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The Legitimacy of the Palestinians is the Issue

Reader comment on item: Israel Does Not Need Palestinian Recognition?
in response to reader comment: Israel's legitimacy rests on its embrace of liberty

Submitted by Alan Nitikman (United States), Jun 30, 2006 at 13:42

I agree with Prodos that the legitimacy of Israel is in its essentially Western recognition of the rights of the peaceful Individuals within it. In protecting the rights of its citizens, regardless of ethnic, religious, or political stripe, it is a legitimate government, by definition. There is nothing "legitimate" about a dictatorship: It is merely a prison in which the dictator holds the keys. Dictators expropriate the wealth and freedom of others as would a gang lord and are no more legitimate than would a Mafia Don be were he to declare a borough of New York his own personal property. With the conditioned exceptions of Turkey and Egypt, Israel is currently the only legitimate nation in the Middle East.

I disagree with Dr. Pipes on the necessity for Israel to be recognized by the Paletinian Authority. The Palestinians, and the rest of the Arab nations, certainly recognize that there is an entity there that they despise and wish to eliminate. The recognition that Israel needs is not the Palestinian pawns, but the West, itself. The U.S. and Europe, by their moral equivocation, have asked Israel to commit suicide and have pressured it on every destructive decision it has made since the 6-day war.

The ultimate goal of Israel's war should be the defeat of those who have announced their intent to destroy it -- self-defense -- eliminating their ability to threaten its continued existence. Their acquiescense would be trivial and pro-forma. As long as the Palestinians see any movement at all by the Israelis toward accomodation of demands for sacrifice of values, they will continue to hope for the removal of the State of Israel. When they have seen that the result of their efforts have become the cause of their own destruction, when the loudest Islamist voices have been removed from the face of the Earth, when peaceful coexistence replaces violent domination as their fondest dream, then Israel will have achieved its goal and everyone can get back to civilized, productive lives and we can put this medieval insanity behind us.

Submitting....

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

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Reader comments (26) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
Time [5 words]Michele EzellSep 26, 2009 00:02162127
It's the words ... "Right to Exist" is not an acceptable phrase. [148 words]Sofa SogoodDec 8, 2007 22:42115939
Don't follow your logic, Dr. Pipes [321 words]HarryJul 11, 2006 07:0149383
Israel Should Walk Tall: Recognizing "Right to Exist" Small Consolation & Misguided [84 words]Robert VivaletJul 5, 2006 10:3548918
A Right to EXIST? (August 2002) [635 words]Giv CornfieldJul 1, 2006 20:5848691
Israel Does Not Need Palestinian Recognition? [14 words]steven lJun 30, 2006 21:2748622
right on [32 words]allan wallaceJun 30, 2006 17:2948597
Right to Exist [44 words]BruceJun 30, 2006 15:1748585
Recognition [98 words]Robert SolotJun 30, 2006 14:1948579
Cnly the Names Change [153 words]dr. richard s. tombackJun 30, 2006 13:5048573
time to act- end of oslo era [332 words]michael wiseJun 28, 2006 11:5948355
"With God On Our Side" [271 words]GeorgesJun 28, 2006 03:5448322
JEWISH LEMMINGS HAVE THEIR DAY [1656 words]FERN SIDMANJun 27, 2006 13:2648256
The Arabs are such babies, and dangerous ones [128 words]bobJun 26, 2006 19:0148205
I agree [107 words]ServanneJun 9, 2007 02:4948205
The "rightest" nation in the cemetery.... [64 words]AaronJun 26, 2006 10:0048178
The most important Israeli achievement would be Arab Islamic recognition of our right to a sovereign state [194 words]Kenneth S. BesigJun 26, 2006 02:4448163
The "Israel Test" [113 words]PRODOSJun 27, 2006 09:3848163
Recognition is a game, what will matter will be the borders [347 words]Jonathan PfefferJun 25, 2006 22:3748158
voa [32 words]cyrusJun 22, 2006 15:4348057
alamdari [36 words]cyrusJun 22, 2006 16:4248057
A question of reciprocity? [75 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Saikat BiswasJun 22, 2006 15:2548055
in my opinion [40 words]terence silberJun 21, 2006 11:5148001
and? [42 words]S.H.Jun 23, 2006 00:5948001
Israel's legitimacy rests on its embrace of liberty [137 words]PRODOSJun 26, 2006 09:1648001
The Legitimacy of the Palestinians is the Issue [343 words]Alan NitikmanJun 30, 2006 13:4248001

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Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

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