This is my first diary, I didn’t include any articles or sources because this is more about I feel about all of you.
For the past 6 months or so I have been reading the I/P diaries and their corresponding comments. I rarely participate in these discussions because I feel not only are most of them extremely repetitive but also extremely unproductive.
I do believe in Zionism. I believe that there is a tremendous need for a national homeland for Jewish people, history clearly dictates this. I also believe that in the past both sides have made some horrible decisions, which have continued to stall the peace process. With that said, if there is ever going to peace in this region people will have to learn to cope with the past and move on. This includes Palestinians looking for right of return and Israelis looking to regain old Jewish settlements in the West Bank. If all the parties keep lingering on what happened in the past they will never find peace. I also find the Daily Kos community is also guilty of this
What first brought me to the I/P world of Daily Kos was accusations that there was anti-Semitic comments being thrown all over the place. Being Jewish and a progressive I thought that there was no way that this could be true, so I decided to become an active reader. To my great surprise I found the accusations to be accurate along with many other racist comments pertaining to Arabs/Palestinians. I could not believe that people on both sides of the issue claiming to be forward thinking progressives could be such ignorant, stubborn, hateful bigots. It’s really sad.
I guess the Daily Kos community is microcosm of the world we live in and progressive-democrats are really no different than anyone else, including neo-cons. I think that if the people who consistently post dairies and comments on I/P subject matter really think they are making a difference in this situation are gravely mistaken. Those on Israeli side defend themselves by any means possible, even when Israel is clearly in the wrong. Those on the Palestinian side are so blinded by hatred that they find a way to blame Israel for every problem in that region. The regulars here are definitely not solving any issues, heck you rarely see any solutions just figure pointing, which is anything but progressive.
All in all none of you are going to win the Nobel Peace Prize for saving the Middle East. Whatever is written in these diaries is for your own amusement and are not done out the general care for the wellbeing of others. And I think that if the Israelis/Palestinians were polled that the majority of them would feel that what you are doing is counterproductive to the peace process. The Palestinians and Israelis have to come to peace on their own terms, not what is dictated to them.
The only peace solution proposed on Daily Kos