Quote of the Moment

"Those who desire to treat politics and morals apart from one another will never understand either." - Rosseau


Thursday, March 25, 2010

Oh Jerusalem

Poor poor Jerusalem, again at the center of more discontent and posturing than it should be. Israel has gone against international sentiment and decided that it will pursue the expansion of the city's eastern settlements, with 1600 new homes on the way. PM Netanyahu even at one point in the past week referred to Jerusalem as Israel's capital, with an ignorance to the Israeli occupation of the city's east side. Tsk tsk.

This has angered Palestinians, who view Jerusalem as their proverbial home. The moderate (read: tends to agree with the West's) Fatah political party, who normally leads the call for dialogue rather than arms has recently, at the Doha Debates, opened the possibility for a renewed call to armed resistance of the Israeli occupiers. Such a move would have them sleeping with Hamas relatively soon, at least for the sake of their own guilty pleasure of firing rockets with the effectiveness of almost nil. Tsk tsk.

I'm not sure which direction the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will move or if the two parties are even close to the climax. But I do think that it is a sad state of affairs when Israel, who has clearly been the aggressor for decades, isn't reined in. That's not to say Palestinians are princesses, they too have had more than their fair share of violence and terror. However Washington is upset with their BFF in Tel Aviv, but they look as helpless as anyone to do anything about it. While the U.S. sends $3 billion worth of mainly military aid to Israel every year, Israel sends back a cold shoulder. There isn't even the argument for strategic influence, since the Cold War has finished and Israel has demonstrated that it is quite effective at losing ground wars...cough...Hezbollah...cough. Nor does the U.S. need Israel to blunt Syria (since there is currently a thaw in their relations), or to tackle Iran (the U.S. possesses enough Sunni Muslim allies in the region who are concerned about Shia Iran's weapons program and growing influence, not to mention their own extensive naval and air power along with some really cutting-edge munitions). So why Israel?

They have used tactics and weapons in dense, civilian rich urban centers that have caused some to call for war crimes and crimes against humanity. They have time and time again rejected European and other Western criticisms of their domestic policies such as constructing large concrete walls, indiscriminate road blocks, targeted assassinations of political figures, settlement construction and so forth. Oh, and they have caused the Palestinian peoples to become the world's largest refugee population. For what? To fulfill scripture? The whole concept of "peace in the Middle East" is a joke. As long as one nation is allowed to impose itself over others, there will never be peace, and the current conflict is far too asymmetric in nature. If you want peace pit and Israeli and a Palestinian against one another with nothing more than a pea-shooter, eventually they will tire.

As for Canada, shame on us. Our foreign policy has been for decades so pro-Israeli that we're forgetting the humanity of the issue. We've become ignorant to the Palestinians because frankly they don't have a country. Who are we afraid of upsetting? The Israelis? The Israeli lobby? Of losing the Israeli vote? There was a time Canada did the right thing in the Middle East for the right reason. We took a stand against British, French and Israeli political interests and sent a military force to maintain peace during the Suez Crisis. Where has that spirit gone? Where is the understanding that as a member of the international community Canada has simply become a shadow of its former self? Shame.

I'm not necessarily pro-Palestinian on this issue, but I do think they are getting the short end of the stick, and it's hitting them all too often. Were I living in Gaza or the West Bank right now, watching my kids struggle, my family suffer, my friends die and I felt that no one outside of the Palestinian territories was ready to do anything about it, I don't think it would take me too long to reach for a fallen AK and express my discontent. Would you? Let's hope someone with a sense of reason can interject in Jerusalem and move to make it a city that no side can claim as their own. After all, isn't it the home of all three desert religions?

If you're looking for an interesting approach the broader conversation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, check out 'Death in Gaza' which is an amazing documentary. And please I would love your feedback on this blog. Thanks.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

A Quick Hello

Hello and welcome to my first blog. I'm excited to get started and express my thoughts on a variety of different issues and topics. It is the very idea of an intellectual commonwealth that has moulded humanity throughout history. Ideas have transcended borders, languages, political affiliations and sympathies, religion and have done so across the ages. Arguments that the likes of Socrates or Marcus Aurelius made thousands of years ago are no less relevant today, with new generations challenging their assertions and compounding their thoughts through them.

So I hope you enjoy the ride. I'll let you know straight-away that there is no plan for this blog; there will be no set dates, or agenda of topics/interests. I understand that many of you may be critical of what I write, which I hope you are as doing so will force me to re-evaluate my views and ideas. Please do be gentle though as I do write with a touch of hopeful ignorance to the more blunt realities of the world that surrounds us. And if you're wondering where my inspiration for beginning this little expressive adventure began, I'm sure you'll discover that as you read along.

Thank you kindly,

Mark Anderton