There is a vicious cycle in the Middle East; Israelis want security, Palestinians want a homeland. Unfortunately, Israel's efforts to achieve security have led to an occupation that leave many Palestinians poor and costs many Palestinian lives as collateral damage. And Palestinians' efforts to secure a homeland have led to insecurity for the Israeli people who are innocently killed by sick terrorists who have no respect for life. The situation is dire and it is not getting any better as the Israeli offensive into Gaza these past few weeks have shown.
But Yitzhak Rabin was right. Israeli security and peace can be achieved simultaneously by returning land to Palestinians so they can create their own state. I believe it will take international peacekeepers to maintain the peace in the Middle East, but until they do, the United States has an obligation to both Israelis and Palestinians to achieve peace.
Extremist Radical Republican Scott Garrett doesn't take this view. Garrett believes that the current situation is fine, and that Palestinians do not deserve a homeland:
Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Member of the Homeland Security Caucus, said, “You cannot engage in the peace process by giving up land for peace -- it will never work.”Unfortunately, Scott Garrett's deference to the status quo won't work either and will lead to more bloodshed on both sides.
Scott Garrett's view of foreign policy is driven by right-wing neoconservatives that have an ideological agenda that will hurt the United States and cause total war in the Middle East and elsewhere. Scott Garrett's votes on a number of foreign policy issues demonstrate an extremist philosophy that will endanger American national security.
Paul Aronsohn worked at the US Delegation to the United Nations for eight years in the Clinton Administration. He has sensible and smart ideas about national security issues. He has been very critical of the war in Iraq from the outset. We need to get rid of extremists like Scott Garrett.
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4 comments:
I don't know what's scarier, Adam. Is it that Garrett holds these views, or is it that he is so beholden to Bush and the radical right that he never takes a stand against them, regardless of how affects NJ or the country?
You are naive. I oppose Garrett on everything that he stands for. However the "Palestinians" do not want peace. They turned down an offer of 90% of their demands under President Clinton's Camp David meetings. They're sworn to destroy Israel. The so called government of Hamas has said this over and over.
Would the United States allow missles to be indiscriminately launched without a response? Of course not; look back at the Cuban Missle Crisis. When Russian ICBMS were discovered in Cuba, President Kennedy blockaded Cuba and forced Russia to remove them. Would we just have a laize faire attitude toward a country on our border sworn to destroy us? Get real!
The oil rich Arab states have purposely kept the Palestinians poor. Arafat was a millionaire; his family lives in Paris in an apartment rivaling any Fifth Avenue NYC apartment costing millions.
In 1967, 6 or 7 arab countries massed their armies on Israel's border sworn to her destruction. Fortunately Israel prevailed.
The real pressure should be diplomatic and economic on Iran, Syria, and the other Arab countries who support Hamas and Hezbollah.
Jewish blood is not cheap. Never Again!!
And this differs from Paul Aronsohn's unequivocal support for everything Israel is doing -- how?
They halted handing out silver dollars and instead told people to take their silver certificates to Assay Offices in New York or San Francisco. Very often we put the energy in the favourtie place like the kitchen and/or the TV-room. US productivity has declined and businesses have depleted any benefits they received in the area of profits resulting from their downsizing.
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