issue 09 / volume 41 opinions // 19

Palestine could end up winning
with Netanyahu’'s re-election

» Israeli PM's own election promises could lead to review of US relationship

Patrick Vaillancourt
Senior Columnist

rime Minister of Israel

Benjamin Netanyahu left no

stone unturned when seeking
a fourth term as the leader of
Israel’s government, appealing
to the extreme right-wing voter
groups that oppose sovereignty
for Palestine. Netanyahu

promised as much if re-elected,

saying that he would never
allow the so-called “two-state
solution” to be realized.

On election night, he
released a YouTube video
meant to spread fear, saying
that his leftist opponents were
bringing in “busloads of Arabs
to the polls.”

The racist comments, as
well as the rewriting of Israeli
foreign policy with respect
to Palestine, have caught
the attention of the United
States at a time of heightened
animosity between Netanyahu
and US president Barack
Obama.

 

Obama called Netanyahu

: to inform him that the US

: was considering a review of

its relationship with Israel,

: including support for its issues
: in the United Nations as well

: as regular aid packages and
weapons deals.

Such a review, if it ever

came to fruition, could be
: disastrous for Israel and a
: massive victory for Palestinians, :
: who seek to create their own
sovereign country.

Despite their close

: relationship in years past, the

hi

: Obama administration has

: grown increasingly frustrated

: with Netanyahu. Last month,

: Netanyahu addressed a joint

: session of the US Congress,

: against the stern objections of
; the White House, and spoke

: about the dangers of any

: negotiated settlement between
: Obama and Iran on the Iranian
: nuclear issue.

An anonymous White

: House official familiar with
: the call spoke to the New York
: Times and said that Obama
: told Netanyahu that a review

: of the US-Israeli relationship
: would be necessary given

: Netanyahu’s pre-election

: Opposition to the two-state

: framework, which most :
: members of the UN support. If :
: Obama were to effectively pull
: US support from Israelatthe
: UN, that would allow foravote :
: on Palestinian sovereignty—
: which, if the US does not

: exercise their right to veto,

: would most certainly pass.

: be turbulent for Netanyahu
: personally, as Palestine has

  
   

Photo by Kevin Lamarque via Reuters :

The situation could also

: been trying to have war crimes
: charges brought against

: the Israeli leader in the

: International Criminal Court

: (ICC), an investigation which

: has been ina preliminary

: phase since January. The US

: has effectively protected Israeli
: leaders from the ICC, but a

: review of US-Israeli relations

: could lead to movement on this
: case at the Hague.

By all accounts, this is an
extreme scenario that is not

: likely to take place. A review

: of the diplomatic relationship

: between the US and Israel does
: not in itself spell a concrete

: victory for Palestinians nor

does it mean a US endorsement

: ofa Palestinian state. If the
: White House is serious about

pursuing a review, both

: America and the Middle East

: could stand to benefit from

: not leaving any diplomatic

: sanctions off the table with

: respect to Israel. In fact, it may
: even benefit the Americans in
: their fight against terrorism.

 

Injustice and other unfairness of life

» What is our relationship like with injustice?

Elliot Chan
Opinions Editor
© opinions
@theotherpress.ca

 

he world is full of injustice.

It could be a driver taking
your parking spot, a dickhead
keying the side of your vehicle,
or a tow truck pulling your
car away. When we think of
injustice we often think of
those frustrating situations
where our instinctual reaction
is fight or flight. We get angry,
we want to confront the person
for cutting in line. We want
to throw a punch at the clerk
for overcharging us. We want
to lash out because we treat
injustice as a direct punishment
for a crime we didn’t do. We are
victims.

Life is full of these
situations where we are left
feeling helpless. There is no
immediate solution; we simply
have to rise above it. If our first
thought when something bad
happens is to make someone
else’s life worse, then we are
fuelling more injustice in
the world. Your fury will not
get you the parking spot you

: wanted, it won't fix the side

: of your car, and it won't carry
: you to the impound. We need
: to understand that there are

: people in the world who are

: pricks. They take their anger out
: on others and get satisfaction
: for it. We must stand up for

: ourselves, but we cannot

: become like them. We are the
: solution.

Mistreatment and

unfortunate situations are

: a part of life. There is not a

: microscope on you catching you
: at your weakest and harming

: you when you least expect. We

: are all governed by the ebb and
: flow of fortune and sometimes

: we catch the bullshit in the

: face. Once we understand that

: everybody steps in a puddle

: or gets nudged in a crowded

: space, we can learn to operate

: with some self-preservation

: and human decency. We are the
: change.

We cannot control other

people, we cannot control the

: malfunctioning mechanism of

: the universe, we cannot force

: an apology, but we can change

: our mindset. Our self-interest

: is a powerful force and it often

: clouds our perception. We must

: be well-adjusted people and
: handle injustice with grace and
: humility.

It’s unlikely that the man

: who cut in front of you to get

: the prime parking spot was

: rushing into the store to buy

: medicine for his wife, who

had not left the bed in days—

: but it could be exactly what’s

: happening. He could have

: just come from work, where
he is pressured to perform

: as cutbacks are being issued.

: He wants to get in and out as

: quickly as possible and return
: to his crappy life. He wants to
relax, make dinner, and go to

: sleep early so that he can go

: back to work tomorrow ready

: to grind it out some more.

: Suddenly, your injustice seems
: like a childish tantrum. We are
: all victims.

Being an adult means being

able to handle these injustices

: and transform them into

: knowledge, experiences, and

: wisdom. There is a reason for

: everything that happens, and

: perhaps the greatest injustice

: in the universe is when we don’t
: learn from the unfairness, so

: that we may prevent or at least

: mitigate it in the future.

 

 

Image from Thinkstock