What is Israel to you?

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kismet

Israel is my homeland.
No Kingdom of Palestine ever existed, other than the ancient Jewish kingdoms of Israel and Judea, or the short-lived, Christian Crusader kingdom based in Jerusalem. From the time that Kingdom fell to the great Kurdish leader Saladin in 1187 (less than 100 years after its founding) no independent governmental entity existed in the area of Israel and the Palestinian territories until the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948. For that reason, history records no kings or princes of Palestine, nor even governors and viceroys, who were associated with a nationality identified as “Palestinian.”

And what about other famous Palestinians through the millennia—the architects and scientists and writers and spiritual leaders? Among proud Scots, the world has recognized the likes of Alexander Graham Bell, Adam Smith, John Knox, David Hume, Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Walter Scott, James Watt, Alexander Fleming, Andrew Carnegie and many, many more.

If even the most devoted supporters of Palestinian nationalism were asked to identify a famous representative of that nationality who had gained notoriety prior, say, to 1950, who could they name?

If a people who claim that their origins stretch back into “the mists of time” can’t identify a single famous figure as one of their own – no, not one -- what does it say about the authenticity of their historic nationality?

The absence of any notable figures in the arts and sciences, religion or politics, who were known to history as “Palestinian” isn’t just a reflection of the fact that the Arab villages like Al Quds (Jerusalem), Hebron and Yaffo represented under-populated, destitute backwaters in the larger (and culturally dynamic) Arab world. It’s also an indication that the people who grew up in those dusty settlements in the ancient Holy Land of the Bible never identified themselves as “Palestinian.” They were content to see themselves as Arabs, part of larger Islamic empires like those of the Caliphate, the Mamluks, and the Ottoman Sultanate. The ethnic identity “Palestinian” didn’t exist – and the term “Southern Syrians” continued to characterize the inhabitants of the Holy Land up through the early twentieth century.

In terms of identifying famous (or notorious) Palestinians through the long march of recorded time, the one name that inevitably emerges is the late Yasser Arafat—despite the fact that he was born and raised in Egypt and educated in Kuwait, and his “Palestinian roots” have always looked questionable. Serious challenges as to his origins also surround the late Edward Said, an Arab-American scholar who spent nearly all his life in New York City but chose to identify as a Palestinian.

But both of these famous figures achieved their notoriety, and sought to label themselves as “Palestinian” after the deliberate creation of the synthetic Palestinian identity, confirmed with the official launch of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in 1965. Prior to that time, the leaders of the populous, local Arab communities in Gaza and the West Bank (which had been annexed by Egypt and Jordan, respectively, in 1949) made few demands of their Arab overlords for a separate state to express their distinctive national aspirations. The insistence on an independent Palestinian Arab state (offered explicitly as part of the UN Partition in 1947, but peremptorily turned down by all Arab leaders) only became a fixation on the world scene after Israel’s victory in 1967 gave the Jewish State control of the Arab communities in the West Bank and Gaza.

During the first Arab-Israeli war, even as hundreds of thousands of Arab refugees fled from their homes to escape the raging conflict, these “Palestinians” hardly viewed an independent state and an expression of local nationalism as a necessary element in solving their problems. In the summer of 1948, after Israel’s declaration of Independence, the UN dispatched the Swedish nobleman Count Folke Bernadotte to the region to try to negotiate a truce. During his visit, he wrote in his diary: “The Palestinian Arabs had at the present no will of their own. Neither have they ever developed any specifically Palestinian nationalism. The demand for a separate Arab state in Palestine is consequently relatively weak. It would seem as though in existing circumstances most of the Palestinian Arabs would be quite content to be incorporated in Transjordan.”

These incontrovertible facts about the fraudulent nature of Palestinian nationalism help to explain its frenzied and fanatical characteristics. Ambrose Bierce defined a fanatic as “one who, when unsure of his argument, redoubles his intensity.” With no distinctive history to fuel their pride, no great achievements or figures from the past who connect with their group or to lend dignity to their claims, today’s self-defined “Palestinians” rely on crazed extremism – suicide bombing, training children to slaughter, etc.

G. #2

garbage

DON'T VOTE BNP

There is no country called Palestine, it's Israel!

Teresa (SFECU) -†- pray4revival

You obviously have no concept of history or the truth.

Here's a hint:
There has never, let me repeat that for those who still haven't gotten it... NEVER ... been a country called Palestine. There was a "territory" approximately eight times the size of Israel and it consisted of both Jews and Arab-Palestinian-Muslims who were content as long as the Jews were forced to submit themselves to their oppressive rule.

There were several countries carved out of that territory; the majority of which are in fact Arab-Palestinian countries. Most of it went to "create" Jordan, the actual country of Palestine.

There has been a country named Israel twice in recorded history. The past 60 years is one of those times. This was voted on and agreed to by international leaders who all agreed that the Jews living there should in fact have their homeland returned to them so that they, like all other people could be self-governing. All the denying it or instigating wars over it is not going to change it.

Israel in fact didn't cleanse any Arabs out of the tiny corner of that sandbox that was given back to them. There were more Jews (850,000) cleansed from Arab countries after Israel was reinstated than those of Arabs who fled (not to be confused with cleansed) from Israel.

Your opinion is of no consequence so I suggest you get over your hatred for Israel and the Jews that live there... Israel is NOT going away!

MikeInRI

This is what Israel means to me and many who hold similar beliefs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFUdKve0dkc - I hope you can understand why myself and many others feel such a connection to it. When you realize this then maybe the actions of Israelis, Zionists, and others would make sense to you and you would not find their actions so defensive - but as they see it a righteous.

Good Luck!!!

bad tim, sitting this one out

israel to me is an independent nation that has every right to exist.

palestine is the name emperor hadrian gave to the roman province of JUDEA in order to offend rebellious jews. it has never existed as an independent state. it went from hadrian's united rome to the western roman empire and then to the ottoman turks before the british took it over and eventually gave it BACK to the jews. there's no such thing as a palestinian, sorry.

it's also my understanding that jews who settled there after the war bought and paid for their own land. arabs are doing nothing more than continuing the genocidal work of mohammed, which he started when he made up the koran as an arab equivalent of the christian bible.

~Sawyer

Interesting question. I'm Jewish. In my Scriptures, I see G-d giving the land of Israel to the nation of Israel & the Hebrew peoples whom descend into what we know today as Jews. I see where G-d predicted the nation of Israel before it existed. I also see where He predicts the nation will be re-born in a single day. (An interesting play on words for the born-again Christians!)
I see G-d telling Ishmael & his descendants that they will live to the East of Israel, & that all nations will be against them...which appears to be pretty accurate.
I see the land of Israel as the one place on earth where Jews are free to have their own place to live & worship as they desire.
I see Muslims & Arabs pretty much taking over nation after nation (Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Sudan, Algeria, Afghanistan, Morocco, Iraq, etc) on an ever-expanding quest. Israel has 1 plot of land & it appears the Muslims & Arabs want that, too. There is a sense of never being satisfied with enough, when it comes to the Muslims. Israel has given up land, yet you want more. When will Israel be allowed to live in peace, on their own soil?

Joe S

Israel is the destination for a great deal of wealth that I would have rather retained. That a great amount of that wealth goes into weapons that destroy lives and property is appalling to me.

Yeah, just keep telling yourself that.

roshan6040

conflicted and unaware! much like the Germans in the 1940's

Bill

from now on, whenever I hear the word 'Holocaust' I'm going to think about what Israel did to women and children this week

samy n

do you want my opinion realy? .......out of policy and the wide words we always hear?.........it do all best things our islam asked us to do....[high education,,,invitation......high private force by thir hands,,,libiraryand democrecy[[of course for its israel peoples only] god hard work,,,luxury for its citizens,,,change thir leaders easy according to thir results done for thir peoples,,,,,,,,all these things our islam asked us to do forprogress of humanity and luxury and peace of all hence we thank god every timeseeing his great gifts for us but by our hard work but sorry we left the essential mission to others,,,,,,,,the strong relgious people is better for god than the weak one,,,,,,thestrenth is in religionwell understanding......sciences force,health heavy work,,,,,and many and many

peace on earth

Natzi in the middle east who got lots of peace haters supporters

nibras04

Without the US budget, Israel would have never existed.
There is no such thing as Israel existed, they were basically a bunch of homeless people looking for a place to live in. So, America adopted them and supported them.

!!

thunder2sys

hmm...in this current situation..was it Hamas or Israel who lauched rockets first?

porquemoi

Israel is my ally in the war against islamofascism, and I take this war very seriously...

Bahoonies

Now hold on there just a cotton pickin' minute, Bald Eagle. If we accept your argument that the land is rightfully Palestine and has been since at least the year 600, then it follows that somebody must have had the land before that time. So, with the rise and expansion of Islam the land was taken from the rightful owners. Therefore, the Palestinians have no claim on it either and both they and the Israelis should acknowledge this and leave immediately. Gosh, I never realised until now how easy it would be to solve the biggest issue dogging the Middle East. The question is, where are we going to put all those displaced ex- Israelis and ex-Palestinians?

Bahira

It is a bloodthirsty monster of a pseudo-government,like a political version of Godzilla. It simply destroys. It is an evil thing and must be destroyed.

♥Puma♥

Israel belongs to the Jews. The Muslims have their nation and the Jews theirs.

sara

you want to know what is israel to me it's nothing more then a Bench of terrorists who kill innocents children and women i can't believe that the hole world is seeing this massacre and still saying that israel is an independent harmless nation just hearing that kills me inside ,israel does not even deserve to exist and will not keep existing for ever however u.s.a helped her and give her her military budget .and people who say that israel acting are just reacting for the rocket of "hamas "are either stupid or terrorists too ;children and women war supposed to be save and that's what international laws say ,but who cares it's israel .

Nuts Coco

A country that respects its people

Arieh

You're a perfect example of why the State of Israel needs to exist as a safe haven for Jews around the world who make the persecution of the Palestinians look like they are playing in an amusement park in historical comparison to what has happened to the Jews.

Valencianista

the world needs more of your kind to say what you said, they're too ignorant and brain-washed to know the truth.
thank you for sharing that truth.

___

LOL you keep wishing it away maybe it will work.. if you are a child.

magicofdawn (again)

Israel is a democratic State surrounded by a bunch of barbarians who have no knowledge of history AT ALL. Is this the kind of garbage that is taught in the madrassas and mosques?

IMO Israel should destroy Hamas once and for all so they can have a little peace until the next Muslim terror group comes along.

Nothing, only filthy cowards who are ignorant and actually think that Palestine is theres. Stupid huh.

Photo Finnish

I think it's the place where the jews who steal from the Americans, send their money to ...evade the law.
Also when gay jews kill their partners, go to israel where they are greeted like heroes.
There are more reasons but because I like the jews I won't say no more.
My pretty little lips are sealed

Hey jewish posters, I want my $600 back the jew travel agent stole from me.
Ooops they are ready to hit me with phosphorus missiles, Duck!!!!!

missed, heh heh heh, hey: "Up yours mate!"

Oh no they are coming back, gotta run, catch you ltr!

[ImpaKt]

A fascist apartheid state filled with wussy cowards
who're even scared of their own shadows.

And agree, they're nothing without the monthly billions of $$ from US along with whole lot of other aids paid by American tax payers.

But, America and American are finally awaken and
finally are realizing the trap they've all been fallen in for so long to
support bunch of timidly ninnies who're not even appreciative and worthy of their support.

Their time's come and it'll be the judgment day for these creatures have done many crimes and gotten a way with it for so long.

Funny how they're all so proud of murdering
the innocent defenseless civilians with
their up to date army and all these support given by the US.

It's just too pathetically funny!

ADD:....ha!ha!ha!.....look who's talking about ''the concept of history or the truth'' (teressa the lying zion, down below!lol)

These lying zions in whom their veins are filled
with ''lies & fabrications'' than blood preaching
about ''concept & the truth''! LOL......very funny!

and of course, their endless cut & past with BS links are heavily in progress!

*** Told ya'........kids are in tears and busy with their multiple accounts thumbing down. LOL

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