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Jackson50 on 07 January 2009
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Comrade Tovya said:
Jackson50 said:
Both sides need to quit playing the victim before any real progress can be made. Both sides are obstinate, and neither side is going to be the first to capitulate and make real progress towards peace.

With that being said, I prefer the Israeli invasion of Gaza to the current blockade or air strikes. If they desire to remove Hamas, then a ground invasion is the tactic to use. Do not use indiscriminate blockades and air strikes. If I had to choose a peace initiative, I would choose the Geneva Initiative. It is fair to and demanding of both sides.

So, if the Geneva Initiative is the route to go, then who plans on implementing this?  Both Israel and the Palestinians will not allow a foreign power to send troops to their lands, so how would one initiate such a plan?  Sending a foreign army on either groups' soil is a recipe for disaster, because both people would wipe out any "peace keeping" force that attempted to raise their hand to them. (this has been proven many times since 1967).

I am playing the devil's advocate here of course...  but for arguements sake, assuming that such a plan would work, I think it is impossible to implement because neither party will accept the requirements of the agreement.

Yes, I readily acknowledged the unfortunate obstinacy of both sides and the dismal chances any peace initiative has at succeeding. I chose the Geneva Initiative because it is a realistic solution. If it were chosen and had to be enforced, it seems as if enforcement based on economic aid would be the desired direction. Both the Palestinians and Israel receive substantial amounts of foreign aid. The UN would send an observation force, similar to UNTSO, to ensure that both sides were implementing the terms of the agreement. If either side was to violate the terms, the foreign donors would be able to force the obstinate party through the threat of decreased aid. Also, the aid to the Palestinians would have to include a measure to eliminate corruption within the PA. The culture of corruption that has plagued the PA has undermined its authority and popularity with the Palestinian people. Anyway, given the nature of the conflict, I know it is: A) an unlikely solution B) likely to fail. Nevertheless, we would be in the current situation if it failed, so why not attempt something different?