You seem to be implying that there should be a third Intifada. Not only will that not work, but it is way past time for the violence to end, don’t you think? Hasn’t Israel murdered enough civilians already?

It is unclear what you are implying about “The Arabs”, unless all you are doing is pointing out that Arabs are as diverse in their views, etc. as any other human group.

That’s exactly what I’m doing, and pointing out that the view often held by folks such as Bryan – that the arabic populations around Israel are some type of faceless horde – is nonsense.

First, please be aware that most Palestinians who are citizens of Israel do not identify as “Israeli Arabs” and do not appreciate the term on several levels.

I am aware of it, but it’s a useful distinguishing point between them and the West Bank/Gaza Palestinians, and in any case they are Israeli citizens.

One of the means of achieving this as part of the two-state solution would be to conveniently exchange the major illegal colonies for territory inside the Green Line that is populated mainly by Palestinians.

So the Palestinians within Israel would prefer to stay in Israel as opposed to being part of an actual Palestinian state? Then calling them “Palestinians” is frankly misleading.

Lovely shining example of democratic principles at work in The Only Democracy In The Middle East™, no?

If we do somehow end up with a two-state solution, and the relevant Palestinian negotiators agree to take the areas in question, I don’t see what the problem is (particularly if the Palestinian state starts driving out the settlers). It’s not as if this isn’t something that hasn’t been done before – when the Jordanians gave up the West Bank, they stripped the Palestinians there of Jordanian citizenship.

The PA would never cross the Israeli government, in fact, they are an arm of the Israeli government. They are not capable of pushing back, and even if they were, to what effect? They’ve had to play the game a long time just to have some checkpoints removed. If they implement another intifidad, then Palestine will be nothing more than two ghettoes, not just one.

I wasn’t talking about the PA.

Israel is counting on annexing all the territory on which it builds settlements, and it will fight tooth and nail to do so simply because it needs those big Jewish populations to balance its demographics. It is insistent upon being a “Jewish state”, and its population is about to tip over into an Arab majority within the next few years.

I know this seems to be going off topic again, but the importance of the settlement issue cannot be overestimated, despite the zionists’ recent touting of a “survey” they claimed was conducted in the West Bank which claims the Palestinians don’t care about the settlements, only about having jobs and security. I find it hard to believe that the Palestinians are actually acquiescing to Israel’s continued land theft and ethnic cleansing, and the Palestinians I know certainly do not concur with this “survey.”

Clinton’s backpedaling was actually amusing, but even more pathetic. It just shows that she doesn’t know what she’s doing. Babbling niceties is not diplomacy.

I still think the settlement will be imposed upon them from outside, it will be shaky, but hopefully it will stop Israel’s violence against Palestinians, as well as the incessant settlement building.

Israel has effectively prevented the Palestinians from having a single, strong voice. They’ve pulled the teeth from Fatah and relegated Hamas to persona non grata.

It is unclear what you are implying about “The Arabs”, unless all you are doing is pointing out that Arabs are as diverse in their views, etc. as any other human group. If that is all it is, then OK, I agree completely. If there is more to it, would you kindly clarify?

“I suspect what would happen is that you’d see something unpleasant like the Pakistan-India partition, with the settlers and their ilk fleeing into Israel proper, and a number of Israeli Arabs being pushed out into the new Palestine.”

First, please be aware that most Palestinians who are citizens of Israel do not identify as “Israeli Arabs” and do not appreciate the term on several levels. Second, certainly many Israeli Jews would love to find a way to divest Israel of the non-Jewish Palestinian segment of the population. One of the means of achieving this as part of the two-state solution would be to conveniently exchange the major illegal colonies for territory inside the Green Line that is populated mainly by Palestinians. Lovely shining example of democratic principles at work in The Only Democracy In The Middle East™, no?