[SJackson]

Not isolationism. Just a difference of opinion on who our friends are. Note his last line.

Whether Israel talks to these folks, or slams the door in their faces, is her call. But if we do not wish to be as isolated, we have to talk to them. For, in the Middle East, time does not appear to be on our side.

[dirtboy]

if we do not wish to be as isolated, we have to talk to them.

Uh, no, Pat, we don't.

Let Israel (you know, that country you suddenly are so concerned about) finish their wall and leave Hamas and their supporters to rot.

[Joan Kerrey]

But if we do not wish to be as isolated, we have to talk to them.

Nonsense...That's what we did with Arafat. Will our wishful thinking continue to drive a failed policy? World history reflects without doubt that appeasement of and negotiations with fascists and terrorists simply delays more serious conflict.

We just saw democracy work in the disputed territories. We should congratulate the Palestinian people for making it through a democratic election process and then advise them that we assume they're ready for the consequences of their vote. They deserve the government they elected without continued support from the civilized world. It was their choice and they made it and now they'll have to live with the consequences.

[SampleMan]

Whether Israel talks to these folks, or slams the door in their faces, is her call. But if we do not wish to be as isolated, we have to talk to them. For, in the Middle East, time does not appear to be on our side.

And when time is not on your side, the last thing you should do is go hand holding with the opposition, so that they can run out the clock. If the man across the table is assembling a gun to shoot me with, I don't try to engage him in conversation on the hope that he won't shoot to kill.

The Hamas victory is good in that it is very clarifying and the Palestinians must now sleep in the bed they've made. Had Israel just elected a government dedicated to the eradication of all Palestinians, not a single sole in the world would be saying that anyone "must talk to them". Quite to the contrary, the line would be, "they must be isolated".