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The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil,    but because of the people who don't do anything about it

Occupation magazine - Commentary Home page  back Print  Send To friend Reality check - Jeremy Ben-Ami vs. Bill Kristol John and Sharon Kleinheksel Mail message from jandskleinheksel@gmail.com Dear Friend, There was a debate on New York`s Upper West Side between J-Street`s Jeremy Ben-Ami and right-wing Israeli supporter Bill Kristol. (With thanks to John Bosma and Jake Terpstra for news of this debate) Kristol admitted he was a supporter of the ruling Likud-Kadima coalition in Isr/Pal now. The question is simply: What do you intend to happen if Israel does not end the occupation? For the left – for Jeremy Ben-Ami in the debate in New York – the answer is starkly clear. The Palestinians will demand one-man-one-vote. Israel will be unable to withstand that demand. Israel will lose its character as the Jewish sovereign state and will become, in effect, a bi-national state. The `one-state solution.` For the right, the question is invariably an occasion for obfuscating blather. For the religious right, that blather includes vague but menacing invocations of Divine providence and/or intervention. But Kristol is not one to dissemble or blather. His answer is chillingly straightforward: We can withstand a Palestinian demand for one-man-one-vote. The indefinite maintenance of the current status quo “is also an option.` At once, with breathtaking simplicity, our [USA] national debate is framed in truthful terms. At its core it is about one`s assessment of the feasibility of this `indefinite maintenance` option. The left assesses it unfeasible – and says so. The right assesses it is feasible – and obfuscates. What Kristol said is what Bibi believes. But Bibi would never say it, would never admit to believing it, because it is so politically incorrect. Kristol is under no such deceitful inhibitions. Links to the latest articles in this section Is there still a chance to break the cycle of revenge and bloodshed? Israelis Against Apartheid Statement Following ICJ Hearing Three weeks into the Gaza War - a somber and sober assessment, with some historical perspectives