Submitted by Wade C. Johnson, Aug 15, 2007 19:54

I must respectfully disagree with the assertion that Palestinans in the occupied territories should be forced to emigrate or to become citizens of third countries, i.e. Egypt or Jordan, as a matter of U.S. policy. Such an assertion necessarily requires that these third countries accept as citizens people who have never lived in those countries, or have expressed any interest or desire to become citizens of those countries. Such a policy would not only be unprecedented, but ultimately fruitless. The fact remains that the Palestinians in the occupied territories are natives of the land of Israel and as such are entitled to the full benefits of citizenship that any truly representative democracy affords. This issue strikes at the heart of the conflict. Peace absent genocide is going to require that each side give up something so fundamental to identity that even a half century of unspeakable violence has not brought either side to address. Israelis are ultimately are going to have to give up the notion of Israel as a Jewish state. As a matter of U.S. policy, we do not accept religiously based state identity either from Muslims or from Christians as history has demonstrated that such identity is an incubator of violence and instability. Palestinians are going to have to give up their sworn oath to destroy Israel, but again it is the identity of Israel as a Jewish state that they find objectionable, not the model of representative democracy. A two state solution is not tenable, not because of a potential Palestine as a haven for terrorism (such an objection is a tactical, not strategic concern), but because any State of Palestine will ultimately fail as a state due to the lack of all things that make states successful, defensible borders, adequate natural resources, control of those resources (read water) and the potential to build a successful economy. As politics is the art of the possible, it is of course currently impossible for any successful candidate for the US presidency to advocate Israel giving up it's identity as a Jewish state. Therefore no amount of negotiation can solve this conflict, and the policy of the United States must remain to manage this conflict, minimize its damage and danger, and move it off of center stage as a a Middle East issue.

Note: Comments are screened, and in some cases edited, before posting. We reserve the right to reject anything we find objectionable.