I found it somewhat superficial in trying to define things:
" They don’t clamor for a state of their own, nor do most of them wish to join a Palestinian state once it is born. They hardly - ever - have anything to do with the terrorism campaigns waged by Yasser Arafat’s Fatah, Islamic Jihad, or Hamas. "
Except that the area in Wadi Arah on the road from Hadera to Afula exploded in rage when Arafat was "offended" at Sharon's foot being placed on the Temple Mount in October 2000 riots. They succeeded in inciting thousands to riot from Barka al Garbiya to Nazereth and some 13 died in shooting involving the police.
The most recent incident was when a deranged couple threw fireworks into the Church of the Annuciation in Nazereth and their political leaders went on a verbal jihad.
They want the monetary and social benefits but refuse to give their loyalty to the state and their religious and political leaders are constantly inciting against the State and Jews.
Where their town councils are bankrupt because they refuse to pay local rates and taxes saying that it will just go to the Jews and then cry discrimination and Haaretz gets tears in its eyes.
The druse in the Golan village of Majdal Shams constantly cry of their loyalty to Syria and make movies about the families shouting to each other across the fence, but reject moving the border fence few hundred yards to put them back they claim to want to be.
" The sense I got from talking to various people is that many Jews are afraid the Arabs might hurt them, and most Arabs do their best to keep their heads down and steer as wide of politics and the conflict as possible. "
Of course the Jews fear this violent behaviour. Then again Mr. Totten does not read the local Arab press.
" There isn’t much mixing of Arabs and Jews here. You can walk from downtown Tel Aviv to downtown Jaffa in twenty minutes, but the cities are worlds apart. "
He did not visit the Carmel market, scene of past suicide attempts, to see the "mixed" stalls; not easily discernible.
But then he did not visit Haifa, Afula, Lod and Ramle to name just few places other than Yaffo which is half Jewish anyway.
"... that Arabs have a hard time renting apartments in Tel Aviv even though discrimination is against the law. "
Given the local Arab's reaction to events it is no fault of the Tel Aviv resident to be fearful.
Then again he should have gone to Haifa or Afula for example where there is mixing. Of course he neglects to consider the religious intransigence against miscegenation on the part of Islam, so rife in Europe and the Arab countries, and the stress on families having to cope with relatives living "beyond the pale".
" At least one spoke fluent English. I asked if either would be willing to sit down with me for a few minutes and be interviewed. Both visibly cringed. The very idea was clearly dreadful to them. One immediately vanished into the back. The other gave me a fake smile and shrugged his shoulders. "
He would have to have a long association of some years before he would get some sincerity and not the usual platitudes.
" Yossi Klein Halevi, the Jerusalem correspondent for The New Republic, met with me in his office at the Shalem Center.
“How can someone be an Israeli-Palestinian?†he said. “It’s an impossible identity.†..........
...............
“But it’s not enough. We need real co-existence in a single society. I want an Arab Israeli to feel part of Israel.â€
Yossi wants it but Islam does not want it.
Talk about "talking to the wall."
No question that the piece is superficial, but that's OK in this case I think. I take it in the spirit of a blog post -- not deeply researched, but honest and with an active comment thread where others can offer expansions, corrections and the like as you have done. This is a friendly voice that I'm happy to have others read. Interesting to see how even a basically well-informed person can report on what they see and still come back with an honest, but still inaccurate account. Imagine how the people who go for a week of "educational" junket do when they come back with all sorts of "solutions" they want to implement. Bleh.
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Now that is a fascinating read.........
I found it somewhat superficial in trying to define things:
" They don’t clamor for a state of their own, nor do most of them wish to join a Palestinian state once it is born. They hardly - ever - have anything to do with the terrorism campaigns waged by Yasser Arafat’s Fatah, Islamic Jihad, or Hamas. "
Except that the area in Wadi Arah on the road from Hadera to Afula exploded in rage when Arafat was "offended" at Sharon's foot being placed on the Temple Mount in October 2000 riots. They succeeded in inciting thousands to riot from Barka al Garbiya to Nazereth and some 13 died in shooting involving the police.
The most recent incident was when a deranged couple threw fireworks into the Church of the Annuciation in Nazereth and their political leaders went on a verbal jihad.
They want the monetary and social benefits but refuse to give their loyalty to the state and their religious and political leaders are constantly inciting against the State and Jews.
Where their town councils are bankrupt because they refuse to pay local rates and taxes saying that it will just go to the Jews and then cry discrimination and Haaretz gets tears in its eyes.
The druse in the Golan village of Majdal Shams constantly cry of their loyalty to Syria and make movies about the families shouting to each other across the fence, but reject moving the border fence few hundred yards to put them back they claim to want to be.
" The sense I got from talking to various people is that many Jews are afraid the Arabs might hurt them, and most Arabs do their best to keep their heads down and steer as wide of politics and the conflict as possible. "
Of course the Jews fear this violent behaviour. Then again Mr. Totten does not read the local Arab press.
" There isn’t much mixing of Arabs and Jews here. You can walk from downtown Tel Aviv to downtown Jaffa in twenty minutes, but the cities are worlds apart. "
He did not visit the Carmel market, scene of past suicide attempts, to see the "mixed" stalls; not easily discernible.
But then he did not visit Haifa, Afula, Lod and Ramle to name just few places other than Yaffo which is half Jewish anyway.
"... that Arabs have a hard time renting apartments in Tel Aviv even though discrimination is against the law. "
Given the local Arab's reaction to events it is no fault of the Tel Aviv resident to be fearful.
Then again he should have gone to Haifa or Afula for example where there is mixing. Of course he neglects to consider the religious intransigence against miscegenation on the part of Islam, so rife in Europe and the Arab countries, and the stress on families having to cope with relatives living "beyond the pale".
" At least one spoke fluent English. I asked if either would be willing to sit down with me for a few minutes and be interviewed. Both visibly cringed. The very idea was clearly dreadful to them. One immediately vanished into the back. The other gave me a fake smile and shrugged his shoulders. "
He would have to have a long association of some years before he would get some sincerity and not the usual platitudes.
" Yossi Klein Halevi, the Jerusalem correspondent for The New Republic, met with me in his office at the Shalem Center.
“How can someone be an Israeli-Palestinian?†he said. “It’s an impossible identity.†..........
...............
“But it’s not enough. We need real co-existence in a single society. I want an Arab Israeli to feel part of Israel.â€
Yossi wants it but Islam does not want it.
Talk about "talking to the wall."
No question that the piece is superficial, but that's OK in this case I think. I take it in the spirit of a blog post -- not deeply researched, but honest and with an active comment thread where others can offer expansions, corrections and the like as you have done. This is a friendly voice that I'm happy to have others read. Interesting to see how even a basically well-informed person can report on what they see and still come back with an honest, but still inaccurate account. Imagine how the people who go for a week of "educational" junket do when they come back with all sorts of "solutions" they want to implement. Bleh.