It's time to recognize the State of Palestine, Mr. President

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

http://972mag.com/its-time-to-recognize-the-state-of-palestine-mr-president/111781/

President Obama promised that as soon as the Iran nuclear deal is closed he will refocus on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Given this shift of focus is now in sight, Obama should grant U.S. recognition of Palestine as an independent state, albeit a militarily occupied one. Such an elementary step is long overdue and may be the sole act that saves the two-state solution.

Palestine will never be a complete nation state if required to negotiate its statehood with its military occupier Israel. Without the immediate altering of the dynamics of the conflict, extremism is almost guaranteed to begin pouring into the Palestinian community and Israel. Any further deterioration of the situation on the ground could lead a future Republican president to send U.S. boots to protect Israel. That would be a colossal mistake.

Recognizing Palestine would not be such a groundbreaking move. In 2013, 138 countries recognized Palestine as a non-member state in the United Nations. Only the United States and eight others have not. Over 130 states have already bilaterally recognized Palestine, including the Vatican. The United States has been on the wrong side of history for so long on this issue it has lost strategic standing in the Middle East and across the globe. It will continue to do so unless it makes an abrupt about-face.

Obama started his presidency with a clear focus on reviving the peace process. One of his first acts as president was to appoint former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell as special envoy for the Middle East. Then Obama traveled to Cairo to deliver a policy speech where he said, “America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own.” Next, Obama took on Israel’s non-stop illegal settlement building in the West Bank and in that debate he made clear that “to ensure that Israel is safe and secure” efforts must be made to “set the stage for a Palestinian state.”

[Israeli]

1. + 100 . nt.

[oberliner]

2. "How Barack Obama can save the two-state solution before he leaves office."

Weird how Bahour presents this as a goal when he has actively worked against the two-state solution and in favor of a one-state solution.

[Israeli]

13. Weird how you did not provide us with .....

.....a link..... so that we all could come to our own conclusions oberliner.

Any reason you did not provide us with a link ??????

So here are mine :

Partners for Progressive Israel

Conversations with Israel and Palestine: Sam Bahour :

http://progressiveisrael.org/conversations-with-israel-and-palestine-sam-bahour/

His own blog @
http://epalestine.blogspot.co.il/p/blog-page.html

And this link is a must read :
http://mondediplo.com/blogs/if-kerry-fails-what-then

The Israeli government should be put on notice that, by the 50th anniversary of the occupation, it must make up its mind definitively one way or the other. A half a century is surely enough time to decide. This would give it until June 2017 to make its choice between relinquishing the occupied territory — either directly to the Palestinians or possibly to a temporary international trusteeship in the first instance — or alternatively granting full and equal citizenship rights to everyone living under its jurisdiction.

We need to break free of the divisive and increasingly stifling one-state-versus-two-states straightjacket that tends to polarize debate and in practice ends up perpetuating the status quo — which is a form of one state, albeit an inequitable one. The aim of our proposal is to bring matters to a head and to enable people to advocate equal rights for Palestinians and Israelis, in one form or another, free of the implication that this necessarily carries a threat to the existence of the state of Israel.

To be clear, this is not a call for a unitary state. How Israelis and Palestinians wish to live alongside each other is for them to decide and the indications still are that both peoples prefer to exercise their self-determination in their own independent states. Our proposal would not foreclose this option. It would remain open to the Palestinians to continue to agitate for sovereignty over the West Bank and Gaza, for a future Israeli government to relinquish these territories and, in extremis, for the Security Council to enforce the creation of two states through the UN Charter’s Chapter VII mechanism. However, until this is finally determined, equal treatment should replace ethnic discrimination as the legitimate default position recognized by the international community.

[oberliner]

14. A link? The quote is from the OP

Not sure what you are arguing.

[Israeli]

15. Not " arguing." anything oberliner.....

.....all I asked for was a link .....where is it ?

[oberliner]

16. OK

The link is in the OP.

How Barack Obama can save the two-state solution before he leaves office.

By Sam Bahour

http://972mag.com/its-time-to-recognize-the-state-of-palestine-mr-president/111781/

That was the line I was quoting. I thought it was strange that Sam Bahour seems to be advocating for saving the two-state solution.

[Israeli]

18. Sure oberliner .....

....sure ....

[TubbersUK]

3. Thanks for posting this n/t

[hack89]

4. The Palestinians will take a back seat until the mess in Syria is resolved

all decision that Obama makes will be made in that context.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

5. Sure, hack. I'm so sure you have a line to the Oval Office.

Just like Iran took a backseat?

[hack89]

6. The Palestinians also took a back seat to Iran

Obama is focusing on the big issues first. He might need Israel if Syria really goes to shit. He has no such need for the Palestinians.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

7. Keep on repeating that to yourself now...

[oberliner]

8. Do you think Obama will heed the advice of the OP?

Do you predict that he will recognize a Palestinian state before he leaves office?

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

11. ...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/06/02/obama-makes-an-impassioned-case-for-a-palestinian-state/

"Israel is going to have a choice about the nature of the Israeli state and its character," Obama said. The president also hinted that Netanyahu's resistance would make it harder to defend Israel at the United Nations from resolutions calling for the recognition of a Palestinian state.

[oberliner]

12. So is that a yes?

You think he will recognize a Palestinian state before he leaves office?

[hack89]

9. Do you really think Obama cares about the Palestinians?

Iran and ISIS. That is what he cares about. He didn't do shit for the Palestinians for seven years and now they are a top priority?

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

10. Well, hack, you certainly don't appear to care

about the Palestinians. That's for certain...IMHO.

[hack89]

17. Which is totally irrelevant to what Obama believes and will do.

ISIS has changed the calculus of the ME. Until they are dealt with Palestine will wait. It will remain to be seen how they will fit into the new ME. A lot will decide on what side they choose to support. If Hamas doesn't promptly crush the ISIS supporting groups in Gaza, for example, then things will only get worse.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

19. Whatever you say, hack...

[hack89]

20. It is very important to you that is become a personal issue between us

Instead of an actual discussion. Why is that?

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

21. The funny thing that I have found out over the years is the more disingenuous the poster is

the more they fall back on false harm from phantom insults that only they perceive against themselves.

In reality these miscreants generally exhibit offensive and indefensible political positions, callous indifference to the suffering of others...bordering on a sociopathy that needs regular supervision and an ample amount of egotism to want to be the center of attention at all times.

[hack89]

22. You just broke my irony meter. Nt

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

23. Refer to post 21 for a debriefing.

[hack89]

24. Nice talking to you. See you around. Nt

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

25. Same, and BDS.

[hack89]

26. And OWS in return. Nt

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

27. OWS was a noble cause. I guess you support it by posting it.

[hack89]

29. It was a trendy ineffective movement that withered away

Lot of light no real heat.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

30. Well, we at least have you on record as being against OWS now.

Lot's of right wingers and corporatists were against it as well.

[hack89]

31. So were a lot of Dems.

if it had widespread support within the Democratic party it would still be around, now wouldn't it?

I was not against OWS - I just had no use for them. I was involved in several local and state campaigns and their refusal to help get Dems elected turned me off. I am willing to admit that they did some good and certainly did no harm.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

28. Oh, and TY for the kick.

[hack89]

32. No problem - you need all the help you can get. nt

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

33. Not really, but TY anyway.

[hack89]

34. You are welcome.

no point of having a discussion if all points of view are not seen.