peedeecee:

I agree with you that Israel is capable of defending itself for now.
but it should not require:
a)nuclear weapons - these are only useful if they are never used, a mideast version of MADD, and with terrorists apparently well funded and the raw materials of weaponry ill defended, and the statelessness of terrorists, having nukes will not protect a country from all possible attacks, as the US recently was reminded.
b)powerful standing army - How long should a country have most of its people of military age under arms. Its a powerful economic drain.
c)protection of the United States. A good deal of the rest of the world has shown no such regard. I think Israel would like to get along with the rest of the world, too.

If the people of Israel have no rights themselves, then they also have no motivation for limits on their behavior. If they have the right to their own country, then it involves support for that country's continued existence.

The powerful Arab countries, in particular Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, and the powerful Muslim country of Iran have no recognition of Israel and considerable men at arms and money.

The problem of what to do with a burgeoning Palestinian population has not been effectively addressed by the world. Israel has been allowed, if not required, to resettle Jews from the world over. This displaced population has not been balanced by an acceptance of resettled Islamic and Christian Palestinians by the other Arab countries, except for one country: Israel itself, which has significant Arab and Druse populations.

Israel at present has very very small landmass, and parts of it can be walked across in a day.

In the ideal world, those who are prospective neighbors would be required to sit at table and make some concessions.

My opinion is that not only has Israel made powerful concessions, but has offered to make more. These offers have been assumed to be a starting point, with further concessions which would put the fate of the State at doubt. Israel feels entitled to put self preservation ahead of these interests.

The information I have, not dependent on this forum, is that for a long time Palestinians and the local Arab nations have indeed maintained an educational system which has again and again harped on the evil of the Israelis and the purity of the Arabs. In some cases the schools with these teachings have been UN funded. I have met some American Jews with a reverse psychology, but I have NEVER met an Israeli Jew so constituted.

Anyhow, I am afraid the issue is so polarized nothing will be achieved within this forum and more painful, in the outside world. I think one thing we can all take from this is that Israel has no motivation to behave any differently that it has, and if you give them as Peedeecee does that they have nuclear weapons, and a big standing army , and the support of the UN, then I would also submit that Israel has shown a great deal of restraint, for which I bet they won't get any credit.

In the meantime, over in Darfur in the Sudan, Islamic Arabs are wholesale slaughtering Islamic black Africans, but never fear, the UN is going to fix it.