With all our hearts everyone would like to believe the Palestinian president. But if he feels strong enough to represent his people, to be able to deliver on the Final Status issues necessary to close with Israel (assuming that the Olmert government is itself serious and capable of delivering on Final Status issues to the Palestinians) why, when Hamas was relatively weak was he unable to deliver? From where does he receive his mandate to negotiate on behalf of Hamas victorious? The Palestinians have not been so fractured and weak since the days of the British occupation. If they cannot even solve relatively simple internal political questions how can they be expected to arrive at a common position regarding the far more complicated problem of agreeing on terms of peace with Israel. This project is born of the imagination of a failed and incompetent American president who, after years of neglect hopes to pull a rabbit out of his Palestinian hat. Unlikely Mr. Bush!

west of the Jordan? The answer is in some hard facts: The Arabs of Western Eretz Yisrael have consistently demonstrated that they are incapable of surviving unaided or ruling themselves, especially at the national polity level. They have never exercised their inherent right of self determination and now they expect others to determine and create for them that Mickey Mouse "state" which will never be. They constantly kill and steal from each other and lie to themselves, each other and the rest of the world. They never miss any opportunity to make atrocious choices and mistakes and they are incapable of sustaining and providing for themselves; they depend on others for everything. How on earth will they ever make it?

real peace? Israel should let Hamas to depose Abbas and smash Fatah, also in Judea and Samaria, on their way to abolish the PA and wipe it off the world map and consciousness. It will also open the way for the Kingdom of Jordan to take charge as the only viable nation state of all the Arabs of Greater Palestine. Having got rid of the PA, Israel and Jordan should agree on the border between them in Judea and Samaria and maybe cede Gaza to Egypt that would sort it out quite smartly. Everybody, Jews and Arabs, should continue to live in peace where they are and nobody should move from their homes or land. Israelis who would thus become residents of the Kingdom of Jordan should be given rights and conditions like the Arabs in Israel.

I think I understand why you don't use a consistent pen name: others would skip your TBs. I guess that's also why you write TBs that only have titles. Who, after all, would dig deeper?

Rice on Sunday stressed that countries that attend should renounce violence - EMPTY WORDS are ALL the U.S. REQUIRES! The US is fully aware, that in accordance with the military religion of Islam ALL agreements made by the PA/PLO HAVE BEEN and WILL BE BROKEN. Islam's Goal is World Rule: “Islam is not a normal religion like the other religions in the world and Muslim nations are not like normal nations. Muslim nations are very special because they have a command from Allah to rule the entire world and to be over every nation in the world.” “Islam wishes to destroy all States and Governments anywhere on the face of the earth which are opposed to the ideology and programme of Islam regardless of the country or the Nation which rules it. The purpose of Islam is to set up a State on the basis of its own ideology and programme, regardless of which Nation assumes the role of the standard bearer of Islam or the rule of which nation is undermined in the process of the establishment of an ideological Islamic State.” “Islam is a revolutionary faith that comes to destroy any government made by man. Islam doesn’t look for a nation to be in a better condition than another nation. Islam doesn’t care about the land or who owns the land. The goal of Islam is to rule the entire world and submit all of mankind to the faith of Islam. Any nation or power that gets in the way of that goal, Islam will fight and destroy. In order to fulfill that goal, Islam can use every power available every way it can be used to bring worldwide revolution. This is Jihad.” —Sayeed Abdul A’la Maududi, ‘Jihad in Islam

What did I say that bothered you?

I know that God will fight for Israel and Israel will not be destroyed. Still I have great forebodings about November. Bush and Rice are going to push mightily for this jihadist state. If the Jews in Israel don't protest this government and say "NO!" I fear there will be a great slaughter in Israel. We are talking about millions of well-armed Muslims at Israel's throat. This would be a disaster. I'm not sure the Jews in Israel understand the implications of this. It would be a huge breach in our covenant. Far worse than the sin of the spies in the book of Numbers. Far worse.

Steve, it might be because James Bakers comment re: Israel was, "F*ck theJews" You right wingers have proved your point with Bush and gang, demanding Israel cede more land to her enemy and then complain about tthe "left" being in error. Bush and the rep. party are to blame for Israels main worry, land for violence. Give up land? Why not the Alamo? Hell, might as well, more Mexican illegals than false friends like the "Rigt wing and a prayer". Think about it, your heroes have clay feet. Have a good day.

What was Bill Clinton doing for 8 years other than pursuing "land for violence?" Let's be honest. But I expect this from the left. I don't expect it from the right. As soon as Bush codified his vision of a Palestinian terrorist state, expelling Jews, etc., in 2004 GOP national party platform, DNC followed suite as was expected. My point is, for the right to be doing this, it's sheer hypocrisy since the right claims to be the champion of national security; the right claims to reject the sort of Utopian schemes and grandiose visions for "peace" that Bush is pursuing in the Middle East; the right claims that our philosophy is everything we have learned over the years (like appeasing Hitler and the Nazis) often at great cost. Thus the right claims to reject appeasement, the very thing Bush is doing with the support of Republican and conservative leaders, conservative writers and conservative media; talk radio for instance. In light of all this, the right is hypocritical. I did not vote for any national Republican candidate in 2006 and I expect to do the same in 2008. So long as the right support's Bush's failed policies toward Israel --- as you say, "land for violence" --- I will not vote for them.

Why don't you do an "Ariel Sharon" to Gaza? The readers and commentators are not satisfied with with the number of Palestinians already killed this year. Come on! All you have to do is shoot a child and put a gun in his hand! Besides, the fact that Palestinians do not want peace has yet to be seen; the fact that Israelis want peace is a lie. Proof? Are comments on this website sufficient? FREE PALESTINE!

You are brave...and right!

" The present map of Palestine was drawn by the British mandate. The Jewish people have another map which our youth and adults should strive to fulfill -- From the Nile to the Euphrates." Free Palestine

It is Israel that violates agreements in some shape or form; why, right after Nobel Prize winning Fascist Menachem Begin felt secure with Egypt quiet, he ruthlessly invaded Lebanon. In the years following the Oslo accords, the number of settlements doubled; these settlements are not only an obstacle to peace, but a flagrant violation of the Fourth Geneva Conventions, which state that an occupier may not change the demographics of the occupied region. Further, Israel, “the only Jewish state in the world”, happens to have the fifth largest army, the third largest in weapon exports (after superpowers US and Russia), the only nuclear armed power in the Middle East (and the fifth largest nuclear power) with the capability of taking out any city in the Middle East or Europe, and refuses to sign the non-nuclear proliferation treaty and stands in violation of 69 UN Security Council Resolutions (another 33 have not seen the light of day courtesy of US veto power). What are we talking about here? A rogue state. Free Palestine.