Hi Hawkmoon; Re: "Some more evidence of that "tilt" you claim exists towards Israel?"
Just hours ago you admitted that US policy WAS tilted towards Israel, starting in 1973. Do you already regret this admission?
Re: "U.S. stopped Israeli raid to seize Arafat."
I don't think that we should be trying to influence either side. If we are able to influence the Israeli government in their foreign or domestic affairs, we become at least partially responsible for those affairs. I think that instead we should let the Israelis do whatever they want to with Arafat, or ALL the Palestinians. But I don't think that we should give them money or weapons, so any blood will end up only on their hands and not on ours. Hey, I don't think that there's anything wrong with us expressing our opinions, but we should not be the puppet masters who pull the strings, or even pretend to be in control of their actions.
The same with the Arabs. We should ignore both sides and let them work out their little squabble the same way chickens work out pecking orders.
It's not that I'm in favor of "balancing" our foreign policy between the Israelis and the Arabs. I'm in favor of being neutral in the conflict. Neutrality means that we leave them alone. As neutrals, we can continue to sell arms to both sides, but I think that these deals should be paid for in cash.
The fact is that there is little evidence that these guys are dangerous countries. Neither the Arab states nor Israel have been major combatants in any real wars (in the last few hundred years) except as victims of concentration camps and owners of good battlefield fields. Neither side are significant allies, though some of the Arab states do have oil, which we need. The whole Jewish population of Israel is barely enough to make one large city (a bit bigger than Baghdad, but smaller than Cairo). The Arab states, on the other hand, are so divided up that any one of them is not enough to make much more than a couple of shitty little countries. They're just not worth getting blown up over.
-- Carl |
