Nickhere your post of 22 Jan 09 - 07:39 PM misses the point I was trying to illustrate. You wanted to know what "not having a right to exist" meant. I'll go back to my illustration - your neighbours want you dead, they want to destroy you and all trace of you in the neighbourhood. It's got damn all to do with with "burning rubbish" and petty annoyance. Now if you are capable of imagining such a situation, then that is the situation Israel has found itself in for the last 60 years and its a situation that the Jews in Palestine have lived with for 89 years.

John in Kansas has laid it out perfectly, as with most things in life it comes down to selection, a matter of choice and learning by experience. In the case of the Arabs of Palestine they have consistantly shown poor judgement in which course of action to select and in their choice of leadership. After 60 years plus, I would have thought that experience would have caused them to rethink a few things in order that they might thrive and prosper.

As it stands it reminds me of the conversation that Picton reportedly had with Wellington at Waterloo as they watched D'Erlon's attack in column approach their troops formed in line:

"They come on in the same old way, so we will just have to beat them in the same old way"

When the cease-fires were announced a few days ago in Gaza there must have been quite a feeling of deva vu on both sides, and no doubt once Hamas has replenishedtheir supply of rockets the fighting will start again - their choice and the wrong one - once again.