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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Nadine Carroll who wrote (105012)	7/12/2003 9:28:30 PM
From: Jacob Snyder	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Oh what bovine excreta. Israel isn't offering Abu Mazen a State, a real State, with a viable economy and contiguous borders. Israel isn't even offering to carry out the first stage of the Road Map (the real one, not the one heavily edited by Sharon). If Israel was offering that, they would be dismantling settlements. Which they aren't, although they are making a big show of doing nothing. A settlement comes down, with lots of media coverage, and then it goes back up the next night. Net, according to the U.S. Government, the Israelis have, so far, demolished exactly 1 (one) settlement. That's right: one. That barely rises to the level of tokenism. Call it micro-tokenism. Here's the "deal" Israel is offering Abu Mazen: he can be the "house nigger", if he does his part to put down the rebellion among the "field niggers". Guess who plays the role of plantation-owner? You don't like that analogy? How about this one: Abu Mazen is being offered the same role as the "court Jews" had, in medieval European courts. He gets American aid, and weapons, and gets to meet with King George, and generally is pampered and praised and given access at the White House court. In return, his job is to help the King maintain control of the Palestinian rabble, who are to be Walled (east and West walls) inside their ghettoes, in whatever Palestinian Pale of Settlement is left, after every Orthodox Jewish colonist has taken every hilltop he thinks God promised him. A process which the Road Map has not slowed down in the slightest.

To: Nadine Carroll who wrote (105012)	7/13/2003 10:59:36 AM
From: carranza2	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Excellent, pithy exposition of the typical war of liberation cycle. Of course, not all such movements end up at a negotiating table. This IMO is partly driving the Palestinian failure--Arafat sees himself as a historical figure on a par with Lenin, Mao, Ho, etc., all of whose struggles did not end until victory was achieved. I've elsewhere linked this excellent psychological profile of Arafat. Without understanding him, one simply cannot understand the Pal/Israeli struggle. It's a very long document so I'm only posting here what the researchers determined was Arafat's own view of his place in history: 9. A Place in History Arafat is very sensitive to his place in history, i.e., to how he will be remembered and what will be written about him and his leadership in the history books. This sensitivity expressed itself, for example, when his plane was caught in a storm above the Libyan Desert, and was about to make an emergency landing (April 1992). Arafat, who was sitting in his track suit, changed into his official uniform, strapped on his pistol, and carefully arranged his kaffiyeh, with the intent that if he should be found injured or dead—it would be in uniform (Weaver, 1994). Various analysts have argued over what historical image Arafat would like to emulate and how he would like to be perceived by his people. General Amos Gilad, the former head of the Research Section of the IDF Intelligence Unit, reasoned that Arafat sees himself as a second Saladin. The commentator Ehud Ya’ari believes that Arafat sees himself more as a modern reincarnation of the “Sahaba”—friends of the prophet Muhammad, who conquered all of the eastern world on behalf of Islam, and are considered by Muslims to be semiholy. According to Ya’ari, it is no coincidence that Arafat’s favorite historical figure is Khalif Omar, who entered the gates of Jerusalem (Yaari, 2001). From a review of Arafat’s statements one may discern three central foundations to his historical self-perception. First, Arafat wants to be remembered as the “Father of the Palestinian Revolution,” the man who founded and established the Palestinian movement, achieved after difficult struggle and many sacrifices, and succeeded where all the other Arab countries failed (Araf, 1994). As father of the revolution, he sees himself as a figure representative of all Palestinians, wherever they are (including residents of the refugee camps and Palestinians in the diaspora). Second, Arafat wants to be remembered as the president and founder of a Palestinian state, the man who started with a small organization and succeeded in establishing a country with all the trappings of an independent state, recognized by the entire world. Third, Arafat wants to be remembered as the Arab leader who returned the holy places in Jerusalem to the bosom of the Arab nation (Gabai, 1993b), and thus assured himself a place of honor among Arab leaders forever. In this, he sees himself also as the representative of the Christians, who, according to him, will benefit from his protection by receiving complete fof religion and freedom of ritual practice. The spreading of his protection to Christians will also, according to his understanding, ensure his place in history as a leader of universal stature. ict.org.il