The day right was done

Today- December 6,2017 –  at 1 PM, Washington D.C. time and at 8 PM Jerusalem time, President Trump announced that the United States recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and will move its Embassy to Jerusalem.

This moment was promised by previous American presidents who did not deliver- in fear of discouraging the possibility of peace between the Palestinians and Israel by stroking the tail of the angry tiger. The President’s opening comments were the essence of the situation. He made it clear that the path taken over the past twenty years regarding Israeli-Palestinian peace had proved fruitless. To continue with the same approach in the future, he explained, would most certainly guarantee failure. His announcement, which was predictably abhorred by the Muslim world, was clearly a reaction to their own in-action and disingenuous behavior during the first year of his Presidency. Their deliberate lies and attempts to revise Middle East and Jewish history while satisfying the PLO with momentary successes, actually revealed their intentions for the long term. Only changing the rules of the game can actually alter the future. Critical to that change is forcing reality upon a totally duped Palestinian population. While the Palestinian Authority could have been improving the lives of their people, they chose to keep them angry, bitter, full of hate and suffering from economic limitations.  This could all have been resolved long ago, had their leadership wanted to actually help the population. Instead they kept them as pawns in a long-term game intended to destroy the Jewish state through law-fare and political pressure.  The Palestinian people interviewed on television today said they felt “forgotten and hopeless.” That is the fault of their own leaders who undermined every opportunity for peace. Israel gained strength with every passing day of the twenty years wasted by the P.A.

The amount of effort put forward by the Palestinian Authority at the United Nations totally consumed their attention. They achieved their flag flying above the U.N. although they actually have no state. They achieved daily condemnations of the State of Israel which ignored actual atrocities being perpetrated throughout Syria and the rest of the world. They thought that they had removed Israel’s historical claims to Jerusalem and even denied that the Holy Temple ever existed with the UNESCO Heritage committee vote, only to have the head of the United Nations apologize for their embarrassing re-writing of Jewish and Israeli history .

Now there is a new reality.  Israel has new friends. The United States is unabashedly, after eight years in the shadows, standing up for the one Democracy in the Middle East – the only nation there which allows all religions access to their holy sites, and guarantees freedom of prayer within its borders. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and other Arab nations are realizing that their common enemy is in fact Iran -which is spreading terror through the funding of its tentacle nations throughout the Middle East.  Alliances are changing.  The Palestinian cause is no longer their most important unifying factor. Up until now, they have been a convenient cause. But now there are even more serious issues for the Arab states. Their own survival concerns many of them far more than destroying the State of Israel.

If the Palestinian Authority has been discredited by the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s eternal capital, it must, by force- rethink its strategy. Thus far it has been to train its children to hate and be prepared to die for their cause.  It may be impossible for them to continue their United Nations campaigns with any credibility, especially after statements made by the head of the U.N. following President Trump’s speech today. The only way that the Palestinians can claim any rights to Jerusalem, would be after a concerted and genuine peace accord.

President Trump gave the Palestinians the first year after his election to show sincere intent. They did not… and he had no reason to placate them and participate in their charade. Threats that this declaration “would damage hopes of future Peace negotiations” were hollow, as there has, thus far, been no interest In Peace on their side. Hence there was nothing to damage.

It was bizarre to watch panels of news analysts reviewing the innuendos they derived from the speech. They still were in a time warp – thinking that there is a real-time potential for a peace process. The only way that could happen would be if there is a total re-think on the part of the Palestinian leadership.  It is highly unlikely that the leopard will change its spots and suddenly want to allow Israel to exist, much less cooperate with her after twenty years of virulent opposition. How would they reverse the hatred which they have inculcated into their children with such success?

Still, the one thing that history has taught us all, is that one can only negotiate from a position of strength. Israel was stronger at 8:30 PM today than it was at 7:59. For this, we can thank President Trump and his world view. I do not believe that this promise was fulfilled because of a fear of low polling numbers. I believe that he felt that it was “right and just,” and that it was time to correct the falsehoods of the past.  Tomorrow may bring violence to my city Jerusalem… but it won’t be the first time that our enemies have rejected communication in favor of murdering Jews. It certainly won’t be the last. We understand what has happened this evening.  History will record that “Right has been done”.