GP2,

I used to suggest, slightly t.i.c. that we level the playing field by giving the Palestinians all the same kinds and quantity of military equipment and weaponry that we’ve given the Israelis over the last 50 years. As least we couldn’t be accused of playing favorites. I don’t make that suggestion in complete seriousness, but if there does become an independent and free Palestinian state, it will have to have its own military and police forces, so some military assistance probably does make sense.

You say that the Palestinians Israel attacks are the radical terrorists. Really? Perhaps that is the principle focus, but the Israeli government has a pretty high tolerance for collateral damage, given that more innocent women, children, and other non-combatants are killed than are member of Hamas and other extremist elements. I think knowingly executing military operations - as the Israeli government does - that will kill innocent people along with potential radical targets meets the definition of state sponsored terrorism. The rationalization is that only radicals are targeted (hard to believe with the wholesale destruction of houses last week; houses that are not inhabited by radicals), but the expected collateral damage is the deliberate infliction of fear in hopes of modifying population behavior. These are not Israeli actions of self defense. They know it, and they do not care.

Of course Palestinian radicals use terrorist tactics. What else is available to them? They cannot have, train, and employ an army to go head to head with the Israeli military. Israel has, with U.S. support, created a Palestinian population so oppressed, and so desperate, some of them are willing to try anything to improve conditions for their people. Unfortunately, they tend to be young and impressionable and wrongly conclude that they can achieve their aims by killing Israelis. They would be right only if they could kill enough of them fast enough. (Hmmm, sort of like our addressing the symptoms of terrorism. But we also can’t kill enough of them fast enough to prevent the production and creation of even more of them.) It is a stalemate. Israel cannot kill Arabs fast enough to secure its safety by force. They can’t nuke them all; too many live in close proximity to Israel and in Israel. The Arabs can’t eliminate Israel, as Israel is believed to be more than willing to take all near and adjacent Arab nations with it if Israel is going down. They really only have two choices: continued status quo of killing each other a few at a time, or, peaceful coexistence.

Palestinians can only achieve their aims via the support of other nations of the world, both active support and by condemning Israel’s actions against them. They also need people like you to know them. You believe they live in another century and live a religion of death. I’m sorry to judge you, but you’re exhibiting ignorance here. The few Muslims I’ve met attended high school and college; a couple have PhDs. I can tell you that they live in the same century as you and I. And they would contest your “religion of death” as being no more accurate than someone saying Christianity is the religion of death. Your willingness to classify them all as radicals and extremists might be convenient for you, but along with not being accurate, it doesn’t really serve your interests if your interests include peace in the parts of the world inhabited by Muslims. At one billion and increasing, it would probably serve all of our interests to better understand Arab people. You really need to get out and meet 100 or so Palestinians or Muslims and decide for yourself how many of them you might actually be able to reason with.

We don’t have to walk away from Israel to earn the respect of major Arab representatives. I think we need mainly treat Israel and Arabs equally, like we would be required to do if they were both states within the U.S. Equal. Without favoritism. The action would speak louder than any words of any U.S. President or Secretary of State. It would probably convey a lot of shock value, given that they’re so accustomed to U.S. opposition or at least neglect of Arab interests. The more Palestinians and Muslims I’ve met, the more I’m convinced our ideas of them are based in ignorance.

Thank you for having this discussion.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.