This Isn’t Florida

A coalition with Kadima would be more balanced but Livni has completely rejected the idea. Netanyahu has little choice but to bring in more conservative parties. This is bad news for Palestine, uncertainty for security and who knows how it will affect the economy.

Six weeks and counting. Let the games begin.

Movin’ Out

This is what I don’t understand. If you are going to move to another country what is the point in trying to find one that is just like your old country? It is one thing if you are moving to avoid persecution, but if you are moving abroad to experience a different life, why pick a place that is similar to your old life? Moving from the United States to Canada is like moving from Australia to New Zealand. You have to change your phone number but it is not going to change your perspective on the world at large.

Gaza Q&A

Why doesn’t Israel just pull out of Palestine and leave them alone?

That is an easy one. Israel will leave when the Palestinian Authority disarms their terrorists. The Palestinian Authority will disarm their terrorists when Israel pulls out. Somewhere along the line somebody is going to have to compromise. So far Israel has made many concessions while Palestine has made none. Each time Israel gives away more land the response has been more violence.

Israel does not want to control Palestine. Palestine has been the bane of Israel’s existence for 60 years. By being “the occupier” Israel is obligated to provide electricity, food and water. Without Israel’s economic assistance Palestine would have starved decades ago. Their Arab neighbours are not interested.

Palestine was offered sovereignty in 1947 but the Arab League refused. Israel practically begged Jordan to take over Palestine in 1968 but they refused. Israel offered to leave Gaza and almost all of the West Bank in 2000 but Palestine refused. Arab countries seem to think that it is more advantageous for them to leave Palestine as an occupied state. And it is. There is a reason all those Palestinian refugees in camps have never been integrated into those countries’ societies. Since 1948 only Jordan has ever made any Palestinian refugees citizens of its country.

It is not a control issue. When Israel gave Sinai back to Egypt they were happy and there was peace. When Israel gave part of Golan back to Syria they were not happy but there was peace. Every time Israel gives some land to Palestine there is more violence. As soon as Israel pulled out of Gaza, Hamas took over and terrorism escalated. If history is any indication, pulling out of the entire West Bank would lead to a bloodbath.

And I Think It’s Gonna Be a Long Long Time

Obviously I am biased. I’m an Israeli citizen. I serve in the IDF. I want my side to win. But I don’t think it is an issue of Jews versus Muslims or Israelis versus Arabs. It is extremists versus moderates.

None of the Palestinians I know have any problems with Israel. They simply want their country to have a sovereign government recognised by the international community. I think that is what most Israelis want also. From my point of view the biggest obstacle to this is terrorist activity against Israel.

The worst thing Israeli extremists want are more settlements in Palestine. While Israeli settlements do not help, they also do not cause the deaths of innocent children. The worst thing Palestinian extremists want is the death of every last Israeli man, woman and child. I’m biased but I think killing all Israelis is much worse than building houses in Palestine.

In the propaganda war on TV and the internet between Israel and Hamas I have heard too much about who is right and who is wrong, who did what bad things to whom. Everybody is convinced they are right and as usual the people who suffer the most are the children. Not a single Israeli or Palestinian child chose this. They don’t care about what happened in 1967 or 1948 or 1500 years ago. The children of Israel and Palestine are being killed because their fathers and grandfathers can’t get over the past and live by the rules all children learn in the playground: Every other child is a potential friend if you share and play nice.

Election Day

There have been some complaints about how ugly the campaign has been but it is pretty tame compared to some other countries. We just cannot compete with the personal attacks in the American and Zimbabwean elections. Those people accuse each other of the worst things they can imagine. And unlike recent elections in Palestine and Zimbabwe, none of our candidates have been tortured or killed. Not so much as a beating. This election has been pretty boring.

Cooking Corner: Sourdough Pizza

In a hurry? Starving? Really lazy? If you don’t bake the bread yourself the whole thing takes about ten minutes. Sometimes I will bake my own bread but I’m more a cook than baker. For today’s lesson we are using bread baked by professionals downstairs.

The Dating Game: Horror Stories II

I had thought Jerry was going to make dinner but it turned out his mother did. When we all sat down at the dinning room table she asked me if I liked pork chops. I told her I was Jewish and the look on her face was exactly how people look when told they only have six months to live. I assume. Jerry’s father mentioned that I don’t look Jewish and his mother hushed him. Literally. This is a common remark amongst Americans, as if all Jewish people have some look about them. I know where it comes from but I try to give people the benefit of the doubt and assume they do not.

Having a Jew in their house really killed the mood and the beginning of dinner was pretty quiet. Timmy or Tommy or whatever his name was asked me if I knew that it was the Jews who killed Jesus and his mother quickly escorted him out of the room for a quick talk. The father reassuringly announced that Jesus was Jewish and I mentioned that Sigmund Freud was as well. I wonder what Freud would say about that.