I was hoping for more of a response on this issue. This issue will continue to drag the US and the World into conflict. We cannot ignore it if we care for the world our children will inherit. We can handle wackos like obl (who would exist w/o the ME crisis), but an East/West or more accuraately, Muslim/West conflict would be tragic for humanity. I believe that is the path we are presently on, but we have time to avoid it...if we are willing.
I see the real problem as Israel gets nothing from anyone's proposed solutions. In everything that I have read, there are one sided concessions by the Israelis and the Palestinians reap all of the rewards. Many don't even give the Israelis any recourse if the Palestinians reneg on their one responsibility, to put a stop to the terrorists. No one would agree to such a deal, it is rediculous to expect Israel to do so. They must gain as much as the Palestinians from any arrangement, otherwise they might as well continue with the status quo. My solution is to stop building settlements, leave the boarders exactly as they are now, and declare a sovereign Palestinian state. Make any violence from one side against the other an act of war that can be met with the appropriate response. It is time to stop kidding yourselves that the Israelis are going to return to the 1948 boarder and allow free right of return.
The problem of Isreal/Palestine does not need to be a broad ME problem. Without the meddling of Cold War politics or support from either America or Arab countries, the Isrealis and Palestinians could possiblly work it out themselves. Today, hwoever, most of the ME countries would like to see the problem drag on as a distraction for their own peoples to hide their own ineptitude. Every time a call for reform comes to a country like Egypt or Jordan, their rulers would parade the plight of Palestinians and say that nothing can be done before the Palestinian problem is solved. I think it is a good policy to precisely ignore the Palestinian problem and bring reform pressures to Arab regimes. No one can say how long the Palestinian problem is going to fester. 50 years of Arab youth and creativity had been wasted on the preoccupation on Palestine. Instead, the US should wage a political and ideological war to help the Arabs modernize their society irrespective of the outcome of Palestine. This is not exactly topical, but my point is that it is the ME problem that is most critical. Palestine is only part of the solution.
The borders is exactly the key issue however. Many of the settlements are built on occupied land which was never formally annexed into Israel. So what exactly do you mean when you say "leave the borders exactly as they are now and declare a sovereign Palestinian state". Are you saying Israel should be able to annex all the existing settlements into Israel formally and leave the rest of the occupied territories to the new Palestinian state? I don't think many Palestinian would go for that. What right does Israel have to do that anyway?
There will never EVER be peace there. My Solution should be the final solution. Add two more stars to the flag, Israel can be 51st, and Palestine can be 52nd.
Change the leadership of the Palestinians, and there will be even more pressure on terrorist factions. Hopefully these upcoming elections will change something, but I find it hard to believe that terrorist organizations won't still have a lot of power in Palestinian society.
