Tried to post this earlier today, but was having problems. Hopefully it's up now.
After more than forty years of fighting, Israel and Palestine are making progress in their conflict. Now Palestinians wait until they are the lawful possessors of Israeli structures before 
burning them down.
At least that's what happened in Gaza today when Israeli soldiers completed the withdrawal. I can understand the feelings of frustration and joy that accompany a long struggle and seemingly sudden win. But talk about stupid. Grade A number 1 dumb. It'd be like me going on Wheel of Fortune, winning a brand new car on the word "just deserts" and then walking over to it and throwing in a match.
Sure, Palestinians will say that they are removing a symbol of oppression and unlawful occupation on their land. Good for them. How about being smart for a change. Any idiot can start a fire. It takes a bit of creativity to really give a dig. I'm thinking what the Palestinian's most recent cultural and religious fore-bearers did about 700 years ago in a place called El Andalus, and where the conquering moors didn't simply burn down churches, cathedrals or Castles. They created such enormous, beautiful, architectural wonders in their place, that when the Spaniards finally took them back in 1492, even the bigoted Ferdinando and Isabella were left little choice but to leave them standing. The mosques and moorish palaces are still there, and still impressive.
There's a fundamental problem in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And it's not "they're in my space". It's that neither side has sufficient respect for the other. I'm not saying all Israelis or all Palestinians. But certainly the ones who are doing the fighting. I'm not sure if Sun Tsu said this, or Von Clausewitz, but either one of them should have, if they didn't: it's impossible to have an amicable peace with an adversary one does not respect. The only peace will be one of submission and destruction.
Without takings sides in this issue, Israeli actions for 22 years (at least) have demonstrated a total disrespect for Palestinians. Exhibit A? Palestinians are still living in refugee camps 56 years after the establishment of the Israeli state. Exhibit B? Palestinian militants bomb an Israeli market, Israel bulldozes Palestinian homes. It's old-testament justice, almost to the letter. And look how much peace it's gotten the people who live there.
Palestinians have just as little respect for Israelis' or even themselves. Exhibit A. Person doesn't like that Israeli settlers are moving ever-outward into supposedly Palestinian territory, so person straps TNT to his stomach and gets on a bus in Jerusalem. Hmmm. Great idea. Exhibit B? After said bus explodes, with schoolchildren and housewives on it, Palestinian leader says, "too bad, person was terrorist, nothing I could do." and then waits for it to happen again.
What's my solution? Give the two parties 5 years to show substantive improvement in relations, including the establishment of regular, respectful interactions between political and social leaders at every level between Israel and Palestine. Coordinated efforts to crack down on, and curtail the activities of terrorists and wackos--be they suicide bombers, or ultra-militant "settlers".
If progress isn't made, the UN takes the charter that granted Israel that space and says, "this will expire in 2 months". It also takes the leaders of Israel, and of Palestine, and those that support the terrorists on each side, and ships them to some deserted island in the Aluetians. Drops them there. Naked. No communications. No means of getting away, except swimming through the Northern Pacific.
One group gets a short knife, and a bow; the other a small hatchet, the string for the bow, plus an arrow.
The UN tells these self-righteous, egotistical, self-serving bafoons that a helicopter will come back in 6 weeks. If they are living peacefully, and together, they will be taken back to Israel-Palestine, and their people will be allowed to stay on, and live there--peacefully. If they are all found dead, or there is not peaceful, integrated living, all of their people will be dispersed around the world, and the entire territory of Israel-Palestine will become a World-nature preserve, under the direct administration of his Holiness the Dalai Lama.
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