The latest round of phony peace talks reported about in the Western press the most fail to mention that an act of war, a blockade of Gaza has been going on and on, slowly starving over a million and a half people to death, since June 2007.

All during this time the other issue Palestinians feel most important (besides being starved to death) has been the ongoing expansion of Israeli settlements, the ongoing seizing and invasion of Palestinian land -- as well as the destruction of Palestinian homes and farms with bulldozers, the destruction of industry and infrastructure and attempts to subvert the Hamas democratically elected government from Day One.

Israel also wants war with Iran (accordi...

The latest round of phony peace talks reported about in the Western press the most fail to mention that an act of war, a blockade of Gaza has been going on and on, slowly starving over a million and a half people to death, since June 2007.

All during this time the other issue Palestinians feel most important (besides being starved to death) has been the ongoing expansion of Israeli settlements, the ongoing seizing and invasion of Palestinian land -- as well as the destruction of Palestinian homes and farms with bulldozers, the destruction of industry and infrastructure and attempts to subvert the Hamas democratically elected government from Day One.

Israel also wants war with Iran (according to reports yesterday, the USA refused the use of Iraq airspace).

The Jewish lobby were the most eager proponents in encouraging the war with Iraq. The blew Lebanon to hell in 2006 and have also conducted air raids and want war with Syria.

Get the picture?

We can't change the actions of the past. But we can change what we do today.

IMO, to support Israel is to support the genocide in Gaza, it's to support the war in Iraq, it's to support the ongoing threats of war against Iran.

None of this is of any benefit to me, in fact it has been a big part of trashing our USA economy, trashing our USA politics, and trashing our own more real USA national interests.

'Foreign entanglements,' and alliances like this are against the principles of the founders of this country and against the views of wiser leaders. If Israel does eventually follow through with it's ongoing warmongering and attack Iran - does that mean the USA is now at war with Iran?

We've thus even given away control of such a fundamental issue as making war and we've been misled into wars for the benefit of Israel and Oil companies.

It's time to take away the car keys. Don't vote ever again for any pro-Zionist politicians. We've been sucked into a Black Hole of Biblical proportions, distortions and lies.

well, now that you bring it up, just how vocal have you been about hamas' actions? which, aside from killing a few randomly chosen israeli civilians (which of course is hardly a crime), were quite predictably going to bring about massive reprisals, this in fact being the whole point of the exercise?

it's laudable to sympathize with the underdog. it's horror beyond belief what's happening in gaza this very minute. if israel were to ask me, just like you i would tell them to stop this this instant. but they don't. that gives me the leisure and the responsibility of taking a more objective point of view.

which leads me to the response to fisk, who apparently is able to quantify revu...

well, now that you bring it up, just how vocal have you been about hamas' actions? which, aside from killing a few randomly chosen israeli civilians (which of course is hardly a crime), were quite predictably going to bring about massive reprisals, this in fact being the whole point of the exercise?

it's laudable to sympathize with the underdog. it's horror beyond belief what's happening in gaza this very minute. if israel were to ask me, just like you i would tell them to stop this this instant. but they don't. that gives me the leisure and the responsibility of taking a more objective point of view.

which leads me to the response to fisk, who apparently is able to quantify revulsion and outrage, since it really isn't his house being bombarded. (although his countrymen demonstrated with the bombing of Dresden how they feel about "proportional response" to random aerial attacks on civilian areas, thereby giving us a reasonably good estimate of what he might do). what exactly would you suggest, as the fabled "proportional response" so properly sought? would you (either of you) approve, were israel to drop one rocket on gaza for each rocket coming out of gaza, or do the laws of war require israel to adjust its military response so that the death toll on either side is similar? what war has ever been fought on this basis?

look, hamas had two ways to go, after the israelis pulled out, in response to the blockade. they could either take the israelis at their word and end hostilities to see if that would open the borders, or they could decide that the highest priority of the israelis was to make gazans suffer, and use whatever freedom then have to inflict minor injuries on israel. everybody has an opinion on which is correct, nobody has a guaranteed answer. but going one way has no chance of success and is guaranteed to backfire with death and destruction to the gazan population. don't you think it would be worth just trying the other way first?

@masbury - The USA is not neutral.

Israel doesn't want peace nor a two-state solution.

When Clinton or the USA talks about security they mean disarming and blockading Gaza.

The USA gives Israel cash, weapons and political support.

How anyone can think they are an "honest broker," or have equal good will towards both sides is beyond me.

The USA solution, imo, is to get out of this thousand year Biblical struggle, this hundred year war, this 60 year invasion.

The solution is to stop supporting Israel. Stop voting for pro-Zionist politicians.

It would be nice if we could actually 'make peace,' but that idea is just propaganda. We are also not the Cops of the World, that's a propaganda ...

@masbury - The USA is not neutral.

Israel doesn't want peace nor a two-state solution.

When Clinton or the USA talks about security they mean disarming and blockading Gaza.

The USA gives Israel cash, weapons and political support.

How anyone can think they are an "honest broker," or have equal good will towards both sides is beyond me.

The USA solution, imo, is to get out of this thousand year Biblical struggle, this hundred year war, this 60 year invasion.

The solution is to stop supporting Israel. Stop voting for pro-Zionist politicians.

It would be nice if we could actually 'make peace,' but that idea is just propaganda. We are also not the Cops of the World, that's a propaganda excuse to meddle everywhere, always for alleged 'good.'

That's a great idea for ongoing warmongering...we're going to do good..we're going to "provide security," for both side..we are fair and decent people.

We'd like to believe that. I'd like to believe that.

But wash away the brainwashing and just look at the facts.

We've been supporting a policy that has been slowly starving over a million and a half people to death for more that a year.

We provide the weapons that now kills them like shooting fish in a barrel.

Our Army Corp of Engineers is working to build 'underground barriers,' to prevent tunnels being made.

Israel wants a "defensible border," which is their phrase meaning build a cage around Palestinine.

And this is also proposed for the West Bank..a zone, a perimeter around the whole area 100 meters wide, under Israeli control or maybe NATO.

If there are every to be two states they won't be "separate but equal." Palestine will be a prison - that's the Israeli/USA plan for 'peace and security."

P.S. Egypt, btw, is controlled by a ruthless USA supported dictator (like the Shah of Iran),