Nerd, I agree. The problem is in some of the members of the UN not respecting the rights of Jewish people. It's not an easy solution. I think it may have to ultimately be a situation whereby Israel will allow Palestinian representation it its parliament. The Palestinians have a history in the area that can't be denied. I think Noam Chomsky is on the right track. A separation of Palestine from Israel will result in a kind of "Bantustan" which serves neither Jew or Palestinian.

The thing that I worry about is Israel today is that the rights of the Refusniks (which are conscientious objectors) are denied. This doesn't bode well for a country priding itself on democracy.

The UN might be able to broker a deal whereby Palestine would not have to be separated. This would require a separation of church and state very much like we honor in our own country (except thatit is being undermined by Bush.) There are also Jewish Palestinians as well. The problem is not that the solution can't be found. It's the entrenched attitude of both Israel and Palestine that is the problem.

Islam and Judaism have been historically harmonious before. In the Ottoman empire, Jewish people were not persecuted. When the Christian community moved in, then they were.

The way out of the theocratic box would be to accept other than Orthodoxy as representative of Judaism in Israel and this is a great sticking point. It's not unlike what Christians in the US have to contend with by a small obnoxious vocal minority of conservative evangelicals who claim they own the religion. Plurality is the answer. Getting people to accept this is the major drawback.

Orthodoxy in religion has been the stumbling block to world peace for some time. It has political ramifications since Constantine and before. We need to de-politicize religion and temper the evangelical fervor internationally.

The UN has this potential and it's the only body that can accomplish tolerance and plurality at this time in our history. One way to encourage this is for every country to support it and be a member nation. This support would apply to both Israel and the US.

The Mid-east violence is a disease that unfortunately has been exacerbated by the meaningless war in Iraq. If Americans are targeted by Al Quaeda, it's because they don't understand why. It's simple in a way. The extremist so-called terrorists are fearful of being absorbed by a Christian cartel. The Muslim community is being stifled in that they can't support the violence of pseudo-Christianity in the US through the Bush failed policies. It comes down to fear again. But the fear resides in the White House and this is why the lines are drawn in the sand. It's a national paranoia that activates a similar response in extremist Islam. Judaism, Christianity and Islam as well as every other major religion in the world start with the premise of peace at the base. Then the politics enter and the agendas flash like swords and the very principles of each respective faith is compromised.

The UN is our hope, now, and we must encourage it to stay true to the values of it's inception. International law must prevail.

Frank