Jerusalem, Jerusalem

[Steve Plonk]

It is my understanding that East Jerusalem being a capital of "Palestine"
isn't negotiable. Hardly any Israelis want Jerusalem divided in any way, shape
or fashion. Netanyahu's government has continued building the separation
walls and I think that the Palestinians don't want to be part of Israel, so it
makes no difference.

For years, Israel has insisted on having "defendable borders". Israelis are still concerned with this. Obama's insisting on 1967 borders is not yet being taken seriously. Portions of "Palestine" will be subdivided and will continue to be.
Heck, the "gaza strip" has practically cordoned itself off by the behavior of
those folks within that area. (Fox news is practically irrelevant and I don't care what they say because they slant news depending upon which way the wind is
blowing.) It is an idiot wind in the holy land at the moment.

Palestinians themselves can't agree on anything, let alone the Israelis. There has to be a border compromise somewhere. But East Jerusalem is important to
Israelis like Bethlehem is to Christians. The Muslims have usurped control
of East Jerusalem, thinking Islam has all the say so. No one should have
control...The holy sites should be declared world heritage sites and be
demilitarized, period. Everyone should be able to visit holy sites no matter
what their religion is.

I think there needs to be a sharing of jurisdiction and all holy sites should be open to all. I have said that for years, but it makes no difference. People
have scoffed at my ideas, except some very close to me. We used to discuss
these same issues around the dinner table back in 1956.

Temple Mount should be open to ALL. Bethlehem should be open to all. The "Way of the Cross" & the "Wailing Wall" should be open to all. There needs to be a permanent ceasefire in the areas of the holy sites and it needs to start immediately. Folks in these areas should be able to respecfully visit each others area without reprisals and without arms and ammo. The United Nations could help police the area better than they have been doing so far..."Give peace a chance", that's all I'm saying, to quote John Lennon.

[stilltrucking]

I can hear Satchmo singing
What a wonderful world this could be

Sounds good to me Steve.


I am trying to think if I have any holy sites I would like to visit.

I think I would like to check this out

Not so much as a true believe but as a a tourist, an amateur anthropologist

[Steve Plonk]

Thanks, Still Trucking...I, too, would like to visit Jerusalem when all
this mess settles down a bit over there. I continue to pray for peace
in the Holy Land.

[stilltrucking]

I pray for peace
anywhere and everywhere
today I am praying for the children of Somalia

Glad to see you Steve I was afraid I had offended you.





Masada Masada
Yes I would like to visit there
Other than that I don't feel much call to visit Israel, if that is what you mean by the holy land

I would also like to visit British Columbia
is that anyone's holy land I wonder.
I would also like to visit the holy land of the Mescalero Apache tribe in northern New Mexico


different strokes I suppose
I wish you
love and peace from
deep in the heart of texas

[Steve Plonk]

No, I appreciated your comments, per usual. I especially like the pictures
including that of Masada.

[Steve Plonk]

Still Trucking, I appreciated your comments. Even some of your sarcastic
jokes make a person think. I especially appreciate the picture of Masada.
Yes, the "holy land" is sending confusing messages because no one
can agree on how to proceed. I may have to reprise an earlier printed comment
from another blog to explain why things are as they are and the history of it all.

[stilltrucking]

Steve I know I sound sarcastic, but I am just crazy. The words Holy Land makes no sense to me anymore. I truly do not understand why one land is holy and another is not.

It all looks so beautiful from a hundred miles out.
The holy land is called the earth, not Israel.

inFreindship
Jt

[Steve Plonk]

Yes, the Earth is One and we are really One People. We have many factions and religions, but as my acquaintance, Ken Kesey used to say, "We are all bozos on the same bus..." or words to that effect. I think Hugh Romney, the hippie hog farm clown would agree on that, also. All my days I've seen one war or another... It would be great to have a "cession" of hostilities in the Middle East and elsewhere. Will it ever happen? Perhaps...In other words,
kind folks and gentle people, "Don't rock the boat, we all gotta float!"

[Steve Plonk]

LIFE IN THE HORSE LANE: Who’s that Masked Man who jest rode in on that “Hoss”?: A Return to a Solution from Yesteryear

By Steve Plonk

I sometimes ‘ channel’ a fellow named Will Rogers. People say my column is offbeat enough to resemble his in an odd sort of way. Well, you know how, if you are in the know. Herein is how “he” would handle the current “Middle East” Crisis. (As we know the players have all changed but the chess game
remains the same...)

I assume, kind folks and gentle people, that you know that Sharon, of Israel, and Arafat, of “Palestine” and the new King Hussein of Jordan are some of the past principle players. Suddenly, this “cowpoke oilman” from Texas rides in. Who’s that Masked Man who just rode in on that “Hoss”? Well, if Bush is the “Lone Ranger” who is “Tonto”? Maybe we’ll give you that answer in another column. At any rate, the USA is involved in this thing “up to the hilt” whether they like it or not. (Now we have a new president, Barack Obama,
who is being challenged by another republican cowpoke from Texas...)

My past solution, with old Will as “channeled help”, is to divide that West Bank right down the center using a geographical ridge which roughly divides the disputed territory in half.
Use the UN and at least 50,000 troops to enforce the division. The western half of the “West Bank” would go to Israeli and UN jurisdiction. The right side or eastern side of the “West Bank” would be repatriated by Jordan which is the country it was wrested from. Jordan would be required to repatriate that portion east of the line whether they like it or not.

Will would call it a “Compromise Plan” and so would my dead Dad-- who also rode in from Texas. (Will was a Californian and expatriate Okie.) Jerusalem and Bethlehem would be surrounded by de-militarized zones—don’t mess with Bethlehem, Arafat! (Kinda like Santa Anna trying to mess with Texas.) Send Arafat packing to “East Palestine”. Ramallah would, of course, be the capital of “East Palestine.” Jerusalem would be unified under Israeli and United Nations mandate. All shrines would be open to any respectful curious person. No weapons, bombs would be allowed in. Troops would be grilled to be sure they aren’t “shy” and would search everyone. The Saudi’s guard their holy city of Mecca—so why shouldn’t Jerusalem and Bethlehem be any different? A joint trusted international force should be guarding the shrines to insure things like what happened recently in Bethlehem don’t happen again anywhere.

Thus, like East and West Germany, “Palestine” would have to wait a while to become a nation-state. Palestine would be divided into East Palestine (administered by Jordan) and West Palestine (administered by Israel). Both countries would have joint United Nations help in administering their respective partitions of “Palestine”. The Gaza Strip would be returned to Egypt and a good bit of the Golan Heights would be returned to
Syria. Look on any National Geographic map of the region and you can find the areas I am talking about. This columnist was even “smart aleck” enough to send color-coded maps and the above solution( in a more complicated format) to the Secretary of State and the Senate Majority Leader. So why shouldn’t my readers be in on this thing?

Would Will Rogers get into this thing if he was alive? You bet he would. So would dear old Dad, who helped a famous general plan the Korean Inchon Landing, and had medals to prove it. So, that is one of my myriad solutions to "Whirled Peas". Onward!

-2- LIFE IN THE HORSE LANE, CONTINUED.
By Steve Plonk

Perhaps, I should worry more about Pine Bark Beetle infestations and other such issues such as: “Why not tax us all back to prosperity”? There is no “free lunch” if you are to save the forests and build a modern alliance for progress. We should all pay our fair share of taxes, which is a subject for another column, too…A sweet graduated income tax would be fair to all. Giddy-up “Hoss” , I’m joining the pro-tax wagon train. Heyahh!
***
So, let's re-elect President Obama and keep sanity in the White House...
However, I still don't agree with today's "two state" solution. Palestine, a Roman word, is a "failed state" and needs to be repatriated by Jordan & Egypt.
Israel must get defendable borders like what I described.

[Arcadia]

President Obama was already reelected ... well, you already know it!

[still.trucking]

Obama is elected
Happy Days are here again
Feels just like 1932 again
them was some bad times
we were headed for world war again


Arcadia:
I don't know why Steve thinks I am sarcastic

did you see this bit on counter punch

Last week, as the fighting raged, President Obama raced to express US support for the Israeli side, in a statement that perfectly exemplifies the tragic-comedy of US foreign policy. The US supported the Israeli side because, he said, “No country on Earth would tolerate missiles raining down on its citizens from outside its borders.” Considering that this president rains down missiles on Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and numerous other countries on a daily basis, the statement was so hypocritical that it didn’t pass the laugh test. But it wasn’t funny.

[Steve Plonk]

To Whom this may Concern: Please read further...
Yes, of course, Obama was re-elected. This thread was last refreshed Sept. 30, of last year. However, last year, this was no certain thing...

The politics & problems with the "Palestinians" & the Israelis remain the same &
the issues remain the same. "Palestine" recently got observer status in the United Nations. That raises the bar for Abbas, & the Fatah party, who's been rejected as a leader by the Hamas. Abbas is in control of the larger unit, "The West Bank", of the Jordan, which has more Fatah supporters. (Fatah, & Hamas continue being the two squabbling factions in the "Palestinian observer state".)

Yes, now there is a ceasefire, & President Obama is on the side of the Israelis--
so what else is new? If you'd read my old post, which was a revamp of a still older commentary, you'd have seen that I think that a compromise should be worked out by all parties involved. My ideas are so old that they are new. They were first suggested back in 1956. If these ideas were followed, Israel would have defensible borders, & there would've been no need for the 1967 or 1973 wars.

We are here only to discuss the Israeli/Palestinian questions. (If you want to
fuss about Afghanistan, Yemen, or Pakistan go to another thread in my column.)
Yes, Israel has the right to defend itself. Hamas has vowed to push Israel into
the sea. Fortunately,Hamas is only in control of Gaza, which I think should be
returned lock, stock, & barrel to Egypt. The Gazans are Egyptians. If this current war continues, Gaza will just become a large parking lot for soldiers, ammo, tanks, & missles.

[Steve Plonk]

Readers, come over here & comment. I won't bite...

[Steve Plonk]

Israel then, Israel now, Israel forever...That is how I see Israel's position in the
middle east.

[Steve Plonk]

Let's discuss things in Israel. If you care to...