Israel's Precondition for New Talks: No Palestinian Preconditions

[King_David]

The Middle East's most bitter rivals should "break the ice" and open new talks aimed at the creation of a Palestinian state beside Israel--but only if the Palestinians drop certain demands, says a senior Israeli official.

In calling Tuesday for the restoration of the Middle East peace process, Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz said "two nations [living] in one state" much longer would constitute a larger threat than a nuclear-armed Iran.

Israeli and Palestinian officials should open talks aimed at producing an agreement on the issues about which both sides agree, such as borders and certain security arrangements, Mofaz said at a forum in Washington. For instance, Mofaz, the Kadima Party leader, said he believes a future Palestine should be allowed to have security forces to secure its borders.


http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/dotmil/2012/06/20/israels-precondition-for-new-talks-no-palestinian-preconditions

[shaayecanaan]

1. Ah

The Middle East's most bitter rivals should "break the ice" and open new talks aimed at the creation of a Palestinian state beside Israel--but only if the Palestinians drop certain demands, says a senior Israeli official.

Am I dreaming or does that sound like a precondition to me?

[aranthus]

2. Well, that would explain the headline.

As it says later in the article, "We cannot and we should not accept preconditions," Mofaz said. That is the only "demand" made.

[shaayecanaan]

3. Or it could be a reference to the right of return...

http://notesfromamedinah.com/2010/09/21/israeli-preconditions-for-peace/

[oberliner]

4. Interesting website

The "formidable Chris duo" who run the site are recent college grads (one still a student), who include having "posting on Mondoweiss" as part of their bio.

The home page features a giant photo of Norman Finkelstein - along with a review of his latest book.

Their stance on Syria is also quite fascinating.

[shaayecanaan]

5. A giant photo of Norman Finkelstein?

Holy fucking Jesus. Someone had better report them to the FBI.

Here's the photo, for those who are interested. Leni Riefenstahl, eat your heart out.

[aranthus]

6. Oberliner was obviously questioning their intellectual credentials and bias.

Of which they seem to be grossly lacking the former and weighted down with the latter. Why do you have to misrepresent?

[shaayecanaan]

8. My apologies - I must admit that I failed to appreciate just how

evidently biased that Finkelstein photo was at first blush. By way of restoring the balance, so to speak, I have therefore reprinted this photo below in a non-biased format, which no doubt will be far more congenial to the sensibilities of the regulars here:-

[oberliner]

10. Nobody called Finkelstein "Hitler" or "Satan" or wished any harm to come to him

Let's just imagine for a moment that someone here posted a link to an article on an I/P site that you hadn't previously heard of.

And let's say on the home page of the site, there featured a photo of someone you think is biased and/or off-base with respect to these issues, say a Daniel Pipes or Alan Dershowitz (The photo having been included as a companion to a favorable review of a book written by said individual).

And let's say, you further saw on the "about" page, one of the two people who run the site listing "having made posts at Elder of Ziyon" among their credentials in their bio.

You don't think you'd make mention of these tidbits? You don't think they would give you some info about the sort of site you were dealing with?

Personally, I think you'd make a comment of some sort. Perhaps one with the biting humor showcased in the graffiti-filled version of the photo you've included here to make your rhetorical point.

I really wish you would be willing to be a little more self-aware.

[shaayecanaan]

12. The photo is no different to what you might expect in any newspaper...

and there is nothing particularly "giant" about it. From reading your post, one would have formed the impression that their website was festooned with some Stakhanovite mural of a smiling Norman Finkelstein being cheered on a by a multitude of pearlescently-cheeked peasants. I was a bit disappointed, I must say.

If you think that that simple photograph was an exercise in propaganda then it probably says more about your POV than anything else.

[oberliner]

13. That wasn't my intention

I don't think the photo is an exercise in propaganda. I was, in fact, more amused by the claim of "posting on Mondoweiss" as a credit in the bio of one of the two guys who run the site.

But come on, if you saw a photo of Pipes or Dershowitz on the home page of a site about I/P issues, you wouldn't have made a crack about it?

[holdencaufield]

11. Real Mature ... NT

[oberliner]

7. Report them to the FBI?

Come on now.

One wonders how you might respond to someone who posted an article from a site run by a couple of twenty-somethings that had a giant photo of, say, Daniel Pipes on the home page along with a favorable review of his recent book.

Mightn't you make some snide, dismissive comment about it?

[King_David]

9. I sympathize

It is difficult to converse civilly in this fashion .
I learnt this on other threads.