Midwest Beer Belly Despair Blog

Palestinians head for UN state showdown

This is a really, really interesting article. The Palestinian/Israel dance has been going on since before I was born but within the last ten years it has really started to seem to come to a head. While nobody in the Middle East was too terribly happy with Israel in the past, but the fact that Israel has nukes and the backing of the U.S. has kept most of the nations from blatantly attacking Israel.

However, Israel has its head up its collective ass. Their place as the only nuclear power in the region is being threatened by Iran’s headlong charge to nuclear armament. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have killed any goodwill toward the U.S. in the Middle East and yet Israel is still very dependent on the States for support. Israelis continue to build settlements in areas that have been gifted to the Palestinians and they show no signs of stopping. While they say they are open to a two state solution, the ultra-conservative government is so stiff necked about the Palestinians coming to the table that nothing can be done.

It’s nice to see that the Palestinians are doing something out of line. They’re utilizing the U.N. in a way that the U.N. was designed for, even if it doesn’t necessarily please America. Not to mention, it’s a way for Palestine to fight Israel without violence. The Israelis are clearly in the wrong as far as the treatment of the Palestinians are concerned, but their fear is justified. No other people has been persecuted quite like the Jews and Israel is definitely their bright, shining hope of having a safe country to live in. If they could only temper that fear, enough to allow their neighboring countries to stop hating them so much, then Israel might have a chance to survive.

On the homework note of this, The story has timeliness, currency, and impact as far as news values are concerned. It’s dealing with an issue that has to be solved soon (timeliness). It’s about Israel and Palestine, and those two have been bickering for years so people want to know the latest developments (currency). It’s also about the U.S. facing another international faux pas, and one that will directly affect our standing with the Middle East (impact).