PAGE 4A HERITAGE FLORIDA JEWISH NEWS, JANUARY 27, 2017
By Ben Cohen a statement so utterly divorced from reality Kurdish control, Middle Eastern states--of tion Organizationoriginallypledgedtoachieve
3NS.org that you can't help laughing, the Sunni and Shi'a, Arab, Turkish and Persian through violence--and suing the United King-
Leaveaside the obvious objections:that this variety--are little more than dungeons with dom for the 1917 Balfour Declaration.
It's been clear for a long time that there is conference perpetuates the fallacy that the flags on top of them. In terms of building up public support
little difference between the character of ter- Israeli-Palestinian conflict lies at the heart of Buthey, that'snothingthatabitof"civilsociety around the world, it's a strategy that has
rorist attacks in Israel and those in the West the Middle East troubles, or simply that the dialogue" can't fix, eh? I don't want to be unfair worked. Hence, we can assume that if Pres-
more broadly.Trucks ram into crowds--as they spectacle of 72 countries fixating on Israel-- here, because there have been some wonderful ident-elect Donald Trump does a 180-degree
did in Nice, Berlin and Jerusalem. Terrorists when neighboring Syria has been turned into efforts to encourage dialogue between Arab and turn on President Obama's approach to the
blow up or shoot up nightclubs--as they did a graveyard--is nauseating. Jewish citizens of Israel, but for that approach to Israelis, the narrative of the Palestinians--ig-
in Orlando, Tel Aviv and Bali. Knife-wielding Look, instead, at the worldview expressed work, you need to first recognize the humanity nored by America, facing 50 years of"occupa-
Islamists dash into venues from shopping in the conference statement, a draft of which ineachother.Whatwouldactuallygetdiscussed tion" under Israel--will become emblematic
malls to police stations stabbing anyone in was distributed in advance of the conference, at these dialogues, anyway? An Israeli asking a of public resistance to the foreign policies of
reach--as they did in Minnesota, Brussels The tools for achieving and sustaining a"two- Palestinian, "Why are your preachers calling us the Trump administration. In the American
and, yes, Tel Aviv. state solution," it declared, are "economic sons of apes and pigs again?" context, the Democratic Party is now the most
Compared to 15 years ago, there is a much incentives, the consolidation of Palestinian Maybe none of this matters anymore. Maybe significant barometer of that process.
greater empathy with Israel's existential state capacities, and civil society dialogue." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is ThePalestinianscanalsoplaypowerpolitics.
position these days. European leaders like Alright then. Economic incentives: Forget right when he says that the Paris conference They can carry on with their campaign to
French Prime Minister Manuel Vails, German about turning Gaza into a flourishing port is the "final gasp" of a failed strategy. He has achieve membership in international bodies
Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime city for as long as Hamas is running the place, good reason, after all, tobelieve that, especially as an independent state. They can curry favor
Minister Theresa May have shown far greater Ignore the fact that PalestinianAuthority (PA) having heard the condemnation of Resolution with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the
readinessthan even our own President Barack corruption and nepotism have concentrated 2334 from Secretary of State-designate Rex next stage of his conflict with the West. And
Obama to recognize that anti-Zionism is a immense wealth around Ramallah with no TiUerson. they can insert themselves into domestic
form of anti-Semitism, that the campaign trickle to the rest of the West Bank. Disregard Yet while the change of administration in issues--rising anti-Semitism, the political
to boycott Israel is founded upon hatred and the rampant scale of organized crime in the WashingtonmaystrengthenIsrael'sdiplomatic culture on university campuses, the legality
that Israel lives in a neighborhoodwhere every West Bank, as documented by the Palestinian position for the immediate period, and while of boycotts--in a way that few other foreign
day, someone influential somewhere calls for academic Ali Qleibo. Just carry on believing the Palestinians will have to get to the back of policy issues can do.
its annihilation, thatpumping"economicincentives"willusher thelineintermsofinternationalpriorities, the As I said, Netanyahu may well be right
Sadly, thisunderstanding doesn't carryover in a new era of peace. Palestinian question itself will not disappear, about the last gasp of Obama's strategy to
into the workings of diplomacy. The last days Palestinian state capacities--this is an In many ways, it will find its status enhanced, secure Palestinian independence. But none of
of the Obama administration have brought interesting one. It sort of, kind of, hints that Tobeginwith, there'sthepublicdomain.And us should believe that these battles are over.
us the passage of United Nations Security we shouldn't automatically expect a Palestin- thisbringsustosomethingthattheEuropeans BenCohen, senioreditorofTheTower.org&
Council Resolution 2334, which paves theway ian state to be like, y'know, Norway, from the have never understood: The historic Palestin- The Tower Magazine, writes a weekly column
forimposingasolutionoutsidetheframework get-go. And there are two reasons for that. ian strategy has never been about achieving forJNS.orgonJewishaffairsandMiddleEast-
of direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, and First, that the PA has been thieving billions statehood, but about preventing a negotiated ernpolitics. His writings have been published
theJan. 15 Paris Mideast conference, atwhich ofdoilarsininternationalaidmoneyfromday solutioninordertoperpetuatetheimageofthe in Commentary, theNew YorkPost, Haaretz,
no less than 72 countries, including the U.S., one of its existence. Second, apart from a few Palestinians as the people towhom history has The Wall Street Journal, and many other
are pulling up in the French capital to issue exceptions like Jordan and the areas under dealtthecruelestblow.It'swhythePalestinians publications.Heistheauthorof"SomeofMy
make deliberately unrealistic demands, like the BestFriends:AJourney Through Twenty-First
"right of return"--a goal the Palestine Libera- CenturyAntisernitism" (Edition Critic, 2014).
By Dr. Glenn Mollette home. Hopefully when their districts vote agai n
they will let them stay home permanently. How
By the time you read this column the Inau- will they feel if Trump and a Republican led
gurationmaybeover. LikeitnotDonaldTrump Congress decide not to give additional money
is your president. Even if you claim he is not to their districts and refuse to work with them
your president--he is. If you continue your on any bills they might offer to Congress? I
citizenship in America he is your president, don't think that's the American way but sadly
I heard and read reports of people who said has become the American way.
they would leave the United States if Trump I'm not into an eye for an eye and a tooth
were elected president. How many have left or for a tooth. Slapping each other back and
when are they leaving? Don't let the door hit forth accomplishes nothing but more ugly
you on the behind when you leave. Actually, rancor.
that's not the attitude to have. The correct What we all need to see are Democrats and
attitude is, "Come on people now love one Republicans and Independents crossing the
another," or something like that. aisle, shaking hands and working together to
I'm all for us loving and hugging each other bring jobs backtoAmerica. Together they must
but it doesn't seem to be on the horizon for our work to save our infrastructure crisis. Bring
country. I voted for Obama the first time but I safe and cleanwater toAmerica's communities.
voted for Trump this time. One of the reason's Infuse hope into our struggling military and
I voted for Obama was because of healthcare elevating our beaten down Veterans. Equal
and stem cell research. We must have stem cell opportunities and equal rights for all can only
research to find cures for numerous diseases, happen if the people in Washington treat each
I was impacted greatly by healthcare with a other with equal respect. This means doing
very sick spouse for twelve years. I know the unto others the way they want to be treated.
pain of a medical insurance crisis. I also voted Many people today are ready to join a move-
against Obama because he and Congress ment. One movement we desperately need is
messeduphealthcaresobad.IvotedforTrump a movement that involves all people from all
not necessarily because I am now a registered parties, all states, all colors, all nationalities
Republican but because we desperately need reaching out to each other with a passion to
a new direction in this country. We have few work hard, have strong individual ideas but
jobs, a failing economy, failing infrastructure, determined to work together to solve our
growing poverty, tremendous despair and a problems and make this country great again!
nationrunoverbyillegalimmigrants.Wealso Glenn Mollette is a syndicated columnist
have a healthcare crisis. Of all the candidates and author of eleven books.
I saw Trump as being in the best position to do He is read in all fifty states. Visit www.
some things to change our spiraling direction glennmollette.com
as a nation. Contact him at GMollette@aol.com. Like
Congress people who have pledged to not his facebook page at www.facebook.com/
attend Trump's Inauguration are free to stay glennmollette.
rilE VIEWS EXPRESSED ON THIS PAGE ARE NOT NECESSARILY THE VIEWS OF HERITAGE MANAGEMENT.
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Two Jews walk into a room
Well, what happens if they don't? This
month, a bunch of Europeans and others
walked into a room in Paris to decide what
actually had already been decided in 1947 and
discussed continually since then: That the best
solution for the Holy Land of Israel was to
whack it up into two states: One for the Jews,
one for the Arabs. As we all know, all the way
back in '47, the Jews agreed, the Arabs did not.
The distinguished gentlemen at this lat-
est meeting represented the U.N., a number
of nations, a sprinkling of Arabs as well as
John Kerry who, by the time you read this
will be, thankfully, retired. Of course, these
distinguished gentlemen never gave a clue
as to how to accomplish this. So, they took
a smiling picture of the attendees and went
home. But, the meeting was in "Gay Paree"
and they were not paying their own way, so...
Vive Le France[!
Let's just suppose that once again, against
all his better instincts, Benjamin Netanyahu
were to say: "All right--let's get this thing
done--let's sit down at a table and figure out
some borders, some tactics and we will have
a two-state solution like all these geniuses
are crying for."
So, two Jews--Netanyahu and another des-
ignated negotiator walk into the room and...
Oh wait--they did that twice--and nobody else
showed up! A couple of years ago the Arabs
said "Stop all 'Settlement' Building!"
So they did--stop all building in Judea and
Samaria. The Jews waited nine long months.
And... nobody showed up. Okay, so that didn't
work, Israel started building new Israeli towns
and the Arabs screamed bloody murder (and
also did more than scream it). Let John Kerry,
the retiring U.S. secretary of state bring the
leader of the Palestinian Arabs with him to a
final--let's get it done--meeting. Who is he
going to bring?
Abbas, now in the fourteenth year of a four-
year term? Okay--but wait--there's more!
Aren't there a load of Arabs in a place called
Gaza? How come they aren't represented at
the table? Oh--they do not want a"Two-State
Solution." That's right! They are not ruled by
Mr. Abbas. They are ruled by Hamas. Ay, there's
the rub... Hamaswants a One-State Solution--
no Jews. Matter of fact, no Jews--anywhere!
Years ago, Netanyahu himself, in his first
creation as PM actually shook hands with the
Late Yasser Ararat while President Bill Clinton
clasped both their hands and beamed. He had
done itl Only problem was, as soon as the
unshaven Arafat got home, he said "thanks a
lot but no thanks."
In 1967 the foreign minister of Israel was
Yigal Allon. He was a former front line general
in the IDF and a distinguished archeologist.
As such he knew exactly where the ancient
and Holy land of Israel was. But he was also a
man of peace. So, he tried to configure bor-
ders that would allow for an Arab Quasi State
in most of Judea and Samaria to be ruled by
Jordan. There was a break in the proposed
borders to allow for an international zone
that cut off the bottom part of Israel --the
Negev. It was a terrible idea and never came
to fruition. But--it did contain the germ of a
wonderful idea. What nation on earth allows
an organization thousands of miles away, most
of whose members had never been to the area
to declare their borders?
In order to negotiate a peace treaty with
Egypt, Israel gave up the Sinai. The disputed
area today for the most part remains Judea
and Samaria--integral parts of the ancient
and Holy land of Israel--but now known as
the "West Bank" even though it is nowhere
near the Jordan River.
There is an area in the "West Bank" called
"Area C." It includes some fairly large Israeli
cities which the PalestinianArabs and the U.N.
call "Settlements." The area is roughly divided
between Arabs and Jews. What would happen
if Israel were to simply annex the area?
It would become a part of Israel. The Arab cit-
izens therein would become Israelis--entitled
to the benefits of citizenship--and dependable
electricity and garbage pick-up. They would
maintain their educational system--with an
adjustment to the curriculum, taking out the
textbooks that call for the death of all Jews.
The argument against this is that demo-
graphically, because Arabs have much bigger
families than Jews (except for the Haredi who
tend to have massive families) that they would
outnumber Jews in the area. Well, history
shows that as people become more economi-
cally independent, family size decreases--
which, as Israelis, these secular, intelligent
Arabs would become.
Maybe it's not perfect--but, It makes
more sense than a bunch of Europeans and
one American sitting in Paris and deciding...
nothing.
