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sabotabbyIt is quite simple, actually. Politicians, negotiators, and pundits are hereby forbidden from uttering the following hackneyed phrases: "painful concessions," "new realities on the ground," "Where is the Palestinian peace movement?/Where is the Palestinian Gandhi?", and "a democratic (and/or independent) Palestine and a secure Israel." Then, maybe, we'll get somewhere.
Okay, perhaps it is not the solution. But in watching the latest round of "breakthroughs," I am reminded uncomfortably of the Oslo Accords. Everyone seems to think that Obama's call for a return to the 1967 borders with the odd land swap is some sort of radical (anti-Semitic, in some circles) departure from the traditional U.S. line in these discussions, but really, it's the one thing that everyone but extremists (including myself and Benjamin Netanyahu, albeit for different reasons) seem to agree upon. As that last link puts it:
In fact, it's Harper, not Obama, who is Netanyahu's staunch ally this time around, (Obama's stance makes some political sense in context), drawing praise from such luminaries as convicted fraudster Conrad Black.
Harper's bluster distracts from the fact that there's really nothing new on the table, which is why May's posturing will inevitably lead to no change whatsoever. Israel under Netanyahu won't agree to the 1967 borders; the various factions within Palestine won't agree to a truncated and militarily neutered state, and two states divided on 1967 borders is likely demographically not feasible in the long term. The issue is not ultimately where the borders are adjusted to; the most perfectly drawn map in the world will not compensate for fundamental imbalances of power and resources, the refugee issue that no one wants to talk about, and the question of whether a state can be both "Jewish" and "democratic," especially once its non-Jewish population rises to equal its Jewish population.
As for the Palestinian Gandhi, lately we've seen what happens when Palestinians adopt—rightly so, by the way—the strategies of non-violence. A clash with the IDF at the Syrian border has left 20 dead. A very one-sided "clash,: since according to reports, the closest the protesters had to weapons were some rocks; if someone else were doing the shooting, we would call that a "massacre."
Here's an interesting editorial from the Guardian on non-violence in Palestine and India. (Is anyone talking about Kashmir anymore? I guess not.) And another one from Al Jazeera about the rhetorical use of children.
I actually don't think that peace is impossible, despite the overwhelming negativity in this post. Quite the opposite; I think it's inevitable, but only after Netanyahu's generation dies or retires out of politics, opening the way for pragmatists, and only after the continued entanglement of Jewish and Arab populations erodes the convenient fantasy that maps are the solution to the problem. One can certainly understand, though, given the recent violence, that no one wants to wait that long. Accordingly, I propose as a first step the purging of convenient and meaningless catchphrases from the political vocabulary in favour of a frank assessment of what is actually going on over there.
Okay, perhaps it is not the solution. But in watching the latest round of "breakthroughs," I am reminded uncomfortably of the Oslo Accords. Everyone seems to think that Obama's call for a return to the 1967 borders with the odd land swap is some sort of radical (anti-Semitic, in some circles) departure from the traditional U.S. line in these discussions, but really, it's the one thing that everyone but extremists (including myself and Benjamin Netanyahu, albeit for different reasons) seem to agree upon. As that last link puts it:
Although the use of the phrase “1967 lines” will irk many Israelis and delight Palestinians, the basic framework of an independent Palestine comprised of Gaza and the West Bank with land swaps to accommodate major Jewish settlements has long been American policy.
In fact, it's Harper, not Obama, who is Netanyahu's staunch ally this time around, (Obama's stance makes some political sense in context), drawing praise from such luminaries as convicted fraudster Conrad Black.
Harper's bluster distracts from the fact that there's really nothing new on the table, which is why May's posturing will inevitably lead to no change whatsoever. Israel under Netanyahu won't agree to the 1967 borders; the various factions within Palestine won't agree to a truncated and militarily neutered state, and two states divided on 1967 borders is likely demographically not feasible in the long term. The issue is not ultimately where the borders are adjusted to; the most perfectly drawn map in the world will not compensate for fundamental imbalances of power and resources, the refugee issue that no one wants to talk about, and the question of whether a state can be both "Jewish" and "democratic," especially once its non-Jewish population rises to equal its Jewish population.
As for the Palestinian Gandhi, lately we've seen what happens when Palestinians adopt—rightly so, by the way—the strategies of non-violence. A clash with the IDF at the Syrian border has left 20 dead. A very one-sided "clash,: since according to reports, the closest the protesters had to weapons were some rocks; if someone else were doing the shooting, we would call that a "massacre."
Here's an interesting editorial from the Guardian on non-violence in Palestine and India. (Is anyone talking about Kashmir anymore? I guess not.) And another one from Al Jazeera about the rhetorical use of children.
I actually don't think that peace is impossible, despite the overwhelming negativity in this post. Quite the opposite; I think it's inevitable, but only after Netanyahu's generation dies or retires out of politics, opening the way for pragmatists, and only after the continued entanglement of Jewish and Arab populations erodes the convenient fantasy that maps are the solution to the problem. One can certainly understand, though, given the recent violence, that no one wants to wait that long. Accordingly, I propose as a first step the purging of convenient and meaningless catchphrases from the political vocabulary in favour of a frank assessment of what is actually going on over there.
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Date: 2011-06-07 10:38 pm (UTC)This selection bias is especially so for those of us who are leftists, since the only Israelis who will talk to us in something resembling a civilized, honest tone, unless like![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
marrythebed we are related to them, are the ones who realize to one extent or another the fact that it is a fucked-up place. And it is even more so the case when one does not speak or understand Hebrew. People will often express themselves differently in English than in Hebrew.
When I was there, I got to be a bit undercover. I understand Hebrew well enough to know most of what is being said around me. But I don't speak it well enough for Israelis to think that I understand. I really got to be a fly on the wall. Even Meretz voters who are related by blood or marriage to known commies will come out with statements so astonishing in their blatant racism that, transposed to a North American context, one would only expect them from Tea Partiers. The atmosphere on the radio, the television, in the tabloid press, and in the cafe-table conversation of strangers is even more vicious.
You can't judge the tenor of Israeli political discourse from Ha'aretz any more than you can judge that of the U.S. from The Nation. The fact that Yitzhak Laor or Gideon Levy or Amira Hass can publish in a national newspaper is a sign only of the fact that, in a country where 95% of the population belonging to the dominant nationality is to one extent or another bonkers, not everyone is. Which is a hopeful sign, but not a promising one.
What's worse is that, if anything, the younger generation skews more to the right, not less. "We have always been at war with Eurasia" is a message that has had its impact.
The revolts and revolutions in the Arab world will have their counter-impact. They already are. But the impact on the consciousness of Israeli Jews can, in the most hopeful scenario, be compared to that of the drunk who, finding himself on the edge of a cliff, is suddenly sobered up by an adrenaline surge. Whether he can stumble away from the brink in time is almost a matter of chance.
no subject
Date: 2011-06-07 11:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-06-08 05:17 pm (UTC)I was coming back here to respond and (though never would have been a hundredth as articulate as you) was going to mention both the Ha'aretz fallacy and the fact that they feel way more comfortable speaking like that to Israelis, but you've already said it all and very thoroughly. Thank you, D!
And what I wasn't going to say but will now strongly second is that, in opposition to what you (sabs) say in a different comment down the page, it is definitely true that the current generation is far to the right of its previous.
Interestingly, my INSANELY reactionary and racist (and patriotic) Israeli cousin who moved to Amsterdam for college three years ago is already quite noticeably less so and is even open to criticisms of Israel.
no subject
Date: 2011-06-09 12:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-06-10 09:52 pm (UTC)