It is so pleasing and gratifying to see the high level of intelligent and well-informed comment on these pages on this subject.

Well overdue.

The world has now digested as much anti-semitism nonsense as they ever will again and the orchestrated cultural efforts of the museums, exhibition centres and other sideshows are well past their use-by-date, fifty years past to be precise. No such theatre from Russian survivors of the Stalin actions, perhaps 6 times greater that all the Jews in total. They are respected for that restraint and admired for their stoicism and character.

Hard to find a better example of the use of am international event to blackmail a willing world, who initially joined with great sympathy for the act of persecution of gypsies, the mentally deranged, Jews, communists and other unsupported ethnic groups. But that was sixty six years ago. The world has changed. We need friendship not blackmail as the basis for existence in 2011, humanity not aparhteid, love not Zionist hatred and an expansion of good works, not starvation and cruelty.

Happily, for those of us who can count Jewish people among our friends, we have all seen the change from a capable and once likeable people to the hated Zionist. Never the twain shall meet. Ask the friendly Jews who can say they they are Australians through and through and who see their religion as their only Jewish connection, certainly not with the evil ways of Israel.

Certainly not the sayaniums like Mr. Singer and his ilk who use every opportunity to promote the destabilising rhetoric in influencing the likes of weak, malleable politicians like Gillard and others to promote their objectives, not in Australia's interestsfor one second, but for the long term goal of 'Eretz Israel', the generation of funds to enlarge such influence, the expansion by force, murder and cruelty to secure the lands of another nation.

The world will not tolerate it any more, thankfully.

Rhys and csteele,

yes I agree with you both and I think both of you and indeed Singer himself applaud our laws in regard to hate speech.

I think because of the constansy of Singer's negative messages about the Palestinians over the years it is about time he, his message and his methods were tested with a charge under those laws; a charge of hate speech towards Palestinians.

# rexw

You state:
"Bush’s letter therefore is hardly worth the paper on which it is written. He was a blackmailed, small-minded bit player on a middle east stage, the kind of person that falls so easily into the Israeli trap. He was also stupid to boot, but dangerously so."

My comment:
Your statement is utter rubbish. The Bush letter was endorsed by the House and the Senate on 23rd and 24th June 2004.

Were the overwhelming majority of their members (502 out of 513) endorsing the Bush Letter similarly blackmailed, small bit players and the kind of persons that fall so easily into the Israeli trap?

The Bush letter constitutes an American commitment which binds all subsequent Presidents and administrations. I believe Obama's cunning attempt to subvert this Bush commitment will not be swallowed by the House and the Senate. Otherwise America can wave goodbye to ever again having nations believe its international commitments and promises can be trusted.

#csteele

I am flattered that the best you can find to criticize my articles - during your apparently close monitoring of them over the last 12 months - is my failure to use the term "Palestinians".

I am not on my own.

The term "Palestinians" was not used:

1. during the 400 year rule of Palestine by the Ottoman Empire until it ended in 1918,
2, by the British and the French at the Peace Conference in Versailles in 1919, the Treaty of Sevres 1920 and the Treaty of Lausanne 1920
3. by the 52 states comprising the League of Nations in the document constituting the Mandate for Palestine unanimously endorsed by them in 1922.
4. By Britain during 1920-1948 when it was the Mandatory Authority in Palestine
5. By the United Nations in its recommendation for partition of Palestine in 1947 into a Jewish State and an Arab state.
6. In the census statistics where the population was divided into "Moslems","Christians" and "Jews"

The term "Palestinians" appears to have surfaced with the drafting of the PLO Charter in 1964. This document denies the validity of the Mandate and everything that flowed from it and calls for the eradication of the Jewish state. You apparently support that view when you adopt the language of the Charter. That is your entitlement. It is my entitlement to not become a parrot of such vicious and hate filled propaganda,

The more accurate term to employ is "Palestinian Arabs".

I don't have the time to go back over my old articles but perhaps you can count the number times I have used the term "Palestinian Arabs".

Readers are no doubt eagerly awaiting the results of your ongoing research. Happy counting

#To the rest of the contributors so far

I do not believe any of your comments takes issue with any of the facts or conclusions in my article. If I am wrong then please point out where you specifically disagree with what I have written in this article and I will reply.

In other words - concentrate on the message and not messenger.

Singer is correct. Only when the so called Palestinians realize that as inhabitants of a centuries long colonized land they have no more rights than the native inhabitants of pre 19th century Ireland, 20th century Americas, Africa or Australasia. Ottomans gave their total control to the Christian Euros and gave control to the Zionists.
The so called Palestinians have no right to question their ethnic cleansing. No right to water that their masters refuse to give them. No right to farm. No rights whatsoever.
One can tell Obama hates Israel because instead of providing the 5th Fleet to help the Israelis in their life and death defensive struggle against Gaza, he held back.
When the illegal invasion from Gaza was stopped by Israel instead of providing megatons of ordnance Israel needed, he merely replaced each cluster bomb, each White Phosphorus, each bullet and each bomb on a one for one basis. Instead of running antiterrorist assassination squads through the West Bank and Gaza he merely helps train the Israelis.

I'm glad to read David Singer's articles here, where thoughtless support for (let's call them, for now) the non-jewish residents of the land which the Romans called Palestine in 137ad - the palestinian Arabs, both Muslim (around 95%), Christian and some other, very small minorities (such as Samaritan).
Opinion polls done by palestinian groups, surveying palestinian people, show nearly 90% support for destroying Israel as a jewish state. This is not only behind the daily rocket attacks from liberated Gaza. It is also behind the demand that all those who claim to be refugees from the war the Muslim Arab countries started against Israel in 1948, and all their descendants, be allowed to return to their former place of residence.
Those claiming this right of return know that they now outnumber the jews who live in Israel, and they intend to use their majority status to change Israel from being a Jewish state into a Muslim state. If they were to succeed in doing so, you can hold your breath until the murders start. This is continually the sticking point of negotiations between the two groups, and successive palestinian negotiators know that if they agree to a Jewish Israel, and no (or very limited) return, they will themselves be murdered by their constituants.
There already is a palestinian state - it's called Jordan, formed on more than 50% of the British Mandate called Palestine. If there is to be another one, those who will make up its population need to agree that, having lost all the wars they've started with Israel, they don't have the right any more to determine the terms of the peace.