.
If you think that going to Canada will make you any safer, please remember that Canadians are also under attack from their own authoritarian politicians. Could you imagine an "Anschluss" between the two countries? Heck, we were once both part of a larger British North America. I could see this happening.
Do I fear too much? Maybe. But stranger things have happened, and I am not comfortable (nor should you be) that Trump is running neck and neck with Hillary. I once said that I want America to be scared shitless with Trump. Sadly, I think that wish may just come true - and that Hillary may win a victory even closer than that won by Bush in November, 2000.
Armistice Day. We now call it Veteran's Day, as a way to honor those who served. But, in America, we've lost the true meaning of the holiday.
There are many cemeteries in Europe in which are buried the bodies of soldiers who died in World War One. This was the first global war in our world's history, although most of the killing was done by the European powers and their proxies. It was considered "the war to end all wars", and yet, there was another world war within a generation.
What is it about humanity that leads us into war? Could it be the nature of the Alpha Male is getting out of hand when large populations are involved? I have no idea. But one would think that as a species, we'd have learned how to dampen this tendency in humans. Sadly, we haven't yet learned how to do this.
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We have one political party which has had a collective myopia, being hawkish about getting into war, but with no clear plan of what to gain from making that war. Have they learned anything from the lessons of 11/11/1918? I doubt it. They were responsible for us squandering billions of dollars in Iraq, claiming that we needed to make that nation "Safe for Democracy". Does anyone think that Iraq became better off because of our involvement? And then, this party wanted us to invade Syria and remove another dictator. Do they want to keep getting us involved in areas of the world, where a potential removal of our troops (once there) would create worse problems than had we not invaded in the first place? Do they want "Forever Wars" only to keep the Military-Industrial Complex profitable?
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Wars should be rare things, not forever things. America has made the big mistake of empire - we're using war to get our way in the world, and this is a tool that becomes much more expensive over time. In addition, history has shown us that a propensity towards war is the sign of a dying empire. Instead, we should be using diplomatic and economic power to get our way, to keep this empire. It's one of the better ones that have existed, as it did help people become free and prosper around the globe. But we can't make all the world safe or prosperous - the people and their cultures in areas that we have influence must want what we want for this to happen. That's why Iraq and Syria were failures for us.
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The fields of Europe hold many a cemetery from both world wars. Can we afford to add fuel to a fire which may result in another world war?
