Historically, Middle East Peace Looks Impossible, But . . .

Are you a history buff? I don’t know about Sam, but I am. History was always one of my favorite subjects in school. The only problem as I see it is that history occurs so rapidly that you just can’t keep track of it all. I remember the Vietnam War and what it did to this country. I remember John Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Bobby Kennedy and others being assassinated. I remember when we landed men on the moon. I remember when Mt. St. Helens blew its top. But shoot, those are just a few high points and there is lots more history that has occurred over the years.

Politics are intimately entertwined with history. I know better than to talk politics, but in light of what is happening in that area, I just can’t help myself. Poor President Obama is so plagued by uncooperative Republicans and by white folk who want to tar and feather him, impeach him or worse, it will be a miracle if he can make history in the White House, although Sam and I think his health care law might eventually rank right up there with the Civil Rights legislation.

But now, as if things aren’t bad enough, along comes this Nut named Yahu from Israel, pandering to Congress and trying to get the U.S. to reject a nuclear deal currently being negotiated with Iran. The deal is a threat to the survival of Israel, according to old Nut Job.

Thanks to my friend Matt Thuney for forwarding this cartoon.

Now old Nut Job might be right. Lest we forget, the late Yasser Arafat and countless other Arabs who have come after him have vowed death to Israelis until they are all wiped off the face of the earth. Fortunately, for the Israelis, they have kicked Arab butt every time the Arabs took up arms against them: the Six-Day War, the Yom Kippur War and other fracases. The Jewish state brazenly even bombed a Syrian nuclear facility into oblivion one time.

We generally support Israel in the U.S, but here’s the rub. It is increasingly clear that peace in the Middle East will not occur until BOTH sides, Arabs AND Israelis, fully embrace the idea and fully commit to it. This probably won’t happen in our lifetime, of course. Growing up I believed that we Americans historically speaking, were under a moral and Biblical imperative to support Israel. Unfortunately, Israel seems to have dug its heels in too far in recent years to accept peace. The country’s refusal to quit building developments on the West Bank, for one thing, is a slap in the face to the Palestinians and to our country.

Personally, I cannot support Israel’s blatant empire building when it so obviously impedes real progress towards peace. And I personally cannot support any Yahoo who comes to our country, snubs our President and goes and whines to our Congress. As Speaker of the House John Bonehead might say, “Nut Yahoo, you are out of order!”

Gavel the man down Bonehead! Gavel him down!