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War and Peace (Now)
By Israel Harel
Tags: peace process, Peace Now

In the wake of the steps toward peace in our region, the large-scale exercise to examine Israel's readiness to defend itself from massive rocket attacks on population centers and strategic facilities reached its high point Tuesday. On the same day, a memorial rally was held in Jerusalem for the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva students who were killed 30 days before. Yesterday, one soldier was killed in southern Gaza while two Israelis were killed by terrorist gunfire at the Nahal Oz terminal. And of course, as per usual, rockets of peace continued to fall on the western Negev.

"Leading Israel Toward Peace for 30 Years," read the poster at the entrance to the site set up by Peace Now at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square on Tuesday, to mark 30 years since the organization's establishment. At the site, and especially in the discussion tent, some spoke explicitly about victory, and garnered applause.

Indeed, the movement began as a marginal group whose ideas were considered, even by the Zionist left, as radical and a challenge to the national consensus, but over time these ideas have managed to penetrate the center of Israeli consciousness. Its terminology ("the occupation," for instance) has become dominant in Israeli discourse - certainly in the media's rhetoric - and its ideology of concessions and withdrawals has been carried out in the last few decades by all Israeli governments, although not at a pace that satisfies the desires of its activists.
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If Peace Now had the intellectual courage to analyze sincerely its achievements, its primary finding would be that the movement's intentions were positive but the means used to accomplish its goals were mistaken. The fact is that peace, which tops its list of objectives, is moving further away and the number of victims - Jewish as well as Arab - is rising.

In addition, when the movement pinned the primary blame for the absence of peace on its own people, it sinned against truth, and against peace as well. The ramifications of this sin are that it undermined many people's confidence in the righteousness of the Zionist enterprise, and even in the Jewish state's right to exist in the Land of Israel.

The more this feeling of Jewish righteousness was undermined, the more the Arab, especially the Palestinian, sense of self-confidence blossomed. For if the Jews blame themselves, as proven by Peace Now rallies (which a biased press greatly exaggerated, thereby strengthening the Arabs' feeling that time was on their side), then why move toward a peaceful solution? It's better to wait until there's no more wind in the sails of the Zionist state and it collapses.

Although the generation that founded Peace Now set the stage, it refrained from ripping the last shreds of Zionist solidarity. But their successors over the last few years, for whom the end justifies the means, are not as inhibited. Take the way they fight settlements. By petitioning the High Court of Justice, Peace Now caused destruction in Amona, and then rushed to petition the High Court regarding other communities.

There is no doubt that one of the movement's key victories was won over the High Court. But this, too, is a Pyrrhic victory. The High Court can harm only the margins of the settlement enterprise. But, as seen in the widespread support for Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann's campaign against the Supreme Court, the court has struck a devastating blow to the source of its power, the public's confidence in it.
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A few good celebs
Some of Hollywood's top guns congratulate Israel in a clip played in Times Square.
Chosen, shmosen
'Religion is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions,' wrote Albert Einstein.
  1.   For heaven`s sake stop drivelling 09:35  |  Marilyn 10/04/08
  2.   Marilyn, you are subscribed to evil 09:55  |  Ben Plonie 10/04/08
  3.   It`s hard to peddle such stale fish 09:59  |  Natallie Durson 10/04/08
  4.   Who else but Israel? 10:05  |  El-Birawi 10/04/08
  5.   I like peace now - keep up the good work 10:18  |  Osama 10/04/08
  6.   You can hardly blame the Palestinians for resisting occupation 10:28  |  John 10/04/08
  7.   Our angst ridden foreigners #1 #3 10:48  |  FOX 10/04/08
  8.   Maybe Kahane was right after all 10:49  |  Johnny 10/04/08
  9.   El-Birawi have you ever wondered why you eat rice every day? 10:50  |  Johnny 10/04/08
  10.   (Right-wing) Zionisms big "disease": The sense of infallibility 10:59  |  Swiss (Dino) 10/04/08
  11.   THE TRUTH IS THE MOST UNPOPULAR THING 11:42  |  you know it 10/04/08
  12.   THE TRUTH IS THE MOST UNPOPULAR THING 11:42  |  you know it 10/04/08
  13.   Polar Bears, Olympic torches, NOW! 12:52  |  FOX 10/04/08
  14.   Harel`s deception 13:01  |  Esther 10/04/08
  15.   No Johnny, I am waiting for the Swedes to tell me 14:17  |  El-Birawi 10/04/08
  16.   Sorry dear people 14:36  |  Marilyn 10/04/08
  17.   Peace now is a zionist trojan horse 15:07  |  Raed Kami 10/04/08
  18.   #10 the swiss expert on f all and total ordure 15:14  |  victor hardman 10/04/08
  19.   Where did Pals ever give conditions for accepting Jewish state? 15:24  |  Sam 10/04/08
  20.   El-Birawi on giving food on your plate a thought 15:25  |  Johnny 10/04/08
  21.   Israel Harel is seriously deluded. 16:00  |  Deborah 10/04/08
  22.   PROFITS AND SUCCESS BY HATE 16:05  |  B 10/04/08
  23.   war and peace 16:08  |  David 10/04/08
  24.   Right on! Marilyn 16:10  |  Dutch 10/04/08
  25.   war and peace 16:20  |  David 10/04/08
  26.   # 10 Swiss...while all of the kooks 16:37  |  Lynn 10/04/08
  27.   Swiis(Dino) - Can we have a little balance, please? 16:40  |  JP 10/04/08
  28.   Marilyn and Dutch 16:48  |  JP 10/04/08
  29.   correctioin 16:52  |  David 10/04/08
  30.   Marilyn`s Missed All the Wars to Push The Jews Into the 16:58  |  JP 10/04/08
  31.   David`s Got It Wrong 17:08  |  JP 10/04/08
  32.   Defense No Substitute 17:14  |  Tbart 10/04/08
  33.   This too should be part of negotiations archaeology & scientific 17:14  |  Rachel 10/04/08
  34.   Deborah 17:37  |  Boris S. 10/04/08
  35.   John #6, If only the world were as simple.. 18:10  |  FOX 10/04/08
  36.   Peace Now, Vidkun Quisling, Tokyo Rose, Lord Haw-Haw 18:25  |  Dr. L. Brnd 10/04/08
  37.   Yes, Johnny, the Palestinians also to blame! 18:32  |  El-Birawi 10/04/08
  38.   nothing but a groupof braindead idiots 18:52  |  SHIMON 10/04/08
  39.   Yaher koach, Peace Now ! 19:17  |  David 10/04/08
  40.   you guys ignore Israeli law in settling anywhere you choose 19:31  |  newageblues 10/04/08
  41.   Johnny 19:43  |  Connie 10/04/08
  42.   JP has it wrong 19:46  |  David 10/04/08
  43.   JP has it wrong continued 19:57  |  David 10/04/08
  44.   David Start w/ Wrong Premise, Proceeds in Error from There 20:19  |  JP 10/04/08
  45.   #38, Shimon, we like you too 20:40  |  newageblues 10/04/08
  46.   # 18 victor hardman 20:42  |  Swiss (Dino) 10/04/08
  47.   # 26 Lynn 20:45  |  Swiss (Dino) 10/04/08
  48.   # 27 JP 20:57  |  Swiss (Dino) 10/04/08
  49.   #10 Swiss , Right , left , centre 20:59  |  TOMY 10/04/08
  50.   Peace NOW 22:59  |  kay 10/04/08
  51.   Jp is badly confused 23:04  |  David 10/04/08
  52.   David from Albany, 23:15  |  Realist 10/04/08
  53.   #49 - David Continues, Compounds Errors 23:56  |  JP 10/04/08
  54.   #1 Is Marilyn Looking at the Same Law As I Am? 00:03  |  JP 11/04/08
  55.   #49 David in Albany er JP the endless victim 00:07  |  Labhras 11/04/08
  56.   Peace Now is Right 00:07  |  Jack Olson 11/04/08
  57.   newagefool 00:28  |  SHIMON 11/04/08
  58.   # 27 JP (2nd try) 00:30  |  Swiss (Dino) 11/04/08
  59.   the reason why peace now are a bunch of brain dead idiots... 00:35  |  SHIMON 11/04/08
  60.   what on earth gives peace now the impression arabs want peace!? 00:36  |  SHIMON 11/04/08
  61.   Peace Now, its intentions were good, but its policies were evil. 00:57  |  Haldrik 11/04/08
  62.   What Were Peace Now`s Real Mistakes 01:02  |  Rabbi Michael Lerner 11/04/08
  63.   #52 Swiss(Dino) 01:06  |  JP 11/04/08
  64.   Other polls say different, and Israeli actions affect Pal polls 01:07  |  newageblues 11/04/08
  65.   #42/#43 (2n try) David Is Still Wrong Re Israeli Law 01:08  |  JP 11/04/08
  66.   #49 (2nd try) David Is Still Wrong Re Israeli Law 01:09  |  JP 11/04/08
  67.   ISRAELITES ARE INDIGENOUS TO ISRAEL 01:14  |  you know it 11/04/08
  68.   Kahane was right. Moshe Feiglin IS right. 01:46  |  Chaim 11/04/08
  69.   Israel Harel nailed the facts with insight and great 02:05  |  Akram Zekaria 11/04/08
  70.   1948 Everything on the table for peace w/ Israel? 02:46  |  MaryRose 11/04/08
  71.   lost righteousness 03:49  |  Shelley 11/04/08
  72.   sorry, Shimon, answering questions is a two way street 04:02  |  newageblues