So, there are those who are saying that the Jews are the ones who are indigenous to the region of Israel & the Occupied Territories, and there are those who are saying that the Palestinians are the ones who are indigenous to this region. And then there is me, who is saying that I couldn’t give nary a whisker on a rodent’s posterior who is indigenous to where- what I care about, is having PEACE BETWEEN THE ISRAELIS AND THE PALESTINIANS. And I believe that this peace can be achieved without any killing, and without any forced mass relocations, of any population (like, for example, the proposal that I have outlined here- http://sandra-llap.rhcloud.com/peace-sells/states/ ). If the option of any “ethnic cleansing” is taken off of the table, then not only do we not inflict the suffering and misery that comes from killing/expulsions (not to mention the fact that these things require so much effort that they’re hardly realistic, viable goals to begin with), but it also then just becomes a matter of people wanting this, as that’s really all that’s needed in order to have the peace.

I’ve come to believe that the main reason this conflict has dragged on interminably as it has, is that both (yes, BOTH) sides are unwilling to agree to the compromises that would bring peace. But inherent in this obstinate mentality is the failure to comprehend that having peace is far, far better than having whatever it is that is being given up in the compromise (hence the title of my piece, “Peace Sells”).