Sharon's hopeless vision

[Resistance]

Sharon is such a jackass!

by Michael Brown, The Electronic Intifada

As feared, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's speech on Thursday, December 18 at the Herzliya Conference provided very little hope for 2004. Sharon acknowledged there will be a Palestinian state, thereby recognizing Israel cannot control all the land between the river and the sea, but said nothing about the size of the Palestinian state. He offered no tangible vision for the Palestinians to latch on to which suggested that after decades this man is now addressing Palestinian concerns seriously.

The Israeli prime minister moved because he is rapidly being cast as intransigent and because even the Likud is beginning to recognize that at some point in the very near future it will have to decide between democracy and apartheid. Pushed back on his heels, Sharon tried to gain the upper hand by speaking the language Washington has come to know well in the last year -- that of unilateral action.

The pittance the United States deducted earlier this fall from the loan guarantees ($289.5 million for settlements and the barrier) indicates that the barrier is not viewed by American officials as an enormous threat to the tens of thousands of Palestinians being devastated by its path and the loss of access to their agricultural land, schools, and hospitals. Absurdly, Sharon claimed the "rapid completion of the security fence will enable the IDF to remove roadblocks and ease the daily lives of the Palestinian population not engaged in terror." George Orwell would be proud. The assertion that stripping thousands of Palestinians of open access to their land would be 'good for them' was delivered without shame.

(snipped)

[Resistance]

1. Democracy or Apartheid

Gee I wonder which one Ariel Sharon will choose

[newyorican]

2. He has already chosen...

what remains to be seen is the reaction from the electorate.

Around 15,000 Palestinians holders of Israeli IDs from Qalandia town, Qalandia
refugee camp and Kufur Aqeb will be enclosed between the new barrier and Jerusalem
municipality border. The residents will be paying the taxes as the other Israelis but will
not be receiving the same facilities and services as they will be staying in a special
security zone.

http://www.arij.org/paleye/Segregation-Wall/Section%207.7.pdf

[sushi]

3. With a leader like that

I'm not surprised the number of anti-Jewish people in other parts of the world is rising. Hopefully that will change when the Israeli people elect their next PM.