The Meaning of "Compromise"

Compromise: –noun 1. a settlement of differences by mutual concessions; an agreement reached by adjustment of conflicting or opposing claims, principles, etc., by reciprocal modification of demands. *

This word apparently doesn't exist in Arabic. Maybe it just doesn't exist in the Palestinian dialect of Arabic.

Yesterday, Mahmoud Abbas, titular head of the Palestinian Authority, announced that "...an offer similar to the 92 percent of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip for a Palestinian state extended at Camp David in 2000 would not be enough."

He insisted on the pre-1967 borders.

"We will be flexible," said Abbas. "But before 1947, we had 95% of Palestine."

Wrong again! Prior to 1947, there was NO Palestine--just a British Mandate over an area using that territorial designation imposed by the Romans that had previously belonged to the Turks.

Prior to 1921, all of "Palestine" included what is now Israel, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza. THIS is what was promised as the Jewish Homeland. In 1921, the British lopped of the section now called Jordan and gave it to the Hashemites. The Arabs immediately made it a Jew-free ethnic enclave, tossing out any Jews living there and prohibiting Jews from living there.

No way did the "Palestinians" have 95% of Palestine--a huge chunk had already been given to the Arabs and the British plan originally was that Arabs would settle in the Trans-Jordan and Jews would settle west of the Jordan.

Abbas went on to say, "In 1937, the partition plan gave the Israelis only part of Palestine. And they were very happy at that time. [David] Ben-Gurion was very happy with it. It didn't work."

No kidding, Mahmoud. Would you like to elucidate on WHY didn't it work? Because the Arabs opposed ANY partition plan. Ben Gurion was desperate, watching Hitler in action and watching the British close off Jewish emigration, in effect condemning Jews who wanted to escape the Nazis to death.

Duplicitous and disingenious to the core, President Abbas.

Abbas continued, "After that [came] the 1947 partition plan - we rejected this, so we lost... Now, we accept [the pre-'67 borders]."

Which (1) aren't borders but armistice line and which (2) you rejected at the Khartoum Conference in 1967 and continued to reject for decades, during which thousands of Israelis died.

Listen, you $#@% Holocaust-denying, terrorist-enabling, two-faced piece of diplomatic offal -- prior to the Arab riots and murders of the 1920s and 1930s, orchestrated by the great land-owning clans of Jerusalem (the Husseinis, among others), the Balfour Declaration envisioned a Jewish homeland in ALL of Palestine which consisted of Jordan, the West Bank, Israel and Gaza.

The British, with their European sensibilities (anti-Semitic to the core, romanticizing all things Oriental, including Arabs, and greedy for oil) backed incrementally away from their Balfour promise, slammed shut the gates of Palestine to Jews fleeing Hitler's murderous juggernaut, thus forcibly and cold-bloodedly changing the demographics of 1947 Palestine to favor the creation of an Arab majority.

But for this piece of British chicanery, the millions murdered in Hitler's ovens and pits would have found refuge here, and the U.N. would've awarded much more land to the nascent Jewish state, since its partition (which the Arabs have refused to recognize for 60 years anyway) was based solely on population concentration.

Exactly what the British DID NOT WANT. They wanted an Arab colony here, akin to Transjordan (now the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan), pro-British, with a British-public-school-educated king, trained by British officers and armed to the teeth by Britain. British newspapers at the time uncovered secret British assurances to King Abdullah that he should refrain from attacking Syria (France's puppet regime) and concentrate on attacking the new Jewish State because Abdullah's victory would put an end to Jewish independence AND provide Jordan with access to the sea.

Let's NOT skip over this history. If Abbas wants to quote Ben-Gurion and claim the Old Man was perfectly content with the 1948 borders, then let's drag out the rest of the historical record and point out that:

(1) there was no such thing as a "Palestinian Arab" at that time; when the British referred to "Palestinians" they were talking about native Jews;

(2) Syria considered the area as rightfully belonging to Greater Syria and has never really given up on that dream; There's a reason that Syria is the natural ally of Iran -- Iran is empowering Syria to conquer the Fertile Crescent all the way to Egypt. Israel, Jordan and Lebanon are simply obstacles to be wiped out in the establishment imperial Syria.


(3) the Arabs of all neighboring regions repeatedly promised a genocidal massacre of the Jews (which they succeeded in accomplishing at Kfar Etzion after its defenders surrendered to the Jordan Legion). Abbas forgot to mention that the Arabs, with the assistance of Arab police, launched pogroms in Hebron and Tzfat in 1929.

(4) the majority of Arabs have no deep ties to this land and have migrated here from other areas of the Middle East such as Algeria (Lavi), Morocco (Ein Kerem) and even Bosnia (Caesarea). These "Palestinian villages" that the Left and Paliwood whine about all the time haven't been here much longer than most of the kibbutzim and moshavim of the Jews. Amid all the heart-plucking over "Palestinian villages" everyone forgets to mention Peki'in -- a town that had a Jewish population dating back to the pre-Roman times. Those Jews NEVER left until their Arab neighbors threatened to murder them all in 1947-48. Tzfat has a Jewish population that has been there since ancient times, and was replenished with Jews fleeing the Inquisition in the 15th century.

Scratch a "Palestinian" and you'll more often find an Iraqi, a Syrian, an Egyptian, a Jordanian, a Lebanese, a Moroccan or Algerian back a couple of generations. There are Arab families who have lived here for centuries -- but likewise there are Jewish families who have lived here for centuries.

This makes the Arab claim that the Jews are just "European colonists" ridiculous; we are no more "European colonists" than they are "African colonists or "Bosnian colonists."

The whole debate is ridiculous. What matters is Who is Here, Now. In a word, demographics. Again. We'll keep Gush Etzion, and you can have Wadi Ara, okay? We'll keep Maaleh Adumim and you can have Taibe.

Demographics decided the original UN partition that the Arabs never accepted or recognized. The "1967 borders" were never borders--they were a couple of lines drawn in green and red ink by the generals of both sides to mark the cease-fire lines. Since a state of war has existed since then, they continue to be the cease-fire lines of that war. They were mooted by the 1967 War, when Israel beat back Jordan's attacks and seized the West Bank.

Now, despite earlier opposition to a Palestinian state; despite years of terror and incitement; despite the two Intifadas and suicide bombings and random shootings and stabbings; despite on-going attempts to sneak terrorists into Israel proper to perpetrate more murder and mayhem; despite all this, Israelis are ready to "compromise," that is, to work out some kind of mutual concessions that will bring an end to this conflict so both states can go exist in peace.

The Palestinian Authority isn't interested in "mutual concessions." The starting point is that there is a right for the descendents of "Palestinian refugees" to return to Israel proper, move in, get health insurance, schooling, social security and the right to vote Israel out of existence. This ain't happening, folks.

The other "demand" is the "1967 borders" which are those never-meant-to-be-permanent armistice lines. This ain't happening, either. Even Dumbert, our current idiot-in-charge, isn't suicidal enough to go back to those armistice lines which allowed the Jordanian army to fire at will on vehicles travelling to Jerusalem from the heights above the road; even he isn't going to allow the Old City, the Jewish Quarter of which was ethnically cleansed and then dynamited into oblivion by the Jordanians, to be returned to the Palestinians. These are the same Palestinians who desecrated Joseph's Tomb and turned it into a mosque in a fit of Islamic triumphalism.These are the same people who have more recently burned Gaza synagogues as well as Christian schools and churches, and burned their prayer books.

"Compromise" envisions giving up "non-negotiable demands," rather than insisting on such demands as a starting point.

Clearly the Palestinian Authority doesn't want to compromise, which only means one thing: the Palestinians aren't seriously interested in peace with Israel.

Note to President Abbas: you don't get to wage war against us from 1948 to the present, wage terror against our helpless unarmed ones from 1948 to the present; murder and maim thousands of civilians, then announce that you "demand" the "1967 borders" which you and your allies so roundly rejected at the Khartoum Conference.

There is a price to be paid for all these deaths. 92% is pretty good--Clinton, the Saudis and others told you to grab that offer in 2000 because it was better than you'd ever get again.

Having it on the table now is a gift.

You don't want it? Fine with me. I don't think hundreds of Intifada II deaths later that you deserve such an offer. I think, having lost the countless wars you've monged for, you deserve to get exactly what you're sitting on right now and not an inch more. As a matter of fact, I'm not sure you deserve that much.

We'll close the checkpoints, seal the West Bank, and you can call us when you're serious about negotiating a settlement. Don't threaten us with an Intifada -- the last one is still underway and you haven't disarmed one terrorist (except those in Hamas opposed to your grip on power). Your incessant promises that you will "end terror" are worthless--you've been making those empty promises since Oslo, and Israelis continue to die at the hands of your thugs.

Choose life and peace -- or choose otherwise. If you choose life and peace, you'll find we make excellent neighbors and we'd like your state to look like our state in economic and social advancement; if you choose otherwise, remember that we have nowhere else to go and we will NEVER AGAIN go down without a fight.

*courtesy of Dictionary.com

map courtesy of Answers.com