#two states

This submission by a rare Arab atheist says something Western media almost never admits:

In Arabic, ordinary Arabs barely even discuss the “two-state solution.”

Not as a serious option. Not as a public debate. Not even as something to reject. It mostly exists in official speeches aimed at Western audiences.

I used to believe in that two state delusion too.

Then Israel offered, in the 2000s, almost everything Westerners keep saying the Palestinians want: all of Gaza, roughly 96% of the West Bank, a road connecting them under their control, and even parts of Jerusalem.

The answer was not peace.

The answer was the Second Intifada. Years of suicide bombings, shootings, buses exploding, cafés blown up, and Israeli civilians murdered in the streets.

At some point people need to ask the obvious question:

How can so many Westerners still be this detached from reality? Even after October 7?

And why is their media constantly lying to them about what Arab societies actually believe?

Right now, getting rid of Hamas and rescuing hostages IS the general idea.

What happens after the war, I don't have a crystal ball on. I think many including myself want to see a 2 state solution that includes the West Bank develop out of this eventually so that both Israelis and the West Bankers/Gazans can have their sovereignty.

But that is a ways away.

I think there will have to be intermediary steps of some international involvement with rebuilding Gaza and making sure all embers of Hamas are put out that would likely last some years?

And then meanwhile in my 2 state dreamland you're working to nation build in the West Bank and figuring out where the borders of that need to be which likely involves swapping some undeveloped land along the border to account for settlers in some places and relocating some settlers in other places. And ending the West Bank settler project.

Now you sort of have three states and the problem exists in merging Gaza and the West Bank under a unified government and it seems Netanyahu and some Arab leaders agree that Abbas whose Palestinian Authority / Fatah organization runs the West Bank, is a liability for various reasons. I think the most cogent of those for the Israeli side is Pay to Slay which is a well known program whereby the Abbas government pays out $300 million USD to families of terrorists who have either suicide bombed or are in prison for acts of terrorism against Israel. In this way Abbas has been directly incentivizing and subsidizing terrorism and Hamas.

There's other issues of corruption and generally just not supporting peace in addition to the above...

I don't know that Abbas represents the self determination of Palestinians but you would have to ask Palestinians after the war what they think about it.

So ...

I think nobody really knows what to do about Abbas in the West Bank but he is a great obstacle to Peace as is to a large extent Netanyahu's Likkud party that supports the settlers.

American pressure seems to be towards creating a Palestinian state after Hamas is thoroughly dismantled. I think that pressure will go a long way and can go away at some point if a GOP candidate is elected for president in 2024. So as Americans we need to keep Dems in office as many as possible especially at the federal executive branch.

God Willing this will be a situation where a Phoenix of self determination in Gaza and the West Bank alike rises from the ashes of this bloody conflict.

But...

As Americans saw when we were fucking around in the Middle East for no good reasons and trying to tear down regimes and build something up...

You can only lead the people to water of democracy. You can't make them drink.

I think the Palestinians strongly want statehood.

I think the world is ready to make that happen.

TX: okay, yeah, sure, when you say it like that it doesn’t sound believable.

WV: *see KY walking by* Oh, hey, KY, did you see the file of new legislation that I left for you on your seat?

KY: Oh, yeah, I looked it over. Nice work.

WV: Thanks, dad. 

*all the states stop* 

WV: Why is everyone staring at me?

OH: You just called KY ‘dad.’ You just said, ‘thanks dad.’

WV: What? No I didn’t, I said, ‘thanks man.’

KY: *incredibly awkward* Do you, uh, see me as a father-figure?

WV: What? No. If anything I see you as a ‘bother figure,’ cause you’re always bothering me.

DE: Hey! Show your father some respect!

WV: I didn’t call him ‘dad’!

KY: *clear throat* No, no, no, West. It’s alright. I take it as a compliment.

TX: You did call him ‘dad’, dude.

WV: You shut-up, you’ve done nothing but lie since you got here.

TX: Okay, so the gun and the robbery, I was lying about that. But you did call him ‘dad.’

WV: Ah-ha! So he admitted that his alibi was a lie. It was a trap! All part of my crazy, devious plan.

KY: I believe you.

WV: Thank you.

KY: Pal.

WV: Ugh.

KY: You wanna talk about this later over a game of catch?

WV: *staring down at their notes* I’d like that. 

Bonus

VA: I don’t understand! 

GA: It’s okay, VA, some people just fit better with others-

3:12 AM EDT September 19, 2018:

Pavement - “Two States" From the album Slanted & Enchanted (April 30, 1992)

Last song scrobbled from iTunes at Last.fm