Ash writes: "It is important to consider Hamas's demands carefully, but for real progress to be made there must be a fair and impartial judicial process to resolve land and property disputes between Israelis and Palestinians."
A bomb supplied by the US and dropped by Israel lies unexploded on a bed in a family home in Gaza. (photo: New York Times)
Hamas's Negotiating Demands Seem Reasonable
21 May 21
n the surface Hamas�s cease-fire negotiating demands, seen in context, seem reasonable: �That Israeli forces and police agree to never again enter the al-Aqsa mosque, as they did earlier this month, and that Palestinians living in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in disputed east Jerusalem not be evicted by Jewish settlers from homes their families have lived in since the 1950s.�
Those really should not be insurmountable obstacles to peace.
It should be noted that the Israelis argue that the properties in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood were owned by Israeli Jews prior to the 1948 Balfour realignment. Perhaps, but who is to say?
The larger problem, a problem that lies at core of the long, bloody Israeli-Palestinian conflict, is the lack of a fair and impartial Judiciary to resolve land disputes. Which is critical because most Israeli-Palestinian violence can be traced back to land or property disputes.
The Israeli courts have historically leaned heavily in favor of the rights and arguments of Israelis in land and property disputes. While that�s no surprise, it leaves those who dispute land and property issues without a peaceful means of resolution, the cornerstone of a civil society.
It is important to consider Hamas�s demands carefully, but for real progress to be made there must be a fair and impartial judicial process to resolve land and property disputes between Israelis and Palestinians. Fair and impartial to Israelis and fair and impartial to Palestinians.
Truly fair and truly impartial being the only standard that will bring lasting peace. Hint: The Palestinians will agree to this, but the Israelis will likely be very resistant.
Marc Ash is the founder and former Executive Director of Truthout, and is now founder and Editor of Reader Supported News.
Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.
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Palast promoted Obama's candidacy when the relevant Anglo-American corporations--a nd allied intell agencies--favor ed Barry.
Now 'investigative journalist' Palast has suddenly discovered Barry's well-known pro-Wall Street dark side, right after a small-scale terrorist action--in Boston.
Should we expect that sometime very soon--an untraceable British intelligence asset or two--maybe with an Al-Qaeda profile--will make an attempt on our President's life?
Might we expect widespread Boston-style martial law regardless of how those British intell assets perform?
I am told that many pious members of our intelligence community get unduly aroused when told that the hand of God is waving.
There's nothing in Palast's article that you refute.
You just can't stand to have anyone criticize Obama.
Not the sort worth defending on political grounds.
Truth be told, Joe Biden, just might be able to run for President as an incumbent.
Several of the President's nominal Wall Street allies have a different agenda. Duh.
Democrats are agreeing here that Obama is acting like Bush III. Why do you have to make an azz out of yourself with your birtherism?
Oh good. Maybe Obama will get a blow job in the Oval office and he can be impeached.
Clearly he will never be impeached for his real crimes like this appointment or his terrorist wars around the world. I'd settle for a blow job impeachment this time.
Obama is more like a Tea Party Republican than he is like anything humanoid.
He is totally devoted to ungoverned profiteering, no matter what the cost or to whom.
He has nothing for anybody to the left of Dick Cheney, except pretty rhetoric, which, of course, is nothing but hollow sales talk to the easily sastified & hollow headed left half of the US citizenry.
Certainly beauty (or in this case homeliness) is in the eye of the beholder but the cloak of "moderate" does not even begin to fit this President. He has repeatedly proven himself via his actions (or inactions) to be firmly ensconced with even the extreme right wing factions of the GOP to the neglect of civil rights, justice and plain human decency. He has earned a place for himself in history which can only be described as a not-so-slowly-m oving train wreck.
Couldn't find anyone writing about who Obama was or what he stood far. No, all we got was that Obama was a shoo-in thanks to the millions of little folk that wanted him and were sending him $5 and $10 donations.
I can't believe that mega-buck media pundits didn't know then what is so clearly apparent now: that Obama was a creature of mega-buck banksters and Wall Street fraudsters.
I can't believe and I don't -- not for one minute.
If there are any of us still harboring any doubts or even hope that Obama is on the side of the 99%, I submit that you are so far up da Nile that you're in jeopardy of being crocodile lunch.
I've wondered who Obama's "rabbi" was and now we know...a piece of garbage too toxic for a dump.
I'm done with him and most of the dems. Check out the article in Truth-out for Apr 30..."Another Government is Necessary".
I think we have been scammed into thinking we had voted for someone on our side !
I am done with voting until someone runs who really has a liberal agenda and really is on the side of the average citizen !
What a disapointment Obama is turning out to be . Cuts to SS,appointing crooks to his cabinet, I hate to see whats next on his agenda .
Somehow I think whatever is next it will be aimed at the most vulnerable in our society like it always is !
I for one will not make any more excuses for Obama's decision making!He is not the man I thought he was !
Where are the liberals when we need them? Well, maybe they were being gerrymandered out of office by the Republicans (like Dennis Kuchinich) at the same time.
I hate having to choose the lesser of two evils.
I also hate getting scammed!
They are all on the same league, just differing teams.
All corrupt.
Wasn't it Boris Berezovsky who was trying to propose a fake two party system like we have here in the U.S. to Putin?
He explained that they could hold all the power, make all the decisions, control all the money, campaign for office and pass it back and forth and the stupid people would think that they actually had a choice.
Apparently Putin likes things the way they are since Berezovsky was found hanged in his bathroom just outside of London.
The right accuses Obama of being a socialist and a class warrior, not a tool of Wall Street and the banks.
That criticism comes from those of us who are still on the left.
They are all on the same corrupt league!
Until the US allows third and forth parties, there will be no change. The fascism, gov't in bed with corps, changes, there will be no improvement.
More and more, the 99% suffer!
The globalists!
Is he another Rove puppet? There is definitely something fishy here.
And, btw, where are the jobs, infrastructure repairs, education money, etc?
With our eyes wide open we watch (quietly, silently) as the Nazi like people take over everything we have or could have. And there is no USA to rescue us as the USA did for "allies" in WWII.
I hope Elizabeth Warren or somebody with her standards runs for President. The PRESS is pushing for Hilary by gigantic numbers BUT, as good as she could be, I believe she is too connected to the same creeps that are over-taking our government (have taken - maybe more accurate.
YOU and I can keep voting for ONLY a Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and a handful of other Congress people who we KNOW are on the "straight and narrow" - for the 99%.
Don't hesitate to call you reps and Senators with your opinions and threats to vote them out unless they vote the WAY YOU WANT THEM TO VOTE (this is actually working in some very RED states over the gun registration voting)
military tool.
The Democratic Party is so devoted to Hillary it is sickening; she is just as devoted to Wall Street as Billy and Barack.
Pay close attention.
Until Americans do their due diligence, their homework, and pay close attention to "independent media" not corporate controlled media (including PBS), there will be no change.
Americans have proven themselves to be gullible and easily influenced by propaganda (hello! Weapons of Mass destruction in Iraq? 80-90% were in support of the wars!
Obama IS an out-and-out fascist!
Where have you been for the last four and a half years?
99% of his efforts are on behalf of Wall Street, if not more.
That is, no 'Breaking' necessary! How about 'buys into'?. 'Welcomed into'?...etc
It's 'payback time', in American Politics, as usual. Nothing new. Ho Hum......I hope no one reading this column is shocked, or surprised. More Representation for the .01%, like they need more...
Mind you he has this right, to appoint whom he pleases.
How about HIM? He is the 'one', and The Bought-and-Paid -For ....Cronies in Congress.
All need replacement. The System is Broken.
'Piecemeal correction' of this Absurdity, is pointless.
Anyone who still holds onto the belief system that Obama or the Cronies in Congress have our, the 99%, best interests at heart has their head in the sand!
Congress just passed a bill which Obama signed that ALLOWS CONGRESSIONAL MEMBERS TO USE INSIDER TRADING TO THEIR FINANCIAL ADVANTAGE, NO PENALTY. However, if you or I did it (remember what happened to Martha Stewart!), we'd be committing a crime and punished and imprisoned.
So how do we even know that the two party oligopoly is not just trading off the presidency every eight years? We don't know if our votes even count at all. In the last presidential election the corporate controlled media did not even bother doing exit polls in my state and many others that are not battle ground states.
I find it very curious that there is hardly any light between the actions of the two corporate oligopoly parties. Real independents like Buddy Roemer are not even given a slot in the debates. The oligopoly parties do not want an independent person who might get support because it would expose the fact that there are other ways beside the corporatist way.
oh, and did i forget the ownership of a majority of the supreme court?
in fact, i heard there's a new proposal to change the great seal of the u.s. in one of the eagle's talons will be a pig and in the other a wad of cash.
power to the plutocracy, to be accurate, should also replace e pluribus unum.
That is a polite insult that identifies Palast's across-the-pond intell community origins--and suggests that the gentleman knew all about the stuff he is reporting today--about the Pritzger family, Obama and corruption--rou ghly 5 years ago.
Funny that the British agencies who apparently employ him--choose to burn Palast--and Obama--now.
Should we expect an impending 'lone assassin' attack on the President?
Perhaps by a 'terrorist' with an impeccable Al-Qaeda resume--that is the way Brit agencies do things--unless they farm the job out to their junior partners--the Saudis--or maybe some desperate Israeli network.
If I have said it once--I have said it twice--Presiden t Obama has much to fear from his alleged intelligence community friends.
You already said that stuff above.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/05/penny-pritzker-commerce-secretary-90854.html#ixzz2SG9cmuoS
You cannot possibly be serious. This is just cleverly disguised satire, right?
and imprisoned due to their criminal roles in the S&L scandal.
The S&L scandals are a drop in the bucket in comparison to the 2008 Wall Street Bankster's economic collapse
which has harmed billions of innocent
persons world wide, and continues to harm folks, deplete pensions, etc., etc., etc., etc., ad nauseam.
Golly, gee-whiz! I am so shocked that Obama would appoint a billionare bankster into his cabinet.
(That statement was sarcasm! )
Of course, Obama would appoint a bankster to his cabinet and continue to protect Wall Street Banksters.
By the way, to date, not one single corrupt banker has been arrested, much less prosecuted. Further, new laws have been implemented to protect these banksters.
Has there been a 1934-style business plot that we don't know about?
How else does "word of mouth" news get around?
Linwood 2013-05-05 08:09
The only differences between the Dems and Repubs lie in relatively minor social policies, such as access to birth control, gay rights, etc. On the big important issues that affect everyone, both parties are owned by the banksters, their lobbyists write the laws, and the people have no representation. It's how the system works. I don't know what Obama stands for, or truly believes in, but I do know that nothing will change until the system does. Let's not waste our breath criticising, let's put our heads together and change the system. Solidarity!
(!)
Two of these gals are, or were anyway, active in the local OFFICIAL Democratic Party. I THOUGHT they were politically savvy, so this was pretty astounding.
I feel sure that there were plenty of people who voted for Obombya at least in large part due to he's supposedly "black".
This whole situation makes me even more than normally convinced that primates are incapable of governing themselves.