The Author has a strange view of History.

-Pre 1948 Jews were BUYING land sold to them freely by Arabs.
-Arabs were working with Jews improving the land. Benefitting from the technology and motivation the Jews brought with them.
-But given that 'multi-culturalism' has not worked, is not working and will never work, as soon as some bright spark Arab agitator spread false rumors about "Jews overtaking/destroying Muslim holy places in Jerusalem"...there was a massacre of Jews in Hebron. see "hebron Massacre"

-The UN offered a partition solution... it was ACCEPTED by Jews and REJECTED by Arabs who then..in 1948 began a war against Jews on their ancestral land,-Israel.

THAT..... repeat THAT....is the crux of the problem.

Neve.. during the period 1939 to 45 Millions of Jews were systematically murdered.. among those Jews were those who actually assisted their Nazi captors.... *think* about that!

ANDREW PRIOR.. better rewire that Church again brother to cater for the self inflicted gunshot wound to your foot as you speak from your moral pulit high high above contradiction..and speak with uplifted voice "Oh Lord.. I thank you that 'I' am NOT like those nasty Jews who took Palestinian land"... errr there is a slight problem with that..both theologically and historically here in good ol Aussie land.
After all.. the Indigenous people simply gave it to us ...right?

Sir Ivor.. you again? still trying to find morally satisfying solutions to problems which have always only been solved in terms of Chairman Mao's dictum "Political power comes from the barrel of a gun"

Or.. From Comrade Lenin "A man with a gun can control 100 people without one"

HERE IS THE TEST.......

All those who can solve:

a) White Australian/Indigenous issues.
b) White American/Indian disposession issues.
c) Invasion of English by Normans issues.
d) Canadian/Indigenous Indian disposession issues.
e) Tamil/Sinhalese issues.
f) Balkan issues
(and so on it goes)... PUT YOUR HANDS UP!

because if can't solve those problems.. what lunacy and level of mental retardation makes you think you can solve the Israeli/Arab one?

Ivor!..I said those who CAN...put that hand down.

Israel and the proposition...selling 'ethical warfare' is a contradiction in terms. I found it more encouraging to hear that some Israelis were prepared to be jailed rather than be bulldozed by a corrupt government. That signals a glimmer of hope to the wider world.

More encouraging too is the rising clamor of a critical angry world...now numbering among its ranks the Vatican and the UN Secretary General himself who's stood in the ruins of Gaza himself and viewed the destruction of UN facilities...drawing near the horrendous thought for the discredited Osraeli government that it's already being quizzed at the bar of international opinion for its war crimes in Gaza.

Barry Cohen, who has to be the front runner for stand up comic of any year....has been absurd enough of late to call for a written guarantee from the new US administration to ensure that Israel is never destroyed. That's Cohen talk for "please can we have another Bush-type open cheque". Cohen has yet to realise that the greatest threat to the survival of Israel comes not from the Palestinians nor the Iranians...but the Israelis themselves...and that Mr Obama has no intention of allowing US Middle East policy to be dictated from Tel Aviv.

Once Israel comes to recognise the right of everyone to exist, others will afford them the same right. Till then, Mr Cohen, hang onto your day job.

relda,

"Nation states characteristically are expansive" no, they are not,at least in the 21st century. Israel is a most unusual nation state, especially one that claims to be a democracy, it is a predator that attacks and displaces its defenceless neighbours. Hamas is a gift to the Israelis, they would have to negotiate with a moderate organization with all that implies. Since Israel has all the weapons violence is easier.

"..the perverse ideology whose pedigree dominates an entire culture" this is a remarkable self -serving generalisation, are you implying that they're all evil and legitimate targets? Israel has forced the Gazans into a ghetto and expelled the Palestinians from the West Bank, I'm not surprised they are infuriated and desperate.

Sir Vivor,

Those gentiles who think that they can expiate the guilt of 2000 years of anti-semitism by agreeing to the loss of Palestinian lives and homeland are moral imbeciles.

Boaz, at some point you really must begin to take some responsibility for potential outcomes of your whack-a-mozzie antics.

>>...given that 'multi-culturalism' has not worked, is not working and will never work, as soon as some bright spark Arab agitator spread false rumors about "Jews overtaking/destroying Muslim holy places in Jerusalem"...there was a massacre of Jews in Hebron<<

Here's a little word substitution that might bring the message closer to home.

"...given that 'multi-culturalism' has not worked, is not working and will never work, as soon as some bright spark Christian agitator spread false rumors about "Muslims overtaking/destroying the cultural fabric of Australia""...there was a massacre..."

You persistently deny that you are that "bright spark Christian agitator", but to me the description fits like a glove.

I am sure that you would be horrified at the thought that you might be the catalyst for interfaith mayhem. But that's exactly where you are headed.

So “R’ was protesting against his own country’s “assault on Gaza”. It would be interesting to learn just what form the ‘protest’ took; there are protests and protests.

The “assault on Gaza” is stupid. The Hamas assault on Israel is what started the whole thing. Rather than detain “R” and the 700 idiots, it would have been a good idea to drive them across the border so that they could be with their terrorist mates.

Gordon’s remark about the media “towing the Government line” and not broadcasting any criticism of the war is right from the crackpot left cave Gordon lives in. It’s one thing to criticise in peace time, it’s another thing entirely to criticise your own country in wartime, particularly when your enemy lives right next door, and will kill you if he can.

And, “…ostensibly logical argumentation”? What would it take this weird woman to get behind the defence of her own country against terrorism! Put her over the border too.

The idiot sneers at the rules and constraints the Israeli army have used, while overlooking the fact that Hamas terrorists kill like the thugs and criminals they are – no rules or human restraint for them; they wouldn’t think twice about killing every Israeli, including Neve Gordon, and they don’t even believe that Israel has the right to exist.

If Neve Gordon can remain loose after the vile anti-Israel rubbish she writes, her student “R” and the other 700 detained must have done something really, really bad

Israel has a more deceitful objective than Nev's exposition.

Israel presents as a democracy with intent of likening itself to western Liberal Democracies.

Liberal Democracies base their existence and practises on two great strands: Greek and Hebrew heritages.
The Greek Heritage ensuses we're dominated by reason and logic and the belief we have control over our destiny.
The Hebrew heritage promotes a belief in justice. That of the ten commandments and of Christ's Sermon on the Mount. We adopt the principles of Christ and reject all he rejected of the Hebrew Old Testament. ie beliefs for which he was crucified.

Israeli system does't adopt the ideas of Greeks, apart from those that assist in maintaining a picture of a democratic Israel. And of course those ideas only and will eventually only extend to people resident inside Israel who agree with Israeli Government policy. The scope of western ideas adopted by Israel do not extend to their neighbours. And of course those two stances are quite at odds with Western Liberal Democracy.

The predominant group in Israel is Jewish. And here is the crux. The Jews of Israel do not adopt the new testament of Christ nor those of his ideas that underpin our western society. They only accept the Old Testament of their bible... in toto. And again that is quite at odds with Western Liberal Democracy.

The system is a hybrid and only exists to ensure support from the west. Of course in the longer term this system will naturally implode as Israel begins to turn on it's own citizens. In the meantime it deceitfully seeks support from a duped west, by presenting itself as western and democratic.

David-Boaz continually references to events and predictions in the old testament and many of these give ample evidence of the divergence from the West. David fails to understand the old testament is the story of the Hebrews and it's predictions pertain only to the Hebrews. It limited relevance to Christians or people in Liberal Democracies.
Israel has the appearance of Democray but it isn't in any way akin to the West.