The overwhelming negative public opinion against ISIS is obscuring the reasons behind its resurgence and confusing the best ways to deal with it. ISIS is just the latest manifestation of the long simmering revulsion that the Arabs feel against the West in general, and the United States in particular. And for good reason: for more than one hundred years, the United States, and the West, colonized, suppressed, bombed them and interfered in their affairs.
In Iraq alone, the numbers of people killed or maimed by the US invasion and occupation is equivalent to the populations New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Miami combined. Apart from direct occupation, bombings and drone attacks, the United States, and the West in concert, have supported, and still support, the ruthless dictatorships and autocratic monarchies who suppressed and abused them.[tag]
Clearly, the Arab people have had enough. ISIS is the latest manifestation of their resulting anger and desperation. It is following in the footsteps of Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations of the same ilk. Every time, the Arab people tried to rise against their autocratic rulers, even through the so-called 'Arab Spring', they were squashed with equipment supplied to their oppressors by the US. They have been given no way to fight back.
Why don't we leave the Arabs alone? Those who closely follow the Middle East know full well that the underlying reason for our continued involvement in the region is not the oil anymore but rather protection and support for the State of Israel. This rationale is being hidden from view by tight and expert control of the media and of our Congress.
Israel was created in 1947 through a non-binding resolution by the United Nations General Assembly. Most of the upper echelons in the US government at the time opposed it. 'Great' Britain did not own Palestine and had no right to promise the Jews a state of their own there. The creation of Israel in Palestine was decided based upon two faulty assumptions:
First: Jews called Palestine their 'homeland'. That is not true. Most of today's Jews are Ashkenazi and have their roots in Eastern Europe and not in the Middle East. Genetically, more Palestinians than Jews have Middle East origins. Sephardic Jews, who are of Middle East origin, comprise less than 10% of today's Jews. They are discriminated against in Israel and may even be happier if the State if Israel had never even existed. After all, they lived in peace and prosperity among the Arabs and Moslems for over a thousand years.
Second: Palestine is the Jewish Promised Land. A recent two-week conference in Rome concluded that: "The Holy Scriptures cannot be used to justify the return of Jews to Israel and the displacement of the Palestinians. We Christians cannot speak of the promised land as an exclusive right for a privileged Jewish people. This promise was nullified by Christ. There is no longer a chosen people." http://rt.com/politics/vatican-israel-palestinians-catholic/.
Thus, the two propositions used to justify the creation of Israel in the midst of the Palestinians are both untenable.
If we really want to address our unrelenting problems in the Middle East including ISIS, we need to think broadly and creatively about the future of Israel in the region. There are two possibilities: a) Israel and liberated Arab states form a federation of states that include a Jewish one as outlined by Sam Cohen in his recent book: "Future of the Middle East: United Pan-Arab States" goindiebooks4.com/649591/ or b) the Jewish state moves out of the Middle East. When the idea of a Jewish state was first contemplated, many geographical locations were considered, including East Africa, South America and even the United States itself. It may be time to start examining those options more seriously.
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