Let's not be too pessimistic

Submitted by Ken Besig (Israel), Oct 25, 2007 at 08:53

I have to disagree with you over this one Dr. Pipes, American Israeli relations can hardly be particularly hurt by the failure of yet another peace conference. So many of these grandiose but absolutely useless meetings, conferences, photo ops, special envoys, and peace processes have failed so badly and so often that I doubt if any but the most naive and uninformed could have the slightest faith in their success.

Condoleeza Rice has failed miserably at her job, largely because of her frame of reference, and her rather admirable desire to be balanced and fair. The Arab Israeli conflict is far more similar to the German war against the Jews in WWII than it is to the civil rights movement in 1950's and 1960's America. Further, Ms. Rice used to understand that there is a good side, the Israeli side, and a bad side, the Arab side, to this Arab Israeli conflict. Yes, she used to understand this until she was infected by some strange ailment which seems to be produced by and at the US State Department and changes clear thinking and informed American Secretaries of State into "fair and balanced" Arabist automatons.

And while you may credit Irving Kristol with paraphrasing Charles Beard with the quote, "Whom the Gods would destroy they first make mad with power", into "Whom the Gods would destroy, they first tempt to resolve the Arab Israeli conflict" I believe I was the first to create this rather witty and apropos summary of the situation in my region, but I am willing to admit that great minds often think along the same lines, so maybe Mr. Kristol thought it up too.

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