Free Palestine Bill [Withdrawn]

[Filuwaúrdjan]

This bill is a load of feelgood cobblers.

1. As regards the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians (and the ongoing Palestinian civil war), recognition and so on are just minor, no, extremely minor side issues and nothing else.
There are much more important things to be worried about.

2. The entire premise of this bill is ludicrously arrogant to the point of hilarity. The idea that some stupid feelgood resolution (accompanied by some foolish (and inevitably counter-productive) threats, but more on those later) will "free Palestine", bring peace to the Middle East or do anything other than amuse or irritate people is riseable.

3. I thought that the whole point of the peace process was to calm down and moderate people; not to panic them and drive them into the arms of hardliners. If there's one thing that you should have all learned by now, it's that there's only one way to get any progress in the Middle East; and that's a combination of compromise, arbitration, negotiation and treading carefully.

4. I could go on like this for much longer, but what would be the point? That this bill is yet another example of the student hack approach to politics is essentially self-evident. If honourable Senators want to help the Palestinian people, then they should try sending a load of aid to the Palestinians instead of this folly.

I'd suggest tabling the bill, but I'd be surprised if there's enough support for doing so.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Under their current government, Israel will never be recognized as a nation. This is nothing but a waste of time.

But then there are consequences against Palestine as we do not recognize them and continue to ally against them with Israel.  They can get land and Atlasian recognition, if they pass that up then that's their problem.

Do you have any understanding of the current situation in the Middle East? I realise that you are, to slightly misquote the late Lord Stratford, living proof that a pigs bladder on a stick can get elected to the Senate, but even so...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I will continue to side with our Israeli friends until the terrorist groups that control the Palestinian government step down from power.

Both major Palestinian factions have terrorist elements to them. Though I think that you're talking exclusively about Hamas here, yes? Hamas do not control the Palestinian Government.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I have a good understanding of what is going on

In the passage above, you said:

^{"They can get land and Atlasian recognition"}

This would seem to be reasonable proof that you do not understand what is going on. I have an awful feeling that if I were to bring up even something so well-known as Oslo, you would draw a blank.

Do you even know who the Palestinian Prime Minister is?

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Then what on earth is the point of it?

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The current situation (as regards relations between Israel and the Palestinians), while bad, is better than it was a few years ago and much, much better than it was a few decades ago. Progress has been made, however slowly.

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Why?

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How?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Hamas do not control the Palestinian Government.

Please explain.

Ismail Haniyeh was fired after the Gaza coup