Showing posts with label Palestinian Statehood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Palestinian Statehood. Show all posts

Friday, September 2, 2011

September 20th Set For Bid For Palestinian Statehood at the UN


September 20th Set For Bid For Palestinian Statehood at the UN
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet


The creation of a Palestinian state will do nothing to bring stability to the Middle East region.  In fact, there will be more war, more instability, and more suffering.

A Palestinian state would effectively open up a front that starts ten miles from Tel Aviv and reaches 1,000 miles deep across the Arabian Peninsula to Teheran. That, alone, will be cause for Israel to go on their highest military alert and stay there 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In other words… all the time

The buffer zone Israel counts on to give her time to activate her reserves and get them mobilized will no longer exist.  That short period of time, so vital for the defense of Israel, will be gone.  Therefore, Israel will have no choice but to adopt what, for all practical purposes, will be a “state of war” as a normal, everyday, lifestyle.

There is a school of thought, in Israel, which says Israel would not be the first target of a Palestinian State military.  That distinction, according to this theory, must go to the country of Jordan whose population is 80% Palestinian.  This line of thinking has it that the Palestinians will want to complete the coup against the Hashemite Kingdom they began back in 1970.

A new Palestinian State will certainly want to clear the region of its one remaining moderate, western-oriented Arab state.  Once that job is completed and their military enlarged by the “Jordanian/Palestinians,” THEN they can turn their attention to Israel.

How dimwitted is it for the US to put any trust in the government of a state whose children’s textbooks teach “holy war” against Israel? 

Lets see:  Right now we have Libya, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Syria, and Afghanistan giving The United States a pain in the posterior and the Obama Regime is dead set on adding even more trouble with a state of Palestine?  Again, I ask, how dimwitted is this? 

But, I forget!  We have the “creame de la creame” in DC, the “best and the brightest” of the academicians, many of whom seem to be educated beyond their collective abilities, concocting these schemes from left-wing dreams of “group-hugs” among nations.

So, we must ask ourselves just how prepared are the Arabs (aka Palestinians) for statehood, anyway?  Has there been any preparation for oh, say, industrialization?  How about their work on developing export markets?  Have they given any thought to negotiating trade arrangements with their next-door neighbor, Israel? I think we all know the answer to all the above is… NO. 

So, it is safe, then, to assume that a state of Palestine would be wracked with poverty which will require billions of dollars in foreign aid from which the chieftains will bleed off their shares and get rich while piling up hordes of cash in numbered bank accounts far from the Middle East.

A recent report from Arutz Sheva(www.IsraelNationalNews.com) said the following: “ … Meanwhile on Wednesday, Israel’s Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren said the PA statehood bid would likely jeopardize all existing agreements between the PA and Israel.


In an interview with Foreign Policy magazine, Oren said the move would render invalid economic treaties, including export, import, and water sharing, as well as security cooperation agreements.


Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz said Wednesday the statehood bid at the United Nations is a greater threat to Israel than terrorism.


“This Palestinian initiative represents a more serious threat than that posed by Hamas,” Steinitz told Voice of Israel radio.”


Too, there is the very real concern that should the UN grant Palestine statehood, Iran will very quickly turn it into an Iranian state.  The conflagration we are experiencing in the Middle East today is a stroll in the park compared to what would happen with Iran and Israel sharing a common border.


No, a Palestinian state will only ensure the continuation of war, terrorism, and bloodshed.  The one thing we can be sure of is -- it will not bring anything resembling peace to the Middle East.

J. D. Longstreet

Friday, December 11, 2009

Jerusalem: The Eternal Capital of Israel!


Jerusalem: The Eternal Capital of Israel!

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet
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There has been much talk lately of creating a state of Palestine with Jerusalem as it's capital city. Many of us take a dim view of this approach to peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians.

Jerusalem is known to many as "The City Of David." (Actually only the southeastern portion of The Old City is the historic "City of David". But to many Jews and many evangelical Christians the entire city of Jerusalem is recognized as "The City of David.") Jerusalem is at the heart of Jewry no matter where on the face of the globe a Jew happens to be.

Jerusalem can NEVER be the capital city of a non-existent state known as "Palestine." NEVER! Even if the world finally has it's way and declares such a thing as a Palestinian state, the city of Jerusalem will forever remain the capital city of Israel.

Here are some facts a few minutes research on the Internet will reveal:

Jerusalem has been inhabited since at least 3000 BC. It was originally built around a water source known then as the Gihon Spring, to the south of what is known today as the Temple Mount. King Solomon expanded the limits of the city beyond that area known as the City of David.

There are those who will argue that Jerusalem did not exist at the time of David or the time of his son, Solomon. I respect their right to believe what they will, but I choose to believe that it did. See, I am one of those old "Hard Heads” who maintain the plausibility or validity of the Biblical account of a conquest by King David who, as described in the Bible, captured the city by climbing upwards through the ancient water system at the Gihon Spring.

It was around the year 1010 BC, when King David defeated the Jebusites in Jerusalem and decided to make the city his administrative capital. David brought the Ark of the Covenant to the city.

When David brought the Ark to Jerusalem he intended to build a great Temple for God as a permanent resting place for the Ark of the Covenant. According to Jewish tradition, as reported in the Bible, David was not permitted to build the Temple because he had been a warrior. Building the Temple would fall to his son, Solomon. The Temple became the focus point of Jewish veneration from that point to today.

We would do well to remember that Jews have been living in Jerusalem continuously for nearly two millennia. They make up the largest single group of inhabitants there since the 1840's. Today, the total population of Jerusalem is approximately 662,000. The Jewish population in areas formerly controlled by Jordan exceeds 160,000, outnumbering Palestinians in "Arab" East Jerusalem.

Ever since the day King David declared Jerusalem the capital city of Israel some 3,000 years ago, the city has been at the center of Jewish existence. The last remaining wall of the ancient Jewish Temple, the Western Wall, located in the Old City, is the holiest site in Judaism. It is the object of Jewish veneration and the focus of Jewish prayer. For thousands of years, three times a day, Jews have prayed, “To Jerusalem, thy city, shall we return with joy,” and they have repeated the Psalmist's oath: “If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.”

And, yes, Muslims also revere the Holy City. According to Islamic belief, the prophet Mohammed was miraculously transported from Mecca to Jerusalem, and it was from Jerusalem that he made his ascent to heaven. But, please remember, even though Muslims controlled the city for more than a thousand years, Jerusalem was never the capital of any Arab entity, or country.

For Christians, on the other hand, Jerusalem is also thought of as holy. It is where Jesus lived, where he preached, where he died, and, most importantly, where he was resurrected. Even though it is the heavenly and not the earthly Jerusalem that is emphasized by The Church, places mentioned in the New Testament as sites of Christ’s ministry and passion attracted pilgrims and Christian worshipers for centuries and they continue to do so today.

Jerusalem can NEVER be the capital city of Palestine. Never!

Now, I’ll do a little prophesying myself. It is not too difficult to see a near future in which the UN recognizes a state of Palestine. And it will make no difference whether Jerusalem is designated the capital city of the new state of Palestine. Here’s why: At the first international incident between the state of Palestine and the state of Israel, Israel will invade, conquer, and occupy the new state of Palestine and very soon it will become a part of the newly enlarged country of Israel… again!

If the US really wants to do something constructive toward peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians the best thing it can do is get out of Israel’s way. Allow Israel to take care of business and, fairly soon, the Palestinian problem will be solved. There will be no peace between Israel and the so-called Palestinians as long as BOTH of them exist on this earth. Remove the Palestinians and –Walla! — THAT problem solved.

Maybe Israel should consider the grant of statehood, to a state called Palestine, as a boon, really -- sort of a gift from the UN to Israel. It would open the door for Israel to solve their ongoing problem with the so-called Palestinians once and for all.

However, I personally believe, as do the Evangelical Christians, that Israel will never know peace until the Prince of Peace returns. Then, that’s just me.

There is a piece of scripture, from the Bible, of which, I’d like to remind the Obama Regime. It reads thusly: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”… Genesis 12:3. Oh, may I suggest the White House fax this lttle snippet of scripture over to the State Department and share it with them?


Happy Hanukkah!


J. D. Longstreet
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