John Kerry is a complete idiot. He goes into a country as a high ranking member of the US government and refuses to meet with the government of the nation he is visiting. He says that he is not there to meet with Hamas, but he is there to listen and to learn. How can you listen if you are not willing to listen to the government of the place you are trying to learn about?“[This visit] does not indicate any shift whatsoever with respect to Hamas … what it indicates is our effort to listen and to learn,” Kerry said in the Israeli town of Sderot before entering Gaza.
The US will not change its stance towards Hamas, John Kerry, the former democratic US presidential candidate, has said during a tour of Gaza.
His comments came on Thursday during the highest-level visit by a US official to the territory since Hamas seized control two years ago.
“I am here to listen with the UN personnel on the ground to hear … the things we need to do is to improve the situation in the region,” he said.
So a lawyer told Kerry that they want peace with Israel. He said:
“We highly appreciate your visit here and hope you can talk to your colleagues and say that we want peace with Israel. But we also need to live respectable lives.”
As anyone who has been following the situation knows, Hamas has been bending over backwards to make peace with Israel of late. They respected the ceasefire agreement until Israel broke for the umpteenth time and sought to put another ceasefire agreement into place soon thereafter. Israel, though, is looking for every opportunity to stay away from any inroads to peace with Hamas and just today, made the condition of the release of Gilad Shalit in order for the border crossings with Israel to be opened again. It is Israel, again and again that has provoked and oppressed Gaza for eons and when Gaza fights back with its dignity in tatters, our media and government place the full blame on Gaza. So Kerry answers him:
“Your political leadership needs to understand that any nation that has rockets hitting it for many years threatening its residents is going to respond.
“[Hamas] needs to make it clear how it is willing to move to make peace and those decisions have not been made yet.”
Kerry is an idiot. He is apparently ignorant of any history in the region at all. Hamas was obeying the ceasefire until Israel killed 7 of its men in Gaza on November 4th (US election day). Why is Kerry over there anyway? His presence does nothing for peace and merely continues the same catastrophic policy of the US over the last 40 years over there. Nothing is different.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/02/2009219135025156298.html
The Radical Mormon 
I agree that Kerry is stupid and that America’s policy toward the Palestinians has been greatly unfair. But the reality of the situation is that a majority of Palestinians are not willing to accept a two-state solution. Unfortunately, the recent elections in Israel demonstrate that a majority of its citizens may now also oppose a two-state solution. The problem, as I see it, is that the world is split into two camps. On one side, you have those who believe the Israelis can do no wrong. On the other side you have people who believe that everything the Palestinians do is justifide. Of course, the truth is somewhere in the middle of those extremes. But peace will remain elusive until more people understand that.
I think you are wrong in saying that most Palestinians are not willing to accept a two-state solution. I haven’t seen recent polls, but polls from last year showed that the largest percentage wanted a two-state solution, while a significant minority wanted a one-state solution. Why do you think Palestinians would not want a state?
I do not question the fact that the Palestinians want a state. But I believe that a majority of Palestinians do not want Israel to exist. And as long as that’s true, peace between the people is not going to happen.
LOL HAMAS a real govt? OH PLEASE!! you are hurting me by making me laugh so freaking hard!
What constitutes a real government in your mind?
If Hamas wanted peace, why is not working towards a two-state solution? During the recent war, all its missiles were directed against population centres and not Israeli troops.
if hamas is really serious about peace, it will join Abbas around the negotiating table. What has it got to lose except for its reputation for violence?
Michael,
Good question. Abbas has actually been supplied by the US and Israel with weapons and cash to overthrow Hamas back in 2007. Remember that Hamas was the duly elected government of Palestinian territories since 2006. This was essentially treason by Abbas and the resulting conflict saw Abbas kicked out of Gaza. Despite this, there is apparently some sort of movement towards a unity government. However, if you remember, right after Hamas kicked Abbas out, it was Abbas who said that he would never join in a unity government with Hamas and not vice-versa.
Why do you say Hamas hasn’t been working towards a two-state solution? That is what all of the concessions towards Israel have been based upon… the desire for a future Palestinian state beside the state of Israel. Unfortunately, Israel hasn’t been much of a partner for peace with its constant attacks and provocations upon Gaza and its immediate breaking of every truce it has ever made with Hamas. During the last ceasefire in the latter half of 2008, Israel was constantly firing upon unarmed Palestinian fishermen in their own waters, and never held up their part of the bargain by keeping the border crossings closed while Palestinians languished under the resulting lack of imported goods.
The missiles fired during the recent battle were indeed probably aimed at civilian centers. However, the reasoning there (which I don’t accept of course) is that Israel kills our civilians, so we will get them back by killing theirs.
Jonathan,
In polls taken last year, Palestinians either wanted a two-state solution (I believe close to half favored two states) or a one state solution with a merging of the two nations. I don’t know what you mean by saying that you believe that most Palestinians don’t want Israel to exist. Do you mean Israeli people? or the state of Israel? and what evidence do you have for saying that?
The 300 pound bully demands that the puny kid on the block recognize his right to “exist.” To the puny kid it is just a fact of life that the bully exists, right or wrong. He wishes he would go beat up on somebody his own size.
Forest. the 300 lbs bullies have been trying for years to wipe us off the map. we only stand and fight for our lives. we refuse to go like those who stood in line in europe thinking “this can’t happen this is a civilzed world..”