[Peace-discuss] "What the hell are we doing here?"

[David Green]

This article supports the views of Ian Lustick, passed along last week, that Israel (excluding its 20% Arab population) is divided among two factions: those who would prefer to leave, and those who would like to blow up the rest of the Middle East. The cliche has always been that the Middle East is a "rough neighborhood." The question if response to that should always have been "What does Israel (and the U.S.) contribute to that state of affairs?" The answer should be obvious.
   
  DG
   
   
  'God help us': Israeli response to Mideast poll

JERUSALEM (AFP) - *Most Israeli Jews have a negative perception of the
Middle East with many asking themselves, "What the hell are we doing
here?" *according to a survey released on Tuesday.

Asked to give the first words that came to mind when thinking about the
Middle East, 61 percent of respondents were negative, 20 percent neutral
and 19 percent positive, Tel Aviv University's Centre for Peace Research
said.

The negative responses mainly related to war, terrorism and Islam, the
centre's poll found.

"These came along with expressions of a general, colourful nature such
as: 'a nutcase region', 'a shitty place', 'a morass,' 'I can't take any
more of it,' 'God help us,' and 'What the hell are we doing here?'" the
centre said.

Among the positive responses, an aspiration to peace was common.

The survey also found that 71 percent of Jewish Israelis do not believe
that Israel will succeed in the coming decades to integrate politically
with the rest of the Middle East.

The centre's survey shows that 63 percent clearly prefer integration
with the West.

Among Israeli Arabs on the other hand, 34 percent responded with
positive words and images when questioned about the Middle East, 32
percent had negative responses and 34 percent were neutral.

In the telephone interview of 599 people, carried out at the start of
September, a majority of Israeli Arabs also favoured integration with
the West rather than the Middle East.


       
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