August 02, 2004
The End of the Road
Begin Rant
I'll keep this tirade over Israeli politics brief. Go read The Onion if you aren't interested.
Well, we have rougly 245,000 Israeli settlers in the occupied territores (7,000 or so in Gaza, and the rest in the West Bank). We have a most imperfect plan supported by the Big Four (the U.S., the U.N., the Russian Federation, and the E.U.) known as "the Roadmap" (but maps are not President Bush's best subject). It's not great; but then again, it isn't horrible, either. It thankfully addresses the most pressing wedge in the Middle East... by establishing the Palestinian State in the West Bank and Gaza... blah blah blah.
But first, the P.A. must reign in militant groups... which is proving difficult... but can be done (somehow).
And the Isreali State must freeze construction of all settlements in the Occupied Territories.
Well, sh*t. Yes, folks... It looks like Maale Adumim is going to grow by some 2,000 people. Responses are sketchy, so far... though the Israeli Housing Ministry is thrilled - since the national housing industry is largely floundering at the moment.
Yeah, I'm a bleeding-heart liberal guy who thinks Palestine should exist entirely within the West Bank and Gaza with
Can I borrow some prime real estate?
Though Likud often gives me a weird Oompa-Loompa vibe, I was giving P.M. Sharon props for pressing evacuation of Gaza, and for holding coalition talks with Peres and Labour. But Ariel, naughty boy. No settlements. Maale Admumim is big enough. As far as I'm concerned, an extra 600 homes will mean just more to be taken apart and moved back into Israel before true peace and security are realized.
There. I said it. Now, please try not to hate me for it. Rarely to I indulge in my passion for Israeli politics on the internet... so forgive this brief interruption from my usual jump from self-induced crisis to self-induced crisis.
End Rant
"James, shut up about Israel, sweetie. We're trapped in this big glowing box with no la Croix, no bollie, and no bloody fags!"