What’s the Logic of a Deal?

Jared Kushner is in the neighbourhood in order to bring about an agreement between Israel and Hamas. He even met with Hamas.  I cannot help but ask – what the hell is wrong with people?

Jared Kushner has this job – special U.S. envoy – because he is the president’s son-in-law. Otherwise, he would be conducting business as usual in real estate. Of course, it is meant to be an advantage that he is Jewish. I am just not sure for whom. 

For a guy learning on the fly, he’s done well. In an interview with Trey Yingst from Fox News, he explained what he means to achieve and what has to happen in order to achieve it. He sounded like he has been doing this for a long time. He said all the things he needed to say. That progress was possible seemed to be the thrust. 

At one point, he pointed out that the agreement with Hamas would be “a win-win situation.”  The insight was jarring. Kushner pointed out that if the agreement actually works, and Hamas disarms, etc., then that would be great; if, however, Hamas does not comply with the agreement, “then everyone will see that they (Hamas) are not serious about peace, and then Israel will have a lot more support from the United States and others to go in and finish the job.”

A lot more support? Really? Does he mean more support than we have gotten until now? 

It is actually the same argument made when Israel retreated from Gaza in 2005. Proponents pointed out that if it doesn’t work, we can always go back in. Then we spent the next 18 years doing whatever we could to control the threat from Gaza without going back in. 

There is no room for a deal here. Hamas must surrender. We have to start calling it that. It might help weaken the perception that Jews are not allowed to win at war. 

It is reassuring that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stood firm on Israel’s positions. It was not unexpected. He has been consistent and steadfast in what we are trying to do. It has not gone as it was drawn up, no doubt, but he has for the most part not caved to the pressure to settle. 

I am not surprised that things would go in the direction they usually take – that is, Israel would be forced/coerced into an agreement that leaves us at least as vulnerable as we were before October 7, and eventually we will have to clean house in Gaza again, with more lives needlessly lost. I have said before that ceasefires merely prolong the conflict. To cut a deal, and to expect that Hamas will fulfill its responsibilities is, well, a good lawyer would probably make a good case to call it criminal insanity. 

There is a quote from none other than Mr. Spock, Science Officer of the USS Enterprise, that spells it out very clearly: “We must acknowledge once and for all that the purpose of diplomacy is to prolong a crisis.”