----- Original Message -----
From: "Dennis Perrin" <dperrin at comcast.net>
> The intent is there, on the margins, on either side (Israelis who want
the
> Palestinians to disappear; Palestinians who want the Israelis to do
the
> same). As the occupation continues, these extremes grow in popularity,
and
> ultimately lead to random murderous tendencies on both sides. But
there are
> also those on both sides who look, perhaps in vain, for some
accommodation.
> In other words, this is not the Germans doing the Jews, or the Turks
doing
> the Armenians. And to describe what's going on as "genocide" overall
ignores
> the complex interaction between the two sides, and the efforts to
overcome
> this hatred in the face of increasing tribalism and nihilism.
>
> DP
====================
Thanks for this Dennis. It seems that one of the things that is not being done by France and Russia, as well as the much weaker but growing anti-war movement is stepping up demands for linkage of Iraq with Israel/Palestine. This may be difficult to do given that another shitty regime, SA is explicitly calling for such a linkage. Demands by those who are giving Dubya fits that I/P be given greater or equal attention could unravel Dubya and send Cheney back to Georgetown Hospital.
The question then becomes how does the subject get broached, yet again, without falling into the quicksand of neo-Wilsonian do-goodism which US leftists may be stumbling towards despite themselves, given the success of the demos. The last thing we need right now is for the law of unintended consequences to stop biting Dubya and starting biting us instead and I for one, fear an escalation of righteousness rhetoric -sorry, I deleted the post with the statement of "white man's burden" but it hit the nail on the head- precisely when we need it least. Or am I way off-base on this?
Ian