Yassar Arafat, dead at 75

[gumby]

he failed to close the deal he was offered. the old bastard was in too deep for diplomacy. it wasnt in his nature or his element. still, lets not forget the hardliners like sharon assasinated rabin. arafat may have let the window close but those bastards nailed it shut. what the hell was he supposed to do. so he went back to being a terrorlst.

there might never have been peace while arafat lived but there wont be any with sharon either.

i say we carpet bomb jerusalem and call it a day. either it becomes an international city or a parking lot.

[StrangeLove]

ilovedrifting, I hate to break this to you, but america is not that great of a place to live.

I'll just move to a Liberal state, that should tide me over for awhile. Hmmm i'll run for office. "If you want things done right, you have to do it yourself".

[JESTER]

yeehaaw the witch is dead!

Anyways if you have always liked arafat just be aware that he has murdered thousands of people and is responsible for the turmoil in Israel/Palestine. Shimon Peres agreed to give him 95% of what they were asking for and arafat still prefered to kill jews over making peace. Even his own people were shocked that he turned the israelis down.

It's sad to see how the left always loves tyrants. Today Arafat and yesterday Stalin.

http://www.protestwarrior.com

Dude, I am about as right wing as you can get. I just said I liked the fact he was a head of state and wore a pistol on his side. That statement alone would identify myself as being right wing.

Now as far as him being a tyrant, there seems to be some debate on that. Not from me, because I dont care. He's dead, and there fore he longer concerns anyone.

[Jesda]

ilovedrifting, I hate to break this to you, but america is not that great of a place to live.

[JESTER]

Yeah. It just sucks so bad hear, I am moving to Somalia.

I invite anyone that does not like living in the USA to please, by all means leave. If you dont like it here, then we will not be upset if you go else where. We would also not be upset if you stayed and tried to make this country better, even though it is pretty darn good now. I am always up for improvments.

Think you cant make a difference??? There's is only one way to find out. Try, and try again.

[CybeRise]

Your not sure if he is a tyrant? Would the fact that he kills his own people if they appose his rule make him a statesman? lol

[GoinBoostYey]

Arafat was uncooperative with the U.S. and in peace talks. Sure, everyone wants justice and Arafat was a nationalist who stubbornly fought for his country. Even if it means hurting them more in the long run. Whether you'd like to accept it or not, Arafat did not stabilize the region. He's been the only Palestinian leader since the birth of Israel so whether or not this conflict can be resolved at all is still unknown. My knowledge of the history of the Middle East and the I/P conflict is far from expert so I won't pass too much judgement on that but all I know is that an open door is more welcoming than a locked one. Granted, the situation there could get a lot worse before it gets better, there is still a higher prospect for a peace agreement.

Can You blame him when the US is pro Isreal. What needs to happen is Isreal need to stop stealing land, and the Paleastinans(sp?) need to stop the suicide bombings. If they would have adopted the ways of Ghandi the entire world would have been on thier side. Isreal is far from innocent in this. The sad thing is if people question what they do they are accused of anti-semitism.

[SDRonEbay]

If you want to leave this country then please GET THE **** OUT. no one wants you here, no one is keeping you here leave now you won't be missed

Constructive is the word of the day. If you can't be more constructive and watch teh language you're gonna get a time out.

[JESTER]

Your not sure if he is a tyrant? Would the fact that he kills his own people if they appose his rule make him a statesman? lol

No I didnt say that. Read what I said. I said, there is some debate. Not from me, but other members. Notice I said, I dont care one way or the other, he's dead, and no longer concerns anyone.

What makes him a statesman is being recognized as one by the majority of the world nations, which he was. He may have been a POS (which they are debating) , but he was still the Palastinian leader.

Dude, just for forget it. I retract my original statement that I sort of liked him because he was a statesman that carried a pistol on his side. It aint worth the hassel of being in this thread.


Modified by JESTER at 6:32 AM 11/13/2004

[NY94J30]

Your not sure if he is a tyrant? Would the fact that he kills his own people if they appose his rule make him a statesman? lol

Clearly you can argue that Arafat is directly/indirectly responsible for the deaths of many innocent Israelis, however, you'll have to document his killing of dissenters if you're going to make a statement like that. Especially after some of your previous statments.

[Bubba1]

I don't recall reading about him killing dissenters either, but there's no shortage of evidence linking him with the murder of many of innocent Israelis as chairman of the PLO. The Munich oylmpic massacre, the 21 school children executed in cold blood at Ma' alotta (sp), the Achille Lauro highjacking to name a few. Had those mudered athletes or school children been American instead of Israeli or if the Achille Lauro was a Disney Cruise ship just out of Ft. Lauderdale instead of an Itlaian one in the Med Sea, you know the US would be clamoring for Arafat's immediate death, just like we're doing right now for Osama bin Laden. Food for thought.

[NY94J30]

I don't recall reading about him killing dissenters either, but there's no shortage of evidence linking him with the murder of many of innocent Israelis as chairman of the PLO. The Munich oylmpic massacre, the 21 school children executed in cold blood at Ma' alotta (sp), the Achille Lauro highjacking to name a few. Had those mudered athletes or school children been American instead of Israeli or if the Achille Lauro was a Disney Cruise ship just out of Ft. Lauderdale instead of an Itlaian one in the Med Sea, you know the US would be clamoring for Arafat's immediate death, just like we're doing right now for Osama bin Laden. Food for thought.

I don't disagree Bubba, though neither side has a monopoly on moral indignation. One need only look to the examples of Yitzhak Shamir and his activities as a member of the Stern Gang, or Sharon's complicity in the massacres at Sabra and Shatilla. The U.S. has even been willing to turn a blind eye to Israeli attacks on the U.S. - look at the case of the USS Liberty during the '67 War.

[Urabus GodofTraction]

Israel is a very small nation trying to scratch out a living in a VERY hostile area. So far, they are doing pretty well, with a thriving technology sector. Arafat and the PLO have made life very difficult for Israel, and Israel has taken a very hard stance. They are fighting for survival as a nation. Every Islamic state prays daily that Israel fails, and the Israelis are working hard. Israel gave the Palestinians land back, good land, and in classic "if you give a mouse a cookie..." style, the PLO is grabbing for more.

I think Arafat's death will lead to a period of intense conflict, then stabilize as more progressive leaders take over. Or fundamentalists will get a hold of the reigns and it's conflict for generations to come.

Of course peace desirable. However, until then, the Israelis have my full support.

[NY94J30]

Israel is a very small nation trying to scratch out a living in a VERY hostile area. So far, they are doing pretty well, with a thriving technology sector. Arafat and the PLO have made life very difficult for Israel, and Israel has taken a very hard stance. They are fighting for survival as a nation. Every Islamic state prays daily that Israel fails, and the Israelis are working hard.

You ought take a look at history and put some of your statements in context.

Israel gave the Palestinians land back, good land, and in classic "if you give a mouse a cookie..." style, the PLO is grabbing for more.

To what land are you referring? and what happens if you give a mouse a cookie?

Of course peace desirable. However, until then, the Israelis have my full support.

And while I'm sure Israel appreciates your support, you've failed to elaborate on your take on the justification for the occupation and the flouting of international law.

[Bubba1]

I don't disagree Bubba, though neither side has a monopoly on moral indignation. One need only look to the examples of Yitzhak Shamir and his activities as a member of the Stern Gang, or Sharon's complicity in the massacres at Sabra and Shatilla. The U.S. has even been willing to turn a blind eye to Israeli attacks on the U.S. - look at the case of the USS Liberty during the '67 War.

I agree with what you're saying too, Israel's behavior has not been wonderful either at times. Any chance for peace is going to require concessions from both sides. In that part, I agree with CharlieO's comments about the need for progressive leadership especially on the Palestinian side. Israel's has to stop building illegal settlements and withdraw, and the more extremist Palestinian factions (like Hamas, Hezballah, etc) must stop convincing young people to strap bombs to their backs at shopping malls, and accept Israel's right to exist. Until the Palestinians put a stop to the suicide bombers, which is the primary stumbling block, I wouldn't expect Israel to cooperate with them on anything.

[yashin]

Media bias pops up once again.

Arafat has been trying to make peace for years, but the US and Israel have been constantly blocking any type of fair deal.

Example.

The 2000 deal. Arafat is blamed for rejecting a "great deal".

What he was offered was around 95% of the land. But what was really important was that missing 5%.

If he had taken that deal, the state would have consisted of a series of disconectec areas with little to no access to the main resources i.e. water (which plays a very key issue in this conflict).

Of course Arafat is blamed for his unwillingness to accept a crappy deal. No blame is placed on Israel or the US for OFFERING a crappy deal.

The plan for a palestinian state has been on the table for ~25 years.

A state along the pre1967 borders with the dismantiling of the settlements within this areas, along with a few other issues like, reparations etc. etc.

This is a deal 95% of the world(including most Palestinians would accept). Only the US and Israeli hardliners oppose it.

[Chingon]

sad thing is that jews and palestenians used to live side by side in a happy manner, until england, the us, and the rest decided to rearange the place as they saw fit.

[JustinStrife]

I wish we would cut all foreign aid to both Israel and Palestine as I don't think our meddling in the whole thing is making any good come out. As a 'right winger' I'm more in support of Israel, over the PLO, but on another end I am not in total agreement with Sharon's stance either. It's a mess, and it seems like we're just making more of a mess with funding both sides...

[NY94J30]

I wish we would cut all foreign aid to both Israel and Palestine as I don't think our meddling in the whole thing is making any good come out.

I can wholly agree with you here. It is clearly not in America's interest to follow a policy of unflinching support of Israel.

As a 'right winger' I'm more in support of Israel, over the PLO, but on another end I am not in total agreement with Sharon's stance either.

This statement you're going to have to qualify. It sounds to me as if you are saying that being on the right side of the American political spectrum leads your natural inclination to be the support of right wing governemnts anywhere - regardless of social context? Fascism is about as right wing as it gets, how are you feeling about Hitler, or Mussolini? By the way, the US is currently in a war with a nation that falls to the right of us on the political spectrum.

[SDRonEbay]

Believe what you will but there are more things at stake here with him dead. Arafat was one of the Palestinian leaders who believed in the prophecies of Revelations. One of the most controversial aspects was the rebuilding of the Temple of Jerusalem. Israelis want to rebuild it at the Dome of the Rock and Arafat said no way, Hussien. (just a little Middle Eastern humor)

Some other signs, as you might remember from the Bible, or the movie "The Mummy" were rivers turning into blood, fire and brimstone falling from the sky...but I think everyone remembers the plague of locusts. (Locusts being a plague because they eat all the vegetation and this brings about hunger and famine.)



http://www.reuters.com/newsArt...42901