Saturday, November 19, 2005
Interesting article on the potential for peace through either bi-lateral or multi-lateral land and population deals. I think the author is slightly optimistic that there is anyone on the Arab side with the political clout or even the honest interest in giving up even an inch past the 1949 borders, even with something received in return. Also, the Arab-Israeli towns most often named as potentially being ceded to a Palestinian State have no interest in being part of anything having to do with the PA -- for what should be obvious reasons, all lip-service to Palestinian solidarity aside. Also, many (but not all) would rather have their cake and eat it too, by enjoying the prosperity of the Jewish State while subverting it from within. 
On the Israeli side, the return of so-called "Arab" East Jerusalem is a non-starter for an awful lot of people.
TNR: Trading Land For Peace - Swap Meet
But not all Palestinians currently living in Israel (the Israeli Arabs) want to be in Palestine--an objection that presents a serious moral challenge. Public opinion polls in Israel's Arab community show that only about one-third support land swaps and that most Israeli Arab leaders oppose the idea. Photo by Mahfouz Abu Turk/ReutersSome polls appearing in the Israeli-Arab press suggested that the majority of Israeli Arabs would like to see Israel alter its constitutional foundations and evolve into a binational state, erasing most of its Jewish character. This sentiment is particularly strong in those towns destined for exchange under the land-swap proposal. Recent surveys have shown that almost half of the Arab Israeli residents in those areas oppose Israel's continued existence as a Jewish and democratic state, and a significant number of them espouse fiercely radical Islamic ideology...
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