[Stefan Stackhouse]

The window of opportunity for the Israelis to implement this solution was immediately after the 1967 war. They could have simply built a bridge across the Jordan, and rounded up and herded all the Palestinian polulation across it then and have been done with this whole mess. Yes, the world would have hollered bloody murder, but no more so than it has done for the past 33 years anyway.

Israel's failure to do so when it had the chance was a failure of nerve, a failure which is bringing it dire consequences now. It is difficult to invision any scenario that could accomplish the desired outcome now. A realistic assessment of the situation would conclude that the best that the Israelis can hope to achieve now would be a permanent partition and absolute separation of the two populations by truly secure borders. Even that will not assure "peace", only "survival." Maybe if the Israelis survive for enough centuries, they will get another window of opportunity to take it all.

[SJackson]

The KG9 Kid:About a year ago, I proposed the exact same solution mentioned above to ending the Palestinian/Iraeli conflict, and drew nothing but catcalls asking 'what planet are you from?!'.

I missed it, but what planet ARE you from.

Not that it wouldn’t be a just solution. Jordan would have dealt with Palestinian terror as they dealt with the PLO. Lots of dead, no PLO. But it’s too late.

Stefan Stackhouse: The window of opportunity for the Israelis to implement this solution was immediately after the 1967 war…Israel's failure to do so when it had the chance was a failure of nerve, a failure which is bringing it dire consequences now.

A lesson to be learned there. At the height of the IDF’s aggressiveness, following a historical military success, a lasting solution was impossible. IMO, a liberal government probably is to blame. If it were lack of the nation’s will, we wouldn’t be having this discussion.

Actually, a better option than Jordan raised at the time was the creation of a refugee “state” in the Sinai, perhaps encompassing a portion of Gaza.

It is difficult to invision any scenario that could accomplish the desired outcome now…

Perhaps a division of the West Bank along the lines proposed by the Joint Chiefs in the late 60’s to provide Israel with defensible borders (I’ll post them if you wish). It would provide the “Palestinians” with about 40% of the West Bank for a demilitarized state. Given the passage of time, they’d get Gaza too.

Most important, there would be recognizable borders, the violation of which (and it will happen) would be an act of war.

[XBob]

Yassar Arafat and company were kicked out of Israel in the 60's and 70's, into Jordan. Once in Jordan, they promptly tried to take over Jordan from King Hussein, tried to assasinate the King, several times, started civil wars, and were finally were crunched by the Jordanians, kicked out, and went to Lebanon, where they started a civil war, tried to take over Lebanon, and totally destroyed the country.

With the help of the Israeli's, the Lebanese civil war was ended, and Arafat was kicked out again, and went to Tripoli, where they again fomented civil war trying to take over that country.

These palestinians don't want palestine, they want power, they want to rule a country, any country, it doesn't matter. They have been kicked out of every country they have been in after fomenting civil war and trying to take over the government.