Dark Times Lie Ahead

Gavriel nurtures the hope for more peaceful Palestinians.

There are certainly Palestinian individuals who're serene but that's not the issue. The important question is will the Palestinian society accept an Israeli (Jewish-majority) state?

No, they will not.

Let me elaborate. After reading about Israel and "the Occupied Territories" for years, I've come to the following depressing conclusion:

Any political leader of the Palestinians will not agree to the existence of Israel because
A. He agrees with the Islamist terrorists such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
- OR -
B. He is not of the terrorist mindset but risks losing political control, and his life, if he does go against the Islamist terrorists.

Either way, it's useless for the Israelis to actually negotiate with the top Palestinian politician. If its A., then he'll simply be lying for time and money.

If its B., then he won't be able to deliver on his security promises. Think about it, if you had the choice between the ire of the Israelis or the thugs of Hamas on your trail, which will you choose?

That's what life is like for millions of Muslims around the globe. They simply want to work, feed their families, and play soccer. They couldn't care less about the infidels. But the Islamists, who have the guns, want to impose Sharia and drag the entire society into Jihad. It's the Muslims, in absolute numbers, who suffer the most.

Even though, a Muslim guy won't agree with the Islamist goons, he most likely won't speak against them for fear of retaliation. The West is a highly individualistic society. However, the Muslim world is more tribal / family based. The consequences for simply speaking up against the Islamists can be dangerous for one's mother or nieces or sisters or daughters. It's often the family members who tell the lone liberal Rambo to shut up before he "hurts" someone close.

So, there are, no doubt, thousands of Palestinians who just want peace. But they won't dare oppose the Islamists hissing over them.

Comments

[AbbaGav]

I agree with your assessment actually. My post was triggered more by the surprise that all 8 interviewees weren't united in subtle river-to-the-sea, anti-Balfour rhetoric, which is what I expected.

What I am curious about is what the long term future is. Those Palestinians who want peace will be dead if they speak too loudly in the midst of the those who do not. And every layer of leadership is bound to a policy of rejection, warfare and terrorism without any alternative voices allowed.

Does this doom Israel to absolutely eternal conflict with these people? Maybe. In my post, I was just trying to entertain the idea that maybe someday, after enough years of self-imposed misery on their side and enough raids and targetted assassinations to prove that Israel won't fold, maybe it could change. Of course, we can only unilaterally withdraw so often and still thing we're convincing them we're serious about not folding. The other challenge is that Muslims cultivate a self-image that they will happily nurse a grudge for a thousand years and just be warming up, so it's not something to count on.

Thanks for the link and trackback.