The Two-State Delusion

By Ted Belman

TSS1I attended a book launch last night held by the Arab Educational Bookstore in the American Colony Hotel in the eastern part of Jerusalem.

The title of the book was The Two-state Delusion: a tale of two narratives. Normally I wouldn’t have bothered because I would have assumed that the author was coming from the right and wouldn’t have anything new to tell me.

But this caught my attention because the author was Professor Padraig O’Malley, chair of the John Joseph Moakley for Peace and Reconciliation at UMass Boston’s and John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy Studies. His approach was described as pragmatic, in-depth with no ideological bias and mutually respectful; a work of true peace specialist.

I wanted to see why such a leftist would think it a delusion.

The audience numbered well over 100 people of all ages including a large number of millennials. In the main, it consisted of Arabs and Jewish peaceniks. I sat down beside a pretty young girl and began a conversation. She told me she was with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and they worked to protect human rights. I told her that I hated most “human Rights” organizations because they had a bias and animus against Israel and were anything but. Then I told her that the WCC was one of the worst and was very antisemitic. Needless to say, that ended the conversation.

The professor seemed to focus on why Israel wouldn’t endorse the solution on account of her many fears of what would come next and preferred the relative safety of the status quo. His description of the fears covered many of them that we talk about. And yes he was “mutually respective”. He didn’t spend as much time discussing the mentality of the Arabs. He ignored the dictates of the Koran and the Charters of Fatah and Hamas. Among the reasons he gave was the staggering costs, Palestine’s political disunity and the viability of its economy

He ignored both history and legal rights. I asked him about its omission because it goes to the root of the problem. Israelis, I told him believe they have the best moral, historical and legal claim to Judea and Samaria which greatly contradicts the Arab narrative. How was he going to square that circle? Unfortunately, he took a few questions at the same time and never got around to answering me. But I could sense that many in the audience were getting hot under the collar.

Judging from the questions it seemed to me that they weren’t ready to give up on the TSS and were upset that he said it was delusional. One Arab, in his forties, gave an apoplectic speech about how the land was stolen from the Arabs, how his family lived there for generations and how he was dedicated to getting it back. Clearly for him, two states was not the solution, the destruction of Israel was.

Others were hoping he would condemn Zionism as undemocratic and colonialist.

After the talk a few Jewish leftists came up to me frothing at the mouth and railed against the settlers. They told me that they in pushing for peace were acting in accordance with Jewish values while the settlers in stealing the land weren’t. I told them to f..k off or words to that effect. I left to avoid a lynching. But before doing so, I gave my card to the professor and invited him to meet with me to talk about the issues. He said he would call.

On the way home I got into a conversation with the Arab taxi driver, who by the way was driving a large new Mercedes. This guy often takes journalists and activists around the West Bank. He was adamant about everything and he was wrong about everything. He rejected Oslo, thought there was no freeze, didn’t believe that there were 400,000 Jews in Area C, even though he never heard of Area C, thought we were stealing their land and yet claimed to be a reasonable man. The more he talked, the more it became a rant. And don’t think he didn’t accuse me of the “massacre” at Deir Yassin.

I decided to get out of the cab while the getting was good.

March 3, 2016 | 19 Comments »

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  1. The Delusion of Separation from the Palestinians
    Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser

    The Israeli center-left is slowly sobering-up from the dream of a Palestinian partner. Although many of its leaders and thinkers have already recognized the fact that there is no partner for real peace, they continue to blame Israel for the dead-end the diplomatic process has reached. And the others still refuse to “get in touch with reality,” as Labor Party Chairman Isaac Herzog recently put it.

    In their intransigence to give up on the illusionary Palestinian partner the dreamers ignore or twist the Palestinian messages. For example, in his criticism of a previous article of mine (Haaretz, January 12, 2015),1 Matti Steinberg (Haaretz, January 19)2 shows that you can distort the messages of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas even while citing the text of his speech in Bethlehem.3 True, Abbas did not explicitly mention the “right of return.” He did say, though, that the Palestinians will insist on the fulfillment of all the Palestinian rights, which implicitly includes, in his mind the “right of return,” and that any agreement must be based on the Arab Peace Initiative.

    President Mahmoud Abbas

    At the heart of that initiative, of course, is a call for a just and agreed solution to the problem of the Palestinian refugees based on United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194, from which the Palestinians derive the “right of return,” and the notion that there must be no naturalization of Palestinian refugees in Arab states that do not want it. Recognition of the “right of return,” then, means it has to be implemented inside Israel. That, in turn, is one of the reasons Abbas categorically refuses to recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people.

    The dreamers prefer to ignore the way in which the Palestinians themselves understand Abbas’ words. These members of the Israeli center-left make no mention of his refusal to condemn the terror attacks. They do not refer to his hosting the families of the most recent attackers whose bodies have not yet been returned, in his Ramallah office,4 or to the fact that he calls their sons shahids. They shut their ears to his praise for the current wave of terror attacks. To live in a dream is wonderful, but not to wake up even when you are being targeted by a terror campaign is a very special feat of denial.
    Sobering Up

    Because the option of recognizing reality in its full complexity and that there are no magic solutions is a form of heresy, even those who are sobering-up trade in their dream for an old-new delusion – separation. This delusion, despite the danger it entails, does not sell badly. The Palestinians have no interest in a separation5 because their struggle is being waged against Zionism, not just the occupation of the 1967 territories. Their objective is the 1948 territories, which is why, even after the separation from Gaza, the terror from Gaza continued.

    If, in line with the idea of separation, the building of the fence is completed and a few Jerusalem neighborhoods are transferred to the Palestinians’ rule, will their goals change? And if some of the settlements are moved to blocs that Israel can accept, while the IDF keeps operating in all of the territories, will these steps bring an end to the terror? The terror will only intensify, both because it will get a tailwind and because it will be easier to mount attacks. Israel will also surrender, of its own accord, the contractual basis for its activity and its demands – while, at the same time, continuing to appear as an occupier in the eyes of the world.

    What is the logic of making the substantial concessions entailed by a separation while hoping for a regional contribution just when the upheaval in the region is strengthening the extremists? Will the separation mean that Palestinians will no longer be employed in Israel? And what about the Israeli Arabs, many of whom see themselves as Israeli citizens but also members of the Palestinian people?

    Reality has to be read correctly. Most Jews hope for a real peace based on the principle of dividing the homeland into two national states with mutual recognition and appropriate security arrangements. Yet most of the Palestinians, who reject the existence of the Jewish people and of a Jewish historical bond to the Land of Israel, see the struggle as existential. Their aim is the achievement of their national objectives, which amount to the defeat of Zionism. According to their blueprint, the first stage will see the creation of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 lines with Jerusalem as its capital; this state will keep working for Palestinian sovereignty in Haifa and Jaffa. That is what Abbas said, or certainly how he was understood, in his conversation with the editor of the Ma’an News Agency. That is the message that emerges from his words and his views, and even more so from the attitudes of Hamas and the other extremist organizations. While, in Israel, we sing about peace, in Nablus they hope for the return of the Army of Muhammad, which will annihilate the Jews just as it crushed the Jews of Khaybar.

    The difficult problem we face, then, is how to resolve the tension between our need to defend ourselves and our efforts to create the conditions for a real peace in the future; between our commitment to our values and our need to distinguish between those involved in the terror attacks and those not involved, so that both they and we can lead reasonably normal lives.

    If we are to succeed at the task, we need to impart our insights to the world. We not only have to put pressure on the terrorists and their immediate environment, but also on their leadership, which supports terror and propagates the basic Palestinian attitudes that preclude any possibility of settlement. Indeed, the Palestinian Authority’s first obligation in the Oslo Accords was to put an end to the terror. If the center-left is now sobering up, why does it not join a unity government that would be based on widely shared insights and goals and could make a great contribution to security, ramp up pressure on the Palestinians, and enhance Israel’s status?
    – See more at: http://jcpa.org/delusion-separation-palestinians/#sthash.xsBLnUT8.dpuf

  2. The Palestinians are just Arabs like Syrians or Egyptians. The whole purpose of Palestinians identity is to destroy Israel. In the PLO charter of 1964 it said the Palestinians have no claims on either Gaza or the West Bank because they belong to Egypt and Jordan respectively. They wanted all of Israel then and now. They say this in Arabic consistently and sometimes in English.

    Hamas says it openly in deed and charter they want to kill all the Jews and set up an Islamic State from the Sea to the River. They are the largest and strongest Palestinian faction. Most of the EU and many westerners do not realize this or just ignore it.

    The Palestinians are a majority in Jordan which was 2/3rds of the original Palestinian Mandate set up for Jews and then given to the Arabs. They do not control because the King and his minority Hashmites (basically break off from the Saudis) run it. That is their country if that is what they actually want.

    The Palestinian goal of a state is ONLY to destroy Israel. Otherwise they could have shared the land way back in the 30’s, 1948, 2000 and with Olmert’s offer. So when people say they need a state they either do not realize or care that the purpose of this state is to replace Israel sooner or later or immediately.

    The Two State Formula is a formula for war from inferior geographic positions for Israel.

    Realizing this is the first step in trying to figure how to solve the conflict. There are two peoples in the Land of Israel. A large majority Jewish population which is always in some degree of conflict with much of the large Arab minority (Palestinians to some).

    Currently given that the Arabs are raised to hate Jews and Israelis it is not possible to solve the conflict peacefully.

    If you want peace it is time to forget being politically correct and proportional in fighting Palestinian terrorism. It is time to be determined to win the conflict and not just say the conflict will continue forever. It is not acceptable that every few months or years that Palestinians shoot rockets at Israelis, blow up bombs, kidnap children or resort to other forms of violence against Jews in Israel.

    Israel needs to deport and or Jail all terrorists and their supporters. This is a long term war which must be won. Those Arabs that would like to emigrate (polls say up to 80% in East Jerusalem and Judah/Samaria) would like to emigrate, Israel should assist them, including financially. Those Arabs who demonstrate loyalty to the State of Israel (e.g. Druze) are welcome to stay with full civil rights. This will take a long time but the conflict is already 100 years old and Israel needs to be determined to win it. Co-existence with those who deny you any right to exist and raise their children to kill you is not possible.

  3. @ 1DavidKA:
    Yes. Palestine will be taken over by ISIS or Hamas. There will be great infiltration from Jordan which will also fall to ISIS. These Jihadists will fire rockets on our major cities from only 20 miles away. They will occupy the highlands in J&S overlooking Tel Aviv. Hezbollah and Hamas will fire thousands of rockets upon us.

    I am surprised you even had to ask.

  4. lsatenstein Said:

    My view is that the Palestinians cannot remain stateless. They need a passport, a means to travel, to register births and deaths, etc

    They have all that. They issue passports and can go to Jordan to fly out of country. They don’t need a state. They just need to cooperate with Israel rather than fight her.

  6. Bill,
    To respond, The world will not help them much longer. Pouring money into the PA is like pouring water into the ocean. Within tenths of seconds, the ocean level is back to normal. The money had disappeared.

    But when Israel does it with prudence, and we anticipate that the PA benefactors will recognize that it is investment from Israel, we should hopefully see a softening of stance.

    Another world action.
    A TV station is being brought to court and is being sued for broadcasting terrorism. If that terrorist lawsuite holds, as it should, in the world court against TV stations broadcasting hate messages, we can only hope for some reduction in terrorist attacks. The Palestinians need a home and if they don’t get a solution with Israel, the PA territory will become a province of another Arab country.

  7. @ lsatenstein:

    Your theory that Palestinian hatred and terrorism against Israel is because of they are economically deprived has been debunked time and again. Yes I know some big name world leaders still try to haul out that lie, but it is to their discredit just as it is to yours to promote that idiocy.

    Palestinians hate Jews and Israel because they have been indoctrinated to do so from cradle to grave by their Islamic religious, political, media and educational leaders. It is the way for a vast majority of Muslims who live and are raised in an Islamic culture.

    With the vast majority of Muslims being brainwashed to hate Jews and Israel, to blame Jews and Israel for their failings and to dream of wanting to join or cheer Jihadists to rid the world of Jews and Israel, it should come as no surprise that the majority of the Muslim world hates Jews and Israel.

    According to the ADL Global Survey on Antisemitism in 2014 revealed that of all the antisemitic nations and societies, Palestinians ranked the worst coming with with 94% being Jew-Israel haters.

    Palestinians have been the recipients of global welfare funding for decades, receiving billions of dollars every year. What have they got to show for it? Little, because much of that welfare has been used to fund Jew-Israel hatred and terrorism, much has gone for wasteful politically inspired ventures that created not one new business, job or improvement on infrastructure, has gone into the pockets of Palestinian leaders and been otherwise wasted.

    Even Israel has contributed welfare to the Palestinians and only got more hatred and terrorism back.

    If you have a hope that Palestinians can lift themselves up economically, why are you putting the onus on Israel? Why are you not putting the onus where it belongs – on the Palestinians.

    Tell us why.

  8. My view is that the Palestinians cannot remain stateless. They need a passport, a means to travel, to register births and deaths, etc.

    To have that facility, they need a state.

    It is to be blind and stubborn to the fact that they need a state.

    So the question is really when? Because, if it does not happen too soon, the PA will become a province of Iran or of another Arab country.

    Now the problem is to tackle the PA not recognizing Israel. Get the economy of the PA up, so that job seekers are more content to raise families than to raise terrorism. Try to get more of the PA residents into Israeli universities, hospitals, and into business startups. A business person, an educated person, is not interested in terrorism, unless they see no future for themselves and their children.

  10. @ Ted Belman:

    Namely, to create Palestine will be the death of us.

    Besides it would be giving into the anti-Semites of the world and those in control of foreign governments.

    Better still, next confrontation with Hamas, Israel should once and for all go right through and surgically remove them from Gaza.

    Tell me, what nation would allow it’s neighbor to be controlled by terrorists to continue to harass them as they do.

    Please answer why the world continues to provide financial aid to the Palestinians while knowing it all ends up in the pockets of Hamas (proxy of Iran).

    BTW, it’s about time the Israeli government removes the rock throwing clowns from the Temple Mount and allow the Jews pray at their Temple.

  11. The reason I said fuck off is because nothing I could have said would have made a dent. I preferred to show disdain for them and their views.

    Not all our opponents believe in the same thing. One group of Arabs and Jewish left believe that the Balfour Declaration is the cause of all the problems . Also everything that what flowed from it like the Mandate and ultimately Israel should be done away with. They are not an insignificant group. Then there are those who accept Israel within the 67 lines. They couldn’t care less of what will happen to Israel if it accepts such a deal.

    Then there many Jews who believe that to continue the occupation will be the death of us, literally, and that it is imperative to create Palestine and end the occupation. Then there are the Jews, of which I am one, who believe the opposite. Namely, to create Palestine will be the death of us.

  12. @ keelie:

    Keelie, if the world is at the mercy of “pathological radical movements” and presumably voices and consequently rational discussion is of little or no value, what that leaves us with is a world in mindless chaos.

    That however, is not the reality. Such pat phrases that may sound insightful but do not hold up to any scrutiny, offer no real insights into the divide between right and left is so unbridgeable and what circumstances need to be brought to the fore to enable civil informed and reasoned discussion and debate that would contribute to bridging that gap, at least to the extent of civil informed discussion and debate between the two opposing sides.

  13. @ Bill Narvey:
    Let me offer a phrase – constructed by one Franklin Merrell-Wolff, an American philosopher during the late 1930s – which is emminently usable now.
    The world is now at the mercy [my words] of “pathological radical movements”.
    This is a mental condition, and as such the value of rational discussion, such as what one would undertake to solve definable problems, is of little or no value.

  15. @ Ted Belman:

    Ted, for the left of the right to tell the other to F off is emotionally satisfying for an instant and in the retelling of the circumstances to like minded friends.

    Joebillscott is on the right track, but he, like those of like mind, is far from any strategy he can call a success.

    There is a so far deep and wide ideological unbridgeable gap between the liberal-left and hard left and the conservative-right.

    The liberal-left’s positions rely heavily on ideologically guided and instructed doctrines, values and fact-reality perception filters to shape and color their views and hard line positions.

    The hard right are just as guilty as the hard left in that regard.

    The conservative – right for the most part rely heavily on history, facts, circumstances and law to make their reasoned cases for their positions.

    No matter how hard the conservative right try to engage the liberal left in meaningful fact based discussion and debate, the liberal left for the most part and the hard left always have no interest.

    The liberal-left and hard left are in the majority and they wittingly or not, realizing they have the ear of the majority of the public, get away with pushing their “free speech for me, but not for thee” philosophy and shouting down the conservative right or just saying F off and then walk away.

    The conservative – right need to find a way to force the liberal-left to publicly engage on a level playing field of fact, history, circumstance and law.

    Until then, the conservative-right will pretty much keep doing what they always do as regards the liberal-left and the left – bitch, moan and complain that they can’t get through to them and capture the imagination of the majority of Westerners.

  16. There are only 21 Arab states.
    That is the problem which creates genocidal hatred.
    If there were 22 Arab states, love would prevail.
    It is so obvious.

  17. Ted@ Ted Belman:

    Why take risks like this? Do you carry?
    I’m also inclined to have the one off “f-off style” confrontations with people but these days I confine them to Twitter.

    When I meet leftists in person these days I prefer the Socratic approach, i.e., I only ask questions with the aim of the leftist painting themself into an obvious corner.

    I believe it’s more effective and almost as much fun as a 2 by 4 upside their heads.

  18. @ lsatenstein:
    So long as every generation is taught to hate, the passage of time will make no difference.

    There are many Arab doctors and lawyers, even judges. The Arab Israelis can go to our universities and do.

    As for the Arabs in J&S, they need to use their money not to support terrorism but to build their economy. That’s their job not ours. Nevertheless I think that close to 100,000 work permits have been issued to them. The tourism industry in Jerusalem depends of Jerusalem Arabs.

  19. I am not a pundit. I am an outsider looking at the Israel-Palestine situation.

    Israel’s distrust of the Arabs is mutual. The Arabs dream that they will take over Israel and the land on which their mosque is located. As a result, the Palestinian mindset is such that they will never recognize Israel, will never stop the attacks and beliefs, until Israel is conquored and disappears.

    The Arab homeland belief is a mirror of the Jewish belief. We believe that Israel is our homeland, and we are not going to give up one grain of sand. The Palestinians think likewise for themselves. Israel is their land and they will not stop until they reclaim the land.

    The only possible solution is time. Give it another 25 years, to let the new generation replace the old, to allow those born in the 1930s will have died out. It will be possible to deal with the Arab generation being born today in Palestine, than the ones who fled the 1948 war.

    As the differences in standard of living increase, so will the anger.

    Israel has some obligations, (costs) if it is to live in peace.

    That cost is to create jobs that can hire Palestinians, and I don’t mean meanial jobs. Doctors, Lawyers, manufacturing, tourism, the whole range of opportunities that Palestinians currently don’t have.

    Israel should also start publicizing their accomplishments on their TVs, and offer to work with Arab partners to build their economy. This latter step may be a tough pill to swallow.