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Spectacle at Annapolis Spurs Nuclear Danger
By sobering coincidence, I finished reading Jonathan Schell's new book, The Seventh Decade, just as George W. Bush, Ehud Olmert, and Mahmous Abbas were getting ready to go onstage for their starring roles in the U.S. - produced theatrical spectacle, "Peace Talks at Annapolis." Schell thinks that the new phase of the nuclear age we are in now may be the most dangerous of all. "Peace Talks" gives us one more good reason to believe he may be right.
Schell's main point is simple enough, though its ramifications stretch out endlessly. The technically hard part of making a nuclear weapon is producing the enriched radioactive fuel. Once that's done, the rest is pretty straightforward engineering. So the important question is not, "Who has the bomb now?" It's, "Who has the fuel to make the bomb some day?" When the nuclear age began, it was only the U.S., Britain, and the Soviet Union. Now dozens of nations can make the bomb some day -- thanks in part to the "generous" American policy of spreading nuclear technology around the world.
Schell was kind enough to read my book on Eisenhower's "Atoms for Peace" plan, so he knows that it had nothing to do with peace and everything to do with scoring propaganda points in the cold war. But the unintended fallout was to give lots of countries the technical wherewithal to enrich nuclear fuels. The prospect of endless proliferation came up a few times at national security council meetings in the Eisenhower years, but no one gave it any attention. They were too busy trying to defeat the Soviets.
Now the Bush administration is just as busy trying to defeat "the terrorists" and any government that stands in the way of U.S. global hegemony. To buy friends (and boost the nuclear power industry) they are ready to sell nuclear power technology around the world, while threatening to nuke anyone who acquires the same technology without U.S. approval. (Are you listening, Iran?)
There are two great arcs of countries that can make the bomb some day. One stretches from Russia through China, to Korea, Japan, and probably Taiwan. The other stretches from India through Pakistan, Iran, maybe Syria, certainly Israel, down to Saudi Arabia and Egypt, both of which recently made deals to get nuclear technology from the U.S. (We can safely assume that Iraq would be in that arc some day, if the U.S. gets its way and keeps permanent U.S. military bases there, which will probably house nukes.)
Which brings us to the spectacle of "Peace Talks at Annapolis." I call it a spectacle because no one expected it to be much more than a grand photo op to boost the political fortunes of the stars: Bush, Olmert, and Abbas. Now the news reports tell us that, after some intense last-minute arm-twisting, the U.S. managed to extract a real agreement. The Israelis and Abbas' rump Palestinian government will begin permanent peace talks and get a genuine peace agreement within a year.
Or so they say. Aaron David Miller, a former negotiator for the Clinton administration, voiced the view of most knowledgeable observers: "The chances for a Palestinian state in George Bush's term are slim to none." Miller, a Democrat, blamed it on the Bush administration's lack of "will and skill" to pull off a peace treaty.
But even with all the will and skill in the world, it's doubtful any American leader could pull it off. Last week the prestigious Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz reported that top right-wing politicians in Israel have achieved a "targeted assassination" of the peace process. They've put up obstacles to peace so high that Olmert, a weak leader at best, can never pull them down.
They got the Knesset, Israel's parliament, to pass a law that 2/3 of the Knesset must approve any changes in the boundaries of Jerusalem. That will never happen. So the Israeli negotiators in the "peace process" can never accede to a fundamental Palestinian demand, that both nations share Jerusalem as their capitals.
They also got a hidden "kicker" in the joint declaration issued at Annapolis: "The parties also commit to immediately implement their respective obligations under the performance-based road map." Israel has always insisted that its obligations under the road map begin only after the Palestinian authorities have suppressed all anti-Israeli violence. Ha'aretz reports that the right-wingers who want to block peace are requiring Olmert to persist in the peace-blocking policy.
Israel will have a dependable partner in that effort. The declaration say that the Bush administration will judge whether both sides are fulfilling their road map obligations. The long-standing U.S. tilt toward Israel is certainly not going to change any time soon. As the Washington Post reported: "People who have spoken to Bush in recent weeks say he has made it clear that he has no intention of trying to force a peace settlement on the parties. The president's fight against terrorism has given him a sense of kinship with Israel over its need for security, and he remains skeptical that, in the end, the Palestinians will make the compromises necessary for a peace deal." So the U.S. will never say Israel has failed its road map obligations, and the Israelis can go on stalling forever.
The Palestinians helped the Israelis to stall by accepting an agreement with no binding timetable for negotiations. The declaration says only that both sides will "make every effort to conclude an agreement before the end of 2008." The Israelis can easily put up all their roadblocks to peace and then say, "Hey, we made every effort, didn't we?"
According to some reports, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wanted a more meaningful agreement at Annapolis, knowing that a failed effort at peace is worse than no effort at all. According to The Economist, "Ms Rice shuttled and shuttled, but could not stop Israel from repeatedly raising the bar. For his part, Mr Abbas, having threatened to pull out of Annapolis if it proved to be devoid of content, turned out not to have the guts-no doubt fearing a withdrawal of American support for his precarious regime."
Precarious indeed. Abbas knows that the Palestinians will never accept a state that does not include Gaza, and he has no power to bring Gaza into any agreement. In case he missed that point, more than 100,000 Gazans were in the streets protesting the Annapolis meeting. In the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority banned all demonstrations and news conferences during the meeting. Nevertheless, hundreds demonstrated, and police used batons and tear gas and fired into the air to suppress them. Police beat and detained journalists too. (So much for the democracy the Bush administration supposedly supports, while it systematically destroys the duly elected government dominated by Hamas.)
Israel's strategy has always been to keep its opponents divided. If the past is any guide, Israel is now likely to string out the "peace talks" (with U.S. help) while it continues occupation policies that enrage Palestinians more every day. When the Palestinians get frustrated enough with Abbas' fruitless efforts, Hamas' fortunes will rise and his government will fall, or at best get embroiled in civil war. That will give the Israelis a chance to complain once again, "We have no partner for peace."
But then a real peace process, which would have to include Hamas, was never the point in the first place. Few take even this pseudo-peace process seriously -- including, it seems, the president. Daniel Kurtzer, who served as Bush's ambassador to Israel from 2001 to 2005, said, "You don't get a sense that he's invested in it. Nobody associates President Bush with this policy."
The policy everyone associates Bush with is the brewing war -- whether hot or cold, no one can say for sure -- against Iran. Most observers agree that the spectacle of "Peace Talks at Annapolis" was staged, above all, to impress Iran by consolidating a pro-U.S., anti-Iranian alliance in the Middle East.
Just as in Eisenhower's day, it's all about containment, drawing a clear line between our side and theirs and then standing tough. One part of that line runs right through Palestine, between the Palestinian Authority and the Hamas government. When Abbas agreed to the Annapolis declaration, he hardened the opposition to his rule and made the dividing line clearer than ever.
Meanwhile, the U.S. got Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and other anti-Iranian Arab states to line up more clearly alongside Israel and the pro-Abbas Palestinians on "our" side. They are all brought together by their fear of Iran and its growing influence with popular Arab factions like Hamas. So the Middle East is becoming more polarized than ever, as if the two sides were squaring off to do battle.
If it ever comes to that, will the battle be nuclear? That's the terrifying question Jonathan Schell raises, reminding us that most of these potential combatants have, or may soon have, the fuel to make nukes. As of now, actual nukes exist only in Israel (some 200 or more) -- and in Pakistan, which has no direct role in the Middle East drama now. But with its political future uncertain and its border with Iran always unstable, who can predict what might happen? And if Pakistan were to get involved, what would India do?
Schell's point is that nuclear proliferation, fostered by U.S. policies, is leading toward an ever greater likelihood of nuclear war, some day, some where. The U.S. is involved up to the ears in every region of the world, pushing and pulling with little regard for the long-term consequences of its tactical maneuvers.
The spectacle at Annapolis is just one more in an endless line of examples. What seemed like an innocuous publicity stunt and symbolic message to Iran could have unpredictable results. In a world menaced by proliferating nuclear weapons, unpredictable should mean unacceptable. Schell concludes that nothing is acceptable short of the total, global abolition of nuclear weapons. A hearty Amen to that.
But even without nukes, a Middle East battered by endless conflict and oppression would be unacceptable too. For the sake of justice as well as safety, the U.S. government must take genuine steps to promote a just and lasting peace between Israel and Palestine -- as two secure and viable states, with all political parties democratically represented -- rather than promoting a charade of peacemaking that is bound to fail.
Ira Chernus is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder and author of Monsters To Destroy: The Neoconservative War on Terror and Sin.
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40 Comments so far
Show AllThe Palestinians are effectively divided, crushed an living in their concentration camps waiting to be slaughtered as Israel continues to steal their homes, land and even their water. The United States bears a great responsibility for enabling these war crimes.
The so-called "peace talks" are worse than a charade when one knows that the US puppetmasters can easily dictate Israeli policy. Nothing but bluster can come from this photo-op as Palestinians will not fall for acceptance of a prison/bantstan and the US does not have the will to reel in Israeli intransegence. If anything, the hypocrisy will weaken US influence, not Persian.
The difference between reality and spin, in both Iraq and at Annapolis, is striking. Yet, the spin has been so vigorously promoted and so sympathetically reported in the media that, bizarrely, it has somehow gained the status of reality. Terrific effort by the propagandists and their tame commentariat.
GWB for a Nobel Piece Price...Who will nominate him? Dick Cheney?
peace,
st john
Terror gave birth to Israel. Terror gave birth to the US. I've understood for a long time that the
human species would eventually go extinct like all other species that have evolved through the
geologic lifespan of the Earth. I thought the human presence would be a blip in this lifespan.
But now I know it won't even be a blip. It will be invisible. It will be like we never even existed.
Because it seems terror must have given birth to the human species itself. Wisdom tried, but it
never even came close to defeating terror. And then terror gave birth to nukes
It's good to be reminded by Ira Chernus that Ike (and later, JFK) recognized that the proliferation of military nuclear technology to ordinary nation states, rogue regimes, and nongovernmental terrorist actors was an existential threat to world peace, and that United States policy for nearly fifty years sought to control the spread of nukes through international law (chiefly, through the Nonproliferation Treaty and test ban treaties).
Some of those policies were politicized to Cold War priorities, like the Atoms for Peace assistance. Other stated policies - such as gradually disarming the nuclear club in exchange for developing countries' promises to develop only non-military nuclear power - were paid lip service only or quietly abandoned.
What is stunning is that the administration of George W. Bush swept all of that history aside without any forewarning or public discussion, replacing the international law model with a nonproliferation model premised upon preventive war to halt spread of the bomb. Ideed, it could be said that Atoms for Peace and the Nonproliferation Pact themselves were designed specifically to prevent nuclear nations from threatening to attack non-nuclear nations that they suspected were working on atomic weaponry clandestinely.
The Bush administration's radical approach to nuclear deterrence - like it's radical views on torture and the stationing of US troops in the Middle East - should be subjected to study and candid public discussion. Since when is it okay to engage in democratic dialogue about stem cells, pupil testing, and tax relief, but never talk like grown ups about empire, torture, or how best to avoid blowing up the planet?
Bill from Saginaw
I don't see much harm in most of the parties getting together in America with Bush and Rice to start doing the talking they should have continued from the Clinton era in the first month of Bush's first term. They're late, but, hey, a big election is coming in the United States. Still, all parties talking to each other is better than not talking, always.
But this first meeting, except to agree to keep meeting, has skirted most of the real issues. And they're likely to continue skirting them for a while.
Americans must be careful not to let the appearance of "Mideast" progress during 2008 become a political bandwagon in the U.S. for Republican candidates to climb upon for other (tax cuts) purposes. Islam is still Islam. It still rejects everything and everybody that isn't Islamic, especially Israel. The region is still dangerous for that single reason.
Democrats need to neither criticize nor try to trump Bush on this Mideast effort. Democrats need to wake up and win on domestic issues, NOT lose (again) by falling prey to having their opponents couch everything in the context of foreign affairs.
Two sects of the same monotheist religion fighting in a burning house. Global warming will destroy the entire Middle East.
It was most astute and correct that Ira Chemus drew attention to the nuclear threat.
The news here in Denmark about the Annapolis meeting was a very thin cop of tea and yet they did mention that Olmert returns to an Israel were he is even more unpopular than Bush is in the US and Abbas to rump gov't which represents little over half of the people he is "president" of.
Don't be buffaloed by the hype. Atomic weapons are not something terrorists can get a handle on. It is something which requires the money and expertise only a nat'l state of a certain size can do. Furthermore, possessing these weapons of mass immolation is a status symbol of ultimate power which no gov't head or dictator is going to hand over to a third party -- they are like crown jewels.
But the more nations who have these "aces" up their sleeves, the more likely there will be a nuclear exchange. It's like a bar full of drunks -- if enough are drunk enough, a fight will start.
What an embarrassment-shrub gets up there and bungles pronunciation of the two leaders' names, then can't even get the photo op right. He had to be told to move away from the podium so the cameras can see them shaking hands. And then, he looked like he was holding hands awkwardly with both of them. Stayed for three hours, then left. It's a long way from Annapolis to D.C. 40 leaders were there, and he did nothing more than try to look interested. What a sham, what a shame. All of a sudden, he is worried about his legacy, so he makes a last-ditch , half-assed attempt to look like he's doing something. I'm a Texan who is ashamed that he claims to be from Texas. Hope he finds another place to hide out when his disastrous pResidency finally ends.
It seems strange how commentators continually refer to the U.S. as if it is just momentarily errant and only needs to pull up it's britches and tighten it's belt a notch to make everything turn out all right for evermore;
"For the sake of justice as well as safety, the U.S. government must take genuine steps to promote a just and lasting peace between Israel and Palestine..."
Where in the world and when in history has the U.S. ever promoted a just and lasting peace between anybody? The U.S. is, and always has been, about fracturing other societies and weakening their governments, even those governments which consider themselves allies to the U.S.
It doesn't matter what those evil dorks pledge or what they try to deceive the world with, because whatever it is, it won't work. They've shown the world what kind of worthless, evil scum they are when they brazenly lied so that they could invade Iraq and try to steal the oil. And that is the facet of them that can never be hidden again, no matter how much they so dearly wish they could cover that gross mistake up with some "plausible deniability". All of the propaganda in the world hasn't got a snowball's chance in hell of fooling history now, and hell is just exactly where that trash is headed to.
Daniel David, judaism is judaism....it rejects anything and evreything non-jewish.....Stop making asinine statements...
Here's an idiot:
"Islam is still Islam. It still rejects everything and everybody that isn't Islamic, especially Israel. The region is still dangerous for that single reason."
Notice how he doesn't give the statement a second thought? It would never occur to him-but should anyone say:
Judiasm is still Judiasm. It still rejects everything and everybody that isn't Jewish, especially Muslims. The region is still dangerous for that single reason."
And all the alarm bells go off. See how perfectly indoctrinated he is? He isn't even conscious of his bigotry because the propaganda war has been so successful that all Arab-Muslims are condemned--and that has become the conventional wisdom despite the suppressed truth of the matter--and of course, to utter that truth makes one an anti-semite. It is utterly reprehensible.
Don't want nukes? TS. Your corporate, theocratic, oligarchy leaders do. People want to live in peace, but the fraction of 1% that owns 85% of everything is not content being mere billionaires. It wants it ALL. To own all the oil, water, land, slaves, to increase their flocks of religious followers and to be trillionaire gods.
In Florida, people are deciding to bypass the oligarchy and become the deciders. This could be the start of direct democracy. Read and if you're a Floridian, print, sign and mail the petition:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/community/news/lakenona/orl-maxwell2507nov25,0,2991976.column
OrlandoSentinel.com
Proposal to limit growth scares some pols
Scott Maxwell
TAKING NAMES
November 25, 2007
By now, you've probably heard something about "Hometown Democracy." But you may not know quite what it is.
In the simplest sense, Hometown Democracy is a ballot proposal -- something you may get to vote on next year. It would take the power to approve many major developments away from elected officials and place it directly in the hands of the people. You and your neighbors would get to decide whether Super Wal-Mart moves in or a neighboring subdivision can be built.
But in a grander sense, Hometown Democracy is a story of how Florida politics works -- how politicians refuse to deal with problems until we make them.
Here's how this story is unfolding:
For years, growth in Florida has been a relatively simple affair. If you wanted to build something, all you had to do is convince a majority of the members of a county commission or city council.
Such a thing has never been tough in Florida , where you never have to wait until the day after Thanksgiving to get a good deal on an elected official. A few campaign donations here. A steak dinner here. Bingo! You've got yourself the permits to build whatever you want, regardless of what neighbors think.
Obviously, this system hasn't worked as well for us average Joes as it does for the development execs. The same growth that means boosted profits for special interests can mean crowded schools, clogged roads, water woes and pollution for everyone else.
Residents have tried to fight back. They've voiced complaints -- and sometimes even elected politicians who promised that they, too, wanted to slow things down.
But then, even with those "smart growth" pols in office, residents must endure a school such as Timber Creek High in east Orange County , where 4,300 students spend each day in a campus meant for 2,700. Or they find themselves stuck on roads such as University Boulevard or Alafaya Trail, that were once a straight shot, but, now lined with development, are anything but.
And they start to realize that some of these politicians make the National Enquirer seem reliable.
So residents finally take matters into their own hands by amending the constitution. They did the same thing with a class-size amendment when the politicians refused to get serious about education.
This is what scares the politicians. Because now you've threatened to interrupt their gravy train, expose them as part of the problem and infringe upon their power.
This is the part of our story where the politicians suddenly become your new best friends. Suddenly they empathize and understand. Suddenly, they want a solution too . . . just not this solution.
We saw such an argument a few weeks ago when Tom Pelham, secretary of the state's community affairs department, wrote a piece for the Sentinel that called Hometown Democracy "an extreme solution to a real problem."
Pelham said there are "more measured and practical solutions than the meat ax wielded by Hometown Democracy."
He then suggested several reasonable-sounding ones, including legislative action that would reduce the number of loopholes and exceptions that allow development to spread too fast and so wide.
Pelham's suggestions sound like they make sense. But if Pelham and other state officials are so keen on controlling growth and have such sensible-sounding solutions, why haven't they done so before now?
Because they didn't have to.
Because, until now, no one called their bluff.
After Pelham's piece ran, I asked him about his timing -- and suggested that, if he wanted to convince voters he was serious about all this, he would get his slow-growth legislation passed before residents vote on the matter.
Pelham responded that he would try to do just that and push to limit growth "regardless of the outcome of the Hometown Democracy campaign."
Good for him.
I'll believe it when I see it. But if the Legislature does finally put more reasonable checks on growth, maybe that will be a better solution than Hometown Democracy.
But even if Hometown Democracy fails at the polls, it still may be a success.
Because it is forcing us to deal with a problem we would have otherwise continued to ignore.
HELP SAVE WHAT'S LEFT OF FLORIDA...
LET THE PEOPLE VOTE to control growth!
Help put HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY on the 2008 ballot
Please download and SIGN THE PETITION !
http://www.FloridaHometownDemocracy.com
PO Box 636, New Smyrna Beach, FL 32170-0636.
Only five weeks till the end of the year! We are excited and scared--we're close but not yet at our destination. The only number that counts is 611,000 verified petitions. Please, please send your holiday love to Florida in the way of petitions and donations. There are lots of festivities ahead in the coming season to use as an occasion for collecting petitions from friends and family. Let's give this State the biggest gift ever: putting this historic reform on the ballot!
Best,
Lesley
I have no doubt that, with the proper fuel, virtually any group could manufacture a working nuclear bomb. A kid from harvard wrote a paper on how to manufacture one twenty years ago. I shudder to think what will happen if Tel Aviv or Mecca
should suddenly disappear under a mushroom cloud.
As far as Annapolis, I don't think anything will happen. The Arabs and Israelis both have mutually exclusive agenda's, and the elected government of the Palestinians (Hamas) still calls, through their Charter, for the complete elimination of Israel. Abbas does not speak for the majority that voted Hamas in. Not much room for negotiation unless the Charter is changed.
oh look, more of the regurgitated zionist propaganda pablum that so many don't even think to question, with their kneejerk assumption that it is conventional view.
Your sources, bligh?
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/811997.html
I'd tell you Vern, if I could figure out what the devil you are talking about. Perhaps you could give me a link to the Hamas charter that does not call for the destruction of Israel.
Your link says that a Hamas spokesman said that Israel "exists". I already knew that....
So does he--the point being they will recognize Israel when Israel recognizes them. Why the hell should they accept their overlords who bulldoze their homes, steal their land, monopolize the water, impose collective punishment, wall them off into ghettos and so on and so on. Likud Israel fills me with contempt. Have to say it. And the more people know the more dangerous the blowback will be.
Israel no demands not only a recognition that is not mutual but recognition as a Jewish state, nevermind the non-Jewsih citizens. We do not need states based on ethnic purity and apartheid!
Jared, I agree with you that no states are needed based on ethnic purity or religious affiliation, without regard to minorities. Israel is one of these. Saudi Arabia, Egypt,Iran, and Syria are others. All need to base their law and protection of minorities on something other than religious law.
Get the practicing Israelis out of Israel. Let practicing Jews stay - they'll probably do the right thing. After all, before Zionism and the overthrow of the Ottomans and the conniving of the colonial powers, people of all religions lived in peace in the area known as Palestine.
Give the whole thing back to the Romans.
ezeflyer,
Your first paragraph in 2:41 pm post -- Too funny, but true. I saw "Key Largo" the other night, for about the fifth time, and when I saw Johnny Rocco, in response to Bogie's question about what he wants, declare that he wants "MORE, that's it, I want MORE!", I could not help but think of him as the poster child for the corporate oligarchy of today -- ruthless, vicious, violent, coldhearted, reckless, rapacious, self-serving, and unprincipled, and with a boundless appetite.
Twelve days after the Oklahoma City bombing, the President was told that all across Russia, the raw material for thousands of Hiroshimas was sitting in barely guarded stockpiles. Unless something was done soon, there was a chance that the next truck bomb would be nuclear.
Read "One Point Safe" by Andrew and Leslie Cockburn.
See why finding the material is not difficult. We are very close to the biggest trouble ever.
Unfortunantly, that insane idiot came across looking very good to the vast majority. Watching with an open mind, for a long as I could bear it, he was impressive. The truth is, his flock of frantic followers managed to dig up an excellent speech writer.
I saw it as damage control at its best. Remember, he does know how to throw bullshit and gets better at it as time goes by.
The other guy wearing a tie, came across as one who could hardly wait to get out of the building, he knew it was bullshit. I do hope the American public could see it was too.
Daniel David said: Islam is still Islam. It still rejects everything and everybody that isn't Islamic, especially Israel. The region is still dangerous for that single reason.
Daniel David is back to hate-mongering again. He said the same thing on another post here as he couldn't differentiate between the Saudis and Islam.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/11/27/5456/
Someone's been indoctrinated well by the AIPAC talking points.
"The president's fight against terrorism has given him a sense of kinship with Israel over its need for security, and he remains skeptical that, in the end, the Palestinians will make the compromises necessary for a peace deal. So the U.S. will never say Israel has failed its road map obligations, and the Israelis can go on stalling forever."
THUH President is intellectually too limited to realize that terrorism against the US stems from US policies biased infinitely towards israel. he can't tell the difference between cause and effect.
but of course aipac and the establishment press make sure that we all are unable to see what is the cause of terrorism just like our dittohead president and instead see a kinship.
what a disaster for the US
Thanks Danial David for returning to CD. Now I finally see the light! I actually thought you were a real seeker of truth, but now it is clear by your own posts that you will support the Dems no matter who is the nomineet because hey! apart from a very few exceptions, your candidates are in AIPAC's pocket.
Sorry man, but you exposed yourself with that asinine, ignorant statement about Islam. SHEEESH!!!!
Your credibility gap just morphed into the Grand Canyon.
I still think 'Dangerous Dan' is professional 'cat amongst the pigeons'.
He's probably a supporter of Myrick's caucus:
Wouldn't it be great if all the oil dried up and we could all forget about the f-ing middle easterners, all of them. Heard anything lately about Peru? Didn't think so.
Historically, fascism is that thing that just won't go away. It is latent in the affairs of state and really ugly in organized religion and science. The last time it emerged as a political solution it took all of capitalism and communism to exact limitations. (nevermind what the causes were) There are models of existence that don't use competition, they are based on creativity. Competition destroys creativity or what you resist you become.
George Bush became the pimple on the butt of humanity and we became his followers.
With a major election coming up next year, Mr. Bush needs to distract the country away from his dismal record pertaining to everything, the faltering economy, the Iraq War, etc.
So they must resort to the ole prestidigitation slight of hand trick, distract the electorate with phony attempts at peace making, which might help the republicans up for re-election.
Israel jumped on board to help out their biggest American supporter thus far in their 60-year history.
Otherwise Israel's position is normally, "peace, peace, we don't need no stinkin peace."
It's true, why would they want peace?
Gradually, with the help of American military support, they are getting everything they want.
Right now they have their foot firmly on the throat of the Palestinians and using tactics like humiliation and assassination, they have managed to keep protesters at bay while they continue to build new Jewish settlements on Palestinian territory.
Why would Israel want peace? It will do nothing for their manifest destiny of reclaiming biblical land and keeping Jerusalem solely for themselves.
I hate to be so pessimistic but Annapolis is a sham, a farce, and a scheme to fool voters into thinking the Republican warmongers who calculatingly took us down this path of destruction, are now trying to make a legitimate effort at peace.
Poppycock, nothing could be more infuriating then a dishonest peace conference, where the principal players like Hamas and Iran are excluded.
Unfortunately, with the help of a few creative speech writers, many voters will accept Mr. Bush's pretense at peace making as legitimate.
Peace in the Middle East, a Palestinian state, a peaceful Iraq, these things will never happen while the short psychotic Texan is still in charge of America.
lpenek I am sure they are all thinking wouldn't it be great if the Americans would stop meddling in our affairs because they want to drive their damn SUV's and they believe in some nonsense called the rapture?
You might want to get a 2nd opinion on the advisability of the "Hometown Democracy" initiative, ezflyer. I've been active in our land use planning process here in SW Florida, and our planning consultant has pointed out that any citizen or community-generated plans would have to be subjected to a COUNTY-WIDE popular vote, opening it up to all kinds of possible mischief on the part of developers and "oligarchs." Hometown Democracy, in other words, will probably mean even more unplanned and chaotic growth.
In my mind the only "mid-east nuclear danger" questions left unanswered are:
1. Who will supply the nuke that destroys Israel?
2. Who will deliver the nuke that destroys Israel?
WmC wrote:
"You might want to get a 2nd opinion on the advisability of the "Hometown Democracy" initiative, ezflyer. I've been active in our land use planning process here in SW Florida, and our planning consultant has pointed out that any citizen or community-generated plans would have to be subjected to a COUNTY-WIDE popular vote, opening it up to all kinds of possible mischief on the part of developers and "oligarchs." Hometown Democracy, in other words, will probably mean even more unplanned and chaotic growth."
TRASH LETTER BY JOHN T(H)RASHER!
An Opinion By Jan Bergemann
President, Cyber Citizens For Justice, Inc.
Published November 29, 2007
What would you think if you found a big official-looking envelope with these kinds of bold letters catching your eyes in your mailbox?
NASTY VOTER FRAUD? HANGING CHADS? DISENFRANCHISED VOTERS?
Whatever you would guess, it is doubtful that you could ever correctly guess what this envelope actually contains!
In the envelope you will find a letter trashing the FLORIDA HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY INITIATIVE, a letter written and signed by John T(h)rasher. The letter doesn't give you any real facts, just unfounded accusations, more or less stating that the sky will fall down if the ballot initiative passes!
The most ridiculous part -- if he actually ever intended to be taken serious -- is the fact that he accuses FLORIDA HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY of being a bonanza for special interests, especially developers. And he throws in the familiar threat of huge property tax increases!
Please read the letter yourself, it's funnier than the funniest TV sit-coms.
The sad thing about this letter: Thrasher is the paid mouthpiece for the same "suspects" -- like Barney Bishop, chief executive of American Industries of Florida -- that are permanently fighting citizen-friendly legislation -- remember the property insurance bills during the last legislative session? Thrasher is another former legislator who is selling out to the highest bidder. And politicians wonder why we citizens despise them more and more? The fact that he uses his former position as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives -- prominently displayed at the top of the letter -- makes this letter even more disgusting. In short: IT'S A SHAME!
The word HONORABLE in front of his name is a disgrace for all legislators who really tried to serve their constituents! If our Florida Commission on Ethics functions properly -- the word ETHICS seems to be stricken from dictionaries in this state – Thrasher should be punished by disallowing him to use this preamble (which should have been used like a badge of honor) from any future correspondence he mails.
In short: THIS LETTER, FULL OF MISLEADING STATEMENTS AND SCARE TACTICS, IS PLAIN TRASH!
But in a time when many Florida citizens suffer from serious financial problems, we always have to see the positive side of things. The only thing positive about this letter is the PETITION REVOCATION FORM. If you void the front you have a whole free page on the back to tell Thrasher what you think of him and his "friends" who are trying to mislead Florida's citizens. Special interests, who are behind this trash letter campaign, know fully well that they can't stop Florida's voters from voting in favor of HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY which is trying to save what's left of our HOME STATE , once it makes it on the ballot!
You can voice your opinion free of charge, because the package contains as well a prepaid envelope. Make good use of it -- this letter is plainly asking for it!
Remember, we voted to save pregnant pigs, now let's save what's left of Florida!
Otherwise, throw the letter in the trash; that's where trash belongs! These methods are plainly disgusting!
One of the difficulties in getting any Israeli government to give up any of the West Bank is they believe if they have no legitimate claim to the West Bank, it follows that they have no legitimate claim to Tel Aviv. And on the Palestinian side, accepting the West Bank and Gaza as all that's left of pre-1948 Palestine makes the Partition of Palestine and the loss of the bulk of their nation legitimate. How can any Palestinian government go along with the surrender of the better part of their country?
Maybe the only possible answer, one that gives peace and security to both sides, is a single democratic secular state where everyone has equal rights and responsibilities, no matter what their religion is or isn't.
In my opinion the future of the middle east is "The Day the Middle East Stood Still" scenario, with the US and other nuclear nations playing the part of Klaatu. Make peace or be destroyed by Gort. Either that or a universal and extremely verified ban.
Make of this what you will:
Speaking of such beings a Klaatu and Gort, the following is just "for the record."
It would appear that Werner Von Braun knew a thing or two about goings on "behind the scenes." During the last two years of his life he shared his belief that the "secret government" had a plan - in terms of the U.S. "always having an enemy." In approximate order of appearance those were to be Communists, Rogue States, Terrorists, and Extraterrestrials.
To adequately address the vital issues discussed in Chernis's excellent piece, we will sooner or later need to answer the question, "Is there a secret government at work, or not?"
I don't know the answer.