Peace is not on the horizon

Pardon my cynicism, but the continued, new, or renewed insistence of the United States, European governments, some Israelis and other hangers-on to pursue negotiations with Palestinians, Syrians and Iranians strike me as the playthings of children. Think of the performances that elementary school children give for their parents. Aren't they all cute?
 
Lip service is another appropriate metaphor.
 
One must aspire to peace, and go through appropriate motions. Correct political aspirations demand it.
 
Don't hold your breath waiting for positive results.
 
Why these damning predictions about the efforts of numerous worthies from credible countries, who otherwise do much good for their own citizens and the world at large?

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Israel's political dramas

In this season of political campaigning, there are vignettes that seldom reach the international media. Most are unimportant, except to the people who participate, or political mavens for whom every quest for votes merits attention. They reveal something about the country's style, even if they do not have much impact on what happens.
 
To understand the little dramas it is necessary to know some essentials of Israeli democracy. (We should ignore those who assert that such an evil place cannot be a democracy.)

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Tzipi Livni is in trouble

Tzipi Livni won a primary contest and is the nominal leader of the governing party, but the still sitting prime minister seems to be doing everything in his power to assure that she cannot win the national election.
 
Nominal Prime Minister Olmert continues to meet with the nominal President of Palestine, and has told the still sitting President of the United States that an agreement between Israel and Palestine is possible before the end of their terms.
 
While he was in Washington, Olmert's one-time close ally the finance minister outlined a program to deal with part of the economic crisis that has begun to threaten Israel with increasing unemployment. The problems look pretty much like what are affecting numerous other countries, and the Finance Ministry's proposals are as complicated and controversial as those offered elsewhere.

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Politicians' families

Family pictures featured in Democratic and Republican campaigns, and the great concern with the Palins, contrast mightily with the style of Israeli politics.

Tzipi Livni is the leading candidate to take over Ehud Olmert's position as prime minister. It was only last week, when I used Google to clarify when she was first appointed to a major position, that I learned there was a husband, Naftali Spitzer, and two children. Livni was appointed to head a government office in 1996, elected to the Knesset in 1999, and has held positions as minister heading one or another government department since 2001.

I have never seen a picture of her family.

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Loyalty in politics

A prime minister must view his colleagues as potential competitors, and keep them in line. The country as a whole faces tough antagonists on the international front, who are looking after their own interests. There are also intense enemies intent on doing great harm to Israel.

The sensitivity of religion

Whenever one of these notes touches on a matter of religion, I am reminded about the sensitivity of the topic. It is easy to step on tender toes, no matter how careful I am to phrase what I have to say.
 
The most recent example concerns the report about the denunciation of homosexuality by Shlomo Benizri and other SHAS members of Knesset. Along with that, I included the well known phrase from the Book of Samuel about David's love of Jonathan. While I emphasized the ambiguous and problematic nature of the material, responses to the note in the blog section of the Jerusalem Post were very clear about the abomination that I had committed. 

Practical politics